MY ADVICE FOR YOU THIS THANKSGIVING

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Instead of spending the holiday talking about how happy you are with ObamaCare and how all of your family members should be thankful that our President has designed such a wonderful, straightforward healthcare system, how about taking a moment to call your Congressional delegates to thank them for voting for ObamaCare in 2010 and to tell them how much you love and respect them for doing it?  You might start looking for them by checking under their local office desk or hiding in the closet. 

Now, I know and appreciate that having a turkey sitting right in front of you on Thanksgiving Day will be an in-your-face reminder that we have a turkey for a President, so maybe you should have a little goose instead.  

Oh, and don't forget to drive carefully.  

See you Monday. 

LET'S FREEZE OUR GOVERNMENT

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Let's face it; we have the worst Congress, the worst Supreme Court and the worst President in the history of our nation.  

Congress is at its lowest level of ratings in recorded history; pollsters would have to agree that most Americans see Members of Congress as being lower than a snake's belly.  Our courts, and the Supreme Court in particular, have wandered far astray of their fundamental duty of weighing laws and lower court decisions on the basis of what our Constitution says.  As far as our President goes, calling him a toad would be complimentary.  

We're all aware of the multitudes of bad agency regulations and Congressional legislation that have been foisted upon us by a less than ethical or moral cads.  And we know that our President has totally abused "Executive Powers" to seize control of power away from the Congress and the people.  

When you have a child who gets out of line, you impose a curfew.  

I propose a three-year curfew, or a freeze upon the ability of our government to act until we have a chance to replace the incumbents.  The President cannot use his Executive Powers... period.  He is limited to the power of the veto... period.  The Congress shall be limited to passing legislation regarding the budget, the debt and a declaration of war should the need arise.  Agencies shall be prohibited from promulgating and issuing any more regulations.  No new member of the Supreme Court can be confirmed without a majority vote of the state legislatures. 

Members of Congress, their staffs and the Executive Branch must not have any breaks on the ObamaCare costs.  All wages shall be frozen at current levels for three years.  Hiring shall be limited to 50% of those who resign, retire or are terminated during the three years.  

Anything else... Immigration, education, gun control... you name it... must wait.  

Make a copy of this and send or email it to Barry and the gang over at The Hill.  Maybe they'll get the message that we have had enough of their sorry rumps.    

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

THE ONLY WAY WE CAN SAVE OUR COUNTRY

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Those of us like you and me who are concerned about the way our country is headed; about the debt; about the calloused disregard for fundamental American needs and values; about corruption; about attacks on religious freedoms and Constitutional rights... we're frustrated because we see no end to it that does not include the total destruction of our democracy and way of life. 

Given the fact, and you must agree, that we have no one to blame for this mess but ourselves, we must also understand that we cannot leave it to our politicians in Washington to do the job for us.  We have already given them ample opportunity to step up to that plate and they have failed.  So, we are the ones who must get our hands dirty and clean up this cesspool we have allowed to grow in Washington... and in other statehouses around the country.  

Where do we begin?  I've always believed that you have no business trying to get someone else's house in order until you clean up your own mess.  At the outset, you have to ask yourself how strong your own moral and ethical foundation is.  Are you imparting sound principles of life on your children?  For this facet of our lives, we need to turn ourselves back to religion; ask yourselves what is more important for you and your family to develop: (1) a solid base of ethical and moral upbringing, or (2) owning the latest toys and electronics. 

Just as the hoods who whack somebody up the side of the head have no concept of morality, so do the politicians who take money under the table and sell out the country in return for power have no concept of ethics or morality.  Can we justify to ourselves taking on those bad facets of our society when we ourselves would not think twice about screwing our neighbor, both literally and figuratively?  

All religions have basic tenets which form a solid structure upon which we can build the concept of ethics and morality in ourselves and our families.  If you don't want to go to church, or synagogue or temple, take an hour or two a week and read from scripture and the teachings of your religion.  Study the history of good men and women and what contents of their individual characters made them standout.  

We have to cleanse ourselves before we can cleanse our government.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

AND DEMOCRATS WONDER WHY REPUBLICANS FIGHT THEM?

When ObamaCare was passed in 2010, it was passed strictly along party lines after lies were told, manipulations made, and false promises made.  It was passed with calloused disregard of the fact that 70% of Americans at the time were against it.  

Thursday was deja vu all over again in the United States Senate.  Senator Reid lead another power grab in the middle of lies, deceptions and in the face of 225 years of Cngressional history against it, and changed Senate rules about voting for confirmation of certain Executive appointments.  The rule has stated that 60 votes in the Senate are required for confirmation.  How you can have a vote on this issue and get it legally passed by only a 52-48 vote margin defies my imagination.  But, they did it and the new rule says only 51 votes are needed to confirm. 

That is a violation f every principle of democracy I have ever learned.  And, it enables Democrats, with control of the Senate, to pass any damned thing they want to without fear of filibuster and regardless of what Americans think or want.  It's another cram-down of horrible legislation and an in-your-face, "So what are you going to do about it?"  It's tyrannical arrogance to say the least.  

They all deserve what they are going to get.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.  

WHERE HAVE ALL THE GOOD AMERICANS GONE?

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As we near the start of the 2013 holiday season, let us pause and ask ourselves who we once were, who we now are, and who we will be.  Is there anyone left among us who can stand up to the principles and ideals embraced in this video? 

http://www.youtube.com/embed/rKsW6c_CgFY?feature=player_detailpage

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

RUSSIAN ROULETTE

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The State Department is about to allow the Russians to install "monitoring stations" in the United States. The monitoring stations would be installed by Russia's space agency, Roscosmos.  It is feared that the installations would be used by the Russians to spy on the U.S. and pinpoint our key military targets.  

Now, why would anyone be suspicious of Russia's motives?  After all, Vladimir Putin just finished bailing Obama's fanny out on Syria, didn't he?  Couldn't these stations be seen as a quid pro quo?  

In any other era of our nation's history, Obama and Kerry would be summarily removed from office and hung for treason for even thinking about such a deal.  Of course, in any other era in our history, the journalists would be all over this story like glue instead of relegating it to one outlet, THE BLAZE. 

We need to be seriously concerned about what this Administration is foisting upon us while we sip our beer and pretend everything is okay.

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

TOXIC CHEMICALS POSE TERRORIST THREAT

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You should remember the mix of fuel oil and fertilizer that was used to destroy the Federal Building in Oklahoma City; some 168 people were killed and 680 people injured.  Although some restrictions have been made on the fertilizer, (ammonium nitrate), both ingredients are readily available today.  

With the growth of online sales for biological and chemical agents, concerns are rising about whether such toxic agents can fall into the wrong hands.  Chemicals could be ordered on line and used to poison water or food supplies, create deadly caustic gases or start epidemics.  Laboratories worldwide, including in China, Chechnya, and India, are producing what has been called "the deadliest substance known to science" and offer sales over the Internet of BoNT, according to a NEWSMAX report.  

We live in a decaying society as it is; the thought of such dangerous agents being transported into the country by mail or shipping agents is very disconcerting.  Both foreign and domestic terrorist cells  could already have the ability to create death and havoc on a widespread scale across the nation.  This is one area that needs closer scrutiny by our government agencies.  

How you can stop a maniac with a gun or knife is simple; you see him shooting or stabbing and you take hm out.  But, the use of chemical and biological weapons can be accomplished without anyone observing the danger.  We need to establish hard and fast controls over the shipping of such agents, both within the country and from outside the country.  

The N.S.A., F.B.I., C.I.A., D.H.S. and D.O.J. should be using their resources to prevent disaster from happening as opposed to using their resources for political purposes on behalf of the White House. 

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.  

HOUSE MEMBERS WHO VOTED FOR THE OBAMA CARE NIGHT MARE

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A few weeks ago, (November 6th), I listed here those Senators who voted for the Affordable Care Act.  Here's the list of the House members who voted for the Act.  Keep in mind there have been two votes for House members since then.  You might consider targeting those still in the House for replacement in 2014; those are the ones with blinders on who didn't read the damned bill before they voted for it and, most likely, still haven't read it.  

The vote was 219 for and 212 against. 

Ackerman Andrews Baca Baird Baldwin Bean Becerra Berkley Berman Bishop (GA) Bishop (NY) Blumenauer Boccieri Boswell Boyd Brady (PA) Braley (IA) Brown, Corrine Butterfield Capps Capuano Cardoza Carnahan Carney Carson (IN) Castor (FL) Chu Clarke Clay Cleaver Clyburn Cohen Connolly (VA) Conyers Cooper Costa Costello Courtney Crowley Cuellar Cummings Dahlkemper Davis (CA) Davis (IL) DeFazio DeGette Delahunt DeLauro Dicks Dingell Doggett Donnelly (IN) Doyle Driehaus Edwards (MD) Ellison Ellsworth Engel Eshoo Etheridge Farr Fattah Filner Foster Frank (MA) Fudge Garamendi Giffords Gonzalez Gordon (TN) Grayson Green, Al Green, Gene

Grijalva Gutierrez Hall (NY) Halvorson Hare Harman Hastings (FL) Heinrich Higgins Hill Himes Hinchey Hinojosa Hirono Hodes Holt Honda Hoyer Inslee Israel Jackson (IL) Jackson Lee (TX) Johnson (GA) Johnson, E. B. Kagen Kanjorski Kaptur Kennedy Kildee Kilpatrick (MI) Kilroy Kind Kirkpatrick (AZ) Klein (FL) Kosmas Kucinich Langevin Larsen (WA) Larson (CT) Lee (CA) Levin Lewis (GA) Loebsack Lofgren, Zoe Lowey Luján Maffei Maloney Markey (CO) Markey (MA) Matsui McCarthy (NY) McCollum McDermott McGovern McNerney Meek (FL) Meeks (NY) Michaud Miller (NC) Miller, George Mitchell Mollohan Moore (KS) Moore (WI) Moran (VA) Murphy (CT) Murphy (NY) Murphy, Patrick Nadler (NY) Napolitano Neal (MA) Oberstar

Obey Olver Ortiz Owens Pallone Pascrell Pastor (AZ) Payne Pelosi Perlmutter Perriello Peters Pingree (ME) Polis (CO) Pomeroy Price (NC) Quigley Rahall Rangel Reyes Richardson Rodriguez Rothman (NJ) Roybal-Allard Ruppersberger Rush Ryan (OH) Salazar Sánchez, Linda T. Sanchez, Loretta Sarbanes Schakowsky Schauer Schiff Schrader Schwartz Scott (GA) Scott (VA) Serrano Sestak Shea-Porter Sherman Sires Slaughter Smith (WA) Snyder Speier Spratt Stark Stupak Sutton Thompson (CA) Thompson (MS) Tierney Titus Tonko Towns Tsongas Van Hollen Velázquez Visclosky Walz Wasserman Schultz Waters Watson Watt Waxman Weiner Welch Wilson (OH) Woolsey Wu Yarmuth

UNEMPLOYMENT FIGURES LIE

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Even I was shocked when I read this statistic.  We've all conjectured about what the real unemployment figure is.  When you look around at all of the people who are not working and the hoards of people why buy their groceries with EBT cards, you get the definite impression that there are a lot more than 7.3 percent out of work.  Depending on who you talk with, that figure is somewhere between 16% and 22%. 

But, the figure I saw yesterday almost knocked me for a loop.  Long-term joblessness is up by 213% since the start of this recession. 

How do you come to grips with an astonishing figure like that?  And we want these people to pay out hundreds of dollars per month for health insurance?  Even with a subsidy, how can they afford it?  How can we justify sending billions of dollars to foreign countries when we're looking at a figure like this? 

Dear God, what have we become when our government fails to look after the well-being of its citizens?

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW 101: THE CRUX OF THE PROBLEM

The moves by President Obama Thursday to try and twist his way out of his self-created ObamaMare mess go to the heart of the problem of his Presidency. 

He's telling the insurance companies that they need to reinstate the policy holders who they cancelled due to the requirements of ObamaCare and he's telling the states they need to work through these accommodations as well.   Here's the problem: By making these changes, he's changing a law that was written by Congress and merely signed by him.  Only Congress can do that.  Not to mention the fact that he has no authority, implied or otherwise, over insurance companies or state governments. 

As you can see, he is proceeding on the basis that the President of the United States is the ultimate ruler of the country, that he has some controlling power over Congress and the states.  Our Constitution provides that the power rests with the people; the people, per the Constitution, have granted Congress, the Courts and the President restricted powers to act on behalf of the populace. 

The President, although he claims to be a citizen of this country, does not understand his relationship with the Congress or the Courts or the fact that his power comes from the people and is limited in scope.  Our forefathers wrote the Constitution in such a manner that the three branches of our government counter-balance each other and provide for the will of the people to be executed.  

The President cannot make law; he can enforce the laws passed by Congress and make such regulations as may be necessary to carry those laws out.  The Courts interpret the laws passed by Congress to ensure they comply with the requirements of the Constitution and that the Executive Branch and the Congress act accordingly.  Congress gets its power from the Constitution which provides for the representation of the people through Senators and Congressmen elected by the individual states.  

So, Obama has not come to grips with the fact that in our country the President is essentially a figurehead and the manager of the Executive Branch, and nothing more.  Of course, since he's our figurehead, we look to him for leadership and proactive, positive management of the Executive Branch in the best interests of the country.  If he gets out of line, Congress can reign him in through the impeachment process.  If Congressional members get out of line, they can be reigned in by the people through the election process. 

That's the essence of Constitutional Law 101. 

Now then, since he has no authority to bail the people who are now uninsured through no fault of their own out of their predicament, why would he vow to veto any legislation from Congress that might change the law and resolve the issue?  

And therein lies our ObamaMare.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

OBAMACARE: ANOTHER DAMNED OBAMA LIE

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He's going to direct insurance companies to "consider" allowing you to have your old policies if you want them for "another year."  This is no damned fix; it's just another damned lie. 

Let's start at the top.  Insurance companies are regulated by every state.  When they make changes to the policies they offer, they have to provide actuarial figures to the state commissioners to show how those changes are going to affect their incomes and abilities to pay out in the event of claims.  If they are going to change back and cancel your cancellations, they are going to have to go through the same hoops.  This is not going to happen by any President waving his magic wand and ordering it to happen tomorrow.  

He has no legal authority to tell insurance companies, or states, to do anything.  Period.  

He had to slip in that glib caveat... I think he only mentioned it once and you could barely hear it... "for a year."  Next year, that plan you like is going to be gone again, whether you like it or not.   And those businesses which have been granted a one-year extension by "executive decree" and in violation of the same damned law he wrote, will also be faced with cancellation notices for their employee group policies and the numbers of uninsured could rise as high as 100 million and you will have no choice but to go on ObamaCare.  

Since he depended on the revenues coming into ObamaCare from those of you who got your cancellation notices, (which he knew all along were coming),  and that revenue will not now be there, who is going to make up for it?  Hold on to your wallets, folks; premiums are going to go up more and so are taxes.  

So, it's all just another damned lie, isn't it?  

Any Congressman or Senator who buys into this new lie deserves to have his or her head handed to them on a tin platter in 2014.  When are we going to get smart and run this lying, corrupt Chicago-style flimflammer out of the White House?  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

"THAT GIRL" ON OBAMAMARE WEBSITE

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Of course, you've seen the picture before of that attractive girl on the ObamaCare website.  It suddenly and without explanation disappeared from the site shortly after the news about ObamaCare became radioactive.  No one at D.H.H.S. would reveal who she was, and only her first name, "Adriana," was found to be tagged with the photo used on the site.  

Well she's now come forward and had an interview with ABC where she did not reveal her last name, but did have some other interesting tidbits of information.  For one thing, she's not a U.S. citizen; she's from Colombia.  What wasn't made clear was if that meant she attended Colombia with Barack Obama or if she's from the country of Colombia.  She is in the process of filing for citizenship after living here for six years. 

She said she doesn't understand why people hate her; "It's just a photo."  The photo was removed from the website because, according to government sources, it's a "dynamic website."  She is relieved that her picture is gone.  

Now then... if you were designing the ObamaCare website, why would you not pick an American citizen to have their mug on the headliner?  This goes to the heart of the ObamaCare problem; it seems to me that no one involved with the thing from the very beginning knows jack about what really makes America tick.  That includes Obama, Reid, Pelosi, Sebelius and everyone in Congress who voted for it. 

Maybe they should have used Phyllis Diller's mug.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

OBAMA HAS BEEN EASING IRANIAN SANCTIONS FOR MONTHS

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Almost as soon as Iran elected its new President, (Hassan Rouhani), in June,  President Obama began easing sanctions, some of which had been in place for over five years.  To my knowledge, this was done unilaterally and without consulting Congress or anyone else who has the slightest inking of how to deal with the Iranians.  In any event, when Secretary of State Kerry got to the nuclear talks last weak, the U.S. didn't really have that many sanctions left to bargain with.  

Whoopie doo.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

AMERICA IS "IMMATURE?"

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Here's a tidbit from a competing journalist.  Century Foundation fellow Michael Cohen wrote in the NEW YORK DAILY NEWS yesterday to say we're immature due to our anger over Obama's lies about ObamaCare. He contends that a “schizophrenic” public welcomes the radical reforms contained within the Affordable Care Act but selfishly balks at the prospect of breaking a few eggs to achieve this virtuous end.  He alleges that Obama was only telling is what he knew the country wanted to hear, and that he was therefore not really lying and we should not be so uptight. 

He says that America can't handle the truth.  

You know, every day I hear something new and more absurd than I've ever heard in my life up to that point. His position is somewhat akin to saying that the families of dead victims of the sinking of the Titanic shouldn't be upset because they were secretly hoping their relatives would die anyway.  

If I tell you in all earnestness that you have just won $1,000,000 on Publishers Clearing House, but it was really not true, it was not a lie because I was simply saying what you wanted to hear? 

I cannot believe that our colleges and universities are churning out students with such twisted logic.  I'm inclined to think that Cohen never had any senses to take leave of.  He's probably related to Nancy Pelosi. 

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

Read more at http://patriotupdate.com/2013/11/editorial-attacks-americas-immaturity-anger-obamacares-lies/#SkbVMpUMEIrV3cRx.99

He contends that a “schizophrenic” public welcomes the radical reforms contained within the Affordable Care Act but selfishly balks at the prospect of breaking a few eggs to achieve this virtuous end.
Read more at http://patriotupdate.com/2013/11/editorial-attacks-americas-immaturity-anger-obamacares-lies/#SkbVMpUMEIrV3cRx.99

Century Foundation fellow Michael Cohen took to the pages of the New York Daily News on Monday
Read more at http://patriotupdate.com/2013/11/editorial-attacks-americas-immaturity-anger-obamacares-lies/#SkbVMpUMEIrV3cRx.99

Century Foundation fellow Michael Cohen took to the pages of the New York Daily News on Monday
Read more at http://patriotupdate.com/2013/11/editorial-attacks-americas-immaturity-anger-obamacares-lies/#SkbVMpUMEIrV3cRx.99

ALL GAVE SOME ~ SOME GAVE ALL

VETERANS DAY ~ NOVEMBER 11, 2013

I'D HAVE A HARD TIME

I was talking with a fellow veteran the other day and the subject of Obama came up.  He said, "You know, I served in Viet Nam for my country and I'd do it again if I had to, but I'd have a hard time following any order that son-of-a-bitch gave." 

That started a conversation that could have gone on for hours on end.  This is the President who, straight out of the box, made his dislike of the military so evident that it was etched on every veteran's mind.  He's the President who had the audacity to suggest that our wounded veterans should pay for their own insurance.  As far as the military goes, that relationship has been down hill ever since. 

Isn't it ironic that, were it not for the military Obama wouldn't have a country to run?  We'd probably all be talking German or Russian by now.  Isn't it ironic that when there's a big national emergency or disaster, it's the military and the national guard that shows up to deal with it?  Isn't it ironic that he's the Commander in Chief of the finest military force in the world and denied them the opportunity to respond to the Benghazi Massacre?  

The more I think about it, the more I'm glad I am not in the military today.  I agree with my buddy: I'd have a hard time taking orders from Barack Hussein Obama.  Which makes me respect those who have the guts and gumption to do it all the more.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

BIGGEST STORM IN HISTORY SLAMS PHILIPPINES

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I rarely talk weather in my blogs, but this is one event that defies my imagination.  A Category 5 typhoon, the biggest and most powerful ever to strike the Atlantic or Eastern Pacific, bore down on the Philippines last night packing sustained winds of over 190 mph with gusts to 235 mph.  Super Typhoon Haiyan made morning landfall at Guiuan, a small city in Samar province in the eastern Philippines. Thousands of people evacuated villages in the central Philippines as Haiyan took aim at the region, which was devastated by an earthquake last month. 

There are few man-made structures which can withstand such winds.  Massive devastation is sure to occur.   Forecasters said the storm surge could reach up to 23 feet. Over 98 million people live there.  By the time you read this, the storm should be on the way to Viet Nam.  

I can't think, in my memory, of any year during which the Philippines has been so mistreated by Mother Nature.  Such an event makes even the ObamaCare website debacle look puny.  My heart and prayers go out to those who live there.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

RIDICULOUS LOGIC 101

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Obama must be pregnant, that's all I can say.  He's rolled out his lackeys to defend ObamaCare's requirement that even 70-year-old males have to be covered for maternity care.  The rule under the illustrious Affordable Care Act is that women cannot be charged at a higher rate than men.  Therefore, men have to pay for maternity care.  

I would have to wonder if women are covered for testicular cancer.  

Given recent disclosures about residents of states that voted against Obama being charged a higher rate than those in states that voted for Obama, I have to wonder if their database knows what political affiliation an applicant has; does a Democrat get a lower rate than a Republican?  

Anyway, back to the issue of pregnant men.  Obviously, they've decided to cover Obama and all of the guys in Congress, as they should under this provision.  And, they should cover women who have had hysterectomies as well.  It's only rational to consider that had Mary been covered under ObamaCare, Jesus could have been born in the Bethlehem Women's Hospital rather than a manger.  I'll bet those loons at the White House will jump all over that suggested angle.  

These lies and these spins coming out of the White House are making that whole damned crowd the laughing stock of the world.  Who can possibly take this country seriously?  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.  

"AFFORDABLE CARE:" TIME TO START TAKING NAMES

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How do you make sure that the people who screwed you with ObamaCare don't ever screw you again? Don't vote for these Senators who voted to pass the Bill: 

Vote Summary

By Home State

Grouped by Home State

Alabama:	Sessions (R-AL), Nay	Shelby (R-AL), Nay
Alaska:	Begich (D-AK), Yea	Murkowski (R-AK), Nay
Arizona:	Kyl (R-AZ), Nay	McCain (R-AZ), Nay
Arkansas:	Lincoln (D-AR), Yea	Pryor (D-AR), Yea
California:	Boxer (D-CA), Yea	Feinstein (D-CA), Yea
Colorado:	Bennet (D-CO), Yea	Udall (D-CO), Yea
Connecticut:	Dodd (D-CT), Yea	Lieberman (ID-CT), Yea
Delaware:	Carper (D-DE), Yea	Kaufman (D-DE), Yea
Florida:	LeMieux (R-FL), Nay	Nelson (D-FL), Yea
Georgia:	Chambliss (R-GA), Nay	Isakson (R-GA), Nay
Hawaii:	Akaka (D-HI), Yea	Inouye (D-HI), Yea
Idaho:	Crapo (R-ID), Nay	Risch (R-ID), Nay
Illinois:	Burris (D-IL), Yea	Durbin (D-IL), Yea
Indiana:	Bayh (D-IN), Yea	Lugar (R-IN), Nay
Iowa:	Grassley (R-IA), Nay	Harkin (D-IA), Yea
Kansas:	Brownback (R-KS), Nay	Roberts (R-KS), Nay
Kentucky:	Bunning (R-KY), Not Voting	McConnell (R-KY), Nay
Louisiana:	Landrieu (D-LA), Yea	Vitter (R-LA), Nay
Maine:	Collins (R-ME), Nay	Snowe (R-ME), Nay
Maryland:	Cardin (D-MD), Yea	Mikulski (D-MD), Yea
Massachusetts:	Kerry (D-MA), Yea	Kirk (D-MA), Yea
Michigan:	Levin (D-MI), Yea	Stabenow (D-MI), Yea
Minnesota:	Franken (D-MN), Yea	Klobuchar (D-MN), Yea
Mississippi:	Cochran (R-MS), Nay	Wicker (R-MS), Nay
Missouri:	Bond (R-MO), Nay	McCaskill (D-MO), Yea
Montana:	Baucus (D-MT), Yea	Tester (D-MT), Yea
Nebraska:	Johanns (R-NE), Nay	Nelson (D-NE), Yea
Nevada:	Ensign (R-NV), Nay	Reid (D-NV), Yea
New Hampshire:	Gregg (R-NH), Nay	Shaheen (D-NH), Yea
New Jersey:	Lautenberg (D-NJ), Yea	Menendez (D-NJ), Yea
New Mexico:	Bingaman (D-NM), Yea	Udall (D-NM), Yea
New York:	Gillibrand (D-NY), Yea	Schumer (D-NY), Yea
North Carolina:	Burr (R-NC), Nay	Hagan (D-NC), Yea
North Dakota:	Conrad (D-ND), Yea	Dorgan (D-ND), Yea
Ohio:	Brown (D-OH), Yea	Voinovich (R-OH), Nay
Oklahoma:	Coburn (R-OK), Nay	Inhofe (R-OK), Nay
Oregon:	Merkley (D-OR), Yea	Wyden (D-OR), Yea
Pennsylvania:	Casey (D-PA), Yea	Specter (D-PA), Yea
Rhode Island:	Reed (D-RI), Yea	Whitehouse (D-RI), Yea
South Carolina:	DeMint (R-SC), Nay	Graham (R-SC), Nay
South Dakota:	Johnson (D-SD), Yea	Thune (R-SD), Nay
Tennessee:	Alexander (R-TN), Nay	Corker (R-TN), Nay
Texas:	Cornyn (R-TX), Nay	Hutchison (R-TX), Nay
Utah:	Bennett (R-UT), Nay	Hatch (R-UT), Nay
Vermont:	Leahy (D-VT), Yea	Sanders (I-VT), Yea
Virginia:	Warner (D-VA), Yea	Webb (D-VA), Yea
Washington:	Cantwell (D-WA), Yea	Murray (D-WA), Yea
West Virginia:	Byrd (D-WV), Yea	Rockefeller (D-WV), Yea
Wisconsin:	Feingold (D-WI), Yea	Kohl (D-WI), Yea
Wyoming:	Barrasso (R-WY), Nay	Enzi (R-WY), Nay

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.  

I'LL HAVE A HORSEMEAT BURGER AND FRIES

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It was culture shock for me.  Daily, I search the web for subjects worthy of discussion on these esteemed blogs of mine and I generally settle for talking either about the main topic of conversation of the day if there have been significant developments, or more often for important news that is not making it to the headlines of the day.  One of my first stops is generally the website at FOX NEWS and wow, was I in for a surprise yesterday.  

They usually headline their page with the hot news topic of the day such as some breaking news about ObamaCare, Benghazi, N.A.S. or some major political spat.  Yesterday, their headliner read: "INHUMANE TREATMENT OR AN EQ-WHINE?"  Their story went on to discuss the probability that horse meat may be making a comeback as a food source.  It seems that a New Mexico Judge has thrown out "a lawsuit Friday by The Humane Society of the United States and other animal protection groups that alleged the Department of Agriculture failed to conduct environmental studies when it issued permits to Valley Meat Co. in Roswell, N.M., and an Iowa company to slaughter horses for human consumption." READ MORE

This story makes the top news of the day?  What about Iranian nukes?  What about the Chinese nuclear subs that are proliferating the ocean depths?  What about the economy?  What about Obama trying to dump Biden in 2016?  What about whether or not Mrs. Schmidt's warts can be removed under ObamaCare?   There are so many things in today's world of instant access to news that take precedence over whether or not horse meat should be allowed in American restaurants.  And FOX NEWS is the very last place on the Internet where I expected a headlined news story to sink to the level of being mundane. 

That's all I've got to say today.  I'm going to trot into the kitchen and grab a bowl of oats.

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

OBAMACARE PROVISION FAILS IN COURT

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The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled 2-1 Friday in favor of Francis and Philip Gilardi, the Roman Catholic owners of Ohio-based Freshway Foods and Freshway Logistics, who argued that the provision in the new healthcare law requiring they provide birth control as part of their insurance plan would violate their religious freedom.  "The burden on religious exercise does not occur at the point of contraceptive purchase; instead, it occurs when a company's owners fill the basket of goods and services that constitute a healthcare plan," wrote Judge Janice Rogers Brown in the court's decision.  Undoubtedly, the Obama Administration will appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court. 

What is left unsaid in this case is whether or not ObamaCare now provides for the use of public funds to pay for abortions.  Ostensibly, this provisions was removed from the Act, but we are discovering as we go along that many of the things they told us they were removing were not, in fact, removed.  

It is becoming more and more clear that this "Affordable" Health Care Act contains numerous onerous provisions that run contrary to the promises that were made by Obama and his cohorts in order to induce the Congress into passing the legislation, although 70% of the nation opposed it at the time it was passed.  

Whether or not the country continues to let the Administration cram things they don't want down their throats remains to be seen.  It's all up to you.  

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted. 

ROOTS

I don't know exactly what is going on here, but my access to  my host site has been blocked all day.  It could be that some anti-Obama weirdo posted a blog pointing out some of his shortfalls, or it could be that N.S.A. snooping caused the site to crash.  I simply don't know and hope that this post goes through.  

So, yesterday morning, some whacko with a gun entered LAX and started shooting.  Here we go again with another spectacular gun crime.  This guy had just texted somebody and said that he's considering suicide and he shows up at LAX shooting, waiting for some law enforcement official to shoot him dead; that's his method of suicide.  

Did the gun cause the shooting?  No.  Did the so-called lax laws about gun ownership cause the shooting?   No.  Did the gun manufacturer or the ammo maker cause the shooting?  No.  So, who or what did cause the shooting? 

Where I'm going with this is that we keep zeroing in on symptoms or methods and we fail to identify the root cause of these shootings.  Could it be the proliferation of microwaves?  Maybe it's something to do with computers or computer games?  Could it be chemicals in the water?  Air pollution?  A combination of these things?  A breakdown in social norms and structure?  

These are the questions we need to get answered.  Let's quit wasting our time pointing fingers and start seriously looking for the root causes.  Otherwise, the causes will simply manifest themselves in different ways if we remove the methods, (guns, knives, choking, poison, etc.), or deal solely with the symptoms.  
  
That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.  

TAKE IT EASY ON OBAMA

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I sat down at the keyboard with the thought of jumping on the anti-ObamaCare bandwagon and lambasting the program, the website, Sebelius and Obama.  By the time my illustrious rump was settled firmly into my executive desk chair, I changed my mind.  

You see, I think it is unfair that we should dump on Obama for his "vision" of a better world for all of us.  He meant well, you know.  Besides, he's not to blame.  None of those around him ever bothered to tell him that the insurance companies were going to dump millions of health policies.  Sebelius never told him that the website was not ready to go, nor did any of his or Michelle's close personal friends at CGI Federal ever spill the beans to him, either.  

And about those other things, such as the D.O.J. tapping of telephone calls at the Associated Press or of James Rosen... you certainly must know that Holder never told him about them.  Never mind that Holder lied under oath before Congress when he denied having personally signed off on it... that's just a slight oversight.  

By now, you know where I'm going with this.  Give the guy a break.  He's blind; he can't read newspapers.  He's vision-impaired, so he doesn't watch the TV news.  And no one ever tells him a damned thing.  That's why he jumped in his jet and flew to Las Vegas after the Benghazi Masacre; no one ever told him it happened.  And when they finally did, they lied to him and said it was about that nasty video. 

Poor, mistreated Barry. 

Please pass the gray poop on.

That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.