One size fits all?

Summary



In an article on pointofview.net , it talked about some scenarios that have people worried about the President's pruposed health care plan. It started by stating the United States prevenative services task force's new mammography guidelines. Apparently, according to these new guidelines, it is not recommended for women under the age of fifty to receive the breast cancer screening procedure at all. Also, according to the guidelines, women fifty and up are only suposed to receive the screening every other year. Carrie Luckas, the vice president of policy and economics with 'Women's Forum', is concerned that under nationalized health care, these guidelines would be mandatory. She is worried that the government would adopt a 'one size fits all' approach to health care. Luckas is not so concerned with whether the guideline is correct, as she is that it would be the government making that decision, when it should be between a woman and her doctor.



Response



I agree completely with Carrie Luckas. The idea of the government making life, death, and health decisions about my life instead of me, just doesn't rub me the right way. I hardly think that when our forefathers wrote the bill of rights, and the preamble to the constitution, and the constitution itself, that absolute government soveignty over our lives right down to something as personal as our health care decisions, was what was on their minds. The part that really grabs me the wrong way, is the idea that the government could under Obama's plan, have the ultimate say over my kids' health and their healthcare. The more things that the goverment take control of, the less aspects of our own lives we get to decide on for ourselves. I know that there are alot of people who probably make foolish decisions, but I think that the goverments envolvement should be in educating people to make better more informed decisions. I don't think that taking over our decision making, and taking away our personal freedoms, is the answer to our healthcare problems.

Holy Hip Hop

Summary



In an article on msnbc.com , it talks about a young entrepuneur who believes in gospel hip hop so much, that he sold his house to start his own gospel hip hop record label. In addition to the record label, he is also making a movie, and a tv show dedicated to promoting gospel hip hop. Gos pel hip hop has not got it's fair share of air time, because secular and christian radio stations alike, are afraid of offending people. The young entrepuneur Tervarius Black, age thirty four, believes that gospel hip hop's positive lyrics would really appeal to listeners of secular hip hop. The name of the record label is Xist. He has also started a gospel cruise which would allow for fans to mingle with gospel hip hop artists. Tervarius said 'We christians, but we like to party'.



Response



I love gospel hip hop! Gospel gangstas, Toby Mack, T Bone, KJ-52 are just a few of the many great gospel hip hop artists. I am glad to see that someone is taking the initiative to try and promote holy hip hop. Most gospel hip hop songs don't get played on the radio. Aside from purchasing the cd's or listening online, gospel hip hop is almost non-exsistent over radio air waves. My son likes rap, and I have given him several christian rap cd's and he loves them. Secular hip hop tends to have very negative lyrics. They try to glamorize robbing, stealing, and killing. Gospel hip hop maintains the hip hop beat but delivers more positive lyrics. I really like that this article states that Xist puts being true to the gospel message first in their hip hop.

Woman loses benefits over facebook photo

Summary



In an article on msnbc.com , it told about a woman from Bromont, Quebec who lost her long term sick leave benefits over a photo on her facebook page. She had been on sick leave from her job at IBM in Bromont, Quebec for the last year. She was diagnosed with major depression and was receiving weekly sick leave benefits. When an insurance agent from Manulife saw a photo of this woman having a good time, on her facebook page, they stopped paying her the weekly sick leave benefits. Apparently the photos included pictures of her on vacation and also at a Chippendales bar for her birthday party. The woman claimed that she was trying to have fun under the recommendation of the doctor who was treating her for her major depression.



Response



I think the idea of a paid sick leave for depression is 'iffy' anyhow. Depression is a very easy thing to fake and a very hard thing to disprove since it lies within the mind of the individual. I can see why a insurance company would be skeptical. But with that said, an insurance agent is hardly qualified to diagnose a persons mental well being based on a picture, and their assessment of that persons mental health should hardly override the diagnosis of a doctor of psychology who had been treating this woman. If this woman takes the insurance company to court, I would think she should win hands down. The idea of employers and insurance companies, and various other institutions prying into a persons personal facebook account just creeps me out. I would feel totally violated if it were me. I use my facebook to vent about work and everything else. My employer or anybody affiliated with my employer, would be the last people that I would want to see my facebook posts.

New Moon delivers.....six packs

Summary



In an article on associatedcontent.com , was a review of the movie 'New Moon'. It told of how the movie did a good job in following along with the book. It also praised the movies display of shirtless men. The article covered the basic story line of the movie. It told about how Edward left Bella because he feared for her safety among vampires after her close call with Jasper, after a drop of blood from her paper cut set him off in a blood crazed frenzy. It also told about how Jacob Black took care of Bella while she was in a deep depression about Edward leaving. There was also a section of the article which paid tribute to the gratuitous shirtless scenes of the muscled up Jacob Black. The article stated that his body was 'amazing', and told about the reaction of approval from the ladies in the audience. The article described the movie as a classic story of a star crossed love triangle between the girl next door and a vampire & a werewolf.



Response



I personally saw this movie and I loved it. I have not read the books, but I did watch the first movie 'Twilight'. The movie really draws you into the lives of the characters. It is a very emotional tale of love and pain......and yes Jacob was hot with or without his shirt off. I couldn't believe that Bella chose the pale anorexic Edward over the tan beefy Jacob, but to each their own. I think that this article touched base on some of the finer points of the movie, but I think it still left so much to the imagination if the reader was not familiar with the Twilight saga. I personally recommend Twilight and New Moon to anybody who has not seen them. They really cover the spectrum of genres. There's action, comedy, suspense, romance, drama. New Moon has it all. I can't wait for the next installment in the saga 'Eclipse'. I'm a big fan of vampire and werewolf movies, and this saga puts an entirely different spin on the mythical monsters.

Eat a burger for a good cause

Summary



In an article on thetimeshearld.com , was the inspiring story about a group effort between Bridge builders mentoring & counseling inc. and local fastfood restuarants in Port Huron, MI to help provide free counseling for single parent families. Several local burger joints are donating a dollar from each burger sold to Bridge Builders to help with the cost of providing free counseling to single parent families. Bridge Builders also provides mentoring for boys. The purpose of the program is to offset the effects of a single parent home life on our future generation.



Response



I think that any time a local business or a group of businesses give back to the community that they serve, it bumps their image up in my book. I am a firm believer in the need for two parents. Rather one of those parents are step parents or not, I think it is important to have a mother and father present in the home. I think that it is a great thing Bridge Builders is doing to help families lacking one parent to beat the odds. I am especially proud of some of the burger joints named in the article, and plan to visit most or all of them on my next trip up to Port Huron. I don't feel guilty about the fat and cholesterol so much, because it's for a good cause.

Goodbye old friend

Summary & Response



This is not really a news article, it is the obituary of a good friend of mine growing up. Him and I went to junior high and high school together. We also hung out together well into my mid twenties. We have not hung out much in the last ten years. Life seems to have a way of consuming your free time as you get older. You never realize how much you miss hanging out with someone until they've passed on to the everafter. Charlie was an easy going guy. I've never had a cross word with him as long as I can remember. It's funny, but everytime I work on english schoolwork, I think of Charlie. In high school, I used to sit next to him in english and I would copy off of him. Charlie had an emotionless look about him and he would talk slow. People who didn't know him, probably thought that he wasn't that bright. Those of us who knew Charlie, knew better. Charlie was very smart. He was always upbeat. I don't think I've ever heard him complain or speak negatively. We were quite the helleans back in the day. We got away with so much stuff, that I'm suprised we never did real hard time. Where we grew up, the gang scene was pretty prominent. We were both a part of a chapter of the crips called O.C.G. O.C.G. stands for out cold gangstas. Looking back on the whole gang thing, it was quite silly. I'm actually struggling to keep my oldest son out of the gang scene. Some of the greatest times of my life was hanging with my homeboys in O.C.G though. Charlie always had my back. Him and I have been in some pretty good scrapes together. We've done more than our fair shar of partying too. Just knowing that Charlie and I will never be kicking back pitchers of beer together and bragging about the girls looking our way, really saddens me, but I hope that this tribute blog will carry on the essence of my homeboy Charlie.

Domestic partnership okay with Washington

Summary



In a story on MSNBC , it talked about a domestic partnership measure that was passed in Washington state. The measure is known as the 'Everything but marriage' law. The law allows for gay couples to enjoy many of the benefits previously only enjoyed by married couples. It is the first time any state has voted in favor of a gay equality measure on a ballot. The measure was actually an extension to the state's exsisting domestic partnership legislation, allowing more joint benefits for registered domestic partners. It was a very close decision, winning with fifty two percent of the votes.



Response



I think that this should serve as an example for a compromise between the differing views on gay marriage. I personally donot agree with gay marriage, for the simple fact that the institutuion of marriage is religious inspired, and I believe that the government does not and should not have the power to amend it to be between anything but a man and a woman as intended in its religious roots. It would be a violation of the seperation of church and state. With that said, I do however agree completely with domestic partnerships and I feel that most people feel the same. If a man and a man, or a woman and a woman, are in love and want to be together, in a free country they should be allowed to. I also think that if they are in a legally commited relationship, they should enjoy the joint marital tax breaks.

Big goverment agenda

Summary



In a story on MSNBC , it talks mainly of feuding between republicans and democrats, but it makes some great points. The republicans claim that the democrats are more concerned with furthering their big government agenda and over-seeing healthcare then they are about the wants of the American people thay are suposed to be representing. The democrats claim that the republicans just want to undermine the healthcare reform as a way to break the president. The republicans claim that the recent election results in which a couple democrat governors were replaced by their republican opponents, was a sign of the unhappiness of americans with the big push by the democrat administration to take control of healthcare.



Response



I have to agree with the republicans on this one. If you have read very many of my blogs, you can probably tell by now that agree with republicans most of the time. Really the key difference between the two parties is the following: Democrats favor socialism. They want the government to have a hand in everything. They want to provide for all your needs, but they want to take all of your money to pay for it. They think that the people don't know how to decide things for themselves so they want to control your lives much like a communist regime. The republicans favor a small government which results in lower taxes. They believe in capitalism, econimic competitiveness in a free market society. They believe that americans should be free to pursue life, liberty, and happiness with little interference from the government. With that said, I think the democrat administration should take their nationalized healthcare and big government, and shove it!

Obama wins.....but I think we lost!

Summary



In a story on MSNBC , it states 'Obama wins!' in reference to his healthcare bill's success in the house. The article talks about how this healthcare reform is the defining charachteristic of President Obama's administration. It also brings up the interesting points about Obama's lack of expedience towards a decision on Afgahnastan, and also his seeming lack of interest in the nations economic concerns. The article also mentioned that Democratic party is concerned about their popularity amongst the big push for this healthcare reform. The two Democratic governors who have been replaced in the recent election by their republican opponents, has spooked some democrats that there administration is in trouble. Thirty nine democrats voted against the healthcare bill.



Response



If nationalized healthcare is the defining characteristic of the Obama presidency, then it is my question 'Why did we vote this guy in?'. National healthcare is just a goverment guarentee to the over priced medical industry, that they will get paid. It is not 'free', the costs will be absorbed by the american people in the raising of income taxes. In countries that currently have national healthcare, the income taxes are as high as sixty percent compared to our current thirty percent. I don't know about most Americans, but I know my family can't withstand a thirty percent increase in income taxes. Not to mention that the country is already in poor financial shape as it is, I would think the last thing a president should be striving for, is to reduce the amount of the average american's take home pay. But that is the nature of the political game, the medical industry was one of the backers of the largest donations based campaigns in history, and now Obama has to scratch there back.

Surfing the internet can keep your brain young

Summary



In a story on cbn.com , there is an interesting story about the effects of surfing the internet on the brain. According to the article, using the Internet can help keep your brain "young," according to a new study by the University of California. Researchers found that older adults between fifty five and seventy eight, who began surfing the Web, improved their brain function after only a few days. They say using the Internet is interactive, and that it stimulates more activity in the part of the brain that makes decisions. Doctors say engaging in cognitive activities might be a way to protect against dementia.



Response



As someone who enjoys surfing the internet, I find the idea that it may be good for me, very refreshing. With all the bad rap giving to the internet and other technological advancements, such as cell phones and so on, I like hearing that there are positive effects, even if it is on a sub-concious neurological level. My personal observations is that it would also help with reflex and hand-eye coordination, from the use of the mouse and the whole seek and click aspect of web surfing. It amazes me how fast something can become so ingrained into our society so quickly, that you can barely remember what it was like before computers. When I was younger, computers were just not prevelant. If there was a computer, it was stashed away somewhere for accounting purposes, but now everything is computer based it seems.

Swine flu declared national emergency?

Summary



In a story on cbn.com , it tells of how President Obama has declared the H1N1 flu to be a national emergency. The article says that in doing so, President Obama has greatly increased Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius' power to bypass federal laws in establishing offsite clinics. The government now hopes for fifty million doses of the H1N1 flu vaccinations by mid-November and one hundred fifty million doses by December. Though the numbers are not exact, because hospitals have been treating most cases involving flu symptoms as the swine flu and not testing the strand, It is estimated that there has been twenty thousand hospitalized, and one thousand deaths due to the H1N1 flu strand. The purpose of the move by President Obama is suppose to try and speed up the process of treatment and vaccinations, and to reduce the chance of spreading to uninfected patients in onsite healthcare facilities.



Response



While I donot like to hear of any number of deaths due to illness, I have to say that the swine flu has not in any way, shape, or form reached a level that should warrant being a national emergency. In the article, it stated that there has been twenty thousand hospitalized and one thousand deaths due to the swine flu. On the site flufacts.com , it reports that between forty and fifty MILLION cases of the regular flu are reported each year, leading to one hundred and fifty thousand people being hospitalized every single year, and between thirty and forty thousand deaths every year. All I hear now days is swine flu this and H1N1 that, and did you hear that so and so got the swine flu. This whole thing is just some politically charged media driven load of you know what, and yet it has lead to the most aggressive vaccination campaign in history. I just have to say that it is my opinion, that President Obama is a very deceptive trickster. He is dodging the issues concerning Afgahnastan, and by slight of hand he is diverting attention state side with a phoney 'National Emergency'. If anything warrants a state of panic, based on the cold hard facts and statistics, it should be the regular flu, but nobody ever really even gives the flu a second thought. It is amazing to me, how dispite a lack of evidence, and with true facts to the contrary readily available, a whole nation of people can be pushed into a state of paranoia and fear, by a presidentially endorsed media spin on things.