Sinking Below the Poverty Level

Currently, the poverty threshold for the United States is an annual income of $22,314 for a family of four.  I can't imagine living on that today.  That was an income I earned in the 60s and 70s when I first married.  My rent then was $75.00 per month, a car cost around $3000, and hamburger was twenty-nine cents a pound. Gasoline wars were prevalent, and fuel was sometimes as little as nineteen cents a gallon.

  In whose mind can a family of four survive on such a pittance?  Unless you live in a cardboard box or a shelter, rent is going to take the lion's share of that money, and food will take the rest. Where do utilities, clothing, personal items, shoes, and the always, elusive fund for future education come in? I guess getting one's hair done in a salon once in a while is out.  How about haircuts for the men and boys?  Gasoline to get to and from the grocery store?  Car repairs?  Insurance?

A survey, released on Tuesday by the advocacy group Wider Opportunities for Women (WOW), found that 45 percent of U.S. residents live in households that struggle to make ends meet. The Census Bureau reports  that one out of every seven Americans is “living in poverty” in the United States. I think someone needs to seriously rethink what constitutes a fair wage, and to the new people, looking to get elected, how about remembering what a large percentage of our population need help.  Yep, these people definitely need to be fined for not purchasing health insurance as mandated by Obamacare.  What's wrong with this picture?

Choose Your Path Wisely...

Craig says all the things we've felt ever since this story broke on the news.  WTG!

We Are All Iranian Prisoners Now

By Craig Andresen

Having been bombarded, for more than two years, with countless stories of the hikers held prisoner in Iran , and having had quite enough of the political correctness so invasive in our daily lexicon, I have decided that somebody needs to say SOMETHING which is politically DIRECT about this whole situation. So, here we go…An open letter to the “hikers.”


Dear Hikers,

What the hell is wrong with you people? Do you come by your stupidity genetically or is it a byproduct of your ideology? Perhaps both.

The Iranians said you were spies but that can’t possibly be true…you’re far too brain dead to be spies.

I’m going to go out on a limb here and take a wild shot at it…You’re all liberals aren’t you?

You went HIKING. Hiking is good. Hiking doesn’t leave a carbon footprint regardless of the amount of fossil fuel you burned to GET to your starting point. You shouldn’t be allowed to walk around the block without supervision. You could have gone for a walk in the park, or hiked on a trail in the mountains – but NOOOOOOOOO.

YOU MORONS!! You decided to go hiking along the border between Iran and Iraq . What exactly did you THINK was going to happen?

Did you think you were going to meet a bunch of Iraqi or Iranian hippy freaks and exchange wildflowers and maybe share some weed??

You didn’t go over there for some noble purpose like building a school or to provide medical services or even to help rebuild a road or a bridge. You went ‘hiking’ in a war zone next to a country that hates us.

Seriously…what the hell???

You managed to wander from the Iraqi side of the border over to the Iranian side. What? No map? No GPS? No common sense…what?

Did the Iranians not know the words to Kum ba yah??

You went to Iranian jail didn’t you? All three of you – but one of you got to go home early because of your delicate constitution, didn’t you? Did you enjoy your two years in Iranian jail? Did you??

The Omanis bailed your sorry butts out of stir – but had they asked ME, I would have told them to save their money and let you rot. As far as I’m concerned, the Iranians could have kept you but as it is now…WE’RE stuck with you again and, frankly, it’s a waste of our effort to watch over you numb nuts.

Oh happy, happy joy, joy…you’re on your way home.

When you get here, no doubt you’ll be treated like celebrities and the media will be knocking at your collective doors. I’m sure you’ll either sell your story to People magazine or, maybe first, you’ll grace the pages of Newsweek with a cover stating…’We’re All Iranian Prisoners Now!’ You’ll tell us you were ‘well treated,’ and you’ll thank everybody who arranged for your release.

I wouldn’t be surprised if you thanked Ahmadinejad.

Do you three have ANY idea what REALLY happened? ANY IDEA???
You weren’t ‘arrested’ for being ‘spies’ you were KIDNAPPED for being AMERICANS. You weren’t ‘released’ after a ‘court’ hearing; you were PUT ON DISPLAY and RANSOMED. Now, because of YOU, dictators and other criminals around the world KNOW they can kidnap Americans and get paid to let them go.

YOU slackers have made the world MORE dangerous for Americans. Think about that while you give your interviews and sell your ‘story.’

For future reference, here are some things you need to learn. Don’t lay on railroad track. Bad things will happen if you do. Don’t play in traffic. Bad things will happen if you do. Don’t run with scissors. Bad things will happen if you do. Don’t try to pretend you and grizzly bears are friends. Bad things will happen if you do.

DON’T GO HIKING IN A WAR ZONE NEAR IRANIANS WITH GUNS. BAD THINGS WILL HAPPEN IF YOU DO.

One more thing…
Never…I repeat NEVER…seek employment as a hiking guide. Bad things will happen to others if you do.”
Idiots!

Despite Rumors, I'm still alive...

I've neglected this blog for far too long.  I think I stopped posting because my intense disapproval of our president has caused me to lose friends, people who follow my other blog, and a little bit of my sanity.  But after listening to the evening news and hearing reports of his requirement that EVERYONE BUY health insurance by 2014 or face a fine, Ihad to come back and blog or scream.  Does he really think  people don't have health insurance by choice?  If you aren't employed with benefits and this law is inacted, does the money miraculously appear?  Just my share toward insurance through my retirement benefits is extremely expensive for someone on a fixed pension.  According to the information below, small businesses are unable to afford to provide health benefits and are cancelling those in existence now.

If Obama's re-elected in 2012, this country will get exactly what it deserves, and I'm seriously thinking of defecting.  Herman Cain, even with sexual allegations made against him, and Gov. Perry, with his memory lapse, can do a better job blindfolded than Obama can with both eyes open...and of course that's important for his teleprompter.  The man might be a good human, but he's a lousy president.

Hey, B.O. (yep...great initials for something stinky), how about taking a long hard look at Medicare and fixing the problems that have bankrupted that system...plus the Veteran's Administration, and Social Security. More and more doctors are planning to stop accepting the government plan that we've all paid into our working lives.  Is the answer more government-mandated medical care?  Just think of everything the gov. operates, the mess those programs are in, and ask yourself, do you want Washington making your health decisions for you?  They can't even agree on a pee break.  Remember, those voted for American to have Obamacare are exempt from the plan themselves.  What happened to the old saying, "What good for the goose...?"

Forbes.com reports:

ObamaCare has yet to be fully implemented, yet small businesses and families are already taking an economic hit from it, says Karen Harned, executive director of the National Federation of Independent Business Small Business Legal Center.

To read more:  http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2011/11/14/the-wheels-are-falling-off-of-president-obamas-health-care-plan/