Great video, terrific website

This video was created by the www.bankruptingamerica.org people and website and makes excellent points:
Apparently their message--the "Bankrupting America" website people's--is very simple--they want and expect Congress to do its job.

What's not to like about that?

Regardless the political party, who's against that?

Well, except the Congress people themselves, right?

Link: http://www.bankruptingamerica.org

What the KCMSD needs

All schools and school districts--and students--need this. Some get it, too many don't: http://youtu.be/vozPGasx4CM

Quote of the day--on how not to run a nation

Actor, comedian Bill Murray, "said both Republicans and Democrats were failing Americans. 'They spend all their time just trying to destroy the other guy, not to work together, but to humble and humiliate the other so that they can't have success.'" And frankly, we--virtually all Americans--are sick of it. This is no way to run a country. Link: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/10/us-billmurray-idUSTRE8191SJ20120210

Very appropriate article in Sunday's NYT for the KCMSD

The title: How About Better Parents? A brief description: "Let's stop putting the burden of education improvements just on teachers. Parents play a huge role in classroom success." How about it? Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/20/opinion/sunday/friedman-how-about-better-parents.html?nl=todaysheadlines&emc=tha212

100 patriotic millionaires---for decency and doing what's right

From Main Street/Working America blog:

An open letter signed by more than 100 “Patriotic Millionaires”—people who care more about the direction of the country than they do about getting yet another tax break:

We are writing to urge you to put our country ahead of politics.

For the fiscal health of our nation and the well-being of our fellow citizens, we ask that you increase taxes on incomes over $1,000,000.

We make this request as loyal citizens who now or in the past earned an income of $1,000,000 per year or more.

Our country faces a choice – we can pay our debts and build for the future, or we can shirk our financial responsibilities and cripple our nation’s potential.

Our country has been good to us. It provided a foundation through which we could succeed. Now, we want to do our part to keep that foundation strong so that others can succeed as we have.

Please do the right thing for our country. Raise our taxes.

One of the Patriotic Millionaires explains her reasoning:

“For me to be sitting and hoarding my money is insane,” said Gottlieb, whose producer credits include Dirty Dancing and who now teaches at NYU’s Tisch school. “We all give to charity, but that’s not the same as creating a more equitable society.”

Gottlieb said she has been upset by the experience of her grandchildren, who attend a New York City public school where arts education has been cut and parents have had to organize an auction to try to fill the gaps. She added that raising taxes on the wealthiest people would be an important way of reducing the deficit.

“For rich people to moan and groan — nobody likes to pay increased taxes — but it’s not going to change your life in any important way,” she said. “What it can do is help your country.”

Even if you’re not a millionaire yourself, you can sign on as a supporter.


It's enough to give you hope, isn't it?


In spite of George W. Bush and his hundreds of billions of dollars in tax cuts he and the Republicans gave to the wealthiest of the country and in spite of now House Representative Paul Ryan's goal, in his budget, of giving yet more tax cuts to and for the wealthy, these people see what's right and want to follow through with it.


Maybe it will, one day, get through to the Rethugs yet.


I'm not holding my breath.

Link:  http://www.workingamerica.org/blog/2011/04/14/patriotic-millionaires-want-to-pay-more-taxes/

Did you know there were "30 Human Rights"?

I ran across a few inter-connected sites online on human rights, specifically as they are universally defined by the United Nations, many years ago.

All these nations came up with and agreed on 30.  They are:

• 1. We Are All Born Free & Equal
• 2. Don’t Discriminate
• 3. The Right to Life
• 4. No Slavery
• 5. No Torture
• 6. You Have Rights No Matter Where You Go
• 7. We’re All Equal Before the Law
• 8. Your Human Rights Are Protected by Law
• 9. No Unfair Detainment
• 10. The Right to Trial
• 11. We’re Always Innocent Till Proven Guilty
• 13. Freedom to Move
• 14. The Right to Seek a Safe Place to Live
• 15. Right to a Nationality
• 16. Marriage and Family
• 17. The Right to Your Own Things
• 18. Freedom of Thought
• 19. Freedom of Expression
• 20. The Right to Public Assembly
• 21. The Right to Democracy
• 22. Social Security
• 23. Workers’ Rights
• 24. The Right to Play
• 25. Food and Shelter for All
• 26. The Right to Education
• 27. Copyright
• 28. A Fair and Free World
• 29. Responsibility
• 30. No One Can Take Away Your Human Rights

And seriously, to me, it seems that there is one big, glaring omission here.  It's not a surprise, especially given our country's corporate push to keep us from having health care as a right and, of course, universal health care but that's the one--I think the right to good, basic health care should be the 31st "basic human right" for everyone in the world. 

Education is on the list but not health care?

It seems rather silly to me that they added "The Right to Play" but not "The Right to Basic Health Care".  Screw playing, if I'm dying because of appendicitis, for example, even though I may be impoverished, I need health care, dammit!  :)  But seriously.

And "Copyright"?  Good God, screw copyright being before health care.  If I'm sick or dying, I'm not creating new things to help mankind that are going to benefit me financially.  It's too late at that point.

And you know what?  The rest of the world agrees with me.  Virtually the entire world recognizes the need for all people to have health care somehow and they have worked out systems for their people to get it.

Just not my own country.

You know, the one that was, formerly, recently, the wealthiest in the world?

Think happy thoughts, folks!

Links:  http://www.humanrights.com/what-are-human-rights/universal-declaration-of-human-rights.html

http://www.youthforhumanrights.org/

http://www.humanrights.com/#/home

http://www.humanrights.com/#/videos

Let's get responsible, Senator McCain

Keith gets a bit overheated and sanctimonious but he's right, of course, and the sins of the Senator are pretty serious and irresponsible.

Article from Yahoo just now

"Veterans' burials nonstop at cemeteries"

Think about that the entire Memorial Day weekend.

And for any- and everyone who voted for George W. Bush once or twice, and/or supported this goofy-assed idea of a war, you're welcome to accept the responsibility for it, too.

"The scene at the Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery is repeated nationwide more than 100 times a day. Military veterans are being buried at such a rapid rate that national cemeteries use heavy equipment to make room."

Think about it.

More importantly this weekend, let's all think about what we can do to support our troops and get out of Iraq and this war.

You can see the entire article at:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080524/ap_on_re_us/100_burials

I see where the "Current Occupant", in his weekly radio address, asked all Americans to "keep Vets in mind" this Memorial Day weekend.

That's rich.

The way his administration took them into this war so more than 4,000 could die and so the others, who are wounded, could be neglected and/or mistreated by his own Veteran's Administration? US keep the Vets in mind?

How about "W" keeping them in mind?

How about "W" getting them out of his hair-brained, illegal, groundless, baseless war?

Now THAT would be keeping the Vets in mind.

We all owe it to ourselves--and the Vets--to read this article. Sure the Vets dying are, for the most part, from previous wars but it's the ones in harms way now to whom we owe thought and commitment.

For some background and information, go to the following link to read the 10 reasons by there is a group Iraq Veterans Against the War (see links on the right of this page): http://ivaw.org/faq.

There should be no better source for information and reasons why we should get out of Iraq than taking it from the very soldiers who have fought or are fighting this absurd, ugly war.