I say yes, you say no, OR People are Strange

Bren-2007

Otter .. It's relevant to me, as I was just thinking about that article.  I also posted it in the 'deletees' thread.  We forget that there is a person on the other side of our keyboard .. with feelings that could really be hurt by something we write.

Freedom of speech has such a great responsibility to it .. in my opinion.

Bren

molly52

Good idea!  Me too.

otter

Breaking News:  Keith Olbermann is gone from MSNBC, as of tonight's program.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/41201964

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2126947320110122

otter

annettek

first it was the brutalization of brussell sprouts...now you folks are chopping BABY bok choys in half? For petey's sake...stop this massacre.

Anonymous

States and cities are in deep trouble financially.  Camden NJ, which was named the second most dangerous city in the country last year laid off nearly half its police force and a third of its fire fighters this week. 

http://www.philly.com/philly/business/homepage/114145884.html

A young woman was murdered yesterday walking out of a food store.  She was just an innocent victim who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

There is a point at which the most basic services are not being provided.  Unless and until the people who live in those cities are able to get jobs and pay taxes rather than collecting unemployment or welfare, things will get worse rather than getting better. 

iodine

We saved for several years knowing that I'd be on personal BC/BS after dh's retirement and we no long had a group policy.  $2400 a MONTH, because I was post bc and we got the drug plan--cause as we all know, if I was dx'd again, the meds would require selling our house.

Medicare has been such a blessing for me.  I have also advocated that it be income based.  There are those who can (and should) pay more than others.  My mom had only SS to live on due to a non-identified-in-time disabiity and needed the Medicare payments.  My in-laws did NOT need the low payments. 

The Medicare Advantage is a less expensive form of Medicare and offers a different kind of coverage (in fact only a few docs in my town accept it because it pays differently), and all forms of it need an extra pvt. policy to cover what Medicare does not cover.  Part D, the drug plan, is also another cost.  But all of it put together doesn't come near what we paid for our group plan and then for my pvt. plan.  And I don't have co-pays either.  Perhaps I should be doing that, and will if the law says so.

In TN we have Tenncare.  It was a trial thing that was passed in the night before the gov. was replaced by his successor.  It was and is an awful thing.  Only a couple of docs in town accept it, and it pays the providers so little as to make it a non-paying ins.  It was also overcome with mismanagement for the first 5 plus years with graft, nepotism, theft.  You name it.  No overisght!

Medicaid is partially paid for by the states and part by the Feds. 

that's what I don't understand is how the gov't makes things up in a law and then not fund it.

Anonymous

Shirley - It's disgusting that we continue to feed, clothe and medicate ILLEGALS and then cut back on funding of LEGAL teachers and first responders. I just don't get it. Never have, never will. 2012...can't come soon enough.

Anonymous

Olbermann - GONE - whew! Hopefully the same will soon be true for Maher.

Anonymous

Ummmm...no, I haven't forgotten. And, since when does two wrongs make a right? Barry campaigned on the CHANGE issue. Where's the change? He had a perfect opportunity to CHANGE the wrongs of previous administrations. But instead, he and his faithful followers spend more time blaming the past administration and whining about their jobs than they spend making meaningful CHANGE. You can keep the change.

(Edited for typos.)

lewing

A correction to Shirley's post; she wrote that "BTW, you know that COLA doesn't calculate the cost of food and energy, right?  That's why there are no raises in SS."  That's just plain untrue.  The cost of living calculation for Social Security does in fact include food and energy.  The reason there has been no COLA for the last couple of years is that inflation has been so low (it was actually *negative* in 2009 - the average price level, including food and energy, *fell* between 2008 and 2009).

These facts are easily checkable.  Just go to the Bureau of Labor Statistics website and get the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W).  (Though I guess that no matter how easy it is to get the facts, it's even easier to make stuff up.)

L

lewing

Oh, by the way, since Frances Fox Piven was mentioned on this thread earlier . . . did you know that she is receiving (misspelled and randomly capitalized and punctuated) death threats?  Nice going, Glenn Beck.  And nice going, Glenn Beck's echo chamber. 

L

floralgal

Wow, lots to catch up on, here.  First off, Blue, congrats--so glad you "are doing better than the average bear!"  Also, very sorry to see that Rocky is being forced off the website.  Blue, you pegged it when you said it doesn't take rocket science to figure out who's behind the deletions.  Any of us who have been posting on the political threads and health care threads (which obviously have been shut down) have seen the same pattern that the multi-alias person uses.  And I guess it comes down to "hurt people hurt people."  If anyone has read the other postings of this person (with all her different aliases) it is obvious she is in pain, on painkillers, anti-depressants, etc..  I think she is lashing out at others because of her personal suffering.  I'm certainly not excusing, just trying to figure it out and explain it.  Anyway, I am praying for her. 

And hopefully, down the road, BCO can update the site and show the deleters name(s) when this occurs.....maybe that will deter the behavior.

So, anyway.....for what it's worth--trying to catch up here and I know this discussion was several pages back, but, I love mocha chip ice cream and Ben and Jerry's Phish Food : )  Love gelato both here in the states and Italy!  Will never forget enjoying my first taste of gelato standing in front of the Trevi Fountain in Rome.  Amazing place!

Molly52 and otter--love that Buffalo Springfield song.  And Molly, you're so right when you said, 'Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose"

Here's another song (below) from that era that I love.  I was even born yet when this song was written, but I love so much of the music from this time.

Going to go read some newspapers and other things on-line.  May be back if I have anything to contribute.  Have a great day everyone!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3t4g_1VoGw4

floralgal

Speaking of the 60's....interesting article:

http://www.newsweek.com/2011/01/20/the-shadow-of-the-60s.html

floralgal

Me again : ).

Glad Olberman is off the airwaves.  Now if only Beck would leave.....one can dream, huh?

Ok, ladies--anyone else care to take the pledge below?  I will!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/20/AR2011012004349.html

Bren-2007

Floral .. it's going to be hard for me to take that challenge, especially if she is still yammering away in February.  I will try, but I can't promise to be 'Palin-free' for an entire month.

Bren

Edited:  I've read a bunch of articles about why Olbermann left MSNBC and none of them give any details.  Laura .. Bill Maher is on HBO not MSNBC .. he can say anything on HBO.

Bren-2007

Floral .. good article in Newsweek.  I copied a para from the article and pasted it below: 

But a strictly economic focus misses broader political and psychological parallels. What frightens people today is that we've experienced setbacks that were so completely unpredicted and unimagined (financial panic, major bank failures, General Motors' bankruptcy, huge budget deficits, collapsed housing values) that they raise dark doubts about our institutions and leaders. The political order seems unequal to the challenges. The stridency of debate reflects fears that one political crowd or the other will yank the country in a disastrous direction.

rosemary-b

Sixties music is the best.

I love BinVa's new avatar.

The imigration situation is a mess. The system is broken and it would take some of that cooperation and working together that Washington can't seem to muster to fix it.  

Bren-2007

Thanks Rosemary .. I think it's really cute too and in honor of our beloved Rocky who's deleting her account on BCO. 

Madalyn .. I'm a natural redhead too!!

I miss the youth and passion of the 60's and early 70's.

Bren

Edited:  IMO Olbermann's firing is a result of Comcast taking over NBC.  From what I understand, Comcast is pretty conservative.

otter

Yes, I love the music. I miss the passion -- young people took themselves so seriously in the '60's.  (I only participated in one war protest.  Along with hundreds of other students, I sat on the steps outside our university's administration building late one evening, holding a lighted candle in a dixie cup.  Unlike what took place at some of the other protests, nothing but the candles got burned; no one got hurt; nobody was arrested.  We did make the 10 o'clock news, of course.

But, I do not miss the fallout shelters or the civil defense classes, or the missiles on ships that were headed for Cuba, or the horrible "race riots", or the heart-wrenching assassinations, or the disastrous Democratic Convention in Chicago in 1968. And, I wish there hadn't been so many young people (people who were my age) getting their brains fried from the drugs they were using.  And, if possible, not quite so much of a "generation gap" on so very many issues. Talk about divisiveness.

And, I'd rather that there weren't so many names on that long, black wall in Washington, D.C., including my cousin's name.  But, that's one of the parallels with today, isn't it?

otter

1Athena1

Just popping in to thank those of you for sending me your best wishes. I may have overstated the Percocet - I just needed one for what was really a no big deal surgery. Been rather busy lately, so cannot always catch up on threads as I would like to. The River DeNile still houses all of my doctor's offices and treatments, so the trick is to merely populate the river with other things to get off the endless healthcare worry track. You all know how this goes, of course... Hugs to all, and glad to see we are still swimming!

Bren-2007

And Otter, who can forget the tragedy of Kent State.  My brain is still pretty good though after numerous experimentation drugs.  Ha!

Bren

PS .. Athena, so glad to see you.  I miss not seeing you regularly.  Hope all is well in your world.

1Athena1

Back at you

floralgal

Good to see you popping in, Athena!

 Just read this:

"The economy's rebounding, his approval ratings are ticking up, and the GOP field is a mess......President Obama's poll ratings are climbing. And the online prediction market Intrade has Obama at a 58.9 percent chance of winning a second term. Though November 2012 is light years away in political time, as Team Obama regroups in Chicago, they should be optimistic about their reelection prospects. Here are 12 reasons why:"

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2011-01-20/president-obamas-re-election-chances-12-reasons-why-hes-likely-to-win/

And.......love this song, too.....think it was late 60's or 70's:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztVaqZajq-I

Listening that song reminds me of this one......  (I also love Stephen Sondheim : )

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4a841zBsszQ

Bren-2007

Floral .. I copied this para from the article you posted: 

President Obama's poll ratings are climbing. And the online prediction market Intrade has Obama at a 58.9 percent chance of winning a second term. Though November 2012 is light years away in political time, as Team Obama regroups in Chicago, they should be optimistic about their reelection prospects.

In the last 56 U.S. presidential elections, 31 have involved incumbents; 21 of those candidates have won more than one term. Based on these historical odds, Obama has a better-than-67-percent chance of winning reelection. In 2004, voters were not happy with the economy, the Iraq War or President Bush generally, and still he was reelected.

This is great news for Obama supporters!  58.9% chance of winning a second term is awesome!

Bren

rosemary-b

The economy seems to be slowly improving and any improvement in that should be a plus for Obama. Also people seem impressed with what he did with the Lame Duck Congress.

Bren-2007

The economy is growing, although slowly.  That was one of the talking points in the article as well.  Another is his obvious charisma!

I think I will get involved in his campaign in my area this year.  I've never volunteered in the political arena before so I think it should be fun!

Bren

Anonymous

Unemployment is over 9%!!!!!

Better than devastated is still horrible!!!

If charisma were the answer, the country would have been in much better shape over the last two years.

People are out of work so long that they are no longer counted in the unemployment figures.  That is not an improvement no matter what some mouthpiece tries to tell us. 

The housing market is in the toilet.  People can't sell their homes even at bargin basement prices. 

The price of oil is going through the roof again, which means the price of everything else, food, clothing, etc.  that needs to be transported from its point of origin to the point of sale will be going up too.

In what bizarro world is this a good thing?

rosemary-b

The inflation rate was so low this year people got no cost of living increase  for their Social Security. It will probably go up but crystal ball has never worked so I have no idea what it willl be. It is certainly at a fairly low level now.

Anonymous

Why are Obama's ratings going up?  IMO, it's because he's moved to the "middle."  Notice his "base" is not happy.  Also, look at his new appointments...more centrists.  Remember Clinton?

Obama was very negative toward the right.  Now he's trying to "change."  Don't think so.  He's an ideologue and I don't trust him.  I'm afraid if he wins in 2012....nothing will stop him.  His poll numbers will mean nothing at that point.

Just stating my opinion.

Bren-2007

Well .. Obama's ratings are climbing every day.  I can't argue with that.  You guys on the right are always suggesting that we on the left need to volunteer to work for our candidates .. and that is exactly what I'm going to do.  Starting now.

Bren