The 2012 Presidential Candidates on Foreign Policy

First of all, I applaud you for asking serious international questions that should have been asked during the debate.  The debate moderator (Bob Shieffer) lost control of the Foreign Policy debate and it turned to domestic jobs and the economy.   To give you a perspective of the extent to which the candidates discussed non-state actors during the debate, the U.N. was mention only 4 times yet jobs were mentioned 32 times.  The U.N. was the only intergovernmental organization mention during the debate.  A specific multinational corporation was not mentioned.  The candidates mentioned terrorist groups such as al-Qaida, Hamas, Muslim Brotherhood, and Hezbollah.

President Obama said the administration’s goal is to get Iran to abide by the U.N. resolutions that are already in place.  President Obama detailed that he has begun the process of doing so by working with the other nations in the U.N. including Russia and China to put in place sanctions against Iran that have been crippling Iran’s economy so that Iran continues to feel the pressure by the international community to comply. 

President Obama discussed how the world “needs a strong America” and that we’re “stronger now than when he came into office” because we ended the war in Iraq so we could focus on the terrorist threat in Afghanistan.  President Obama then explained that our alliances have never been stronger and we have unprecedented military and intelligence cooperation in Asia, Europe, Africa and Israel.  He then told how he has created partnerships in Somalia, Yemen and Pakistan to deal with extremism and how he has engaged these governments in reforms to stop government corruption, give women rights, and to establish a “free market system that works”.  “Al-Qaida is much weaker than it was when I came into office, and they don't have the same capacities to attack the U.S. homeland and our allies as they did four years ago.”  President Obama made it clear that the terrorist networks are a greater threat to nation security and that China is a potential partner to the U.S. in the international community.   President Obama then spoke of Hamas and the missiles they launched to attack Israel threatening the lives of many children which factored in to his decision to fund “an Iron Dome program to stop those missiles” from continuing  to attack.  President Obama ended the discussion on demobilizing terroristic groups throughout the world by giving his track record and credentials as the most credible candidate to deal with the different countries of the world.

Mr. Romney said that Russia was our biggest “geopolitical foe” because Russia battles the U.S in the U.N. and he plans to give Russia more “backbone”.  Mr. Romney also stated that he would have left 5,000 troops in Iraq.

Mr. Romney did not mention how he would give Russia more “backbone” or if he would actually send our troops back to Iraq during the debate. 

Mr. Romney first congratulated the President on taking out Osama bin Laden and going after leadership in al-Qaida then he proposed a plan to “kill” the bad guys and get the Muslim world to “reject extremism on its own” (very similar to his self-deportation plan).  His plan consisted of investing U.S. dollars into economic development, education, gender equality, and the “rule of law” in the Muslim world (he will most likely get the money to invest in the Muslim world by cutting economic development, education, and gender equality for Americans from the U.S. budget).  Mr. Romney acknowledged that Pakistan is on its way to having over 200 nuclear weapons and they have arrested the man who helped the U.S. capture bin Laden.  He stated that regardless they are our allies and if we don’t spend the money needed to protect Pakistan the Taliban will get a hold of all those weapons.  Finally Mr. Romney made some geographically false statements about Iran, Syria and Lebanon.

Mitt Romney’s foreign policy proposal is quite expensive and the U.S. taxpayers will suffer because of it.  His lack of willingness to compromise will cause World War III and military drafts.  His policies regarding Russia, Iran, and Iraq are more radical than George W. Bush’s foreign policies.  Remember back in 2007 President Bush threatened Russia with World War III and his advisor said that drafts were a possibility.  If President Obama had not been elected we would be fighting World War III right now. 

I am the Real Life Julia

The following is a letter someone I know wrote to President Obama about The Life of Julia:

October 12, 2012

 

Dear President Obama,

             I was watching a PBS program with my daughter and I started to reminisce about my early school years.  She immediately told me about your female “model” (Julia) and how Julia started her education in a Head Start Program.  I realized how similar my life was to President Obama’s campaign “model” of how government implemented policies can have a positive effect on people’s lives.  It became clear to me that I was the real life “Julia” of the policies implemented by Democratic Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and John F. Kennedy. 

I was enrolled in a Head Start program in 1965 to get me ready for school. If I am not mistaken, this was the launch of the Head Start program in the United States.  I was the youngest of 8 children and we lived in subsidized housing in Nashville, Tennessee.  I started this program when I was 5.  I entered first grade already reading and I knew how to count.  Because of the Head Start program, both of my parents had the ability to work and they were able to save enough money to purchase our first home on the South Side of Nashville and leave subsidized housing by the time I was enrolled in third grade.   I strongly believe had the Head Start program been implemented a decade earlier I would never have lived in subsidized housing.  Skipping forward to sixth grade, I was reading at the 12^th grade level.  I won numerous awards throughout my pubic school education including being voted Most Studious in the 9^th grade.  During my High school years, I played team sports and ran track.  I was voted my high schools first female and first Black Senior Class President.  I graduated with a 3.74 GPA.  I enrolled into the Electrical Engineering program at Tennessee State University in 1978.  I did not initially receive a scholarship but a visiting professor from Bell Laboratories suggested that I apply for a scholarship at his company.  I did and I was amongst thousands of applicants from all over the United States.  I was the first recipient of the Bell Laboratories Engineering Scholarship Program (BLESP) from the state of Tennessee.  This scholarship was highly coveted by many schools of Engineering throughout the United States.  It included full tuition, summer internships and guaranteed employment.  While I was in college, I was inducted into the Golden Key Honor Society, I served as officers in many Engineering Societies and I was President of Eta Kappa Nu (Electrical Engineering Honor Society).  I had many employment opportunities upon graduation.  I worked in private industry and eventually for the Federal Government.  The bulk of my Federal Employment was spent working for the Intelligence Community.  During my first year of employment with the Federal Government, I was accepted by both Georgetown and George Washington Universities Law Programs.  I chose to attend Georgetown University’s Evening Law Program.  I was selected by the National Society of Black Engineers as one of the top black female Engineers during my tenure as a Federal Government Employee.  I received a top agency award for revamping their computer systems.  I was medically disabled by the Federal Government because my insurance would not cover the intensive therapy I needed to recover my ability to function in the work environment after a major auto accident in 2000.  I am quite sure had ObamaCare been the law of the land at the time of my automobile accident I would have been able to return to my job as a Federal Government Employee.  In 2002 I was able to obtain a comfortable lifestyle on Social Security which still pales in comparison to the lifestyle I had obtained while working. My Social Security income was only ¼ of the income I made when I was working and I was left in debt like many other Americans after a lopsided divorce where my ex-husband was awarded all of our possessions and I was awarded all the bills. 

Fast forward to the present, throughout a “majority” of my life I have been just as successful as Julia.  Julia and I have two major differences: Julia’s timeline did not account for divorce and your health care reform had not been enacted in 2000 when I needed it.  Just like Julia I was put on a path to success at an early age in a Head Start Program and given opportunities that only the wealthy could afford.  Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and John F. Kennedy helped level the playing field and gave me the opportunity to work hard and get ahead just like wealthy, non-minority, males.  Unfortunately for my 8 other siblings the Head Start Program was not implemented soon enough and they were not given a more level playing field.  America is so close to having a level playing field and I am confident that if you are re-elected and your government policies continue to be the law of the land there will be millions more real life “Julia” success stories in the future. 

President Obama: Jobs and Unemployment

With a nationwide unemployment of 12 million, 3.8 million jobs in the U.S. remain unfilled.  If all available jobs were filled we could cut the unemployed number in the U.S by nearly one third.  The number of unemployed would be the same as it was in 2004 (8.2 million) when President Bush told Americans to “get a job” and to be like his friend and not bitch and moan about it (imagine the public outrage if President Obama had said something like that).  President Bill Clinton stated “there are already more than three million jobs open and unfilled in America today, mostly because the applicants don't have the required skills."    President Obama is investing in community colleges to provide education and career-training programs, ensuring that everyone who works hard can get ahead.  In contrast, Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney cut funding for community colleges in Massachusetts by 17%. By 2006, tuition in Massachusetts was 59% higher than the national average.  I searched indeed.com to see how many jobs were available in Miami, FL the results were 17,812 full-time positions.  130 of the results were for shift manager which just requires basic skills that should be taught to students in school.  We should see improvements in skills being taught in schools once the results start coming in from President Obama’s Race to the Top initiative, which has already helped spur 46 states to raise standards by rewarding innovation and positive reforms in local schools.  America needs to be educated and ready for the future in order to be competitive in the workforce.  If we don’t reform our Nation’s schools soon manufacturing jobs will be leaving the U.S. for skilled labor instead of cheap labor.  Millions of manufacturing jobs are being lost to automation all over the world.  US manufacturing output is increasing all the while the number of jobs is decreasing because of productive advancements in robotics.  In the future, many will need an Associate’s degree in Robotics Technology or a Bachelor’s in Engineering to work in the manufacturing field. 

 

For decades, Mike Hummon, an unemployed substitute music teacher, was frustrated in his quest to become a school band director.

Now, he good-naturedly endures frustrations of a different sort as a 53-year-old student in an accelerated manufacturing class.

He isn't just seeking a new career as an operator of computer-controlled factory machines. Hummon, a dishwasher, two social service workers and several laid-off manufacturing and construction workers are on the front line of a campaign to close a puzzling gap in the labor market that has many U.S. employers struggling to find skilled workers despite the 7.8% jobless rate.

They're among 64 students taking part in a new program at two Minnesota community colleges called Right Skills Now that trains them in just about 4 months to run computer numerical controlled (CNC) machines. At graduation, they're virtually assured a job in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area at a starting wage of about $18 an hour after a six-week paid internship.

Experts say the program could serve as a national model for employers needing skilled workers yesterday and many jobless Americans unable to spend two years earning associate degrees.

It's one of the early efforts to close the nation's much-bemoaned skills gap. Economists say many unemployed workers don't have the skills for new, highly technical jobs in manufacturing, health care, information technology and other fields — mismatches that keep unemployment higher than it should be in an economic recovery.

“Last year, Darlene Miller, a member of President Obama’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, approached the Manufacturing Institute, the industry's workforce training arm, and the two groups developed the fast-track program. The first session, at the Minnesota colleges, ended in late spring, with the vast majority of students landing jobs after graduating.”   -USAToday

A Right Skills Now program recently began in Nevada, and one will soon launch in Michigan. The initiative is expected to spread across the country and graduate more than 100,000 in the next few years as part of President Obama's goal of awarding manufacturing certifications to 500,000 community college students by 2016, says Jennifer McNelly, who heads the Manufacturing Institute. Courses in welding, production and other factory skills are also planned.  A pipeline of skilled factory workers is sorely needed, especially with Baby Boomers retiring. A year ago, 600,000 skilled manufacturing jobs were unfilled, and 80% of manufacturers couldn't find proficient workers, according to a survey by the institute and Deloitte.

After shrinking by 2.3 million in the recession, manufacturing employment has grown by 500,000 since early 2010 on rising exports and a resurgent auto industry. Many former apparel and textile workers whose jobs were shipped overseas lack the skills to operate automated machines in expanding sectors such as autos, aerospace and medical devices.

Mike Hunter, a 23-year construction worker who's been out of work since he was hurt on the job a year ago, says simply, "I needed to do something different."  The program "gets you in the workforce so quickly,"

Hunter says the hourly pay of a CNC operator is comparable to construction, but he expects to earn more because the work is steadier.

The Right Skills Now approach — rapidly giving workers specific expertise — could be a new protype. Manufacturers that routinely trained new employees no longer have the time or resources because entry-level skills are more sophisticated in a digital age, says Anthony Carnevale, head of the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.

"You really need something to get you through the door" at a firm — then acquire more skills later, Carnevale says.

By contrast, workers who take two years to earn an associate’s degree may find their skills less relevant upon graduation in light of ever-evolving technology, says Deloitte director John Hagel.

A stream of qualified CNC operators can't come quickly enough for New Hope-based Custom Mold & Design, which has sought several for months. General Manager Mark Morris says the company, which makes factory molds, robot parts and surgical tools, could boost production by 50% if it were fully staffed. Instead, raw metal for planned jobs piles up and some CNC milling machines sit idle, doors open and inner chambers darkened.

Dave Swanson, operations manager of Viking Drill & Tool in St. Paul, was so desperate for a CNC operator that he hired Ryan Lohoner even before Lohoner completed his Dunwoody class. Lohoner, 36, who was laid off from his courier job last year, more than doubled his former $10 hourly wage.

2.5 million American manufacturing jobs were lost to outsourcing in the last decade.  38% of North American manufacturers surveyed by manufacturing sourcing Web site MFG.com in June 2011 had plans to research a move back to North America.  S. 3816 (111th): Creating American Jobs and Ending Offshoring Act would have given tax cuts to American manufacturers that bring jobs back to the United States.  S. 3816 provided tax cuts for manufacturers coming back to the U.S. by taking the tax cuts from outsourcers.  Without this proposed amendment outsourcers can deduct costs for moving expenses to leave the U.S. and stick it to the U.S. taxpayer.  S. 3816 was blocked by the Senate GOP in September of 2010.  Based on my calculations assuming that 1/3 of the manufacturers in the Survey were U.S. based and adjusting for the fact that automation allows one U.S. worker to do the work of 3, had the Senate GOP voted in favor of the Democrats bill we would have brought back 108,333 manufacturing jobs in addition to the 459,000 U.S. manufacturing has added since January 2010—the most growth in a decade.  If re-elected, President Obama plans to sign legislation like S.3816 after it is passed by Congress.  But he can’t do it alone. Remember his 2008 campaign slogan “Yes We Can”.  Well I bolded the WE for a reason.  If the President could pass bills without Congress his slogan would have been “Yes I Can”.  In the upcoming election if you want to see real “change” please vote out any Congressional obstructionists.  I will post a list of elected officials who blocked S. 3816 in the comments soon. 

President Barack Obama’s signature health care legislation will provide an economic boost to Maryland, according to a report by the Hilltop Institute at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.  The report said it would create 26,000 jobs in the health care and other sectors and pad state and local coffers with $237 million in new tax revenue each year. Additionally, by 2020, 330,000 more Marylanders would be given health insurance.  State savings were projected at $672 million.  I searched indeed.com using the terms “health care” refined by full-time jobs in Baltimore, MD.  The results as of 10/9/2012 were 4,090 jobs in the “health care” industry.

Moody’s Analytics, in an August forecast, predicts 12 million jobs will be created by 2016 based on the current trajectory of the U.S. economy and Macroeconomic Advisors in April also predicted a gain of 12.3 million jobs.  If re-elected president Obama will have created an estimated 12,632,000 jobs in his eight years as President even if we continue with all the blockage (I couldn't think of a better word, Congress is constipated) in Congress.  Imagine how great our country could be if we vote out all the incumbents who want to attach abortion and religion to every bill.

If you support President Obama and you'd like to donate follow this link

GOP Congressional Candidate's Crazy Conspiracy Theory

Recently, Republican mayor of Utah and GOP congressional candidate, Mia Love, received an envelope that contained images showing Love, her husband and a hooded Ku Klux Klan member and aborted fetuses.

Mrs. Love believes that she's become a target because of her opposition to the Obama administration and claims those kinds of attacks are being used to divert her from the issues of the congressional race. 

Mia Love’s conclusion is completely illogical.  It is a known fact that some Christians, ant-abortionist groups and Pastors believe that Planned Parenthood has connections to the Ku Klux Klan and is “accomplishing” “what the Ku Klux Klan could only dream about”

For instance, the anti-abortionist group Klan Parenthood is linked to the harassment of a Colorado Springs woman.  Klan Parenthood has pictures of fetuses and a Klan member on their website.

I am concerned that a person who could be elected to Congress believes such an irrational and farfetched conspiracy theory (Michelle Bachmann part 2?). 

Mitt Romney: No Tax Cuts For You

Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney, in an interview with CBS News Wednesday, said “This is a campaign, not about character assassination, even though that’s what I think has come from the Obama camp by and large,”

Isn’t accusing your opponent of character assassination actually assassinated your opponents character?  It’s ok Mitt we‘re all grownups here we know elections involve character assassinations.  But I think Mr. Romney should know that he is the one assassinating his own character every time he has been dishonest with the American people about his plan to permanently cut taxes (I read his plan on his campaigns website).  Mr. Romney needs to muster up the courage to tell his super packs that he is not going to cut taxes and that they should stop running false ads on his behalf. 

 Mr. Romney told a crowd in Westerville, near Columbus Wednesday he is “going to lower deductions and exemptions,”

A staff member told The Wall Street Journal another scenario would maintain deductions for people who earn $100,000 or less, consequently increasing revenue by allowing fewer taxpayers to get deductions.

“it’s not a tax cut,” a campaign staffer told the Journal referring to Mr. Romney’s tax reform proposal.

Mr. Romney told CBS’s “60 Minutes” in a broadcast that aired Sunday that because he plans to limit exemptions and deductions, most people will essentially pay the same taxes as before.

Romney has said lower rates would spur economic growth.  So if most people will pay the same taxes as before…There will be no spurring of the economy.

“But by bringing rates down, we’ll be able to let small businesses keep more of their money, so they can hire more people,” he told the aforementioned crowd in Westerville, near Columbus. “My priority is jobs and I’ll make it happen.”

I wonder what Mr. Romney’s plan is to fill the current 3.7 million unfilled jobs in America and to ensure that Americans are qualified to fill an additional 12 million jobs he plans on creating on top of that? 

I did read Mr. Romney plan released in September of 2011 that suggested filling jobs that Americans lack the skills to obtain with foreign nationals.  Mr. Romney’s plan suggests removing and or raising the limit of H-1B visas allowed in the U.S. annually.  This plan of action will not solve the unemployment rate that American citizens are facing. 

As for the 12 million jobs plan... Mr. Romney's plan is to do absolutely nothing and go down in history as the greatest president ever.  Moody’s Analytics, in an August forecast, predicts 12 million jobs will be created by 2016, no matter who is president. And Macroeconomic Advisors in April also predicted a gain of 12.3 million jobs.  Presidents are often at the mercy — or are the beneficiary — of broad economic trends, and Romney’s pledge appears to be an effort to take advantage of that.

Based on the facts in this article Mr. Romney’s character has not existed for at least a year so it couldn’t have suffered character assassination.

 

The American Taxpayer Saved the 2002 Olympics

A new commercial paid for by Restore Our Future snubs the fact that roughly 1,342,000,000 (that’s right 1 billion) of the taxpayer’s dollars funded the Olympic Games and Salt Lake City area infrastructure improvements needed for the Games to be a success.  The ad contains former Olympians snubbing the taxpayer's contribution and heralding Mitt Romney for allowing athletes to "realize" their "dreams" and for bringing a "huge sense of hope".  The following are quotes from athletes Kristi Yamaguchi and Derek Parra:

”Mitt allowed athletes like myself to realize our dreams” –Derek Parra

 “Mitt Romney brought a huge sense of hope”-Kristi Yamaguchi

``The Games won't ever be judged on a dollar basis,'' Romney said in April of 2002. ``The Games will be judged by the feelings and memories that came from Salt Lake City.''  Romney was apparently wrong because the Olympic ad spends about 1/5 of the allotted time discussing dollars. The ad boasts that Romney created a $100,000,000 surplus even though most articles have the surplus pegged at $65,000,000.  That sure is some creative rounding up;)

The Mitt Romney business experience at the Olympics consists of “How to Get the Government to Bail You Out”. The American taxpayers should be thanked not just Mitt Romney. While he rails against “Big Government” “Handouts” “bailouts for General Motors” he himself did not refuse the 342 million dollars it took to save the Olympic Games under his direction nor did he speak out against the $1 billion in infrastructure improvements in the Salt Lake City Area needed for the games.  Apparently Mitt Romney wanted Detroit to go bankrupt but not Utah.

 Mitt Romney promised “complete transparency” when he took charge of the scandal-plagued Salt Lake City Olympics, a pledge that included access to his own correspondence and plans for an extensive public archive of documents related to the Games.

“All of the documents inside our organization are available to the public,” Romney said in a speech to the National Press Club in 2000. “Simply submit a form saying which documents you want. For instance: ‘I want to see all the letters written by Mr. Romney to [then-IOC President Juan Antonio] Samaranch.’ You’ll get ’em all.”

But some who worked with Romney describe a close-to-the-vest chief executive unwilling to share so much as a budget with a state board responsible for spending oversight.

“Transparency? There was none with [the Salt Lake Organizing Committee] when he was there,” said Kenneth Bullock, a committee member who represented the Utah League of Cities and Towns. “Their transparency became a black hole. It was nonexistent.”

The committee charged news outlets $25 per hour to research records requests, even if the requests were eventually denied.

Even within the organizing committee, access to information was sometimes restricted, according to Bullock, the committee member.

“Everything should have been accessible to the board, but it wasn’t because that’s not what Mitt wanted,” he said.

Letters between journalists and the organizing committee obtained by the Globe show reporters were sometimes denied access to records they believed were covered by the committee’s open documents policy. Only a week after Romney spoke to the National Press Club, the Utah chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists wrote a complaint to the committee.

Technically Romney and the Salt Lake Organizing Committee had no legal obligation to preserve their records or make them public, even though the state paid $59 million, and the federal government spent $342 million on the Games and contributed roughly $1 billion more in indirect aid for transportation projects and other capital improvements in the Salt Lake region.

 “I led an Olympics out of the shadows of scandal” Mitt Romney states in a Washington speech but he does not acknowledge the fact that the government bailed him out.

The Government Accountability Office issued a report regarding Romney’s handling of the money as wasteful spending.
The 2002 Winter Olympics went down as the most expensive games in US history and Senator John McCain cited the games as “an incredible pork-barrel project for Salt Lake City and its environs”. It was not the custom of the US government to invest so heavily in a US hosted Olympic game, the money is supposed to come from sponsors, local cities and the US Olympic Committee.

Sources:

http://www.shorenewstoday.com/snt/news/index.php/regional/opinion/21967-romney-would-have-let-gm-and-chrysler-fail.html
http://articles.courant.com/2002-04-25/sports/0204250385_1_utah-athletic-foundation-surplus-salt-lake-city-olympics
http://www.politicolnews.com/mitt-romney-olympic-bailout-business-experience/
http://www.opposingviews.com/i/politics/2012-election/video-mitt-romney-makes-bizarre-claims-latest-campaign-ads
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/politics/54542587-90/romney-olympic-records-lake.html.csp

http://www.boston.com/news/politics/articles/2012/07/24/after_romney_pledged_transparent_olympics_key_documents_were_destroyed/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdWyxXBQvyM
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2012/02/19/romney-2002-winter-olumpics/
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/25/us-oly-usa-tickets-romney-idUSBRE86O00A20120725

Training Grants and Job Placement for American Workers

The Obama administration is offering training grants just like those offered to people who have H-1B visa for US citizens that more than doubles the amount offered to non U.S. citizens. Here is the link You can read it on page 22 2nd paragraph.


The following is an excerpt from The National Economic Council May 2012:  The Administration has invested $342 million in competitive grants to provide American workers with training, job placement, and other assistance in the high-skilled occupations and industries for which employers are now using H-1B visas to hire temporary foreign workers. Of the total H-1B Technical Skills Training Grants awarded, more than $163 million has been designated to provide on-the-job training, allowing participants to learn new skills while earning a regular paycheck – a critical investment to help small businesses find skilled labor. 

President Obama is not threatening to your 2nd Amendment Rights

President Obama is not threatening to your 2nd Amendment Rights

Randall Gartman Merchandising Manager at CDC– BME Stihl posted the following comment on capitolcolumn.com:

“He (Ron Paul) will (endorse Mitt Romney) because he wants Obama out badly. Next president appoints judges and that is what determines the tiny bit of rights we think we might have. If Obama is elected, the judges he appoints will vote down 2nd amendment. Without that one we will face hard tyranny. Not soft like we have been facing.”

If the President was going to appoint judges to vote down the 2nd amendmant... he would have done it already. President Obama signed legislation letting people carry concealed weapons in national parks and in checked luggage on Amtrak trains.  The current administration only plans to continue “enforcing the laws on the books”.   The Obama administration has remained mostly silent on expressing any support for stronger gun laws.  Gun laws are not the focus of this administration.  The focus has been on the issues that voters deemed most important in 2008… healthcare and education. Most recently the administration has focused on the new most important issue to voters… job creation.  Currently there isn’t even permanent appointed leadership  at the agency that polices the gun industry.  As you can see there is no need to worry about the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution being struck down under the Obama administration.

Source: http://www.winningprogressive.org/questions-for-mitt-romney-on-guns-and-the-nra

Fast Food Kid’s meals are not as Unhealthy as you Might Think

A new report released Thursday asserts a Chick-fil-A kid’s meal is among the five worst fast food kids meals that claim to be healthy, The report is obviously slanted and biased.  The report, which was commissioned by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, says Chick-fil-A's Grilled Nuggets Kids Meal contains the same amount of cholesterol as a McDonald's Big Mac.  Chick-fil-A’s grilled nuggets do not contain the same amount of cholesterol as a McDonald’s Big Mac.  The Big Mac has 75mg of cholesterol and the grilled nuggets have 65mg. 

According to the article, when the six grilled nuggets are paired with waffle fries and low-fat chocolate milk, the meal has 570 calories, 19 grams of fat, 75 milligrams of cholesterol, 1,150 milligrams of sodium and 23 grams of sugars, the report says.  The healthy kid’s meal was not meant to be paired with waffle fries and chocolate milk.  Six grilled nuggets only contain 110 calories.  When six grilled nuggets are paired with a fruit cup and milk the meal is only 250 calories.  Get 4 nuggets instead of six and the total becomes 220 calories.

The report claims that grilled chicken contains large amounts of PhIP, "a potent carcinogen that may play a role in the development of breast, prostate and other cancers."  But, PhIP occurs when any meat whether cooked at home or not that is cooked above 392 F or cooked on direct heat. 

The other kid’s meals on the list include the McDonald's Cheeseburger Happy Meal, the Sonic Kids' Jr. Burger Meal, and the Burger King Hamburger Kids Meal.  The McDonald's Cheeseburger Happy Meal includes a Cheeseburger, fries, apple slices, and a drink (I used milk in my calculations) at 520 calories the meal also contains 100mg of vitamin C (170%) and only 50mg of cholesterol (16%).  The Sonic Kids' Jr. Burger Meal is 550 calories when you order a Jr. Burger, APPLE SLICES W/FAT-FREE CARAMEL DIPPING SAUCE, and an Apple juice box and the burger only contains 35mg of cholesterol.  The Burger King Hamburger Kids Meal contains 380 calories and includes apple slices and a small drink (I used milk in my calculations).

The report was commissioned by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine which promotes a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle.  Any meal you or a restaurant prepares for your child that contains meat will not meet the ideals of the PCRM.  Brooke Henley a dietitian at Central GA Rehab at Medical Center of Central Georgia totally disagrees with this reports assessment of Chick-fil-A’s kid’s meals.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physicians_Committee_for_Responsible_Medicine

http://www.bk.com/en/us/menu-nutrition/lunch-and-dinner-menu-202/bk-and-reg-kids-meal-229/hamburger-kids-meal-m2379/index.html

http://www.sonicdrivein.com/pdfs/menu/SonicNutritionGuide.pdf?0

http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/meal_builder.html

http://www.chick-fil-a.com/Food/Menu-Detail/ChickfilA-Grilled-Nuggets#?details=nutrition&variation=ORA_5816count

http://chick-fil-a.com/Kids/New-Meals-Fact-Sheet

http://www.bio-medicine.org/medicine-news/Carcinogens-found-in-Grilled-chicken-14915-2/

http://hapeville.11alive.com/news/news/119826-chick-fil-kids-meal-among-least-healthy

Imagine a World without Justin Bieber's Music

SOPA is legislation currently tabled (not cancelled) in Congress that targets foreign websites that steal American intellectual property.  But, the legislation is too broadly written.   SOPA/PIPA would make it possible for a music label to claim user uploaded content on YouTube includes copyrighted lyrics that they own.  Subsequently YouTube would be held liable and possibly forced to go offline.

If SOPA/ PIPA had been passed prior to 2007, it is quite possible that we would not have any of the YouTube celebrities who got their start by singing covers and posting them on YouTube. Imagine a world without YouTube Celebrities like Alyssa Bernal, Boyce Avenue, Daniela Andrade, David Choi, Dymond, Grayson Chance, Jackie Evancho, Kina Grannis, Megan Nicole, Simone Battle, Sophia Grace Brownlee, SV, Todrick Hall and of course the king of all You Tube Celebrities Justin Bieber.  Justin Bieber was discovered by Scooter Braun and introduced to Usher after posting videos of himself singing covers on YouTube.  But, had SOPA/PIPA been law prior to 2007 Justin Bieber would most likely not have even attempted to upload covers on YouTube.  He would have been forced to only upload originals and it would be difficult to search for an original song since you wouldn’t know the name of the song to begin with.  I imagine the world (especially the entertainment industry) would be a totally different place where the media tells the people who they should listen to and not us telling the media who we want to listen to.  I think most of us agree the world would not be as interesting or fun place to be had SOPA/PIPA been the law a long time ago.  If we want our world to continue to have artists like Justin Bieber appear in the future and share their world with us we need to make sure SOPA/PIPA doesn’t pass in Congress.  If you would like to help please sign the petition: https://www.google.com/landing/takeaction/ and don’t forget to tell others.

Imagine a World Without Free Knowledge

“Imagine a world without free knowledge” is what you will see if you try to access Wikipedia today.   Right now, the U.S. Congress is considering legislation that could fatally damage the free and open Internet.  So for 24 hours, to raise awareness, Wikipedia is blacked out. 

The legislations that Congress is seriously considering implementing are SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) and PIPA (Protect IP (IP stands for Intellectual Property) Act) two bills in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate respectively. These bills are efforts to stop copyright infringement committed by foreign web sites, but, they do so in a way that actually infringes free expression while harming the Internet. Detailed information about these bills can be found in the Stop Online Piracy Act and PROTECT IP Act articles on Wikipedia, which are available during the blackout. GovTrack lets you follow both bills through the legislative process: SOPA on this page, and PIPA on this one. The EFF has summarized why these bills are simply unacceptable in a world that values an open, secure, and free Internet. 

A proposal in SOPA will allow the government to target sites that simply provide information that could help users get around the bills’ censorship mechanisms (targeted sites could be permanently shut down). Such a provision would not only amount to an unconstitutional prior restraint against protected speech, but would severely damage online innovation. And contrary to claims by SOPA’s supporters, this provision—at least what’s been proposed so far—applies to all websites, even those in the U.S.    

Social media sites like Facebook or YouTube—basically any site with user generated content—would have to police their own sites, forcing huge liability costs onto countless Internet companies.  Many jobs could be lost as a result of these bills.  This is exactly why venture capitalists have said en masse they won’t invest in online startups if PIPA and SOPA pass.

Organizations that are funded by the State Department to create circumvention software to help democratic activists get around authoritarian regimes’ online censorship mechanisms would be negatively affected.  Ironically, SOPA would not only institute the same practices as these regimes, but would essentially outlaw the tools used by activists to circumvent censorship in countries like Iran and China as well.  What the hell does Congress think they are doing?  This bill seems less about piracy and more about trying to make our country vulnerable to security threats and weakening our economy so they can get a Republican in the White House. 

Without user content portals like Blogger, NewGrounds, Facebook and YouTube, the Internet becomes just another mainstream media outlet, instead of the wild proving ground of ideas that allows regular people like us to find a large audience.  Please, like this Facebook page to show our politicians how many of us oppose SOPA and PIPA.  In addition, if you live in TN please like this page.


Sources:  
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:CongressLookup?zip=37212
https://www.google.com/landing/takeaction/sopa-pipa/
http://www.explosm.net/sopa.html