Puzzling at best, but how can a voter compromise their ability to detect a fraud when it is so pronounced?
Even in the face of overwhelming facts that are on display every day and yet the progressive socialist liberal democrat voting base cheers Hillary at her rallies and Mr Objma when he give a speech.
Corruption and out right lies are of no importance as we have all seen in Hillary's email immediately after the Benghazi attacks where she knew the attack was terror, but after a discussion with Mr Objma they decided they needed to take a different path as the election was only 57 days away.
And the worst of it all was Hillary stand face to face with the parent of one the dead, murdered soldiers that was lying only feet away in a flag draped casket, she bold faced lied them that it was the reaction to a video that killed their son.
Doesn't it make a difference concerning her moral make-up to so many that she apparently was able to do this so easily, and then repeated the lie over an over again for weeks on end? Isn't there some very wrong here? Shouldn't the voter take this soulless and shameless nature into account before they cheer her on?
The longer the debate goes on as to if there is any man-made climate change, and the longer the 'warmers' can't define the real changes, that is damages to the planet, we just have to take their word for, the nastier the warmers become even to the point some want 'deniers' arrested.
Given the complete mental derangement of these people, and that they represent such a small number of our citizens, how is it that they command so much attention and taxpayer dollars to solve a problem that has been proven to not exist???
What I find as a positive outcome during the Republican debates was many progressive democrats were probably watching this nightmare on one of their personally selected channels.
If this was on Fox, many progressive liberals would not have seen any part of this total melt down of the defenses that the partisan news media uses to fool their base into believing that they actually tell the truth.
Many a progressive socialist liberal democrat head had to be exploding when they saw the entire group of Republican candidates on stage attacking the moderators. Maybe not right away, but after that seen of Cruz's perfect explanation of outright bias on the part of moderators, of the audacity of Republicans actually making a stand on principle, will linger 'rent free' in the heads of the democrats. What was that? What just happened?
After this debate, this narrative of 'we deliver the news you can use' will hard to sell even for some that have been deep in the trenches of democrat fantasies of what reality or the truth actually is.
One thing for sure after reading this article from Stephen Moore about the duplicity of John Boehner and a select number of Republicans that found it necessary to cement their place in history by voting for Objma's budget that will totally destroy any logic or common sense in a Republican controlled congress.
This is an coordinated attack on Conservatives in the House of Representatives by the establishment Republicans to stop any revisions that might occur that challenges the status quo.
This Is the Worst Budget Deal GOP Has Negotiated Since George H.W. Bush Violated No New Taxes Pledge Stephen Moore /@StephenMoore
Halloween is looking especially scary this year. On Monday, Republican leaders in Congress declared an unconditional fiscal surrender to President Barack Obama and the left, negotiating a dangerous budget deal that eliminates all of the checks on Washington’s spend-and-borrow binge by breaking the budget caps, ending the sequester and raising the debt ceiling by over $1 trillion. It’s the worst budget deal to be negotiated by the GOP since George H.W. Bush violated his no new taxes pledge in 1990 at Andrews Air Force Base.
The result of that capitulation was to make Bush a one-term president and to split the Republican party right down the middle. This deal has the same catastrophic potential. Here are some of the fiscal facts that make this such a betrayal. A Heritage Foundation analysis finds that federal spending in 2016 was already expected to climb by more than $200 billion. This was to be a 5 percent rise in outlays in a year when inflation is barely above zero.
Under this budget deal, the spending caps rise by an extra $80 billion over two years, the Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) slush fund receives another $147 billion in “emergency spending,” and the debt limit is suspended through March 15, 2017.
So now we are going to see a $430 billion hike in spending in 2016. That’s close to a12 percent spending spree.
In addition to this, discretionary spending increases are evenly split between defense and nondefense programs. It raises the fiscal year 2016 defense cap to $548.1 billion from $523 billion, and it raises the fiscal year 2016 nondefense cap to $518.5 billion from $493.5 billion
If this goes through, the caps and sequester are dead. All fiscal discipline is tossed out the window. House Speaker John Boehner has negotiated away his greatest legacy: the 2011 Budget Control Act. He said he was going to “clean out the stables” but instead he left a giant mess for incoming speaker Paul Ryan. Obama says this will mean entitlement reforms, but those are long term and minor.
These are certainly worth doing, but not in exchange for giving up fiscal discipline and $300 billion in additional spending. In return for this short-term spending blow out, the deal provides several obscure promises of future cuts in entitlements such as auctioning off portions of the federal broadcast spectrum, and extending the sequester on Medicare and certain other mandatory spending programs by one year. They’re also planning to sell crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve at the rate of 5 million barrels a year starting in fiscal year 2018, rising to 10 million barrels from 2023-2025, which makes no sense because the price of oil is so low. They are going to buy high and sell low.
Worst of all is the rise in the debt ceiling with noconditions attached. There are no spending reforms, no program eliminations, no new caps to stop the blizzard of borrowing that has lifted the debt ceiling into the near $20 trillion stratosphere.
Treasury Secretary Jack Lew urged this outcome saying it is a way to “honor our financial obligations.” But he doesn’t get it: Washington incurs too many financial obligations which is how this crisis has led us to the edge of a fiscal abyss.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is a happy camper today and so are almost all of her supporters. They won a big victory and Republicans who back it are fiscal frauds. It should be killed and Paul Ryan should start over.
Just where does the insanity end? Worse maybe, it doesn't. Millions of citizens believe rules from those that are smarter and more informed then they are must be obeyed.
If you ever wondered what separate's us from them, wonder no longer.
'One day a florist went to a barber for a haircut. After the cut, he asked about his bill
and the barber replied, “I cannot accept money from you, I’m doing community service
this week.” The florist was pleased and left the shop. When the barber went to open
his shop the next morning there was a thank you card and a dozen roses waiting for
him at his door. Later, a cop came in for a haircut and when he tried to pay his bill the barber again replied, “I cannot accept money from you, I’m doing community service this week.” The cop was happy and left the shop. The next morning when the barber went to open up there was a thank you card and a dozen doughnuts waiting for him at his door.
Then a Member of Congress came in for a haircut and when he went to pay his bill the
barber again replied, “I cannot accept money from you, I’m doing community service this
week.” The Member of Congress was very happy and left the shop.
The next morning when the barber went to open up there were a dozen Members of Congress lined up waiting for a free haircut.'
Bottom line here, education should be left to the states to accept the responsibility for results. It makes sense results will be questionable when a mandate for results is predicated on untested theories from bureaucrats, failure will be sure to follow.
Testing and or over testing is under the gun as to whether this passed mandate is workable , just as the Common Core mandate is now closely securitized as a failure to deliver proposed results from Washington.
On Saturday, the Obama administration called for schools to cap assessment, limiting the time students spend on taking tests to no more than 2 percent of classroom instruction time. The administration admitted responsibility in the proliferation of tests and encouraged Congress to "reduce over-testing."
Across the nation, the response to the White House's statement has been positively received by teachers unions, administrators and students. Originally, federal programs like No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top were created to enforce higher expectations and accountability as well as close the achievement gaps between races. But by connecting funding to student test scores, parents and schools resisted the "one size fits all" approach.
On average, between pre-K and high school graduation students in big-city schools take 112 mandatory standardized tests -- eight tests per year, not including Advanced Placement exams, the SAT or ACT.
In 8th grade standardized tests take up 2.3 percent of the entire school year or 20-25 hours of classroom instructional time.
Additionally, more time spent on tests does not correlate to improved academic performance. While standardized tests are helpful tools and will not be eliminated completely, the administrations encouragement to decrease tests is a step in the right direction.
Education is smuggling to fulfill it obligation, mandate to the nation to produce educated people that will enter society and actually make a positive difference. Ignorance is not bliss as the number of unemployed people grows. Technology has passed them by.
The Nation's Report Card's recently released the results of an assessment of 279,000 fourth-graders and 273,00 eighth-graders representing both public and private schools from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the Department of Defense Education Activity.
National mathematics scores declined in both 4th and 8th grades for the first time since the early 1990s.
For 8th graders, the national average scores in both mathematics and reading were lower than in 2013.
Only in one state was the average 8th grade reading score higher than in 2013.
The reading gap between large city schools and the national average decreased from a difference of 15 points to 8 points since 2003.
Comparing 2015 to 2013, students eligible for the National School Lunch Program and identified with a learning disability had scores higher in grade 4 but lower in grade 8.
Achievement levels also varied by race. Those performing at a proficient level or above in grade 4 were either Asian (57 percent) or white (46 percent) while black and Hispanic students only had 18 percent and 21 percent of students, respectively, above proficient.
Who knew? It appears Canada is more picky of just who they allow into their country, where as the United States just allows anyone in, legally or illegally, as long as they promise to vote democrat.
Immigrant Employment and Earnings Growth in Canada and the United States
Source: Neeraj Kaushal et al., "Immigrant Employment and Earnings Growth in Canada and the U.S." National Bureau of Economic Research, September 2015.
October 30, 2015
A new study tracks the economic assimilation of immigrants in the United States and Canada. The researchers studied the employment and earnings trajectories of immigrants using longitudinal data.
The two countries of destination are comparable on many cultural and institutional domains but also have several critical differences. The dominant countries of origin and the selection process for legal immigrants are two of the major differences between the U.S. and Canada.
The study finds that on average: Immigrants in Canada are more educated than immigrants in the United States or the native born Canadian population. In the United States, immigrant men are somewhat more likely to be employed and immigrant women are somewhat less likely to be employed than immigrants of corresponding gender in Canada. Both immigrant and native-born workers in Canada are more than twice as likely to be covered by a union as immigrant and native workers in the United States.
Overall, immigrant workers in the United States work more hours than those in Canada. As expected, recent immigrants in both countries experience some form of economic assimilation. However, the relative positive growth in employment, hours worked and real wages begins to taper off for groups who have been in the host countries for a longer period.
This is what we need in the current nightmare that is the run for the White House among so many that inspire to gain the power to control. Governor Bush's health care plan makes good sense and it's patient centered, a must for success. It also embraces many of the ideas that have been floated by other people and groups that have found the Affordable Act(ACA) not affordable but have been ignored by the press.
It would be great if the other candidates would do the same. It is also important for the democrat candidates to support the ACA as a workable solution for health care or make proposals of their own to reform it or replace it.
Governor Jeb Bush's health-reform proposal demonstrates strong leadership, says senior fellow John R. Graham of the National Center for Policy Analysis. His health reform plan leads with a non-Obamacare issue: comprehensive reform of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Currently, the FDA is a regulatory mess: it can cost $1.2 billion to $2.6 billion and take 12 to 15 years to advance a medicine from discovery to patients. FDA reform would also lower prices of existing drugs. By contrast, federal government regulation of drugmakers' prices would produce an immediate drought of new capital for medical research.
Bush's plan would also:
Enourage investors to put their capital at risk to develop new medicines.
Recognize the need for an entirely new approach to regulating medical devices, too.
Recognize that pre-Obamacare benefits are outdated and that we need to revisit how we get coverage.
Allow small businesses the option of making tax-free contributions to health coverage for their employees.
Offer a tax credit for those without employer-based coverage.
Unlike Obamacare, which imposes high effective marginal income tax rates on their beneficiaries, Bush's plan introduces tax fairness in health insurance because the credit would be based on the average tax benefit enjoyed by those who currently get coverage through their jobs.
Additionally, Bush's plan would allow patients to control more health dollars directly through tax-advantaged Health Savings Accounts, which federal tax credits, states, and businesses can supplement.
Wouldn't it be nice if the Republican party actually stood for something other then waiting to be told what to do next by the progressive democrats.
That the congress approved, renewed it existence, the bank is a travesty of moral incompetence and at it's worst, criminal.
Talk about crony capitalism to Republicans and what do you get is finger pointing and excuses for voting to extend this monster of taxpayer waste and fraud.
Interesting - Can this be true? We are supposed to believe Islam is a religion of peace and freedom? Little wonder given the stoning of women and beheadings of nonbelievers, and why they wants us in the West, that have the chance to worship as we please, all dead.
Israel New Flash - 'Egyptian Arab groom dumps his bride to her death off 4 story building after discovering she wasn't a virgin'? pic.twitter.com/XorpjOb6Hc
Gasp! The Affordable Care Act is headed for the dumpster and as a result Mr Objma's real agenda and ideology to make sure before he leaves office, he would drive "single payer" health care would the order of the day. How can it be?
We are well on the way for him to accomplish this and the population is willing to accommodate his socialist takeover of the health care system.
Is it just ignorance of even the simplest concepts on their heath care, or are the people that will be most effected by a health care failure are to busy to understand how a total take of by government bureaucrats, single payer would destroy their personal options for health care?
Health Insurance CO-OPs Fail
Source: Devon Herrick, "Health Insurance CO-OPs Fail… at Gaming the System," Townhall, October 21, 2015.
October 29, 2015
Just recently four health insurance CO-OPs failed and cooperatives in Oregon, Colorado, Tennessee and Kentucky have either announced the decision decrease their operations or have been forced to stop writing policies, says senior fellow Devon Herrick of the National Center for Policy Analysis.
These cooperatives were intended to function as a so-called "public plan option" under Obamacare. But they were established to gain support from those who wanted a government health insurer to replace the private health insurance industry.
CO-OP proponents naively believed that health insurance CO-OPs would out-compete for-profit insurers because CO-OPs ostensibly do not have a profit motive. The CO-OP program was plagued by numerous flaws from the start: They had no customers and no historical actuarial data to assist in setting realistic plan premiums. The pool of potential enrollees was sicker than average. CO-OPs had virtually no access to the capital markets to shore up losses.
Moreover, the eight CO-OPs that have failed so far in 2015 owe taxpayers nearly $1 billion in loans that will never be repaid. Some CO-OPs appear to be purposely underpricing premiums to gain market share.
Thus, from the very beginning, many CO-OP executives have expected taxpayers to bail out their losses. This attempt at "gaming the system" should not be allowed, but unfortunately, the remaining CO-OPs will likely go broke owing taxpayers large sums of money.
Here again, funding raises it's ugly head as the reason geography is not taught properly in our schools. How can the lack of money be the sole reason for every failure to educate. When did anyone ever hear that the reason a school program failed was due to mismanagement or time and resources?
Take a minute to digest this statement of mismanagement and then apply your answer to those that hand wring over, "we just don't have enough money to make this program work". Who are these people?
A study conducted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) nationally showed that about three-quarters of eighth grade students were not "proficient" in geography in 2014. Most significantly, the proficiency levels of eighth grade students have shown no improvement since 1994.
In most states geography is part of the social studies curriculum but the study reports that teachers only spent about 10% of this subject's instructional time on geography. Additionally, the majority of states do not require geography courses in middle school or high school.
GAO's interviews revealed that:
Spending time and resources on geography education is difficult because the focus is on the tested subjects.
There is a lack of teacher preparation and professional development in geography
Poor quality of geography instructional materials.
The relevance of this study is that geography is present across many facets of modern life. The growing use of geographic information and location-based technology across multiple sectors of the economy has prompted questions about whether K-12 students' skills and exposure to geography are adequate for current and future workforce needs.
Nevertheless, the biggest obstacle is the lack of funding for geography-focused programs. The agency stated that without the required funding schools and educators are hindered in their ability to support geography education.
Here again, funding raises it's ugly head as the reason geography is not taught properly in our schools. How can the lack of money be the sole reason for every failure to educate. When did anyone ever hear that the reason a school program failed was due to mismanagement of time and resources?
Take a minute to digest this statement of mismanagement, and then apply your answer to those that hand wring over, "we just don't have enough money to make this program work". Who are these people? Where the hell do they come from?
A study conducted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) nationally showed that about three-quarters of eighth grade students were not "proficient" in geography in 2014. Most significantly, the proficiency levels of eighth grade students have shown no improvement since 1994.
In most states geography is part of the social studies curriculum but the study reports that teachers only spent about 10% of this subject's instructional time on geography. Additionally, the majority of states do not require geography courses in middle school or high school.
GAO's interviews revealed that:
Spending time and resources on geography education is difficult because the focus is on the tested subjects.
There is a lack of teacher preparation and professional development in geography
Poor quality of geography instructional materials.
The relevance of this study is that geography is present across many facets of modern life. The growing use of geographic information and location-based technology across multiple sectors of the economy has prompted questions about whether K-12 students' skills and exposure to geography are adequate for current and future workforce needs.
Nevertheless, the biggest obstacle is the lack of funding for geography-focused programs. The agency stated that without the required funding schools and educators are hindered in their ability to support geography education.
This is depressing on so many levels I don't know where to begin, so just to keep it short and to the point, the Republicans have lost their collective way and now can be seen as just part of the pack of Washington bureaucrats, along with the progressive socialist liberal democrats, dragging out country into a financial and moral depression.
What are the rest of us down here in the trenches to do? Who can we believe is going to lead us out of this corrupt nightmare?
WOW - Isn't this what those perfect young people voted for twice? Mr Objma, and his friends said he would save us all if only you would believe he is the "one".
Now that you can see how you have been used and abused, screwed, does it matter that all these people lied to you?
Will you still vote for more democrats to bring more pain to your wallet and loved ones?
Time to choose what is best for our country. I know this a tough one for the democrat voter as they wonder in the darkness of ignorance and fantasy, but soon the waiting will be over as it will be time to choose, lies or more free stuff.
Just imagine, never having to pay for anything again, that is until other peoples money runs out, then it will be 'those dam Republican and Bush'.
This is perfect for the saying "when ignorance bliss, 'tis folly to be wise".
Apparently it was reported that this man said something about 'human rights' in Iran. I wonder if Mr Objma likes what he see here as punishment for freedom of speech?
It's hard to actullly tell just what this mans offense was, the news media is corrupted, but given Muslims stone women to death for no less then independent thought, it isn't a stretch to believe speaking ones mind would be enough.
But pay no attention to this, we are all on the same planet so we have to get along. It's just easier to give up a little of one principles to make sure we don't offend our brothers in the faith.
And thank you Mr Objma and the progressive socialist liberal democrats for his historic deal on nuclear weapons development that will one day, sooner rather then later, will reek havoc on us all.
Why hasn't this brought more national attention? Why hasn't Fox News brought this up on a regular basis so everyone can understand just how the progressive socialist liberal democrats operate?
Should the general public know about this operation and how it has proceeded to operate like those that we fought a world war against in the 1940's? Please explain how this John Doe investigation of Conservatives is any different?
Is this too much to ask of the supposedly unafraid news outlets? Where's the outrage????
WSJ: John Doe Prosecutors Targeted National Conservatives Too
By Right Wisconsin
A lawsuit in Waukesha County against the Government Accountability Board is giving the public the most extensive look inside the unconstitutional John Doe investigation and the true ambitions of regulators and prosecutors. Documents from this case have revealed partisanship, strategy, and even misgivings about the legal theory from the Special Prosecutor.
The Wall Street Journal is now reporting that prosecutors were also interested in national conservative figures as they pursued their over-broad investigation of conservative organizations in Wisconsin.
The documents are under seal in a state court case, Eric O’Keefe and Wisconsin Club for Growth v. Wisconsin Government Accountability Board (GAB), but two sources have read them to us. The lawsuit is a complaint against the GAB, the state agency that worked with Milwaukee prosecutors on the John Doe that used campaign-finance laws to trample the First Amendment.
We’ve tried to expose this illegal harassment since the autumn of 2013, when early morning home raids and subpoenas hit conservative groups across the state. From that investigation and a previous John Doe whose documents were transferred into the new investigation, prosecutors and the GAB collected millions of documents, including personal files, emails and bank statements.
The John Doe team searched the digital cache for information related to their now-discredited theory of campaign-finance coordination, but they didn’t stop there. The Milwaukee District Attorney’s office, run by Democrat John Chisholm, sent GAB staff a spreadsheet of search terms that included prominent national conservatives.
The spreadsheet includes the names and personal email addresses of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan, political strategist and Journal contributor Karl Rove, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Republican Party chief Reince Priebus and Fox News host Sean Hannity.
The list also includes search terms for such non-scandalous words as “coordination plan” and “message.” The government snoops created ideological search concepts like “big union bosses” and “big government,” as if such phrases suggest some law-breaking intent. Recall that when the IRS targeted conservative groups for special vetting, it created a “Be On the Lookout” list of key words such as “patriot” and “tea party.”
In a word, prosecutors were obsessed. They were pursuing a theory that would have given them license to investigate nearly the entire conservative movement - not just in Wisconsin but nationally. The Wall Street Journal has previously reported how investigators contemplated investigating radio hosts Charlie Sykes and Sean Hannity not just for communications with conservative groups but for equal time violations, something well beyond their purview.
From the beginning, the John Doe investigation has been labeled a fishing expedition. But we didn't know just how accurate this description really was. In fact, it was akin to taxpayer funded opposition research with use of gag orders, subpoenas, and the threat of arrest.
"Many caught in this dragnet are still unaware that their emails and personal data are held by state law enforcement," says the Wall Street Journal. "If Republican office-holders had tried something like this, liberals would be shouting about a vast domestic spying operation."
When the evident of fraud and corruption is evident in a program and it still passes as a legitimate program, those that have decided to turn a blind eye to the Export Import Bank's dysfunction and outright corruption of it's charter should be put on notice, your reelection is up for grabs.
As we know now it did pass with Republican support. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell said he wouldn't put it for a vote if it is passed by the House, but the proof of the pudding is in the eating. That is will he actual do what he said he would do, but don't' hold your breath.
62 House Republicans Join Democrats to Clear Path for Vote Reviving Export-Import Bank Melissa Quinn /@MelissaQuinn97
The House of Representatives moved one step closer to bringing the Export-Import Bank back from the dead Monday after 62 Republicans teamed up with 184 House Democrats to force a vote to reauthorize the embattled agency. Despite opposition from the vast majority of Republicans, the House passed a motion to discharge a bill reauthorizing Ex-Im from the Financial Services Committee, 246-177. (See how your member of Congress voted.)
The vote clears a path for the chamber to vote on the legislation sponsored by Rep. Stephen Fincher, R-Tenn. Under Fincher’s legislation, the 81-year-old bank would be reauthorized through 2019. Lawmakers are expected to vote on his bill tomorrow. Debate on the discharge petition brought fiery statements from lawmakers both opposing and supporting Ex-Im, as conservatives criticized the petition’s language for not allowing any amendments.
“This is not regular order,” said Rep. Mick Mulvaney, R-S.C. “This is shoving something down the American people’s throats.” House Financial Services Chairman Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, also pushed back against the process. “If this is going to come to the floor, every member ought to be allowed to have an amendment, and we ought to reject this discharge petition,” the Texas Republican said. Hensarling’s committee has jurisdiction over the bank.
Fincher, by contrast, called on his GOP colleagues to join him in support of the discharge petition.
“I ask my colleagues to join me in returning power to the rank-and-file members by voting on the motion to discharge and supporting American jobs,” he said, speaking on the House floor.
Though the majority of House members supported the discharge motion, Fincher’s legislation faces uncertainty in the Senate. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has stressed that he will not bring a standalone bill reauthorizing Ex-Im to the Senate floor.
At the beginning of the month, 42 Republicans worked with House Minority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland and other Democrats to support the discharge petition. The petition received the 218 signatures needed to move the petition forward. Discharge petitions are rarely successful and can be considered by the House only on the second and fourth Mondays of a month. The process was used last in 2002 to fast-track campaign finance legislation.
If a petition receives the 218 signatures needed and the discharge motion passes the House, legislation—Ex-Im’s reauthorization, in this case—is brought directly to the floor for a vote, bypassing both committees and House leadership.
The discharge petition was met with opposition from a majority of Republicans in the House. On Friday, Hensarling and Rules Chairman Pete Sessions, both from Texas, sent a letter calling on members of the Republican conference to vote against the discharge petition.
The two committee chairmen stressed that both a majority of the Financial Services Committee, which has jurisdiction over the bank, and a majority of the majority party—Republicans—oppose Ex-Im’s reauthorization.
“Ultimately, it’s about whether a minority of our conference will find common cause with Democrats whenever we have an internal disagreement, use this uncommon, extreme discharge petition process, and force a vote when a majority of the majority does not want a vote,” Hensarling and Sessions wrote.
Ex-Im’s charter expired June 30 after a year of debate among its supporters and opponents.
Those who oppose the bank, like Hensarling, argue that it served as an engine of corporate welfare and cronyism. By contrast, its supporters believe that Ex-Im helped small businesses compete globally and created jobs in the United States.
Better yet, why not stop the failed idea of throwing more money at a problem to solve it, instead, do the heavy lifting by finding out what works and what doesn't in the class room to successfully teach students.
It seems it's just easier to take the money and run, especially from the feds that want more control of your program and your children. Please explain the benefit of allowing Washington to make decision that will determine your children's future.
An evaluation of a Tennessee full-day pre-kindergarten program for students whose family qualified for free or reduced lunch discovered that children who had participated in the pre-K program had higher achievement scores in literacy, language and mathematics. Kindergarten teachers also rated participating children as better prepared both academically and socially.
Both groups of students, participants and non-participants in the pre-K program, started the pre-K year at the same level of academic ability.
At the end of the year, children who participated in the pre-K program were significantly ahead of those who had not.
However, by the end of first grade, the achievement scores for both groups were again equal and by third grade the scores of children who participated in the pre-K program were lower than those who had not.
The Tennessee pre-K program is almost identical to other programs implemented in various states across the nation, meeting the majority of benchmarks outlined by the National Institute for Early Education Research.
If the benefits of pre-K programs are eliminated by the end of third grade, why are states continuing to pour money into these programs? Adding another year of school will not remove all of the obstacles that children from low-income families encounter in school.
Investment in education should be made not just at the pre-K level but more substantially at the elementary and middle school levels.
Do you use Craig's List to sell something that you don't want anymore as it is useless and you reallydon't know why you bought this thing in the first place, it's just getting in your way so you can get things done? (Author unknown but understands when something needs to be dumped on someone else, hopefully far far away from you)
For Sale:
FIFTY YEAR OLD MANURE SPREADER - $1.00
Fifty-year old manure spreader. Not sure of brand.
Said to have been produced in Kenya .
Used for a few years in Indonesia before being smuggled into the US via Hawaii .
Of questionable manufacture.
Does not appear to have ever been worked hard.
Apparently it was pampered by various owners over the years.
It doesn't work very often, but when it does it can really sling the shit for amazing distances.
What is boils down to is who is listening and who actually cares about results in education. When the focus from the main stream press is on talking points from the dept. of education, the Objma administration.
The actual discussion of finding the best way to improve education is lost the politics of ideology. Common Core is not about furthering education, this is about confusion and chaos.
How do you teach something that defies logic?
The Objma administration cannot defend the actual process that has developed over the past years where Common Core is found to be un-teachable, and therefore preparing the landscape for a government take-over where the options for success will be limited to only one source.
The results of two national annual polls reveal that although public support for Common Core is waning, the education initiative still is viewed positively in public opinion.
In 2013, 44 percent of poll responders agreed that implementing Common Core standards would make the United States "more competitive globally."
Back in 2012, support for Common Core on the same question was higher, averaging at 53 percent.
When polling citizens on Common Core, results are highly sensitive to question phrasing, and therefore poll statistics should be evaluated alongside other credible, national poll results. However, the results from these two polls do indicate a downward trend in public support for Common Core with support decreasing among both Republicans and Democrats.
From 2012 to 2015, Democratic support for Common Core declined about 8 to 10 points.
The percentage of Democrats opposed to Common Core increased by 20 percent.
Republican support for Common Core also decreased from 2012-2015 with support falling by 11 perce
Look now further then who is in control of this beautiful state and have been for decades. Little wonder it's a disaster. The suggestions for fixing the department of health's problems is so common sense that a normal mind finds it incomprehensible that something so straight forward needs to be spelled out.
Someone has to take the responsibility.
Then again, what the real problem is, as stated above, who is in charge and that simplicity and common sense are not part of the acceptable ideology. And in this case, as it is for other places in America like Detroit, corruption and ignorance rules the day. It's just simply 'take the money and run', leaving others to clean up the mess they leave behind.
Hawaii Health Department Vulnerable to Waste and Abuse
Source: "Procurement Examination of the Department of Health: Lack of Procurement Controls Exposes Department to Waste and Abuse," State of Hawaii Office of the Auditor, July 2015.
October 26, 2015
An investigation by Hawaii's state auditor into the state's Department of Health (DOH) found that the department lacked clarity, consistency, and oversight with respect to how it procures goods and services. Specifically, the auditor found that the DOH's director entrusted procurement authority to her division staff, which is not a problematic decision on its own, but said staff were often unsupported by overseers or formal procedures.
Likewise, personnel within the department were often unclear on their roles, responsibilities and to whom they were accountable, resulting in inconsistencies, inefficiencies and noncompliance with DOH's procurements. Consequently, the auditor believes that the DOH is susceptible to waste and abuse.
The auditor cited the example of the DOH's 2009 contract with Grant Thornton LLP/PKF Pacific Hawaii LLP (PKF) to audit the DOH's certified redemption centers in the Deposit Beverage Container Program. In October 2008, the DOH solicited and awarded its contract to PKF via a request for proposals, which is structured to solicit multiple bidders.
However, only one bid was received, and the initial price was $76,400. Eventually though, the bid grew to $543,374, the contract was extended one year past its initial expiration date, and the number of redemption centers to be audited was decreased from six to two. PKF ultimately delivered two audits to the DOH; the first was accepted, while the second was rejected.
However, the auditor questions the value of both reports given the lack of oversight throughout the contracting process. The auditor recommends that the DOH increase organizational oversight over procurements, and clarify procurement roles, responsibilities and procedures. The auditor also suggested that the health director certify that staff responsible for procurements are satisfactorily trained and supervised, and finally, the DOH should review its contract with PKF and address procurement violations.
Mr Moore brings more doom and gloom for the financial markets and therefore our very source of survival for those of us in the trenches. After all, it's the market that drives the entire economy, for better or for worse, on which we depend for our retirement, which in turn gives the people the confidence when the market is doing well to spend some our resources believing our nest egg will be there when we needed it.
Now, as Steve points out, the progressive socialist liberal democrats have doubled down on passed financial failures of the Carter and Clinton administration, and the Bush administration that continued it with TARP, and now with the Stimulus plans of Objma of nearly a trillion dollars that was total failure to deliver, we now face another coming financial disaster.
Worst of all, it is based on the very same theology and ideology of the last failure, and the very people that brought us the last one are the same that are bring it back again.
Here's the latest story line: bailouts, trillions of dollars of government spending and debt, easy money and re-regulation of Wall Street ended the 2008 Great Recession. Actually, says Stephen Moore, this is what created the crisis.
The myth took on new life last week when Ben Bernanke took a bow in the Wall Street Journal for, in his mind, saving the economy with his $3 trillion of quantitative easing and zero interest rate policy. Now the Fed, the White House and Congress are recreating the very same conditions for another financial bubble. If it pops, we could replay the same devastating effects as occurred during the first bubble in 1999 and 2000. It is doing so in four ways:
Dodd-Frank regulations are exacerbating one of the greatest consolidations of the banking industry since the Great Depression.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are engaged in the same low down payment lending mania of 2004-07, and the Obama administration is on a Bush-like homeownership push.
The Fed refused to tighten its stance in September.
Government is hopelessly over-leveraged, and the interest rate exposure is enormous.
All of the conditions of financial wreckage are reappearing. The presidential candidates should start warning voters that Washington is rebuilding another financial house of cards.
If they don't, when the financial crash comes and Americans see their life savings disappear, the media and the history books will again blame conservatives for the destruction from the rampant financial negligence of government.
Just thought you might want more proof of how our government is convincing us that believing in more government will save us from destruction. Here's one of the tools employed to make us all subjects to the power of the few.
I know, just a relic from the past, but not to worry, let some well meaning democrat see this old instrument and how it might make a difference in the next election, and remember their saying, 'by any means necessary', and if you know a democrat that's beyond the pale, and there are millions of them, don't bend over.
(Author unknown)
Thought you would enjoy this educational moment. Can you name this strange old tool?
Do you know what it is?
Tobacco Smoke Enema Kit (1750s – 1810s).
The tobacco enema was used to infuse tobacco smoke into a patient’s rectum for various medical purposes, but primarily the resuscitation of drowning victims.
A rectal tube inserted into the anus was connected to a fumigator and bellows that forced the smoke into the rectum. The warmth of the smoke was thought to promote respiration.
Doubts about the credibility of tobacco enemas led to the popular phrase “blowing smoke up your ass.”
As you are most likely aware, this odd tool is still heavily used by all levels of government.
I guess this sums up pretty much the new norm that seems to have taken over from traditional and accepted passed practice of believing men and women are different and for a reason.
Interesting take here on Mr Objma and his time in our highest office in the land.
This note seems legitimate, but even if it's just one persons ramblings, it rings as certain note that resonates with a large portions of the population now after 7 long years of Mr Objma's leadership.
It's not that many among us didn't know Mr Objma's true character and ideology as he told us from the beginning what he intended to do to our country, what matters is that there are so many among the citizenship that have no idea who he is and understand what he has done to our country.
But don't misunderstand, it wasn't just Mr Objma, the progressive socialist liberal democrat (party) collective that was at his beckon call on every thing from domestic policy to foreign policy, it didn't matter. The democrats are good soldiers in waiting for the next event to come their way and the opportunity to do what ever the leadership of the collective wants them to do.
Little wonder then why they are no longer a political party but only a collective of willing participants in the "fundamental changing of America".
These few pictures of what remains of the flow of immigrants out war torn countries into civilized nations is just a stark reminder of what a progressive socialist liberal ideology and agenda can do to the Western civilized world. For the average person seeing the results of ten's of thousands of people forcing themselves on others, for reasons no one seems to understand or officials are willing to explain.
And where the mind cannot comprehend this absolute failure of such beliefs in progressive socialism, fascism, and communism, as to cause this catastrophic event as the flow of immigrants, thrill seekers, wanderers and terrorists, from the onslaught of mass killers, tyrants and other progressive socialists nations.
And for our part in all this, Mr Objma shows that he has great esteem for the tyrants, and rewarded them by America's 'hand off' policy allowing the forces of our enemies take charge.
Given the nightmare that the tiny country, Slovenia, is facing this catastrophic event now, as are other European nations, where the immigrants fleeing to the West are causing a moral and financial disaster.
The next question is who and what caused this nightmare? Is the result of the new norm from the Objma's ideology of "fundamental change" where centralizing power in the hands of a few at he top and idolizing nationals like Iran, Cuba, Venezuela, Russia and other such nations that believe totalitarian rule is an acceptable strategy for America, especially when Mr Objma is in office?
Is this why America did nothing to stop Putin in Crimea and the Ukraine, and Mr Objma's embrace of the hateful Iranians, let alone the murdering of more then 200 thousands in Syria and why he abandoned Iraq and now Afghanistan as well?
This sounds like as just another rule to make sure the irresponsible have a path to success. And that Dodd/Frank is in full force to strangle the financial markets to support the agenda of the socialist to gain control of individuals freedom to chose. Nothing new here.
Just imagine allowing people with bad credit rating and or those that have bad debt payment history are given a pass to continue with little or no consequence.
Regulating Consumer Debt
Source: Todd Zywicki, "The Law and Economics of Consumer Debt Collection and Its Regulation
October 23, 2015
In light of the announcement by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) that it is considering new regulation for consumer debt collection, it is important for policymakers to understand the potential consequences of such regulation. If creditors are unable to effectively collect debts, they will be reluctant to lend.
If borrowers feel oppressed by unfair debt collection practices, they will be reluctant to borrow.
Maintaining a modern, flexible system of rules for debt collection is essential in order for both borrowers and lenders to have confidence that contracts will be enforced and that the terms of those contracts will be fair and transparent. Before imposing new regulations, the CFPB should consider the following factors, which will adversely affect consumers of credit.
Most questionable debt collection practices have previously been outlawed or restricted. Concerning existing practices, it is challenging to discern whether further restrictions would create any new benefits for borrowers that would exceed their additional costs. Restrictions on debt collection may benefit consumers who are actually subject to the collection process, but this will come at the expense of other consumers who have to pay more for credit and gain less access to credit.
Compliance with Dodd-Frank and other regulations enacted since the financial crisis is disproportionately costly for smaller firms in the financial services industry, including the debt collection and debt buying industries.
From its inception, the CFPB has described itself as a "data-driven agency" that applies sound economic and empirical analysis to craft consumer protection policies. The CFPB should seek to follow this goal for consumer debt collection rules and consider rules that can be shown to protect consumers from overreaching creditor behavior, ensure access to credit at competitive prices and avoid burdening consumers with unnecessary restrictions and compliance costs.
Again, this isn't anything knew as the states that didn't accept the subsides was for this very reason. They knew that the portion that the state would have to pay for the expansion of Medicaid would skyrocket and eventually the feds will be gone from the ACA assistance as we are broke. Now who will pay the bill?
Last year's changes in health insurance enrollment are of particular interest, as 2014 was the year in which key provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA, or Obamacare) took effect -- most notably, the offering of subsidies for coverage purchased through the new government exchanges and the ACA's Medicaid expansion.
The increased enrollment in individual-market plans in 2014 equates to 40.6 percent growth in a single year for that market segment. By comparison, during the previous three years, total enrollment in individual-market plans was nearly flat, fluctuating narrowly around 12 million individuals.
Enrollment in individual-market policies increased by almost 4.8 million individuals during 2014.
For the employer-group-coverage market, enrollment in fully insured plans dropped by 6.6 million individuals, while enrollment in self-insured plans increased by 2.1 million individuals.
The net increase in private health insurance in 2014 was just 260,000 people.
The nearly 9 million person increase during 2014 in enrollment in Medicaid and CHIP equated to single-year growth in those programs of 14.7 percent -- compared to the preceding three years' average annual growth rate of 2.3 percent.
However, as noted, Medicaid enrollment growth during 2014 occurred disproportionately in states that adopted the ACA Medicaid expansion. In the states with the Medicaid expansion in effect, enrollment grew by 23.2 percent; while in the states without the expansion in effect, enrollment increased by 2.9 percent -- or just above the pre-ACA trend.
The growth in Medicaid enrollment over the course of the year occurred disproportionately in states with the ACA Medicaid expansion in effect. Indeed, the expansion states accounted for 92 percent of total Medicaid enrollment growth in 2014. When it comes to increasing the number of individuals with health insurance coverage, the net effect of the ACA in 2014 was almost entirely a simple expansion of Medicaid.
If you haven't noticed, the ideology and agenda of the progressive socialist liberal democrats has nothing to do with national security, it is and always has been about taking power from the individual to gain an advantage for their agenda of "fundamental change". Limit the individuals options to succeed through agency unconstitutional laws and regulations that forces subsistence. Objma says we have to keep the free stuff coming so everyone can be irresponsible.
That Mr Objma vetoed the defense bill to advance his domestic agenda spending is nothing new, and that it places the nation at risk is of no concern to him, and never has been his concern from the beginning of his time in office. Mr Objma is driven to destroy this country as it founded, and as time and history shows, he is succeeding.
Worst of all, the general public doesn't seem to understand what he is doing or they don't care. As long as their smart phones still work, all is well. Ever heard of the frog in the pot of water swimming around, having a good time, until the heat was applied???
Why Obama Should Not Be Using Our Military for Political Leverage Justin Johnson / @jus10j
President Obama will veto the defense authorization bill today with a photo-op, and by doing so will highlight Washington at its worst. Instead of dealing with the bill on its merits, Obama is using the defense bill for political leverage. This is the wrong way to handle our national security.
Many Americans rightfully find Washington’s way of doing things disturbing. Instead of treating issues individually, politicians will often attach unpopular policies to popular bills in order to ram them through. For example, just this summer, members of Congress were trying to attach the Export-Import Bank reauthorization to the Highway Bill, two completely unconnected issues.
Conservatives and liberals alike find this practice of linking unconnected issues disturbing. A particular proposal or issue should be considered on its own merits. If it can’t pass alone, it probably shouldn’t pass.
Holding Defense Budgets Ransom
If Congress shouldn’t do this, than the president shouldn’t either. But that’s just what Obama is doing by vetoing the defense authorization bill. The president is not vetoing the defense bill for any policies that are in the bill, but is simply using the veto for political leverage to increase non-defense spending.
To be clear, the defense bill cannot increase non-defense spending. In fact, the defense bill doesn’t spend any money—it just establishes authorized budgets and policies for our military. But in this case, the facts don’t matter. Obama has been clear that he wants more spending for his domestic, liberal priorities and he is willing to use the defense bill as leverage.
Important Reforms
This defense bill has a wide range of important provisions, some of which the president may not like. The bill keeps terrorist detainees at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. It provides for lethal defensive aid to Ukraine. It cuts overgrown Pentagon bureaucracies and begins reforming the military’s retirement system.
A debate about any of the provisions in the bill is legitimate and important. But vetoing the bill for political leverage is not how Washington should operate.
What makes this move by Obama even more concerning is that non-defense spending has been steadily increasing, while defense spending has been steadily decreasing. Since 2008, non-defense discretionary spending has increased by 7 percent while defense discretionary spending has decreased by 14.6 percent.
If you include the major entitlement expansions under Obama, the numbers are even more striking. Social and economic spending has increased 37 percent from 2008 to 2015.
In short, the president’s domestic priorities have been seeing significant funding increases while defense has been cut, but the president wants more and is willing to hold defense at risk.
Obama should not be using our military for political leverage. The budgets for the president’s liberal priorities have gone up significantly while he has been in office, but the president isn’t satisfied and is willing to use a national security bill as leverage for more. Vetoing the defense bill in order to increase domestic spending is wrong and is Washington at its worst.
After looking at the list of politicians that voted to accept the notions it's okay to defy federal law, it isn't hard to understand why progressive socialist liberal democrats are not a political party but a collective, willing to do the bidding of their leaders without question.
Remember it was the same scenario that brought us the Iranian deal, the democrat collective explained they knew the deal was not good for our country or the middle east, but voted to approve it anyway.
See How Your Senators Voted on Sanctuary Cities Kelsey Harkness /@kelseyjharkness
Senate Democrats blocked legislation that would punish “sanctuary cities” in a 54-45 vote Tuesday afternoon. The bill, called the Stop Sanctuary Policies and Protect Americans Act, needed to overcome a 60-vote threshold. It would withhold certain federal funding from states or cities that refuse to comply with requests from federal immigration officials to turn over immigrants who are in the country illegally.
Sen. David Vitter, R-La., introduced the legislation, which includes a provision known as Kate’s Law, named after 32-year-old Kate Steinle, who was fatally shot in San Francisco on July 1. The bill would impose a mandatory minimum jail sentence of five years for illegal immigrants who are convicted of re-entering the United States after being convicted of an aggravated felony or have three strikes for trying to enter the country illegally.
“It’s maddening that the Democrats are encouraging sanctuary cities like New Orleans that refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement and let dangerous criminal illegals free,” Vitter said in a statement after the bill failed.
Vitter has been pushing to defund sanctuary cities since 2007, when he served as chairman of the Border Security Caucus.
Sanctuary policies vary from state to state, but they generally prevent local authorities from cooperating with federal immigration officers, allowing those localities to protect undocumented immigrants from deportation. There are currently 340 sanctuary cities in the United States, according to the Center for Immigration Studies.
The issue of sanctuary cities gained national attention when Steinle was killed this summer by Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, an illegal immigrant who had seven prior felony convictions in the U.S. and had been deported to Mexico five separate times. He was released from a San Francisco jail in April under a city law barring the jail’s deputies from informing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of his release, despite the agency’s previous notification request.
Opponents of the Stop Sanctuary Policies and Protect Americans Act question the taxpayer cost of implementing mandatory minimums at a time when Congress is working to reform the criminal justice system. Some, including Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., even mocked the legislation, calling it the “Donald Trump Act.”
“This Donald Trump Act was designed to demonize immigrants and spread the myth that they are criminals and threats to the public,” Reid said on Monday.
During his bid for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination, Trump highlighted Steinle’s death as an example of why the country needs stricter immigration policies. In July, the White House issued a veto threat on similar legislation that passed in the House, saying the measure “undermines current administration efforts to remove the most dangerous convicted criminals.”
A government report commissioned for Congress by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement found that sanctuary cities released more than 9,000 illegal immigrants whom federal authorities were seeking to deport between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30, 2014. As of last year, 69 percent of those were still at large in the United States.
Of those still at large, 1,377 had another criminal arrest that resulted in the detainer. Of the 6,460 criminal aliens who were still at large during the time period studied, 3,802 (58 percent) had prior felonies or violent misdemeanors.
In a show of solidarity and motivation for Hillary, this goes a long way to explaine why the Republicans are in for a huge election fight before next November.
Intellectually motivated to achieve a new generation that is lead by Hillary that will carry our country into the next century.
Through out the 'Life of Julia' nonsense, the new wave of the subjective life will be all consuming to do what is best for the collective as a group. Individual striving for success and profit will be a thing of the past. It's only fair that everyone share equally the fruits of a collective effort.
Remembering what Hillary said some years back, 'it takes a entire village to raise a child', now it will take the entire village to do what is needed to make sure everyone shares in the wealth and success of other village members. No one must excluded because they are deemed not worthy of a share. We will all be 'one' now.
What do they mean we are out of bricks? The road to prosperity according to Mr Objma depends on a fantasy that all we have to obtain a future is make believe that we really have a chance for a future under progressive socialist liberal democrats.
Reality is nonexistent - It doesn't effect their ideology no matter how much reality effects events. It's not just an ideology of socialism, it's a religion where the pews are full of believers.
Just say it isn't so, and believe beyond a shadow of a doubt you are right, and therefore the problem doesn't exit.
I'm an American citizen and I love this country that has given me everything. I believe that America is the last hope in this world for Democracy and Freedom. She must be defended at all costs!
