FAMILY HOUSE

Dust Sprites and Maturity

2011-06-06T20:05:00.000-07:00

One a bright, dry Oklahoma day a young boy was kicking at clods of dirt to see the clouds of dust transforming into brown and red wind sprites. My grandfather, who was standing nearby, smiled and pointed at the jets high overhead, leaving their vapor trail for everyone could see. He said, " Do you see those jets? Their pilots have air masks to breath, yes?! Well, what do you think happens to their air when you send that dust up?" I immediately stopped, because I could visualize the pilot coughing. Twenty years later, I remembered that dusty Oklahoma day as another dust sprite was launched by my stride. Recalling the wisdom of my grandfather, I walked more carefully . . . And for a dusty moment I thought I could see my grandfather smiling back at me. And I smiled back.

Carpe Diem

2011-04-30T15:12:00.001-07:00

Image by Gregory Jordan via Flickr

Hm. I wonder. Can the cycles of history be restored without venturing into the caldron of current events? Are we able tor recognize where we are and take effective, corrective action. I am thinking it is being a part of the maelstrom of events which determines whether the destructive cycle is repeated or transformed. Who can say with assurance that the die has been cast, history has been repeated? I'll leave that to God. For me, we are at a threshold. The crux is . . . have enough of the Creator's children matured sufficiently to transform a historical mistake rather than be run over by it? Are we observing history cycling as victims and by-standers or are we able to "carpe diem".

Technorati tags: history, life, decision, responibility, leadership, blind faith, maturity, religion, Toynbee

Defend Marriage: Sign the Petition

2011-03-24T12:51:00.001-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

President Obama’s unilateral finding that DOMA is unconstitutional, and his directive that DOJ no longer defend DOMA in litigation, amounts to an end run on the Constitution that would short-circuit the judicial process, giving the President striking new powers to retroactively accept or reject laws passed by Congress. While I am grateful that the House will intervene to ensure that the law is defended, and that it receives a full and vigorous defense, no President has the authority to unilaterally pick and choose which laws are deserving of a legal defense.

The American people have clearly spoken when it comes to marriage, rejecting same-sex marriage in all 31 states where the question has been put to the ballot. Legislators in 14 other states have done the same thing. But at the same time, activist federal judges have issued rulings that threaten to strip millions of Americans of their civil right to vote for marriage, overthrowing the marriage laws of 45 states. A federal judge in San Francisco has already struck down Proposition 8, invalidating the will of 7 million California voters. A federal judge in Boston is attempting to strike down DOMA as well.

Like the vast majority of Americans, I believe marriage is the union of a husband and a wife. I do not want activist judges to take away our right to define marriage . . . or to redefine marriage so that schoolchildren are taught that their parents are bigots. Please stand for marriage by opposing any effort to repeal DOMA, and by supporting H.Con.Res. 25, calling on President Obama and the Department of Justice to honor their constitutional obligation to defend DOMA, ensuring that the rights of American voters are respected, and that marriage remains the union of one man and one woman.

Technorati tags: marriage, man, woman, monogomus, family, parents, children, president, law

Demand Atlas Shrugged Be Shown

2011-02-19T21:27:00.001-08:00

Technorati tags: Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand, Movie

Bring the Atlas Shrugged Movie to a theater near you by engaging with your community now. Follow these 10 steps and help catapult ATLAS SHRUGGED PART 1 into a theater near you.

View all Atlas Shrugged Part 1 tour dates

1. Demand it!

You want Atlas Shrugged playing in a theater near you? This is how to do it.

Click that yellow "Demand it!" button to the right, sign up for "eventful", and we're on our way to a theater near you.

The more people "Demanding!" Atlas Shrugged, the better so, tell your friends.

Visit the Official Atlas Shrugged Movie Web Site!

Resveratrol and diabetes

2009-06-20T21:07:00.001-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

There are many companies out there who are offering Resveratrol.

How many have jumped the gun?

There is a huge distinction between rats and humans.

Evaluate the Suppliers:

Have they performed the double-blind placebo based clinical human trials to verify safe, effective dosing? Ask for the data.
Have they stabilized the delivery of Resveratrol so that the XX mg per dose you have in their bottle today is also there when you open their bottle tomorrow?

Note: The amount of Resveratrol in a bottle of Pinot Grigio is diminished by approximately 50% when the bottle is opened the following day.

Do the research, evaluate the suppliers and it will make a difference in your supplemental health regime. I recommend Univera.

Studies showed that resveratrol increased life span in lower organisms by activating the NAD (+)-dependent histone deacetylase Sirt1. And, it was found that that resveratrol promoted longevity and improved glucose homeostasis in mice by stimulating the Sirt1-mediated deacetylation of the transcriptional coactivator PGC-1alpha. [7] Researchers are interested to know if resveratrol benefits animals suffered from chronic diseases, such as diabetes. The following is a summary of a few interesting research studies about the potential benefits of resveratrol on chronic diseases, such as diabetes. In 2001, Naderali EK and co-workers from University of Liverpool found resveratrol (5-35 micromole/l) induced concentration-dependent relaxation of mesenteric arteries preconstricted with noradrenaline (8 micromol/l) or KCl (125 mmol/l) from both lean and dietary-obese rats. [1] Hyperglycemia, a symptom of diabetes mellitus, induces hyperosmotic responses, including apoptosis, in vascular endothelial cells and leukocytes. Hyperosmotic shock elicits a stress response in mammalian cells, often leading to apoptotic cell death. Moreover, resveratrol was found to attenuate high glucose-induced apoptotic changes by virtue of its antioxidant property. [2] Diabetic nephropathy is a serious vascular complication and one of the main causes of end-stage renal disease. Increased oxidative stress plays an important role in the etiology of diabetic nephropathy. In a study, researchers found treatment with resveratrol significantly attenuated renal dysfunction and oxidative stress in diabetic rats. [3] Most of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients eventually become insulin dependent because insulin secretion by the islets of Langerhans becomes exhausted. In the present study, researchers from Chang Gung University, Taiwan, showed that resveratrol (3,5,4'-trihydroxylstilbene) possesses hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effects in streptozotocin-induced diabetes rats. In resveratrol-treated diabetic rats, the plasma glucose concentration on day 14 was reduced by 25.3%, and the triglyceride concentration was reduced by 50.2% compared with the placebo-treated rats. In nicotinamide-treated diabetic rats, the plasma glucose oncentration on day 14 was reduced only by 20.3 %, and the triglyceride concentration was reduced by 33 %. Resveratrol administration ameliorates common DM symptoms, such as body weight loss, polyphagia, and polydipsia. In STZ-nicotinamide DM rats, resveratrol administration significantly decreased insulin secretion and delayed the onset of insulin resistance. [4] Usually, diabetic rats exhibited a significant thermal hyperalgesia and cold allodynia along with increased plasma glucose and decreased body weights. Allodynia means other pain. It is a painful response to a usually non-painful stimulus. Hyperalgesia is an increased sensitivity to pain, which may be caused by damage to nociceptors or peripheral nerves. [Wikipedia] Sharma S and co-workers from Panjab University, India, reported treatment with resveratrol (10mg/kg orally) from week 4 to week 6 significantly attenuated the cold allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia, suggesting the application of resveratrol in diabetes, especially for diabetic neuropathy. [5] Researchers, at Boston University Medical Center, revealed inactivation of hepatic AMP-activated protein kinase was a key event in the pathogenesis of hyperlipidemia in diabetes (based on a study of in type 1 diabetic LDL receptor-deficient mice). They showed that resveratrol could lower lipid levels by activating AMP-activated protein kinase. It was about 200 times the potency of Metformin! [6] Recent Research Studies of Resveratrol on Diabetes Schmatz R and co-workers from Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Brazil, found that treatment with resveratrol prevented the increase in acetylcholinesterase activity and consequently memory impairment in diabetic rats. [8] Palsamy P and other India researchers found daily oral treatment of resveratrol to diabetic rats for 30 days demonstrated a significant decline in blood glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin levels and a significant increase in plasma insulin level. The administration of resveratrol also reverted the altered activities of the key enzymes of carbohydrate metabolism such as hexokinase, pyruvate kinase, lactate dehydrogenase, glucose-6-phosphatase, fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, glycogen synthase and glycogen phosphorylase in liver and kidney tissues of diabetic rats to near normal levels. [9] Researchers from New York Medical College observed that resveratrol increased mitochondrial mass and mtDNA content, up-regulated protein expression of electron transport chain constituents and induced mitochondrial biogenesis factors (PGC-1alpha, Nrf-1, Tfam) in cultured human coronary arterial endothelial cells. They found resveratrol treatment normalized impaired mitochondrial biogenesis in aortas of type 2 diabetic mice. This suggests the potential benefits of resveratrol on diabetes or metabolic diseases. [10] Researchers from Dortmund University of Technology, Germany, observed that resveratrol could inhibit the formation of islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP) fibril. Following preferential partitioning of IAPP into the fluid lipid phase, the membrane of beta-cells suffered irreversible damage and predominantly circularly-shaped lipid-containing IAPP amyloid was formed. Deposition of amyloid in the extracellular matrix of beta-cells commonly occurs in type II diabetes mellitus. Thus, resveratrol may benefit animals suffered from diabetes. [11] Rodella LF and co-workers from University of Brescia, Italy, found resveratrol and cobalt protoporphyrin administration increased heme oxygenase-1 protein expression and heme oxygenase activity in the aorta and significantly increased serum adiponectin levels, compared to untreated diabetic rats. Increased heme oxygenase-1 expression usually improves vascular function. [12] Resveratrol decreased blood glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin, blood urea, serum uric acid, serum creatinine and diminished activities of pathophysiological enzymes such as aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) in diabetic rats after 30 days of treatment. [13] The prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is high.nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is linked to obesity, diabetes mellitus, and hypertriglyceridemia. Approximately 20% of patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease will eventually develop cirrhosis. Resveratrol was found to decrease nonalcoholic fatty liver disease severity in rats. This effect was mediated, at least in part, by tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) inhibition and antioxidant activities. [14] Resveratrol Benefits and Side Effects Resveratrol Arthritis Resveratrol Cream Resveratrol Cancers Does grape seed extract lower bad cholesterol?

Source: Does resveratrol helps diabetes?

ShareThis

Technorati tags: resveratrol, health, supplementation, nutraceuticals, diabetes

Allopathy, Snake Oil and the Semmelweis Reflex

2009-06-08T16:50:00.001-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

Recently, I found myself using the word Allopathic or Allopathy. When asked what it meant, I stumbled blindly towards the answer, " . . . a generalization of the standard practice of medicine." I lucked out. However, having looked up the word I am not inclined to use the word again. Why? It has to do with motivation and maturity. People have a right to have their opinions. You might hear them say, " . . . that is the way it is done and all other ways are false". Since the goal is to advance the efficacy our efforts we must be patient until one can demonstrate or show the value of new, different ways of restoring and maintaining our body's vitality or in any other area of life. With that purpose in mind, I believe using 'Allopathy' or 'Allopathic' to describe the main stream, standard way of today's medicine or health practitioner is counter productive. Just a useless as describing non-traditional health maintenance and renewal arts as 'snake oil' et al.

(This post acknowledges and encounter with Robin 6/8/09)

Allopathy is a term coined in the early 19th century^[1] by Samuel Hahnemann^[2], the founder of homeopathy, as a synonym for mainstream medicine. It was used by homeopaths to highlight the difference they perceived between homeopathy and conventional medicine, and its use remains common among homeopaths. The term derives from the Greek ἄλλος, állos, other, different + πάϑος, páthos, suffering. The distinction comes from the use in homeopathy of substances that cause similar effects as the symptoms of a disease to treat patients (homeo - meaning similar). The term allopathy was meant to contrast the homeopathic approach with those conventional medical treatments that are different from or which directly counter a patient's symptoms; hence the terms allopathic and antipathic. Homeopaths saw such symptomatic treatments as "opposites treating opposites". However, many conventional medical treatments do not fit this definition of allopathy, as they seek to prevent illness, or remove the cause of an illness by acting on the etiology of disease.^[3]^[4]

The term allopathic was used throughout the 19th Century as a derogatory term for the practitioners of heroic medicine,^[5]^[6] a precursor to modern medicine that did not rely on evidence. The meaning and controversy surrounding the term can be traced to its original usage during a heated 19th-century debate between practitioners of homeopathy, and those they derisively referred to as "allopaths."^[7] The meaning implied by the label has never been accepted by conventional medicine, and is still be considered pejorative by some.^[8]^[9] More recently, some sources have used the term allopathic, particularly American sources wishing to distinguish between conventional medicine and, say, osteopathic.^[10]^[6]^[11]

History is full of examples of this kind of tension or Semmelweis reflex; rejecting the obvious benefits in favor of the norm.

Here is a YouTube story of a breakthrough where a Doctor looks at everything 'going on' and recognizes the obvious. Click Here and further with Univera Science (Univera White Papers)

Click here to email me or leave a comment below to go further with this discussion .

The Semmelweis reflex or "Semmelweis effect" is a metaphor for the reflex-like rejection of new knowledge because it contradicts entrenched norms, beliefs or paradigms. It refers to Ignaz Semmelweis, who discovered that childbed fever mortality rates could be reduced ten-fold if doctors would wash their hands (we would now say disinfect) with a chlorine solution. His hand-washing suggestions were rejected by his contemporaries.

There is some uncertainty regarding the origin and generally accepted use of the expression.

One source defines it as "the automatic rejection of the obvious, without thought, inspection, or experiment" and attributes the expression Semmelweis Reflex to author Robert Anton Wilson.^[1]

Sporadic use of the expression can be found on other webpages^[2] and blogs which may or may not be mainstream. One such website attributes Timothy Leary with the following polemical definition of the Semmelweis reflex: "Mob behavior found among primates and larval hominids on undeveloped planets, in which a discovery of important scientific fact is punished" from his book The Game of Life.^[3].

The expression has found way into philosophy and religious studies as "unmitigated Humean skepticism concerning causality".^[4]

Other writers define the Semmelweis reflex as: Automatic dismissal or rejection of scientific information "without thought, inspection or experiment". ^[5]

Technorati Tags: Semmelweis reflex,semmelweis,snake oil,medicine,allopathic,allopathy,alternative medicine,univera,supplementation

Socratic Method: Short Stories & James Hoskins

2009-05-18T18:13:00.001-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

Socratic Method: Short Stories and James Hoskins

May 18, 2009 01:12 PM PDT

Today on ID the Future, Casey Luskin interviews James Hoskins about his latest creative writing endeavors. Hoskins, a philosophy major at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, has written several pieces based on the debate between ID and Darwinian evolution, including one that pits Socrates and imaginary materialist Hector Dawkins against each other as they argue over the scientific merit of ID. Hoskins also reads excerpts from some of his stories, and describes the inspiration behind them.

Hoskins' work, including his Debate Between Socrates and Hector Dawkins, can be downloaded from ID Arts here.

Click here to listen to this pod cast.

Technorati tags: Darwin, Darwinism, Luskin, Hoskins, Scrates, Dawkin, ID, Socratic Method

When To Start Receiving Retirement Benefits

2009-05-15T15:39:00.001-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

There are many ways to transition to a pro-active way to handle your future years. If Univera's cellular renewal is indeed extending your productive life and you are beginning to see others are connecting to these benefits because of your sharing. Perhaps the excellent compensation system of Univera is a way to go. However, some may have a cash flow which is on a seemingly endless diet. If you are 62 or older you may have an income boost which may be just the ticket for making that quantum leap from the same ole - same ole to a dynamic, expanding, business quadrant to match the changes in your life and your associations. Here some information which may help from the Social Security Administration..

When To Start Receiving Retirement Benefits
SSA Publication No. 05-10147, July 2008, ICN 480136 [View.pdf] (En Español)
At Social Security, we're often asked, “What is the best age to start receiving retirement benefits?” The answer is that there is no one “best age” for everyone and, ultimately, it is your choice. You should make an informed decision about when to apply for benefits based on your individual and family circumstances. We hope the following information will help you understand how Social Security can fit into your retirement decision.

Contents

Your decision is a personal one

Monthly payments differ substantially based on when you start receiving benefits

Retirement may be longer than you think

Your decision could affect your family

You can keep working

Don't forget Medicare

Additional resources

Your decision is a personal one

Would it be better for you to begin receiving benefits early with a smaller monthly amount or wait for a larger monthly payment later that you may not receive as long? The answer is highly personal and depends on a number of factors, such as your current cash needs, your health and family longevity, whether you plan to work in retirement, whether you have other retirement income sources, your anticipated future financial needs and obligations, and, of course, the amount of your future Social Security benefit. We hope you will weigh all the facts carefully and consider your own circumstances before making the important decision about when to begin receiving Social Security benefits.

[Top]

Monthly payments differ substantially based on when you start receiving benefits

If you live to the average life expectancy for someone your age, you will receive about the same amount in lifetime benefits no matter whether you choose to start receiving benefits at age 62, full retirement age, age 70 or any age in between. However, monthly benefit amounts can differ substantially based on your retirement age. Basically, you can get lower monthly payments for a longer period of time or higher monthly payments over a shorter period of time. The amount you receive when you first get benefits sets the base for the amount you will receive for the rest of your life, though you do receive annual cost-of-living adjustments and, depending on your work history, may receive higher benefits if you continue to work

The following chart provides an example of how your monthly benefit amount can differ based on the age at which you decide to start receiving benefits.

Let’s say your full retirement age is 66 and your monthly benefit starting at that age is $1,000. If you choose to start getting benefits at age 62, your monthly benefit will be reduced by 25 percent to $750 to account for the longer period of time you receive benefits. This is generally a permanent reduction in your monthly benefit.

If you choose to not receive benefits until age 70, you would increase your monthly benefit amount to $1,320. This increase is from delayed retirement credits you get for your decision to postpone receiving benefits past your full retirement age. The benefit amount at age 70 in this example is 32 percent more than you would receive per month if you chose to start getting benefits at full retirement age.

[Top]

Retirement may be longer than you think

When thinking about retirement, be sure to plan for the long term. Many of us will live much longer than the “average” retiree, and, generally, women tend to live longer than men. About one out of every four 65-year-olds today will live past age 90, and one out of 10 will live past age 95. Social Security benefits, which last as long as you live, provide valuable protection against outliving savings and other sources of retirement income. Again, you will want to choose a retirement age based on your circumstances so you will have sufficient income when you need it.

[Top]

Your decision could affect your family

Your spouse may be eligible for a benefit based on your work record (spouse benefits are reduced if claimed before the spouse’s full retirement age). If you die before your spouse, he or she may be eligible for a survivor benefit based on your work record, particularly if you have earned more than your spouse over your lifetime. If you begin receiving Social Security benefits early, we cannot pay your surviving spouse a full benefit from your record. Also, if you wait until after the full retirement age to get benefits, your surviving spouse—if he or she is at least full retirement age—generally will receive the same benefit amount that you would have received.

Your children also may be eligible for a benefit on your work record if they are under age 18 or if they have a disability that began before age 22. For them to receive benefits, you must be getting benefits, too.

[Top]

You can keep working

When you reach your full retirement age, you can work and earn as much as you want and still receive your full Social Security benefit payment. If you are younger than full retirement age and if your earnings exceed certain dollar amounts, some of your benefit payments during the year will be withheld.

This does not mean you must try to limit your earnings. If we withhold some of your benefits because you continue to work, we will pay you a higher monthly benefit amount when you reach your full retirement age. In other words, if you would like to work and earn more than the exempt amount, you should know that it will not, on average, reduce the total value of lifetime benefits you receive from Social Security—and may actually increase them.

Here is how this works: after you reach full retirement age, we will recalculate your benefit amount to give you credit for any months in which you did not receive some benefit because of your earnings. In addition, as long as you continue to work and receive benefits, we will check your record every year to see whether the additional earnings will increase your monthly benefit.

[Top]

Don’t forget Medicare

If you plan to delay receiving benefits because you are working, you should sign up for Medicare three months before reaching age 65, regardless of when you reach full retirement age. Otherwise, your Medicare medical insurance, as well as prescription drug coverage, could be delayed, and you could be charged higher premiums.

[Top]

Additional resources

You can estimate benefit amounts and find more information to help you decide when to start receiving retirement benefits by using our Benefits Planners online at www.socialsecurity.gov/planners. When you’re ready to apply for benefits, you also can apply online at www.socialsecurity.gov/applyforbenefits. Many people can continue to work and still receive retirement benefits. If you want more information on how earnings affect your retirement benefits, ask for How Work Affects Your Benefits (Publication No. 05-10069), which has current annual and monthly earnings limits.

A wealth of other information—including copies of our publications—is available on our website at www.socialsecurity.gov. You also can call our toll-free number, 1-800-772-1213 (for the deaf or hard of hearing, call our TTY number, 1-800-325-0778). We can answer specific questions from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. We can provide information by automated phone service 24 hours a day.

When To Start Receiving Retirement Benefits

Sheikh attacks Israel, pope walks out | The Pope In The Holy Land | Jerusalem Post

2009-05-11T21:25:00.001-07:00

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Sheikh Tamimi, Benedict XVI A leading Palestinian cleric commandeered an evening devoted to interfaith dialogue with Pope Benedict XVI on Monday to rant against Israel for "killing Gaza's children," "bulldozing Palestinian homes" and "destroying mosques." Slideshow: Pope in Israel, Day I In an impromptu speech, delivered in Arabic at the Notre Dame Pontifical Institute in Jerusalem, Sheikh Tayseer Tamimi, chief Islamic judge in the Palestinian Authority, launched a 10-minute tirade against the State of Israel for confiscating Palestinians' land and carrying out war crimes against the residents of Gaza.

I'm glad the Pope walked out. He is a man of principle. Unlike Obama who sat and listened for hours as Chavez delivered his hate America speech.

It is impossible for a Muslim Cleric to publicly befriend leaders of other faiths. The Koran forbids this at the price to their life unless they are intentionally seducing of the infidel's heart and mind in order to eventually effect the subjugation of the submissive as they expand Shari ah. Shari ah is . . . The 'Peace' of the Religion of Peace.

Those who hear such a declaration and do not comply . . . then any devote Muslim is justified to wage jihad on those who have refused to submit. This is similar to the declaration made by Osama to the United States several months before the towers fell. Again, parts of Koran free the militant from any pang of conscience as they deliver judgment to men, women and children who refused to submit to the call . . .

Source: Sheikh attacks Israel, pope walks out | The Pope In The Holy Land | Jerusalem Post

Personal Cellular Renewal Guide

2009-05-04T20:02:00.000-07:00

Business Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist

2009-04-29T21:49:00.001-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

In 1976 there was a Swine Flu outbreak at Fort Dix. Vaccinations where given. 1 person died of the flu and 25 died, 500 sickened by complications from the vaccinations.

Last year 38,000 people died from ‘normal’ flu.

Advise: Prepare wisely. This could go either way. As for me and my family; We have a Nutraceutical regime for supporting the body’s own ability to repair itself. The rest is following the advise of CDC.

Business Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist (PDF - 284.24 KB)

[En Español (PDF) (276KB)]

Letter to Business Leaders from Secretaries Chertoff, Leavitt, and Gutierrez

In the event of pandemic influenza, businesses will play a key role in protecting employees' health and safety as well as limiting the negative impact to the economy and society. Planning for pandemic influenza is critical. To assist you in your efforts, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have developed the following checklist for large businesses. It identifies important, specific activities large businesses can do now to prepare, many of which will also help you in other emergencies. Further information can be found at www.pandemicflu.gov and www.cdc.gov/business.

Checklist Sections

1.1 Plan for the impact of a pandemic on your business:

Tasks	Not Started	In Progress	Completed
Identify a pandemic coordinator and/or team with defined roles and responsibilities for preparedness and response planning. The planning process should include input from labor representatives.
Identify essential employees and other critical inputs (e.g. raw materials, suppliers, sub-contractor services/ products, and logistics) required to maintain business operations by location and function during a pandemic.
Train and prepare ancillary workforce (e.g. contractors, employees in other job titles/descriptions, retirees).
Develop and plan for scenarios likely to result in an increase or decrease in demand for your products and/or services during a pandemic (e.g. effect of restriction on mass gatherings, need for hygiene supplies).
Determine potential impact of a pandemic on company business financials using multiple possible scenarios that affect different product lines and/or production sites.
Determine potential impact of a pandemic on business-related domestic and international travel (e.g. quarantines, border closures).
Find up-to-date, reliable pandemic information from community public health, emergency management, and other sources and make sustainable links.
Establish an emergency communications plan and revise periodically. This plan includes identification of key contacts (with back-ups), chain of communications (including suppliers and customers), and processes for tracking and communicating business and employee status.
Implement an exercise/drill to test your plan, and revise periodically.

top of page

1.2 Plan for the impact of a pandemic on your employees and customers:

Tasks	Not Started	In Progress	Completed
Forecast and allow for employee absences during a pandemic due to factors such as personal illness, family member illness, community containment measures and quarantines, school and/or business closures, and public transportation closures.
Implement guidelines to modify the frequency and type of face-to-face contact (e.g. hand-shaking, seating in meetings, office layout, shared workstations) among employees and between employees and customers (refer to CDC recommendations).
Encourage and track annual influenza vaccination for employees.
Evaluate employee access to and availability of healthcare services during a pandemic, and improve services as needed.
Evaluate employee access to and availability of mental health and social services during a pandemic, including corporate, community, and faith-based resources, and improve services as needed.
Identify employees and key customers with special needs, and incorporate the requirements of such persons into your preparedness plan.

top of page

1.3 Establish policies to be implemented during a pandemic:

Tasks	Not Started	In Progress	Completed
Establish policies for employee compensation and sick-leave absences unique to a pandemic (e.g. non-punitive, liberal leave), including policies on when a previously ill person is no longer infectious and can return to work after illness.
Establish policies for flexible worksite (e.g. telecommuting) and flexible work hours (e.g. staggered shifts).
Establish policies for preventing influenza spread at the worksite (e.g. promoting respiratory hygiene/ cough etiquette, and prompt exclusion of people with influenza symptoms).
Establish policies for employees who have been exposed to pandemic influenza, are suspected to be ill, or become ill at the worksite (e.g. infection control response, immediate mandatory sick leave).
Establish policies for restricting travel to affected geographic areas (consider both domestic and international sites), evacuating employees working in or near an affected area when an outbreak begins, and guidance for employees returning from affected areas (refer to CDC travel recommendations).
Set up authorities, triggers, and procedures for activating and terminating the company's response plan, altering business operations (e.g. shutting down operations in affected areas), and transferring business knowledge to key employees.

top of page

1.4 Allocate resources to protect your employees and customers during a pandemic:

Tasks	Not Started	In Progress	Completed
Provide sufficient and accessible infection control supplies (e.g.hand-hygiene products, tissues and receptacles for their disposal) in all business locations.
Enhance communications and information technology infrastructures as needed to support employee telecommuting and remote customer access.
Ensure availability of medical consultation and advice for emergency response.

top of page

1.5 Communicate to and educate your employees:

Tasks	Not Started	In Progress	Completed
Develop and disseminate programs and materials covering pandemic fundamentals (e.g. signs and symptoms of influenza, modes of transmission), personal and family protection and response strategies (e.g. hand hygiene, coughing/sneezing etiquette, contingency plans).
Anticipate employee fear and anxiety, rumors and misinformation and plan communications accordingly.
Ensure that communications are culturally and linguistically appropriate.
Disseminate information to employees about your pandemic preparedness and response plan.
Provide information for the at-home care of ill employees and family members.
Develop platforms (e.g. hotlines, dedicated websites) for communicating pandemic status and actions to employees, vendors, suppliers, and customers inside and outside the worksite in a consistent and timely way, including redundancies in the emergency contact system.
Identify community sources for timely and accurate pandemic information (domestic and international) and resources for obtaining counter-measures (e.g. vaccines and antivirals).

top of page

1.6 Coordinate with external organizations and help your community:

Tasks	Not Started	In Progress	Completed
Collaborate with insurers, health plans, and major local healthcare facilities to share your pandemic plans and understand their capabilities and plans.
Collaborate with federal, state, and local public health agencies and/or emergency responders to participate in their planning processes, share your pandemic plans, and understand their capabilities and plans.
Communicate with local and/or state public health agencies and/or emergency responders about the assets and/or services your business could contribute to the community.
Share best practices with other businesses in your communities, chambers of commerce, and associations to improve community response efforts.

top of page

Source: Business Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist

Technorati tags: Influenza, flu, preparedness, emergency management, planning, business, distribution, warning, response, employee, management.cdc, center for disease control, Obama, U.S., World Peace Temple, Pandemic, scare, Swine

Blue Skied, Windy April Day by Miyuki

2009-04-20T19:57:00.001-07:00

From Miyuki

Technorati tags: art, sketching, doodle, doodling, fun, fence, windy, day, April, clouds, cat tails, hat, girl, wind, joy

UAW Membership Drops 7 Percent In 2008

2009-04-01T21:52:00.001-07:00

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Very interesting. Deep in our bones we knew this had to be. Perhaps this is why they are so hot on keeping the big 3 out of bankruptcy and getting into every business they can with some ‘card check’ like legislation. Read this . . .

Manufacturing.Net - April 01, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Membership in the United Auto Workers union declined 7 percent in 2008 to more than 431,000 workers, according to a Labor Department report.

The report filed Monday said the union lost 33,873 members during the past year, bringing it down to levels not seen since World War II. The UAW had fewer than 500,000 members in 1941 but by 1945, it had boosted its membership beyond 1 million.

UAW membership peaked in 1979 at 1.5 million members.

The union has been hard hit by plant closings and job cuts by Detroit's automakers. According to the Labor Department, the union had more than 700,000 in 2001.

Union officials, however, have said the membership levels cited by the Labor Department give a false impression of the union's size. In 2007, for example, they said the UAW represented 512,000 members. Messages were left Tuesday with UAW officials.

UAW President Ron Gettelfinger received a salary of $157,117 in 2008, a 4 percent raise over the previous year, according to the Labor Department.

Manufacturing Net

Technorati tags: Wagoner, Gettelfinger, UAW, membership, Union, Union Membership, labor, business, industry, leadership, Auto Workers

Miami Tax Day Tea Party

2009-03-29T18:56:00.001-07:00

Click on the flyer to see map, details and tools for sending information to your friends.

I suggest that you start in your own homes. Talk to your family about the Values and Principles. Discuss the importance of what the Founders designed for America and how about the Constitution for starters.

Hold or attend a weekly meeting in your neighborhood or town. Communication with your neighbors is vital to the process of protecting our country. Gather in living rooms, coffee houses or restaurants. Share your thoughts and ideas. Meetup.com is an excellent internet tool to support efforts as your common base with others begins to grow.

The Family Party in an individual, father’s effort, like the 912 Project, as a non-political movement. The Family Party encourages participation in the Tea Parties and The 9-12 Project and Global Peace Festivals. The 912 Project is designed to bring us all back to the place we were on September 12, 2001. The day after America was attacked we were not obsessed with Red States, Blue States or political parties. We were united as Americans, standing together to protect the greatest nation ever created. The Tea Parties are demonstrations of our peaceful resistance to the irresponsible and frivolous (most in congress didn’t even read the stimulus bill with 7 billion in projects for Miami-Dade alone) spending of our present government. The Global Peace Festivals promote the basis of our cooperation . . . we are one family under God.

That same feeling – that commitment to country - is what The Family Party, Tea Parties and 912Project are hoping to foster. Let’s not complain and do our part to get everyone thinking like it was on September 12th, 2001 again.

At the origin of America, our Founding Fathers built this country on 28 powerful principles. They were clearly expressed in the Constitution. These principles were culled from all over the world and from centuries of great thinkers. The Family Party believes the 912project people have done a darn good job of distilling the original 28 down to the 9 basic principles.

So, how do we show America what’s really behind the curtain? Read the nine simple principles. If you believe in at least seven of them, then we have something in common.

Visit the912project.com and tea party websites often. Make use of the resources that are linked here. Network the ideas and resources that have worked in your home or town.

Technorati tags: tea party, tax day tea party, Miami, non-political movement, grassroots, principles, values, 9 principles, 12 values, 912 project, April 15, tax day, non-representatives, neighborhood, coffee houses

9 Principles: THE912PROJECT.COM

2009-03-28T15:50:00.001-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

Why is the Family-House posting this standard of principles and values?

My Answer: The Family-House recognizes the social desire expressed as ‘we need’ begins with ‘I am’. From where ‘I am” we build identity, family and a society which can thrive and endure. Principles and values in action and expression are the core manifestation of character. Without people of character we have no foundation for family. Without families we have no foundation for a cohesive, vital, creative society.

Religious and political entities are providing their contribution to this effort to create a better society.. However, the Family-House recognizes the social desire expressed as ‘we need’ begins with ‘I am’. From where ‘I am” we build identity, family and society which can thrive and endure.

If you have difficulties with any two of the principles, that is fine. With honesty, sincerity, graciousness, responsibility (response able) and humility let’s engage in the expression of our position and understanding. Having done so, we both grow in charity, hard work, moderation and courage. Now, we’re on the way.

9 Principles

1. America Is Good.

2. I believe in God and He is the Center of my Life.

God “The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the external rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained.” from George Washington’s first Inaugural address.

3. I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday.

Honesty “I hope that I shall always possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider to be the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.” George Washington

4. The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.

Marriage/Family “It is in the love of one’s family only that heartfelt happiness is known. By a law of our nature, we cannot be happy without the endearing connections of a family.” Thomas Jefferson

5. If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.

Justice “I deem one of the essential principles of our government… equal and exact justice to all men of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political.” Thomas Jefferson

6. I have a right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.

Life, Liberty, & The Pursuit of Happiness “Everyone has a natural right to choose that vocation in life which he thinks most likely to give him comfortable subsistence.” Thomas Jefferson

7. I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable.

Charity “It is not everyone who asketh that deserveth charity; all however, are worth of the inquiry or the deserving may suffer.” George Washington

8. It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion.

On your right to disagree “In a free and republican government, you cannot restrain the voice of the multitude; every man will speak as he thinks, or more properly without thinking.” George Washington

9. The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.

Who works for whom? “I consider the people who constitute a society or a nation as the source of all authority in that nation.” Thomas Jefferson

12 Values

Honesty Reverence Hope Thrift Humility

Charity Sincerity Moderation Hard Work Courage

Personal Responsibility Gratitude

Spread The Word on the912project.com

Share this post :

Technorati tags: principles, the912project, the 912 project, glenn Beck, God, religion, politics, society, activism, action, liberals, conservative, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson

Personal Renewal Guide

2009-03-24T22:28:00.001-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

Yes, My Pyramid looks simple enough. However, few people are able to eat properly. The result: our bodies are not properly nourished. If this is prolonged through habits, both cultural and personal . . . our health and vital energy can decline and our immune system begins to evaporate. How to find a solution? Good intentions are not enough. Reading books are inspirational but . . . without experiencing the benefits we lose heart and we are soon back to our old, not so good, nourishment style.

There are companies who have solutions. Taking their products with consistency to feel and see the results. Of course, if you can’t feel and see the result of your health regime, then you are not going to keep it up.

I have been on my health program since Aug 2007 because I can feel and see the difference. By comparison, I was just getting by, before. But Before . . . I thought it was normal. That is what I thought. And . . .ignorance is bliss until you become humble enough to admit you don’t have all the answers.

Now, wanting to ‘pay it forward’ , I am providing this ‘Personal Renewal Guide’ with Yellow, Orange, Blue and Green quadrants. Fill in your numerical responses to the statements in each quadrant. Add up the score in each quadrant. The color with the highest score is the metabolic area of focus for your health regime. This enables your health coach to guide you towards nutraceuticals which can best support your body’s apparent needs for healing itself. Yes, the body has the ability to heal itself with the right support. And, the FDA has not approved of any of these statements. This activity is not intended to diagnose, heal or prevent any disease.

If you cannot read this image then click on it to go to a more convenient presentation.

The color with the highest sum is the metabolic area to focus your health regime.

*BLUE*	*YELLOW*	*ORANGE*	*GREEN*
TOTAL	TOTAL	TOTAL	TOTAL

And, the FDA has not approved of any of these statements. This activity is not intended to diagnose, heal or prevent any disease.

Share this post :

Evolution Question: Mike Huckabee Responds

2009-02-12T16:07:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

I wish I had not been swayed by the mass media about Huckabee. What I have seen of him on his show on FOX and here in this presidential debate clip inspires me to believe: There are men of principle who are able lead, stand up, and still have a respectful manner. I hope you can interview him someday.

Click here to play video : Mike Huckabee responds to evolution question

In the third debate hosted by CNN, Mike Huckabee responded with great eloquence about his stand on creation, evolution, and God's role in that process. Visit Mike Huckabee's web site at http://www.MikeHuckabee.com Huckabee Hound blog at http://huckabeehound.blogspot.com

Today is Darwin - Academic Freedom Day. Celebrate Discovery Institute and Play Video of Huckabee Response to evolution question at Pres. Debate

Share this post :

Facebook | Message: Mike Huckabee responds to evolution question

Keynesian Resurgence

2009-02-11T20:53:00.001-08:00

Share this post :

Image via Wikipedia

Well. His name and economic theory is being bantered around so much I thought it well to look into what is on the internet and here’s what I found. To my surprise the IMF is very much a part of this picture . . . as we go down this Keynesian rabbit hole.

I personally agree with the critics who say government intervention into the economy is wrong and the people will hold back from spending and therefore the economy will go into an inflationary spiral as currency proliferates. My analogy: THE WELL INTENTIONED ALLOPATHIC DOCTOR. The patient comes with a stomach ache. The doctor give something like Prilos__. Problem solved until the patient comes in complaining of indigestion and gas. The doctor orders something else. Then the patient comes in complaining of weakness, inflammation and fever and the doctor gives him something to put down his immune system. For awhile the patient is better until he catches the flu and dies. Moral of the story. Support the body’s own ability to heal itself vs.intervention which confuses the body’s ability to heal itself.

Also, be sure to check out Glenn Becks 9 points after reading this. And be sure to read about the IMF forcing 14 banks to close in Indonesia causing a run on the banks. Now for the story of the economic intervention of the day.

John Maynard Keynes.

In the wake of the Financial crisis of 2007-2008 the free-market consensus began to attract negative comments even by main-stream opinion formers from the economic right. In March 2008, free-market guru Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator at the Financial Times, announced the death of the dream of global free-market capitalism, and quoted Josef Ackermann, chief executive of Deutsche Bank, as saying "I no longer believe in the market's self-healing power."^[15] Shortly afterward economist Robert Shiller began advocating robust government intervention to tackle the financial crisis, specifically citing Keynes.^[16]^[17] A series of major bail outs followed starting on September 7 with the announcement that the U.S. government was to nationalise the two firms which oversaw most of the U.S. subprime mortgage market—Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. In October, the British Chancellor of the Exchequer referred to Keynes as he announced plans for substantial fiscal stimulus to head off the worst effects of recession, in accordance with Keynesian economic thought.^[18] Similar policies have been announced in other European countries, by the U.S., and by China. ^[19] This is in stark contrast to the action permitted to Indonesia during its financial crisis of 1997, when it was forced by the IMF to close 16 banks at the same time, prompting a bank run.^[20]

Prominent Keynesian economists included Paul Krugman, Robert Reich and Joseph Stiglitz. Greg Mankiw argued that Keynes was the economist who gave the greatest single insight into the crisis ^[21], but later encouraged skepticism about a fiscal stimulus.^[22]

The works on Keynes of Hyman Minsky^[23], Robert Skidelsky^[24], and Donald Markwell^[25] were widely cited. Much discussion reflected Keynes's advocacy of international coordination of fiscal or monetary stimulus, and of international economic institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, which he had helped to create at Bretton Woods in 1944, and which many argued should be reformed at a 'new Bretton Woods'.^[26] This was evident at the G20 and APEC meetings in Washington, D.C., and Lima, Peru, in November 2008, and in coordinated reductions of interest rates by many countries in November and December 2008. IMF and United Nations economists and political leaders such as British Prime Minister Gordon Brown advocated a coordinated international approach to fiscal stimulus.^[27] The President of the World Bank, Robert Zoellick, advocated that all developed country pledge 0.7 percent of its stimulus package to a vulnerability fund for assisting developing countries.^[28]

Keynesian thinking was reflected in the U.S. President Barack Obama's appointments of Lawrence Summers, Timothy F. Geithner, and Christina Romer to principal economic positions in his administration. In a speech on January 8, 2009, President Obama unveiled a plan for extensive domestic spending to combat recession, further reflecting Keynesian thinking. The plan has been approved by the House of Representatives and early indications are that it could pass through the Senate ready for President Obama's signature by mid Febuary 2009 ^[29] The $819 billion package comprises an estimated $275 billion in tax cuts and $544 billion in a mix of spending that will include energy, infrastructure, health care, tax cuts and direct payments to the unemployed and disadvantaged. ^[30] ^[31] There was extensive debate about its necessity, adequacy, and likely effects.

Criticism

For policy makers and their supporters around the world, Keynesian solutions are currently seen as representing the best option for shielding their populations from arbitrary market-forces; and possibly as engines for addressing inequality, achieving social progress and accelerating the transition to a green economy.

Nevertheless the Keynesian revival has attracted heavy criticism. It is questioned by commentators on the left whether the Keynesian resurgence has been sufficiently strong - in their view Obama's economic team is disappointingly centrist, with its inclusion of liberal leaning economists like Jason Furman. ^[32] ^[33] Also there is Germany whose administration, according to some, stands out in their reluctance to wholeheartedly embrace Keynesian policy ^[34]. From the right, some commentators assert the late 2000s crisis was caused not by excessively free markets but by the remnants of Keynesian policy , for example the Federal Reserves interventionism in the early 2000s which encouraged the sub-prime lending boom.^[35] Most critics focus on arguing that Keynesian policy will be counter productive - as it will be inflationary, cause consumers to rein in their spending even more as they anticipate future tax rises, as well as various other technical reasons. ^[36] ^[37]

[polldaddy poll=1362796]

Technorati tags: Stimulus, Furman, Keynesian, financial system, Sarkozy, Keynes, IMF, International Monetary Fund, Martin Kettle, Taxes, spending, sub-prime lending, free markets, supply side economics

Remove ‘In God We Trust’ and God - MSNBC Survey

2009-02-09T17:32:00.001-08:00

Image by escapedtowisconsin via Flickr

Congress first authorized a reference to God on a two-cent piece in 1864. The action followed a request by the director of the U.S. Mint, who wrote there should be a “distinct and unequivocal national recognition of the divine sovereignty” on the nation’s coins.

In 1955, the year after Congress inserted the words “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance, Congress required all currency to carry the motto “In God We Trust.”

Click to participate

Live Vote: Should ‘In God We Trust’ be removed?
Discuss the ‘In God We Trust’ issue on Newsvine

“The placement of ‘In God We Trust’ on the coins and currency was clearly done for religious purposes and to have religious effects,” Newdow wrote in the 162-page lawsuit he filed against Congress.

Newdow’s latest lawsuit came five days after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected, without comment, a challenge to an inscription of “In God We Trust” on a North Carolina county government building.

Atheist challenges ‘In God We Trust’ motto - Life- msnbc.com

A Glimpse into a Marine's Life on the Frontline in Iraq - Staff Sergeant Justin Harding - The Defining Moment Television Talk Show

2009-02-08T22:23:00.001-08:00

You won't hear this on the mainstream media. Listen. You won't regret it.

more about "A Glimpse into a Marine's Life on the...", posted with vodpod

Senators: Change the Stimulus Bill

2009-02-08T20:13:00.001-08:00

Invest 4 min. Listen. Call your Senators. Let them know what you think. You can find a way to call them at:

http://wwww.drudgereport.com

or

http://www1.umn.edu/humanrts/peace/senate.html

more about "Senators: Change the Stimulus Bill", posted with vodpod

March Comrads, Onward to Socialism

2009-02-07T19:28:00.001-08:00

Shoving down programs without real discussion opens the path for socialism. The bill is over 600 pages long. Money for a theme park!? STD?! Come on.

more about "March Comrads, Onward to Socialism", posted with vodpod

Mother of All Snakes Not Pelosi

2009-02-07T15:32:00.000-08:00

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Al Gore is heavily invested to insure everyone is aware of man burning up the planet; Global Warming. Now a big 43 ft. snake is making Global Warming harder to swallow. Glen Beck has done a masterful job of taking this new finding of a 43 ft. cold blooded ‘Mother of All Snakes” which needed a 6 to 8 degree hotter climate than we have now have . . . just to survive. Here, let Glenn tell you like it is.

. . . Scientists today have made another discovery. It was the mother of all snakes. A nightmarish behemoth as long as a school bus, as heavy as a Volkswagen Beetle that ruled the ancient Amazonian rainforest for two million years before slithering into nonexistence. Now this monster which weighed in at 2500 pounds has resurfaced in fossils taken from an open pit coal mine in Colombia. A startling example of growth gone wild. We should have -- why are we disrupting this snake seminary to dig for coal? The snake is estimated at 43 feet long. That is the size of the largest T-Rex that scientists currently know of. "This is amazing. It challenges everything we know about how big a snake can be," says herpetologist -- hang on, side note here, your Honor. Did you ever introduce yourself as a herpetologist? Spelled herpetologist? "So what do you do for a living?" "I'm a herpetologist." Okay, thanks. I've got to go wash my hands. So he's a herpetologist and also a Holocaust denier obviously. Jack Conrad of the American Museum of Natural History who is apparently denying that science on snakes has been settled a long time ago. Scientists identified hundreds of specimens that have been dug from the mine including the largest freshwater turtle ever known and beautifully preserved skeletons of an extinct species of crocodile known to have been in South America but never seen there before. Wow, finally science is back in her rightful place, huh? The fact that they had no idea these crocodiles were ever there is just proof that they really did know that they had always been there. You know, you read your Bible, you don't understand. The find not only sheds new light on snake evolution but it also provides telling insights on climate. Wait a minute. Insights on climate? Hello, Mr. Flat earther, there are no insights left on climate. The debate is over; the science is settled. The snake flourished about 58 million to 60 million years ago, because it was cold-blooded. The tropical climate was 6 to 8 degrees warmer than it is today. Hold it just a second. The climate was 6 to 8 degrees warmer? What? I thought nine out of the ten warmest years have all been within the last six months. Isn't that what Al Gore said, something like that? Or maybe it's 99% of the warmest 100 minutes have all been within the last 120 seconds. I have the ice core some place. I don't know exactly, but I do know my 12-year-old understands this so much better than I do. I still can't get past this. The tropical climate had to be 6 to 8 degrees warmer than it is today for a snake that large to survive. What Holocaust denier came up with that kind of information? Hello, Dick Cheney. That wasn't Dick Cheney. It was actually evolutionary biologist Jason Head of the University of Toronto. "This sheds some light on the current theories about what happens at the equator during periodic bouts of natural global warming." Wait a minute. University of -- evolutionary biologist Jason Head of the University of Toronto: What happens at the equator during periodic bouts of natural global warming? Natural global warming? Impossible! Oh, and I'm sure the Jews weren't burned by the Nazis! "One school of thought" -- quoting -- "one school of thought holds that temperatures at the equator are buffered, staying relatively constant while more northern and southern latitudes heat up." Schools of thought? The debate is over, scientists. Stop thinking! But really, seriously what do the Holocaust deniers (non global warmer types) believe happened to the snake? I mean, remember it had to be 6 to 8 degrees warmer than it was now just to survive. Researchers now believe -- quoting from the article -- that the climate got even hotter, hastening. Wait a minute. So temperatures have never been warmer than they are today except when they're 6 to 8 degrees warmer and when they're warmer than that. But this one degree of warming that we're dealing with now definitely going to set the Earth on fire. By the way, the 1 degree of warming that we really don't have now because it's been going down in temperature for the last few years. Oh, my gosh, see, this is why we win awards in science on this program. Because you flat earthers probably don't -- you know, you don't think in the scientific way. I just realized these scientists had to be paid by big oil, big tobacco and big snake, you know? Come up with a fake study that they won't even have peer review. By the way, you can read this paper in that hard core right-wing blog known as Nature.

Source: Glenn Beck - Current Events & Politics - Glenn Beck: Mother of all snakes

Technorati tags: Mother of all Snakes, Pelosi, Al Gore, Glenn Beck, Snake, Amazon, Cold Blooded, Pre-Historic, herpetology, herpetologist, University of Toronto

We Surround Them

2009-02-04T17:54:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

So many people sent pictures to Glenn Beck's WeSurroundThem email request that the server limit was reached in a couple of hours. People where sending in emails who agreed with at least 7 of the 9 points listed below on Feb. 4th 2009.

Hmmm. If the email Glenn got was like mine then that was 7291MB of storage used up within hours. It has taken me 2 years to fill up 1/7th of that space and I have 18000 emails. 18,000 times 7 is 126,000. Glenn received 126,000 emails in a 2 or three hours. WOW! Here is what started it all. It is posted on the Glenn Beck Site today.

Anyway. We, The Belfort Five, are all in for all 9 of the following points:

So many of us who truly believe in this country, but think common sense is dead, feel alone these days. When one caller said he was ready to unplug because he was so frustrated, Glenn asked him to give him a few weeks to prove that he wasn't alone. Today, Glenn starts trying to make this idea into a reality. Step one---if you believe in the principles that this country was founded on---please email an individual picture of you--and each member of your family who wants to participate to WeSurroundThem@gmail.com (you might want to tune into Glenn's show tomorrow to find out about his work around to the popularity of this WE SURROUND THEM project. If you live in Miami, FL then turn to 610 WIOD (click here for live online) on the AM radio dial at 9AM EST and Glenn will be explaining what happened.

GLENN: So I'm going to just ask you right now just to think of these things and just answer out loud. Just say to yourself yes or no. Yes or no. Is this who I am? Is this what I believe? Because I believe you and I agree on most of these.

1) Yes or no: Do you believe America is a good place, that we've lost our way over the years, that we have done bad things but generally speaking we tried hard. We try to make amends. We have tried to do the right thing. Just like everybody else, we fail from time to time and we have truly lost our way in the last 20 years. But gosh, if you look at America, she's good and our founders were good and our founding documents are good. We've just strayed too far away from them. Yes or no.

2) Yes or no: I believe in God. I may not go to the same church or synagogue or mosque as the majority of people in America, but I believe in God and he is the center of my life, and God does not tell people to behead others or to persecute others that see God in a different way. As long as that god is not telling them to persecute others.

Yes or no.

3) Yes or no: It is my responsibility to try to be better and a more honest person than I was yesterday. Sometimes I fail, I'll make mistakes, but it's my main mission to be better than I was personally than I was yesterday.

4) Yes or no: The family is sacred. I and my spouse are the ultimate authority under God when it comes to my family. I raise my family, and that comes with a grave responsibility. If I fail, I answer to God.

5) Yes or no: If you break the law, you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.

6) Yes or no: I have a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, but that is not a guarantee of equal results.

7) Yes or no: I work hard for what I have, and I will share it with others that I choose when I choose, should I choose. Government cannot force me to be charitable.

8) It is not un-American for anyone to disagree with my opinion, but my opinion or others' opinions may be anti-American. Anti-American rhetoric would be anything that is destructive to the Constitution and our country as our founders understood it.

9) And the last one is the government works for me. The government answers to me. I do not answer to the government.

Share this post :

Technorati Tags: Glenn Beck,WeSurroundThem,We surround them,God,Mosque,Synagogue,liberty,freedom,pursuit of happiness,American,conservative,Ayn Rand,Atlas Shrugged,family,founders

Recommended Wordpress Plugins For New Bloggers (openmode.ca)
More UK commentators join the business media revolution (businessmedia.co.uk)
A good justification for amateur content creation (broadcasting-brain.com)
Back on Blogging Pro (xfep.com)
What powers the biggest blogs? (techburgh.com)
Dennis Prager: Equality 'Is A European Value, Not An American Value' (thinkprogress.org)

Rush's Bipartisan Stimulus Plan

2009-02-02T16:58:00.001-08:00

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

You've heard that Rush said, " . . . I hope he fails . . ." about President Obama. Get to the bottom of this with some bipartisan digging into the details. . . . Here's a good place to start . . . From an interview on CNBC on 1/29/09.

BURNETT: Bottom line, Rush. You're saying as an individual, you hope Barack Obama succeeds, right? He's your president, too?
RUSH: Yeah. I want him to succeed in bringing the country around, but the policies he's announced are not going to do it. I want the policies to fail; I want America to succeed. I love the country.

and

RUSH: I think this stimulus plan IS about re-FDRing America, the New New Deal, and as a conservative I want liberalism to fail. I want the country to succeed, and that's what I meant, and that's what I said over and over again. You've gotta stop reading these left-wing liberal sites that take me out of context.

Read the Background Material...

• Wall Street Journal: My Bipartisan Stimulus - Rush Limbaugh

Share this post :

Rush Discusses His Bipartisan Stimulus Plan on CNBC

January 29, 2009

Watch It! WMP

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT

ERIN BURNETT: The fear is that Washington's new spirit of cooperation is already gone. Now, sit down. Prepare yourself. You see this, "My Bipartisan Stimulus"? This was written by Rush Limbaugh making a bid to keep bipartisanship alive. That's the op-ed he wrote this morning. He joins us on the news line. Rush, a lot of people are skeptical with a headline from you: "My Bipartisan Stimulus."
RUSH: Why skeptical? I'm just trying to build bridges and roads to the administration for genuine bipartisanship and cooperation and fairness. The president says that he still wants to work with Republicans.
MARK HAINES: (snorting)
RUSH: Here I am. We can work together and do what's best for the American people.
BURNETT: And you call --
HAINES: (interrupting) I -- I -- I'm sorry, but, ah, wait a minute! A week after the inauguration you said you hope he fails. Are -- are you now admitting that that was a stupid and mean-spirited thing to say?
RUSH: No, it was an accurate thing to say. It was an honest thing to say, and it came --
HAINES: Then how is that bipartisan!
RUSH: Well, if you'll let me explain...
HAINES: (snorts) Well, so far you haven't.
RUSH: (laughing) You're being contentious with no reason. It came after a thorough explanation of my belief that liberalism, which is what Obama represents --
HAINES: Aw jeeeeez!
RUSH: -- destroys the free market, destroys capitalism. I think this stimulus plan with about re-FDRing America, the New New Deal, and as a conservative I want liberalism to fail. I want the country to succeed, and that's what I meant, and that's what I said over and over again. You've gotta stop reading these left-wing liberal sites that take me out of context.
HAINES: I -- I -- I just listen to you, Rush. I don't read anybody! I listen to you, and what I hear is hypocrisy.
RUSH: You hear hypocrisy?
HAINES: Yeah! I hear hypocrisy. You're saying in this -- in this piece, you say, uh, you know, "our economy doesn't know the difference...this is about jobs now...leave politics aside," and yet the first thing out of your mouth is politics! About liberal and conservative, Republican and Democrat!
RUSH: Exactly. But I am trying to show this. You know, this vote that happened in the House yesterday is actually a failure. The bipartisan vote was the defeat: 11 Democrats joining Republicans. The partisan vote was all Democrats. This is going to have trouble. You know, he wants Republicans on the bill, Mark, because he knows this isn't gonna work. He wants Republicans so that he has cover so that they can't run for reelection saying they opposed this debacle. I'm trying to propose something here that will work with the best interests of the country at heart.
HAINES: (clearing throat)
RUSH: How can that possibly be hypocritical?
BURNETT: All right. Rush, let me just get in. I want to give people a chance to understand your plan. You're calling it the Obama-Limbaugh plan, and you took the vote that the country voted for Obama, who voted for him and who didn't, and that's how you broke it down, right?
RUSH: Yeah.
BURNETT: So his share of it goes to spending, and the other share goes to tax cuts, right?
RUSH: Exactly, and he gets to choose how he wants to spend it with the Democrats on Capitol Hill, and the Republicans and me get to determine the tax cuts.
BURNETT: And you're going to cut the corporate tax rate in half, right?

RUSH: Precisely, and we'll suspend the capital gains tax to incentivize new investment for a full year and then reestablish and re-implement it at 10% -- and probably some tax cuts in the area of real estate, too. That's an area that needs to come back. See, I don't... Obama said yesterday -- I don't know if you guys were still on the air or not, but he had a meeting at the White House with the CEOs, and he came out and he sounded like Ronald Reagan. He was talking about how it's the people who make the country work; it's the people out there who are going to revive the economy. And twenty days ago, he said government is the only entity -- there's your hypocrisy, Mark -- that can revive this economy. Yesterday what he said is exactly right, and I totally support that when he sounds like Ronald Reagan.
BURNETT: So, Rush, it sounds like what you're saying, 'cause -- and Mark's picking up on something, as you know, that got a lot of coverage -- that you said, "I would be honored if I was headlined all day long 'Limbaugh: I Hope Obama Fails.'" What you meant to say there was, "I hope liberalism fails, and if he is going to emblematic of that, I hope he fails."
RUSH: Yeah. Yeah.
BURNETT: But as Obama, you're not trying to hope he fails, right?
RUSH: No, I support the president. I just don't support his policies.
HAINES: (snickering)
RUSH: Erin, I said --
BURNETT: Yes, Rush?
RUSH: I said that on purpose, because everybody was falling in line behind this plan like a bunch of lemmings, and the media wasn't even examining the specifics. Somebody had to get somebody's attention on this, 'cause it's a debacle.
HAINES: Here's -- here's -- here's something I find interesting, Rush. Ah, you -- you talk about the vote being roughly -- you know, you -- you do a little fiddling to -- to even up -- the vote was roughly 54-46 in favor of, uh, Obama, so therefore divide the stimulus plan 54-46. I -- I find that a -- a refreshing breath of air from you because when the vote was 51-49 in favor of Republicans, I don't remember you being this concerned about bipartisanship.
RUSH: I think bipartisanship's a joke, as it's defined. Bipartisanship --
BURNETT: (laughing)
HAINES: (shouting) I don't remember you proposing that any program be split reflecting that vote!
RUSH: We've got limited seconds here, and I want to get to this answer. Bipartisanship, as it's defined in Washington, is Republicans caving to what Democrats want. That's what bipartisanship is; that's what they wanted yesterday. My column in the Journal today is truly bipartisan; and I'm willing, if that's the definition of it, full speed ahead for bipartisanship.
BURNETT: Bottom line, Rush. You're saying as an individual, you hope Barack Obama succeeds, right? He's your president, too?
RUSH: Yeah. I want him to succeed in bringing the country around, but the policies he's announced are not going to do it. I want the policies to fail; I want America to succeed. I love the country.
BURNETT: Thank you very much, Rush Limbaugh.
RUSH: It's an honor.
BURNETT: A lot of people saying your bipartisanship here, this plan makes some sense. Mark, there's some things in this plan that make a lot of sense, that corporate tax cut.
HAINES: Oh, yeah.
BURNETT: Yeah.

END TRANSCRIPT

Rush Discusses His Bipartisan Stimulus Plan on CNBC

Technorati Tags: Rush Limbaugh,Obama Era,Obama,Stimulus Plan,bipartisan,Haines,Burnett,Economy,America

Socialism Primer : Income Taxation

2009-01-29T16:11:00.000-08:00

After listening to Senator Nancy Pelosi and Congressman Harry Reid and after the November election AND after the House Stimulus Hose vote I began making sure I know what socialism is . . . so . . . join me on my journey.

There was so much talk about the greedy rich and that they need to be taxed more so . . . I decided to start with income taxation.

Income taxation is a fine on income. Increasing that fine is likely to cause aversive conditioning and result in changed behavior. Sample result: Bono and U2 moved their financial affairs to the Netherlands in 2006 after the Irish government changed the tax code in a way that would have cost Bono and his bandmates huge amounts of money. That is, the band responded to an increase in the fine on their income by removing their income from the taxing authority's jurisdiction. If someone like Bono, who is famous for complaining that governments should spend more tax money helping the poor, prefers to spend his money as he chooses rather than have it taken by politicians under threat of force, then how likely is it that other high earners are unaffected by attempts to confiscate more of their income?

Government-provided welfare payments, be it to the poor or the rich, are rewards for non-productivity and constraints for production and resources. Use tax dollars to subsidize a corporation's foreign advertising or anything else it does, and the pressure for efficient operation is reduced. Pay unemployed single mothers to stay home, and you not only encourage them to not find jobs but – if the mothers must remain single to qualify for the "free" money – you also ensure that millions of children will grow up with unmarried parents and, in many cases, without their fathers, as has happened in the United States.

Read more at Glen Allport's 'Strike the Root' blog.

Complete List of Poor Nations That Have Adopted Socialist Governments and Then Become Prosperous

Technorati Tags: Nancy Pelosi,Contraception,Stimulas Package,Stimulus Plan,Scocialism,Education,Study,Student safety,Government Programs,taxation,income taxation,Netherlands,Irish,Bono,Welfare,single mothers,jobs

It is unwise to be too sure of one's own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err.

Mahatma Gandhi

Source: http://quotes4all.net/quote_1068.html

[Powered by QuotesPlugin v1.0 for Windows Live Writer]

Share this post :

From Soup to Nuts

2009-01-27T15:40:00.000-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

Most of you may be familiar with a proof given for the evolution of life which goes like this . . . lighting, primordial atmospheric gases, lightning, heat, water, etc. finally producing living organisms and eventually man. Therefore the title.

An experiment by Miller-Urey set out to prove just that. Hence the name: Miller-Urey Experiment. However, problems have been found with the value of this experiment in proving the evolutionary advent of life. So new versions of the Miller-Urey experiment have arisen. However, are these problems for proving the evolutionary origin of life resolved simply by tweaking the Miller-Urey experiment?

Here is an episode from Intelligent Design The Future which may shed some light on the dilemma. Hint: Be sure to refresh your understanding of 'reduction' . Click this link to check it out:
Rehabilitating the Miller-Urey Experiment?

Share this post :

Technorati Tags: Miller-Urey,Experiment,life,Intelligent Design,evolution,Darwinism,Origin of life,science,ID

Pebble Bed Reactor and Will Atlas Shrug Again

2009-01-16T09:38:00.000-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

I'm reading Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand for the first time. I just finished chapter 7 and parallels of people, movements, laws, movements and inventions are popping out everywhere.

I find the Pebble Bed Reactor to be an excellent work of technology which is just right for supplying a healthy world's growing energy needs. Will the Al Gore (Orren Boyle)- Nobel - Green Peace -Earthlife Africa types prevail over healthy growth, development and social commerce? Will the Pebble Reactor become like the 'Rearden Steel' of Atlas Shrugged?

Ayn Rand had begun adapting Atlas Shrugged as a television miniseries in 1981, but the project was never completed. She died in 1982. This project should be revived and completed.

Read this book. Then, listen to the news, read the papers and listen to our politicians talk. Addendum: I do not recommend this or blog to the Lilian Rearden types, it will only annoy you. As for me, I am a 60+ 'wet nurse' sharing my awakening experiences with you, the reader. Enjoy. Now . . . to the reactor.

Graphite Pebble for Reactor : Wikipedia Source (The Rearden Steel Part)

The pebble bed reactor (PBR) is a graphite-moderated, gas-cooled, nuclear reactor. It is a type of Very high temperature reactor (VHTR) [formally known as the high temperature gas reactor

(HTGR)], one of the six classes of nuclear reactors in the Generation IV initiative. Like other VHTR designs, the PBR uses TRISO fuel particles, which allows for high outlet temperatures and passive safety.

The base of the PBR's unique design is the spherical fuel elements called "pebbles". These tennis ball-sized pebbles are made of

pyrolytic graphite (which acts as the moderator), and they contain thousands of micro fuel particles called TRISO particles. These TRISO fuel particles consist of a fissile material (such as ²³⁵U) surrounded by a coated ceramic layer of SiC for structural integrity. In the PBR, 360,000 pebbles are placed together to create a reactor, and is cooled by an inert or semi-inert gas such as helium, nitrogen or carbon dioxide. Also, the gases do not dissolve contaminants or absorb neutrons as water does, so the core has less in the way of radioactive fluids.

A rendered diagram of a pebble bed reactor plant layout. This type of reactor is also unique because its passive safety removes the need for redundant, active safety systems. Because the reactor is designed to handle high temperatures, it can cool by natural circulation and still remain intact in accident scenarios, which may raise the temperature of the reactor to 1600 ^oC. Also because of its design, its high temperatures allow higher thermal efficiencies than possible in traditional nuclear power plants (up to 50%).

A number of prototypes have been built. Active development is ongoing in South Africa as the PBMR design, and in China whose HTR-10 is the only prototype currently operating.

The Atlas Shrugged Part . . .

The technology was first developed in Germany^[1] but political and economic decisions were made to abandon the technology.^[2] In various forms, it is currently under development by MIT, the South African company PBMR, General Atomics (U.S.), the Dutch company Romawa B.V., Adams Atomic Engines [1], Idaho National Laboratory, and the Chinese company Huaneng ^[3].

In June 2004, it was announced that a new PBMR would be built at Koeberg, South Africa by Eskom, the government-owned electrical utility.^[4] There is opposition to the PBMR from groups such as Koeberg Alert and Earthlife Africa, the latter of which has sued Eskom to stop development of the project.^[5]

Pebble bed reactor: Definition from Answers.com

Technorati Tags: Al Gore,Nancy Palosi,Pebble Bed Reactor,Energy,Global Warming,Ayn Rand,Atlas Shrugged,Nuclear Power,healthy,growth,development

HUBLESS WINDMILL

2009-01-14T17:14:00.000-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

My friend David Ang turned me on to this new patent. Great idea. Could even put this on the base supports of all those existing windfarm generators already out there. Here's a map for all you entrepreneurs out there.

HUBLESS WINDMILL

Abstract:

Systems, apparatus and methods for generating power from fluid motion, such as wind are provided. The apparatus is a wing-shaped airfoil with cup-shaped indentations that allow the airfoil to harness wind energy throughout a wide range of wind speeds and from different wind directions. The indentations harness wind energy at low wind speeds while the wing-shape generates a lifting force at high wind speeds to harness wind energy. The system comprises one or more of the devices configured in a hollow, generally cylindrical, shape and connected to a ring frame. The system rotates about an axis running through the center of the ring frame. The rotational motion of the system generates electrical power via a generator. The method is a method for generating electrical power from the rotational motion of the system.

(WO/2008/109784) HUBLESS WINDMILL

Share this post :

Why

2009-01-06T22:42:00.001-08:00

Image by Denis Collette...!!! via Flickr

On a quiet 1970's fall day, near a lazy sloping hill's crest, I stood with an easel explaining how we recognize that life, specified complexity, is the result of intelligent design (I borrow the phrase because it works well). All morning as groups of students waited for the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute bus and departed. This received as much recognition as a billboard ad with no pictures. At lunchtime, the bus stop became quiet and deserted.

Quietly, I considered the possibility of more frustration when the students returned. My dark mood was reinforced by the cigarette butts, coke cans and more discards littering the bus stop's unloved, dusty ground.

EUREKA! I would make my point, without words.

A scraggly branch was modified to become a boom-like rake. I cleaned the ground until it was pristine and uniform. Stray rocks were brushed to reveal their original finish. Standing back I studied the scene and positioned them in reference to where the bus would stop and where passengers exit. I began tracing rhythmic, resonant lines around the rocks. Time flew. I was having fun as I thought of what might happen when the students arrived. Just beyond the hill's crest the sound of the approaching bus grew louder and I moved out of sight.

The bus arrived. Students left the bus. They hesitating for a moment, the students continued their trek. I smiled. These students proved the point I was trying to make earlier. They avoided the ground etchings as they continued to their destination. Finally, the last student left the bus. He stopped and considered the ground for several moments, and, finally, I emerged from behind the bush. He recognized me from earlier in the day and asked, "Why?"

I smiled and explained. “I wanted to prove we can recognize that life is not an accident, without a lot of words. Life, existence, all of this” – I motioned all around us -- “is the result of a designer, God, whatever you want to call the creator of all this. I created these patterns in the dust. You noticed and responded. The creator has caused everything we see to take form and in some cases to live. We are learning to be response-able. The first step is to ask, “Why?”

David Belfort

Share this post :

Technorati tags: Intelligent Design, God, Designer, Bus Stop, Students, Rensselaer, RPI, Specified complexity, dust, eureka, Zen, Zen garden

Intelligence Expelled

2008-12-30T16:37:00.000-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

In the middle of "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed," Ben Stein's movie about the assault on Intelligent Design by the intellectual "gatekeepers" in the nation, a prominent evolutionist tries to explain just how mud might have turned into the first cell.

"One popular theory is that it might have started on the back of crystals," says Michael Ruse.

I laughed out loud, but Stein, unflappable, keeps a poker face.

"I don't get," he deadpans, "how you get from mud to a living organism."

"I've already told you," Ruse continues, apparently unaware of just how silly he sounds.

Such is one of the telling moments in the movie, which came out last year, and is now available in video stores.

As the second half of the school year is starting across New Jersey and the nation, it is worth visiting this movie just to see one perspective on how the battle of evolution versus intelligent design is being waged.

(It also serves as a lead-in to some of the fun we're going to have on this blog debating that issue.)

Ben Stein makes three telling points:

George Berkin has done a great job on his blog Intelligent Design. Click below to read the rest of this excellent post

Ben Stein Movie: "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" - NJVoices: George Berkin

Technorati Tags: Ben Stein,Intelligent Design,Darwinism,Dawkins,Debate,persecution

Celebrating One Family Under God

2008-12-26T18:40:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

Merry Christmas ,

Brothers and Sisters.

Something very special is remembered at this time.

The genealogy of Jesus the Christ shows that Mary, Tamar and others, made a breakthrough for Human History. These women made great effort, at the risk of their lives, to stand with God's will providing for the pure lineage of Jesus.

Jesus called God, Father. He taught us to pray saying, "Our Father . . . "

His birth and life opened the way for us to live as brothers and sisters. Let's celebrate.

Share this post :

Online Money Management | Mint.com

2008-12-24T22:15:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

What makes Mint.com stand out is how easy it is to use. Unlike other sites, you don't have to download your bank account activity.—Orlando Sentinel

Simple, one-time set up

Create your anonymous Mint account, then add your bank, credit card and investment accounts. This set up takes only five minutes – and that’s all the data entry Mint ever asks of you.

Technorati tags: financial support, accounts, investment, credit cards, Mint, online, free, money management

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

2008-12-23T10:25:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

Did you ever feel bad because you forgot a birthday? Don't feel bad. Did you know that just celebrating birthdays has been a problem for some, even if it is Christ's? Origen, an early father of the Christian community felt so. As the popularity of Santa Claus increased from 1823 some wanted to do away with the celebration of Christmas altogether. Read about it in Joshua King's 'The Examination and Trial of Father Christmas' (1868) which was written shortly after Christmas was reinstated as a holy day in England.

Isn't it interesting that storytelling, poems, songs and the like can catch the spirit and imagination of a society and carry it to places it had never imagined before. Such can be the power of word and image at the service of inspiration.

"'Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse..." So begins one of the best-known and best-loved tales of Christmas, "A Visit From St. Nicholas." Published on this date in 1823, most sources attribute authorship of the poem to Clement Clarke Moore, a professor of Oriental and Greek Literature in New York. The poem's description of Santa Claus, his sleigh and slide down the chimney and other aspects of Christmas influenced the way in which Americans came to celebrate the holiday.
Quote: "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!" — "A Visit From St. Nicholas"

Technorati Tags: Santa Claus,St.Nicholas,Clarke Moore,Christmas,Santa,Sleigh,Stockings

A New Era is Coming

2008-12-21T19:02:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

A NEW TIME IS COMING According to Reverend Moon, this present materialistic age will soon yield to a new age of spirituality, one based on the universal principle of unselfish service to others and a culture of God-centered families where people of all nations, cultures, races and religions will rejoice together. In the following sections, learn about Reverend Moon's life, The Divine Principle and work of eight decades to bring about this new era.

Source: Rev. Sun Myung Moon Official Website

In 1982 my wife and I were blessed in marriage at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York USA with 2075 other couples,

Participating in ushering in a new age based on the universal principle of unselfish service to others and a culture of God-centered families where people of all nations, cultures, races and religions will rejoice together.

We know that, as we prepare for this and as we move towards it with one heart and one mind, we will bring this to pass. We will see the day where thousands and tens of thousands of Christians and Catholics and Buddhists and other religions can honor and worship together with us, as a Unification family.

Technorati tags: World Peace Temple, Unificationists, Rev. Moon, Divine Principle, culture, family, family culture, religion, nations, Catholic, Buddhists

In Appreciation to Women

2008-12-17T19:42:00.001-08:00

500 Years Of Female Portraits In Western Art - video powered by Metacafe

Tree of Life : Klimt

2008-12-16T14:10:00.001-08:00

The Tree of Life

Artist Gustav Klimt (1862-1918) was a forerunner of Modernism and the Art Deco movements, helping to pioneer the Viennese Secession and Art Nouveau movements.

Bob Franken: Modern-Day Pyramids and Ponzi Schemes :Huffington Post

2008-12-15T16:42:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

"As we're discovering, almost the entire economy is the moral equivalent of a Ponzi scheme." Think about it. Our currency is base on Trust. People trusted Madoff but when he had to payoff, it became clear he really Mad(e)off with their money.

Interestingly similar, people trust the United States with their tax money and the printing of currency. With the creation of 7 to 8 trillion in new money are we approaching a "Madoff" point where the trust just isn't there?

When so many of our citizens and institutions are expecting a payoff (bail-out) from the government . . .we move further away from the democratic experiment the founders of our American democracy envisioned. A democracy for moral, responsible people. A people whose payoff comes through moral living, creative enterprise, and respect of each other as one family under the creator from whom life, liberty and this pursuit of happiness are freely bestowed.

I'm a conservative and yet I'm glad Obama is president. He is the only one with enough charisma to move forward . . . as long as the grime sooooooo near him . . . doesn't tarnish his image is the eyes of the people. On this point I'll bet even the Democrats are learning to pray. ME?! I'm already praying and working on plan B.

I don't really understand why we're paying so much attention to Bernard Madoff.

Oh sure sure, if the charges are accurate, the collapse of his Ponzi scheme might just put him in the Fraud Hall of Fame.

But he'll have plenty of company. In the world of finance, however, it's probably more accurate to say he will achieve new heights in the realm of illegal fraud.

As we're discovering, almost the entire economy is the moral equivalent of a Ponzi scheme.

Hyperbole? Well, let's see:

While the operating details may be different... somewhat anyway...it's undeniable that much of our financial and industrial structure is a Pyramid based on a phantom foundation.

It has been constructed by opportunists who were such con artists they didn't care whether it ultimately imploded, as long as they got theirs.

Or so inept they had no business around the building.

Or worst, the people who adopted the "Get along-go along" approach to success...never going against the grain, no matter what.

Those may be the most corrupt of all, since their expedient "make no waves" mentality was at the very least amoral, which is another way of saying immoral.

By the way, that would include the politicians who looked the other way so they could either get the crumbs in the form of campaign contributions, or because raising a stink was simply too much of a hassle.

Now that the chickens have come home to roost the home has caved in.

There are important differences between Madoff and the others:

First of all, he has not had the chutzpah to ask for a multi billion dollar loan to bail him out. At least so far.

Secondly, a sizable chunk of those who have been harmed by his enterprise are the prosperous, or soon-to-be former prosperous.

The rest of the financial schemes have damaged or destroyed the well-being of nearly everyone..rich, poor and somewhere in between, including those who believe that Ponzi was a character on "Happy Days"

During these UNhappy days, as we clean up this mess, we need to go beyond oversight regulation. It is essential that we write into the law prohibitions that drag a lot of these shady dealings and their dealers across that narrow line that separates barely legal and illegal.

In other words we need to call all this larcenous conduct what it is: A crime.

Economy

Regulation

Election Anxiety

Bob Franken: Modern-Day Pyramids

Technorati Tags: Ponzi,Ponzi Scheme,Madoff,economy,currency,United States,Crime,SEC

Guard yourself against identity theft on social networks | Dallas Morning News | Pamela Yip

2008-12-15T15:16:00.001-08:00

Image via CrunchBase, source unknown

Yes, we have freedom in America. But . . .

Guard yourself against identity theft on social networks

08:14 AM CST on Monday, December 8, 2008

By PAMELA YIP / The Dallas Morning News
pyip@dallasnews.com

The next source of identity theft may be social networking Web sites.

And social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook are becoming a "growing pool of valuable information that at some point thieves may consider more valuable than a credit report," Mr. Mitic said.

For example, most of us use facts associated with our lives as user words or passwords, and thieves are learning they can mine these facts from social networking sites.

"I know most Americans who, if they have pets, that's usually their password," Mr. Mitic said. "The information that may seem innocuous to share may have real value to individuals with criminal minds."

Social networking sites enable people to freely express themselves in a way that may cause them to unwittingly drop morsels of information that criminals can extract to steal their identity.

Here's how it might work:

Your profile says that you live in Texas, you were born in Dallas, your beloved pet's name is Max and that you like to spend time with your parents, Dick and Jane.

It also says that today you're venting your anger at your bank – Bank XYZ – because it's been slow to resolve a problem with your account.

Now criminals know the name of your bank, the name of your pet and your mother's name. They will seek to learn your mother's maiden name, which is often used as a security question on bank Web sites.

Technorati Tags: facebook,myspace,id theft,security,social networking,prevention,safety

1971 December 15th

2008-12-15T10:56:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

Lest we forget. These documents show the founders of America understood that the creator and the people, not the government, is the source of the power for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Bill of Rights: Amendments I-X of the US Constitution, granting substantial individual liberties, became law (1791)

Today In History - December 15th

Technorati Tags: Constitution,bill of rights,American Government Experiment,Government,People,founders

World Vision - Microenterprise Development Program: How Microloan Works

2008-12-14T22:32:00.001-08:00

Much thanks to Ant_L.Xanga.com for this insight.

Microenterprise Development Program: How Microloan Works

1. The entrepreneurial poor apply for loans:
A traditional bank loan is unattainable for most of the world’s poor. They have no credit, they may own no property, and if they have a business, it’s likely struggling despite long hours of hard work. Through a variety of strategies like group lending through community banks, and cross-guarantees, loans can effectively and efficiently be provided to people who lack collateral but who demonstrate an entrepreneurial spirit, trustworthiness, a good work ethic, and sound business ideas. The proof it works: 96% of loans are repaid on time!
(Back to top)

2. World Vision disburses microloans:
Loan sizes vary from $50 to $5,000, most typically in the $100 to $2,000 range. Usually loans are given to groups of five to 30 microbusiness operators who band together for self-administration, mutual encouragement, and accountability. This ensures that even the poorest of the poor can have access to credit because these entrepreneurs cross-guarantee each other’s loans and support each other’s businesses. Most World Vision loan recipients are women, who consistently use their extra income to benefit their children.
(Back to top)

3. Credit officers coach loan recipients:
Credit officers begin coaching clients before they receive their first loan, and continue with regular follow-up throughout the term of the loan. Business coaching includes assistance with accounting, marketing, and managing—all based on biblical and ethical business principles.
(Back to top)

4. Growing businesses thrive:
With a loan, entrepreneurs start carpentry shops, improve farming, operate flower businesses, purchase livestock, run food services, and weaving businesses, to name a few. These businesses create jobs and generate additional goods and services, thereby enhancing the entire community. Last year, over 185,000 jobs were created or sustained through our clients’ business successes.
(Back to top)

5. Loans are repaid:
The poor are a good credit risk, repaying their loans more than 96 percent of the time. As loans are repaid, borrowers become eligible for larger loans. The reasonable interest rate sustains the loan program, while maintaining low arrears and efficient operations.
(Back to top)

6. Families gain self-sufficiency:
Families who receive small loans report better family health, an increase in their business earnings, and the ability to spend more on food, medicine, and education. According to a study by George Washington University of microloan recipients in World Vision projects:

More than 90 percent reported improved business skills.
75 percent reported an increased sense of empowerment.
80 percent reported improved family health in East Africa.

7. Loan is recycled:
Repaid loans are recycled to help an ever-growing number of poor entrepreneurs to grow their businesses, better support their families, generate jobs, and aid their communities.
(Back to top)

>> Community Banks
Community Banking is World Vision’s primary lending methodology. These loan-and-savings circles provide efficient and cost-effective delivery of financial services to some of the poorest in the world. Integrated with other interventions to meet development needs, World Vision helps transform entire communities.

Opportunity for the poorest - Community Banking creates an opportunity for the poorest to obtain credit. Entrepreneurs typically band together in self-selected groups of 15 to 30 members to form a lending group and elect their own leaders. It is important that groups self-select responsible members whom they trust, because the entire group acts as a guarantor for every member’s loan. Members are then trained in effective loan management and leadership skills.

Cost-effective - Because loan officers work with groups rather than individuals in training and handling loans, the costs of Community Banking are low. This methodology also enables cost-effective provision of loans as small as $50. World Vision lends money to the Community Bank, which in turn, lends money to each member. Members must save a specified amount before they receive a loan.

High loan repayment rates - Loan repayment rates in community banks are extremely high. The group requires weekly meetings, where loans are tracked and repaid. These meetings also provide an excellent forum for encouragement and spiritual input, as well as training in business management, or in topics such as health care, HIV/AIDS education, or improved nutrition. This extra education is taught by the World Vision development project staff according to their areas of expertise.

Positive impact - Ultimately, Community Bank members improve their entrepreneurial skills, their incomes increase, their businesses thrive, jobs are created for the community, and families and the entire community benefits. Household heads can more easily afford school fees, provide improved nutrition, and adequate health care. The enterprise-minded begin to lift themselves and their families out of poverty and fuel their community’s economy.

As Community Bank members repay their loans, they are eligible for larger loans. Eventually, enterprising members with a good repayment record are allowed to form smaller Solidarity Groups and receive more sizable loans.

>> Solidarity Groups
Designed for more experienced and larger enterprises, Solidarity Groups are smaller than Community Banks, with an average of three to six people who guarantee each other’s loans. Members who make repayments on time become eligible for large individual loans. Loan sizes range from $300 to $800.

>> Individual Loans
Clients who have either grown their own businesses successfully through a solidarity group or have medium-sized businesses qualify for loans ranging from $500 to $5,000. These loans typically require either two guarantors or collateral. Borrowers often create a formal business plan in consultation with their loan officer.
(Back to top)

Happy Health Machine: Picture for 1000 words

2008-12-13T20:36:00.001-08:00

We can always learn more. Our family uses the Happy Health Machine. We’re having great results. Leave a comment or question.

Source: S-Trademart - Peace World Medical Co., Ltd.

Peace World Medical : Happy Health Machine

2008-12-13T20:20:00.001-08:00

Peace World Medical Co., Ltd. is a company established to produce and distribute the medical equipment.

"Happy health, happy family and happy world" is the motto of the company which represents the respect for our customers.

We have a confidence that our representative product, "Happy Health" will greatly contribute to improving customer's health. Exerting our best efforts to create healthy society, we promise to satisfy customers' expectation through the pioneer sprit and development of advanced technology.

Peace World Medical Co., Ltd. icon Address Suwun Bldg., 88, Gyeongun-dong Jongno-gu Seoul 110-775 Korea icon Phone 82-2-7335063 icon Fax 82-2-7335065 icon Homepage

Contact Sang-ho Moon / Deputy General Manager

Source: S-Trademart - Peace World Medical Co., Ltd.

Intelligent Design, Creationism and Darwinism are buzzing and alive on the Internet

2008-12-11T16:15:00.001-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

Charles Darwin's 1837 sketch, his first diagram of an evolutionary tree from his First Notebook on Transmutation of Species (1837) on view at the the Museum of Natural History in Manhattan.

As long as Darwinists degrade those who question and hold up other possible explanations for life, as long as they hold their theory as a Dogma of Faith for the Scientific Community, as long as they hold life as an evolutionary accident and Science Fact the controversy will not die . . .

Below is a one day sample of Internet activity on this subject.

Charles Darwin Bicentenary
By viviennemackie
The controversy between ‘Evolution’ and ‘Creation’ has raged very strongly at times in the 150 years since Darwin’s book was published, and recently another contender, ‘Intelligent Design’, has entered the fray. ...
Around and About with Viv - http://viviennemackie.wordpress.com/

Darwinism and Wikipedia
By mynym
It’s interesting that Martin Luther still receives more attention in the entry than Darwin does given that the Nazis themselves said that their beliefs had more to do with Darwin than Martin Luther. Their entry on Intelligent Design ...
Intelligent Design and More - http://www.intelldesign.com/

Darwin Worship Material
By Matthew Angle
James McGrath over at Exploring Our Matrix has a fun post here, about material that is meant to be used in churches to celebrate Darwin and evolution. The PDF even has a great little quip about the dangers of Intelligent Design. ...
Analytic Angles - http://analyticangles.wordpress.com/

This one looks really interesting, however, I feel the title and the overall gist of the article is positioned on evolution as . . . advancement of complexity over time and therefore at odds with creationists. BUT. The main point in this article is : Designer vs Atheism (Accident). Muslim scientists are pro designer and anti accident. So am I. Anyway . . . let the debate rage on.

Muslim Scientists Prepare for Battle With Creationists
FOXNews - USA
A Harris poll conducted in November found 47 percent of Americans accept Darwin’s theory of evolution while 40 percent believe instead in creationism. ...
See other stories on this topic

The Current Controversy Over Evolution
Florida votes to teach evolution in schools
Hard to Reject an Ideology That Places Your Race at the Pinnacle:
Ebert: Win Ben Stein's Mind
The strengths and weaknesses of evolution
Darwin public holiday
Keep creationism out of the science class
It is disingenuous to label Intelligent Design as Creationism but is serves the purpose of those who maintain the current Darwinist Inquisition in the science community.

History is more or less bunk. It's tradition. We don't want tradition. We want to live in the present and the only history that is worth a tinker's dam is the history we made today.

Henry Ford

Source: http://quotes4all.net/quote_1486.html

Never let your sense of morals prevent you from doing what's right.

Isaac Asimov

Source: http://quotes4all.net/quote_1341.html

[Powered by QuotesPlugin v1.0 for Windows Live Writer]

Technorati Tags: Martin Luther,Darwin,Charles Darwin,Evolution,Theroy of Evoluton,Intelligent Design,Design,Accident,Life,Origin of life,existence,science,iquisition,persecution,creationism,Islam,Muslim,Protestant,Catholic,Hindu,Confusionism

Academic Freedom Essay Contest

2008-12-05T19:06:00.001-08:00

Academic Freedom on Evolution Student Video and Essay Contest

Click here to download entry form
What this Is
A student video and essay contest inspired by Charles Darwin’s comment that “A fair result can be obtained only by fully stating and balancing the facts and arguments on both sides of each question.” The contest seeks the best student-created videos and essays that communicate support for academic freedom to explore the evidence for and against Darwinian evolution (for example, an entry might defend the right of teachers to present scientific evidence that challenges Darwinian evolution, or the right of scientists to conduct research about the theory of intelligent design). Entries will be judged based on their creativity, their accuracy, and their persuasiveness. The contest is sponsored by the Center for Science and Culture at Discovery Institute.

Entry Rules
Essays submitted should be authored by a single student and should be no longer than 2,000 words. They should be formatted as a MS Word file, double-spaced, and in a 12-point font. Essays must be submitted electronically along with the official entry form to contest@discovery.org by no later than 5:00 pm Pacific Coast time on January 23, 2009. Additional contest rules are posted below.

Videos submitted can be authored by up to 5 students and should be no longer than 5 minutes. Videos can use drama, comedy, satire, animation, and other methods to communicates their message.

How to submit videos:
Via Youtube: Contestants can join the YouTube Group “Academic Freedom Day Video Contest” by going to http://www.youtube.com/group/academicfreedomday. Once there you can join the group to upload a video. Videos will appear on the YouTube Group “Academic Freedom Day Video Contest” page if they meet the contest requirements. Additional contest rules are posted below.

Who Is Eligible
Students currently enrolled in high school (grades 9-12) or as a college undergraduate may enter the contest. (High school students include those attending private, public, or home schools.) Essays must be submitted by an individual student, but videos may be submitted by a group of up to 5 students.

The Prizes
One grand-prize winner will be announced and have his or her entry officially unveiled at academicfreedomday.com on Academic Freedom Day, February 12th 2009. The grand-prize winner will be awarded $500, and one essay runner-up and one video runner-up will receive $250. Up to 10 finalists will receive their choice of a free book or DVD.

The Deadline
Entries must be submitted to the YouTube Group “Academic Freedom Day Video Contest” at http://www.youtube.com/group/academicfreedomday, by the end of business on January 23, 2009.

The Judges
Finalists will be selected by the staff of Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture. Selection of the grand prize winner and two runners-up will be by a distinguished panel of judges that includes biochemist Michael Behe, author of Darwin’s Black Box and The Edge of Evolution; mathematician and philosopher William Dembski, author of The Design Inference and The Design Revolution; astronomer Guillermo Gonzalez, co-author of The Privileged Planet; biologist Jonathan Wells, author of Icons of Evolution and The Politically Incorrect Guide to Darwinism and Intelligent Design; and law professor Phillip E. Johnson, author of Darwin on Trial and Reason in the Balance.

Additional Contest Rules

A student may submit only one entry (a video or an essay).
All entries must include an official contest entry form, signed and dated.
All student entrants under 18 must have their parents sign the permission section of the entry form. All onscreen participants in videos must sign (or have their parents sign) the permission section of the entry form.
By submitting an entry, students (and/or their parents) are giving permission for their entry and their names to be publicized by Discovery Institute, including the posting of winning entries on the academicfreedomday.com website, the YouTube “Academic Freedom Day Video Contest” page, and the public recognition of winning entrants on Discovery Institute-related blogs and websites.
Essays and videos submitted for the contest must be the original work of the student(s) entering the contest. Furthermore, video entries must not violate applicable copyright laws and only use images and audio that are in the public domain (or images and audio that the student has the legal right to use).
Entries cannot be returned.

Questions or requests for additional information should be directed to academicfreedom@discovery.org.

Technorati tags: Intelligent Design, debate, contest, Win, Academic Freedom, Darwin, Evolution, Monkey, Worm, Students, Activism

Glenn Beck's ‘The Christmas Sweater’

2008-12-04T07:00:00.001-08:00

From our family to yours. . . If you give only one gift to you family this year . . . give them THE CHRISTMAS SWEATER Dec 18th Wednesday.

The Christmas Sweater is a new Christmas Memory Play with Music, based on Glenn Beck's soon-to-be-released novel of the same name. It is an exciting and compelling piece of theatre, featuring national television/radio personality Glenn Beck, a 10-piece orchestra and a Broadway gospel singer. Filled with warmth and humor, The Christmas Sweater tells the story of real people as they come to terms with tragedy, family, redemption, love and the power of faith.

The production will be presented as a “Living Movie,” including impressive cinematic animation projections created expressly for this production. The vibrant musical score, which includes traditional Christmas carols, gospel hymns and original songs, underscores Glenn's telling of the tale, sets the various scenes and punctuates dramatic moments throughout.

The Christmas Sweater is, quite simply, a good story well told.

Don't miss your chance to see Glenn Beck like you’ve never seen him before - and from the comfort of your neighborhood movie theatre. Limited seats available – buy your tickets now!

Please note: The December 17th show will be broadcast LIVE. The December 18th show will be an encore prerecorded broadcast of the previous night's show.

Fathom and Mercury Radio Arts present Glenn Beck’s The Christmas Sweater Live from The Charleston Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, December 17th at 8:00pm ET / 7:00pm CT / 6:00pm MT and 8:00pm PT (tape delay) followed by an Encore at select theatres the following night Thursday, December 18th. Please check the theatre lists posted on this page for participating theatres.

PARTICIPATING THEATRES

Click here for the list of theatres participating in the LIVE event.

Click here for the list of theatres participating in the ENCORE event.

PURCHASE TICKETS

Click here to purchase tickets to the LIVE event on Wednesday, December 17th.

Click here to purchase tickets to the ENCORE event on Thursday, December 18th.

Technorati tags: Glenn Beck, The Christmas Sweater, Live Performance, Theater, Family, Fun, Friends, Culture, Christmas Family Fun

The Prophet: Speak To Us Of Work

2008-12-01T18:49:00.001-08:00

By Khalil Kibran

As the building of the Peace Palace in Seoul, Korea begins I recall these words . . .

Then a ploughman said, "Speak to us of Work." And he answered, saying: You work that you may keep pace with the earth and the soul of the earth. For to be idle is to become a stranger unto the seasons, and to step out of life's procession, that marches in majesty and proud submission towards the infinite. When you work you are a flute through whose heart the whispering of the hours turns to music. Which of you would be a reed, dumb and silent, when all else sings together in unison? Always you have been told that work is a curse and labour a misfortune. But I say to you that when you work you fulfil a part of earth's furthest dream, assigned to you when that dream was born, And in keeping yourself with labour you are in truth loving life, And to love life through labour is to be intimate with life's inmost secret. But if you in your pain call birth an affliction and the support of the flesh a curse written upon your brow, then I answer that naught but the sweat of your brow shall wash away that which is written. You have been told also life is darkness, and in your weariness you echo what was said by the weary. And I say that life is indeed darkness save when there is urge, And all urge is blind save when there is knowledge, And all knowledge is vain save when there is work, And all work is empty save when there is love; And when you work with love you bind yourself to yourself, and to one another, and to God. And what is it to work with love?

It is to weave the cloth with threads drawn from your heart, even as if your beloved were to wear that cloth. It is to build a house with affection, even as if your beloved were to dwell in that house. It is to sow seeds with tenderness and reap the harvest with joy, even as if your beloved were to eat the fruit. It is to charge all things you fashion with a breath of your own spirit, And to know that all the blessed dead are standing about you and watching. Often have I heard you say, as if speaking in sleep, "he who works in marble, and finds the shape of his own soul in the stone, is a nobler than he who ploughs the soil. And he who seizes the rainbow to lay it on a cloth in the likeness of man, is more than he who makes the sandals for our feet." But I say, not in sleep but in the over-wakefulness of noontide, that the wind speaks not more sweetly to the giant oaks than to the least of all the blades of grass; And he alone is great who turns the voice of the wind into a song made sweeter by his own loving. Work is love made visible. And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy. For if you bake bread with indifference, you bake a bitter bread that feeds but half man's hunger. And if you grudge the crushing of the grapes, your grudge distils a poison in the wine. And if you sing though as angels, and love not the singing, you muffle man's ears to the voices of the day and the voices of the night. Previous chapter -- Next chapter back to The Prophet main page

Source: The Prophet

Glenn Beck - The Argument Against Idiots: Separation of Church and State

2008-11-25T22:10:00.001-08:00

Hey church goers. Ever wonder why your pastor doesn't speak from the pulpit about issues of the day . . . like the issues swilling around the 2008 Presidential candidates. Read and weep. The go further to see Glenn Beck's responses.

11/25/08 update There is a group in California which wants to take the Mormon Church to Court for their involvement in Amendment #8 Marriage is a Man and a Woman victory.

The inquisition is here again. Don’t just watch. The next thing they will be doing is walling ‘Religious’ communities off from the rest of society. Sound familiar.

The issue: 'Separation of Church and State' What the liberal whiners say: Thank GOODNESS for the Reverend Barry Lynn and Americans United for Separation of Church and State calling for the IRS to investigate that Catholic Bishop Arthur Serratelli, for jumping into this Presidential race...there is NO place for that in American politics...he needs to have his 501c status revoked!' 'Just as the Rev. Barry Lynn said: 'it's a HIDDEN AGENDA to sway votes!' 'Why do you hate CIVIL LIBERTIES...which is what the "C" and "L" in ACLU stand for...and why do you hate the U.S. Constitution? Like it or not religious zealots, there is a Constitutional separation of church and state in this country!

I couldn't stand the suspense. Here are Glenn's suggested responses to such fear mongering.

Your winning, logical, reasoned arguments

1. You're talking about the statement Bishop Serratelli made that the democratic candidate promised, as his FIRST act as president, to sign the pro-abortion, Freedom of Choice Act? He didn't even name the candidate, and he didn't endorse anyone...he was talking about a MORAL issue...that's what Bishops DO!
2. Oh, I guess you prefer the much more OPEN agenda of Jeremiah Wright and Michael Phlegar...both of whomunabashadly called for Barack Obama to be elected...from their PULPITS! And by the way, please stop calling Barry Lynn a REVEREND. He's a phony, former ACLU attorney, who only goes after conservative, white Christians. I didn't see him sick the IRS on Jeremiah Wright and Father Phlegar, did you?
3. No there isn't. There IS a Constitutional PROTECTION of religion in this country, that gives that Bishop the right to say what he did. But let me share the "establishment clause" of the 1st Amendment with you, since you've obviously never read it: Oh what the heck, I'll share the whole thing so you won't be able to say that I took it out of context. Here it is:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. No mention of a "separation of church and state". That came in an 1803 letter from Thomas Jefferson to a Baptist minister to assure him that the United States would never declare a state religion.

Source: Glenn Beck - Current Events & Politics - The Argument Against Idiots: Separation of Church and State

Technorati tags: separation of church and state, Glenn Beck, Catholic, IRS, Freedom of Speech, establishment clause, Michael Phlegar

Unificationists building One Family Peace Palace for All Faith Communities

2008-11-07T06:21:00.001-08:00

November 2008 finds America going beyond race and with the building of the Peace Palace announcement we find an opportunity to go join together with all religious traditions to celebrate, WE ARE ONE FAMILY.

Gratitude to True Parents who have opened the way for the greatest celebration in Human History: WE ARE ONE FAMILY.

Family Party Blog now turns from looking for what is wrong. Now, more effort will be made to find and encourage what is good and right; promoting the building a better future for mankind.

The Family Party blog promotes building the 210,000 capacity Peace Palace by 2013 in Seoul, Korea.

Technorati tags: religion, peace palace, Korea, Seoul, Unificationists, 210, 000, Universal, Family, celebrate, Catholic, Protestant, Buddhist, Musllim, All Faith Traditions, worship, history

What do you think? The L.A. Times-Sen. Obama-Rashid Khalidi Tape Controversy « GretaWire

2008-10-30T20:53:00.001-07:00

Click on the source link below and let them know what you think. They mare read it on the air.

What do you think? The L.A. Times-Sen. Obama-Rashid Khalidi Tape Controversy by Greta Van Susteren Weigh in! We want to hear from you!

Here's what I have to say:

When Obama was running for the Illinois senate, he had no problems with his camp insisting his opponent's private records, which his opponent wanted kept private for family reasons, be released to the public. The records were released under pressure from Obama and his opponent lost the election. Obama should allow the same principles of transparency which he has applied in the past. Obama should call on LA Times to release the video and audio. Obama should release his birth certificate. Obama should release his college papers from his days as a student at Columbia while under the tutelage of Kalid al Mansour.

Obama is hiding his past behind a MASK. Why? Because Obama's finely honed Saul Alinsky MASK of goodness, kindness and righteousness for socialist revolutionaries is hiding an Obama who is really a figurehead for Michael-Ayers-like revolutionary-social communists; . . . hiding an Obama who is the Liberator of Jeremiah Weight's Theology of (racial hatred/class envy) Liberation; . . . hiding the Obama of Farrakhan's Messiah/Community Organizer for lost youths and hiding the Obama who is inspirer, protector and funder of Acorn's squirrels who gather nuts for the ballot box in hopes of spoiling an election suitable for fomenting division, mistrust, threatened riots and a contrived electoral result.

The mass media is insuring this charade extends to the desired conclusion: THE INAUGURATION OF THE MASK of goodness, kindness and righteousness.

After the inauguration . . . America will be left with what is behind the MASK: Obama the socialist communist distributor of wealth and class equalizer; Obama the Racial Messiah; Obama the the controller. Hello Weimar Republic, hello post-revolution Cuba.

Source: What do you think? The L.A. Times-Sen. Obama-Rashid Khalidi Tape Controversy « GretaWire

Technorati tags: Kalid al Mansour, Saul Alinsky, Mask, Weimar Republic, Obama, L.A. Times, Rashid Khalidi, Acorn, Jeremiah Wright, Theology of Liberation, riots, election, 2008, transparency, socialism, inflation, distribution of wealth, communism

NewsMax: Obama Most Secretive

2008-10-23T06:52:00.001-07:00

Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign says his campaign will bring a new level of honesty and transparency to the White House. Obama proudly touts that he and Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla, passed a law requiring more transparency via a public database of all federal spending.
But when it comes to offering the public documents about his own public and private activities, Obama’s record for openness gets an "F" grade.
During the heated Democratic primary, Obama complained of the Bush White House being “one of the most secretive administrations in our history” and chided Sen. Hillary Clinton for not releasing her White House schedules.
Ironically, Obama, just days away from possibly being elected president, continues to stonewall a growing chorus of information requests for documents about his legislative, personal health, education, financing, and background -- leaving many voters to cast ballots based on incomplete information.
And serious questions about his past continue to swirl as Election Day looms, fueled in part by his own campaign’s refusal to make relevant documents available.
And the press, usually banging at the door for candidates to make “full disclosure” is strangely quiet about Obama’s stonewalling.
A Newsmax survey of key Obama aspects of Obama’s public and private life continued to be shielded from the public.
Among the examples:

Obama has released just one brief document detailing his personal health. McCain, on the other hands, released what he said was his complete medical file totaling more than 1500 pages. After criticism on the matter, last week the Obama campaign also released some routine lab-test results and electrocardiograms for Obama. All test results appeared normal, but many details about his health remain a mystery.
Obama has refused to offer his official papers as a state legislator in Illinois, and has been unable to produce correspondence, such as letters from lobbyists and other correspondence from his days in the Illinois state senate. There are also no appointment calendars available of his official activities. “It could have been thrown out,” Obama said while on the campaign trail during the Democratic primary. “I haven’t been in the state Senate now for quite some time.”
Obama has not released his client list as an attorney or his billing records. Obama has maintained that he only performed a few hours of legal work for a nonprofit organization with ties to Tony Rezko, the Chicago businessman convicted of fraud in June. But he has not released billing records that would prove this assertion.
Obama won’t release his college records from Occidental College where he studied for two years before transferring to Columbia.
Obama’s campaign refuses to give Columbia University, where he earned an undergraduate degree in political science, permission to release his transcripts. Such transcripts would list the courses Obama took, and his grades. President George W. Bush, and presidential contenders Al Gore and John Kerry, all released their college transcripts. (McCain has refused to release his Naval Academy transcript.)
Obama’s college dissertation has simply disappeared from Columbia Universities archives. In July, in response to a flurry of requests to review Obama’s senior thesis at the Ivy League school, reportedly titled “Soviet Nuclear Disarmament,” Obama spokesman Ben LaBolt told NBC News “We do not have a copy of the course paper you requested and neither does Columbia University.”
The senator has not agreed to the release of his application to the Illinois state bar, which would clear up intermittent allegations that his application to the bar may have been inaccurate.
Jim Geraghty of the National Review has written extensively about Obama’s unwillingness to release records related to clients he represented while he was an attorney with the Chicago law firm of Davis, Miner, Barnhill, and Gallard. Obama was required to list his clients during his years in the Illinois senate. “Obama listed every client of the firm,” Geraghty reported, making it impossible to discern which clients he represented.
Obama has never released records from his time at Harvard Law School.
Obama also has not disclosed the names of small donors giving $200 or less to his campaign. An exception to the finance-reporting laws exempts the campaign from reporting those who donate less than $200, but that law never envisioned the more than $300 million that has been raised by Obama in small amounts. The Republican National Committee has released its small donors, as well as McCain’s, on a public database.

News Max Article

Post-Darwinist: Intelligent design and popular culture: Spore game site dupes atheists

2008-09-22T06:26:00.001-07:00

This lady is an enjoyable read. After this you may want to visit This youtube site and lol as Will Wright explains Spore and Frank Drake, founder of SETI, displays his own 'intelligently improved human' on his tie. Intelligent design!?! You bet. Try intelligent designing yourself at Spore.com

======================================================

The Wall Street Journal appears to have noticed Spore, the "design your own universe" game which subtly mocks the Darwinian fairy tale - if we go by Robert Costa's story, "Creation Simulation" (September 19, 2008):
Apparently, a horde of professional and amateur atheists noticed it also:

One site, AntiSpore.com, appeared to be set up to counter what one poster, a self-described concerned Christian parent, called the game's "propaganda aimed directly at our children to teach them evolution instead of creationism." But after thousands of postings on AntiSpore, mostly by angst-filled atheist gamers bewildered and angry that someone could actually question evolution, the anonymous creator of the site announced last week that AntiSpore was in fact a hoax.
[ ... ]
But while many proponents of evolutionary theory, and fans of Spore, were spoiling for a fight, their opponents have never really showed up to do battle -- there were no Spore-inspired creationist rallies, no talk-show specials, no railing sermons. The Spore debate has not devolved into a modern-day Scopes Monkey Trial. What happened?

The story essentially insults traditional Christians by assuming that they should have been as stupid as the atheists whose creating story is Darwinism - to which any magical result can be credited. So the big question is, why aren't the Christians so stupid? Why didn't they generally fall for gimmicks, like they are supposed to do in the script - and did not in fact do in the Scopes Monkey Trial either?

Source: Post-Darwinist: Intelligent design and popular culture: Spore game site dupes atheists

FAMILY HOUSE

Dust Sprites and Maturity

Carpe Diem

Related articles

Defend Marriage: Sign the Petition

Related articles

Demand Atlas Shrugged Be Shown

1. Demand it!

Related articles

Resveratrol and diabetes

Allopathy, Snake Oil and the Semmelweis Reflex

Related articles by Zemanta

Socratic Method: Short Stories & James Hoskins

When To Start Receiving Retirement Benefits

When To Start Receiving Retirement Benefits

Contents

Your decision is a personal one

Monthly payments differ substantially based on when you start receiving benefits

Retirement may be longer than you think

Your decision could affect your family

You can keep working

Don’t forget Medicare

Additional resources

Related articles by Zemanta

Sheikh attacks Israel, pope walks out | The Pope In The Holy Land | Jerusalem Post

Related articles by Zemanta

Personal Cellular Renewal Guide

Business Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist

Related articles by Zemanta

Blue Skied, Windy April Day by Miyuki

UAW Membership Drops 7 Percent In 2008

Related articles by Zemanta

Miami Tax Day Tea Party

9 Principles: THE912PROJECT.COM

9 Principles

12 Values

Personal Renewal Guide

Related articles by Zemanta

Evolution Question: Mike Huckabee Responds

Related articles by Zemanta

Keynesian Resurgence

Well. His name and economic theory is being bantered around so much I thought it well to look into what is on the internet and here’s what I found. To my surprise the IMF is very much a part of this picture . . . as we go down this Keynesian rabbit hole.

Criticism

Related articles by Zemanta

Remove ‘In God We Trust’ and God - MSNBC Survey

A Glimpse into a Marine's Life on the Frontline in Iraq - Staff Sergeant Justin Harding - The Defining Moment Television Talk Show

Senators: Change the Stimulus Bill

March Comrads, Onward to Socialism

Mother of All Snakes Not Pelosi

Related articles by Zemanta

We Surround Them

Related articles by Zemanta

Rush's Bipartisan Stimulus Plan

Socialism Primer : Income Taxation

From Soup to Nuts

Related articles by Zemanta

Pebble Bed Reactor and Will Atlas Shrug Again

HUBLESS WINDMILL

Related articles by Zemanta

Why

Intelligence Expelled

Celebrating One Family Under God

Merry Christmas ,

Brothers and Sisters.

Online Money Management | Mint.com

Simple, one-time set up

Related articles by Zemanta

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

Related articles by Zemanta

A New Era is Coming

In Appreciation to Women

Tree of Life : Klimt

Bob Franken: Modern-Day Pyramids and Ponzi Schemes :Huffington Post

Related articles by Zemanta

Guard yourself against identity theft on social networks | Dallas Morning News | Pamela Yip

Guard yourself against identity theft on social networks

08:14 AM CST on Monday, December 8, 2008

Related articles by Zemanta

1971 December 15th

Related articles by Zemanta