From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 07:31:36 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:31:36 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Thought for the Day Message-ID: <1b6f01ca69dd$67253120$356f9360$@com> Thought for the day.... Wouldn't you think the word "phonics" would be spelled phonetically? - John From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 07:33:36 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:33:36 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Corps' MR-GO claims should be settled, and fast, attorneys say Message-ID: <1b7001ca69dd$ae74a790$0b5df6b0$@com> Surely, what good and justice is given to St Bernardians if "justice delayed is justice denied?" One, the stretch would intentionally be withheld and prolonged for a couple of reasons. One is to (pun not intended) weather the storm of economic despair we're currently facing. The government knows it has a full plate with "Socialized Medicine" spending for the next decade or more. They want to get it going, followed by ending the war (actually dishonorably), even to the point they chicken out. Secondly, they'd much rather give the money (if it's left to them) to our children and grandchildren (which will be paying down the Trillions of dollars with nothing in the treasury to speak about) thus, "no pain, all gain avoiding the payout. The insult is to avoid justice we seek on our side of the electrified fence. Believing they will take it in appeal or at worst, in the Supreme Court will have them avoid the shame (of unprecedented occurrence) and any firsts. We want the army corps to be on call during our watch. Let them sweat/share the loss as we have. The loss of life, property, possessions, family, church, club and friends disbursement and our future in St. Bernard Parish. We don't intend to wait until any monetary reimbursement becomes a "trust fund" for our children or grandchildren. Yes, they suffered, but as homeowners, we bore/suffered the impact and emotional blunt of the disaster. There are some who refused to file because each felt a fruitless try against the government. But, we'll never know the outcome in this new age unless we've tried. And, although a good amount of recovery in the suit goes to attorneys, one has to believe that that moment we filed helped us to deal in our own way, the frustration, anger and hopelessness of the period. However, we end up, at least many of us can say we gave it our best--no matter how or where we end up because the outcome was that there was someone to blame. Someone responsible. Someone accountable for this living death. --jer-- From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 07:34:02 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:34:02 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] RNC STATEMENT ON HARRY REID'S GOVERNMENT-RUN HEALTHCARE EXPERIMENT Message-ID: <1b7101ca69dd$bdd91590$398b40b0$@com> John, aren't you the bit concerned that this dastardly 4-Reem of trash might have too much "barbed wire" hidden in it to tear out our future? It's gotta hurt if this turns out to be prophetic and is to be used on our bottoms. ;^) On the serious side however, America would have changed from a once heavenly place for folks to live in comparison to the hell they're going to suffocate in this 180 degree "change" that idiots are agreeing with if/when passed. --jer-- ----------------------------------------------------- Could somebody give me a hard copy of both the House and Senate bills on healthcare reform? I'm thinking it should save me a fortune on toilet paper over the next few years. John From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 07:35:44 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:35:44 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Random thoughts Message-ID: <1b7801ca69dd$fac8e840$f05ab8c0$@com> 1. I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die. 2. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong. 3. I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger. 4. There is great need for a sarcasm font... 5. How the hell **are** you supposed to fold a fitted sheet? 6. Was learning cursive really necessary? 7. Map Quest really needs to start their directions on #5. I'm pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood. 8. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died. 9. I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired. 10. Bad decisions make good stories. 11. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren't going to do anything productive for the rest of the day. 12. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after Blue Ray? I don't want to have to restart my collection...again. 13. I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to. 14. "Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this -- ever. 15. I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Damn it!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away? 16. I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste. 17. I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call. 18. My 4-year old son asked me in the car the other day "Dad what would happen if you ran over a ninja?" How the hell do I respond to that? 19. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay. From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 07:45:13 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:45:13 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Revived La. Parish Faces Fight Over Race Message-ID: <1b8201ca69df$4db08d00$e911a700$@com> But there is clearly a need for rental property in the parish. A report by the Brookings Institution estimates that rents in the New Orleans metropolitan area are about 46 percent higher than they were before Hurricane Katrina because of the low supply and high demand for rental units New Orleans may need rental units, but we sure don't. I hate it when people talk about the metropolitan area, but don't look at each locale. WE ARE NOT PART OF NEW ORLEANS ! What paper does this person write for ? (Let me guess...it must be the TP) I sure would like to write her a rebuttal. Syl From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 07:54:06 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:54:06 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Is America a Serious Nation? Message-ID: <1b8601ca69e0$8b93f200$a2bbd600$@com> THE CONSERVATIVE REVIEW - November 20, 2009 Is America a Serious Nation? by Pat Buchanan Are we at war -- or not? For if we are at war, why is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed headed for trial in federal court in the Southern District of New York? Why is he entitled to a presumption of innocence and all of the constitutional protections of a U.S. citizen? Is it possible we have done an injustice to this man by keeping him locked up all these years without trial? For that is what this trial implies -- that he may not be guilty. And if we must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that KSM was complicit in mass murder, by what right do we send Predators and Special Forces to kill his al-Qaida comrades wherever we find them? For none of them has been granted a fair trial. When the Justice Department sets up a task force to wage war on a crime organization like the Mafia or MS-13, no U.S. official has a right to shoot Mafia or gang members on sight. No one has a right to bomb their homes. No one has a right to regard the possible death of their wives and children in an attack as acceptable collateral damage. Yet that is what we do to al-Qaida, to which KSM belongs. We conduct those strikes in good conscience because we believe we are at war. But if we are at war, what is KSM doing in a U.S. court? Minoru Genda, who planned the attack on Pearl Harbor, a naval base on U.S. soil, when America was at peace, and killed as many Americans as the Sept. 11 hijackers, was not brought here for trial. He was an enemy combatant under the Geneva Conventions and treated as such. When Maj. Andre, the British spy and collaborator of Benedict Arnold, was captured, he got a military tribunal, after which he was hanged. When Gen. Andrew Jackson captured two British subjects in Spanish Florida aiding renegade Indians, Jackson had both tried and hanged on the spot. Enemy soldiers who commit atrocities are not sent to the United States for trial. Under the Geneva Conventions, soldiers who commit atrocities are shot when caught. When and where did Khalid Sheikh Mohammed acquire his right to a trial by a jury of his peers in a U.S. court? When John Wilkes Booth shot Abraham Lincoln, alleged collaborators like Mary Surratt were tried before a military tribunal and hanged at Ft. McNair. When eight German saboteurs were caught in 1942 after being put ashore by U-boat, they were tried in secret before a military commission and executed, with the approval of the Supreme Court. What makes KSM special? Is the Obama administration aware of what it is risking by not turning KSM over to a military tribunal in Guantanamo? How does Justice handle a defense demand for a change of venue, far from lower Manhattan, where the jury pool was most deeply traumatized by Sept. 11? Would not KSM and his co-defendants, if a change of venue is denied, have a powerful argument for overturning any conviction on appeal? Were not KSM's Miranda rights impinged when he was not only not told he could have a lawyer on capture, but that his family would be killed and he would be water-boarded if he refused to talk? And if all the evidence against the five defendants comes from other than their own testimony under duress, do not their lawyers have a right to know when, where, how and from whom Justice got the evidence to prosecute them? Does KSM have the right to confront all witnesses against him, even if they are al-Qaida turncoats or U.S. spies still transmitting information to U.S. intelligence? There have been reports that in the trials of those convicted in the first World Trade Center bombing, sources and methods were compromised, weakening our security for the second attack on Sept. 11. If the trial is held in lower Manhattan, how much security will be needed to protect against a car bomber who wants the world to see a mighty blow struck against the Great Satan? And if, as some suggest, the trial should be held on Governor's Island, would that not make the United States look like a nation under siege? What do we do if the case against KSM is thrown out because the government refuses to reveal sources or methods, or if he gets a hung jury, or is acquitted, or has his conviction overturned? In America, trials often become games, where the prosecution, though it has truth on its side, loses because it inadvertently breaks one of the rules. The Obamaites had best pray that does not happen, for they may be betting his presidency on the outcome of the game about to begin. From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 21:41:15 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:41:15 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Christmas Fun, Please Read Message-ID: <1e2101ca6a54$18b73f20$4a25bd60$@com> Pass this on to your church, co-workers, family, and ?friends. ?What do you have to lose but 44 cents, what ?do you have to gain more than you will ever ?know.?? What ?a clever idea! Yes, Christmas cards. This is coming early ?so that you can get ready to include an important address to ?your list. Want to have some fun this CHRISTMAS? Send ?the ACLU a CHRISTMAS CARD this year. As they are ?working so very hard to get rid of the CHRISTMAS part of ?this holiday, we should all send them a nice, CHRISTIAN card to brighten up their dark, sad,?little world.. Make sure it says "Merry Christmas" on?it. Here's the address, just don't be rude or crude. ?(It's not the Christian way, you know.) ACLU 125 Broad Street 18th Floor New York , NY ? 10004 Two?tons of Christmas cards would freeze their operations ?because they wouldn't know if any were regular mail containing contributions. ??So?spend 44 cents and tell the ACLU to leave Christmas alone. ?Also tell them that there is no such thing as a "Holiday Tree". . . It's always been?called a CHRISTMAS TREE! And pass this on to your ?email lists. We really want to communicate with the ACLU! ?They really DESERVE us!! For those of you who aren't ?aware of them, the ACLU, (the American Civil Liberties Union) is the one suing the U.S. Government to take God, Christmas or ?anything Christian away from us. They represent the atheists ?and others in this war. Help put Christ back in Christmas! Janice From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 21:42:55 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:42:55 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Create your own Mosaic Tile art on Dec 3 & Dec 7! Message-ID: <1e2201ca6a54$54520920$fcf61b60$@com> Local tile artist Michael Bauman will be at the Community Center of St Bernard, 1107 LeBeau St, Arabi, on Thursday evenings, December 3 and December 10 to teach a 2-part Mosaic Tile class. Students will get hands-on experience learning the creative old world art of mosaic tiling and will have the opportunity to create their own piece of mosaic art. The classes will begin at 6 PM and no registration is needed. However, participants should plan on attending both sessions in order to complete their project. For the first class, students are requested to bring a clay flower pot, picture frame, vase or other item that will serve as the basis for their personal mosaic project. They should also bring objects to make the mosaic like pieces of broken dishes or mirror glass, keys, marbles, costume jewelry, broken tiles, or other small objects made of glass, metal or stone that can be incorporated into their project. Gloves and liquid nails glue will also be needed. For the second session, students should bring enough grout to complete their project and some old rags. Limited amounts of materials will be available at the Community Center, but students are encouraged to bring their own as much as possible. Michael, a talented artist who has studied and worked internationally in Europe and South Africa, originally came to New Orleans as an Americorps volunteer. After spending a year working on rebuilding homes in St Bernard Parish, he decided to settle in the area. Over the past few years, Michael has worked on a number of local projects at various locations including the Community Center of St Bernard, and he shows and sells his art at the artist market on Decatur St in the French Quarter. For more information and photographs of some of Michael's many art projects, visit www.mosaicmanworld.com And anyone interested in contributing to one of his works should note that donations of ceramic pieces, broken dishes & plates, marbles, keys, and costume jewelry are always welcome! From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 21:43:27 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:43:27 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] KATRINA MR-GO Message-ID: <1e2301ca6a54$678161d0$36842570$@com> READ THIS.. Katrina negligence ruling could cost feds The federal government could be vulnerable to billions in claims after a judge ruled that a failure to maintain a navigation channel led to massive flooding in Hurricane Katrina. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34028940/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/from/ET From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 21:43:47 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:43:47 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] 10 THINGS... Message-ID: <1e2401ca6a54$73259380$5970ba80$@com> 10 THINGS ... You Should Know About Harry Reid's Government-Run Health Care Experiment View This Research Briefing At GOP.com 1. $493 Billion In Tax Increases On Health Insurance, Medical Innovation, Payroll And Small Businesses Would Pay For The Bill. (Douglas W. Elmendorf, Letter To Senator Harry Reid , 11/18/09) 2. Americans Won't See Benefits Of This Health Care Experiment Until 2014, But They Start Paying For It In 2010.(Page 13, Douglas W. Elmendorf, Letter To Senator Harry Reid , 11/18/09) 3. Reid's Bill Allegedly Reduces The Deficit By $130 Billion In Ten Years, But The Obama-Reid-Pelosi Spending Agenda Produced Deficit Of $176 Billion Last Month Alone.(Table 3, Douglas W. Elmendorf, Letter To Senator Harry Reid , 11/18/09) 4. $465 Billion In Medicare And Medicaid Cuts Would Pay For Two New Unsustainable Entitlements.(Douglas W. Elmendorf, Letter To Senator Harry Reid , 11/18/09) 5. Health Care Costs For The Federal Government - And Your Family - Would Increase, Not Decrease. (Page 16, Douglas W. Elmendorf, Letter To Senator Harry Reid , 11/18/09) 6. A New Medicare Commission Of Unelected Bureaucrats Would Ration Care.(Sec. 3403, H.R. 3590, Amendment In The Nature Of A Substitute, "Patient Protection And Affordable Care Act," Introduced 11/18/09 ) 7. The "Doc Fix" Provision That Would Add $250 Billion To The Deficit Is Not Included In The Democrats' List Price For Their Health Care Experiment.(Page 17, Douglas W. Elmendorf, Letter To Senator Harry Reid , 11/18/09) 8. Taxpayer Dollars Would Fund Abortions.(Sec. 1303(a), H.R. 3590, Amendment In The Nature Of A Substitute, "Patient Protection And Affordable Care Act," Introduced 11/18/09 ) 9. A New Entitlement Program For Long-Term Care That One Democrat Senator Called "A Ponzi Scheme" Would Be Created.(Douglas W. Elmendorf, Letter To Senator Harry Reid , 11/18/09; Shailagh Murray & Lori Montgomery, "Centrists Unsure About Reid's Public Option," The Washington Post , 10/28/09) 10. States Burdened With $25 Billion In Unfunded Mandates From Medicaid That Would Force Them To Increase Taxes.(Page 7, Douglas W. Elmendorf, Letter To Senator Harry Reid , 11/18/09) PDF Format A Product Of The RNC Research Department From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 21:45:05 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:45:05 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] A Health Bill Nobody Believes In Message-ID: <1e2501ca6a54$a1d7ec00$e587c400$@com> FRIDAY, NOV 20, 2009 A Health Bill Nobody Believes In Last Saturday night Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) forced through a vote on her 2,032 page health care bill only a few days after releasing it to the public. Now Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is poised for another Saturday night cram down, forcing a Senate cloture vote mere days before his 2,074 page bill was given to Senators. Yet again, Congress will be forced to vote on a bill that none of them have actually read. More importantly, as we pour through the details, it becomes obvious that none of them even believe the plan will do what the bill says. Kills Jobs: All told, the Reid Bill raises taxes by $370.2 billion over the next ten years with many of those taxes starting to be collected this year while unemployment is at 10.2% and rising. Worse, the bill includes a job killing employer mandate which taxes companies for hiring people. Specifically, companies with more than 50 employees that do not offer a health plan approved by federal bureaucrats will be forced to pay a $750 per employee job tax. Hurts Small Businesses: The Reid Bill acknowledges it is terrible public policy for small businesses and tries to address this problem by including a ?small business tax credit? to minimize the impact of the job killing employer mandates and regulation-caused rises in private health insurance premiums. But the tax credit only lasts two years and largely excludes small business owners, small businesses with high-average payrolls, and firms with 25 or more workers. After all exclusions, essentially the only eligible firms are those firms with 10 or fewer workers as well as those with low-income workers?the least likely to offer coverage even with a significant price reduction. Hurts Families: The Reid Bill includes an individual mandate that forces any American who does not have a federal bureaucrat approved health plan to pay an annual tax penalty of $750 per adult family member and $375 per child, with a maximum penalty of $2,250 per family. These penalties are indexed for inflation, which means they are likely to increase nearly every year. These taxes are fixed amounts based on family size, not income. A family of at least two adults and two children is actually worse off under the Senate bill if they make less than $99,350 a year. The only nod to affordability is a ?hardship exemption? if the lowest available premium for a bare-bones plan is more than 8 percent of your income. But that saves you money only if your income is less than $28,125 a year. Hurts Poor: The Reid Bill?s employer mandate is especially punitive on poor families . Firms that hire an employee from a low-income family who qualify for an insurance subsidy are charged a tax penalty of $3,000. So a company could save $3,000 by hiring, say, someone with a working spouse or a teenager with working parents, rather than a single mother with three children. Worse, companies only have to pay $750 an employee instead of $3,000 if one quarter of employees are low-income. This creates a situation where, if a company has a lot of low-income workers, they can actually save money by dropping their health plan and just dumping all their employees into the federal exchange at their own expense. Hurts States: The Reid bill expands Medicaid eligibility for people below 133 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) . Even with a provision aimed at Senator Landrieu?s Louisiana that picks up some state costs, the CBO estimates that state spending under the Medicaid provisions will still increase by $25 billion. The Democratic Governor of Tennessee Phil Bredesen told a state budget meeting this Wednesday : ?I wish every member of Congress would have to come sit in this room and listen to the real world of what?s going on in Medicaid today. I mean how can you listen to this stuff and the stuff you are talking about eliminating just to get through this and then talk about adding a whole bunch of new expenses onto the states.? Funds Abortion: Unlike the House-passed Stupak-Pitts amendment which treats abortion funding the same way the Federal Employee Health Benefits Plan does (the same health insurance all members of Congress have), the Reid Bill fosters taxpayer funding of elective abortion by authorizing the HHS Secretary to create a funding scheme that will permit inclusion of abortion coverage in the bill?s public option and mandates the inclusion of at least one plan with elective abortion coverage in each state?s health insurance exchange. Hides True Costs: According to the Congressional Budget Office, the Reid Bill as written would spend less than $900 billion over the next ten years. But the CBO is only allowed to score what Congress says it will do, not what everybody knows it actually will do. So the CBO warns: ?These longer-term calculations assume that the provisions are enacted and remain unchanged throughout the next two decades which is often not the case for major legislation ? The long-term budgetary impact could be quite different if key provisions of the bill were ultimately changed or not fully implemented.? The Senate bill depends on using cuts to Medicare to pay for its $1.2 Trillion coverage expansion. These dramatic savings, of course, assume that these spending cuts stay intact. Nobody believes they will. And the Massachusetts experience proves just that. Harvard Medical School Dean Dr. Jeffrey Flier explains : There are important lessons to be learned from recent experience with reform in Massachusetts. Here, insurance mandates similar to those proposed in the federal legislation succeeded in expanding coverage but?despite initial predictions?increased total spending. ? Selling an uncertain and potentially unwelcome outcome such as this to the public would be a challenging task. It is easier to assert, confidently but disingenuously, that decreased costs and enhanced quality would result from the current legislation. That is exactly what the Reid health care bill is: a completely disingenuous plan to increase coverage while reducing cost. Nobody believes Congress can or will follow through with spending cuts required to keep this scheme from bankrupting our country. That is why the AMA can support Obamacare despite the fact that both the House and Senate bills call for at least a 21% cut in doctor pay starting in 2011. Nobody believes those cuts are going to happen. Nobody believes in this bill. QUICK HITS Earl Devaney, chairman of the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, told a House oversight committee yesterday that the Obama administration reports on jobs ?created or saved? by the $787 billion stimulus package are ?riddled with inaccuracies and contradictions.? According to new data from the Mortgage Bankers Association, more than 14 percent of borrowers were in trouble on their mortgage during the third quarter, and foreclosures may not peak until next year . The Obama administration is attempting to reinflate the housing bubble by underwriting loans at quadruple the rate of three years ago and offering easy loans in the country?s most expensive real estate markets. While Republicans are arguing $200 billion in TARP money should go to taxpayers, Congressional Democrats are already fighting over which of their favored programs to spend it on . ABC News reports that Congressional Democrats and Republicans are calling for Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to resign. From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 21:46:58 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:46:58 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] TEA PARTY: The Documentary Film Message-ID: <1e2601ca6a54$e57ea5c0$b07bf140$@com> Dear Friend, As a fellow believer in limited government, I am excited to tell you about an opportunity to be a part of history and be one of the few in the country to see an exclusive webcast sneak preview of an amazing movie tracking what has been a historic year for the conservative movement: TEA PARTY: The Documentary Film . As you know, April 15 saw over 1,000,000 Americans attend over 1,000 tea parties. On July 4 and July 17th there were hundreds more. August, 2009 will be known forever as the Summer of Protest. And on September 12, 2009, hundreds of thousands of grassroots Americans marched in bold defiance of an overreaching government. The sea of people -- composed of freedom-loving citizens from every state and every background -- flooded Pennsylvania Ave. As Washington's "finest" lobbyists, bureaucrats and politicians watched, the American public boldly told them, "No more." No more bailouts of failed businesses; no more burdensome taxes; no more job killing regulations; no more intrusion into the lives of individuals. On November 5th, on just 4 days notice, tens of thousands Americans again came to Washington to be heard...and the movement continues to grow. But how did this movement begin? What propelled it from a few dozen local Tea Parties to hundreds of thousands of activists marching on the Capitol? Now you can experience the story of the movement that's driving our national dialogue against big government spending and a Constitution under assault. On Monday, November 23, at 2 pm select Americans -- hopefully including you -- will gather in front of their computer screens to watch the captivating 28 minute special webcast Sneak Preview of TEA PARTY: The Documentary Film . This exhilarating documentary captures the mood and intensity of the Tea Party movement. It follows the struggles of five individuals and their transformation from hometown rally goers and rally organizers to national activists taking part in the 9/12 Taxpayer March on Washington. In the process, it uncovers the core principles that unite members of the movement: constitutionally limited government, personal responsibility, and fiscal restraint at all levels of government. If you abide by similar values and if you want to see America return to a government run by "WE THE PEOPLE," you won't want to miss the special Sneak Peek look at TEA PARTY: The Documentary Film . The exclusive webcast preview will begin with an introduction from 9/12 Organizer and FreedomWorks President Matt Kibbe, Editor of Red State Erick Erickson, TEA PARTY Documentary Producer Luke Livingston, and me, Dick Armey, Former House Majority Leader and FreedomWorks Chairman. Be sure to stay tuned after the preview for a live question and answer session with four of the most influential members of the Tea Party movement. During the post-preview segment you will actually be able to ask the four panelists questions in real time. Do not miss the event that members of the Tea Party movement will be talking about for weeks. In fact, the Sneak Peek offers a great opportunity to come together with local Tea Party activists. Celebrate the online preview of TEA PARTY: The Documentary Film by hosting a house party for the airing of the 28 minute Sneak Peek on Monday, November 23 at 2 pm. Or watch at work if you can. Whatever you do, do not miss this Sneak Peek. The future of the Tea Party movement is here. Will you join us? To sign up to take part in this exclusive sneak peek webcast, click HERE . To find out more about the movie, click HERE . This is your chance to see the preview of this historic movie more than a week before its Washington, DC premier at the Ronald Reagan Center on December 2! Sincerely, Dick Armey Chairman FreedomWorks From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 21:50:48 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:50:48 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] First key vote on Senate ObamaCare Saturday Message-ID: <1e2a01ca6a55$6e367eb0$4aa37c10$@com> The first critical vote on Harry Reid's version of ObamaCare will take place tomorrow (Saturday). Reid needs 60 votes in support of his "motion to proceed" to the floor debate on his ObamaCare bill. That means 60 Senators must vote with Reid even though they were shut out of the process and have only been given a few days to look at this over 2,000-page monstrosity. We have posted several resources for you on ResistNet, including the full bill text, the "top line facts," and an itemization of more than a half-trillion dollars in new taxes. Go here: http://www.grassfire.net/r.asp?U=23183&RID=19579123 + + Today's actions Thanks to so many Grassfire friends who have already taken action, tens of thousands of personal letters are flooding Senate offices by fax and hand-delivery right now. In fact, we cannot take any more fax orders before the vote on Saturday. So we're asking everyone to do two things: + + Action #1 -- Call your two Senators Please call your senators and let them know what you think about ObamaCare and the fast-tracked Reid bill: Sen. Landrieu 202-224-5824 Sen. Vitter 202-224-4623 Or, call the switchboard and ask for your Senator by name: 202-224-3121. Be sure to tell your Senators that you live in their state or district. + + Action # 2 -- Forward this to your friends The vote will take place on Saturday, scheduled for 8pm. This is the first key vote on Reid's ObamaCare bill -- the first high hurdle that Reid must cross. Please alert your friends. Forward this message to them. Encourage them to access the resources at ResistNet and to call their Senators. Again, in this first key Senate vote, clearly the odds are against us. But we must stand. Thanks for taking action. Steve Elliott, President Grassfire.org + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 21:53:21 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:53:21 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Call Senator Landrieu and ask her to vote "No" Message-ID: <1e2b01ca6a55$c99f38a0$5cdda9e0$@com> My Friend, Tomorrow, Saturday November 20th, at 8:00pm the United States Senate will have its first vote on the Democrats health care reform bill. I encourage you to call Senator Mary Landrieu at (202) 224-5824 and ask her to vote "No" on government-run health care. You may also visit her website to leave your comments by following this link . Thank you for your participation in this process. I wish you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving. Sincerely, John McCain Chairman, Country First PAC P.S. If you are unable to get through to the Washington D.C. office, please call one of Senator Landrieu's district offices. The numbers are below: New Orleans (504) 589-2427 Shreveport (318) 676-3085 Baton Rouge (225) 389-0395 Lake Charles (337) 436-6650 From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:01:56 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:01:56 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Invitation to Read Senate Health Care Bill Message-ID: <1e2f01ca6a56$fc797370$f56c5a50$@com> Dear Friend, This week the U.S. Senate begins debate on a newly introduced a 2,074 page health care bill. I wanted to take this opportunity to let you know I have provided a copy of the bill for you to read at all of my eight office locations. * Acadiana Office - 800 Lafayette Street, Suite 1200, Lafayette * Southwest Office - 3221 Ryan Street, Suite E, Lake Charles * Baton Rouge/River Parishes Office - 858 Convention Street, Baton Rouge * Southeast Office - 2800 Veterans Boulevard, Suite 201, Metairie * Central Louisiana Office - 2230 South MacArthur Drive, Suite 4, Alexandria * Northwest Louisiana Office - 920 Pierremont Road, Suite 113, Shreveport * Northeast Louisiana Office - 1217 North 19th Street, Monroe * Washington, DC Office - 516 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC You may also access the health care bill and continuous updates to the bill and the debates on my website . This is a critical point in America's future, and I believe everyone should have access to the proposed bills. This access allows the public to be well informed during this debate and understand how this legislation will affect them. Again, do not hesitate to contact one of my eight offices or feel free to check my website, www.vitter.senate.gov, for up-to-date information on health care reform. Sincerely, David Vitter U.S. Senator From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:11:52 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:11:52 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] The Truth V. The National Journal: You have got to be kidding Message-ID: <1e3601ca6a58$5fdb8a10$1f929e30$@com> The Truth V. The National Journal: You have got to be kidding Washington, DC - Today, House Financial Services Committee Communications Director Steve Adamske released the following statement after reading the Nov. 21 National Journal article, "End of the Beginning," written by John Maggs: "You have got to be kidding." On page 54 of the November 21 edition, reporter John Maggs invents a "question and answer" article that discusses the status of financial regulatory reform. The article has several errors and misrepresentations that have been corrected below: National Journal: What's going on with financial regulatory reform? I know that Dodd has a new plan and that Frank is expected to move his plan out of committee soon, but I still can't tell what the administration's plan is. Why so many plans? Well, for starters, this re-regulation of finance is huge, so it is natural that everyone would want to drive the train. Primarily, though, the many approaches reflect a strategic decision by the Obama administration. Rather than come out with a fully formed plan and guide the negotiations, the president's advisers decided to let Congress work out the details. HFSC: This is 100% false. President Obama's team did indeed produce a plan. They delivered to the House Financial Services Committee and to the Senate Banking Committee a 13 title bill totaling several hundred pages, complete with legislative language, and that language is serving as the base text for our deliberations. National Journal: But didn't Obama offer a comprehensive bill over the summer? It wasn't a bill; it was called a "blueprint." It was sketchy in its details, and many of its ideas have been changed or abandoned. House and Senate Democratic leaders, for example, now say that regulation by the administration's Consumer Financial Protection Agency should be limited to the largest 10 percent of banks. Other fundamental matters were left unmentioned, such as the way to discourage big banks from taking on too much risk -- how, exactly, to avoid fostering banks that are "too big to fail" and thus take reckless risks because they believe that the government will bail them out. No plan has settled on how to avoid this problem. HFSC: 100% false again. As discussed above, while President Obama did release a blueprint in early June, he ordered his staff and the Treasury Department to produce a bill. They did. In addition, the National Journal is dead wrong to suggest that we abandoned the administration's plan. To the contrary, we are implementing the administration's plans. The National Journal is also wrong to say that the House Financial Services Committee's bill, H.R. 3126, limits the reach of the Consumer Financial Protection Agency to 10 percent of the banks. This is 100% false. All banks will be subject to the rules and regulations of the Consumer Financial Protection Agency. The committee only exempted independent examinations of community banks by the CFPA. In addition: * The CFPA will write the rules for all institutions on credit cards, overdraft fees, and all other aspects of financial consumer protection- none of the covered banks will be exempt in any way from these stringent new rules. * The CFPA will receive and monitor all reports on consumer exams done by the prudential regulators at a covered institution, looking for signs of non-compliance by the institution or problems in the regulator's conduct of exams. * The CFPA may at its discretion send an examiner on any exam of a covered bank, thrift or credit union. * This examiner will participate in all aspects of the exam, from design to final report writing * In an unprecedented move, the CFPA will be able to remove the prudential regulator and take over the exams itself if it finds that the regulator is not adequately pursuing or enforcing violations, or that there are other consumer problems at the bank. * Finally, the CFPA retains complete control of the consumer complaint process, and has authority to investigate and enforce against violations at any institution based on those complaints. National Journal: Isn't it typical to start with a blueprint? Isn't that how President Reagan did tax reform in the 1980s? Yes, but it's not typical to be as disengaged as the Obama administration seems to be this late in the game. The White House said all along that it wants to complete the reform process this year, and even though it has pushed Congress to vote on the legislation, it opposes some aspects of both chambers' bills. That rush apparently was at least partly responsible for a rift between Dodd and the top Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama. HFSC: 100% wrong again. The staff of the House Financial Services Committee has been in regular contact with White House staff and the Treasury Department. It is a complete lie to say the Obama administration has been disengaged. National Journal: Why did the White House proceed this way, without firm positions? For reasons of style and necessity. On the style point, it should be clear from health care that in implementing his agenda, Obama seems to prefer leaving the details to Congress. His style simply differs from that of past presidents, who have led negotiations rather than let congressional leaders take charge. To cite Obama's predecessors, the Bush team was deeply involved in lining up votes and twisting arms to pass his 2001 tax cut; President Clinton did the same in ending Cold War trade restrictions on China. That doesn't seem to be how this White House likes to do things. HFSC: Again 100% wrong. They have firm positions and they have worked with us every step of the way - the National Journal just never bothered to find out. National Journal: What about necessity -- why did the administration have to start out that way? Because even as late as June, Obama's advisers hadn't decided what to do, and in many ways, they still haven't. HFSC: Again 100% wrong. The administration brought to us a bill composed of 13 titles and hundreds of pages which has served as the base text. Of course we have changed things, but this is normal in the course of legislating. We have worked with them every step of the way. National Journal: You've got to be kidding. As with every phase of the financial crisis, the government was improvising, trying to stay ahead of events. Arguably, Obama had good reasons for moving forward with something on financial regulation, even if the proposal was incomplete. He had to send the message to the global financial system that there was a plan, some process, to avert a recurrence of the kind of crisis that took hold in 2008 and shut down bank lending. Five months after the inauguration, after an $787 billion stimulus plan, and after deciding that health care would be his focus in 2009, it just wasn't possible to re-design financial regulation in a few weeks. On the other hand, deliberating for months internally, with rumors and details leaking out, could have destabilized the markets. HFSC: No, you have got to be kidding. As has been discussed in several parts of this rebuttal, the Obama administration within five months of taking office produced a blueprint for reform, and two months after that, produced an extensive, 13 title bill that has served as the base text for our deliberations. National Journal: Wasn't politics a big reason for the haste? Without some plan, Republicans would have spent the past five months complaining that "Obama is wasting time on socialist health care and neglecting financial reform." Of course politics was a big factor. History will have to judge whether Obama's push on health care led him to neglect more-important matters. With or without health legislation, however, it would have been impossible for Obama to decide fundamental questions of financial regulatory reform so quickly. For one thing, the financial industry was unprepared and hadn't sorted out what it would and would not accept. The White House couldn't take a final stand on matters without getting the banks and other financial institutions on board. The months since June have really been a feeling-out process for both sides. HFSC: 100% wrong again. The Obama administration has been engaged on all issues of financial regulation reform, producing direction and producing a bill. The Obama administration has not neglected this effort. National Journal: So banks are holding up this process? That's too simplistic. In our system, where banks and other moneyed interests finance every congressional campaign, banks have a seat at the table. There are other considerations, but it would be silly to pretend that such a large industry has no role. As with health care, the Obama team needed time to determine which parts of the financial industry could kill the process and which parts could be co-opted. For example, after the House's hearings it became clear that smaller banks, with a presence in every congressional district, weren't willing to go along with the consumer protection agency proposal. Administration officials could see that the largest 10 percent of banks accounted for 80 percent of lending, so they let the bottom 90 percent off the hook. It took time to make this judgment, and there are many more to make. HFSC: 100% wrong again. Banks are not "off the hook" when it comes to consumer protection. As discussed above, all banks are subject to the rules and regulations of the Consumer Financial Protection Agency. We only exempted independent examinations of community banks and credit unions from the CFPA. All other rules apply to all banks. National Journal: Well, where is the process now? Isn't the House going to be voting on the Frank bill in a few weeks? Obviously, the bill won't be finished this year, considering that the Senate plan was unveiled a week and a half ago and is fundamentally different from the House version. The question is whether the process is near the end or much closer to the beginning, and there are signs that it is much closer to the beginning. HFSC: The House will vote on the reform in mid-December and the Senate is currently marking up their version. National Journal: What signs? Among the differences between the chambers' proposals, the Senate plan is predicated on a really big change--taking all bank regulation away from the Federal Reserve Board and creating a powerful agency to assume the Fed's role in managing the stability of the financial system, both domestically and internationally. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is against this, and so are Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and White House economics adviser Lawrence Summers. This conflict is too fundamental to sort out in routine conference negotiations. Other issues aren't as complicated -- whether to merge two small agencies or four, for example. But some other basic matters remain undecided. HFSC: Issues are too fundamental to sort our in routine conference negotiations? Says who? You? How else will the differences between the House and Senate be decided? National Journal: Such as? Such as the whole point of financial regulation. Before the crisis, the government implicity guaranteed that it would do whatever was necessary to prevent the collapse of the financial system. Today, that guarantee is explicit, and it will be codified in this financial regulatory overhaul. The problem is, no one has decided how to guarantee the solvency of giant banks without encouraging the kinds of risky behavior that caused the crisis. How do you prevent the emergence of banks that are too big? There are ideas -- Dodd would use an exotic kind of bond to keep banks in line -- but no decisions. Likewise on derivatives, the privately traded securities that allowed insurance giant American International Group to almost wreck the global financial system. To sum up the House and Senate action on derivatives, the government is still in the early stages of determining how derivatives will be regulated. HFSC: On the too big to fail issue, I would encourage you to read the excellent coverage by Bill Swindell in today's (Nov. 20) CongressDaily of our committee's deliberations on the Kanjorski amendment, and continue reading CongressDaily on page 8 on the Gutierrez amendment. Our whole effort, from regulating subprime mortgages to reining in derivatives and ending bailouts, is to ensure that the taxpayers never again have to foot the bill for other people's lousy business decisions. National Journal: When is this going to get done? A bill could be enacted by June, but it is also easy to see action slipping past the fall 2010 election. Obama wants to get reform done to claim credit for Democrats, but Republican opposition is arguably as strong as it is on health care, and the GOP is confident that it will have larger numbers in 2011. The president was able to shorten the customary reform timetable when it came to health care, and perhaps he can do so on financial regulation as well. Big reforms usually take time, however -- Reagan embraced tax reform in 1984, but it was 1986 before it came to a vote. Ironically, as the financial system recovers, the pressure for reform lessens. Dodd, in a tough re-election fight, could be crucial if he seeks to finish action in time to impress voters. He might force a partisan vote this fall to get the issue off his plate, but that might hinder compromises in the final stages. HFSC: Wrong. Chairman Frank and Chairman Dodd are committed to making financial reform a reality as soon as possible. The American people have waited long enough for meaningful reforms, and they do not deserve to wait any longer. National Journal: It sounds like I should bet on this taking a lot more time. With big reforms, that's usually a good bet. HFSC: We certainly wish the National Journal would take its time to do some quality reporting. ### From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:16:45 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:16:45 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Revived La. Parish Faces Fight Over Race Message-ID: <1e3701ca6a59$0ea5f030$2bf1d090$@com> Here ya go Syl: http://tinyurl.com/ygsjjqv JY ----------------------------------------------------- But there is clearly a need for rental property in the parish. A report by the Brookings Institution estimates that rents in the New Orleans metropolitan area are about 46 percent higher than they were before Hurricane Katrina because of the low supply and high demand for rental units New Orleans may need rental units, but we sure don't. I hate it when people talk about the metropolitan area, but don't look at each locale. WE ARE NOT PART OF NEW ORLEANS ! What paper does this person write for ? (Let me guess...it must be the TP) I sure would like to write her a rebuttal. Syl From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:19:31 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:19:31 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] The Senate health care bill: no improvement Message-ID: <1e3801ca6a59$710d4890$5327d9b0$@com> The Senate health care bill: no improvement Congress has outdone itself. On Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid unveiled a health care bill weighing in at 2,074 pages, a new record. A vote on the bill is expected Saturday. Heritage Foundation experts are still working through the specifics of the massive, $849 billion health care bill, as it is estimated to take up to 34 hours to read the entire thing. But they already know that "the major outlines of the bill are no different than the policy train wreck the House passed earlier this month," reports Heritage's Conn Carroll. Both the House and Senate health care "reform" bills include: 1. A government "option." Both the House and Senate proposals would create a one-size-fits-all public plan to "compete" with private insurers. But the government will retain its role as regulator and thus stifle any competition and causing millions to lose their private coverage. 2. More people in failed programs. Both bills would place millions of Americans under the failing government-run Medicaid program, reducing subsidized benefits from those who truly need them and increasing the financial burden on the states. 3. Employer mandates. All employers of 50 people or more will be required to provide coverage that meets new federal standards or else face a hefty penalty. This mandate will disproportionately impact low-income workers. 4. Individual mandates. For the first time in history, all Americans will be forced to purchase federally approved coverage minimums. Those who fail to comply are subject to new tax penalties and, in some cases, jail time . The bill's supporters may be congratulating each other for producing a health care bill that meets the President's $900 billion cap. But its $849 price tag is a preliminary estimate only, and it really only has one place to go -- up. "As history has proven, government health care programs end up costing much more than first promised," writes Carroll. Both the House and Senate health care reform bills require individuals to purchase federally-approved health insurance, and those who fail to do so could face criminal prosecution. "Using [criminal law] to enforce one particular notion of appropriate insurance coverage is nothing less than a tyrannical assertion of raw government power over the private lives and economic rights of individual Americans," write Heritage legal scholars Brian Walsh and Hans von Spakovsky. This abuse of governmental power does not bode well for freedom, as it specifically targets those who choose to make their own decisions regarding their health insurance. Visit Heritage's FixHealthCarePolicy.com to read the entire Senate health care bill and to find more in-depth analyses as our analysts continue to dissect this massive legislation. Protecting America's interests in Copenhagen In December, members of the United Nations Framework Convention will meet in Copenhagen to discuss climate change and draft a new global warming treaty. "This is the most important international conference on global warming since the 1997 Kyoto conference that produced Kyoto Protocol," writes Heritage expert Ben Lieberman. The Kyoto Protocol is an international environmental treaty which the United States never ratified because of the overwhelming financial and regulatory burdens it would impose on the country. Set to expire in 2012, however, the Kyoto Protocol is now the prototype for a new, even more stringent global warming treaty that would pose an even greater threat to American prosperity than its predecessor. Lieberman explains how a new global warming treaty would hurt America: * Inflicting economic harm. The contemplated global warming treaty -- like the highly controversial cap-and-trade legislation under consideration in Congress -- would act as a large energy tax that would drive up energy costs for individuals and consumers. This would result in massive job losses. * Achieving little environmental gain. Leaving aside all scientific questions about global warming, the treaty's targeted emissions reductions will have a nominal, if any, impact on the earth's temperature. This is especially true if developing nations, whose emissions are growing fastest, remain exempt, as they are under Kyoto. * Undermining U.S. sovereignty. Unlike the Kyoto Protocol, a new global warming treaty would impose binding international enforcement mechanisms. An international authority will be established to ensure that all signatories are in compliance with the international provisions, as well as to determine penalties for non-complying entities. Countless studies from both sides of the political aisle reveal the devastating effects of global warming controls. This is why cap-and-trade legislation has been stalled in the U.S. Senate. President Obama has repeatedly promised to reduce America's greenhouse gas emissions and he is under immense pressure from radical environmentalist groups to keep this pledge. But surrendering American prosperity and sovereignty is no bargain. "The American people need to know that, in addition to harming the U.S. economically and environmentally, a new global warming treaty would threaten U.S. sovereignty," explains Lieberman. The United States' decision not to ratify the Kyoto Protocol was a prudent one that served America's best interests. In Copenhagen this December, American negotiators should again keep our best interests in mind. > Other Heritage work of note * "It is a tragic mistake to now bring the detained war combatants into the United States and to employ civilian criminal procedures which were never intended for this type of situation," former Attorney General and Heritage scholar Edwin Meese said this week. Last Friday, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and five other terrorists would be tried in a civilian court in New York City rather than before a military tribunal. This decision blurs the distinction between crimes and acts of war, which are handled in military tribunals, not civilian court. > Read Meese's full statement online * To prevent a "rerun of the Great Crash of 2008" and stave off the need for bailouts, Heritage Vice President Stuart Butler suggests reforming bankruptcy policy . "Without a realistic bankruptcy option, Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke and then-Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. had to make it up on the fly, often stopping up the breaking dam with taxpayers' money." To prevent further bailouts, we should enact serious reforms that "give the bankruptcy courts the tools they need to take care of failing giants." * In less than a year, the Pelosi-Reid Congress has introduced four nation-altering proposals: the $787 billion economic stimulus plan, the massive 2010 budget plan, cap-and-trade legislation, and health care reform. Heritage Vice President Michael Franc points out that "House Republicans have been virtually unanimous in their opposition to this agenda, but House Democrats have been divided in important ways." The Left has kept this ambitious schedule despite the split between moderate liberals and radical progressives, Franc argues, because of "the San Francisco speaker's ability to persuade her troops to line up behind a breathtakingly liberal legislative agenda." > In other news * President Obama will postpone his decision to send additional troops to Afghanistan until after the Thanksgiving holiday. General Stanley McChrystal, who requested additional troops more than a month ago, has said the mission "will likely result in failure" if more troops are not deployed. Speaker Nancy Pelosi, meanwhile, called Afghan President Hamid Karzai an "unworthy partner." * Suspicions are growing that Syria, a close ally of Iran , may have a nuclear program. * Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) became the longest-serving Congressman in history this week . He has spent just under 57 years in the House and Senate. * "South Carolina lawmakers plan to formally consider impeaching Gov. Mark Sanford for the first time next week," the AP reports . * How dubious are Big Labor's organizing practices? Even the New York Times is reporting on them. Amanda Reinecker is a writer for MyHeritage.org-- a website for members and supporters of The Heritage Foundation. Nathaniel Ward, the Editor of MyHeritage.org, contributed to this report. From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:19:52 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:19:52 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] A DIFFERENT CHRISTMAS POEM Message-ID: <1e3901ca6a59$7dcd4a80$7967df80$@com> Different Christmas Poem The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light, I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight. My wife was asleep, her head on my chest, My daughter beside me, angelic in rest. Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white, Transforming the yard to a winter delight. The sparkling lights in the tree I believe, Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve. My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep, Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep. In perfect contentment, or so it would seem, So,I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream. The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near, But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear. Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know, Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow. My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear, And I crept to the door just to see who was near. Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night, A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight. A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old, Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold. Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled, Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child. "What are you doing?" I asked without fear, "Come in this moment, it's freezing out here! Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve, You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!" For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift, Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts. To the window that danced with a warm fire's light Then he sighed and he said, "Its really all right, I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night. "It's my duty to stand at the front of the line, That separates you from the darkest of times. No one had to ask or beg or implore me, I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me. My Gramps died at ' Pearl on a day in December," Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers." My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ' Nam ', And now it is my turn and so, here I am. I've not seen my own son in more than a while, But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile." Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag, The red, white, and blue... an American flag. "I can live through the cold and the being alone, Away from my family, my house and my home. I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet, I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat. I can carry the weight of killing another, Or lay down my life with my sister and brother.. Who stand at the front against any and all, To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall." "So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright, Your family is waiting and I'll be all right." "But isn't there something I can do, at the least, "Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast? It seems all too little for all that you've done, For being away from your wife and your son." Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret, "Just tell us you love us, and never forget. To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone, To stand your own watch, no matter how long. For when we come home, either standing or dead, To know you remember we fought and we bled. Is payment enough, and with that we will trust, That we mattered to you as you mattered to us." *PLEASE, would you do me the kind favor of sending this to as many people as you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our U.S service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities. Let's try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe. Make people stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us. LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN 30th Naval Construction Regiment OIC, Logistics Cell One Al Taqqadum, Iraq In God We Trust From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:20:39 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:20:39 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] Greater New Orleans Tea Party Message-ID: <1e3a01ca6a59$99bdd930$cd398b90$@com> 11-20-09 This is it...It looks like Landrieu will side with the administration...WOW! What a price tag for her vote! I run into people who push politics aside and has not taken the time to see this is not about healthcare but "control and fundamentally changing our country" - - Probably all a moot point when the "Money Bubble" bursts. Keep on talking - keep on calling - get on talk radio - pass out Landrieu's numbers and urge people to call. See "SenatorLandrieu" file under the Documents tab. I'm really at a lost of what to do... protesting is not going to do it because we get marginalized and to be honest we should when only 50 show up - - of course they think we are the minority on the side of this healthcare issue. All we can do is call.... and call today.... Call Mary Landrieu at 202-224-5824 FYI: I have emails from tea parties around the country urging us to contact Senator Landieu - the country is watching... The tea parties wants us to converge on Landrieu's office today and tomorrow... but as I said earlier 50 people will not convince her to change her vote. ONCE AGAIN: CALL AND PASS HER NUMBER TO ALL. Call Mary Landrieu at 202-224-5824 P.S. ORGANIZING FOR AMERICA GOES AROUND TOWN WITH LANDRIEU'S NUMBER IN CELL PHONES AND URGING PEOPLE TO CALL ON THE SPOT... OVER 400,000 CALLS THEY LOGGED.... Call Mary Landrieu at 202-224-5824 Mary Kass From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:21:06 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:21:06 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] LSU'S MIKE THE TIGER Message-ID: <1e3b01ca6a59$aa2b79d0$fe826d70$@com> To our LSU Fans & friends from other parts of the country; Most of you know that we have a live Bengal Tiger mascot who is housed next to our stadium. Click on the links or cut & paste these 3 clips to the web and you will see an unbelievable series of clips. Our MIKE THE TIGER SAVED THIS MAN FROM KILLING HIMSELF. God used Mike to reach out and save this man's life. In the 3rd clip you will hear his story. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaLbEFSPiw8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oS1h5WryMM8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYJzuxetGTo&NR=1 From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:21:21 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:21:21 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] THANKSGIVING SPECIAL Message-ID: <1e3d01ca6a59$b2cb4520$1861cf60$@com> Click here: YouTube - Just Visit US - Turkey Testicle Festival http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNf9t8R-ZWo From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:21:54 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:21:54 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] For Sale: Message-ID: <1e3e01ca6a59$c6981650$53c842f0$@com> For Sale: One (1) Wife, slightly used, 1964 Model Needs muffler, as it is currently VERY LOUD. Intake valve is stuck in the open position. Rear end needs major overhaul. A crack there has grown monstrously large. Needs re-wiring. Many wires are currently crossed. Lots of little dings in the body, which have been covered up with too much paint in a failed effort at camouflaging them. Needs re-upholstering. Carpet has turned a dingy gray. Needs front-end work--Headlights are too close to the ground, and fenders are too far apart. May not pass emissions test, as it currently produces foul clouds of malodorous gases on a regular basis, Heater works great. Hot air is never in short supply.. Asking $500 or trade for 1984 model. From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:23:12 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:23:12 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] SHIPWRECK Message-ID: <1e3f01ca6a59$f53c16f0$dfb444d0$@com> A man was washed up on a beach after a shipwreck. Only a sheep and a sheepdog were washed up with him. After looking around, he realized that they were stranded on a deserted island. After being there awhile, he got into the habit of taking his two animal companions to the beach every evening to watch the sunset. One particular evening, the sky was a fiery red with beautiful cirrus clouds, the breeze was warm and gentle - a perfect night for romance. As they sat there, the sheep started looking better and better to the lonely man. Soon, he leaned over to the sheep and put his arm around it. But the sheepdog, ever protective of the sheep, growled fiercely until the man took his arm from around the sheep. After that, the three of them continued to enjoy the sunsets together, but there was no more cuddling. A few weeks passed by and, lo and behold, there was another shipwreck. The only survivor was Nancy Pelosi. That evening, the man brought Nancy to the evening beach ritual. It was another beautiful evening - red sky, cirrus clouds, a warm and gentle breeze - perfect for a night of romance. Pretty soon, the man started to get 'those feelings' again. He fought the urges as long as he could but he finally gave in and leaned over to Nancy and told her he hadn't had sex for months. Nancy batted her eyelashes and asked if there was anything she could do for him. He said, 'Take the dog for a walk?' From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:24:49 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:24:49 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] GRIM REAPER Message-ID: <1e4001ca6a5a$2eb00950$8c101bf0$@com> Dear Mr. Grim Reaper, So far this year you have taken away my favorite dancer and entertainer Michael Jackson, favorite actor Patrick Swayze, favorite actress Farrah Fawcett, and my favorite "pitch man" Billy Mays. Just so you know, my favorite politician is Barack Obama. Thank you From Westley at da-parish.com Fri Nov 20 22:30:41 2009 From: Westley at da-parish.com (Westley Annis) Date: Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:30:41 -0600 Subject: [StBernard] "Stay Local!: A Project of The Urban Conservancy" Message-ID: <1e4201ca6a5b$00de5760$029b0620$@com> *$1.5M Potential for New Orleans-Area Businesses* New Orleans, LA ? As consumers gear up for the holiday shopping season, The Urban Conservancy, a land use and economic development organization, is urging them to shop at locally-owned businesses, this Saturday, Nov. 21 as part of a parish-wide effort to boost the local economy by an estimated $1.5 million. The effort, part of a campaign dubbed ?New Orleans Unchained,? is a local spin on a national campaign called ?America Unchained,? the purpose of which is to educate consumers about the effect that spending has on their local economy and encourage them to shop with local merchants. ?We?re facing major budgetary shortfalls in both Jefferson and Orleans parishes,? said David T. Baker, project coordinator for Stay Local!, The Urban Conservancy?s economic development initiative. ?By patronizing locally-owned businesses, what consumers are really doing is ensuring greater revenue retention for their regions.? According to The Urban Conservancy?s latest study, Thinking Outside the Box: A Report on Independent Merchants and the New Orleans Economy, local retailers produce twice the economic benefit for the region than their big box competitors. ?We found that by shifting even a small portion of our spending ? a mere ten percent ? to locally-owned establishments, we could infuse our local economy with an additional $60 million annually.? The study?s findings also state that local retailers generate twice the annual sales, re-circulate revenues within the local economy at twice the rate, and on a per square foot basis, have four times the economic impact resulting in an additional $235 million for the Greater New Orleans region. ?We?re hoping that New Orleans Unchained will help to reconnect shoppers with the locally-owned businesses that have been supporting their communities for years,? Baker said. To find out more about New Orleans Unchained, visit http://www.staylocal.org. To read the study, visit http://www.staylocal.org/info/category/stay-local-reports/ ####