"Good-Bye" Get on your broom and ride! Where will she turn up next?

By Washington Post Staff

Tuesday, February 7, 7:40 PM

● January 2011 - After an unsuccessful run (click title to entry - thank you) for Georgia governor, Karen Handel joins the Susan G. Komen Foundation as a consultant. She was then hired as a senior vice president for public policy. During the Georgia primary, Handel’s platform included advocating for Planned Parenthood’s defunding.

● Spring 2011 - The Komen board forms a three-member subcommittee to look into Planned Parenthood funding. Komen staff also begin meeting on the issue. Both the staff review and board subcommittee conclude that funding for Planned Parenthood should continue....

With the Queen of Swing for the Anti-Abortionists gone, Komen may have solved their CREDIBILITY problem.  Planned Parenthood needs to move toward autonomy.  The Women's Care Movement has made a mistake in believing we didn't need more than one camp in conquering breast cancer.  It is still surreal to find there is an agenda put ahead of care and decency.  Buoy.  Some really do believe they are god.

I am getting a clear picture General Dempsey and I won't see much the same way.

General Dempsey is wrong.  Flat out wrong. It is unfortunate Mayor Bloomberg believes he has to follow orders.


The Iraq War is over.  The MISSION is complete.  


It is wrong to ask wonderful soldiers that stood up for their country and completed their mission to 'stand down' for a welcome home with a parade.


This generation of soldiers have sustained absolutely cruel war conditions.  They have sustained it, returned to fight with artificial limbs after losing their own.  


They have suffered in ways no other soldier in any generation has suffered.  They need to come home in a real way that says thank you and by the way if there is anything you need simply ask.  They need to be home, loved, engaged in life and enjoying a life they fought to have.  They have won the right to be proud and home.  They have won the right to live a life they fought for.  We, as the recipients of their gift are grateful and we have a right to thank them.


The mission is complete and the parades should be conducted with vigor so they can feel it!


...Bloomberg (click title to entry - thank you) said he had discussed it with military brass, including General Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dempsey, and Army Secretary McHugh and Army Chief of Staff General Odierno made it clear - we talked about it - they do not think a parade is appropriate now,” Bloomberg said on WOR radio’s John Gambling show.

“They think a parade would be premature while we still have so many troops in harm’s way around the world.”

The revelation disappointed Staten Island Councilmen James Oddo and Vincent Ignizio, who were calling for a ticker tape parade down Manhattan’s “Canyon of Heroes” for Operation Iraqi Freedom vets....

It is about Civil Rights. Equality.

In this Aug. 12, 2010 file photo, Billy Bradford of Castro Valley, Calif., waves a pair of flags outside City Hall while same-sex couple line up to see if they can be married in San Francisco, Thursday, August 12, 2010.

(AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File) 

Seems very straight forward to me.  The idea there can be separate classes of people, some deserving freedom and some not is straight up bigotry.  That is not allowed by the USA Constitution in a variety of venues.  Judges practicing different rights for different classes of people have to be questioned to their constitutional knowledge and ADHERENCE!

...A three-judge panel (click title to entry - thank you) of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that a lower court judge correctly interpreted the U.S. Constitution and Supreme Court precedents when he declared in 2010 that Proposition 8 was a violation of the civil rights of gays and lesbians.

The court said gay marriages cannot resume in the state until the deadline passes for Proposition 8 sponsors to appeal to a larger panel of the 9th Circuit. If such an appeal is filed, gay marriages will remain on hold until it's resolved.

Lawyers for Proposition 8 sponsors have repeatedly said they would consider appealing to a larger panel of the court and then the U.S. Supreme Court if they did not receive a favorable ruling from the 9th Circuit.

"Although the Constitution permits communities to enact most laws they believe to be desirable, it requires that there be at least a legitimate reason for the passage of a law that treats different classes of people differently. There was no such reason that Proposition 8 could have been enacted," the ruling states....

The State Health Insurance Exchanges will help with difficult employers.

FEB 07, 2012  (CLICK HERE)

Vermont may for the short term allow small businesses to offer low-premium, "bronze" insurance plans. In other news, a N.J. legislative committee approved a bill to establish a state health insurance exchange, and a California plan to move 875,000 children to Medicaid raises concerns....


The objection of the Catholic Church is wrong.  Women are good decision makers and their religious hierarchy simply doesn't understand.  The Catholic Church also has a strong history of impoverishing their members.  The USA is not the only country the Catholic Church conducts its faith.  There are many countries where religious pressure results in altered lifestyles and poor quality of life.  The Catholic Church implodes its own tithers with unrealistic family size that also prevent mothers from employment to promote their families' well being and improvement.  


The Catholic Church in the USA has a right to their faith and their faithful, but, they are not allowed to pressure women of other faiths to practice differently.  There is quality of life and religious freedom at stake.  Once the State Exchanges are established, employers have the option to give employees monies instead of insurance so they seek health insurance that covers their needs.  


Critiquing the churches values and standards is not the answer, but, offering and legislating options everyone can live with is.  The decision by Health and Human Services is correct, there is no other option for women seeking birth control currently, but, the future will have options to enhance choices in health care.  Let's hope that is the case.


The States are finding many interesting options and even Vermont recently stated if large employers can provide a comprehensive health plan at reasonable cost to their employees they are welcome to do so.  


Emergency contraception is important to women and it should always be available, especially in hospitals where rape and incest victims find care and evidence collection.

...One of the models (click title to entry - thank you) under consideration for testing in the accountable care project is a payment incentive or gainsharing. For example, if federally qualified health centers, which participate in Medicaid and deliver primary care, meet a certain savings target, they can potentially keep some of the amount over the target that was realized in savings.

Those conversations have a lot of promise for Colorado and other states. “It moves us away from a state budget environment where we’re seeing Medicaid being potentially pitted against education or other budgetary needs,” Arenales said.

Super Pacs is not where it's at, but, I would donate after I support the candidate fund FIRST!

We have to be able to compete against the Plutocrats!  These mountains are not unusual to the people of the USA, we can make it happen if we focus on the horizon and not the ideology.


I plan to give to the campaigns I am supporting and then will give to the super PAC after I've received the maximum I can provide to the candidates.  


Americans have to put the well being of their families first.  The circumstances the Middle Class face cannot be ignored, nor can they ignore the importance of HEALTHY candidate giving.  Family first, politics second.  Priorities matter and winning in November has never been more important but not at the cost of homes and health.


..."With so much at stake, (click title to entry - thank you) we can't allow for two sets of rules in this election whereby the Republican nominee is the beneficiary of unlimited spending and Democrats unilaterally disarm," Messina said. "Therefore, the campaign has decided to do what we can, consistent with the law, to support Priorities USA in its effort to counter the weight of the GOP super PACs."...

Where did a political candidate get the money for a Superbowl ad?

This is from the Christian Science Monitor .  I don't think I have to say anymore, except, where the heck did the money come from for such a mindless ad?

He raised that kind of money in a STATE campaign?  Primary no less?  Something is not right here.


The unions need to speak to this. There are shadows of hatred that should not be pinned on them.  I sincerely believe the unions have a place in this.  Perhaps an Asian-American Auto Worker standing with his union leader could talk to the insensitivity and remind the USA how far we have come.  I'd feel better if the unions spoke out.  It doesn't have to be political so much as peacemaking.  Mentioning the controversial ad will end the hideous nature of it and remind everyone of how an affiliation with a union can end the hate.

...Michigan (click title to entry - thank you) has seen its share of Asia bashing, especially in the 1980s, when images of sledgehammers smashing imported cars were common. Chinese-American Vincent Chin died after being beaten to death in 1982 by two unemployed autoworkers angry about competition from Japan.

Republican Senate hopeful Pete Hoekstra began taking heat after his ad targeting Democratic incumbent Debbie Stabenow ran statewide Sunday before the Super Bowl football championship....

If China continues to breath fire globally, what will happen to Putin's Sochi 2014?

Winning the right (click here) to host the 2014 Winter Olympic Games was so important to Russia, and to Vladimir Putin personally, that the Russian president himself led the country's final, formal presentation before the International Olympic Committee in Guatemala City on July 4. Rare for him, he even made his address in English, with finishing remarks in French.

That involvement clearly paid off, as the Black Sea resort of Sochi beat out Pyeongchang, South Korea, in a second round of secret balloting after Salzburg, Austria was eliminated in the first....

This is the Sochi Polar Bear.  It is cute.  I like it already.

Sochi 2014 launch VolunTour campaign in volunteer recruitment drive  (click here)

The launch of the project comes a day before the process to recruit 25,000 volunteers from across Russia for Sochi 2014 gets underway, when candidates can register on the website.

The campaign is being carried out online using banners, viral projects and other promotional tools such as social networking.

Outdoor advertising is also being used in 14 regions across Russia as Sochi 2014 looks to bring young people with a proactive attitude to volunteer in the black sea resort during the Games.

The advertising campaign will also inform the public of the work volunteers do through humour, as well as looking to involve other regions in Russia so that the whole of the country feels a part of Sochi 2014....


Russia needs to line up Sochi advertisers, if it hasn't already.  The global community came together for the Chinese Olympics, it would be disappointing if China didn't join all of us again in a spirit of peace.


Russian official: Sochi projects delayed (click title to entry - thank you)
Updated: January 15, 2012, 5:40 PM ET

INNSBRUCK, Austria -- Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak acknowledged Sunday that more than 70 construction projects for the 2014 Sochi Winter Games are behind schedule but denied the Olympics would be affected.

Kozak said during a visit to the inaugural Winter Youth Olympics in Innsbruck that the venues in question are almost ready and that only formalities were causing the delays.

"They are not major delays," he said through a translator. "All in all, there are 400 venues that have to be constructed and 70 of them isn't such a huge delay. Basically, all these venues are built. The delays are related to some paperwork.

"In the end, I think we'll finish everything in time. Speaking about the infrastructure, we don't have any concern whatsoever. My main concern is the success of our Russian sportsmen. It's going to be a huge regret if our own sportsmen don't perform to their best."

The International Olympic Committee warned Russian officials two years ago that construction delays could threaten their ambitious plans for the 2014 Games, which included building all new facilities.

However, IOC's coordination commission for Sochi has since said the construction of venues had been proceeding at an impressive pace....

I don't think Iran is serious. If China is marketing ICBMs they are attempting to escalate rather than stabilize.

Israel Air Force aircraft (click title to entry - thank you) have been spotted in recent days at a Saudi Arabian military base unloading military equipment in the city of Tabuk, in northwestern Saudi Arabia, according to a report from Iranian news agency FARS.

The base will reportedly be used as a forward operating base by the Israelis as part of an offensive on an Islamic country... 

These are Israeli Jets parked in Saudi Arabia.  The picture is form 2010.  Saudi Arabia has actively purchased military hardware from the USA.  I doubt seriously Saudi Arabia wants Iran to have nuclear capacity of ICBMs.  I could be wrong, but, I don't think so.  Iran has to know there are many neighbors not happy with them and it isn't just Israel.

China's needs to be checking their list of gifts to Iran twice before they actually dispatch hardware that will begin a war of no return.  Seriously.

This is a bipartisan ad. "Both teams are in the locker room." Maybe it is actually a non-partisan ad.

Clint Eastwood was in a movie named after a Ford, "Gran Torino." I am sure Chyrsler was delighted to have Award Winning Actor, Director, Producer, Composer and Politician, Clint Eastwood for their ad. They also have a fold out today in USA Today. They are waging a commercial campaign to bond with the people of the USA. Is that so bad?

So, the New York Giants get a ticker tape parade by the returned Iraq Vets that made this possible don't.

I am surprised at the inconsistent priorities of the mayor.  Odd.


Don't get me wrong, my mother nearly fainted yesterday when they took the trophy.  She was expecting the Pats to connect for a victory at the end.  But, my mother also prays the rosary everyday for the troops and the President and our nation.  


In between (click title to entry - thank you) all the commercials and snacking there was a pretty good football game last night, and when the final whistle was blown it was the New York Giants on top. They’re the Super Bowl champs—for the second time in four years—and now New York is ready to welcome their team home for a little bit of a party and parade. Mayor Bloomberg is putting the final touches on this and that, but we do know that the celebration is taking place on Tuesday....

"Morning Papers" - It's Origin

The Rooster
"Okeydoke"

Good Night, Moon

February 5, 2012


Waxing Gibbous


96.3 % lit


1.6 days until Full Moon

Not to victimize VW. They have always been out front with best gas mileage for as long as I can remember.

But, I think I made the point how companies can pay millions upon millions of dollars US for commercial time for the Super Bowl, where millionaires play on fields owned by billionaires, oblivious to people dying in the frigid reality of abandonment.  But, hey, the jobs are more important then anything else.  Work hard, keep warm.


I thought the dog was great.  A real sport actually.  VW treated the dog exceptionally well.  And the dog is quite the character.  He seems to enjoy his life.  Quite the thinker.  Very loveable.  Nice.

The Paradox

A truck clears snow in Burgos, Ukraine. More than 120 people died in the country owing to the poor weather conditions. Photograph: Cesar Manso/AFP/Getty Images

...After more than 200 people (click title to entry - thank you) were killed in Arctic temperatures in eastern Europe, the pattern of snowfall moved west, dumping two metres (6.5ft) of snow in parts of Bosnia. On Sunday, the authorities used helicopters to evacuate sick people and deliver food to thousands cut off by the country's highest snowfall on record.

More than 100 remote Bosnian villages were cut off by the snowfall. A state of emergency was declared in the capital, Sarajevo, which has been under more than a metre of snow since Friday, with schools closed, trams stuck in snowdrifts and people trapped in cars. With roads closed and no public transport in much of Sarajevo, some neighbourhoods reported water shortages and residents struggled to reach the shops to buy food.

In neighbouring Serbia, about 70,000 people remained cut off from services. Rare snowfall on Croatia's Adriatic coast left three dead, and the army was called in to help clear snow...

Nothing to envy though.  Tornadoes and burgeoning Tropical Storms make life no less threatening.

No-snow winter would be first in history for region  (click here)

February 03, 2012 12:44 PM

Yael Ossowski

If the skies fail to yield any frozen precipitation in the next six to eight weeks, the greater Charlotte region could experience its first-ever winter without any snow.

This is a stark contrast to last year’s abnormally snowy season, which left children celebrating multiple school closings and parents fretting dangerous and icy road conditions.

According to the National Weather Service, the region has had at least a trace of snow every year since records began in 1878, producing an average of 5.7 inches of snowfall for the past 134 years.

Though the Charlotte region, which includes Gaston County, has always enjoyed modest amounts of snow, the chance of a snowless winter would make 2011-2012 a landmark season in metrological history. Since 2001, an average of 4.8 inches of snow has fallen in the region, peaking at the unusually high total of 14.5 inches during the winter of 2003-2004....

2011 was the third lowest ice volume since 1979.

Overview of Conditions
Arctic sea ice extent in December 2011 averaged 12.38 million square kilometers (4.78 million square miles). This is the third lowest December ice extent in the 1979 to 2011 satellite data record, 970,000 square kilometers (375,000 square miles) below the 1979 to 2000 average extent.

Ice extent was particularly low on the Atlantic side of the Arctic, most notably in the Barents and Kara seas. The eastern coast of Hudson Bay did not freeze entirely until late in the month: normally, Hudson Bay has completely frozen over by the beginning of December. In the Bering Sea, ice extent was slightly above average....

...The graph to the right shows daily Arctic sea ice extent as of January 3, 2011, along with the ice extents for the previous four years. 2011 is shown in light blue, 2010 is in pink, 2009 in dark blue, 2008 is in purple, and 2007, the year with the record low minimum, is dashed green. The gray area around the average line shows the two standard deviation range of the data. ...

I've noted the Arctic Oscillation repeatedly over the years on this blog. The winds are strong enough to reverse ocean currents and dilute ocean salinity.

...PASADENA, Calif. - A new NASA and University of Washington study allays concerns that melting Arctic sea ice could be increasing the amount of freshwater in the Arctic enough to have an impact on the global "ocean conveyor belt" that redistributes heat around our planet... 


...The team (click title to entry -thank you) attributes the redistribution to an eastward shift in the path of Russian runoff through the Arctic Ocean, which is tied to an increase in the strength of the Northern Hemisphere's west-to-east atmospheric circulation, known as the Arctic Oscillation. The resulting counterclockwise winds changed the direction of ocean circulation, diverting upper-ocean freshwater from Russian rivers away from the Arctic's Eurasian Basin, between Russia and Greenland, to the Beaufort Sea in the Canada Basin bordered by the United States and Canada. The stronger Arctic Oscillation is associated with two decades of reduced atmospheric pressure over the Russian side of the Arctic. Results of the NASA- and National Science Foundation-funded study are published Jan. 5 in the journal Nature….

They are dying in the USA, too. But, they are children begging for medicine.

Begging at a Faith, Family and Forum meeting doesn't even make an impression for the need of reform in the health care system in the USA.  Santorum is pathetic.  He is completely removed from compassion.  He treats a child's plea as an adult question at a financial forum.


By the way, the pundits have it wrong.  Santorum is not seeking Vice Presidential status, when the made what appeared to be accolades to Romney he was actually answering the demand by Gingrich to leave the race.  Do you actually think Santorum would tell Republican Social Conservatives to move to the back of the bus to throw in with Romney?  They are the only ones that vote for him.

Time for a commercial break.

The people don't have basic clothes such as gloves to even try to protect themselves.

The hands of a homeless man are seen as he rests inside an overcrowded shelter set up by the city hall in Bucharest as temperatures plunge to minus 16 degrees Celsius.

...A state of emergency (click title to entry - thank you) has been declared in Sarajevo, the Bosnian capital, which is buried in more than 3 feet of snow. Several water shortages have been reported, and many people are trapped in their cars, Britain's The Guardian newspaper reported. Helicopters were dispatched to evacuate the sick in parts of Bosnia that are cut off by the country's highest snowfall on record.

In Bulgaria, 15 people have been found dead at the side of the road or in unheated houses. Deaths have also been reported in France and Poland, and record snowfalls in Italy, Algeria and several Mediterranean islands.

In England, more than 60 car accidents have been reported in the North Yorkshire region due to about 6 inches of snow. The Met office issued nine warnings after snow began to turn into ice across U.K. roadways, the BBC reports.

There is no conscience in this.  When are the wealthiest going to realize their responsibility in the pain and death of the poor due to their own disastrous decisions?  This impoverishment is not due to anything within their control and now they are paying with their lives.

The CONTENT of the Arctic Ocean has been based in fresh water.

SEPTEMBER 2, 2008


One of Canada's (click here) five remaining Arctic ice shelves - the 4,500-year-old, 50-sq.-km. Markham Ice Shelf - has broken completely away from Ellesmere Island and drifted into the Arctic Ocean, the most dramatic sign yet of how rising temperatures and retreating sea ice are creating "irreversible" changes to the country's polar frontier....

Year old ice has salt content.  Older ice does not.  The older the ice the more it is composed of FRESH WATER.  


When the older ice melts it is entering the ocean circulation of the North Atlantic and dilutes the warmer waters.


There is a very good chance with the loss of older ice, the Thermohaline Current is beginning to be effected.


The Markham Ice Shelf above is nothing but fresh water and as it melts it dilutes the ocean currents, effects circulation and assists sea level rise.


Growth of Ice (click title to entry - thank you)


...The ions of the salts in sea water cannot enter the crystal structure despite its open nature. One might expect all salt to be rejected, therefore, leading to a sea ice cover composed of pure ice. Such is not the case, however. If you suck on a piece of first-year sea ice it will taste distinctly salty. The water from young sea ice may have a salinity of about 10 parts per thousand, dropping to 1-3 (parts per thousand) in old ice....