The Obamacare Lobbying Bonanza - Hit & Run : Reason.com:
"The sheer amount of lobbying that surrounds the law is pretty staggering. A Reuters report offers some context:
A Reuters review of lobbying records found that more than 500 companies, business groups, consumer advocates, unions and other organizations weighed in on the Affordable Care Act during the second quarter of this year.
A typical issue in Washington attracts 15 interest groups at any one time, according to research by Beth Leech, a Rutgers University political science professor who has written three books about lobbying. At the height of political debate over the law, just before Congress passed the legislation in March 2010, more than 1,000 stakeholders lobbied on the bill."
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Michigan Senate poised to vote on Medicaid expansion under Affordable Care Act
Michigan Senate poised to vote on Medicaid expansion under Affordable Care Act | MLive.com
Call Sen. Goeff Hansen TODAY!
517-373-1635
Two good info links to help you understand this important issue:
http://muskegonpundit.blogspot.com/2013/06/franz-statement-on-medicaid-expansion_14.html
http://muskegonpundit.blogspot.com/2013/08/medicaid-expansion-there-is-better.html
Call Sen. Goeff Hansen TODAY!
517-373-1635
Two good info links to help you understand this important issue:
http://muskegonpundit.blogspot.com/2013/06/franz-statement-on-medicaid-expansion_14.html
http://muskegonpundit.blogspot.com/2013/08/medicaid-expansion-there-is-better.html
GVSU’s LGBT Resource Center hosting book clubs
GVSU’s LGBT Resource Center hosting book clubs | MLive.com:
"ALLENDALE, MI - Grand Valley State University’s LBGT Resource Center has chosen two books for discussion groups open to the campus community this school year.
The books are “Normal Life: Administrative Violence, Critical Trans Politics, and the Limits of Law” by Dean Spade and “The Erotic Life of Racism” by Sharon Patricia Holland."
This'll really bring 'em back to readin'........
"ALLENDALE, MI - Grand Valley State University’s LBGT Resource Center has chosen two books for discussion groups open to the campus community this school year.
The books are “Normal Life: Administrative Violence, Critical Trans Politics, and the Limits of Law” by Dean Spade and “The Erotic Life of Racism” by Sharon Patricia Holland."
This'll really bring 'em back to readin'........
Detroit Three customer satisfaction falls in latest quarterly survey
Detroit Three customer satisfaction falls in latest quarterly survey | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:
"The gap in customer satisfaction between the Detroit Three and Asian automakers is widening, according to a new survey by the American Customer Satisfaction Index."
"Detroit Three" includes Fiat?(Chrysler)
"The gap in customer satisfaction between the Detroit Three and Asian automakers is widening, according to a new survey by the American Customer Satisfaction Index."
"Detroit Three" includes Fiat?(Chrysler)
State takes up Detroit's disputed election today, seeks to finalize mayor count
State takes up Detroit's disputed election today, seeks to finalize mayor count | Detroit Free Press | freep.com:
"State election officials will meet in Detroit this morning in an effort to finalize disputed results of the city’s Aug. 6 mayoral primary election.
The state’s review of the election is ongoing and might not be finished by today’s public meeting of the Board of State Canvassers, said Fred Woodhams, spokesman for the secretary of state."
"State election officials will meet in Detroit this morning in an effort to finalize disputed results of the city’s Aug. 6 mayoral primary election.
The state’s review of the election is ongoing and might not be finished by today’s public meeting of the Board of State Canvassers, said Fred Woodhams, spokesman for the secretary of state."
California Proposition 187 (1994)
How we got into this mess.
Click the link and read:
California Proposition 187 (1994) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
Click the link and read:
California Proposition 187 (1994) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
Legal challenges
The constitutionality of Proposition 187 was challenged by several lawsuits. On November 11, 1994, three days after the bill's passage, Federal Judge Matthew Byrne issued a temporary restraining order against institution of the measure, which was filed by State Attorney General Dan Lungren.[19] After Judge Mariana Pfaelzer issued a permanentinjunction of Proposition 187 in December 1994, blocking all provisions except those dealing with higher education and false documents, multiple cases were consolidated and brought before the federal court. In November 1997, Pfaelzer found the law to be unconstitutional on the basis that it infringed on the federal government's exclusive jurisdiction over matters relating to immigration.[20] Pfaelzer also explained that Proposition 187's effect on the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, the Congressional overhaul of the American welfare system, proved that the bill was a "scheme" to regulate immigration:
"California is powerless to enact its own legislative scheme to regulate immigration. It is likewise powerless to enact its own legislative scheme to regulate alien access to public benefits."
Governor Wilson appealed the ruling, which brought the case to the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. But in 1999, the newly elected Democratic Governor Gray Davis had the case brought before mediation.[21] His administration withdrew the appeal before the courts in July 1999, effectively killing the law.[22]
Monday, August 26, 2013
Faces of Evil in a Violent Underclass
Articles: Faces of Evil in a Violent Underclass:
"Faces of Evil - that was the headline of the Australian Herald Sun when reporting the depraved murder of Aussie Christopher Lane.
It is instructive to carry that theme further with a few more faces."
"Faces of Evil - that was the headline of the Australian Herald Sun when reporting the depraved murder of Aussie Christopher Lane.
It is instructive to carry that theme further with a few more faces."
At RNC event, (respected black) speaker says African Americans have taken a back seat to gays, immigrants
At RNC event, speaker says African Americans have taken a back seat to gays, immigrants:
"Woodson also criticized the “moral traitors” who mourned the death of Martin but not Chris Lane, the Australian baseball player who prosecutors allege was shot to death in Oklahoma by three boys, two whom are black.
Conservatives have strongly criticized black leaders like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson for treating the cases of Martin and Hale differently.
Woodson said King would mourn for both equally.
“If Dr. King were alive today, he would not be just talking about justice for Trayvon Martin,” Woodson said.
”He would also give a prayer for this 18-year-old man, this little baby, who was shot in the face by two black kids."
"Woodson also criticized the “moral traitors” who mourned the death of Martin but not Chris Lane, the Australian baseball player who prosecutors allege was shot to death in Oklahoma by three boys, two whom are black.
Conservatives have strongly criticized black leaders like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson for treating the cases of Martin and Hale differently.
Woodson said King would mourn for both equally.
“If Dr. King were alive today, he would not be just talking about justice for Trayvon Martin,” Woodson said.
”He would also give a prayer for this 18-year-old man, this little baby, who was shot in the face by two black kids."
Lack of seasonal workers puts Michigan farmers in a pickle
Lack of seasonal workers puts Michigan farmers in a pickle | The Detroit News:
“Every operation in the county is short of migrant labor right now,” said Leitz, who heads a farm near Sodus in Berrien County.
“I thought this would never happen to us with the migrant stream we had going from Florida to Michigan.”
“Every operation in the county is short of migrant labor right now,” said Leitz, who heads a farm near Sodus in Berrien County.
“I thought this would never happen to us with the migrant stream we had going from Florida to Michigan.”
First, defund Obamaphones
First, defund Obamaphones | The Detroit News:
"Nothing better illustrates the impossibility of killing a federal entitlement than the fraud-riddled Obamaphone program.
The $2.1 billion giveaway, funded by a tax on every cellphone service contract, is a well-documented boondoggle — an estimated 41 percent of the phones go to ineligible recipients."
"Nothing better illustrates the impossibility of killing a federal entitlement than the fraud-riddled Obamaphone program.
The $2.1 billion giveaway, funded by a tax on every cellphone service contract, is a well-documented boondoggle — an estimated 41 percent of the phones go to ineligible recipients."
16 Best Gen. James "Mad Dog" Mattis Quotes
16 Best Gen. James "Mad Dog" Mattis Quotes | Washington Free Beacon:
"3. “I come in peace.
I didn’t bring artillery.
But I’m pleading with you, with tears in my eyes:
If you fuck with me, I’ll kill you all.”
(San Diego Union Tribune)"
"3. “I come in peace.
I didn’t bring artillery.
But I’m pleading with you, with tears in my eyes:
If you fuck with me, I’ll kill you all.”
(San Diego Union Tribune)"
The Greatest Keyboard Shortcut Ever
The Greatest Keyboard Shortcut Ever - Slashdot:
"Did you know there is a the miraculous way to resuscitate tabs sent to the 'undiscovere'd country,' a sort of Ctrl-Z for the entire Internet, that means 'no more called-out cusswords, no more wishing the back button had you covered when, aiming to click on a tab, you accidentally hit the little X on the tab's starboard.'
For Macs: Command [plus] shift [plus] t reopens the last tab.
For PCs: Ctrl [plus] Shift [plus] T."
"Did you know there is a the miraculous way to resuscitate tabs sent to the 'undiscovere'd country,' a sort of Ctrl-Z for the entire Internet, that means 'no more called-out cusswords, no more wishing the back button had you covered when, aiming to click on a tab, you accidentally hit the little X on the tab's starboard.'
For Macs: Command [plus] shift [plus] t reopens the last tab.
For PCs: Ctrl [plus] Shift [plus] T."
Board approves ex-Ficano aide's $97K annual pension
Board approves ex-Ficano aide's $97K annual pension | The Detroit News:
"Detroit — A 41-year-old former top aide to Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano will collect a pension that pays nearly $97,000 per year after working for the county only 8 1/2 years."
"Detroit — A 41-year-old former top aide to Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano will collect a pension that pays nearly $97,000 per year after working for the county only 8 1/2 years."
Your Monday Morning Dose of Doom & Gloom
VodkaPundit » Your Monday Morning Dose of Doom & Gloom:
"At the low end, about 40 percent of Americans now do minimal-skilled service jobs — the ones that, in the wake of Obamacare, are becoming neither full-time nor part-time but kinda-sorta two-thirds-time in order not to impose health-insurance obligations on the employer.
In the middle, a similar number of Americans are diverted into those paper-shuffling jobs that do provide health benefits — say, in the “human resources” department of the bureaucracy; the kind of job in which you pass the time calling someone in Idaho to say you need them to fill in a W-9 before you can send them a 1099, or vice versa.
And, at the top end, privileged Americans spend six-figure sums acquiring college degrees that admit them to an homogenized elite that tells itself Obamacare makes perfect sense for everyone except them.
The U.S. economy can never recover until more of its real “human resources” are engaged in genuine wealth creation.[Emphasis added. For emphasis.]"
"At the low end, about 40 percent of Americans now do minimal-skilled service jobs — the ones that, in the wake of Obamacare, are becoming neither full-time nor part-time but kinda-sorta two-thirds-time in order not to impose health-insurance obligations on the employer.
In the middle, a similar number of Americans are diverted into those paper-shuffling jobs that do provide health benefits — say, in the “human resources” department of the bureaucracy; the kind of job in which you pass the time calling someone in Idaho to say you need them to fill in a W-9 before you can send them a 1099, or vice versa.
And, at the top end, privileged Americans spend six-figure sums acquiring college degrees that admit them to an homogenized elite that tells itself Obamacare makes perfect sense for everyone except them.
The U.S. economy can never recover until more of its real “human resources” are engaged in genuine wealth creation.[Emphasis added. For emphasis.]"
Italians wake up, and their factory is gone. Literally.
Italians wake up, and their factory is gone. Literally. | Conservative Intelligence Briefing:
"Earlier this month, Fabrizio Pedroni wished his employees a happy summer holiday and told them to return to work in three weeks.
That night, he began dismantling his electric component factory in northern Italy and packing its machinery off to Poland.
“Had I told them earlier about any plans to shift the production abroad, they would have occupied my factory and seized all my stuff,” Pedroni said in an Aug. 21 telephone interview from Poland.
“The plain truth is that I wanted my business to survive and there weren’t the right conditions for me to operate in Italy any longer.”
Pedroni is now facing death threats and probably can’t show his face anywhere in Italy.
But his company had been losing money for five years running."
"Earlier this month, Fabrizio Pedroni wished his employees a happy summer holiday and told them to return to work in three weeks.
That night, he began dismantling his electric component factory in northern Italy and packing its machinery off to Poland.
“Had I told them earlier about any plans to shift the production abroad, they would have occupied my factory and seized all my stuff,” Pedroni said in an Aug. 21 telephone interview from Poland.
“The plain truth is that I wanted my business to survive and there weren’t the right conditions for me to operate in Italy any longer.”
Pedroni is now facing death threats and probably can’t show his face anywhere in Italy.
But his company had been losing money for five years running."
A recent history of hate-crime hoaxes
A recent history of hate-crime hoaxes | Conservative Intelligence Briefing
Holy crapoli, this a LONG list!
Holy crapoli, this a LONG list!
Farmer's Almanac Predicts 'Bitterly Cold' Winter
Farmer's Almanac Predicts 'Bitterly Cold' Winter:
"The famous Farmer’s Almanac is going to damper the mood of many man-made global warming alarmists when the book hits the shelves on Monday.
They predict the 2013-2014 winter will be extremely cold.
The book uses words like “piercing cold,” “bitterly cold,” and “biting cold” to describe the upcoming winter. The authors predict a huge winter storm during the first outdoor Super Bowl in years. "
"The famous Farmer’s Almanac is going to damper the mood of many man-made global warming alarmists when the book hits the shelves on Monday.
They predict the 2013-2014 winter will be extremely cold.
The book uses words like “piercing cold,” “bitterly cold,” and “biting cold” to describe the upcoming winter. The authors predict a huge winter storm during the first outdoor Super Bowl in years. "
Right-to-work's practical effect: Subdued
Right-to-work's practical effect: Subdued | Crain's Detroit Business:
"There will be more pressure on unions to justify their existence to their members, so employers should be prepared to see more grievances filed, he said. "
"There will be more pressure on unions to justify their existence to their members, so employers should be prepared to see more grievances filed, he said. "
Detroit creditors' tales of owe
Detroit creditors' tales of owe | Crain's Detroit Business:
"Fifteen cents on the dollar.
That's the going rate for debt that Detroit owes its trade creditors, at least in the estimation of firms seeking to buy that debt."
"Fifteen cents on the dollar.
That's the going rate for debt that Detroit owes its trade creditors, at least in the estimation of firms seeking to buy that debt."
Obama hides Obamacare subsidies for foreign students, guest workers
Obama hides Obamacare subsidies for foreign students, guest workers | The Daily Caller:
"He made the misleading claim during a televised roundtable at the second stop of his two-day, two-state tour promoting more aid to students.
“Obviously, when it come to federal grants, loans, support, subsidies, that we provide, those are for our citizens,” Obama told a student questioner from the friendly audience of college professors, administrators and students at the Binghamton University in New York."
...A 1996 law bars foreigners and recent immigrants for most means-tested products.
"He made the misleading claim during a televised roundtable at the second stop of his two-day, two-state tour promoting more aid to students.
“Obviously, when it come to federal grants, loans, support, subsidies, that we provide, those are for our citizens,” Obama told a student questioner from the friendly audience of college professors, administrators and students at the Binghamton University in New York."
...A 1996 law bars foreigners and recent immigrants for most means-tested products.
But the Obamacare system will provide valuable health-care subsidies to many student-workers and foreign guest workers hired for jobs
in America.
in America.Sunday, August 25, 2013
Author and former tutor Lacy Crawford reveals rich parents’ college-admissions madness
Author and former tutor Lacy Crawford reveals rich parents’ college-admissions madness - NYPOST.com:
“My ex-husband, he’s not seeing the application, so we’ll say what we want.
We lived four years in Senegal.
Our name is exotic.
So, we will check the box and say he is black.”
I said this was not a good idea.
“Why not?” she pressed me. “Can they ask for proof?”
Her son sat silent as a stone, blue eyes fixed on his notebook, while the appraisers’ cameras flashed on the Picassos on the walls.
In the months to follow, I failed to dissuade the mother of her plan. Her son was not admitted."
“My ex-husband, he’s not seeing the application, so we’ll say what we want.
We lived four years in Senegal.
Our name is exotic.
So, we will check the box and say he is black.”
I said this was not a good idea.
“Why not?” she pressed me. “Can they ask for proof?”
Her son sat silent as a stone, blue eyes fixed on his notebook, while the appraisers’ cameras flashed on the Picassos on the walls.
In the months to follow, I failed to dissuade the mother of her plan. Her son was not admitted."
‘Lawless White House’ Has Made a ‘Clear Attempt’ to ‘Aid & Abet Voter Fraud,’ Says GOP Rep
‘Lawless White House’ Has Made a ‘Clear Attempt’ to ‘Aid & Abet Voter Fraud,’ Says GOP Rep | TheBlaze.com:
“Whether it is blocking the prosecution of voter intimidation in Philadelphia, illegally running guns to Mexican drug lords or assisting voter fraud in Texas Barack Obama has decided the rule of law takes a back seat to ‘Rules for Radicals,’” he added."
“Whether it is blocking the prosecution of voter intimidation in Philadelphia, illegally running guns to Mexican drug lords or assisting voter fraud in Texas Barack Obama has decided the rule of law takes a back seat to ‘Rules for Radicals,’” he added."
Man Banned From Farms. All Farms
Man Banned From Farms. All Farms. - The Daily Beast:
"He, BAAAD
Man Banned From Farms. All Farms.
Robert Newman, a 23-year-old man, was banned from visiting every single farm in London after he was caught having intercourse with a goat at a farm in Wiltshire. "
"He, BAAAD
Man Banned From Farms. All Farms.
Robert Newman, a 23-year-old man, was banned from visiting every single farm in London after he was caught having intercourse with a goat at a farm in Wiltshire. "
A Proud Nation Ponders How to Halt Its Slow Decline
A Proud Nation Ponders How to Halt Its Slow Decline - NYTimes.com:
"Today, however, Europe is talking about “the French question”: can the Socialist government of President François Hollande pull France out of its slow decline and prevent it from slipping permanently into Europe’s second tier?
At stake is whether a social democratic system...... can survive the combination of globalization, an aging population and the acute fiscal shocks of recent years."
"Today, however, Europe is talking about “the French question”: can the Socialist government of President François Hollande pull France out of its slow decline and prevent it from slipping permanently into Europe’s second tier?
At stake is whether a social democratic system...... can survive the combination of globalization, an aging population and the acute fiscal shocks of recent years."
Save us from govt’s good intentions
Save us from govt’s good intentions | Columnists | Opinion | Ottawa Sun:
OK, that’s a real mess. So how did it happen?
Simple. The government decided some nice people should get something free and some other people should have to pay, not because they deserved to but because they could. It wasn’t even fair. In this sense social justice already bears no discernible resemblance to actual justice. But, in any case, it didn’t work because many of the intended pinatas not only couldn’t pay, they didn’t have to.
Governments in hock up to our eyeballs don’t seem to get the basic notion that driving useful businesses like assisted-living residences into bankruptcy leaves their customers worse off. They certainly don’t grasp that owners are unlikely passively to submit to personal ruin for no social gain.
Faced with new requirements including staff background checks, “panic” buttons in all rooms and 24-hour surveillance that one owner claimed would cost between $200,000 and $300,000, owners didn’t just have choices. They had minds able to grasp those choices. They could notice a change in their circumstances, pleasant or otherwise, and respond rationally. People usually do. Yet many people in government simply don’t believe the common man or woman notices what’s going on and reacts sensibly.
When I say politicians think we’re stupid and helpless, this is what I mean. They figure we can’t tell what’s happening and if we could, we wouldn’t know what to do about it.
Ban E-Cigarettes? The Anti-Smoking Lobby's Clueless Crusade
Ban E-Cigarettes? The Anti-Smoking Lobby's Clueless Crusade - The Daily Beast:
"The anti-smoking movement is going after e-cigarettes, the harmless inhalers that help people kick the habit."
"The anti-smoking movement is going after e-cigarettes, the harmless inhalers that help people kick the habit."
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