Health Care Reform: Don’t Be Distracted By The Abortion Talk

Six in ten Americans favor a ban on the use of federal funds for abortion. Fine.  But let’s not let that stop us from passing Health Care Reform. The abortion issue and Health Care Reform are two completely different issues.  Don’t be distracted.  Don’t lose your focus.

I personally don’t believe in abortions but I believe in a woman’s right to chose.  I am not God and will therefore not judge someone else’s circumstances.  I do not believe that “the public at large” or our law makers should create legislation that would prevent many women from getting their health insurance plan to cover the cost of an abortion, even if no federal funds are involved. That’s just too black and white — what about women who are in a medical crisis?

These same people who are screaming that government is too big are the same people who want to micro-manage other people’s reproductive organs and choices.  Hypocrites!!!

Most Americans like most of the current House bill.  They like the parts that add new regulations to the health insurance industry that will stop them from discriminating against pre-existing conditions and provide more coverage for people who can’t afford health care.  Americans also like the language in the bill that requires companies to provide health insurance to their workers. But most of us are not so sure about the language that requires people to get health insurance on their own if they don’t get it through another source.  We agree with and understand the philosophy behind it, but it’s worrisome.

Folks, let us work this out.  Let us create a bill that benefits the majority of Americans.  Let us pass Health Care Reform.  Send a letter via US mail or send an email or call your elected officials and tell them what you don’t like about the existing bill and what you do like and support. Your voice matters.

Participate in the process.  Let your voice be heard. Tell our law makers to make the current House bill even better but please continue to support Health Care Reform.

Contact your elected officials — everyone from our President, Vice President, Senators, US Representatives, Governors and State legislators — by going to http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml

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Bill Maher On Jay Leno: Emails — Mark Foley vs Gov Mark Sanford

In June 2009 Governor Mark Sanford, Republican from South Carolina, admitted that he had conducted an extramarital affair with a woman in Argentina who he had gone to visit in Argentina three times during the past year.  “I have been unfaithful to my wife . . . I developed a relationship with what started as a dear dear friend,” said Sanford.

He said that he had met Maria Belen Shapur roughly eight years ago and that it had become romantic within the last year.

In September 2006 Mark Foley, Republican Congressman from Florida, sent sexually explicit email and instant messages to a 16 year old male congressional page from Monroe, Louisiana as well as to other congressional pages.

This is sad but funny.  Watch Bill and Jay read some of the emails.

New Study – Homosexual Behavior Widespread In Animals

 The pairing of same sex couples had previously been observed in more than 1,000 species including penguins, dolphins and primates.

However, in the latest study the authors claim the phenomenon is not only widespread but part of a necessary biological adaptation for the survival of the species.

They found that on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, almost a third of the Laysan albatross (large seabirds) population is raised by pairs of two females because of the shortage of males. Through these ‘lesbian’ unions, Laysan albatross are flourishing. Their existence had been dwindling before the adaptation was noticed.

Other species form same-sex bonds for other reasons, they found. Dolphins have been known engage in same-sex interactions to facilitate group bonding while male-male pairings in locusts killed off the weaker males.

A pair of “gay” penguins recently hatched an egg at a German zoo after being given the egg that had been rejected by its biological parents by keepers.

Writing in Trends in Ecology & Evolution, Dr. Nathan Bailey, an evolutionary biologist at California University, said previous studies have failed to consider the evolutionary consequences of homosexuality.

He said same homosexual behavior was often a product of natural selection to further the survival of the species.

Dr Bailey said: “It’s clear same-sex sexual behavior extends far beyond the well-known examples that dominate both the scientific and popular literature – for example, bonobos, dolphins, penguins and fruit flies.”

“Same-sex behaviors – courtship, mounting or parenting – are traits that may have been shaped by natural selection, a basic mechanism of evolution that occurs over successive generations,” he said.

“But our review of studies also suggests that these same-sex behaviors might act as selective forces in and of themselves.”

Original post:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/scienceandtechnology/science/sciencenews/5550488/Homosexual-behaviour-widespread-in-animals-according-to-new-study.html

Health: The Pope Is WRONG About Condoms!

Pope Benedict XVI, who is on a tour of Africa, said that handing out condoms only increased the problem of HIV/AIDS.  He as representative of the Roman Catholic Church says that 1) marital fidelity and 2) sexual abstinence are the best way to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS.

No disrespect to the pontiff but the Catholic Church and any other church with this point of view MUST get their heads out of the clouds. 

This man of the high cloth is listened to and is emulated all over the world and this is the simpleton advice he has to offer about a disease that is killing millions and millions and millions of people?! 

Of course marital fidelity and sexual abstinence are the best way to prevent HIV/AIDS – any 7 year old can tell you that.  That is stating the obvious.

But the real problem is that many people across the world are not in monogamous relationships; most people married or not do not have a sexual relationship with only one partner.  The facts show that our even our young people ARE having sex!  Some of our young people are having sex at ten years or even younger so we HAVE to teach them about safe sex and how to use condoms whether we like it or not.  Whether it is offensive of not.  Whether it is an ugly fact or not.

The alternative is to say nothing and simply be unsophisticated buffoons with small minds and ignore the truth and wait for an epidemic of HIV/AIDS to destroy our children’s lives. If any of our children are infected the potential for many of our children becoming infected increases.  We live in a global society and our children are having sex with other children across economic and racial lines so if one socio-economic or racial group is infected all our children can become infected. 

Let’s talk to our children about safe sex — let’s keep all our children safe.

Let’s keep it real, these are facts. 

Even adults in short-term monogamous relationships may have had a different sexual partner days, weeks or months prior to their current monogamous relationship.  So even if someone isn’t cheating they may have been in relationship with someone prior that may have been exposed to HIV/AIDS or several STDs not so long ago. 

Do you know the status of the last ten people your current partner slept with? 

Did you go with your partner and both get tested and received a negative result and continue to get tested every 3 months to make sure you are STILL negative? 

If not, you better use a condom.

There are people walking around with HIV/AIDS who look healthy and act healthy and KNOW that they are infected who do not tell their partners that they are infected and they spread the disease.  Ugly but true.

There are people walking around that DO NOT know that they are infected and they have sexual relationships without condoms and spread the disease.  Ugly but true.

Many infected people know that if they are truthful about their status they probably would be rejected so they keep their mouth shut.  Ugly but true.

Most of us assume that if a person has HIV/AIDS they would simply be responsible and trustworthy and not have random sexual relationships or would a least tell a potential partner that they are infected and use a condom.  What a nice thought.

The Pope is simply wrong about the use of condoms and his statement is a threat to public health globally.  The Pope’s opposition to condoms tells me that religious doctrine is more important to him than the lives of human beings.  That behavior by the Pope is self-serving and absurd and un-Christian like.

God help us all!

HIV On The Rise For 50+ Age Group

The rate of HIV infection is “surprisingly high” among people over 50 years, the World Health Organization announced today warning that cases among older people seem to be growing worldwide.

According to WHO’s March bulletin, “The scant data that exist suggest a surprisingly high prevalence and incidence of HIV among individuals 50 years of age and over.”

The authors of the study from the United States said that the percentage of people over 50 with HIV in the U.S. soared from 20 percent in 2003 to 25 percent in 2006. In Europe, only eight percent of reported cases arise from older people. In Brazil, the number of people over 50 with HIV doubled between 1996 and 2006 — from 7.5 to 15.7 cases per 100,000 residents.

With all the awareness of HIV in the United States why is our infection rate higher than in Brazil – a country known for its promiscuity?

“The frequency of infection with HIV in older people is worrying. We need to understand why and when these people are becoming infected so that public health campaigns can be better targeted to prevent such infections,” said George Schmid, a WHO scientist.

Public perception of the disease may be part of the reason since AIDS is still being viewed as a “disease of young people” and therefore older people don’t ask to be tested when they go for their annual check-up which leads to delayed diagnosis. In addition primary care physicians hardly ever consider screening their older patients for HIV so again an opportunity for diagnosis is missed and delayed. In addition older people have lower immunity, which could lead to more rapid deterioration from an HIV infection to AIDS.

The life expectancy of those infected at age 65 or older is just four years, while people who are infected at age five to 14 have life expectancies of over 13 years.

The authors noted that sexual activity remains the most likely mode of transmission for older people.

Potency drugs such as Viagra emerging in the 1990s have extended the sex life of older people, who are also less likely than younger people to use condoms and practice safe sex.

No matter YOUR age, and even if you’re in a monogamous relationship please get tested.

 

 

 

Holiday Office Party Etiquette – How Not To Lose It!

 ‘Tis the season for holiday office parties, when eager employees get the perfect opportunity to cozy up to their bosses – or ruin their reputations.

Offering a toxic mix of free booze, pent-up frustration and awkward interactions, these festive soirees have been providing the grist for office gossip mills for decades.

They also have left careers in tatters.

 Holiday parties are very dangerous; a person can ruin his or her career in just one cocktail party overload.

In order to help you avoid committing an office party disaster, follow my advice – don’t do any of the following:

1. Don’t get wasted. Pounding brewskies and shooting tequila may have made you the king of your college frat parties, but ending an office party with your underwear on your head will get you few plaudits at work. Drink slowly and have just one or two drinks.  Better yet, plain club soda or soft drinks are ALWAYS safe.

2. No kissy face with colleagues. Even if you’ve been salivating for months over the guy or gal two cubicles away, now is not the time to make your move. Whether you get to first base or get rejected, the result will be the same: you’ll become the butt of jokes for weeks, maybe even months. 

3. Curb your inner stripper. A little dirty dancing will certainly get your boss’ attention. But you’re much better off impressing everyone with your mind rather than a bump and grind – even a silly one.

4. Invite the right date. Who you roll with reflects who you are. That guy or gal who doesn’t bathe regularly is a no-no. So is anyone who is covered in facial tattoos or piercings or includes the words “like”, “dude”, “yo” or “son” in every sentence.

5. Dress appropriately. This is the time to relax with your co-workers, not show off that new hip-hugging skirt, groin hugging trousers, any new Victoria Secrets, Calvins or C-IN2 Sling Support Lo No Show Profile Briefs. Keep your flesh covered. Cheers!

Interview With Levi Johnston (Bristol Palin’s Baby Daddy): I Love Bristol. I Like Obama.

 WASILLA, Alaska — Levi Johnston, who’s having a baby with Sarah Palin’s daughter, can’t believe all the things he’s hearing.

No, he wasn’t held against his will on the campaign trail. No, he’s not being forced into a shotgun wedding with 17-year-old Bristol Palin.

“None of that’s true,” Johnston, 18, said in a rare interview with The Associated Press. “We both love each other. We both want to marry each other. And that’s what we are going to do.”

Standing in the driveway of his family home in this small Alaska town, Johnston spoke about the rumors swirling around him.

The soft-spoken teenager discussed his relationship with Palin and how life has changed with fatherhood fast approaching. He agreed to talk despite the presidential campaign’s advice in the days following Gov. Sarah Palin’s nomination to avoid the media.

“They’re not telling me anything right now,” Johnston said as he checked his Blackberry. “It’s pretty chill.”

Not surprisingly, Johnston was a little shocked when he learned about Bristol’s pregnancy, but he says he quickly embraced the prospects of fatherhood. The baby is due Dec. 18. Johnston has dropped out of high school to take a job on the North Slope oil fields as an apprentice electrician.

Johnston hinted he’s expecting a boy, but he declined to discuss baby names.

“I’m looking forward to having him,” he said. “I’m going to take him hunting and fishing. He’ll be everywhere with me.”

Johnston, a Wasilla heartthrob, said he wanted to set the record straight.

For starters, he said his much-maligned MySpace page was a joke _ the one that claimed he said: “I’m a … redneck,” and “I don’t want kids.” Johnston said his friends created the page a few years ago and he had nothing to do with it.

Johnston said he has dated Palin since his freshman year in high school.

“We were planning on getting married a long time ago with or without the kid,” he said. “That was the plan from the start.”

While Johnston provided few details about next summer’s wedding, the planning has started: A cousin will likely be his best man, and he has asked two hockey buddies, Ben Barber and Dane Wilson, to be groomsmen.

Barber doesn’t think anyone pressured Johnston into marriage.

“If he thought it wasn’t the right thing to do he probably wouldn’t do it,” he said.

Johnston is an avid hunter. He’s dark haired, tall and muscular, sports a bit of stubble and drives a red Chevy Silverado truck. He’d be the perfect cover for Field & Stream.

He’s bagged bears, sheep, elk, and caribou. Some of the antlers are scattered about his yard. Last July on a caribou hunt he lost a “promise” ring that Palin had given him. He said he decided to tattoo her name on the finger and not bother with more rings because he’d just lose them anyway.

Johnston said he wasn’t forced to campaign with Palin’s mother. Bristol Palin invited him and Johnston jumped at the chance. It was a whirlwind experience for Johnston, who was seated with the Palins at the Republican National Convention.

“At first, I was nervous,” he said. “Then I was like, ‘Whatever.'”

While Barber said his friend is a celebrity now, Johnston said it hasn’t changed him.

“I’m still the same old boy,” said Johnston. “I’m just a workin’ man.”

And now he’s also about to become a family man.

“We’re up for it. I’m excited to have my first kid. It’s going to be a lot of hard work but we can handle it.”

Wasilla hockey coach Bill Sturdevant, who was invited to the wedding, said he was sorry to hear Johnston wasn’t going to return for his senior year of high school. But he said he believes Johnston, a talented hockey player, will find his way.

“He’s a tough kid,” Sturdevant said. “He’s taking everything in stride.”

What about Johnston’s politics?

The young man said he wasn’t an expert on politics by any stretch. Asked about Barack Obama, he replied: “I don’t know anything about him. He seems like a good guy. I like him.”

But Johnston still rooting for John McCain and Sarah Palin.

“I just hope she wins,” he said. “She’s my future mother-in-law. She better win.”