Oh, boy.

Posted on November 6, 2010 by gnd

Tony     Been watching the election returns. Gawd… if someone like Rand Paul can win, get ready for weird times!
November 2 at 10:57pm ·
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Rosy O’Grady      I’ll see your Gawd and raise you a What The Hay?!
November 2 at 11:31pm · LikeUnlike
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Eric       Not real famaliar with Rand Paul but if he helps get the house back in “check” then I’m all for it. (go ahead Tony let me hear ya)
November 2 at 11:36pm · LikeUnlike
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Chris       He was endorsed by the Tea Party as one who will put the House in Order !!!
Wednesday at 7:19am · LikeUnlike
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Tony      He doesn’t believe in equal rights for blacks, he said last night after he won that we either work for the rich, or sell the rich something, so lay off them. The guy is loony! Only in America!
Wednesday at 8:49pm · LikeUnlike
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John       I’m with you! Seems to be a lot of Anger out there and people are just voting for the extremes!
Wednesday at 9:37pm · LikeUnlike
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Chris
You guys need to try and listen to newscast other than the mainstream media. They are the extremes broadcasting the extremes of the Tea and Republican Parties. Just look at the Nielson Television Ratings for where Americans get their news. …FOX News beats out ABC, NBC, MSNBC and CBS combined. Besides that they employ both Democrate and Republican Parties. You also have a computer to do your own research and find out exactly what the Politicians have said and how they said it. There are varitables to everything in life which means an extremity at each end of the spectrum.See More
Thursday at 6:35am · LikeUnlike
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Eric
He didn’t say anything about “non-equality” you’re hearing what you choose to hear. America is long past that. Work for the rich or sell something to them only means if you have money you’ll be employing those that need it or buying a produ…ct made by those that have the means to produce it and need the income generated by doing so. Here’s a news flash for you closed minded liberals, if you have no money and you choose to produce and sell (we call it the American dream) it won’t be long before you are one of “those “that you are criticizing. Because the rewards of hard work and daring to dream generally ends up being wealth. So instead of sitting back thinking the world “owes” you a living, get off your ass and go make it happen!!! I don’t pity the less fortunate in ALL cases cause half the time it is a result of nothing more than being lazy. And for those of us that do dare and choose to make our own way, we don’t owe the other half a damn thing!!! So I say “F” ’em and feed’em fish heads. Don’t get me wrong , for those that truly need help, thats one thing but for those that won’t or don’t try,,,,,,,,,, the world would be a better place without them any how !!!!See More
Thursday at 9:10am · LikeUnlike
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Rosy O’Grady
The portrayed extremes aren’t limited to Republican/Tea Partiers, as evidenced by regular use of the term “closed minded liberals”. So, agreed, it’s important to seek out a variety of news sources, especially if Fox is your only current so…urce.
The bottom line boil down is a difference in philosophies. There are those who believe the government’s primary responsibility is to defend us from war. There are those who believe the government, and let’s not forget that we are the government, should have a hand in improving the quality of life and liberty in this great nation. Where you fall along the spectrum defines how you feel about things like Medicare, Social Security, Medicaid, and even the Post Office.
I value our soldiers. I want to live in a country that provides for them. I value our old people. I want to live a country that provides for them. You know, the least of these, my brothers… and all that. I guess what I’m saying is that I value life. Not just that of the unborn, but also that of the living. And I don’t want to go back to the days before the government got involved in improving our infrastructure. I’ve grown fond of electricity and indoor plumbing.
Practically speaking, I paid more taxes in the Clinton years, but i didn’t mind because I also had more money left over. I worked with the mentally ill elderly. They were able to avoid long term care longer because there were community programs for the elderly. Two job families who were sandwiched between elderly parents and young children had improved chances at “making it” because of those programs, and the after school programs for their kids. Those families aren’t who most people think of when they think of social programs. And they really felt it when those programs were cut during the next administration.See More
Thursday at 10:32am · LikeUnlike
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Chris       Tony did you vote?
Thursday at 11:24am · LikeUnlike
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Eric       Now there’s a question to be answered…….. I did so therefore……….
Thursday at 12:50pm · LikeUnlike
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Tony
They say don’t talk politics or religion in a bar… I guess the same goes on Facebook! I don’t have time to respond to all the posts… but… John I agree, very extreme this political year, Chris, when someone says something on camera, …pretty cut and dry, Eric, your a right winged republican fruitcake 🙂 , and Rosy, thank you for saying so politely what I would have said in a more vulgar manner! Chris and Eric, go watch more Glenn Beck! No, I didn’t vote… I was working. In Beck’s eyes I bet that makes me a Commie loving illegal immigrant!!!See More
Thursday at 7:58pm · LikeUnlike
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John       Yep, I was just referencing the mood and not anything in particular about Rand
Thursday at 10:11pm · LikeUnlike
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Chris
I don’t know what Glen Beck says about not voting but I say anyone who did not vote, does not have any right to Bitch or Comment. There was plenty of time to vote before November 2nd. Oh and by the way if someone says something on camera yo…u had better find out if it is a full video clip or edited so they appear to say something else. Science technology news out just last week, items can be removed from video. So now we not only have Photoshop but Videoshop as well. The biggest item here is that Rand Paul has no track record so we have no idea if he is a good or bad guy. Now look at Barney Frank, he got re-elected again. He has a horrific track record. The bottom line is that this is all POLTICS – poly = latin, meaning plural or multible. – tics = tiny blood sucking creatures. I am happy to stand by Eric as a Right Wing Republican. As far as the fruitcake naming part goes, it simply shows someones talking points ran out of substance.See More
Yesterday at 6:01am · LikeUnlike
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Rosy O’Grady
Good point! We have to be certain we’re looking at a non-edited video clip, because otherwise Breitbart could take advantage of us. Or we might miss it when the sound of cadets, clapping for the president, is deleted. Or when we pretend …9/11 rally footage is turnout against healthcare reform. Or when we pretend the hammer-and-sickle piece of a Class Of 2007 mosaic is a G-20 protestor sign. And every other time Fox news selectively crops and edits videos to underscore a point they want to make.

I’m disappointed about our country’s low science scores in general, but I will be devastated if science news only discovered last week that items can be removed from videos. Especially since Fox has the concept mastered!See More
Yesterday at 8:25am · LikeUnlike
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Eric       Well hey, I’m going bowling tonight!!!!! hows that for political?????
Yesterday at 8:49am · LikeUnlike
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Rosy O’Grady What’s a girl gotta do around here to get someone to fight with her ?! 🙂
Yesterday at 9:01am · LikeUnlike
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Eric
I’m not much of a fighter, I beleive that you should work for it if you want it and as far as those “old folks” god love ’em and we should too. there are no people on the face that deserve as much respect and love as the soilders that put t…heir lives on the line and the people that made us what we are. I agree with that. I also beleive that we should take care of those that took care of us so that when we are the old folks our children will do the same. I just sour over people who feel like they are owed and yet they haven’t worked near as hard as I have. And every time I ever asked for “help” I was denied. So when the going gets tough the tough get going and the democrats stand in line with their hands out!!!!! Not completely true I know but thats my “right winged republican fruitcake” state of mind. lmao!!!!!See More
Yesterday at 9:20am · LikeUnlike
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Chris   ‎@Eric – Good Luck Bowling Tonight @Rosy – ROFLMFAO !!!
Yesterday at 9:28am · UnlikeLike · 1 personYou like this.
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Rosy O’Grady
‎”right winged republican fruitcake” state of mind.” Finally! You’ve said something I can’t dispute. 😉
It’s frustrating, isn’t it? The “hands out” thing. I’m especially frustrated by the outspoken Republican farmers back home who wa…nt the government off their backs. Just don’t ask them if they’re willing to give up the subsidies they get for not farming. Evidently that government monkey on the back is still fine by them. 🙂

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Brush Fire #2

Posted on September 26, 2010 by clancyjane

Ms. Redacted:  My name tag now states. ” I COULD BE PRESIDENT’.   Now before all of you leave your comments…. think about it for a moment, and you will realize it is true, I could be…lol

Thursday at 12:48am ·

You and 4 others like this.

1st commentor:  we’d have you some chip n dales singing happy birthday ms. president lmao

Ms. Redacted:  Now that is what I am talking about….lol MY cabinet would be made up of chippendales also.

2nd commentor: I want to have a part somewhere so i can see some of that action lmao

3rd commentor: Wow if she was President, all of our vets would be treated much better than our current President treats them…  Also She would offend people and say God Bless America..  Also in God We Trust..And bring the X Mas tree back to the White House.. She would Rock!! 🙂

Ms. Redacted   Thanks, at least I have one who would like me if I were President..

Me:  I’d love it if you were our president! Dr. Pepper in every cup! But you’d have to really raise the bar if you want to treat the vets better than our current administration. It doesn’t make the news, I think because it was a bipartisan effort, and our political parties are too busy pretending they don’t have anything in common.  But here is a quote from a Times article:

“The accessibility with this administration has been outstanding. They listen, they reach out to the veterans’ service organizations, they see the value in communicating,” Peter Gaytan, executive director of the American Legion, the nation’s largest veterans’ organization, with 2.5 million members.

Even amid competing priorities and a deepening recession, Mr. Obama last year managed to secure the biggest increase in funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs in 30 years. And as Congress begins writing spending bills for 2011, despite a spending freeze on some other domestic spending, he’s looking for more aid for veterans.

Mr. Obama’s proposed VA budget for fiscal 2011 asks for $125 billion – a 10 percent jump from what Congress enacted for 2010, which was itself more than 16 percent more than 2009. The discretionary portion of next year’s budget request – the part the administration and Congress have the most direct control over – is up nearly 20 percent since 2009, to total $60.3 billion.”

That’s a lot of jelly beans!

3rd commentor:  She would run under the (DrPepperJellyBean4U) Party!! 🙂

Posted in Moderate Attempts To Speak Up | 1 Comment

Dick Durbin re: Elizabeth Warren

Posted on September 23, 2010 by gnd

September 23, 2010

Dear Ms. Redacted:

Thank you for sharing your support for Elizabeth Warren to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). I appreciate hearing from you.

The Wall Street reform bill created the CFPB, housed in the Federal Reserve, to protect consumers from the tricks, traps, and fine print that some banks use to take unfair advantage of consumers. The CFPB is an independent agency with the sole function of protecting consumers. The Bureau will write strong, sensible rules that apply to all lenders, with no carve-outs. It is critical that the director of the CFPB be aggressive but fair in protecting the American public.

Elizabeth Warren is a champion for consumer safety, and she is inspiration for the creation of the CFPB. For the past three years she has advocated tirelessly for the creation of an agency that would do just one very important thing: help American families make good decisions when it comes to mortgages, credit cards, and other forms of consumer credit. Throughout her work, a common theme has emerged – that government should work for the American people, not the other way around. She’s the right person to lead this bureau, pure and simple.

I urge the President to nominate her, and if he does I urge my colleagues in the Senate to confirm her.

Thank you again for sharing your support. Please feel free to stay in touch.

Sincerely,

Richard J. Durbin

United States Senator

RJD/dr

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Brush Fire #1

Posted on May 28, 2010 by clancyjane
Redacted:  When I put the wreath up I was directed to all these “be proud to be conservative” sites and “Reagan for president” site. I just wanted to clarify, since there were no “not conservative” buttons, that I’m not LOL.
May 28 at 1:50pm  
Commentor #1:   ROFLMAO Maybe since there are no liberal buttons, Somebody is trying to tell you something. LOL  
Commentor #1:   Besides, there is no rule that says liberals can not be patriotic!!! :o)
Commentor #2:  By proper definition of the word Liberal, i’m a war mongering liberal. I believe in Liberty. I also vote Libertarian. 
Me:   When propagandists succeed in convincing Americans that the concepts of patriotism and liberalism are mutually exclusive, it makes Jesus sad.
Commentor #1:  ‎(in Steve Urkels’s voice) Did I do that?
 
Posted in Facebook, Moderate Attempts To Speak Up | 1 Comment

South Beach 3/10

Posted on March 22, 2010 by gnd

Posted in Homeless, Life | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Tao of “Pig Pen”

Posted on January 11, 2009 by plditallo
Retrieved from “http://peanuts.wikia.com/wiki/Talk:%22Pig-Pen%22“

I  always thought of “Pig Pen” as a metaphor representing the one kid in the class that didn’t have it together. This was the kid that had the broken crayons, the shirt with the tomato soup stains, the smudged/wrinkled homework, etc. Violet’s reaction to the character isn’t unlike the reaction of the “cool kids” in the school setting with which I was familiar. That “Pig Pen” never gets assigned a “Real Name” says it all.

I barely paid attention to the plight of “Pig Pen” until I examined my relationships with persons living in chaos at different junctures in their lives; some ambling through a never ending hall of it, while others traversed smaller patches on less chronic journeys.

Even though “Pig Pen” did not believe in the Great Pumpkin, he gave up his opportunity for Trick or Treating to stand watch with Linus. All these years later, I’m saddened to realize we knew more of this character’s trademark than we did of him.

Posted in Art, Life, Thought | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Barack Obama on Iran

Posted on July 18, 2008 by clancyjane

Dear Redacted:

Thank you so much for contacting me to share your concerns about U.S. policy towards Iran. I appreciate hearing from you about this issue.

I have grave concerns about Iran’s nuclear program and sponsorship of international terrorism, and I believe that Iran poses a threat to international peace and security. However, I am also concerned about some of the escalating rhetoric coming out of Washington. At this point, the U.S. should pursue a thoughtful and aggressive diplomatic strategy that seeks to unify the international community and place sufficient pressure upon the Iranian Government to halt its nuclear program—without punishing the Iranian people.

This strategy should include direct engagement with Iran similar to the meetings we conducted with the Soviets at the height of the Cold War, laying out in clear terms our principles and interests. Tough-minded diplomacy would include real leverage through stronger sanctions. It would mean more determined U.S diplomacy at the United Nations. It would mean harnessing the collective power of our friends in Europe who are Iran’s major trading partners. It would mean a cooperative strategy with Gulf States who supply Iran with much of the energy resources it needs. It would mean unifying those states to recognize the threat of Iran and increase pressure on Iran to suspend uranium enrichment. It would mean full implementation of U.S. sanctions laws. And over the long term, it would mean a focused approach from us to finally end the tyranny of oil, and develop our own alternative sources of energy to drive the price of oil down.

The United States’ leverage is strengthened when we have many nations cooperating with us. It puts us in a place where sanctions could actually have a profound impact on Iran’s economy. Iran is highly dependent on imports and foreign investment, credit and technology. And an environment where our allies see that these types of investments in Iran are not in the world’s best interests could help bring Iran to the negotiating table.

Thank you again for contacting me. Please feel free to keep in touch with me on this and any other issue of concern to you.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama
United States Senator

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Barack Obama on Health Care

Posted on May 5, 2008 by clancyjane

Dear Redacted:

Thank you for contacting me with regard to health care reform. I appreciate hearing from you on this important topic.

Promoting affordable and accessible health care is a priority of mine in the U.S. Senate. Health care should be a right for everyone, not a privilege for a few. The U.S. is one of the wealthiest nations in the world, yet more than 45 million Americans are uninsured. This is unacceptable. Addressing this problem should be a top priority for our Federal government. I am constantly disappointed by the lack of positive discussion and action on health care issues in Washington. Too many Americans are working hard but cannot afford their health care bills. Too many employers are finding it difficult to offer the coverage their employees need. Day to day, this is an enormous problem, let alone when a personal crisis hits.

With that said, I am supportive of the goal of universal health care in the U.S. As you may know, I have called for universal health care by 2012. This call for coverage does not translate into a call for a single-payer system. Although I personally see great potential in the single-payer concept, given the current political climate I believe that building upon and strengthening our employer-based system will provide a better chance of creating consensus and achieving the goal of universal health care. Regardless, I view federal subsidies to expand coverage for uninsured individuals, controlling the costs of premiums and copays for those with coverage, increased focus on preventive health programs and quality improvement, and health IT implementation as a few of the key tenets of any successful health care reform plan.

Again, thank you for writing. I sincerely hope to work with my colleagues in a bipartisan manner on initiatives that improve access to care. Please stay in touch in the days to come.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama
United States Senator

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Barack Obama on Health Care

Posted on April 18, 2008 by clancyjane

Dear Redacted:

Thank you for contacting me with regard to a single-payer national health care system. I appreciate hearing from you on this important topic.

Promoting affordable and accessible health care is a priority of mine in the U.S. Senate. Health care should be a right for everyone, not a privilege for a few. The U.S. is one of the wealthiest nations in the world, yet more than 45 million Americans are uninsured. This is unacceptable. Addressing this problem should be a top priority for our Federal government. I am constantly disappointed by the lack of positive discussion and action on health care issues in Washington. Too many Americans are working hard but cannot afford their health care bills. Too many employers are finding it difficult to offer the coverage their employees need. Day to day, this is an enormous problem, let alone when a personal crisis hits.

I am supportive of the goal of universal health care in the U.S. As you may know, I have called for universal health care by 2012. This call for coverage does not translate into a call for a single-payer system. This is not to say that I do not see great potential in a single-payer care concept. I personally believe that single payer models have a number of strengths. For example, we know from a brief review of the Medicare and Medicaid program in the U.S. that single payer systems can dramatically reduce administrative and overhead costs, and that prices for drugs and other services are much lower because of government negotiation.

Unfortunately, however, I do not believe that the current political climate would support a national, single-payer model right now, which would require a major revamping of our current market-based health care system. Building and strengthening our employer-based system will provide a better chance of creating consensus and achieving the goal of universal health care. Furthermore, there are few “pure” single payer systems. Whether we look to our public programs here in the U.S., including Medicaid and Medicare, or to some of the European countries, most single-payer-like systems have incorporated some private or market-based elements into these systems.

Regardless, I view federal subsidies to expand coverage for uninsured individuals, controlling the costs of premiums and co-pays for those with coverage, increased focus on preventive health programs and quality improvement, and health IT implementation as a few of the key tenets of any successful health care reform plan. Our national plan should seek to capitalize on the strengths of both single payer models and market-driven approaches.

Again, Glen, thank you for writing. I sincerely hope to work with my colleagues in a bipartisan manner on initiatives that improve access to care. Please stay in touch in the days to come.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama
United States Senator

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Barack Obama on Cuba

Posted on January 22, 2008 by clancyjane

Dear Redacted:

Thank you for contacting me about U.S. policy toward Cuba.  I appreciate having the benefit of your perspective on this important issue.

Like you, I support some important changes to U.S. policy toward Cuba.  In particular, I support unrestricted family travel and family remittances to the island.  I also support the sale of food and medicine to Cuba. At the moment, I do not support lifting the embargo, but would rather make clear to the next government of Cuba that we are prepared to restore relations, including the lifting of limitations on travel and restoring full diplomatic relations, as it takes steps toward democracy.

As a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I look forward to participating in the debate on U.S. policy towards Cuba.  I will certainly keep your comments in mind as I consider relevant issues in the Senate.

Sincerely,

Barack Obama
United States Senator

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