tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-250232872024-02-28T16:03:13.961-07:00Dot's Days I am an infojunkie who likes to share the ideas I come across. I believe that the internet allows all of us to put our 2 cents in. Nothing annoys me more than people who constantly complain, but have no suggestions for how to solve the problem. This is a place for me to talk about issues and to suggest remedies. I hope if you happen upon this blog it will provide some enjoyment and allow you to express your thoughts as well.Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.comBlogger307125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-42062981995499766822020-05-18T11:47:00.000-07:002020-05-18T11:47:13.073-07:00Reaching Out to the Class of 1960<div data-originalcomputedfontsize="16" data-removefontsize="true" dir="auto" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; caret-color: rgb(49, 49, 49); color: #313131; font-family: -apple-system, HelveticaNeue; font-size: 1rem; word-spacing: 1px;">
I haven’t posted to this blog in almost three years, but I recently received an email from a high school classmate, asking for life updates since, due to the coronavirus, we can’t hold a class reunion. Here’s what I wrote:</div>
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How can it be 60 years since that senior party up at the lake, where I got in so much trouble? Or that time I stuck up for Dorothy Porterfield in Speech class and the teacher got so mad she walked out and didn’t come back for three days? That teacher kept me out of the National Honor Society because of that. Seems like weeks ago, not years.</div>
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Anyway, my husband, Ron, and I have lived in the southeastern part of the Phoenix metro area, in Queen Creek, for the past 20 years. We happily left the cold, snow, humidity, traffic, and crowds of the east coast for the adobe walls, saguaro cactus, tacos and enchiladas of the Sonoran desert. Eventually, all the children followed us as they, too, got tired of scraping ice off the windshields. </div>
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As the years went by, five grandchildren appeared, three boys and two girls, and now all but one of them has graduated from high school. One of my children obtained a Ph.D. In Biochemistry, one became a nurse specializing in head trauma, and the other is about to retire from 30 years of teaching and coaching.</div>
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Now, Ron and I are busier than ever, working on our “senior” careers. He makes Adirondack chairs, footstools, and tables and has sold over 300 since he first made one for our house 5 years ago. I have an Etsy shop, Santanartist Silks, where I sell my hand-dyed silk scarves and fabric.</div>
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Our daughter also owns and breeds Arabian horses, and we are barn assistants, hay distributors, and manure techs. The Scottsdale Arabian Show, held for two weeks in February, was one of the rewards of moving near Scottsdale. We love being part of the Arabian community here and working to promote the breed. My favorite time of the year is April when the babies are born and being able to watch them begin their life journey. I am determined to see 22 more foal crops!</div>
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Happy to hear all of you still above ground. Keep moving, and learn something new every day,</div>
<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" />Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-5480734356792125562017-05-22T16:19:00.001-07:002017-05-23T19:23:55.457-07:00Don't Send Your Kid to Rehab<div class="p1">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Once again, one mother's world was shattered. Rather than celebrating Mother's Day with her son, she found that he had overdosed on the day that should have been special and now will never be a day to celebrate. Connor had just been released from rehab, and we can imagine that he and his family were excited to see him and support him as he moved forward with his life. They did not know that a monster was under the bed. And that monster, heroin, reached out and snatched that young man, adding his name to the other thousands who have overdosed because their bodies could not now tolerate what he had become accustomed to before he went into rehab. Even though addicts are told, over and over, that their release is a dangerous time, the monster overrides that message. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">These deaths are totally preventable. There is a drug that removes the cravings and blocks the effect of opiates. It can be administered as an injection that lasts for a month. It can give an addict time to arrange for medication-assisted treatment once they are released. It can allow the addict's brain to continue to heal so that the addict now possesses an ability to fight the monster. This drug is naltrexone. You may have heard of the "Vivitrol shot." It can save lives if we use it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">All of us should campaign for rehab facilities, prisons, and jails to offer incentives for addicts who agree to the shot before they are released. We are losing a generation to the ravages of drug addiction. Let’s give them a chance to stay alive. </span></div>
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Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-82310379519248098222016-10-25T13:43:00.002-07:002017-05-22T16:20:30.615-07:00You Can't Handle the Truth<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">You’ll hear it said that the Republican Party has an identity problem and that, after this election, the party leaders will have some real soul-searching to do.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">There is a large swath of the electorate who feel they've been left behind and that nobody cares about them, their lives, or their children. These are the people that Trump attracts. Unfortunately for them, he’s going to lose, and, even if he won, his promises to them are lies. He could never deliver on those promises. There will be no wall. There will be no deportation force. He doesn't seem to understand how legislation gets passed in a democracy. Congress will never approve any of his plans that cost too much. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">But the problem is that those people aren’t going away once the election is over. They are convinced, now, that the jobs that have been lost in the Rust Belt can be magically brought back by a wizard with orange hair, and that if he loses the election it will be because our democracy has failed. He should tell them the truth: that those jobs are gone forever and illegal immigrants didn’t take them. A new economy and technology did. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I live in Arizona and I have an Etsy shop selling hand dyed silk. I received an order yesterday from a woman in a village in the United Kingdom. I will ship her silk that I buy from China. That's the kind of interconnected world we live in now. There are between 6.7 and 9.7 million people who are making a living selling on eBay. Another 1.6 million are active sellers on Etsy. They may not even show up in the employment statistics, but they are independent entrepreneurs who are not depending on the government to make everything OK. </span><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "georgia" , "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">It is a global economy and candidates who don't recognize that truth are dangerous. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">My heart goes out to those Trump supporters who haven't learned to think critically; who don't read a variety of opinions in order to decide what makes sense to them; who resemble the German populace in the Hitler days, following a pied piper who is as ill-informed as they are. </span><br />
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Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-48556193892737770792016-09-17T18:24:00.000-07:002016-09-17T18:24:24.905-07:00The Law of Unintended Consequences<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Even though my heart starts palpitating and my stomach churns when I think about what the future would be if Donald Trump should be elected in November, I still find these fleeting thoughts streaking across my brain.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">One such thought is that tourism to the U.S. will probably drop significantly. Many states that enjoy the income derived from tourism will be hurt. Trump has promised to be the “law and order” President, that he can stop the killings in Chicago in a week, and that all undocumented aliens who are criminals will be deported immediately. Oh, and he wants to stop all Muslims coming into the country. So, if I were planning to come to the U.S. to see the Grand Canyon, I would cancel my plans. These tourists would imagine storm-troopers patrolling the streets. Every person would be carrying a concealed weapon ready to shoot them and their children for the least imagined infraction. And, heaven forbid, if these tourists happen to be blessed with black hair and brown eyes, they might be swept up in one of Trump’s “deportation force” roundups.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">There would be no leaders of civilized countries abroad who would meet with Donald Trump. They could never believe anything he said because he changes his mind within 24 hours. He believes everything is negotiable, and they definitely do not. Democracy, human rights, protecting the environment, responsible economic policies - those are never negotiable. I am sure, however, that Kim Jong-un, Vladimir Putin, Joseph Kabila, Nursultan Nazarbaev, and every other dictator would be happy to welcome Trump to their country. Heaven help us.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Make America Great Again is code for “let’s go back to those good old days when minorities knew their place (as servants), the television shows didn’t have any of those disgusting gay people in them, everyone drove one of those gas-guzzling monsters turned out in Detroit and nobody worried about letting the water run while you brushed your teeth.” He implies that America is not now “great,” although he also says that we have to stop all those millions of people trying to get here. So, I imagine discrimination will flourish again. Laws protecting people will be reversed. Hatred and bigotry will reign. New York, California, Colorado, Oregon, Washington, and pretty much all of the states in the northeast would attempt to secede from the union.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Those are just a few wild ideas. Do you have any? Share them with us. </span></div>
Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-68762738495621306802016-09-11T17:18:00.001-07:002016-09-13T09:55:52.353-07:00His Own Words<div class="p1">
<span class="s1">Secretary Clinton has said she regrets saying that half of Trump's supporters should be put into the “basket of deplorables.” What would have been clearer is that she could have said, "If Trump followers support his deplorable statements, they paint themselves with the same brush." Here is just a sample of the racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic, statements made by Donald Trump. If you agree with these statements, get in the basket!</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.” (Racist)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">"You could see blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her whatever." (Sexist, </span>misogynistic)</div>
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<span class="s1">"I would never buy Ivana any decent jewels or pictures. Why give her negotiable assets?" (Selfish, misogynistic</span>)</div>
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<span class="s1">"26,000 unreported sexual assults in the military-only 238 convictions. What did these geniuses expect when they put men & women together?" (Criticizing our military leaders, sexist, </span>misogynistic). </div>
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<span class="s1">“You know, it doesn’t really matter what [the media] write as long as you’ve got a young and beautiful piece of ass.” — from an interview with Esquire, 1991 (sexist, misogynistic)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“You’re living in poverty, your schools are no good, you have no jobs.” (Racist)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“I watched when the World Trade Center came tumbling down. And I watched in Jersey City, NJ, where thousands and thousands of people were cheering as that building was coming down. Thousands of people were cheering.” (Islamophobic)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“Now, the poor guy, you’ve got to see this guy. ‘Uhh, I don’t know what I said. Uhh, I don’t remember,’ he’s going like, ‘I don’t remember. Maybe that’s what I said.’” Visually mocking reporter’s physical appearance. (Hatred, fear of those not like us, no empathy.)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“We will work with them. They have to go. Chuck, we either have a country, or we don’t have a country.” (racist and uninformed.)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on,” a campaign press release said. (Islamophobic)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“Certainly, in that system, he’s been a leader, far more than our president has been a leader,” Trump said Wednesday during a candidate forum on NBC. “If Putin says great things about me, I’m gonna say great things about him. I’ve already said he is really very much of a leader.” (Praise for a dictator opposed to American interests.)</span></div>
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It still puzzles me that a man of morals and ethics who is a celebrated war hero and a dedicated public servant - John McCain - still refuses to denounce Donald J. Trump. Trump is unapologetically comfortable with white supremacists, nativists, anti-immigration, and decidedly uncomfortable with professional, competent women, minorities, the disabled, and anyone who dares suggest that he might be wrong about anything.</div>
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Ta-Nehisi Coates is correct: He says, "Clinton was right."</div>
Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-47853281864643423112016-08-31T12:38:00.001-07:002016-08-31T12:38:09.684-07:00Republicans Can't Do Math<div class="p1">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Republican Party has a lot of problems, but it’s biggest problem is that they can’t do math. I will just assume that if you’re reading this, you know what demographics means, and that you can understand numbers. I did just a tiny bit of research and this is what I found.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">People are constantly coming and going in the U.S. There are immigrants coming in, Americans leaving for other countries, babies being born, old folks dying, growing industries offering jobs, obsolete industries losing them, and lots of people getting tired of shoveling snow. The question is, are Red states losing more population (read votes) or are Blue states? </span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here are some quotes from </span><a href="http://www.governing.com/" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="s1">www.governing.com</span></a><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> - so you can check it out yourself.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“And while other states offset domestic population losses with increases in international migration, Maine and Vermont haven’t seen the same influx of the foreign born.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />Since the 2012 election, Florida, North Carolina, Arizona and Nevada all gained in population. “Arizona grew to top Massachusetts as the 14th largest state. Demographers predict the growing numbers of minorities in Arizona could eventually turn the state from red to blue.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />“In general, Democrats see a 2016 advantage in the fact that many of these states (those growing in population) are gaining minorities who traditionally lean disproportionally toward Democratic candidates.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />So, it makes no sense at all for Republicans to alienate immigrants who are moving to Red states. That will only help turn that state to Blue. Which then means that Republicans lose even more states to Democrats.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />“Almost a third of Florida’s new residents were immigrants, with Census Bureau estimates released this fall showing Cuba as the top source recently.” (Not Mexico.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />“Republicans won North Carolina in 2012 by about a 2% margin, but an influx of African-Americans there in recent years make Democrats hopeful they can capture it in 2016.” Republicans should be very, very careful not to insult and denigrate these voters.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />And, just to demonstrate how out of touch the Republicans are, “. . . California’s biggest source of immigrants for 2011-2014 combined are China and Taiwan, at 73,000 people; India, at 61,000; and the Philippines, a 42,000 people. About 24,000 people came from Mexico, just slightly more than the number from Vietnam.” </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />Because of the mathematics, it looks as though the Democrats will easily have enough electoral votes to win the White House. And Republicans, who knew four years ago that they needed to court these immigrants, have gone the other way. Now that’s just stupid.</span><br />
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Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-83885639290180839732016-08-26T19:37:00.000-07:002016-08-31T12:39:55.058-07:00They Are Not Failures<div class="p1">
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When I grew up in Selma, Alabama, 74 years ago, there were separate drinking fountains for white and colored. The white folks sat in the front of the bus. Selma was divided in half - one for the white families, with nice homes, lovely churches, good schools, and a ballet school that gave me an identity throughout high school. I don’t know what the other side of town looked like, because I never went there. My Dad used to occasionally come home on Friday night from the “other” side of town with containers of barbeque and brunswick stew. That was pretty much all I knew about the African-Americans who lived in Selma. Remember the movie, “The Help”? Some of my friends’ mothers had “help” but they were all but invisible to me. I left before the March, so I missed that historic event.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Fast-forward 74 years. Well, it probably didn’t fly by for those black neighbors of mine, but I was pretty much unaware of anything outside my small little bubble til I was much, much older. And now, I sit with my dear husband and watch the coverage of this Presidential election and see one of the candidates tell our friends and neighbors who are black that their lives are failures. I can tell you from my own life experience that this is absolutely not true. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My grandchildren have grown up with children of all ethnicities in their classroom, and they play together, go to each other’s birthday parties and compete with each other on Minecraft. That’s not failure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I shop at grocery stores, department stores, electronic stores, and I see employees that are white, black, latino, and asian. I didn’t see that in Selma when I was growing up. That’s not failure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On TV these days, I see funny, funny sitcoms about a successful black family, an Asian family, a gay couple who adopted a little girl, and dramas with leading characters who are minorities. One of my favorite late night shows is hosted by Larry Wilmore who presents the news from a black perspective. And marketing people have finally figured out that minorities have jobs, so they have money to spend, and they put brown and black faces in their commercials. That’s not failure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When I was growing up in Selma, I thought that “going to Europe,” was only for the very rich, those people who lived in places like New York, Boston or Hollywood. I also didn’t think that black people could be doctors, professors, nurses, mathematicians, physicists, or politicians. Now, not only have I been to Europe, but black people are professionals in every discipline. That’s not failure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Shame on Donald Trump. You should apologize to my friends and neighbors whose lives are not failures, but are successful by any measure. </span></div>
Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-13637379361337280432016-07-31T17:24:00.002-07:002016-07-31T17:38:57.300-07:00Job Application<span style="font-size: large;">Almost everyone has applied for a job at one time or another. Job application forms usually follow a similar pattern. They require the applicant to state his/her qualifications for the job, educational status, accomplishments in the field, and, most important, his/her employment history or experience. Quite often a background check is required as well as a credit check.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I started thinking about what an ad for the job of President would look like and who might have the qualifications sufficient to gain an interview.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">According to Geri Zabela Eddins in <a href="http://www.ourwhitehouse.org/helpwanted.html" target="_blank">Our White House, Looking In, Looking Out,</a> the president has two primary functions. One is to serve as CEO of the federal government and the second is to serve as commander in chief of the armed forces. As Chief Executive, the president must work with his staff, his Cabinet, and the enormous bureaucracy that is the federal government to ensure that laws are carried out. It is important to remember that <b>the president does not make laws</b>. The Executive branch is responsible for carrying out the laws that the Legislative branch enacts.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Specific job responsibilities require expertise in a variety of disciplines. Negotiating treaties with other nations requires diplomacy, establishing a budget requires knowledge of economics and social science, and formulating policy involving energy requires a knowledge of science. One of the most important attributes of a president is the ability to form and work with a team since no one person can possibly possess all the knowledge necessary to perform the job. Finally, the president as commander in chief can send troops into combat (presumably under the advice of his military advisors) but cannot declare war.</span> </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So, now, let's pretend that you are in charge of hiring the person who will do the job of president.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In her <i>Parade </i>magazine essay <i>“The Secrets of America’s Great Presidents,” </i>Doris Kearns Goodwin, a prize-winning historian, encourages citizens to consider ten qualities when choosing a president. We will look at those qualities and then examine our two candidates for how well they demonstrate those qualities. You are welcome to add your 2 cents worth of opinion. Finally, you will choose which candidate you think should have the job.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">1. <b> The courage to stay strong in the face of adversity.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-weight: normal;">Secretary Clinton has been in public life for more than 4 decades. She has been scrutinized, criticized, blamed, and shamed. But here we are, she is still standing, still fighting for those who can't fight for themselves, and is the Democratic nominee for President. Donald Trump has never engaged in public service, but has sought the spotlight often in his life. His response to adversity is to attack those who find fault with him. He uses the language of a bully, and never, ever, admits a mistake or apologizes for having hurt someone. He is quick to use Twitter to hurl insults out into the Twitterverse.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">2. <b> Is confident enough to seek different viewpoints.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> </span>In this campaign season, we have seen <b>HRC</b> work with her opponent, Bernie Sanders, and agree to incorporate some of his ideas into her own campaign. <b>DJT</b> says, "I alone can fix" this country's problems.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">3. <b> Can learn from his or her mistakes.</b> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> </span>The best example is that <b>HRC</b> made mistakes in 2008 that caused her to lose to Barack Obama. She did not make those same mistakes in 2016 when it came to the formidable Bernie Sanders. <b>DJT</b>'s company has filed for bankruptcy four times. Trump borrowed too much money at interest rates he could not afford, and ended up having to give up his ownership stake in various ventures. Obviously, he didn't learn from the first bankruptcy to be more fiscally responsible. </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">4. <b> Is willing to embrace change</b>.</span><br />
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The motto of the Trump campaign is "Make America Great." The implication is that America used to be great, but no longer is. So, I guess you would say DJT hasn't embraced change. HRC celebrates progress made in civil rights, the rights of women, the rights of the LGBTQ community, and promises to work together to keep moving forward.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">5. <b>Is emotionally intelligent (willing to share credit with others, accept blame, and convey strength).</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;">Example 1: <b>HRC</b> accepted responsibility for the email snafu. Example 2: <b>DJT</b> never accepted responsibility for the debts of his casinos, saying he, personally, had never filed for Chapter 13. Consider two phrases: "I Alone," and "Stronger Together." </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">6. <b>Can maintain self-control in the midst of trouble.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span>During 11 hours of intense questioning about the tragedy at Benghazi, HRC calmly answered every question, faced every attack. <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2015/10/clinton-benghazi-hearing-takeaways-215095" target="_blank">If getting yelled at for hours without losing your cool is a requirement for the presidency, Hillary Clinton checked the box on Thursday.</a> (Glenn Thrush and Gabriel Debenedetti, Politico, 10/22//15). On the other hand, when confronted with his own words by Megyn Kelly in a debate, <b>DJT </b>responded the next day with a statement so inappropriate, so vicious, and so <span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">misogynistic that it drew severe criticism from his own supporters. Totally lost his self-control.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">7. I<b>s aware and in touch with popular sentiment. </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;">This quality is one in which DJT does excel. Those Americans who feel disenfranchised, who feel they've been forgotten for too long, gaze at him as if he is the Messiah. Unfortunately, they are totally ignorant of the workings of government and don't realize that the promises made by Trump are not promises he can keep. <b>HRC</b> appears to understand that the voters who agree with her on the issues don't really care about the email issue. She spends her time discussing the issues she believes are important and telling voters her plans to address them. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">8. <b>Possesses a strong moral compass.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span>DJT </b>has been married 3 times, cheating on the present wife with the future wife each time and still claiming to be a moral, honest, person.</span><span style="font-size: small;"> <b> HRC </b>chose to keep her family together in spite of marital problems. You may not agree with her decision, but she did set a moral example.<b> </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">9. <b>Is able to relax. </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;">We know that Grandmother Hillary loves Facetiming with her granddaughter, Charlotte, and reading to her. Donald plays golf.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">10. <b>And finally, communicates well and inspires others.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;">Maybe it's just me, but I don't think <b>DJT</b> can speak in complete sentences. He starts a thought, but then cuts himself off, relying on his favorites "believe me," "trust me," "we're gonna win," and "huge." HRC speaks like an intelligent, well-informed, public servant. If Trump inspires others, it is to violence. If Hillary inspires others, it is to help those less fortunate.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Based on these qualities, you decide who is best qualified for the job. And I hope you're right.</span><br />
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Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-46034619689084940142016-07-26T11:32:00.001-07:002016-07-26T11:36:07.106-07:00Just the Facts, Ma'am<span style="font-size: large;">The Republican nominee (I refuse to use his name, just like I think we should refuse to use a mass shooting perpetrator's name) loves to spout off using social media, especially Twitter. What he fails to appreciate, though, is that the internet allows anyone to fact-check anything he says in an instant.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Years ago, we listened to candidates' speeches and had to wait for the next issue of <i>Time</i>, <i>Life</i>, <i>Newsweek</i>, or the opinions of our local newspaper editor to tell us whether the candidate was being truthful or not. This year, the<i> Washingt</i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>on Post</i> published "</span><a href="http://st.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2016/07/22/fact-checking-donald-trumps-acceptance-speech-at-the-2016-rn" style="font-size: x-large;" target="_blank">Fact-checking Donald Trump's acceptance speech at the 2016 RNC</a><span style="font-size: large;">" on the morning of July 22, only hours after the actual speech. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Turns out the nominee "cherry-picked" data to support his claims about the crime rate. Ditto for Immigration. On the issue of the economy since President Obama took office, he used out of date statistics (which actually reflected data during the Bush administration). Fact checkers state that the nominee's statement that "America is one of the highest-taxed nations in the world," is just flatly not true. Likewise, his criticism of allowing refugees into the country because there is no way to screen them is also not true.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Now, I know some will say that the <i>Washington Post</i> is a liberal newspaper, so we'll see what some other fact-checking sites say. <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2016/jul/18/fact-checking-benghazi-night-republican-convention/" target="_blank">Politifact is a fact-checking website that rates the accuracy of claims by elected officials and others who speak up in American politics.</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Rudy Giuliani characterized Clinton's proposed immigration policy as "open borders." Politifact says this claim is False.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Jeff Sessions claimed there are about 350,000 people who succeed in crossing our borders illegally each year." Politifact says this claim is False.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The nominee told Bill O'Reilly that he wanted the convention to be in Ohio; that he recommended Ohio. Strange, because the RNC announced Cleveland back on July 8, 2014 when the nominee wasn't even a candidate! Politifact says False.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Sean Duffy said "Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have left us with $19 trillion in debt." First, about half of that debt was from before Obama took office. Second, the Secretary of State has almost no role in deciding issues of fiscal policy. Verdict: Mostly false.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As for accusations that President Obama "is a Muslim," Politifacts rated this "Pants On Fire!"</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Had enough yet? I recommend everyone bookmark a fact-checking site and do your research before arriving at a conclusion about whether or not a candidate is telling the truth. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">TGFTI - Thank God For The Internet</span>Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-18342380499843861432016-07-22T20:03:00.000-07:002016-07-23T11:12:59.470-07:00Only Guns Matter<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">On the CBS news tonight there were two videos that showed police officers exhibiting violent attacks on people with absolutely no provocation. (<a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/austin-officers-investigated-for-disturbing-arrest-video/" target="_blank">http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/austin-officers-investigated-for-disturbing-arrest-video/</a>) (<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/21/us/miami-officer-involved-shooting/index.html" target="_blank">http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/21/us/miami-officer-involved-shooting/index.html</a>) (<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/07/21/fla-police-shoot-black-man-with-his-hands-up-as-he-tries-to-help-" target="_blank">https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/07/21/fla-police-shoot-black-man-with-his-hands-up-as-he-tries-to-help-</a>) It's hard to judge which is the most outrageous - the man lying on the ground with his hands in the air, who still got shot by the officer; or the one where the officer threw a slight, 120 lb. woman to the ground not once, but twice, after a traffic stop. There is no report that she threatened this police officer with a gun or other weapon. Her only weapon was the color of her skin. The health-care worker stretched full-length on the pavement tried explaining that he presented no danger to the officer. We can hear his words on the video. He asked the officer later, "Why did you shoot me?" The officer's answer? "I don't know."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">What in the world has happened to law enforcement?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I think the answer is that the Republican party in conjunction with the NRA has encouraged every American to carry a gun. (<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/apr/13/nra-weakened-gun-control-laws" target="_blank">https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/apr/13/nra-weakened-gun-control-laws</a>) States have open-carry laws where a police officer has no idea whether the person with a weapon is a "good guy" or a "bad guy." (<a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/numbers/map-where-is-open-carry-legal-1715/" target="_blank">http://blogs.wsj.com/numbers/map-where-is-open-carry-legal-1715/</a>) Even Chiefs of Police have spoken up against open-carry, saying that it makes their job much more difficult. (<a href="http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-dallas-chief-20160711-snap-story.html" target="_blank">http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-dallas-chief-20160711-snap-story.html</a>) Years ago, when an officer stopped someone for speeding or running a stop sign, they didn't really have to worry much that the driver might pull out a Glock and start shooting. Now they do. When law enforcement is operating in fear of their lives, they preempt violence with more violence. The rule now is "shoot first, ask questions later."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Unfortunately, sometimes the weapon carried by a 12-year-old turns out to be a toy. And chances are the murderer - and, make no mistake, this child was murdered - will never face any consequences. (<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/23/us/in-tamir-rice-shooting-in-cleveland-many-errors-by-police-then-a-fatal-one.html?_r=0" target="_blank">http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/23/us/in-tamir-rice-shooting-in-cleveland-many-errors-by-police-then-a-fatal-one.html?_r=0</a>) Because he is a protected class - the ones who wear a uniform and a badge. There are a myriad of reasons why law enforcement officers are not charged and convicted, even when a video exists that shows unarmed men being shot in the back while running away from the officer. (<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/investigative/2015/04/11/thousands-dead-few-prosecuted/" target="_blank">http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/investigative/2015/04/11/thousands-dead-few-prosecuted/</a>)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">If you are still naive enough to listen to politicians for information, you will hear that all the violence we see on the evening news is due to ISIS. That in some way it's all related to terrorism. This is the coward's reasoning. If you can blame the death of so many Americans on some foreign entity in a turban, then you do not have to face the consequences of your own inaction. So many times Congress has been asked to take even one small step for our country, one small step to keep assault weapons out of the hands of those who want to kill. But no, the problem is ISIS.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Therefore, those susceptible to persuasion begin to believe that every time they leave their house some crazed Muslim is going to start spraying their local Starbucks with armor-piercing bullets shot from an AR-15. So they need to buy an AR-15 so they can shoot back and not hit any innocent person, but only the dark-skinned madman.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Finally, it seems that "Black Lives Don't Matter," "Blue Lives Don't Matter," "Gay Lives Don't Matter," "First Grade Lives Don't Matter," "Bible Study Member Lives Don't Matter," "College Student Lives Don't Matter," "Movie Goer Lives Don't Matter". Only "Guns Matter."</span>Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-59000229711473508092016-06-12T12:43:00.001-07:002016-06-12T13:02:30.526-07:00Where Was The Good Guy?<span style="font-size: large;">I woke up this morning to the news of yet another mass shooting in the U.S., in <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/06/12/the-gun-used-in-the-orlando-shooting-is-becoming-mass-shooters-weapon-of" target="_blank">Orlando</a>, Florida. 50 people this time. And the death toll will increase because another 53 were injured. And, as usual, the product that produced this carnage - performing exactly as it was meant to - was an AR-15. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">There was a time when the Congress recognized that this was not a hunting rifle meant to go out and hunt Bambi, and they sensibly banned it. The following quote is from a Wikipedia article on the Assault Weapon Ban of 1994. (</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 22.4px;">The reviewing court held that it was "entirely rational for Congress ... to choose to ban those weapons commonly used for criminal purposes and to exempt those weapons commonly used for recreational purposes."</span><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-CRSr42957130214_18-4" style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Assault_Weapons_Ban#cite_note-CRSr42957130214-18" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;">[18]</a></sup><sup class="reference" style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;">:10</sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-OA-Buckles2002_22-0" style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Assault_Weapons_Ban#cite_note-OA-Buckles2002-22" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;">[22]</a></sup><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 22.4px;"> It also found that each characteristic served to make the weapon "potentially more dangerous," and were not "commonly used on weapons designed solely for hunting."</span><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-CRSr42957130214_18-5" style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Assault_Weapons_Ban#cite_note-CRSr42957130214-18" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;">[18]</a></sup><sup class="reference" style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;">:10–11</sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-23" style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: isolate; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Assault_Weapons_Ban#cite_note-23" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;">[23]</span></a><span style="font-size: large;">) </span></sup><span style="font-size: large;">Any product designed to kill as many humans as possible in as short a period of time as possible is meant for warfare, not hunting, and not for personal protection. Unless you really believe the zombies are coming.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Now the NRA says the only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2015/12/11/terrorism-good-guy-gun-concealed-carry-column/77108230/" target="_blank">good guy with a gun</a>. In the nightclub last night, I guess there were no good guys with guns. Most normal people don't want to walk around carrying a weapon that could more likely cause harm to themselves or a member of their family than protect them from some madman. I cannot envision myself killing someone else. Can you? Honestly, can you? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Where are the good guys with laws?</span><br />
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Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-5893634530692999322016-06-05T12:19:00.000-07:002016-06-11T11:46:46.344-07:00I'm Ignoring Trump<span style="font-size: large;">When it all began, we thought it was humorous. The idea of the larger-than-life reality showman running for any political office, let alone the Presidency. The only thing anyone knew about him was that he was rich and like to fire people. As time went on, the joke became less funny. And, finally, when it looked as though he would definitely be the Republican candidate, it got scary.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The major news folks - from CNN to the Twitterverse - have given Trump millions of dollars of <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/16/upshot/measuring-donald-trumps-mammoth-advantage-in-free-media.html?_r=0" target="_blank">free coverage</a>. Every word he utters seems to be news. Why? I'm damned if I know. We have a sitting President, and his activities and speeches are not covered as much as the lies and exaggerations of Mr. Trump. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Everyone seems to be concerned about the image he's giving our country. It's not just on Facebook that people are saying they will move to Canada. I said it last night. <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/mitch-mcconnell-on-trump-and-divisiveness-in-politics/" target="_blank">Mitch McConnell</a> tries to reassure us that the structure of our government will protect us from Trump's unconstitutional and racist ideas. But we have had presidents in the past who were willing to break the law to have their way. Certainly, I can imagine Trump ignoring our laws because he thinks he knows better.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The one sure thing that would straighten things out a bit is if the media just ignored him. Let him make his speeches, criticize whomever he wants, threaten each and every minority, and make promises he cannot keep - just don't cover the story. That's what <a href="http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/megyn-kelly-donald-trump-fox-news-war/2016/05/12/id/728561/" target="_blank">Megan Kelly</a> did. We've heard enough to form an opinion. Months more of it won't change our minds much. Let's see the news reports of heroism in the face of floods in Texas, document the newest breakthroughs in the treatment of cancer, show us the refugees who are settling in to their new lives. Just, please, no more Trump.</span>Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-16107270160272648402016-05-24T17:08:00.001-07:002016-06-11T11:48:21.075-07:00More than Beautiful<span style="font-size: large;">So-and-so updated her Profile photo, and all the comments say, "You are so beautiful," "Great photo," "Such a good-looking couple," etc. Why do we only acknowledge a woman's looks, not her achievements? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Just once, I would love to see the profile photo of a 40-something with three kids and a husband and a business, at the end of a marathon. Now that should garner some meaningful comments.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And now, at graduation season, let's see some photos of Moms and <a href="http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Great-Grandmother-Earns-College-Degree-at-89-361547021.html" target="_blank">grandmothers</a> in their caps and gowns, having finally earned a degree after they ensured the education of their children.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Let's see the woman who, at 2 a.m., is working on the taxes for their business, preparing for a meeting with the tax accountant. She's taking advantage of the quiet of the house after the health-care workers have gone home, the phone has stopped ringing, and her cancer-stricken husband in a hospital bed in the living room has finally gone to sleep for the night. Now that's a beautiful woman!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Think about it the next time you see that one of your Facebook friends has updated their profile. Try not to comment on her appearance - speak to her achievements.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-31053974995902349132016-05-17T12:33:00.000-07:002016-06-11T11:49:13.823-07:00Advice I Never Got<span style="font-size: large;">Why didn't anyone ever tell me that money, and managing money, is such an important part of living a full and rewarding life? No one ever told me that one day I would be 74 and arguing with my 76 year old husband about whether we could attend his nephew's funeral because we have no money.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">That's not actually true. We each have our Social Security checks coming in each month. That's a total of $1925. Our expenses are $65.00 more than that each month. And, believe me, we do not live lavishly. He makes redwood Adirondack chairs which sell for $100 each, when they sell, and I have an Etsy shop which brings in an average of $200 per month. I also do some baby-sitting and dog-sitting for extra money. We have some savings, but according to the Social Security folks, it's got to last us another 20 years. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I just wish my parents had seen fit to educate me about investing money when I was 17, that they had shown me the numbers. But it's my experience that kids don't really understand the numbers until they start buying diapers and paying for pediatrician visits. I don't know what I was thinking back then, or even when I had three kids and was working full-time to pay the bills. I argued then that there simply was no money left over to save, but, of course, there was. I just didn't choose to do it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here's what I am going to do for my grandson: make a picture book showing (a) the car you can have if you have money, and (b) the car you have if you don't; the trips you can take if you save money, and (b) the road trip to Wally World if you don't; (a) the house you can give your family with a college degree, and (b) the low-rent apartment you'll have with a GED. You get the idea, right? Maybe that will work better than talking numbers. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But how do you tell them that the working years go by so fast and in a blink, you're 74 and arguing about money.</span>Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-18310217284425453812016-05-16T12:24:00.000-07:002016-05-16T12:24:41.013-07:00God's Not Listening, Folks<span style="font-size: large;">These past two months have been difficult for our family. My brother was diagnosed with Stage 4 Liver Cancer and given 6 months to live. My husband's nephew died suddenly from a massive seizure. Two days later, we got a phone call from my husband's niece who said that her younger brother had just died from a heart attack. He was only 49 years old. Then a family friend died from colon cancer - she was 39. Oh, and I forgot to mention that my husband was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma and just completed six months of chemo.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Throughout all of this, everyone kept saying, "We're praying for you." On Facebook, requests were made for everyone to "say a prayer for fill-in-the-blank." Even after a death, people are still praying. Doesn't anyone ever realize that if there is a God, he's not listening to all those prayers?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The most fervent Catholic members of the family plead for prayers every time their daughter, who has cystic fibrosis, is in the hospital. They ask us to pray for her lung function to improve, when all her life they have known that it is the doctors, nurses, and medical technology that bring her lung function back to normal. Do they ever, ever, post something that says thanks to the medical team? No, they thank all those who prayed.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As for me, I try to stay open to new knowledge. I talk to others about their experiences. I read about new approaches in genetic treatments, since I have come to understand that your DNA has more to do with your health than your reputation with God. Recently, I did some research on cannabis oil as a treatment for cancer. Perhaps God directed me to google "cannabis and cancer." </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I wish someone could tell me what their feelings are when all their friends and family members are praying their asses off for a person and that person still dies. Do they think God didn't pay any attention? Or did God decide that He/She needed that person in heaven to do some tasks that only they could do? </span><br />
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<br />Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-51554858590691734822016-04-25T17:08:00.000-07:002016-06-11T11:53:54.475-07:00How Can You Call Yourself a Christian?<span style="font-size: large;">It seems like every day I see another example of hypocrisy. Frequently, it's on the news: another candidate who claims to be a Christian is threatening all kinds of horrible things that he or she will do to other people if we elect him/her. But often it is closer to home - much closer to home.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I'm speaking now of a Catholic family. One whose children went to Catholic schools, who are ultra-conservative, and who frequently request that their Facebook friends pray for them. But then, when their son died a few weeks ago, they published an obituary which pointedly left out the name of his wife of 20 years as a survivor. Is this what Jesus would do?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Perhaps this woman did things that did not sit well with her husband's parents. That would be understandable, since the son himself could never stand up to his father. His wife, however, was a strong woman who did not suffer fools. So, yes, maybe they are mad at her. But isn't forgiveness part of the Christian doctrine? Did their son not choose this woman to be his wife until he died? Can they not respect that choice and give her the respect she deserves? It is clear, in this final act, that the father still could not simply love his son unconditionally. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Oh, did I mention that the wife was the primary care-taker for the son as he dealt with the complications of a brain tumor, finally confined to a wheel-chair, and in a nursing home. Thank God for people like her - not people like his birth family.</span>Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-55347429556751767872016-04-24T11:47:00.000-07:002016-06-11T11:53:15.656-07:00Why Do You Have to Be So Mean?<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">My husband's brother had two children, Matthew and Melinda, while my husband chose not to have any. So, my husband was always close to his nieces and nephews throughout their lives. His nephew, Matt, had a brain tumor when he was 26 years old, and had surgery and radiation treatment at the time - which is now over 30 years ago.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Matt worked hard, got a master's degree, and worked for AT&T for many years. He married and had a son, John. As so often happens these days, they divorced and John went to live with his mother. By this time, Matt's father hated the woman who divorced his son, and therefore he never had a relationship with his grandson, either. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">At church one Sunday, Matthew met a vivacious woman with long dark hair and a smile that would make you happy just looking at her. She was a single mom with two small children, and Matt was a lonely young man looking for a family. They married and loved each other for over 20 years. His father was now a happy man, seeing his son happy after so much pain, right? Oh, no! Dad was convinced that "she only married him for his money." What money? Matt worked a middle management job and probably was able to invest in a 401K, pretty much what everyone else was doing at the time. Not going to become a millionaire like that. And his wife's ex-husband took care of his share of the expenses for their two children, so it's not like Matt had to assume the entire burden of raising the two.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Eventually, a few years ago, scar tissue formed in Matt's brain at the site of his tumor surgery. He began to lose function in several ways, and became unable to work. His wife carried on, running the household, caring for Matt and her two children and working full-time. She was the best caretaker anyone could hope for - she did what was absolutely necessary, but allowed Matt to do anything that he possibly could for himself. When it became dangerous to leave him alone in the house, she found the best nursing home for him, close to their home so she could see him every day. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Matt's parents visited their son once a year. His sister, Melinda, visited occasionally, but she had two daughters and a husband and a job at home in a far-away state. A few weeks ago, Matt suffered a massive seizure and died. Even though his death was unexpected, no one would have wished that he had lived longer and declined further.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Matthew's family is going to have a small, private service in their home town. His wife intends to take his ashes up in the mountains where they spent so many happy hours together. Matt's father and sister want to have another memorial service where they live, even though Matt hadn't been there for over 30 years. Today they published an obituary for Matt. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The obituary praised Matt for being a wonderful son, brother, father, and uncle. Wait, I had to read that again. No husband? Matt was married when he died, his wife of 20+ years totally ignored. Then, the obit mentioned Matt being survived by his parents, his sister and husband and two nieces, and a son and grandson - but no WIFE! How can people be so cruel? I am so ashamed to call them in-laws. They are out-laws to me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Matt loved his wife. He loved his step-children. And they loved him. We visited them several times and saw how happy their lives were. The only thing tarnishing their lives was the disapproval and nastiness of Matt's family. And now it continues even after that sweet boy's death. </span><br />
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<br />Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-36009465269202821232015-10-04T18:39:00.002-07:002015-10-04T18:43:26.003-07:00If Only Every Country Would Do This<br />
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<h1 class="entry-title" style="background-color: white; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #3a3a3c; font-family: DagnyWebProBlack, Avenir, 'Trebuchet MS', 'Lucida Sans', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 2.5rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: normal; line-height: 3rem; margin: 0px; padding: 0.25em 0px 0.25rem; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-size: 2.5rem; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 3rem;">Australian Group Calls For Boycott Of U.S. Until America Fixes Its Gun Laws</span></h1>
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<span class="byline" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">BY <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/?person=eatkin" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: bold; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">EMILY ATKIN</a><a href="https://twitter.com/intent/user?screen_name=@emorwee" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: bold; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><img class="twitter-bird" src="http://thinkprogress.org/wp-content/plugins/cap-byline/bird_blue_16.png" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px -1px 0px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 0px 5px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" /></a></span> <span class="posted-on" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">OCT 4, 2015 1:44PM</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; line-height: 24px;"><span style="border-color: initial; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border-style: initial; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin-top: 1rem; width: 736px;"><img class="featured-image" src="http://cdn.thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/04130030/Person.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin: 1rem 0px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 736px;" /></span></span><div style="background-color: white; border-image-outset: initial; border-image-repeat: initial; border-image-slice: initial; border-image-source: initial; border-image-width: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
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CREDIT: TODAY SHOW/SCREENSHOT</div>
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Samantha Lee, director of Gun Control Australia.</div>
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In the wake of yet another mass shooting in America, there are <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2015/10/03/3708876/australians-are-disgusted-at-the-american-response-to-the-oregon-gun-massacre/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">a lot of Australians unhappy</a> with the United States. America has failed, they note, to implement any gun control measures to prevent these recurring tragedies — no background check expansions, no bans on larger assault weapons, no nothing.</div>
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But besides expressing disgust and <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/19/world/us-australia-gun-control/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">leading by example</a>, is there anything Australians can actually do about it?</div>
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One group thinks there is. In an interview on Australia’s Today Show, Gun Control Australia director Samantha Lee suggested a boycott of non-essential travel to America to protest its inaction on gun control.</div>
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“We have 2.1 million Australians visiting the U.S. every year and over 200,000 expats in America,” Lee said. “So I believe we have a duty to respond to this tragedy in the U.S. And the way to do this is have a boycott of non-essential travel to the U.S.”</div>
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Though there’s been no indication yet that Australians will boycott travel over America’s inaction on gun control, Australians <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2015/10/03/3708876/australians-are-disgusted-at-the-american-response-to-the-oregon-gun-massacre/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">have been calling out the U.S.</a> for not responding to gun massacres the way their country did two decades ago. In 1996, after a man went on a rampage with a semi-automatic rifle and killed 35 people, Australia banned high-powered rifles and enacted strict licensing requirements.</div>
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Since then, Australia has seen <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/19/world/us-australia-gun-control/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">no mass shootings</a>, which are defined as five or more people being shot. And <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/editorial/three-million-guns-is-more-than-enough-20130114-2cppg.html" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">millions of Australians</a> still own guns.</div>
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In his address to the country following last week’s mass shooting at an Oregon community college, President Obama cited Australia as an example of a country with common sense gun laws. On the Today Show, Lee said Australia should “act as an international community to assist Obama to push those laws through Congress.”</div>
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<img alt="Gun deaths in Australia decreased significantly after the country reformed their gun laws." src="http://cdn.thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/04132102/Gundeaths-816x432.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; display: block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 638px; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: auto;" /><br />
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Gun deaths in Australia decreased significantly after the country reformed their gun laws.</div>
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“Having criminal record checks, and mental health checks, and increasing security checks in schools,” Lee said. “This is in no way radical in terms of Australia and our gun laws.”</div>
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Lee also suggested that Australia ban donations from the firearms industry to their political parties, which she said would “allow us to raise that issue with America to ban donations from the gun lobby.”</div>
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<img alt="The gun rights lobby has spent considerably more influencing U.S. policy than the gun control lobby." src="http://cdn.thinkprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/04132514/Graph.jpg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto !important; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; width: 335px;" /><br />
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The gun rights lobby has spent considerably more influencing U.S. policy than the gun control lobby.</div>
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CREDIT: BOSTON GLOBE</div>
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“Millions of dollars are donated by the [National Rifle Association], particularly to the Republican party [in America],” she said, lamenting the “cozy relationship” between the gun lobby and politicians in both countries. “In Australia, we need to be cautious that we also don’t take any donations from the firearms industry, and we need to raise this issue with the U.S.”</div>
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Led by the NRA, gun rights activists have spent millions of dollars influencing U.S. politics, though more of their money goes toward lobbying for and against legislation than to actual candidates. The top recipients of contributions from the gun rights lobby include current House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), according to the <a href="https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2015/06/19/tracking-influence-gun-rights-lobby/wIdnirHWAqdHh6AslPXzGI/story.html" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Boston Globe</a>.</div>
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But even though <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-01-14/australians-own-as-many-guns-as-in-1996/4463150" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">millions of Australians have guns</a>, conservatives have been decrying Obama’s attempt to look to countries like Australia for inspiration on gun control. On Fox News on Sunday, Clayton Morris <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/2015/10/fox-news-host-people-in-australia-have-no-freedom-because-hate-speech-and-guns-are-regulated/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">asserted</a> that Australian citizens “aren’t allowed to have guns.” “They also have no freedom!” another host retorted.</div>
Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-13004137424783066292014-09-07T16:29:00.001-07:002014-09-07T16:30:55.374-07:00The Face of God<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Had a conversation yesterday with an old man who has lived here for 50 years. He told of working with a well driller back a few years who was a genius at finding water. He was so good, in fact, that they would arrive at a site in the morning, he would decide where to drill, they would set up the rig, and have water by lunchtime. A quick bite, a pee, maybe a smoke and then off to drill another well before dark. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The old man said he had thought long and hard about God in his life, and had learned working with the driller that Water is the Face of God. Nothing lives without water, Water is the trinity: vapor, liquid, solid. We are composed of Water and a few other chemicals, everything you see outside your window contains Water. He said he goes to church for the music and the food sometimes, but when he wants to feel the presence of God, he goes for a walk.</span></div>
Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-5955135464965092162014-09-03T17:20:00.001-07:002014-09-03T17:20:10.979-07:00Get Your Act Together Before It's Too LateAn acquaintance back in New Jersey has been involved in a volatile, often abusive, relationship with one of those striking Italian brunettes that are native to the Jersey Shore. He has threatened more than once to pack up his van and get out of Dodge (or Little Egg Harbor, in this case). But, like in the Sopranos, every time he's almost out, "they pull me back in." And off he goes on the roller coaster again.<br />
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Recently, however, there was a new twist to the soap opera. The Jersey girl was hospitalized with an aneurysm. Her brain was swelling so that the doctors had to remove half her skull. She has been in a coma for three weeks now. Of course, Jersey Boy has been distraught, fearing that his sometime wish to have her out of his life might really be granted.<br />
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The feeling of helplessness he's experiencing has expressed itself in the decision to have her name tattooed down his arm from shoulder to wrist. A friend who obviously knows the history of this on-again, off-again love affair posted on Facebook: "And nobody ever regretted a decision like that." I wonder if Jersey Boy even got it.<br />
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I have walked around this planet with my eyes and ears open long enough to have learned a few things, and here is one of them. You spend the first 18 years just growing up, going to school, rolling along to adulthood. Then, you spend from 18 to about 30 figuring out who you are and learning what not to do. This is also when you pair up with someone and pass on your genes to the next generation. From 30 to 50, though, is when you actually get your shit together. Your career is established, you accumulate assets, you realize your parents aren't going to live forever and you will step up to the plate, and you learn to take comfort in good friends, beautiful sunsets, and the fact that you have only put on an extra 15 pounds since your college days.<br />
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Now Jersey Boy is pushing 50, so it's beyond time to break the addiction to drama.<br />
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Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-45964054319893744342014-08-31T15:46:00.000-07:002014-08-31T15:48:20.376-07:00House Sitting in California<div>
Ron and I are trying an experiment:house and pet sitting for a couple in Shingle Springs, California. They are interesting, well-travelled folks who have a house on the beach in Costa Rica and they are headed there for a month. So we are getting out of the heat in Phoenix and spending this time in the gold rush country. There are other creative ways retirees are using their time to travel and experience new places. This article from the NY Times is chock full of ideas.</div>
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Increasingly, Retirees Dump Their Possessions and Hit the Road</div>
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SOME call themselves “senior gypsies.” Others prefer “international nomad.” David Law, 74, a retired executive recruiter who has primarily slept in tents in several countries in the last two years, likes the ring of “American Bedouin.”</div>
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They are American retirees who have downsized to the extreme, choosing a life of travel over a life of tending to possessions. And their numbers are rising.</div>
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Mr. Law and his wife, Bonnie Carleton, 69, who are selling their house in Santa Fe, N.M., spoke recently by phone from a campground in Stoupa, Greece, a village on the southern coast of the Peloponnese. He explained that they roam the world to “get the broadest and most radical experience that we can get.”</div>
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They recently decided to fold their tent. “Hey, we’re getting to be too old for this,” said Mr. Law about camping out. But they intend to continue what he termed their “endless holiday” in a more comfortable and spacious recreational vehicle.</div>
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Between 1993 and 2012, the percentage of all retirees traveling abroad rose to 13 percent from 9.7 percent, according to the Commerce Department.</div>
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About 360,000 Americans received Social Security benefits at foreign addresses in 2013, about 48 percent more than 10 years earlier. An informal survey of insurance brokers found greater demand by older clients for travel medical policies. (Medicare, with a few exceptions, does not cover expenses outside the United States). While many retirees ultimately return home or become expatriates, some live like vagabonds.</div>
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Lynne Martin, 73, a retired publicist and the author of “Home Sweet Anywhere: How We Sold Our House, Created a New Life, and Saw the World,” is one. Three years ago, she and her husband, Tim, 68, sold their three-bedroom house in Paso Robles, Calif., gave away most of their possessions, found a home for their Jack Russell terrier, Sparky, and now live in short-term vacation rentals they usually find through HomeAway.com.</div>
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The Martins have not tapped their savings during their travels, alternating visits to expensive cities like London with more reasonable destinations like Lisbon. “We simply traded the money we were spending for overhead on a house and garden in California for a life in much smaller but comfortable HomeAway rentals in more interesting places,” Ms. Martin said by email from Paris.</div>
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On her blog, Barefoot Lovey, Stacy Monday, 50, a former paralegal and mediator who lived in Knoxville, Tenn., wrote: “I used to dream about all the places I would go as soon as I was old enough to get away. But then ... life happened.” On May 1, 2010 — like many itinerant baby boomers Ms. Monday can quickly recall the date her journey started — she embarked on her dream trip. She “crisscrossed the U.S. three times” and visited Mexico, Ireland, France, Italy, Morocco, Spain and many other countries.</div>
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“I sold everything I had,” Ms. Monday recalled earlier this summer from San Francisco before she headed to Las Vegas, Dallas, Memphis and Knoxville. “I paid off all of my debt. I have no bills and no money.” She estimates that she now spends $150 a month — sometimes less if she is saving up for a flight — and earns a modest income through “odds-and-ends jobs,” as well as the tip jar on her blog.</div>
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To stick to her tight budget, Ms. Monday volunteers for nonprofits and organic farms in exchange for room and board or finds free places to stay through Couchsurfing.org. The company puts its membership of people 50 and older at about 250,000.</div>
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Ms. Monday monitors ride-share boards at Couchsurfing and Craigslist for free or inexpensive transportation, and she travels light. “I get away with a couple pairs of jeans, a pair of shorts, a skirt and four or five shirts and a pair of pajamas,” she said.</div>
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When she answers the ubiquitous question, What do you do? Ms. Monday notices that most women respond with encouragement, while many men are less supportive. “They say: ‘You should be home. That’s not safe. You are old.’ I get that from a lot of the men,” she said.</div>
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Hal E. Hershfield, an assistant professor of marketing at the University of California, Los Angeles who studies the influence of time on consumer behavior, observes that many “pre-retirees” still assume retirement is a “decrepit, sitting on a porch, maybe playing golf, ice-tea type of life.”</div>
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But current retirees are “changing the way they think,” he said, “because they are still healthy and sort of young at heart.” In the last 50 years, retirement “wasn’t this period that we spent years and years in,” Mr. Hershfield continues. “It really, truly was the end of life.”</div>
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Galit Nimrod, a research fellow at the Center for Multidisciplinary Research in Aging at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel, says an extended postretirement trip can assuage a sense of loss from ending a career. Travel can “act as a neutral, transitional zone between voluntary or imposed endings and new beginnings” and “serve as a healthy coping mechanism,” Dr. Nimrod said by email.</div>
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Gary D. Norton, 69, acknowledges that he felt “afraid of retirement” when he left his job of 34 years as a science professor at a South Dakota community college.</div>
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In 2002, he and his wife, Avis M. Norton, 67, a retired farmer, sold their house, bought an R.V. and started volunteering full time for two nonprofits: Nomads on a Mission Active in Divine Service, orNomads, and RV Care-A-Vanners, an initiative of Habitat for Humanity.</div>
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The couple typically rebuilds houses damaged by natural disasters, projects that usually last several weeks. Mr. Norton, who now specializes in drywall finishing, and his wife, who studied carpentry, say they cherish the chance to give back to society while seeing the country. “Now what we’re doing is so satisfying and fulfilling, even though we have some health issues, we say we don’t want to quit,” said Mr. Norton, who estimated that he and his wife had repaired damaged homes in 28 states.</div>
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The chance to volunteer on international conservation projects and the opportunity to live like a local inspired Danila Mansfield, 58, and her husband, Chris Gill, 64, to sell their house in San Jose, Calif., last year. They got rid of nearly everything they owned — the exceptions being two suitcases, clothing and a pair of guitars (Mr. Gill’s prized Gibson ES-335 electric guitar is stowed at a friend’s house, but he totes around a travel guitar) — and do not even rent a storage space.</div>
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The purge of possessions was “a little nerve-racking” at first, but ultimately “hugely liberating,” said Ms. Mansfield, who is currently in South Africa. She and her husband plan to volunteer on game reserves to protect endangered species and then study great white sharks.</div>
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So far, their travels have surpassed expectations. They drove from San Jose to Florida over five months, before cruising to Europe. High points included meeting a judge at a bar in Amarillo, Tex., who invited them to visit his drug court, catching crawfish with locals in Louisiana’s bayou country and making new friends in Austin, Tex., who invited the couple to stay with them in South Africa.</div>
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But Ms. Mansfield has also hit bumps in the road. In Galveston, Tex., and New Orleans, an acute respiratory illness required three visits to urgent care centers. “It was really dragging me down,” she recalled. At one point she cried for home, but then managed to brighten her mood. “I kept telling myself, ‘This is home,’ ” Ms. Mansfield said. “Where I am is home.”</div>
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Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-71062693783820557562014-06-11T12:42:00.002-07:002014-06-11T12:43:48.431-07:00Call Target and tell them you don't want to be one!I just called Target headquarters and asked them, politely, to adopt sensible gun policies. I don't want to take my grandchildren into a store where guns are allowed. Tomorrow is Target's shareholder's meeting. Let's see if they take action, and if not, then refuse to shop there. The most effective way to effect change is through their profits. If they do nothing tomorrow, I urge everyone to dump their Target stock.<br />
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<br />Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-11288965590345121692014-06-07T10:20:00.000-07:002014-06-07T10:31:50.227-07:00NOT ONE MOREFYI<br />
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There are bumper stickers on both Zazzle and Cafe Press that simply say, "Not One More." <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/not_one_more_bumper_sticker-128418294226867651" target="_blank">Buy it here:</a><br />
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Richard Martinez pleaded with a do-nothing Congress to act so that "Not One More" person is suddenly taken away by a gunshot.<br />
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Mr. Martinez, Gabby Giffords, Moms Demand Action, and others, like Jon Stewart, who are simply fed up with the daily shootings in this country, should make their voices heard in every way they can.Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-9307959626966045632014-06-04T09:58:00.002-07:002014-06-04T09:58:45.413-07:00Is There a Right to Life? And I'm Not Talking About Abortion
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<span class="s1">It is difficult to read stories about Elliot Rodger, the 22-year-old man who went on a murderous spree in Isla Vista, Calif., last month, without feeling some empathy for his parents.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">We know that his mother, alarmed by some of his misogynistic <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/10853875/California-drive-by-shooting-Son-of-Hunger-Games-assistant-director-Elliot-Rodger-suspected-of-killing-six.html"><span class="s2">YouTube videos</span></a>, made a call that resulted in <a href="http://www.sbsheriff.org/05291401.html"><span class="s2">the police visiting Rodger</span></a>. The headline from that meeting was that Rodger, seemingly calm and collected, easily deflected the police’s attention. But there was surely a subtext: How worried — how desperate, really — must a mother be to believe the police should be called on her own son?</span></div>
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<span class="s1">We also learned that on the day of his murderous rampage, his mother, having read the first few lines of his “manifesto,” had phoned his father, from whom she was divorced. In separate cars, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/26/us/parents-nightmare-failed-race-to-stop-killings.html"><span class="s2">they raced</span></a> from Los Angeles to Santa Barbara hoping to stop what they feared was about to happen.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">And then, on Monday, <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/26/us/parents-nightmare-failed-race-to-stop-killings.html"><span class="s2">in a remarkably detailed article in The New York Times</span></a>, we learned the rest of it. How Rodger was clearly a troubled soul before he even turned 8 years old. How his parents’ concern about his mental health was like a “shadow that hung over this Los Angeles family nearly every day of Elliot’s life.”</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Constantly bullied and unable to fit in, he went through three high schools. In college, he tried to throw a girl off a ledge at a party — and was beaten up. (“I’m going to kill them,” he said to a neighbor afterward.) He finally retreated to some Internet sites that “drew sexually frustrated young men,” according to The Times.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Throughout, said one person who knew Rodger, “his mom did everything she could to help Elliot.” But what his parents never did was the one thing that might have prevented him from buying a gun: have him committed to a psychiatric facility. California’s tough gun laws notwithstanding, a background check <a href="http://www.ibtimes.com/california-police-lacked-probable-cause-confiscate-shooter-elliot-rodgers-handguns-1590687"><span class="s2">would have caught him</span></a> only if he had had in-patient mental health treatment, made a serious threat to an identifiable victim in the presence of a therapist, or had a criminal record. He had none of the above.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Should his parents have taken more steps to have him treated? Could they have? It is awfully hard to say, even in retrospect. On the one hand, there were plainly people who knew him who feared that he might someday harm others. On the other hand, those people weren’t psychiatrists. He was a loner, a misfit, whose parents were more fearful of how the world would treat their son than how their son would treat the world. And his mother, after all, did reach out for help, and the police responded and decided they had no cause to arrest him <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/cops-talked-elliot-rodger-3-times-didn-guns-article-1.1812855"><span class="s2">or even search his room</span></a>, where his guns were hidden.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Once again, a mass killing has triggered calls for doing something to keep guns away from the mentally ill. And, once again, the realities of the situation convey how difficult a task that is. There are, after all, plenty of young, male, alienated loners — the now-standard description of mass shooters — but very few of them become killers.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">And you can’t go around committing them all because a tiny handful might turn out to be killers. Indeed, the law is very clear on this point. In 1975,<a href="http://www.treatmentadvocacycenter.org/component/content/article/341"><span class="s2">the Supreme Court ruled</span></a> that nondangerous mentally ill people can’t be confined against their will if they can function without confinement. “In California, the bar is very high for people like Elliot,” said Dr. E. Fuller Torrey, who founded the Treatment Advocacy Center. In a sense, California’s commitment to freedom for the mentally ill conflicts with its background-check law.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Torrey believes that the country should involuntarily commit more mentally ill people, not only because they can sometimes commit acts of violence but because there are far more people who can’t function in the world than the mental health community likes to acknowledge.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">In this, however, he is an outlier. The mainstream sentiment among mental health professionals is that there is no going back to the bad-old days when people who were capable of living on their own were locked up for years in mental hospitals. The truth is, the kind of symptoms Elliot Rodger showed were unlikely to get him confined in any case. And without a history of confinement, he had every legal right to buy a gun.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">You read the stories about Elliot Rodger and it is easy to think: If this guy, with all his obvious problems, can slip through the cracks, then what hope is there of ever stopping mass shootings?</span></div>
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<span class="s1">But, of course, there is another way of thinking about this. Instead of focusing on making it harder for the mentally ill to get guns, maybe we should be making it harder to get guns, period. Something to consider before the next mass shooting.</span></div>
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Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25023287.post-47476077198052507822014-05-31T10:08:00.000-07:002014-05-31T13:58:12.153-07:00WHAT ARE THOSE NRA BOYS AFRAID OF? NERDY SCIENTISTS?<b>We see once again with more dead students, this time at the University of California, Santa Barbara, that gun violence in America is an epidemic</b>.<br />
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<span class="s1">This is a fact of life seen everywhere except the National Rifle Association, the most dangerous lobby in this country or any country, and by the elected officials who regularly pimp themselves out to it.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">We are talking here about all those in the Senate and in the Congress who represent gun companies even more fiercely than they do their states or their districts, those who hide behind the Second Amendment, something conceived and written for a world of muskets, the way cockroaches hide in similar dark places.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">These are people who do not only fight what they call “gun grabbers.” They also fight any legitimate research into the whole complicated subject of gun violence by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is only allowed to spend around $100,000 a year because the NRA and its tame politicians act as if education is some kind of threat to our basic freedoms, instead of a way to understand the connection between the insane number of guns in this country and the people who keep dying as a result of them.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Nobody is saying that the NRA, or legitimate gun owners — you must differentiate between them and the gun nuts who act as if the government is about to roll into their driveways with tanks and take their rifles — are responsible for what happened this weekend in Isla Vista, Calif., or at Fort Hood last month, or Virginia Tech, or Newtown. But to ignore the growing problem of gun violence, to resist thoughtful and scientific — and nonpolitical — research into its causes, is no better than looking away when more innocent people are gunned down.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">It reminds you of the old story, told by Jimmy Breslin, about when F. Lee Bailey was defending a New Jersey doctor named Carl Coppolino, accused of murdering his wife. At some point in the runup to the trial, Coppolino told Bailey one day that he hadn’t killed his wife.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">And Bailey said, “Well, yeah, Carl, but it’s not like you did very much to keep her alive.”</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Now Sen. Edward Markey of Massachusetts and Rep. Carolyn Maloney of New York are introducing legislation that would give the CDC $10 million a year “for the purpose of conducting support or research on firearms safety or gun violence protection.”</span></div>
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<span class="s1">They will be fought, certainly, by the NRA and those in Washington who provide cover for the gun manufacturers and their lobbyists. We will once again be told they are just preserving and protecting the Second Amendment, even as these people constantly shame the Second Amendment, as if they’re all knuckle-draggers like Joe the Plumber. But it is Markey and Maloney who are fighting an honorable fight here, in the shadow of another mass shooting in America.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“In America,” Maloney said in a statement the other day, “gun violence kills twice as many children as cancer, and yet political grandstanding has halted funding for public research to understand this crisis.”</span></div>
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<span class="s1">She is already being called a grandstander by the NRA and the bullhorn media that too often genuflects in front of it. So is Markey. But maybe this will be a time when they can actually get something done on responsible research into this subject for the first time in 20 years.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Reasonable people know enough to be afraid of a gun in the wrong hands in America. But ask yourself a question: Why is the NRA so afraid of research on gun violence unless it is afraid of what that research might tell us? Even since Newtown, any kind of gun control has been fought in Washington by gutless politicians, so many of them from the right. Now they act as if they have to go get a gun to protect themselves from research, in what is supposed to be the most enlightened country on Earth.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Just not when it comes to guns. Those who scream about gun grabbers aren’t protecting the Second Amendment, they are protecting gun money. They act like Americans who look in horror at the number of gun deaths in America are like tree huggers, or those who want to save the whales, or members of the Flat Earth Society.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">We are constantly told by the people who think the current gun laws and gun culture are just fine the way they are that they need their guns to protect themselves. But more and more you wonder who protects the rest of us from them?</span></div>
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<span class="s1">The Centers for Disease Control sponsors all sorts of programs to prevent injuries and diseases, spends money on cancer and HIV, on brittle bones for the elderly. Then they get shamefully nickel-and-dimed on studying an epidemic like gun violence. We know we’re afraid of guns. What are the gun lovers afraid of?</span></div>
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<span class="s2">Read more: <span class="s3"><a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/research-shed-light-gun-violence-article-1.1809288#ixzz33EHBAqsn">http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/research-shed-light-gun-violence-article-1.1809288#ixzz33EHBAqsn</a></span></span><br />
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<span class="s2"><span class="s1"><b>Keep Handguns Away From Teenagers</b></span></span></div>
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<span class="s2"><span class="s2"><b>By </b><a href="http://takingnote.blogs.nytimes.com/author/teresa-tritch/"><span class="s3"><b>TERESA TRITCH</b></span></a></span><span class="s4"> </span><span class="s1">MAY 30, 2014 4:23 PM</span><span class="s5"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1">In response to the Isla Vista rampage, legislators in California are introducing a bill that would let the police and private individuals ask a court for a restraining order to deny guns to those who pose a threat to themselves or others.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">The bill would be an advance in gun-control legislation. Before now, the notion of gun restraining orders had mainly captured the attention of mental health experts and academic researchers, but not legislators.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Still, there is another step California has already taken to keep guns out of the wrong hands that should be emulated elsewhere: setting the age to buy and to own a handgun at 21.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Currently, <a href="http://smartgunlaws.org/minimum-age-to-purchase-possess-firearms-policy-summary"><span class="s6">federal law and most states</span></a> let 18-year-olds purchase and own handguns. That flies in the face of research and common sense. Studies have documented the prevalence of <a href="http://teenmentalhealth.org/blog/post/risk-taking-behaviour-in-adolescence"><span class="s6">heightened risk-taking</span></a> among teenagers. Statistics show that <a href="http://gunviolence.issuelab.org/resource/case_for_gun_policy_reforms_in_america_the"><span class="s6">homicide rates rise</span></a>in the late teens and peak at age 20. A <a href="http://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=pbse&sid=31"><span class="s6">Justice Department study</span></a>from 2012 found that many young gun offenders incarcerated in states with the weakest gun control laws would have faced bans on gun ownership in states with the strongest controls.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Raising the handgun ownership age would not apply to rifles and shotguns, and would not prohibit parents and children from going hunting together with a long gun. (Most of the states that limit handgun sales to those 21 and older allow 18-year-olds to buy and possess long guns.) Handguns, however, are the weapon most often used in gun shootings and deaths.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Pro-gun lobbyists will invariably point out that rampages like the one in Isla Vista have been committed by people over the age of 21. That is willfully off-point: The idea that gun control shouldn’t respond to obvious gun dangers because they didn’t play a central role in a particular crime amounts to fatal abdication of adult responsibility.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">They also say that setting the age at 21 for handguns, as California, New York, New Jersey, and 10 other states have done, punishes law-abiding 18- to 20-year-olds for the transgressions of the few. But all 50 states have set the drinking age at 21 out of concern for increased risk-taking by teens and the threat that poses to them and the public. The same concern applies to gun ownership, and the solution is the same. Raise the legal age for handguns to 21 in every state.</span></div>
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<strong style="color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">To the Editor:</strong></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">In “</span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/28/opinion/why-cant-doctors-identify-killers.html" style="color: #326891; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">Why Can’t Doctors Identify Killers?</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">” (Op-Ed, May 28), Richard A. Friedman argues that it’s extremely difficult for prospective mass murderers to be identified and stopped before they kill.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">Although Dr. Friedman presents a convincing case, the regular occurrence of horrific killings cries out for drastic changes in the way the psychiatric community and the public treat even the slightest oddity in behavior that they observe that might signal a proclivity toward violence.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">Virtually every mass killing has been carried out by angry young men, thus significantly limiting in scope the population of people who need to be identified.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">The nightmares of Columbine, Aurora, Newtown and now Isla Vista require a nationwide effort to train thousands of people in ways to identify these angry young men and report them to local authorities before they kill more innocent people.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">Nothing less is needed if this spate of murders is to be stopped before these mentally ill men kill again.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">ALAN SAFRON</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">Woodcliff Lake, N.J., May 28, 2014</span></div>
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<strong style="color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">To the Editor:</strong></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">Re “</span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/27/us/campus-killings-set-off-anguished-conversation-about-the-treatment-of-women.html" style="color: #326891; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">Campus Killings Set Off Anguished Conversation</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">” (front page, May 27): Counteracting misogyny is a very worthy goal, but it is not likely to have a direct impact on mass shootings and gun-related violence in the United States — nor will the intense focus on one individual’s psychopathology.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">The best predictor of violence is a history of violence, and a recent</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;"> </span><a href="http://3gbwir1ummda16xrhf4do9d21bsx.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/analysis-of-recent-mass-shootings.pdf" style="color: #326891; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">study</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">by Mayors Against Illegal Guns finds a strong correlation between mass shootings and domestic violence. Of the 93 mass shootings between 2009 and 2013 in the United States, 57 percent involved the killing of a spouse, family member or intimate partner, and in at least 17 instances, the shooter had a prior domestic violence charge.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">Closing loopholes in current laws prohibiting gun sales to people convicted of domestic violence, as proposed in a</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;"> </span><a href="https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/113/s1290/text" style="color: #326891; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">bill</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">by Senator Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat from Minnesota, would be one small but useful step in reducing gun-related killings.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">RONALD PIES</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.4375rem;">Cazenovia, N.Y., May 27, 2014</span></div>
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Dottie Dayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06306919156595465603noreply@blogger.com0