Argue With My Dad

After a very busy weekend, it is time once again for our regular Monday Musings feature.  There is just one news item that I want to talk about today.  We have all been besieged with news and advertisements for and against Health Care Reform.  The Republicans try to call it socialized medicine and the Democrats call it much needed reform.  The Public Option proposal is the one item that has been causing the most consternation between both sides. The Public Option would provide an alternative medical insurance source for individuals who can’t afford commercial insurance or who have lost their insurance for any reason.  This Public Option would force the insurance companies to reduce their costs in order to compete for customers.

Now, after hearing the lies and distortions by both Republicans and Blue Dog Democrats of the health care reform proposals, I thought it was time to give some recent poll numbers that show Americans dramatic approval for a Public Option and to give one more glaring example why reform and the Public Option are so desperately needed.  A CBS/New York Times poll that was reported on 9/24/09 states that 65% of Americans approve of a government run medical insurance program that would be similar to Medicare.   http://documents.nytimes.com/new-york-times-cbs-news-poll-confusion-over-health-care-tepid-support-for-war#p=15.  These approval numbers have gone up 5 points in just the last few weeks since the last poll at the end of August.  These numbers are dramatic evidence that Americans understand how much crap the Republicans have been throwing against the wall, but they now realize that the public option is necessary.  Now that we have proof that the American Public supports the reform, it is also time to see one more example just how brutal the insurance companies can be.

In this CBS report, one woman went to an emergency room when her nipple started bleeding and afterwards her insurance company, Blue Shield of California HMO, refused to pay her emergency room bill because ,” Documents from Blue Shield indicate the company had reviewed the case and determined Miran-Ramirez “reasonably should have known that an emergency did not exist.” http://cbs5.com/local/insurance.claim.denied.2.1207332.html.  How arrogant and abusive can one insurance company be?   Who in their right mind would make such a specious claim, but the insurance industry?   This woman appealed her denial and the appeal was rejected.  Surprise, surprise!  Who would have thought that the insurance companies appeal panel which is controlled and staffed by the insurance company would deny the appeal?  Of course, after the CBS affiliate reported on this travesty, Blue Shield  eventually agreed to pay the emergency room bill.  How much was the bill you ask?  It was only $2,791.00!  Talk about nickel and diming people. 

The California Nurses Association did a recent study that reported the California insurance industry refused 22% of all medical insurance claims made between 2002 and June 30, 2009!  http://www.calnurses.org/media-center/press-releases/2009/september/california-s-real-death-panels-insurers-deny-21-of-claims.html.  It is obvious to all except those in the pocket of the insurance industry, that the only way these companies will deal fairly with the American public is if they are forced to by direct competition in the form of a vibrant public option.  No triggers will do it and no insurance exchanges run by the insurance industry will bring this reform.  Only honest to goodness competition that will force them to reduce their rates and to treat the American public with dignity and fairness will work.  This competition can only be achieved through the public option.  Tell your Congressional representative and your Senators that you want and demand affordable health care for all and that you must have the public option. This is a battle for our very lives.  Make the call today!

After a crazy week, it is time, once again, for another edition of the AWMD Friday Free For All.  This is the only time of the week when our arguewithmydad.com readers can control the topic(s) for discussion.  All you have to do is get someone else to respond to your suggested topic and then the floor is yours.  Don’t be shy and don’t hesitate.  Get busy and be sure to let us know your views and arguments so everyone can read and react to them.  Right here on arguewithmydad.com.  I will make a suggestion or two for possible topics, but they are only suggestions.  Today is Friday so only you can be the decider.   But you need to tell us what you want to discuss.  So, what will it be?

The first news article that caught my eye was an article in the San Francisco Chronicle’s online site SF Gate that outlined the news that a wiretapping lawsuit started against the Bush Administration’s warrantless wiretapping program has actually made its way into court. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/23/MNQB19RL8R.DTL .  According to the judge,  Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker, the plaintiff, Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation had provided the court significant evidence that they had been wiretapped without a warrant.  The Government response, initially argued by the Bush Administration and now being  argued by the Obama Administration , that even allowing al-Haramain to sue would “reveal information about “intelligence sources and methods.”  This argument is a ridiculous one that amazed me when the Bush Justice Department argued it earlier and the amazement continues with the Bush claim now being promulgated by the Obama Administration.   This case first made headlines when it was announced that the plaintiff had received evidence that the plaintiff’s attorneys were wiretapped illegally from the Justice Department officials who sent the information in an inadvertent mailing.  The government actually makes the argument that since the document is no longer in the hands of the plaintiff, that they have no standing to sue the government!  I guess the plaintiff has to pretend that they didn’t read the document.  Thankfully, the judge hasn’t bought that argument so far.  We can only hope that Judge Walker shows the courage to do the right thing.  What do you think is the right decision in this case?

My final suggested topic concerns the news that the top General in Afghanistan is requesting more troops to be sent to fight the Taliban and there is also news that President Obama may not be seeing eye to eye with General McChrystal. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/24/world/asia/24general.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss.  This increased troop strength that General McChrystal is requesting not only concerns me, it also worries me.  I am glad that Obama is taking his time in making the decision, but I don’t know if he has much of a choice.  The war in Afghanistan was basically abandoned by the Bush Administration in it’s run-up to war in Iraq and now it is on life support.  If Obama doesn’t increase the troop strength he will feel the wrath of the Republicans who screwed up in the first place.  If he does increase the troop strength he has many in his party to answer to.  I have to admit that I am torn by this decision.  On one hand, I don’t think military strength is the answer.  At least not alone.  The people in Afghanistan have been fighting foreigners for centuries. We need to not just defeat the Taliban and al-Qaeda, but we need to win over the Afghan people.  If we do not have enough soldiers in country to safeguard our troops, then I would agree to move more troops in asap.  If additional troop strength does not guarantee increased safety and security, then I do not want anymore soldiers and Marines sent there or put in harms way.    Al-Qaeda has spread its venom in many directions since 9/11 and Afghanistan is not the only battlefield that we have to worry about.  What do you think Obama should do?

I have made my suggestions, and they are just that, suggestions.  Let’s hear what you want to talk about.  I will be anxiously waiting to see what You want to talk about.  It is time to get busy and let everyone know what you are thinking about.  Let’s hear from all of you!  Don’t be shy.  Progressives don’t bite!

After a very busy weekend, it is time once again for our regular Monday Musings feature.  A couple of news items caught my eye that I want to discuss today.  The first news item that needs to be discussed is the one that describes Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski’s efforts to keep the EPA from regulating the carbon dioxide pollution from power plants and manufacturers. http://washingtonindependent.com/59996/mukowski-seeks-to-thwart-epa-regulation-of-greenhouse-gases & http://wonkroom.thinkprogress.org/2009/09/21/murkowski-climate-outlaw/.  It seems that Senator Murkowski is trying to prevent the EPA from doing what the Supreme Court says it has the power to do and that is to regulate and control Carbon Dioxide pollution and slow down climate change. http://thinkprogress.org/2007/04/02/supreme-court-rules-against-bush-in-global-warming-case/.  Of course, this wouldn’t be the first time that the Republicans have tried to defeat a ruling that the Supreme Court has decided against them.  How many times did Bush get defeated in the Supreme Court over the legality of the military commissions and indefinite detention policies in Gitmo and yet he kept coming back to Congress for help in going around the heavily Republican Supreme Court?  I have to give it to the Republicans in that they are tireless in their attempts to keep the United States from taking positive steps in dealing with man made climate pollution.  Luckily, I don’t think Senator Murkawski’s amendment will be successful, but she may just be trying to delay the EPA’s efforts.  Isn’t it amazing that a Senator from Alaska would do everything in her power to help increase climate change pollution that is adding to the Global warming that is dealing a serious blow to the glaciers and sea ice in her home state?  Maybe I have forgotten that to the Republicans, what is good for corporations is good for the Republicans. 

When I read this next issue, I just couldn’t wait to write a post about it here on Arguewithmydad.com.  Any of our regular readers will know that the illegal torture program authorized and ordered by the Bush Administration is one of my pet issues.  It has now been reported that there has been a scientific paper that has been written that proves that the torture techniques utilized by Bush & Co actually diminished the ability of the detainees to remember and recollect the very information that the interrogator was trying to collect.  http://rawstory.com/blog/2009/09/scientific-paper-torture-clouds-the-memory/.  Scientific researcher, Shane O’Mara of Ireland’s Trinity college states, ” “Solid scientific evidence on how repeated and extreme stress and pain affect memory and executive functions (such as planning or forming intentions) suggests these techniques are unlikely to do anything other than the opposite of that intended by coercive or enhanced interrogation,” according to the paper published Monday in the scientific journal Trends in Cognitive Sciences.”  With this scientific evidence it is obvious that not only was the torture illegal and ineffective in obtaining any information that prevented any attacks, it also likely damaged the detainees cognitive ability to remember any information that might have been helpful to the United States.  Leave it to the Bush Administration to screw up three different ways in their interrogation of prisoners.  Now can we investigate and prosecute the people who authorized and designed the torture?

After a busy week, it is time, once again, for another edition of the AWMD Friday Free For All.  This is the only time of the week when our arguewithmydad.com readers can control the topic(s) for discussion.  All you have to do is get someone else to respond to your suggested topic and then the floor is yours.  Don’t be shy and don’t hesitate.  Get busy and be sure to let us know your views and arguments so everyone can read and react to them.  Right here on arguewithmydad.com.  I will make a suggestion or two for possible topics, but they are only suggestions.  Today is Friday so only you can be the decider.   But you need to tell us what you want to discuss.  So, what will it be?

My first suggested topic concerns the Health Care Reform that is presently being debated and discussed in Congress and on websites everywhere.  Today, I saw a Reuters article that discussed a new study by Harvard researchers that claims that 45,000 Americans die every year due in large part to lack of insurance coverage. http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE58G6W520090917.   That figure is the supreme evidence that reform is needed and what it means to all citizens who do not have insurance coverage.  “Overall, researchers said American adults age 64 and younger who lack health insurance have a 40 percent higher risk of death than those who have coverage.” http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE58G6W520090917.  With numbers and odds like that, who wouldn’t want to have at least a public option to make sure every American has access to coverage and care?

My last suggested topic relates to another recent study that show that the more religious the community is the higher the birth rate will be for teens. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32884806/ns/health-kids_and_parenting/.  The study suggests that one of the reasons for this situation may be due to the idea that those same religious communities are usually against contraception.  I guess it didn’t surprise me that Mississippi had the highest teen birth rate and the highest rating on the religiousness scale according to the study.  I have long been an advocate of mandatory sex education for school children to help prevent the unwanted pregnancies.  This study seems to indicate that the citizens of the Bible Belt could use a little more work on preparing their teens to protect themselves and prevent unwanted pregnancies.  I realize this topic isn’t on every one’s minds, but it really caught my eye.  Do you believe this study and if so, do you think Contraception education and use could assist these Bible Belt states in reducing their teen birth rate? 

I have made my suggestions, and they are just that, suggestions.  Let’s hear what you want to talk about.  I will be anxiously waiting to see what You want to talk about.  It is time to get busy and let everyone know what you are thinking about.  Let’s hear from all of you!  Don’t be shy.  Let us know what your opinion is.

Another busy weekend is over and now it is time for our regular feature, Monday Musings.  There has been a lot of interesting and strange news items these past few days, so I just want to mention one of the issues or stories that caught me eye.  The one thing that I have to talk about is the Glenn Beck and Fox News supported 9/12 March on Washington.  Of course, you can’t have the radical Right wing involved without a major falsehood being repeated early and often. 

When the crowds arrived in Washington with many racist and disgusting signs, the promoters made the ridiculous claim that there was over 1 million marchers present.  Then the right wing pundits stretched it to over 2 million!  They even lied that ABC News had reported that the crowd was 1 to 1.5 million strong. http://thinkprogress.org/2009/09/14/912-freedomworks-lie/.  Of course, ABC came out with a denial of that ridiculous claim and said that they reported a crowd of 65,000 to 70,000 which was based on information from the Fire Department.  As usual, the Right Wing will lie about anything and will not hesitate to include third parties into their lie.  The next article that I have linked to even reports that the Republicans were using a photograph of a crowd from a rally that was over 10 years old to make their false claim.  http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2009/sep/14/tea-party-photo-shows-large-crowd-different-event/  These guys are so desperate to make Obama look bad that they will lie about anything and everything. 

I do want to mention one more thing here.  Have you noticed that the Teabaggers and the Birthers and the Tenthers all seem to be white?   As their desperate lies keep coming, it is obvious that racism is at the heart of these protesters. http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2009/sep/14/tea-party-photo-shows-large-crowd-different-event/.  Have you seen some of the signs at this great event?  Take a look at the signs of these 9/12 protesters: http://thinkprogress.org/2009/09/12/912-signs/.  These citizens make Rep. Joe Wilson look like Einstein.  Between the lies and the racism, these protesters just continue to remind me why I voted for Barack Obama!

After a busy week, it is time, once again, for another edition of the AWMD Friday Free For All.  This is the only time of the week when our arguewithmydad.com readers can control the topic(s) for discussion.  All you have to do is get someone else to respond to your suggested topic and then the floor is yours.  Don’t be shy and don’t hesitate.  Get busy and be sure to let us know your views and arguments so everyone can read and react to them.  Right here on arguewithmydad.com.  I will make a suggestion or two for possible topics, but they are only suggestions.  Today is Friday so only you can be the decider.   But you need to tell us what you want to discuss.  So, what will it be?

I have to comment again that President Obama did a wonderful job in getting me back into the fold on the health care reform issue.  Of course, I was not the only one who thought Obama did a great job.  http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/09/10/cnn-obama-got-double-digit-post-speech-bump/.  I will hold my complete approval until I see a bill and I see a vibrant public option.  Also related to Obama’s speech, it does amaze me that the Republicans are still misrepresenting some of the elements of the proposed legislation. Here is a link to an article that quotes Republican Rep. Eric Cantor spewing more crap about the government getting between the doctor and the patient in this health care reform.  Of course, the truth of the matter is that the insurance companies do that now and Rep. Cantor still wants the status quo!  http://thinkprogress.org/2009/09/10/cantor-obama-concession/.  This is the same guy who was on his Blackberry for a good portion of the speech.  No wonder he doesn’t know what the legislation is proposing.  What do you think?

I can’t forget to mention South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson who opened his big pie hole and called Obama a liar on national tv.  This mental midget did apologize, but did not admit that he was the one who was lying about the Republican’s claim that the proposed health care reform will allow illegal aliens to get free care.  The plan does not allow that, but the truth has never gotten in the way of their ridiculous claims.  This very loud mouth from South Carolina just happens to be one of the favorite recipients of Health Care industry funding.  This one article quotes the amount he has received over $300,000! http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/09/10/obama-speech-disrupter-a-health-industry-darling/.  Is it just a coincidence that Wilson got the payoff from the Health Care corporations?  What do you think? 

I have made my suggestions, and they are just that, suggestions.  Let’s hear what you want to talk about.  I will be anxiously waiting to see what You want to talk about.  It is time to get busy and let everyone know what you are thinking about.  Let’s hear from all of you!  Don’t be shy.  Let us know what your opinion is. I realize that both of my suggested topics are related to the health care reform and President Obama’s speech.  However, I believe that these issues are too important to not express your opinions!  What do you think??

I listened with interest to President Obama’s speech to a Joint Session of Congress in his attempt to breathe life into the Health Care Reform process.  I was worried that he would sell out the important issues in order to get some water downed plan through the Congress.  I have to admit that his speech not only outlined the issues that he considers mandatory in his plan, it also bolstered the progressive wing of the Democratic Party that Obama would not be folding under the Republicans lies and misrepresentations. His promise to call out any future lies got me up and out of my seat and I gave a High Five to “Mom”!  I jumped out of my chair a second time when he called the intentional misrepresentations by the Republican Party what they are, lies.

The main thrust of his plan was succinctly outlined.  No American will be denied coverage for pre-existing  illnesses under his plan.  That is huge and monumental.  He went on to state that there would be no lifetime or yearly caps on coverage and no insurance officer or government bureaucrat would get in the way of your doctors care of your health.  I even agreed with him on how he recommended the public option would be used for and how limited its scope would be.  This speech filled in many gaps for me and I am sure for a large portion of the country that listened to it.  It also buoyed my spirit and reassured me that while I have not agreed with Obama’s desire to put torture behind us without holding Bush and his officials responsible, he proved that he is still a Democrat at heart.  He reassured me that the Democratic issues that I voted for and donated my hard earned money for are still viable and important to the Obama White House. 

His speech provided the progressives with something to believe in and provided a large portion of hope for people throughout the country who are faced with the tough decisions on how to meet their bills and deal with illness at the same time.  People who lose their job in the future will not have to worry that they will lose their health care.  Obama mentioned that the health care reform was a “moral imperative” that a wealthy Democracy cannot afford to provide for all of their citizens.  Somewhere, the late Senator Teddy Kennedy is smiling and feeling spry once again because the fight of his life is going to be won by the Democratic Congress and the Obama White House.  It is about time!

What a beautiful Labor Day weekend it has been here in Northern Illinois.   I guess any 3 day weekend would be wonderful, even if it rained!  The family joined us yesterday(except for our Marine, who joined us by phone) for a great barbecue and it was all over too fast.  Now that the weekend is over(sort of), it must be time for the arguewithmydad.com Monday Musings. There were many stories that hit the internet last week and over the weekend, but there is only one thing that I want to talk about today.

There has been a lot written and said about the President’s attempts to pass a Health Care reform bill and the infamous Public Option and a lot of nonsense written about the President’s upcoming speech to the School Children of the country.  I have been amazed how much crap has been flying around about both topics.  Even if the Republicants had not already been on record as trying to derail anything and everything the Obama administration attempts to pass, these last few weeks, it would  still be obvious by the crazy, tinfoil hat wearing type of attacks that have been multiplying.   Let’s review some of the worst of the worst.  We have witnessed the Palin lies about the Dems trying to kill the senior citizens and the disabled with the health care reform.  We have heard former Governor and Presidential candidate, Mike Huckabee claim that the late Senator Ted Kennedy would have died sooner if the health care reform had already been passed.  More recently we have seen Senator Coburn attempt to use a “Tenther” argument to persuade a town hall participant that the health care reform is illegal.  http://thinkprogress.org/2009/09/07/tenther-debate-coburn/.  However, the fun didn’t stop there.

Yesterday on Meet the Press, our old friend, Rudy Guiliani resurrected the death panel talk by saying that the only way the health care reform can save money is by “pulling the plug on Grandma”. http://thinkprogress.org/2009/09/06/giuliani-tort-grandma/.  Also, Senator Grassley who is a member of the so called Gang of Six, the group of Senators “trying” to reach agreement on a bipartisan bill, went on record again that he is fighting to stop the health care reform bill!  http://thinkprogress.org/2009/09/05/grassley-secret-fundraiser/.  That is an interesting statement by someone purporting to be acting in a bipartisan manner with his fellow Gang of Six.

The other issue where the Republican propaganda and lying campaign has been directed at is the upcoming speech by President Obama to the school children of the country.  Almost immediately critics were claiming his speech was going to be Socialist indoctrination. Minnesota Governor Pawlenty was just one of the critics to attack the proposed speech.http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/09/04/pawlently-takes-aim-at-obamas-address-to-students/.   Of course, he was far from being the only one.  Here is a link to a Media Matters compilation of the attacks that have gone after Obama for actually wanting to encourage school children to work hard and stay in school.  http://mediamatters.org/research/200909030013.  Of course, when Reagan spoke to school children via C-Span in 1988 and George Bush the First spoke to them in 1991, there was no outcry that these were speeches intended to indoctrinate the students.  Here is a link to both speeches and you can make your own judgement: http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/57308457.html.  If you review a partial transcript of the Reagan speech, he discussed tax cut policy with students.  Isn’t this indoctrination? http://mediamatters.org/blog/200909030020.  So what is all of the furor all about??

The answer to that question is an easy one.  It is all about politics and the Republicans trying in every  way possible to defeat any and all  proposals by President Obama and the Democratic Congress.  When they attempt to block everything, you can’t call that bipartisanship.  When they lie about the proposals in the the health care reform, you can’t call that bipartisanship and when they lie about the speech to school children by the President, you can’t call that bipartisanship either.  I do have to give the Republicans credit.  They do a good job of lying and in misrepresenting the President’s programs and they do a good job in stirring up their base of religious wingnuts.  I saw one pundit sum my feelings about the speech issue very well.  To paraphrase John Harwood on MSNBC recently, In a country of 300 million there are bound to be a lot of stupid people because if you think the President telling school kids to stay in school and work hard is bad, then you are stupid. http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/john-harwood-lets-face-it-country-three-hundred-m.  That pretty much says it all.  The Republicans are trying and succeeding to stir up a hornets nest with lies and misrepresentations among those who are too lazy or stupid to do their homework,  and who evidently don’t want their kids to do their homework either.

After an exhausting week, it is time, once again, for another edition of the AWMD Friday Free For All.  This is the only time of the week when our arguewithmydad.com readers can control the topic(s) for discussion.  All you have to do is get someone else to respond to your suggested topic and then the floor is yours.  Don’t be shy and don’t hesitate.  Get busy and be sure to let us know your views and arguments so everyone can read and react to them.  Right here on arguewithmydad.com.  I will make a suggestion or two for possible topics, but they are only suggestions.  Today is Friday so only you can be the decider.   But you need to tell us what you want to discuss.  So, what will it be?

My first suggested topic to discuss is the Republicans latest lie to the American public.  President Obama is planning to speak to school children across the Nation  next week and some of the wingnuts in the Republican party are calling this speech Socialist indoctrination.  http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0909/26711.html.  Of course, the truth of the matter is that Obama will be challenging students to buckle down and work hard and have a great school year.  http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0909/26711.html.  The intentional lies and misrepresentations that these Republicans are spewing is designed, as usual, to drive the base into their lunacy and keep kids out of school and to yell and scream that Obama is a Socialist.  The good news here is that even some of the Conservatives are breaking from the pack and calling these tactics for what they are, BS.  Here is Joe Scarborough’s take on the conservative’s tactics: “Seriously, why don’t we want the president of the United States, any president of the United States, delivering the message to kids: work hard, stay in school, succeed,” said Scarborough, adding, “get your ratings if you want, you’re just screwing your political party.” http://thinkprogress.org/2009/09/03/scarborough-education-speech/.   After reading what Obama is going to talk about it is obvious that the Republicans are doing what they do best.  They are lying.  Even Morning Joe thinks they are full of crap.  What do you think?

My next suggested topic concerns the infamous “Public Option” that the Republicans are trying to remove from the Health Care reform legislation by utilizing their usual lying tactics. I was happy to read one story that lets us know that there are House leaders who are still fighting for the public option.  http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/09/03/house-liberals-demand-public-option/.  The co-chairs of the House of Representatives Progressive Caucus sent a letter to the White House demanding that the public option must remain as a viable part of the reform legislation.  “Any bill that does not provide, at a minimum, a public option built on the Medicare provider system and with reimbursement based on Medicare rates-not negotiated rates-is unacceptable,” they wrote. “A plan with negotiated rates would ensure higher costs for the public plan, and would do nothing to achieve the goal of providing choice and competition to keep rates down. The public plan with set rates saves $75 billion, which could be lost if rates are negotiated with providers. Further, this public option must be available immediately and must not be contingent upon any trigger.” http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/09/03/house-liberals-demand-public-option/.  The story goes on to remind the White House that the polls are still showing that the majority of the American public want a legitimate public option.  How this will all shake out is still up in the air.  The President will soon be speaking to Congress in a joint session in an effort to rally the troops around this vital reform.  With the Progressive Caucus members staying united for the benefit of all of us, there is still a fighting chance that the public option and the major reform issues will be retained.  In the next few days and weeks the slime campaign by the Republicans will increase and more lies will be spread all over Fox News.  What do you think of the public option and what will actually be passed by Congress?

I have made my suggestions, and they are just that, suggestions.  Let’s hear what you want to talk about.  I will be anxiously waiting to see what You want to talk about.  It is time to get busy and let everyone know what you are thinking about.  Let’s hear from all of you!  Don’t be shy.  Let us know what your opinion is. These issues are too important to not express your opinions!

In the Sept. 8 speech, Obama will challenge students to work hard, set goals for their education

and take responsibility for their learning, Education Secretary Arne Duncan said in a letter to principals.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0909/26711.html#ixzz0Q6QNtHLx

In the Sept. 8 speech, Obama will challenge students to work hard, set goals for their education

and take responsibility for their learning, Education Secretary Arne Duncan said in a letter to principals.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0909/26711.html#ixzz0Q6QNtHLx

In the Sept. 8 speech, Obama will challenge students to work hard, set goals for their education

and take responsibility for their learning, Education Secretary Arne Duncan said in a letter to principals.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0909/26711.html#ixzz0Q6QNtHLx

In the Sept. 8 speech, Obama will challenge students to work hard, set goals for their education

and take responsibility for their learning, Education Secretary Arne Duncan said in a letter to principals.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0909/26711.html#ixzz0Q6QNtHLx