WAR ON WOMEN: Women still second class citizens in the workplace: The Facts

A report from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation found that so far, women's earnings have not kept up with their gains in educational attainment. Even though women earn more advanced degrees than men, their wages still trail far behind. Catalyst reports that female MBAs earn, on average, $4,600 less than male MBAs in their first job out of business school. Women financial analysts take in 35 percent less, and female chief executives one-quarter less. Salary gains that female managers acquired in the 1980s and 1990s have dropped off, and men's salaries are pulling far ahead once again. Women start behind and never catch up.

http://www.alternet.org/gender/6-myths-about-female-ascendance-workplace?paging=off&current_page=1#bookmark

NRA Blocked Law which could have prevented the 13 year old boy from being SHOT AND KILLED

Following a tragic incident in Northern California where police fatally shot a teenager whose pellet gun was mistaken for an assault weapon, questions are being raised over the National Rifle Association's role in blocking a 2011 state legislative proposal to require BB and pellet guns to be brightly colored in order to avoid confusion.

http://mediamatters.org/blog/2013/10/31/nra-blocked-law-that-could-have-prevented-polic/196673

Jon Stewart Rips Congress for Pretending They're Shocked Over NSA Spying

Jon Stewart mocked House Intelligence Committee chair Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI) on Wednesday for brushing off criticism about the National Security Agency’s (NSA) spying activities by arguing that he has not heard specific complaints about the agency breaching private citizens’ privacy.
“Of course you can’t have your privacy violated if you don’t know your privacy is being violated,” Stewart said. “Spying is like health care — if you never find that tumor in your ball sack, it can’t kill you. It’s like Benjamin Franklin once said: ‘Those who would trade liberty for security should never find out that the decision has already been made for them.’”


http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/jon-stewart-rips-congress-pretending-theyr

Poor People and Veterans lose Food Stamps TOMORROW!! Thank You Republicans.

As Karoli noted in her rant this week, we've got the corporate media for the most part out there breathlessly reporting on the failures of the web site for the rollout of "Obamacare" and Congress wasting our time with more witch hunts, and what are they ignoring -- devastating cuts to the food stamp, otherwise known as SNAP program.
Media Matters did a report on the lack of media coverage on those cuts which are about to take place Nov. 1st, and the damage and negative impact they're going to have on our economy: REPORT: The Food Stamp Cuts The Media Won't Tell You About.
As they've discussed in other reporting as well, what coverage we have had from the likes of Fox and their ilk has been dishonest B.S. like this, and this doesn't even begin to nibble at the sheer volume of attacks on the working poor that are leveled on that network, week after week, month after month on their so-called "business block" every Saturday morning. It's a literal cesspool of this type of garbage and worse: Fox's Shameless Misrepresentation Of SNAP Recipients.


http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/msnbcs-all-reports-devastating-food-stamp

GW Bush: Medicare Part D: Roll out of this BIG PROGRAM WAS A DISASTER. (Not a big deal back then - we'll improve it)

It is amazing how the color of the President's Skin or being from a different party makes such a HUGE Difference in how a Major Program to benefit people is rolled out and discussed. Both started rocky.


There were no congressional hearings, and no nasty comments from Democrats when President Bush’s Medicare Part D rollout was just as bad as the rollout of Obamacare.
A few weeks into the launch of the most sweeping health care reform law in a generation, John Boehner declared that the implementation was a disaster.


“The implementation,” the Republican leader said, “has been horrendous. We’ve made it far more complicated than it should be.”
…But did he want to repeal the benefit? No. The future Speaker soberly acknowledged the problems but saw potential in the law and called for improving it. “The good news is that the competition that’s being created has lowered premiums significantly below where Congress thought they’d be when we put the bill together, so the competition side is good,” he said. “I think the implementation side continues to need to be improved.”



http://www.alan.com/2013/10/30/republican-party-reponse-to-disastrous-rollout-of-mecicare-part-d-very-different/

FACTS: 25 Pesky Facts which RIGHT WING Republicans want us to forget

2. At the conclusion of George W. Bush’s term, the United States economy was losing 750,000 jobs per month.
3. During the last months of George Bush’s second term, the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, was initiated to save banks and Wall Street from collapse.
4. A national universal healthcare plan based on an individual mandate to obtain coverage was advocated by the Heritage Foundation in 1992 and was the subject of bills introduced by Republican senators in 1994.
5. Barack Hussein Obama looks different from our previous presidents.
11. The Iraq war cost $815 billion and is still growing; 4,489 American soldiers have been killed; 50,000 American soldiers have been wounded, and upwards of 600,000 Iraqi civilian have died.


http://www.alternet.org/tea-party-and-right/twenty-five-facts-ignored-right-wingers?akid=11097.294211.BR_GUr&rd=1&src=newsletter917365&t=14

MEDICARE: When it first Started and the crazy claims: Just like now with ACA claims. (The Sky is Falling)

Hysteria and HorseShit is really nothing new.  The noise we see daily with Obamacare was the same type of hysteria which happened with MEDICARE when it was first brought to life.  Now, TeaBaggers are telling Government to stay away from their Medicare. (A government program)


The ACA start-up costs may well be expensive to the point of mind-boggle, but, just as with Medicare, it’s a plan that is essential and long overdue.  It’ll be full of jitters and glitches and adjustments, just as Medicare was. The full effect will be maddeningly slow, there will be a multitude of reasons to doubt it,  and the opponents–those same opponents who have spent years trying to kill Social Security and Medicare–will never give up. (Forbes is claiming the ACA website is crashing on purpose because “they” don’t want us to know how costly the plans really are. It’s also claiming a rise in insurance premiums by 99% for men and 62% for women–a claim already disputed and put to rest.)
But here’s the thing about the opposition:  When they showed their willingness to spend $24 billion on a Tea-Party-sanctioned hissy-fit that went nowhere and benefited no one, they lost any chance to have a voice in the discussion about essential, low-cost Government-sponsored health care.
It will happen, with or without them.  And years from now their cheering audiences will be shouting, “Hands off my Obamacare!”


http://www.alan.com/2013/10/22/medicare-and-obamacare-same-old-story/

Sen Ted Cruz - Bring an end to the terror, just like Joe McCarthy

Ted Cruz hasn't yet come to the end of Joe McCarthy's story.  It ended for McCarthy when the press finally tired of the phony drama, finally came to grips with the depth of destruction (and possibly their own roles in it),  and turned its back on him.  When Joseph Welch uttered the now famous words, "Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?" it was as if the dawn broke and, in an instant, the darkness ended.  (Full text here) The crowds, the politicians, the press, cleared the room, leaving McCarthy behind.  He was heard saying to no one in particular, "What happened?  What did I do?"  Nobody answered.  He was done.

And someday soon, hard as it will be for him to believe it, Ted Cruz will be done.  It will happen when the press decides it's time and not a moment before.  They hold his celebrity and his power in their hands and if they've learned anything from the past,  I hope they've learned there is no honor in building up demagogues simply for their own peculiar enjoyment.

http://www.ramonasvoices.com/2013/10/how-to-stop-ted-cruz-stop-presses.html

CONGRESSMEN: Special Rules and Profitability by being in Congress.

The government shutdown that finally ended on Wednesday night furloughed 800,000 government workers for the better part of two weeks, but there was one group of federal employees that was able to maintain the lifestyle that many of them have grown accustomed to: members of Congress.

With all the talk about their irreconcilable political differences, we wanted to see if they shared any common ground. And we found some. For example, there seems to be a permanent majority in Congress that's completely satisfied with the current state of campaign financing and congressional ethics and members of both parties have institutionalized ways to skirt the rules.


http://www.upworthy.com/can-somebody-please-explain-how-this-isnt-illegal?c=bl3

Stewart: CNN dumbing down the news Good Thing, Bad Thing fetish

CNN has been in a race to the bottom right along with Fox these days, all the while doing their best to play the false equivalency, fake balance for the sake of "balance" game, so it didn't exactly break my heart to see The Daily Show's Jon Stewart rip into them this Tuesday evening for "dumbing down" what's supposed to be the news.
Jon Stewart skewers CNN and Wolf Blitzer for ‘dumbing down’ the news:

Rather than pick on CNN for its coverage of a specific issue, Daily Show host Jon Stewart ripped Wolf Blitzer and his colleagues on Tuesday for reducing more of their reporting to choosing between “good things” and “bad things.” 

http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/jon-stewart-hits-cnn-dumbing-down-news

Colbert: Poor People stealing from the Rich who only got 95% of the wealth created the last 10 years.

Stephen Colbert did his best parody of Fox "news" and their constant hammering of the poor who rely on programs such as food stamps along with those who rely on earned benefits such as Social Security -- otherwise known in Fox-world as "moochers" -- and he had some recommendations on how they might be able to make ends meet in this Tuesday night's "Word" segment.
Pick yourself up by your own bootstraps people... and if that doesn't work, well, you can always resort to selling your hair and body organs.


http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/colbert-has-way-moochers-pay-their-bills-w

House Republicans exhausted from working at NOT WORKING - taking more time off.

Following up on a segment from last night’s show, it appears the U.S. House of Representatives, just nine months into the current Congress, can’t think of anything to do. The Republican leadership hasn’t scheduled many work days for the remainder of 2013, and they’re now considering a plan to scale back even further.

For the first time in months, House Republicans are facing no immediate cataclysmic deadlines, and GOP leaders are struggling to come up with an agenda to fill the 19 legislative days that are left in 2013.

Need evidence? The House votes Monday evening and will finish its work week Wednesday. After that, the House is out of session until Nov. 12. Internally, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and senior Republicans aren’t discussing coming back early from the scheduled recess, but instead, they are wondering if they’ll cancel some of the remaining days in session.

This Politico item was published yesterday, so there are really only 18 legislative days remaining until New Year’s Eve – it’s great work if you can get it – a total which may be poised to shrink.

THE ECONOMY IS A WRECK BUT THEY HAVE NO IDEAS ON HOW TO MOVE THINGS FORWARD.  We have to go through the shut down drama in Jan but that cannot be considered now in their minds.


http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/house-republicans-exhausted-failure

Libertarians: The Whiter, wealthier bastion of the White Republican Party

They are not the same as Tea Partiers or the religious right; this is a different crowd.  

 

You could call it the wealthy white fratboy wing of the GOP. Or perhaps its masters-of-the-universe subset, as exemplified by Wall Streeters who regularly rank private profits above the common good and whose credo is “get government out of my way.”
Libertarians make up a small but enduring slice of the Right, a nationwide study by the Public Religion Research Institute confirms.

http://admin.alternet.org/tea-party-and-right/libertarians-2013-whiter-wealthier-waspier-bastion-already-white-republican?akid=11094.294211.PTNtyc&rd=1&src=newsletter916829&t=3

REAGAN BUDGET DIRECTOR says Republicans are now ideological Gangs, not a political party.

David Stockman: ... The Republicans are no longer a political party. They are a gang, a coalition of ideological gangs. You have the neo cons, the tax cons, the social cons, and the just cons.

http://occupyamerica.crooksandliars.com/diane-sweet/reagan-omb-director-republicans-are-id#sthash.7jMdKVPf.dpbs

A 9 Year Old Sings Amazingly - Opera, (I am not an opera fan but this is amazing.)

How can such a huge voice come out of such a little body?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17yLLsE9W_o&feature=player_embedded

Federal Judge overturns Texas Abortion Restrictions -

District Judge Lee Yeakel wrote Monday that the regulations violated the rights of abortion doctors to do what they think is best for their patients and would unreasonably restrict a woman's access to abortion clinics.
Lawyers for Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers brought the lawsuit, arguing that a requirement that doctors have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of the abortion clinic would force the closure of a third of the clinics in Texas. They also complained that requiring doctors to follow the Food and Drug Administration's original label for an abortion-inducing drug would deny women the benefit of recent advances in medical science.


http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/karoli/federal-judge-overturns-texas-abortion-rest

Obamacare is ruining my life STORIES: IS THAT REALLY TRUE? Probably not.

After CBS News ran a deceptive segment highlighting a Florida woman's increased health care costs, Fox News reportedly contacted the woman to appear on three of its shows. CBS has run several misleading segments on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) since the implementation of the law's exchanges.
On CBS' This Morning, political correspondent Jan Crawford highlighted the story of Dianne Barette, a Florida woman who received notice that her plan did not meet the ACA's minimum coverage requirements. In the segment, Crawford said Barette "pays $54 a month. The new plan she's being offered would run $591 a month, ten times more than what she currently pays." According to the Washington Post's media blogger Erik Wemple, after the CBS story aired, Barette was contacted by three Fox News shows, Fox & Friends, Your World with Neil Cavuto, and On The Record with Greta Van Susteren.
Wemple, who also interviewed Barrette, pointed out a detail the CBS report failed to mention: in addition to being inadequate, the coverage Barrette currently receives doesn't cover hospitalizations, something that "could well have bankrupted Barrette under her current insurance." From Wemple's article:


http://mediamatters.org/blog/2013/10/28/fox-finds-new-anti-health-care-star-in-cbss-mis/196635

Starving Kids will Starve more with 40 Billion Cuts in Food Stamps. (Big Ag gets to keep their Billions in subsidies though)

If you've been following the food stamp debate in Washington, you know it's about whether to cut food stamp benefits for the disadvantaged by $4 billion a year (the House proposal) or only $400 million a year (the Senate plan).
Here's what you may not know: By its pure inaction, Congress is about to impose a cut in food stamp benefits that beats both. Next week, on Nov. 1, benefits will be cut by $5 billion for this fiscal year alone.That number may be hard to grasp, but here's what it means on the ground.
It means a loss of 21 meals a month for a family of four on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP (the formal name for food stamps).
About 47 million Americans will be affected by the coming 15% reduction in benefits across the board.
Sounds like a crisis needing immediate relief, doesn't it? Not to our Congress. "Congress would have to take action, and there's no pending legislation to do that," said Dorothy Rosenbaum, a SNAP expert at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.


http://crooksandliars.com/susie-madrak/poor-kids-about-get-even-hungrier-foo

HOW BIG COMPANIES AVOIDED BILLIONS IN TAXES! The inside story.

THIS ARTICLE IS LONG BUT IT IS VERY INTERESTING and worthwhile in finding out about the TAX AVOIDANCE BY BIG COMPANIES.

It was a humbling experience for the chief executive of the world’s most valuable company. Hauled before a Senate panel, Apple’s Tim Cook had to explain how an American company whose American engineers had created the iPhone and the iPad was able to avoid paying any taxes on billions of dollars in profits generated by those products — not to United States, not to any country. The only defense the Cook could conjure up for Apple “stateless” income was that it was all perfectly legal.
A few miles away in Arlington, a 55-year-old economist named Marty Sullivan sat on a folding metal chair at a card table in the garage of his modest brick home and watched the hearing unfold on his laptop computer. Sullivan is one of those unheralded members of the permanent Washington establishment who make things work, at least when the politicians let them. And for two decades, from the same home office, Sullivan has been exposing the tax-dodging schemes of multinational corporations in the columns of Tax Notes, a must-read publication for tax lawyers, accountants and policy wonks.
It was Sullivan who shined an early light on how companies had finagled “transfer prices” — the price one division charges another for parts or services — to shift profits to low-tax jurisdictions.


http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/10/26/marty-sullivan-figured-out-how-the-worlds-biggest-companies-avoided-billions-in-taxes-heres-how-he-wants-to-stop-them/

GUNS and KIDS BEING SHOT! More Guns in Homes equates to More Kids Shot!

There are approximately 7,500 child hospitalizations and 500 in-hospital deaths each year due to injuries sustained from guns. In an abstract presented Oct. 27 at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in Orlando, researchers also identified a link between the percentage of homes with guns and the prevalence of child gunshot injuries. 

In “United States Gunshot Violence—Disturbing Trends,” researchers reviewed statistics from the Kids’ Inpatient Database (KID) from 1997, 2000, 2003, 2006 and 2009 (for a total of 36 million pediatric hospital admissions), and estimated state household gun ownership using the most recent Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data (2004). 

The study found that approximately 7,500 children are admitted to the hospital for the treatment of injuries sustained from guns each year, and more than 500 children die during hospital admission from these injuries. Between 1997 and 2009, hospitalizations from gunshot wounds increased from 4,270 to 7,730, and in-hospital deaths from 317 to 503. 

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2013/10/increase-in-number-of-children-injured.html

The actual report!
http://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/Pages/Prevalence-of-Household-Gun-Ownership-Linked-to-Child-Gun-Shot-Wounds.aspx

Science FOR SALE: Corporations pay big money to make their unsafe product seem safe

The American Council on Science and Health bills itself as an independent research and advocacy organization devoted to debunking "junk science." It's a controversial outfit—a "group of scientists…concerned that many important public policies related to health and the environment did not have a sound scientific basis," it says—that often does battle with environmentalists and consumer safety advocates, wading into public health debates to defend fracking, to fight New York City's attempt to ban big sugary sodas, and to dismiss concerns about the potential harms of the chemical bisphenol-A (better known at BPA) and the pesticide atrazine. The group insists that its conclusions are driven purely by science. It acknowledges that it receives some financial support from corporations and industry groups, but ACSH, which reportedly stopped disclosing its corporate donors two decades ago

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2013/10/american-council-science-health-leaked-documents-fundraising

3 BILLIONAIRES who are buying up politicians and buying policy which hurts the middle class and helps the 1% get richer.

Whether they’re ginning up deficit hysteria to cut Social Security or blaming teachers and firefighters for state budget crises, these 1 percenters pose as defenders of your interests while arranging things so that they can plunder America and leave hard-working people with scraps.

http://www.alternet.org/economy/stanley-druckenmiller-pete-peterson-and-john-arnold?page=0%2C2&akid=11086.294211.TnvyTY&rd=1&src=newsletter915769&t=3

SOCIAL SECURITY: 5 Reasons why cutting it would be irrational.

IT IS FULLY PAID, It brought down elderly poverty, 401K alternative RIPS PEOPLE OFF  - There is no cost to the government to this well-run program.

http://www.alternet.org/economy/5-reasons-why-cutting-social-security-would-be-irrational?akid=11086.294211.TnvyTY&rd=1&src=newsletter915769&t=7

Guns: The Powerful Pornography of the gun fetish

running tally of the carnage caused by the pornographic proliferation of guns in America. It began more than a year ago with a story about a young child accidentally shooting himself to death, followed by a carbon-copy tragedy the very next day. I captioned the story of the second shooting by saying, "No, this is not a repeat from yesterday, or the day before that, or the day before that, or the day before that, or the day before that..." I have had cause to use that same phrase - "...or the day before that..." - pretty much every day since.
On Saturday, a two-year-old girl in Fayetteville, North Carolina found a gun in her home. Seconds later, she was dead. The gun was loaded, the safety was off, and there was no lock on the trigger. No arrests have been made. No charges have been filed against the people who left a gun where a baby could find it.
On Monday, a twelve-year-old boy in Sparks, Nevada found a gun in his home. He took it to school and shot two classmates, and a teacher who tried to talk the gun out of his hand. The teacher died. The boy turned the gun he found in his home on himself, and died as well. No arrests have been made. No charges have been filed against the people who left a gun where a pre-teen could find it.

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-powerful-pornography-of-gun-fetish.html


this is the original article.
http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/19620-the-powerful-pornography-of-the-gun-fetish

Juan Williams is great but FOX tells lies about Obamacare, the usual noise.

Host Chris Wallace cited statistics from a Kaiser Health News article that discussed the changes in insurance coverage, claiming the article showed people "losing health insurance, not gaining it." Panelist Brit Hume complained that people were being forced into coverage "for things they may feel they don't need" and that people are getting "a government-mandated deal." Wallace added that "there's no free lunch" and ridiculed the idea that consumers would get "more for less."
But Wallace neglected to cite the section of the article that noted that "the new policies will offer consumers better coverage, in some cases, for comparable cost -- especially after the inclusion of federal subsidies for those who qualify."


http://mediamatters.org/blog/2013/10/27/fox-news-sunday-panelists-mislead-on-changes-to/196615

The stupidity of war explained!

I was in the Army during Vietnam and when it ended soldiers came home.  That war and many wars had no purpose but made a lot of money for the few wealthy.

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Got-His-Gun--Lost-His-Le-by-David-Swanson-Afghanistan_Military_Military_Mortuary-131027-338.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook

Gun Video: This short video shows the real relationship between guns and families.

While most people who purchase a gun believe that it is to keep them safe, statistics prove that they have just made their family less safe. And if, for some reason, they believed they are less safe, their solution would simply be to add more guns, kind of like discovering that your house is on fire and trying to make it less flammable by throwing gasoline on it.

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-relationship-of-americans-with.html

The Right Wing Crazies and 10 crazy things they said this week

 10 Jaw-dropping Absurdities Brought to You By the Right Wing

From lesbian cookies to nuking Iran, this ridiculousness will blow you away.

http://www.alternet.org/tea-party-and-right/10-jaw-dropping-absurdities-brought-right-wing?akid=11085.294211.kEnYAM&rd=1&src=newsletter915483&t=2

KOCH BROTHERS BLACK MONEY; CA - 2 Koch groups getting HUGE fines in Black Money Case

Two Koch brothers supported dark money groups are facing the largest fines in the the history of the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC). The organizations involved include two Arizona based Koch funded groups, the Center to Protect Patient Rights (CPPR) and Americans for Responsible Leadership. The two groups funneled millions of dollars into the state of California, in order to sway voters minds on two of the state’s ballot initiatives, in 2012. The one million dollar fine is the third largest ever to be imposed in the U.S., in relation to campaign finance. All funds which were transferred illegally must also be handed over to the state’s general fund, per California law.

The case involves the transfer of $11 million from one of the Arizona based groups.

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2013/10/27/koch-groups-largest-fine-history/

MR. BALLS: Marketing Fail

There are few things with as much facepalm potential as a complete branding or marketing fail. You know – the kind that somehow made it out of someone’s head, and through a marketing meeting, and a focus group, and senior management, and an advertising agency, and past a whole plethora of eyeballs without anyone noticing, or pointing out the obvious.
But just this very month, there have been two failures that are so positively spectacular, and horrifying, and wrong, we simply had to share. We were compelled, and we apologize in advance.

I just found this kind of interesting.


http://www.themudflats.net/archives/40757

North Carolina GOP minority outreach FAIL! A bad week.

If anyone thought that the North Carolina Republicans weren't having enough trouble already with their joke of a so-called "minority outreach program," after their one of their officials was forced to resign following his disastrous appearance The Daily Show, as Rachel Maddow explained in the clip above, you were wrong.
Here's more from Steve Benen over at Rachel's blog: North Carolina GOP makes matters worse:


http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/north-carolina-gop-having-some-trouble-the

4 year old shoots aunt

GUNS SHOOT PEOPLE!  A 4 year old got hold of a gun and fired it. The aunt was shot and wounded.

Had the girl had a bat or a knife, it would not have been as serious or quick to cause harm.

http://occupyamerica.crooksandliars.com/diane-sweet/4-year-old-accidentally-shoots-aunt-ba#sthash.LvcaA59t.dpbs

JP MORGAN GETTING OFF EASY!!

They made 100's of Billions and end up paying 5 Billion.  the fine is pocket change to JP Morgan.

http://occupyamerica.crooksandliars.com/diane-sweet/why-jpmorgan-may-be-getting-easy#sthash.eDr2hCYD.dpbs

TeaParty Hate! The Science behind the hate. Why are TeaPartiers able to hate so thoroughly?

If you want to understand how American politics changed for the worse, according to moral psychologist and bestselling author Jonathan Haidt, you need only compare two quotations from prominent Republicans, nearly fifty years apart.
The first is from the actor John Wayne, who on the election of John F. Kennedy in 1960 said, "I didn't vote for him, but he's my president and I hope he does a good job."
The second is from talk radio host Rush Limbaugh, who on the inauguration of Barack Obama in 2009 said, "I hope he fails."


http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2013/10/inquiring-minds-jonathan-haidt-tea-party

Pope Frank: Ideological Christians are a serious illness

Francis said that ideologies are “rigid.” “When a Christian becomes a disciple of the ideology, he has lost the faith: he is no longer a disciple of Jesus, he is a disciple of this attitude of thought,” Francis said, according to Radio Vatican.

Francis added: “The faith becomes ideology and ideology frightens, ideology chases away the people, distances, distances the people and distances of the Church of the people. But it is a serious illness, this of ideological Christians. It is an illness, but it is not new.” 

http://www.alternet.org/pope-francis-ideological-christians-are-serious-illness

Koch's are brazenly buying up USA Politicians. Just like any Oligarchy would do.

They are buying the US with Daddy's money. (He got it from Russia oil)  They feel they bought and paid for it so THE POLITICIANS MUST DO AS THEY SAY or they will fire them.  The new politics:  Not Government for and by the people but Government for the wealthy.

http://www.alternet.org/economy/kochs-brazen-buyout-our-democracy-right-there-worst-oligarchs-american-history?akid=11081.294211.NfSyHq&rd=1&src=newsletter915315&t=5

North Carolina Republican fired after being honest about stopping Democrats from voting

I will leave you to deciding how racist the comments this Tea Party darling made in the interview, but let me share some of his better quotes since he was fired.

“I’ll resign my position as precinct chair gladly,I’ll give it up — the heck with it. I don’t want to be part of a group that is that mealymouthed and that gutless. There’s no political party that’s going to tell me what to say as long as I have breath in my body. This isn’t my first rodeo.” X GOP county chair Don Yelton.

/rackjite.com/racist-don-yelton-fired-north-carolina-republicans-daily-show-interview/

Monologue: Bill Maher Pot and the Pope

But the biggest story of the week was that 58% of Americans now want to legalize pot. Up from 12% in 1970.

Guest Al Sharpton tonight put it best. Obamacare is not a website, it is a law to give insurance to tens of millions of Americans who cannot get it or cannot afford it.

http://rackjite.com/bill-maher-monologue-58-legalize-pot-oct-25-2013/

New Rules - Minimum Wage

Good for Bill Maher, who during his "New Rules" segment this Friday, took the likes of Walmart and McDonalds to task for being too cheap to pay their workers a living wage, and dumping the cost of them doing business onto the taxpayers.

http://rackjite.com/new-rules-bill-maher-minimum-wage-oct-25-2013/

North Dakota: Jobs available but where will you live?

Desperate for Work? 10 Things to Know If You’re Thinking of Moving to the Jobs Capital of the U.S.

North Dakota boasts the lowest unemployment rate in the country, but living in Boomlandia is not for the faint of heart. 

http://www.alternet.org/labor/desperate-work-10-things-know-if-youre-thinking-moving-jobs-capital-us?page=0%2C2&akid=11081.294211.NfSyHq&rd=1&src=newsletter915315&t=3

Virginia: Over 60 Percent believe that climate change is man made.

In what the polling memo called a “lopsided division of public opinion,” 62.7 percent of respondents answered affirmatively when asked “Do you believe human activity is a major contributing factor in climate change?” Just 34.5 percent said they did not.

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2013/10/25/2838271/virginia-climate-poll-cuccinelli/

KOCH BROTHERS - A video about how they are screwing us middle class and poor folks.

This video covers the background of the Koch Brothers and how they have made lies become truth by constant repeating.  I found it very interesting.  This is an important video - about 30 minutes.

http://occupyamerica.crooksandliars.com/propublica/koch-brothers-linked-donors-pay-1-milli#sthash.FYaYbQXZ.dpbs

9 Democrats caving on Social Security. Bernie Sanders - HELP US PLEASE!

I am so very glad that Bernie Sanders is on the Budget Committee.

“A more reasonable position is a majority of Americans don’t want Social Security, Medicare and Medicare cut at all. Why don’t we have one political party represent what a majority of people want?”

http://www.alternet.org/economy/nine-democratic-senators-side-gop-entitlement-cuts?akid=11077.294211.B7j080&rd=1&src=newsletter914804&t=3

2014: Stop the Careening from CRISIS TO CRISIS and really Govern our nation.

The TeaParty crap is going from Crisis to Crisis and allowing our economy to stagnate.  All the while, the income inequality gets worse and worse.  it is time for a change.  It is a time of common sense and looking forward 10 to 20 years.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/hillary-clinton-u-s-careening-from-crisis-to-crisis-instead-of-having-a-plan

NC GOP Official admits voting laws were enacted to stop minorities and Democrats from voting.

When the Daily Show went to North Carolina to look at the effects of new voting laws, they interviewed Don Yelton – and his candid admissions are breathtaking and depressing. Yelton is on the North Carolina Republican Party Executive Committee and vigorously defended the new voting laws – with racist ramblings mixed in for good measure.

When Daily Show comedian/reporter Aasif Mandvi asked him about the effects of the new laws, Mr. Yelton was forthcoming with the lack of a need for the restrictions.

“Right here in Buncombe County there’s always one of two that voted twice a year,” Yelton says. “That’s one or two out of sixty thousand” voters, he admitted.

When Mandvi pressed Yelton about the real reason for the suppressive changes to voting in the state, the GOP leader came clean.

“The law is going to kick the Democrats in the butt,”Yelton admitted.

http://nc.redstatedems.com/2013/10/24/north-caroline-gop-official-admits-voting-laws-designed-suppress-democratic-black-voting/

Wealthiest are the Welfare Queens: Why do people feel the poor and middle class created the mess?

The GOP Triumph in Successfully Framing The Budget Debate
Around Austerity and the Necessity for Entitlement Cuts

The triumph of right-wing Republicanism extends further. Failure to reach a budget agreement will restart the so-called “sequester” — automatic, across-the-board spending cuts that were passed in 2011 as a result of Congress’s last failure to agree on a budget.

http://evans-politics.com/robert-reich-the-triumph-of-the-right.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook#.UmplIxxjgb0

Jon Stewart smacks down CNBC and FOX Anchors for defending JP Morgan. Brilliant

The Daily Show's Jon Stewart opened up this Wednesday's show by letting the so-called financial analysts over at CNBC and the Fox Business Channel have it for their concern trolling for poor old JP Morgan Chase.
After playing footage of CNBC's money honey, Maria Bartiromo, arguing with Salon's Alex Pareene about how terrible it was that someone was finally going to hold Dimon and his ilk accountable -- and Bartiromo and some of her colleagues claiming that he should have been cut some slack because the government supposedly forced them to buy Bear Stearns -- Stewart treated his audience to some footage of CNBC's Jim Cramer, who apparently had a very different view of that deal at the time.


http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/jon-stewart-smacks-down-cnbc-and-fox-ancho

NRA PROPOSAL: All Teachers having loaded guns pointed at class all day

FAIRFAX, VA—In the wake of Monday’s tragic Nevada school shooting in which a 12-year-old student killed a teacher and wounded two classmates, representatives from the National Rifle Association pushed for all teachers around the country to keep a loaded gun pointed at their classes throughout the school day.

http://www.theonion.com/articles/nra-calls-for-teachers-to-keep-loaded-gun-pointed,34336/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=SocialMarketing&utm_campaign=LinkPreview:3:Default

Denmark is the happiest Country: US will never make it - they help each other

The six factors for a happy nation split evenly between concerns on a government- and on a human-scale. The happiest countries have in common a large GDP per capita, healthy life expectancy at birth and a lack of corruption in leadership. But also essential were three things over which individual citizens have a bit more control over: A sense of social support, freedom to make life choices and a culture of generosity.
"There is now a rising worldwide demand that policy be more closely aligned with what really matters to people as they themselves characterize their well-being," economist Jeffrey Sachs said in a statement  at the time of the report's release.

Danes don't prioritize social security and safety simply so they can receive benefits; there's a real sense of collective responsibility and belonging. And this civic duty -- combined with the economic security and work-life balance to support it -- results in a high rate of volunteerism. According to  a government exploration of Danish "responsibility":


http://www.alternet.org/world/denmark-happiest-country-earth-youll-never-guess-why

OBAMACARE: 6 Brazen lies from Republicans this past week

PolitiFact has reviewed 16 claims made by Obamacare detractors and found all of them false. Twelve of those were designated  “Pants On Fire” lies. If there is one question that begs to be asked, it is this: If Obamacare is so terrible, why do opponents have to tell so many lies about it?

http://www.alternet.org/media/6-most-brazen-right-wing-lies-about-obamacare?page=0%2C2&akid=11074.294211.ADwHY6&rd=1&src=newsletter914168&t=5

Margaret and Helen: Ted Cruz can start an argument in an empty house.

Margaret is it just me or have the Republicans gone bat shit crazy?   First they are screaming bloody murder about Obamacare and then they complain because people are having trouble signing up for Obamacare.  Do they want the thing more alive so they can enjoy killing it?  Or are they just upset because Obama is still black?  I suggest it’s the latter but I sure as hell know this – these days if a Republican politician’s lips are moving, he’s lying.
They close the government and then complain when government-funded national parks are closed.


http://margaretandhelen.com/2013/10/24/ted-cruz-could-start-an-argument-in-an-empty-house/

PENSION FUND WAR: Wall Street is going for your money: 4 things you need to know.

Siedle’s report is  worth reading in its entirety to understand what your state legislators actually mean when they start throwing around the Orwellian phrase “pension reform” – and thanks to the second piece of news this week, we know that state legislators everywhere will almost certainly be throwing that seemingly innocuous phrase around. That news came from the  St. Louis Beacon, which reports that none other than the American Legislative Exchange Council has decided to make cutting pension benefits one of its top goals in the 2014 state legislative sessions. They will be pushing to replicate Raimondo’s much-hyped “reforms” in legislatures throughout the country.

http://www.alternet.org/4-things-you-need-know-about-plot-sell-your-pensions-wall-street?page=0%2C1&akid=11074.294211.ADwHY6&rd=1&src=newsletter914168&t=9

Climate Reality: THE WAY FORWARD

Carbon pollution is not only disrupting our lives, it’s hitting our wallets. We’ve all been paying the bill for years, but now it’s got to stop and you can help. Share this with your friends and tell our leaders it’s time to put a price on carbon and make the polluters pay.

http://occupyamerica.crooksandliars.com/diane-sweet/climate-reality-way-forward

TEXAS; Women denied the right to vote - Big Time disinfranchisement of women

Watts worried that women who use maiden names or hyphenated names may be surprised at the polls. “I don’t think most women know that this is going to create a problem,” the judge said. “That their maiden name is on their driver’s license, which was mandated in 1964 when I got married, and this. And so why would I want to use a provisional ballot when I’ve been voting regular ballot for the last 49 years?”

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/10/23/1249948/-Texas-disenfranchises-judge-because-she-got-married-at-one-point

Jon Stewart takes on Carl Rove and John McCain for giving the TeaParty power and not taking responsibility for it

"No matter how coo-coo for Cocoa Puffs you think your wacko colleagues are, they don't come anywhere close to your hatchling. You opened Pandora's box!"

Okay THAT was great.

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2013/10/jon-stewart-slams-karl-rove-and-john.html

Juice that protects against arthritis

I am a big believer of smoothies.  I drink a big smoothie 5 or 6 days a week.  I think vegetables do an amazing amount of good to the body.  Try this recipe.

6 carrots, celery, cucumber, horseradish or ginger and spinach

6 carrots
1 bunch celery
1 teaspoon fresh horseradish
(or ginger)
1 cucumber
1 bunch spinach 
- See more at: http://www.healthyfoodcorner.com/juice-as-protection-against-arthritis/#sthash.ETnXq7Wa.dpuf

6 carrots
1 bunch celery
1 teaspoon fresh horseradish
(or ginger)
1 cucumber
1 bunch spinach 
- See more at: http://www.healthyfoodcorner.com/juice-as-protection-against-arthritis/#sthash.ETnXq7Wa.dpuf

http://www.healthyfoodcorner.com/juice-as-protection-against-arthritis/

58 % of people want Marijuana legalized

Alchohol and Cigarettes are legal - so should POT.  There are medical uses for Marijuana as well as industrial uses.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=635196909836436&set=a.196608890361909.44924.174742062548592&type=1&theater

3 Right Wing Ideologies are ruining the Republican Party and could well be it's demise.

The overlapping ideologies of Ayn Rand capitalists, Christian fundamentalists and neo-Confederate white supremacists is a toxic mix.


In the long run, however, things do not look good for the Republican Party. Many radical conservatives have come to see their moderate compatriots as worse than any liberal Democrat. They see them as traitors to principle – as politicians who ran scared in the face of Obama’s “socialist” agenda. Under these circumstances, most of the party’s energies might well be taken up with self-destructive infighting.
The Republican Party now runs the risk of shrinking down to its radical base while its moderates are defeated in primaries, flee to the Democratic Party, or stake out positions as independents.


http://admin.alternet.org/three-extreme-right-wing-ideologies-have-taken-over-republican-party-and-could-destroy-it-forever?akid=11070.294211.PYNiPS&rd=1&src=newsletter913656&t=11

Social Security and Medicare are on the Chopping Block! WHY?

Look out below, Congress and the White House are preparing to throw Grandma off the cliff.
Perhaps you might detect a trend here. Rather than take on Wall Street and the 1 percent, also known as their funding base and their peers – those very people who are responsible for the most vast income inequality in a century and the current, lingering economic crisis facing Main Street communities across America – the White House and Congress are going after Grandma and Grandpa.
We’ve seen the outline of the goals advanced, and they are not pretty.

Social Security too should be off the chopping block. Among other reasons, Social Security contributes nothing to the deficit, its Trust Fund has a huge surplus and is fully funded through 2033 and can easily be strengthened for an even longer term by raising the income ceiling on payroll taxes above the current limit of $110,000.
Cuts to either Social Security or Medicare could not come at a worse time when seniors have been steadily losing ground to the economic disparities so rampant in our economic system today.


http://admin.alternet.org/economy/govt-shutdown-drama-over-theres-new-threat-our-most-important-social-programs?akid=11070.294211.PYNiPS&rd=1&src=newsletter913656&t=21

Studies show Conservatives to be lazy thinkers

Ever suspect conservatives are just lazy thinkers? Well, you may be right. At least, if these two studies get to weigh in. The first was published in Psychological Science. It showed that children who score lower on intelligence tests are more likely to show conservative social/political views as adults. The second, published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, shows that, “when under time pressure or otherwise cognitively impaired, people are more likely to express conservative views.” It used alcohol and time constraints while asking questions of subjects. When drinking or pressured, answers were more conservative

http://www.addictinginfo.org/2012/07/30/lazy-thinkers-conservatives-studies/

16 School Shootings but NO CHANGES TO GUN LAWS EXPECTED. NRA is in charge!

The NRA is in control of Gun Policy and there will be no changes to Gun Policy.  We have had 16 shootings in Schools so far this year.  Will this latest shooting even be mentioned?  A few mild discussions about this tragic, but predictable event and a DEAD TEACHER will be called a hero as he is laid to rest is about all that will happen.

Good Guy With A Gun will be mentioned by the NRA.  And some crazy guys who like to show off their AK15's will insist that they walk on school grounds to keep the students safe.  All the while, GUN SALES WILL INCREASE!!

Why do we need 30 and 100 bullet Clips for an average citizen? I think they should only be legal for the police and/or military.  Why do we need an AK15?  It is not a hunting gun, it is a KILLING AND WOUNDING GUN!  The AK15 is meant to harm and kill masses of people in a very short period of time.

Red State Socialism: Red States get most of the Federal Handouts! Interesting

  Many GOP-leaning states get more in federal funding than they contribute in federal taxes.
That's the point made by a graphic that’s circulating on the Internet, titled "Red State Socialism." A reader recently pointed us to it and asked us to check it out. The chart suggests that Republicans are hypocritical for bashing the federal government and federal spending, when Republican-leaning states are reaping the lion’s share of federal dollars.

The graphic says: "Of the 32 states which receive more than they contribute, 27 states (84%) are REPUBLICAN. Of the 18 states which contribute more than they receive, 14 states (78%) are DEMOCRATIC."


http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/jan/26/blog-posting/red-state-socialism-graphic-says-gop-leaning-state/

Dangerous amount of Radiation found in stream with Fracking Water.

Last week new concerns came to light regarding the treatment and disposal of fracking wastewater. First a  report by Environment America shows that as fracking expands across the US, the sheer amount of wastewater produced in 17 shale states – to the tune of 280 billion gallons in 2012 – is problematic.
Over two years the Duke research team, led by the well-recognized duo of Professors Robert Jackson and Avner Vengosh, monitored Blacklick Creek and found that  radium-226 – a naturally occurring radioactive material found in rock – appeared in concentrations unsafe for human exposure.
Much of the radium was removed from the wastewater by the Josephine Brine Treatment Facility, yet their operations were not able to completely eliminate the element, resulting in discharges " roughly 200 times higher than background levels."
http://admin.alternet.org/fracking/frackings-radioactive-impact-water?akid=11064.294211.EVKLim&rd=1&src=newsletter913088&t=21

A Greedy Private Contractor botched the Health Care Rollout.

there are examples of  successful government outsourcing arrangements in IT. One key to their success, a Government Accountability Office study pointed out, is consistent communication with, and monitoring of, contractors. Penalties for cost overruns, failing to deliver by agreed-upon deadlines and other forms of mismanagement would help, too.

Government outsourcing to private contractors has exploded in the past few decades. Taxpayers funnel  hundreds of billions of dollars a year into the chosen companies' pockets, about $80bn of which goes to tech companies. We've reached a stage of knee-jerk outsourcing of everything from intelligence and military work to burger flipping in federal building cafeterias, and it's damaging in multiple levels.
For one thing, farming work out often rips off taxpayers. While the stereotype is that government workers are incompetent, time-wasters drooling over their Texas Instruments keyboards as they amass outsized pensions,  studies show that keeping government services in house saves money.


http://admin.alternet.org/personal-health/how-out-control-private-contractors-botched-obamacare-rollout?akid=11064.294211.EVKLim&rd=1&src=newsletter913088&t=11

The Republican Shutdown of Government: More Proof: They planned the Shutdown after re-election

Information from Thom Hartmann.  The intention from the Right Wing has always been to shut down the Government if they could not stop the ACA

http://www.occupydemocrats.com/watch-everyone-signed-koch-brothers-govt-shutdown-blueprint-spread-shame/

Ted Cruz, Republican, proves himself to be a delusional sociopath

I think it’s official: Ted Cruz has dethroned the Queen of Ignorance, Sarah Palin, as the person in politics I simply cannot stomach the most.  His comments before, during and after the government shutdown have been nothing short of pure insanity.
This man, who gave speeches saying that the government should be shut down rather than fund “Obamacare,” now denies that he ever pushed for a government shutdown.


http://www.forwardprogressives.com/the-more-ted-cruz-speaks-the-more-he-proves-himself-to-be-a-delusional-sociopath/

The Tide is Turning in Texas! Juanita Jean

This is great!  A Republican just turned into a Democrat to re-run for a position he holds as a Republican.  It is pretty amazing and well done.

http://www.juanitajean.com/2013/10/21/and-the-tide-is-turning/

Democrats will win a SIZABLE MAJORITY in the House: New Poll

A new survey of 25 GOP-held districts shows dwindling favorability for Republican members of the House in the wake of the recent government shutdown.
The survey, conducted by Public Policy Polling and funded by MoveOn.org, is the third in a series of polls that indicate Democrats have a shot at taking back the House of Representatives in the 2014 election cycle.
The results of the latest survey show that incumbent Republicans in 15 of the 25 districts polled trail generic Democratic candidates. When combined with the results of the previous surveys, the polls show that generic Democratic candidates lead in 37 of 61 GOP-held districts.


http://occupyamerica.crooksandliars.com/diane-sweet/poll-indicates-dems-could-win-sizable-#sthash.90yCMZQm.dpbs

KOCH BROTHERS WOULD MAKE 100 BILLION DOLLARS from a Keystone XL Pipeline

A new study released today concludes that Koch Industries and its subsidiaries stand to make as much as $100 billion in profits if the controversial Keystone XL pipeline is granted a presidential permit from U.S. President Barack Obama. 

   

http://occupyamerica.crooksandliars.com/diane-sweet/study-koch-brothers-could-make-100-bil#sthash.lyj8oLlk.dpbs

Antibiotics in Cattle MAKES FOR STRONGER BACTERIA AND BUGS TO ATTACK HUMANS

A new study provides the clearest evidence to date that the heavy use of antibiotics in livestock is undermining the use of antibiotics to treat sick humans, based on the way government scientists are touting their report.
CDC officials don’t typically make declarative or bold political statements about the meaning of their research. However, Robert Tauxe, deputy director of CDC’s foodborne, waterborne and environmental disease division, said the study, recently completed by a team of 12 researchers from the CDC, Agriculture Department, the Food and Drug Administration, the Ontario Veterinary College and a public health consultant from Atlanta, “shows how the resistance to an important antibiotic can flow from the agricultural sector through food and it’s not theoretical at all.”


http://www.politico.com/story/2013/09/livestock-antibiotic-study-proof-97078.html?utm_campaign=2013-10-19-HHIF&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

Creation Science 101 - Very Good

These are about Creation Science and the Bible, since in Texas they want to teach Creation Science as part of the science curriculum.  (i also just read that science book companies said they WILL NOT include Creation Science in their Science Books. )

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2013/10/creation-science-101-by-roy-zimmerman.html


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fCi7L-qeo0

WHERE DID THE MIDDLE CLASS GO? Sacramento Bee

Our Declaration of Independence states that “all men are created equal.” Over the years, Americans have removed many barriers to that great aspiration – with the Fourteenth Amendment, the vote for women, the civil rights acts, public education and more.
But since the late 1970s, the United States slowly has become the most unequal of the world’s developed nations in its distribution of income and wealth. Our middle class is shrinking.
A new film, “Inequality for All,” showing at Sacramento’s Tower Theater, hopes to bring attention to this.

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/10/21/5833679/editorial-what-has-happened-to.html#storylink=cpy

http://www.sacbee.com/2013/10/21/5833679/editorial-what-has-happened-to.html

A Star Gazing Farmer - great pictures.

While you were sleeping: These time-lapse videos showcasing images from South Dakota's vast night sky were not created by a film crew, but by a farmer and his trusty camera.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlV6U4XIL1M&feature=player_embedded

January Shutdown? 4 Reasons the GOP would not want to Shutdown the Govt in Jan (If they are smart)

The government has re-opened, the debt limit disaster was avoided, and something resembling peace has broken out in Washington. The cynics, however, have been quick to note that all of this is only temporary, with the next shutdown deadline falling on January 15. This round of budget squabbling resolved basically … nothing, so another debacle is likely. Ted Cruz is already threatening a repeat of what he just put the nation through.
Don’t count on a sequel to the 16-day hell we just witnessed, though. Barack Obama certainly doesn’t want a shutdown. And this time, Republicans probably won’t force one.
Of course, government shutdown has always been a bad idea, as Republicans just spent three weeks proving. But the very fact that they did it despite knowing that it was a terrible plan (or at least most of them knowing it was a terrible plan) suggests it could happen a second time, at least unless something new has happened to change things.


http://prospect.org/article/four-reasons-we-don%E2%80%99t-need-countdown-january-shutdown

Obamacare Lies: Heritage Foundation leaves out critical information in pricing study

the foundation left out one key variable in the equation, one that undermines their conclusion that "individuals in most states will end up spending more on the exchanges."
They didn't account for the financial help that the Affordable Care Act gives uninsured people to purchase insurance, one of the law's central provisions.

Under Obamacare, the sticker price for insurance isn't what most people are going to actually pay. The law offers tax credits, on a sliding scale, for people making between 100 and 400 percent of the federal poverty level. According to estimates from the Kaiser Family Foundation, more than half of uninsured Americans have an income within that range.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/one-big-problem-with-the-heritage-foundation-s-new-obamacare-study

Mexico: Legalizing Pot to fight the Drug Cartels

Mexico City is one of the world’s largest cities with 8.6 million residents. For years it has been overrun by drug cartels, which have transformed the city into a center of brutality, killing more than 60,000 people in just six years. A large portion of the funding for those cartels comes from the immense, underground marijuana industry they operate. In an effort to remove money and power from the cartels, some political leaders in Mexico's capital announced plans this month to draft proposals to  legalize and regulate marijuana.

http://www.alternet.org/drugs/mexico-city-leaders-aim-fight-cartel-violence-legalizing-pot

KOCH BROTHERS: Provide MILLIONS to Stop Health Coverage Expansion to poor

Conservative advocates funded by the billionaire industrialist brothers Charles and David Koch have  launched a massive campaign pressuring states to deny health care coverage to lower income Americans through the Medicaid expansion contained in the Affordable Care Act.

The GOP’s refusal to fully implement the Affordable Care Act will leave more than half of the nation’s uninsured working poor, approximately 8 million people, without access to health insurance. The 26 GOP-controlled states not participating in the law’s Medicaid expansion are home to a  disproportionate share of low-income Americans who aren’t poor enough to qualify for the existing Medicaid program and make too much to be eligible for subsidies in the ACA’s insurance marketplaces.

http://www.alternet.org/personal-health/billionaire-koch-brothers-spending-millions-deny-health-coverage-low-income?akid=11062.294211.mPkJPl&rd=1&src=newsletter912615&t=19

NATION INFURIATED: Decades of waiting for healthcare held up by computer glitches

Andy Borowitz:  A nation that waited several decades for health insurance is becoming increasingly infuriated by a Web site that is wasting minutes of its time, reports from across the United States confirm.

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/borowitzreport/2013/10/nation-that-waited-decades-for-health-care-infuriated-by-slow-web-site.html?utm_source=tny&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=borowitz&mbid=nl_Borowitz%20%28186%29

Man charged with selling GUNS (in Australia)

What is normal here, selling a AK-15 on the internet, is illegal in other countries.  I hope the NRA has his back.

http://m.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/us-man-charged-for-posting-guns-to-aust/story-e6frg6so-1226742174486

A GOOD COLLECTION Agency? Yes, it really is true. Pretty amazing story.

A man bought a collection agency and made it into a place to teach people to get back on their feet and move forward financially.  What a great story.

http://www.upworthy.com/one-of-the-world-s-most-hated-groups-found-her-took-her-money-and-left-her-in-tears-of-happiness?c=ufb1

THE ONION: Week in Review

A lot happened last week.

http://www.theonion.com/video/anonymous-source-tells-reporters-that-hes-tired-of,34263/?playlist=recent-news

Those who voted to open up the Government are whores. He had a horrible time justifying his comments.

I think Clayman will stick to FOX from now on.  Bashir cleaned his clock.  If this is a major voice for Conservatives, they are in BIG trouble.

http://aattp.org/watch-delusional-racist-larry-klayman-get-his-a-handed-to-him-whos-the-whore-now-video/

Crazy Man Ted Nugent running for President? Juanita Jean

Ted Nugent has a great slogan for deserving my vote for President.  I think he should add that he shit himself for two weeks before his physical to stay out of the Military during Vietnam.  That is true Presidential material.

Hi, I’m Ted Nugent. I have nine children from seven women, and I’m running for president.” Nugent takes a sip of water, having delivered his potential slogan. “Yeah, I’m thinking about it.”

http://www.juanitajean.com/2013/10/20/uh-nugent-your-hair-wasnt-the-problem/

'I'm Alive Because of Her!" The untold story of Hillary Clinton. Amazing Information

But that night in the theater two years ago, the other six brave women came up on the stage. Anabella De Leon of Guatemala pointed to Hillary Clinton, who was sitting right in the front row, and said, “I met her and my life changed.” And all weekend long, women from all over the world said the same thing: 

"I’m alive because she came to my village, put her arm around me, and had a photograph taken together." 

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2013/10/im-alive-because-of-her-untold-story-of.html

Dem. Representative Edwards Schools folks on who is to blame for the shutting down of Govt.

Does anyone really think you can negotiate in good faith with Republican Ted Cruz and his crazy buddies?  Not me.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/10/20/rep-edwards-schools-abc-analyst-who-says-obama-poisoned-tone-by-blaming-gop-for-shutdown/

The Voucher Scam: Unaccountable and ripping off students and staff - Your tax dollars being ripped off

I know there are many more horror stories out there about the tremendous amount of faults of the voucher programs. Personally, I feel it is unethical and immoral for taxpayers to have to fund PRIVATE education. The supporters will say that since money is going to these schools, they have become “public”. This is a sham and is no more than money laundering in my opinion.

http://monologuesofdissent.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-great-voucher-scam-one-teachers.html

POT: Colorado Style. I think we should be going this route with POT. Make it legal and tax it.

The Medical use of Marijuana is legal in Colorado.  This story explains the current system of people buying POT.  I think the whole nation should go this route.  If POT is illegal, so should alcohol and cigarettes.  Interesting article.

http://www.businessinsider.com/the-great-marijuana-crash-of-2011-2013-9

POT: Where, When and Why did smoking Pot become a crime? Thousands are imprisoned for POT.

It seems to be in the mid 30s but there is not a lot of information on why.  With so many in jail for POT smoking, I am curious as to why we allow drinking and smoking cigarettes but POT will get a person in jail.

I will also mention that hemp is used in making clothing and paper in other parts of the world.  Hemp would cut down the need for cutting trees which take a long time to grow.  The medical uses of Marijuana are increasing as well.

There really needs to be a part 2 to it, there really is no determination.

http://www.alternet.org/drugs/who-masterminded-us-pot-prohibition?page=0%2C2&akid=11061.294211.mpd9jK&rd=1&src=newsletter912397&t=17

Medical Marijuana is still illegal in the eyes of the Federal Government according to a decision by the US Supreme Court.  I am still wondering why?  Even Dr Oz says he has seen the medical benefit of Pot.  I think it is time to ask why we have our current laws.  What is the historical basis?

http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=131034&page=1

10 Nutty and Vile Republican Right Wing Comments made this past week.

Right-Wing Lunacy Never Sleeps: 10 Nutty, Vile and Absurd Utterances From the Fringe This Week

The right-wing has had a rough week, but refusing to acknowledge reality always helps.

http://www.alternet.org/tea-party-and-right/right-wing-lunacy-never-sleeps-10-nutty-vile-and-absurd-utterances-fringe-week?page=0%2C3&akid=11061.294211.mpd9jK&rd=1&src=newsletter912397&t=3

R - Ted Cruz: I Want To Kill You. Ted's message to people without insurance. A Story: It was just a simple check

So you can understand why I've been closely following the GOP's attempts to defund Obamacare. I'm suddenly much more interested in everything about healthcare policy, in the same way you're suddenly much more interested in the safety instructions in the seat back in front of you when the pilot announces you're ditching in Lake Superior. And every time Ted Cruz has gone on TV, what I've heard him say is: "I very much want to kill you, Jon Schwarz."
That's because Obamacare requires insurance companies for the first time to cover everyone, regardless of any preexisting conditions. There's no more disqualifying condition than cancer; without Obamacare, I would now almost certainly be uninsurable if someday in the future I try to get insurance on the individual market. And we know what happens to people without health insurance in the United States:  they die.


http://www.alternet.org/i-would-be-dead-without-health-insurance-gopers-trying-kill-obamacare-are-also-killing-people?page=0%2C1&akid=11061.294211.mpd9jK&rd=1&src=newsletter912397&t=13

Awesome: Hay as ART!! Pretty amazing

Oh HAY, look at what you can do with fall decorations. You can make them totally awesome.
A farmer was able to create absolutely mind-blowing sculptures with just hay, manpower and some creativity. This sure beats the usual round or square bales you see. In fact, it makes every hayride and corn maze we’ve been to seem boring.

http://www.viralnova.com/hay-bales/


http://www.viralnova.com/hay-bales/

Ted Cruz. Republican idiot, vows NEVER to raise the debt ceiling until the NORTH surrenders to the SOUTH!

(CSN) Republican Sen. Ted Cruz vowed early Monday that he would seek to stop any legislation raising the nation’s debt ceiling unless and until President Obama “in his role as the current, if illegitimate, head of the Union” presented the Junior Senator from Texas with papers “announcing the North’s immediate and unconditional surrender to the Confederacy.” Such documentation, the Senator argued would simply acknowledge “at long last” that the South “clearly and decisively” won the Civil War.

http://www.citizenschwartz.com/cruzcontrol/

Everything wrong with TeaParty explained in this clip - Very Good

It's a sad commentary on the state of the media when some of the best journalism of 2012 consistently comes from works of fiction.

http://www.upworthy.com/everything-wrong-with-the-tea-party-in-less-than-two-minutes?g=5

2 year old finds gun, shoots and kills herself

I guess the good guy with a gun was not quite close enough.

http://freakoutnation.com/2013/10/19/north-carolina-two-year-old-girl-finds-loaded-gun-shoots-herself-dead/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=north-carolina-two-year-old-girl-finds-loaded-gun-shoots-herself-dead

1879 Shutdown with KKK similar to recent Govt shutdown Compare

iHstorical comparisons are a tricky business, and wrong examples teach dangerous lessons. Take loose comparisons between this government shutdown and the previous 17. Nate Silver and others suggest that this shutdown will not harm the Republican Party because the last one cost them only two house seats. More controversially, the sheer number of previous shutdowns legitimates this one as a political tactic. If there were 17 recently, what makes one more so awful?
This shutdown has no precedent in living memory. Our recent ones concerned budget disputes, new legislation, or substantive restrictions on the allocation of money. Now, Republicans seek to repeal a statute, a statute that has been exhaustively legitimated through all political channels, including a Supreme Court ruling, two presidential campaigns, and 41 failed repeal attempts by House Republicans. To understand our current crisis, we must travel back more than a century. In 1879, the Democrats threatened to defund the federal government unless Republican President Rutherford B. Hayes repealed laws protecting the right of freed slaves to vote against the use of terror and violence by groups like the Ku Klux Klan. The Democrats' threats backfired, and Republicans swept to victory in election of 1880. The parallel should serve as a warning to today's conservative obstructionists that their tactics are self-defeating and illegitimate.

Like health care today, in 1879 the issue at stake was subject to ferocious public contestation. The Enforcement Acts had put teeth in the 15th Amendment, which guaranteed that the right to vote would not be denied on the basis of race.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/cafe/today-s-budget-brinksmanship-takes-cues-from-1879-s-ku-klux-klan

BERNIE SANDERS ON THE BUDGET CONFERENCE COMMITTEE! The middle class have hope afterall!

In what can only be seen as good news for people who like traditional earned-benefit programs like Social Security and Medicare, here's one name that appears on the list of Senate conferees in the upcoming Paul Ryan-Patty Murray budget talks -- Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders. This ensures that beneficiaries of these programs will, at the very least, have one strong, supportive voice in the room who won't go down in a squishy heap of "grand bargaining." (I'm sure Paul Ryan is thrilled.)

http://crooksandliars.com/susie-madrak/open-thread-steel-cage-match-bernie-s?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook

http://www.politicususa.com/2013/10/18/paul-ryans-worst-nightmare-true-bernie-sanders-budget-committee.html