$60+ billion in discretionary spending cuts is NOTHING in relation to the national debt.

So then why go there?

A stopgap bill that Democrats (click title to entry - thank you) hope to pass in the Senate today to avert a shutdown would fund the Pentagon through the rest of the fiscal year and other arms of government for another week at current levels, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid said on Friday.

Discretionary spending is where all the wedge issues are for the 2012 elections.

The real challenges to the country is not about their discretionary budget, it is about Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and the Miliary Budget.

The reason those items are not 'on the table' is because they cannot be solved in a Budget proposal.  These issues have to be addressed through HONEST debate, requires a COMMENT PERIOD from the citizens in the country, well written legislation that will probably far more than three pages long and should begin ASAP.

The BEST 'rider' that should have been attached to the 2011 and the next 2012 budget bill would be to start a 'five year or ten year' process to take PUBLIC COMMENT on major spending programs.  It would provide a time period during which citizens could learn about the spending in these large budget topics, learn where waste is occurring and seek to investigate ways to resolve those problems in order to bring these programs under control from what the country can tolerate and what it cannot not.

On most areas that effect the average citizen, such as banking, which when out of control can cause use impacts to the USA economy should have the same 'frequency' of citizen review, every five years.  In other words, once the Banking Regulation Act was passed, the Affordable Care Act was passed a 'time component' that accepts PUBLIC COMMENT should be nearly automatic in a way the public would expect it to be a part of any significant bill.

PUBLIC COMMENT means something.  It goes into the record and it is reviewed by the administrative departments involved.  The comments cannot be dismissed.  There needs to be a measure by which the American citizen can 'redress' the bills after they are passed an implimented.  Public Comment does not mean the legislation changes, however, it gives a chance for Americans to be heard and that is made a part of teh record, so that individuals or organizations such as AARP can review the statements of citizens that have gone through the trouble of making comment to understand where the legislation worked and where it missed the mark.

To have this 'seesaw' of passing bills and recalls and attaching social wedge issues to budgets is hideous and results in real ramifications in the world.  It really isn't appropriate.  A bill doesn't sincerely reach its implimentation until 2 years after its passage due to the irregular implimentation at the State level.  It requires at least three additional years to come to understand the implications of a bill and it is the citizen that finds out FIRST the impact of most legislation.

A five year review of major legislation should be a standard in the House and Senate and not simply an accommodation.

To completely demonstrate how completely "Two Faced" this House majority is, they are violating their own rant about "States Rights."

The Regressive Republicans, up to now, have stated, Gay Marriage and Abortion are "States Rights" and not a topic for federal elections.  Yes?  Yes.  All of a sudden in the USA federal budgte the Wedge Issue to end all wedge issue is abortoin.  Oh, so the federal government is now the place for this issue or not?

As Congressional budget talks continue (click title to entry - thank you) Washington, women's health is in the spotlight. Lawmakers were reportedly wrangling over funding for Planned Parenthood, a major provider of health care for women, ncluding abortion and family planning services.

"This all deals with women's health," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) told reporters in an exchange broadcast on CNN, the New York Times reported.

Whatever is decided, it could have broad implications for women, especially the poor. Seventy-five percent of Planned Parenthood's clients live close to the poverty line, according to the organization.
Planned Parenthood provides a wide array of medical services including reproductive health care, cancer screenings, and STD testing at more than 800 locations across the country. They are also the country's largest abortion provider.

And that's where they run into trouble with conservatives....

Abortion CLEARLY is an issue that involves religious beliefs and the division of church and state.  This topic is not a matter of whether abortion involves 'unborn citizens' rights.'  There is no such thing as unborn citizen rights.  If a person is not born, then there are no rights to violate.  Where the law makes a distinction, in the case of murder, it is a matter as to the nature of the death of the woman and whether her pregnancy enticed the murder and her intention to the hopes of giving birth to another life. 

If that sounds like it is splitting hairs, it is not.  The focus on the fact that women make conscience decisions to become pregnant and carry that pregnancy to the birth of a child that she may or may not nurture to adulthood is the focus.  A women's right to decide to be pregnant and give birth is a huge leap for women.  They commit their lives and fortune to the well being and up bringing of that child.  It is not a minor commitment and for the woman that dies while pregnant due to murder the focus is more than appropriate to understand the 'special circumstances' that she entered.

So, either States Rights in regard to abortion and other matters are important to the Regressive Republicans of the Hosue or they aren't.  Which is it?

Government shutdown eminent because Republicans created a 'wedge issue' by writing policy into the USA Budget.

Expect the same type of obstructionism with every measure the House writes. 

The Republicans have become the Party of the Extremists.  It is just that simple.  They have been destroying the USA Constitution for as long as I can remember.  The Republicans elected into office in the 2010 elections are a profound representation of what the RNC is all about.  Republicans have painted themselves into being the party that can deliver a Plutocracy to Wall Street and this is the result.  They want to knock down the wall between church, state and Wall Street.  It is their goals that are the problem.  They don't do the people's business anymore because they sold out to big money for a long, long time. 

It is unfortunate the Plutocrats are able to pollute the democratic process in the USA, but, they have.  I refuse to have Regressive Republicans destroy Planned Parenthood over unsound fiscal principles based in ideologies.  Planned Parenthood has been invaluable in their services to women, men and families alike and it is an atrocity to continually attack decent people that perform valuable serves to the American people.

The Regressive Republicans are extreme.  There is no dealing with them because they are ideologues.  Ideologues do not belong in politics in the USA.  People able to understand the NEEDS of this country and how best to solve those problems are those that should be in office.  It is unfortuante the American people are so disconnected from their own understanding of the nation's problems and the best solution that this mess has to exist.  That disconnect is why the Plutocrats are able to 'manipulate' elections.

When one really reflects on the 'purpose' to the Republcan's anti-Americansim, it is desperation for being elected.  The entire party has sold out to those that want greater and greater profits without regard for the citizens of the country.  CEO decisions are based on profit and loss, not loyality to citizens.  It has been that realtiy that has brought the Republicans to 'their state of play.'  The country is in real peril with Republcans in control of any branch of office, it would seem at any level of government as well.  We are seeing it in Wisconsin and most of the Midwest states.  States mostly abandoned by the Plutocracy of Wall Street.  The 'neediness' of the people of the Midwest due to that abandonment opened them up to considering alternatives that excoriate the deceny they had remaining in their lives.  It is unfortunate what is occuring with what was once considered the Greatest Democracy on Earth.  People are losing their rights due to Republicans.  They are losing them in the courts and at the ballot box because 'the conditions' of living have become adverse at no real fault of the citizen, but, the manipulation of eight years of abuse of power in Washington under Bush and Cheney.  It is rather sad to witness.

This shutdown is more than about abortion and abortion rights.  It is about how the Regressive Republicans MANIPULATE their power to bring pressure on the country as to SARIFICING their freedoms versus political domination.  That is huge.  There is a dynamic at play here that if allowed to continue will destroy the very democracy Regressive Republicans state they love.  They are destroying the USA Constitution with every wedge issue THEY CREATE. 

Repeated earthquakes are shaking economic confidence.

...The survey (click title to entry - thnak you) comes in the same week as the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research's quarterly survey of business opinion, which is one of three key surveys measured by the Reserve Bank when determining monetary policy.

It showed the quake's impact was localised in Christchurch, with both sentiment and activity flat rather than negative around the rest of the country.

Still, the country's economic recovery had already stalled prior to the quake, narrowly dodging recession through the latter half of last year, and the temblor may have shaved as much as 1.5 per centage points from GDP growth, according to the Reserve Bank....

What I can't understand is why Republicans are against The Affordable Care Act.

...Rep. Ryan’s budget proposal (click title to entry - thank you) would radically reshape both the Medicare and Medicaid programs. It would turn Medicaid into a block grant, which would give states more discretion over benefits and eligibility. And it would radically redesign Medicare, changing it from what is essentially a government-run, single-payer health plan to one in which people would choose coverage from competing private insurance firms, many of them for-profit....

According to Ryan, Medicare recipiants would be 'dumped off' at the State Insurance Pools, once they go into effect in 2014. 

The electorate has to remember, the Republicans were against it until they were for it.  While they openly state they are opposed to what is coined as "Obama Care," (which I would think could be understood as Obama Cares, but who am I to criticize Regressives) they restructure their approval as it appears in Ryan's proposal.  In other words, they know the insurance companies love the Affordable Care Act because it requires all Americans to be insured.  So, the Republicans simply go about trying to syphon more monies off the government and put it in the nads of their cronies.

The Ryan Proposal is a dangerous one and one the electorate should take seriously in realizing how their reality can change overnight in the hands of manipulators such as Ryan and those that stand with him.  It is my guess Ryan had 'interesting' help in crafting this disaster to the people of the country.

One has to realize, the Republicans CHRONICALLY focus on Medicare.  Bush did after being re-elected in 2004 and now Ryan and his party.  Why?  Why would that be the case?

It is easy for Republcans to come up with plans to scalp Americans, they are written by their Wall Street buddies.

In actuality, this level of corruption validates the need for a single payer system without a doubt.  That is what Americans are competing against.  They either decide to have a single payer and rid themselves of the corporate corruption of Wall Street in their health care system OR they continue to be 'watch dogs' for their own well being day after day.  Sooner or later that decision needs to be made.  It is EXPENSIVE to continually 'police' Wall Street, so why do it?  Rid the health care system of corporate corruption and instill Single Payer.  We already have it for Seniors and we know it works.  Give the "Dividends and Bonuses" to the American public for a change.

Waukesha County post election result needs to be dismissed.

It is an issue of the electronic 'hanging chad.'  It sounds as though the 'methodology' of Waukesha County, Wisconsin is clearly corrupt and one has to wonder about the election returns of previous elections where the electronic vote was in place. 

It is really terrible there.  Why do the people let her get away with it.  According to others they do not believe the practice is wise.  It is completely unethical.  The problem sincerely is that objections to Kathy Nickolaus have been ongoing, it is just she has the authroity at this point to refuse invetigation.

...The County auditors (click title to entry - thank you) said it was eminently possible -- including historical precedent -- for Nickolaus or a rogue employee to tamper with data. Why? Nickolaus insists on controlling password access and has unilaterally decided to move sensitive files, like election results, onto her personal computer....

Corruption is a terrible thing and once again the people of Wisconsin lack confidence in their state government.  It is more than obvious the results are manipulated.  Downloading anything is a manipulation and what happens from there is anyone's guess.

Aug. 18, 2010

...County Corporation Counsel Thomas Farley (click here) told the committee Monday that as an elected official with responsibility for elections, "If she wants to keep everything secret, she probably can.
"I don't know if that's wise or what she should do, but if she wants to and the public is satisfied that that's what they want - someone who keeps everything secret - that's up to them."
The issue came to a head when Nickolaus removed the election results collection and tallying system from the county computer network this spring and installed it on standalone personal computers in her office. She has said they are backed up with redundant systems.
Director of Administration Norman A. Cummings said Nickolaus has been uncooperative with attempts to have information technologists review the system and confirm the backups....

In the year 2000, the Clinton Administration was submitting a surplus budget for the THIRD time. This is the "Citizen's Guide to the Federal Budget" printed by the Clinton White House that year.

The President.s 2000 budget click title to entry - thank you) promises the third balanced budget of this Administration. With it, the Nation.s fiscal house is in order and we are prepared to meet the challenges of the next century. It continues on the path the President has followed for the past six years of maintaining fiscal discipline and investing wisely in our Nation.s priorities.

It invests in education and training so Americans can make the most of this economy.s opportunities. It invests in health and the environment to improve our quality of life. It invests in our security at home and abroad, strengthens law enforcement and provides our Armed Forces with the resources they

need to safeguard our national interests in the next century.

The President.s budget makes these investments while maintaining the fiscal discipline that allowed the Federal Government to record its first surplus in a generation last year. The budget forecasts that the Government will produce a surplus again this year, and will continue to do so for decades to come. Our success in eliminating the budget deficit proves that we are capable of fulfilling great responsibilities, and there is now every reason for us to rise to the next challenge. The President believes it is now time to work together to save Social Security.

The Budget Surplus disappeared the very year Bush and Cheney took office and it was before the attacks of September 11, 2001.

Nowhere does any budget 'standard' state it can be substituted for legislation.

The Regressives still again reach back in time to attempt to legitimize their rantings.

Click on image to enlarge.

This is the 2008 Bush Budget.  It acts in duplicity to fund the "The Global War On Terror"  was funded at 5% of the federal budget while the Department of Defense was 16%.  That is 21% of the budget requuired to run Bush's wars and spying departments.  The same departments that have some many employees they can't keep count, yet alone understand and consolidate informatiion to make it work for the peopleof the country.

The domestic budget to the USA is grossly underfunded in 2008.  All one has to do is look at the incredible strides the FDA has taken in regard to safeguarding children's medications since President Obama took office to know the domestic budget is FINALLY swing back to protect the people of the USA.

It is very safe to say, the 2008 budget was only about Republicancronies and not about the well being of the American people.  One of the reasons Republicans chronically push patriotism where there is war, weapons and soldiers is because that is where much of their 'coffers' are for their consitutents and their cronies (campaign contributors).  The one reason why the USA military is larger in cost and size then all the other major military powers in the world is becuase it is 'pay backs' for election donations.  There is no real reason the USA mlitary is as large as it is.  It is weren't we would not be seeing 'war by choice' anywhere.

FDA Drug Safety Communication: Death resulting from overdose after accidental ingestion of Tessalon (benzonatate) by children under 10 years of age  (click title to entry - thank you)

Safety Announcement
[12-14-2010] The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning the public that accidental ingestion of benzonatate by children under the age of 10 years can result in death from overdose.
Benzonatate is a prescription drug approved for relief of cough in patients over 10 years of age. The safety and effectiveness of benzonatate in children under 10 years of age have not been established. Benzonatate is sold under the brand-name Tessalon and is also sold in generic preparations. 
Benzonatate may be attractive to children because of the drug's appearance (it is a round-shaped liquid-filled gelatin capsule). ...

Tessalon has been around for a very, very long time.  In order for the FDA, or any other protectiion agency,  to be able to investigate issues involving dangers to the Ameican public it has to have THE STAFF and THE TIME.  All that is an important part of the budget.  Evidently, Surgeon General Vice Admiral Regina M. Benjamine, MD, MBA has been taking her responsibilities seriously and encouraging such investigations. 

There are times we just don't hear enough from the Obama cabinet.  But, then they don't see their role as political so much as function so the people of the USA receive the services they deserve.  The USA cannot effectively operate on the 2008 Budget.

...The product will remain on the market, (click here) but new label information will be added about risks of accidental ingestion resulting in overdose and death in children younger than 10.
Benzonatate was approved in 1958 for treatment of coughs in patients 10 and older. It is available in 100- and 200-mg dosage forms....
An FDA review of adverse event reports disclosed 31 cases of overdose in children and adults, ranging in age from 1 to 66. The overdoses involved as many as 30 gelcaps and as few as one....

Speaker Boner and the Tea Baggers continue to play politics with the USA Budget.

The continued practice by the House Regressives to interject POLICY into the USA budget only proves incompetency and their inability to discern the way legislation is suppose to work.  The Tea Baggers and extremist Republicans know if they actually legislate against abortion and the EPA it would never pass the Senate.  Not only that but separate legislation would be held in ridicule in trials across the coutnry.

The Tea Baggers and Boner along with the rest of the Regressives at holding the country hostage in order to 'power play' their political agenda.  It is at the very least unethical.

...Reid (click title to entry - thank you) is accusing Republicans of holding up a deal because they are insisting on keeping so-called "riders" -- amendments that passed in the House -- related to government funding for abortion and limiting the Environmental Protection Agency's ability to enforce restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions. He additionally blamed the situation on "rambunctious" freshman Republicans in the House.

Boehner's aides insist they are still negotiating on numbers and "nothing is agreed to until everything is agreed to."

"There's no agreement yet -- No agreement on the numbers, and no agreement on the policy issues that were moved through the House," Boehner said. "There are a number of issues on the table and any attempt to narrow it down to one or two would not be accurate."...

The USA budget is NOT where policy is made, it is made in debate and subsequent legislation.  This is outrageous.  The Regressives are discriminatory and seeking power over an entire nation to benefit their cronies and special interests that funded their campaigns. 

More proof that Americans mean nothing to the Republicans. They don't care if Americans lose jobs, they care about their cronies on Wall Street.

Small Business is a talking point for Republicans because their cronies like Bechtel are classified as a small business.  It is not.  It is an international conglomerate. 

There is no sense in the President trying to resolve the Republican's issues regarding the budget.  They don't want to resolve them and Speaker Boner is nothing but a slick talking con man.  This is at least the second time the President has meet with the leaders of the House and Senate and the same thing happens all the time.  The meeting ends, eveyone is closer to closing their differences and in less  than 12 hours they are further apart than they were before and Speaker Boner always says, "The numbers don't match."  It is the same 'mind speak' everytime there is a meeting. 

...At a Thursday morning press conference, (click title to entry - thank you) House Speaker John Boehner disputed Senate Majority Leader Harry’s Reid’s claim that the two sides have essentially agreed on a base number for spending cuts and are now squabbling only over unrelated policy provisions....

Boner lies and lies and lies again and he is counting on their crony donations to win elections.  It his how they had an illegitmate majority after the 2010 elections and it is their methodology going forward.

The Democrats have a majority in the Senate and the nation should be grateful they do, otherwise, Social Security and Medicare would be destroyed by now as they would have overriden every Presidential veto.  We have witnessed their viciousness toward the American people in Wisconsin and there is no reason to believe differently of any of them.

Speaker Boner is not a leader capable of guiding their illegitmate majority to a reasonable budget this year.  Quote, "...in negotiating here or disclosing the contents of those private conversations probably is not helpful to OUR goal of cutting spending and keeping the government open...."

I didn't know the USA budget in any venue 'had a goal.'  So the Republican goal is far more important than the lives of the American people and the economy of the country.

Speaker Boner's insistence on a goal speaks loud and clear to his POLITICAL GOAL and not a budget that sustains the people of the USA and their economy.
 
One of the most important aspects to the 'negotiations' is quote, "...the people in the room actually get along and like each other..."


So, what Boner is saying is that 'He tolerates' the company in these meetings, but, let's face it he isn't changing a damn thing.How cozy.  That is not much reconciliation to the people facing trouble in their lives because Republicans are using every issue under the sun, OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS, to politic every opportunity including this one.  I don't believe they are 'getting along' at all and every statement to that effect is a blantant lie.  How can people in the room 'get along' if they aren't sincerely trying to achieve the goals of the nation, but, their party.

Obama: Progress, but No Deal to Avert Shutdown

The bargaining that exists with the USA economy has to stop.

The values of the House as reflected by the budget cuts will hurt our economy. Not just the spending, but, in the way it is spent. The monies in volley are minor compared to the redress of the nation's debt.

Military spending has to be brought into a reasonable portion of our national budget. The steps President Obama has made with NATO in regard to Libya is very important. I am impressed by France's prowess in removing the removal of destructful leaders, in this case from the Ivory Coast. For far too long, our allies have not had a public profile in the USA and they should. They are competent leaders that can contribute to the overall dispatch of efforts to secure peace. Their participation should be showcased as a measure of honor and loyalty for long standing friendships that at times, unfortunately, have been tense.

The USA cannot consider a global role in all aspects of military deployment. Allies are suppose to be exactly that and having the USA dominate the entire military theater of the world is not good for the strength and competency of our allies. The National Debt can be reduced in a movement to encourage the growth of allies military capacity and competency.

It is my opinion the since reduction in the national debt has yet to be addressed in a meaningful way.

The discretionary spending in the year 2011 is vital to continue an improving trend in the USA economy. It is the last place this Congress needs to demand cuts in areas that support economic growth.

I remind, the USA was abandoned by corporate banks that should have assisted in domestic recovery. In actuality, the bailout was not suppose to be 'an allowance' for corporate banking institutions to restructure their priorities and companies. The bailout was suppose to save the country the severe recession we entered when we were abandoned.

It has been the federal government that has been instrumental in providing small businesses and homeowners the support they needed to recover and grow.

There have been many stumbling blocks along the way since 2008, this episode of budgets battles should not yet be another. If it is, there will be serious consequences to the USA economy.

The Regressive Republicans will add another feather to their hat of obstructing the continued recovery of our economy and the many cultures that compose it. I am confident President Obama has made strides in his meeting this evening with the leaders of the House and Senate, but, to date the House has failed to realize their folly and come to an understanding of compromise. Let's hope it does not continue.

The Japanese do it again. Congratulations.

Sodium silicate or sodium metasilicate, Na₂SiO_3.

A tetrahedral cystal. 

It is used to repair automobile engines and exhaust systems.  It forms a 'glass like' seal and has a high heat tolerance.

I am impressed.

When solid it forms a variety of sizes of crystals that appear to be like glass.

Japan nuclear crisis: Fukushima radiation leak stopped (click here)

An accidental leak of highly radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean from Japan's damaged nuclear plant has been fixed.

By Danielle Demetriou in Tokyo

6:40AM BST 06 Apr 2011

Workers used chemical agent injections to solidify the soil near the cracked pit from where the radioactive water has been leaking at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in northeast Japan.

The leak has resulted in soaring levels of radiation contamination in sea samples from the surrounding Pacific Ocean, with reports of more than 7.5 million times the legal limit of radioactivity at its peak....

Incredible people.  Absolutely incredible. 

Japan sets radiation safety standards for fish (click title to entry - thank you)

English.news.cn  

2011-04-06 14:03:09

BEIJING, April 6 (Xinhuanet) -- The first radiation safety standards for fish are being set in Japan. It comes after radioactive contamination in seawater near the damaged Fukushima Daiichi power plant measured several million times the legal limit.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said on Tuesday the government would apply the maximum allowable radiation limit for vegetables to fish.
The move to introduce safety standards for fish came after the Japanese health ministry reported that fish caught off the coast of Ibaraki Prefecture contained levels of radioactive iodine that exceeded the new legal limit.
The prefecture is approximately half-way between the damaged plant and Tokyo. TEPCO said even those large amounts would have no immediate impact on the environment, but added that it was working to stop the leak as soon as possible.

The House Budget cuts are cultural genocide.

One of the aspects of the USA is its diversity.  Diversity that exists because of recognition and accommodation by government to improve the lives of its citizens.  When the budget cuts in the House Budget is examined it is obvious there is cultural genocide as a basis to the ideology existing with the Regressives.

It is completely obvious to me that over the past decade, since "W" was president there has been a steady attack on the values of Democrats while more and more funding and exceptions were granted the culture of the Regressives.  I am fairly confident that is litigable. 

Oppression of a culture is a global human rights violation.  I believe that is what Democratic leaders are picking up on even if they see it as a function of choice rather than government.  In other words, "Faith Based Initiatives' are funded and nurtured while the programs valued by one half of the USA are discarded and underfunded.  There is a culture genocide proposed by this House of Representatives and it is a hostile agenda for them.

If equity was applied across the board in 'discretionary' spending to remove some of the burden from the national debt no one could complain, however, that is not what is occurring.

The Regressives like to characterize it as pandering to "Liberal /Value Voters" but that isn't it.  The fact of the matter is, the federal spending that supports many of the 'agenda items' of the House Regressives;haven't been touched.  The programs being cut have been developed over time to support Americans in a way that provides equity.  When funding is cut to long standing 'social programs' that have proven to be 'of value' to Americans that is an attack on a 'culture of caring' Liberals developed that gets results.  These are not empty programs simply sopping up money without results. 

Over the years there has been a methodolgy by the Regressives to eliminate any contact by federal dollars to any 'value system' that does not agree with theirs.  That is not only discrimination it is planned genocide of a culture that exists to serve segments of the American population not otherwise addressed.  The 'genocide priority' of the Regressives is not only offensive it seeks to destroy other value systems regardless of how benign or productive they are.  No one is eliminating Regressive values from the budget, nor have them been, but when it comes to a culture other than their's they have no tolerance and seek to destroy the values of an entire segment of the country in their process.

I know I can prove that methodolgy, I don't know why anyone else can.  This is more than simply making budget cuts, it targets culture and that at the very least on a global scale is highly illegal.

The 'leaning' toward funding States by Ryan's "Ideological Debt Cuts" are unconstitutional.

The Federal Government cannot institute income tax or any other form of tax to benefit the States.  That function is that of the State governments. 

The Federal government can institute taxes to pay for federal programs, offering incentives to States to institute programs offered through federal collection of taxes.

It would be every Governor's dream come true for the federal government to set precedent to tax on their behalf.  That is out of the question.  It is simply unconstitutional and only reflects even further how the Regressives understand nothing about governance so much as politics of their constituency.

..."The problem (click here) in Washington is, they take any honest and sincere attempt to fix this problem and use it as a political weapon against you in the next election," he said. "We can't let that deter us."

it is interesting Ryan states the politics of the nation overshadows the resolve to its problems, as he is just as much a part of the problem as his proposals are ideological and not practical.  He even admits that.

The Federal government cannot impose its responsiblities on the States.  It is a slippery slope that quite frankly the States cannot afford.  Ryan presents his plan if they one could wave a magic wand it is all done and a perfect world.  The REALITY of Ryan's proposal is that the 'infrastructure' of the States would have to be expanded and reorganized.

The Federal government has administered SSI, Medicare and Medicaid since its inception with existing infrastructure.  The 'idea' the complete restructuring of the federal government to dissolve these functions and simply assign them to the States WITHOUT an increase of the size of the NATIONAL DEBT is hideous.  Ryan's proposal is nothing more than an exercise in political haymaking.  There is nothing practical or possible about it.

Here is an idea for Mr. Ryan, let's give all the funding for the military to each State?  Every State could have their own Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard (if applicable) and Marines.  Great idea, huh?  I mean the federal debt could increase beyond expectations before it finished building all the military bases in each state.

There is no savings or reduction in any of Ryan's ideologies.  It loses validity with the simply and overlooked cost of 'first' implementing it.

Put it in a bill, Ryan, I am sure the House Regressives will pass it so the Senate can defeat it.  Then at least they'll have their answer.

It is all political grandstanding, "Contract with America," "Path to Prosperity," fancy words that work as 'campaigns' and not legislation.

It might not pass as the Tea Bagger Regressives have their own idea of political grandstanding.

Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) (click title to entry - thank you) will be unveiling the establishment GOP's ten-year plan to make $6 trillion in spending cuts. Critics are already calling the proposal "radical," but Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) said last month that the Republicans' ten-year budget plan will actually do very little to meaningfully address the out-of-control spending in Washington....

The Democrats really don't have to say much in opposition of any of the Regressive plans for spending fedreal monies, the TWO separate branches of the Regressives actually oppose each other as well as any Democratic legislation or Presidential initative.

The Virtual Government Shutdown, let's talk about it until Friday.

"Hello, hello, my neighbor is building a bomb in his garage."

Bring the troops home.  If the bizarre Republican House Budget causes a shut down of government funding on Friday, the troops should come home.

...With an agreement (click title to entry - thank you) still far from reached, the White House Office of Management and Budget said agencies were preparing to close their doors even as leaders from both parties worked to keep that from being necessary....

Regressives don't know how to govern, they only know how to "Circle the Wagons."

...Government shutdowns can hurt businesses (click here) in many ways.  They can affect not only employers’ revenues, but also cause cash flow problems.  Furthermore, any missteps on employee pay during a cash crunch could bring lawsuits, bad morale, and poor public relations.  In the past, federal contractors ultimately were paid for the days not worked because of a shutdown.  The discussion in the nation’s capital these days, however, is that the next time may be different. 

Prepare now for the possibility of a government shutdown....

...Issues to Consider

Use of PTO....

...In Maryland and Washington, D.C., for example, accrued, unused vacation or PTO is considered “wages” under state wage payment laws.  Therefore, a company’s ability to “change the rules” regarding leave after the leave has accrued is restricted.... 

The Regressives haven't 'felt' a government shutdown before, so they want to have the experience before they go home to their constituents.

The Federal Government funds the FBI and CIA.  Things should be interesting for awhile.

The Bush Tax Cuts and Ryan's $4 trillion debt plan is REDISTRIBUTION of wealth to the wealthiest.

I have stated over and over and over, for the USA economy to work it needs a strong Middle Class.  Over the past decade The Bush Tax Cuts and job outsourcing have cost the nation the 'wealth of its Middle Class and starve the beast takes on a whole new meaning with Ryan's $4 Tillion debt reducion scheme.

What is Wealth? (click here)

Question: How is wealth different than income? What is wealth?

Answers: Wealth is private assets minus liabilities (debt). Simply put, wealth is what you own minus what you owe. Income is your paycheck or government benefit check or dividend check, or

your profit from selling an investment. Wealth is what you have in the bank and the property

you own.

Question: Is it possible to have negative wealth?

Answer: Yes. Seventeen percent of the population in 2004 have no assets or they have negative assets: they owe more than they own.

Question: What are examples of assets that lower-income people might have?

Answer: Cash (savings or checking account), furniture, a car.

Question: What are examples of assets owned by middle-income people?

Answer: Cash (savings or checking account), equity in a house, a small business, a little bit of stock and/or a retirement fund.

Question: What are examples of assets owned by the top one percent?

Answer: Real estate, large stock and bond holdings, businesses, paintings and other collectibles.

401K or 401B is NOT 'large' stock and bond holdins.  LARGE stock holdings is someone like Bill Gates that OWN the majority of stock of Microstoft.

The way 'wealth' is discussed in the American media is incorrect.  Middle Class wealth is not discussed enough in its proper perspective.  ONLY the 'achievement' to being 'Super Rich' is considered a worthy discussion of wealth in the American media.  The luxury of owning a home without a second mortgage is an accomplishment that is not valued enough.  The way homeownership is discussed in the American media is the understanding 'the equity' of owning a home can be 'redistributed' to 'icons' of the super-rich through refinancing. 

"W"rong.  Owning a home and owning a home without a mortgage is SINCERE security to the Middle Class.  Owning a home without a mortgage and not having debt is more than security it is 'esteemed' well being.  A homeowner without a mortgage begins to appreciate the payment of property taxes and how their 'local' contribution to 'community' makes a better quality of life for all.  When a community reaches 'stages' of 'security' in education and social well being for all its residents, huge shifts in 'well being' including the reduction of crime and well being of 'status' takes hold and 'life' is valued for its COMFORT and longevity.

There are dearly few 'measures' of 'community development' that measure not only 'social development and well being,' but, community security and status.  A community has status when it has all the necessary 'needs' of its citizens developed and in a stage of 'maintenace.'  At the point where a community is simply 'maintained' the property taxes are stable and predictable to the needs of the community.  A 'growing' community has much higher needs and instability than a community that is well established.  When communities are in 'constant' flux due to rising and falling economic windows the 'stable community' is then under threat.

Community stability is vital to quality education and economic viability.

Communities can be 'dysfunctional' as well.  Where annexation or chronic real estage development substitutes for 'sound fiscal' policy the dysfunction places the community at risk for failure, instability, lower quality of services and reduced capacity to absorb economic shifts. 

The way wealth for the Middle Class is accumulated is directly related to well being.  When the Middle Class is chronically excoriated for incomes and 'growth' of the wealthy, which occurs when 'financing' of assets take replace, the Middle Class sacrifices  'equity stability' and 'economic security.'  When the Middle Class of a community has diminished 'wealth' their community suffers including the services it supplies including police on the street and education.
Middle Class wealth is the most important aspect of a healthy USA economy.  The purchasing power of the Middle Class when it is stable and thriving is by far the greatest national security the USA can enjoy. 

Rove and his cronies are so desperate they are seeking manipulators and liars to help.

We need to start our own 'scandal rag page' on behalf of the Regressive National Party (RNC).  I take it the DNC is not engaged in such activity to attempt to find traction through faux scandal and underhanded measures?  I didn't think so.  I'll see what I can find.  Should be interesting.  It would be good if the Regressives could find a candidate first, though.

...“WikiLeaks (click title to entry - thank you) suddenly became a household name,” he said, and he thought, “Amid all of this bad behavior, there is a certain genius going on there.”

Last week, in an attempt to tap into that genius, Crossroads began Wikicountability.org, a collaborative Web site intended to create a database of freedom of information requests that scrutinize the actions of the Obama administration....

By the way, has Rove remarried yet?  We never hear anything about that.  I mean has he taken up celibacy or something?  Maybe the truth is he perfers boys. 

Come Karl, time to put your manpants on.

The weather at Glacier Bay National Park is (crystal wind chime) warm.

...The whale, (click title to entry - thank you) dubbed #875 by researchers, was spotted on March 15, 2011, by researchers from the non-profit Hawai'i Marine Mammal Consortium, including Glacier Bay National Park's whale biologist Chris Gabriele. Gabriele recognized #875, a whale regularly seen each summer in Glacier Bay and the waters just south of the park known as Icy Strait....

Humpback Whales, like all baleen whales, migrate between their feeding grounds and their breeding grounds.  The seasonal migration brings northern hemisphere baleen whales to the Arctic Ocean for feeding during the summer months and to the equatorial ocean for breeding in the winter. 

The same pattern with southern hemisphere whales occur annually.  They migrate to the waters surrounding Antarctica for feeding in the summer months and to the equatorial oceans for breeding in the winter. 

Their migrations have nothing to do with water temperature.  Northrern hemisphere whales and southern hemisphere whales never meet because the seasons are opposite from each other.  While the northern baleen whales are breeding in equatorial ocean waters in the winter, their counter parts in the southern oceans are feeding near Antarctica in the summer.

Distinctive markings on a whale flukes allow identification of individual animals. NPS photo.

Temperature :: 43 °F

Feels Like :: 37 °F

Conditions :: Overcast

Wind :: 10 mph from Southeast

Windchill :: 37 °F

Wind Gust :: 17 mph

Dew Point :: 28 °F

Humidity :: 57%

Rainfall :: 0.00 in

Snow Depth :: Not available
Pressure :: 29.57 in

Sunrise :: 6:26 AM

Sunset :: 7:56 PM

Latitude :: 58.8 North

Longitude :: 137.0 West

Elevation :: 33 feet

Visibility :: 10.0 miles

Clouds :: Overcast 8000 ft
UV :: 1 out of 16

Keeping Gitmo Detention Camp is irrelevant, "W"rong and expensive. It is a political icon to the Regressives.

There are reasons for detainment camps for prisoners of war.  Gitmo became completely irrelevant when the information the prisoners of war could provide proved to be lies, outdated and desperate.

The Regressive National Committee candidates USE a military instillation to propagate fear rather than resolving it as a political icon to their campaigns.

Regressives do not know how to govern, they only understand their own politics.

"Detainee" by definition is a temporary status. The definition of POW, which is the same as a detainee, is a temporary status.

With the soldiers returning from Iraq and the beginning of a draw down in Afghanistan as of July of this year, the time remaining to try POWs is very limited.

...The case of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (click here) and four alleged co- conspirators is being referred to the military justice system, Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement in Washington today. The military trial will be held at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, said two U.S. officials, who weren’t authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity....

The Regressive National Committee candidates have engaged in 'oppositional' politics ratther than campaigns based in reality and what is best for the country.  When they were elected in mass numbers to the House in 2010 their ideologies took over the priorities of the US House of Representatives.  Faced with chronic underming of sincere justice and effective indictiments of  'oppositional politics' the Attorneys General of the USA have decided to move the trials of the most ruthless POWs.

The best path for trails of these world criminals is to indict them and try them to the standards available within the USA Justice System that would include the Death Penalty.  Indictment through the civil system in the USA would INSURE charges would hold the POWs past that of the end of war. 

The USA is facing ever escalating dynamics in Afghanistan.  The troops are seeking to make impressions upon their leaders.  The uncivilized discourse of the domestic extremists among the Religious Right within the Regressive National Committee are having severe packlash within the military theater in Afghanistan.  The possibility the draw down in Afghanistan will increase is a reality that cannot be ignored.  With all those 'factors' playing into the reality the POWs currently held in Gitmo could be released to their native countries with the removal of soldiers from the Afghan nation, time is not necessarily a reality with such 'silly' politics playing within the USA.

Detainee - A person held in custody or confinement: a political detainee.

Prison of War - A person who surrenders to (or is taken by) the enemy in time of war

 

TITLE X--MATTERS RELATING TO DETAINEES  (click here)

SEC. 1001. SHORT TITLE.

This title may be cited as the 'Detainee Treatment Act of 2005'.

SEC. 1002. UNIFORM STANDARDS FOR THE INTERROGATION OF PERSONS UNDER THE DETENTION OF THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE.

(a) In General- No person in the custody or under the effective control of the Department of Defense or under detention in a Department of Defense facility shall be subject to any treatment or technique of interrogation not authorized by and listed in the United States Army Field Manual on Intelligence Interrogation.

(b) Applicability- Subsection (a) shall not apply with respect to any person in the custody or under the effective control of the Department of Defense pursuant to a criminal law or immigration law of the United States.

(c) Construction- Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the rights under the United States Constitution of any person in the custody or under the physical jurisdiction of the United States.

Article 4  (click title to entry - thank you)

A. Prisoners of war, in the sense of the present Convention, are persons belonging to one of the following categories, who have fallen into the power of the enemy:
 
1. Members of the armed forces of a Party to the conflict as well as members of militias or volunteer corps forming part of such armed forces....