JUDICIARY COMMITTEE PROBES JUSTICE KAGAN‘S ROLE IN OBAMACARE...
The House Judiciary Committee has launched an inquiry into Associate Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan’s involvement in the health care overhaul at the request of 49 Republican House members.
The probe will examine whether Kagan, who served as President Barack Obama’s solicitor general prior to her Supreme Court nomination, will be required to recuse herself for cases challenging the health care law, and the accuracy of her answers to the Senate Judiciary Committee during her confirmation hearings last July, CNS News reported.
In a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder on Wednesday, House Judiciary Chair Lamar Smith (R-Texas) requested “relevant documents and witness interviews in order to properly understand U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Elena Kagan’s involvement in health care legislation or litigation while serving as United States Solicitor General.” Smith requested they be made available by July 29.
Federal law bars Supreme Court justices from being involved in cases where their impartiality could be questioned or they previously served in an advisory capacity related to the case at hand.
Rep. John Fleming (R-La.) led 48 of his Republican colleagues in a letter to Smith and House Judiciary Committee ranking member John Conyers (D-Mich.) on June 24, pointing to statements made during her hearings the House members called “contradictory” to released Justice Department documents and urging an investigation.
Kagan said in written responses to the Senate Judiciary Committee that she had no involvement in developing the government’s legal responses to the health care law and was never asked her views or offered them, according to the Washington Times.
Fleming issued a statement Thursday applauding Smith’s request to Holder:
“I am confident that this investigation will uncover even more evidence that Justice Kagan was involved in Obamacare defense activities, contrary to her Senate confirmation testimony. How can any reasonable person believe that Justice Kagan can be impartial on ANY Obamacare case if she was involved in formulating a defense of this destructive law?
For those of you who are on Medicare, read the article below. It is about the monthly amount of money you are going to pay in Medicare premiums in 2011, 2012 and the huge increase you will pay in 2013. It's a short but important article:
Congress will not allow an increase in the social security COLA (cost of living adjustment); however, the per person monthly Medicare insurance premiums are being increased as follows:
2009 premium of $96.40
2012 premium of $104.20
2013 premium of $120.20
And increases to a whopping $247.00 in 2014!
Thank You Obamacare!
Congress also gave themselves a $3,000 a month Cost of Living Adjustment! Send this to all seniors that you know.
REMEMBER TO VOTE IN NOVEMBER 2012
And in the meantime you might consider moving from AARP, who sold seniors out for profit on ObamaCare, to the ASA or AMAC. Just like hating Progressivism and what it is doing to America, you can’t talk about changing it and about making a difference and then buy Progressive Insurance. You gotta help starve the Beast!!
For anyone who missed the Progressive Insurance information:
Friends it is important that we have and share information like this…I would not be sending this out to you if it had not been confirmed by Snopes.com and Truthorfiction.com.
BTW, Snopes is also a leftist group that receives Soros funds, so be aware when checking. The aren’t always accurate or truthful, but got this one right!
You’ve seen and smiled at the Progressive Insurance TV commercials. Well, you’re about to learn the rest of the story:
PROGRESSIVE AUTO INSURANCE
You know their TV commercials, the ones featuring the actress all dressed in white. What you might not know is that the Chairman of Progressive is Peter Lewis, one of the major funders of leftist causes in America . Between 2001 and 2003, Lewis funneled $15 million to the ACLU, the group most responsible for destroying what's left of Americas Judeo-Christian heritage. Lewis also gave $12.5 million to MoveOn.org and American Coming Together, two key propaganda arms of the socialist left. His funding for these groups was conditional on matching contributions from George Soros, the America-hating socialist who is the chief financier of the Obama political machine.
Lewis made a fortune as a result of capitalism, but now finances a progressive movement that threatens to destroy the American free enterprise system that is targeting television shows on Fox News.
Peter Lewis is making a fortune off of conservative Americans (who buy his auto insurance) that he applies to dismantle the very system that made him wealthy. He's banking on no one finding out who he is, so, STOP buying Progressive Insurance and pass this information on to all your friends.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Betty Ford, the former first lady whose triumph over drug and alcohol addiction became a beacon of hope for addicts and the inspiration for her Betty Ford Center in California, died at age 93, a family friend said late Friday.
Her death Friday was confirmed to The Associated Press by Marty Allen, chairman emeritus of the Ford Foundation. Family spokeswoman Barbara Lewandrowski said later that the former first lady died at the Eisenhower Medical Center in Palm Springs. Other details of her death were not immediately available.
“She was a wonderful wife and mother; a great friend; and a courageous First Lady,” former President George H.W. Bush said in a statement on Friday. “No one confronted life’s struggles with more fortitude or honesty, and as a result, we all learned from the challenges she faced.”
While her husband served as president, Ford‘s comments weren’t the kind of genteel, innocuous talk expected from a first lady, and a Republican one no less. Her unscripted comments sparked tempests in the press and dismayed President Gerald Ford’s advisers, who were trying to soothe the national psyche after Watergate. But to the scandal-scarred, Vietnam-wearied, hippie-rattled nation, Mrs. Ford’s openness was refreshing.
And 1970s America loved her for it.
According to Mrs. Ford, her young adult children probably had smoked marijuana — and if she were their age, she’d try it, too. She told “60 Minutes” she wouldn’t be surprised to learn that her youngest, 18-year-old Susan, was in a sexual relationship (an embarrassed Susan issued a denial).
She mused that living together before marriage might be wise, thought women should be drafted into the military if men were, and spoke up unapologetically for abortion rights, taking a position contrary to the president’s. “Having babies is a blessing, not a duty,” Mrs. Ford said.
“Mother’s love, candor, devotion, and laughter enriched our lives and the lives of the millions she touched throughout this great nation,” her family said in a statement released late Friday. “To be in her presence was to know the warmth of a truly great lady.”
Candor worked for Betty Ford, again and again. She would build an enduring legacy by opening up the toughest times of her life as public example.
In an era when cancer was discussed in hushed tones and mastectomy was still a taboo subject, the first lady shared the specifics of her breast cancer surgery. The publicity helped bring the disease into the open and inspired countless women to seek breast examinations.
Her most painful revelation came 15 months after leaving the White House, when Mrs. Ford announced that she was entering treatment for a longtime addiction to painkillers and alcohol. It turned out the famously forthcoming first lady had been keeping a secret, even from herself.
She used the unvarnished story of her own descent and recovery to crusade for better addiction treatment, especially for women. She co-founded the nonprofit Betty Ford Center near the Fords’ home in Rancho Mirage, Calif., in 1982. Mrs. Ford raised millions of dollars for the center, kept close watch over its operations, and regularly welcomed groups of new patients with a speech that started, “Hello, my name’s Betty Ford, and I’m an alcoholic and drug addict.”
Although most famous for a string of celebrity patients over the years — from Elizabeth Taylor and Johnny Cash to Lindsay Lohan — the center keeps its rates relatively affordable and has served more than 90,000 people.
In a statement Friday, President Barack Obama said the Betty Ford Center would honor Mrs. Ford’s legacy “by giving countless Americans a new lease on life.”
“As our nation’s First Lady, she was a powerful advocate for women‘s health and women’s rights,” the president said. “After leaving the White House, Mrs. Ford helped reduce the social stigma surrounding addiction and inspired thousands to seek much-needed treatment.”
Mrs. Ford was a free spirit from the start. Elizabeth Bloomer, born April 8, 1918, fell in love with dance as a girl in Grand Rapids, Mich., and decided it would be her life. At 20, despite her mother’s misgivings, she moved to New York to learn from her idol Martha Graham. She lived in Greenwich Village, worked as a model, and performed at Carnegie Hall in Graham’s modern dance ensemble. “I thought I had arrived,” she later recalled.
But her mother coaxed her back to Grand Rapids, where Betty worked as a dance teacher and store fashion coordinator and married William Warren, a friend from school days. He was a salesman who traveled frequently; she was unhappy. They lasted five years.
While waiting for her divorce to become final, she met and began dating, as she put it in her memoir, “probably the most eligible bachelor in Grand Rapids” — former college football star, Navy veteran and lawyer Jerry Ford. They would be married for 58 years, until his death in December 2006.
Two weeks after their October 1948 wedding, her husband was elected to his first term in the House. He would serve 25 years, rising to minority leader.
While her husband campaigned for weeks at a time or worked late on Capitol Hill, she raised their four children: Michael, Jack, Steven and Susan. She arranged luncheons for congressional wives, helped with her husband’s campaigns, became a Cub Scout den mother, taught Sunday school.
A pinched nerve in her neck in 1964, followed by the onset of severe osteoarthritis, led her to an assortment of prescription drugs that never fully relieved the pain. For years she had been what she later called “a controlled drinker, no binges.” Now she began mixing pills and alcohol. Feeling overwhelmed and underappreciated, she suffered an emotional breakdown that led to weekly visits with a psychiatrist.
The psychiatrist didn’t take note of her drinking but instead tried to build her self-esteem: “He said I had to start thinking I was valuable, not just as a wife and mother, but as myself.”
The White House would give her that gift.
In 1973, as Mrs. Ford was happily anticipating her husband’s retirement from politics, Vice President Spiro Agnew was forced out of office over bribery charges. President Richard Nixon turned to Gerald Ford to fill the office.
Less than a year later, his presidency consumed by the Watergate scandal, Nixon resigned. On Aug. 9, 1974, Gerald Ford was sworn in as the only chief executive in American history who hadn’t been elected either president or vice president.
Mrs. Ford wrote of her sudden ascent to first lady: “It was like going to a party you’re terrified of, and finding out to your amazement that you’re having a good time.”
She was 56 when she moved into the White House, and looked more matronly than mod. Ever gracious, her chestnut hair carefully coifed into a soft bouffant, she tended to speak softly and slowly, even when taking a feminist stand.
Her breast cancer diagnosis, coming less than two months after President Ford was whisked into office, may have helped disarm the clergymen, conservative activists and Southern politicians who were most inflamed by her loose comments. She was photographed recovering at Bethesda Naval Hospital, looking frail in her robe, and won praise for grace and courage.
“She seems to have just what it takes to make people feel at home in the world again,” media critic Marshall McLuhan observed at the time. “Something about her makes us feel rooted and secure — a feeling we haven’t had in a while. And her cancer has been a catharsis for everybody.”
The public outpouring of support helped her embrace the power of her position. “I was somebody, the first lady,” she wrote later. “When I spoke, people listened.”
She used her newfound influence to lobby aggressively for the Equal Rights Amendment, which failed nonetheless, and to speak against child abuse, raise money for handicapped children, and champion the performing arts.
It’s debatable whether Mrs. Ford‘s frank nature helped or hurt her husband’s 1976 campaign to win a full term as president. Polls showed she was widely admired. By taking positions more liberal than the president’s, she helped broaden his appeal beyond traditional Republican voters. But she also outraged some conservatives, leaving the president more vulnerable to a strong GOP primary challenge by Ronald Reagan. That battle weakened Ford going into the general election against Democrat Jimmy Carter.
Carter won by a slim margin. The president had lost his voice in the campaign’s final days, and it was Mrs. Ford who read his concession speech to the nation.
The Fords retired to a Rancho Mirage golf community, but he spent much of his time away, giving speeches and playing in golf tournaments. Home alone, deprived of her exciting and purposeful life in the White House, Mrs. Ford drank.
By 1978 her secret was obvious to those closest to her.
“As I got sicker,” she recalled, “I gradually stopped going to lunch. I wouldn’t see friends. I was putting everyone out of my life.” Her children recalled her living in a stupor, shuffling around in her bathrobe, refusing meals in favor of a drink.
Her family finally confronted her and insisted she seek treatment.
“I was stunned at what they were trying to tell me about how I disappointed them and let them down,” she said in a 1994 Associated Press interview. “I was terribly hurt — after I had spent all those years trying to be the best mother, wife I could be. … Luckily, I was able to hear them saying that I needed help and they cared too much about me to let it go on.”
She credited their “intervention” with saving her life.
Mrs. Ford entered Long Beach Naval Hospital and, alongside alcoholic young sailors and officers, underwent a grim detoxification that became the model for therapy at the Betty Ford Center. In her book “A Glad Awakening,” she described her recovery as a second chance at life.
And in that second chance, she found a new purpose.
“There is joy in recovery,” she wrote, “and in helping others discover that joy.”
Family spokeswoman Lewanbrowski the family expects to organize a service in Palm Springs over the next couple days. Ford’s body will be sent to Michigan for burial alongside former President Gerald Ford, who is buried at his namesake library in Grand Rapids.
___
Associated Press writers Shaya Tayefe Mohajer in Los Angeles and Mike Householder in Detroit contributed to this report - Posted: The Blaze
PALM DESERT, Calif., July 10 (UPI) -- The family of former U.S. first lady Betty Ford said her California memorial service Tuesday would be private, although the public was welcome afterward.
The 93-year-old wife of former President Gerald Ford died Friday at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage of natural causes with family members at her side, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Family spokesman Greg Willard, the Fords' longtime attorney, said in a statement a private memorial at St. Margaret's Episcopal Church in Palm Desert would begin at 11:20 a.m. Tuesday. Eulogies will be given by former first lady Rosalynn Carter, news commentator Cokie Roberts and the director of the Betty Ford Center for addictions, Geoffrey Mason.
Public visitation at the church was scheduled to begin at 3 p.m., Willard said.
Ford's remains will be flown to Grand Rapids, Mich., for burial beside her husband, who died in 2006.
The wife of the 38th president used her status to raise awareness of women's healthcare and substance abuse treatment. She underwent a mastectomy and overcame addictions to alcohol and painkillers, leading to the founding of the clinic named for her in Rancho Mirage, Calif.
The House Judiciary Committee has launched an inquiry into Associate Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan’s involvement in the health care overhaul at the request of 49 Republican House members.
The probe will examine whether Kagan, who served as President Barack Obama’s solicitor general prior to her Supreme Court nomination, will be required to recuse herself for cases challenging the health care law, and the accuracy of her answers to the Senate Judiciary Committee during her confirmation hearings last July, CNS News reported.
In a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder on Wednesday, House Judiciary Chair Lamar Smith (R-Texas) requested “relevant documents and witness interviews in order to properly understand U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Elena Kagan’s involvement in health care legislation or litigation while serving as United States Solicitor General.” Smith requested they be made available by July 29.
Federal law bars Supreme Court justices from being involved in cases where their impartiality could be questioned or they previously served in an advisory capacity related to the case at hand.
Rep. John Fleming (R-La.) led 48 of his Republican colleagues in a letter to Smith and House Judiciary Committee ranking member John Conyers (D-Mich.) on June 24, pointing to statements made during her hearings the House members called “contradictory” to released Justice Department documents and urging an investigation.
Kagan said in written responses to the Senate Judiciary Committee that she had no involvement in developing the government’s legal responses to the health care law and was never asked her views or offered them, according to the Washington Times.
Fleming issued a statement Thursday applauding Smith’s request to Holder:
“I am confident that this investigation will uncover even more evidence that Justice Kagan was involved in Obamacare defense activities, contrary to her Senate confirmation testimony. How can any reasonable person believe that Justice Kagan can be impartial on ANY Obamacare case if she was involved in formulating a defense of this destructive law?
Check out this exclusive footage obtained by RTAmerica from George Hemminger (George4Title) showing California police raiding an organic grocery store with guns drawn!
Investigators recently entered an organic grocery with a search warrant and ordered the hemp-clad workers to put down their buckets of mashed coconut cream and to step away from the nuts.
Then, guns drawn, four officers fanned out across Rawesome Foods in Venice. Skirting past the arugula and peering under crates of zucchini, they found the raid's target inside a walk-in refrigerator: unmarked jugs of raw milk.
"I still can't believe they took our yogurt," said Rawesome volunteer Sea J. Jones, a few days after the raid. "There's a medical marijuana shop a couple miles away, and they're raiding us because we're selling raw dairy products?"
Cartons of raw goat and cow milk and blocks of unpasteurized goat cheese were among the groceries seized in the June 30 raid by federal, state and local authorities — the latest salvo in the heated food fight over what people can put in their mouths.
Photo: Ebrahim Rafatjah stands in the walk-in cooler full of unpasteurized dairy products. On the other side are Ziploc bags of raw chicken, beef and pork, many without expiration dates. Credit:Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times
If you’re having a picnic today, or just grilling out in the backyard for friends or family, be sure you exercise proper food safety. Be sure not to leave food sitting out too long, since it could pick up bacteria that makes you and your guests sick. We wouldn’t want this to become a situation where someone has to go to the doctor or even the hospital.
Here is some helpful information on taking care of leftovers. Also, remember these tips when you bring those perishables home from the grocery store next time.
How Long Is Food Good For
by Victor Epand
Raw hamburger: has a refrigerator shelf life of 2-3 days after purchase. If you do not use the hamburger within 3 days, it should be frozen for future use. It can be frozen either raw or cooked.
Hummus: It has the typical ingredients – chickpeas, tahini, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. Hummus can be refrigerated in a closed container for up to 5 days and can be kept in the freezer in an air-tight container for up to one month. If the hummus appears dry when you take it out of the refrigerator or freezer, you can add a little olive oil.
For meat leftovers, the general guideline is 3-4 days. After that time, bacteria could grow to a level that could cause food borne illness, even in refrigeration. Food spoilage organisms, on the other hand, cause changes in color, texture and flavor and while they are not harmful to eat, they often mask harmful food borne illness bacteria. That’s why we recommend that if food spoilage organisms are present the food should definitely not be consumed.
How many times can you reheat food like this? Technically, if you handle the food properly.By handling properly I mean that the food was cooled within 6 hours to 40 degrees, rapidly reheated to 165 degrees, cooled within 6 hours to 40 degrees, rapidly reheated to 165 degrees, etc. So technically if it is handled as above it’s safe. But as you know, food doesn’t get better with heating/cooling/re-heating. Vegetables break down and become mushy and food takes on a dull color.
Most restaurants do not reheat foods more than 1 time if at all. They don’t reheat because it takes time to monitor food to ensure that it has been handled properly to remain safe and because food doesn’t get better with reheating. Even restaurants famous for chili (one food that does get a better flavor when reheated)prepare fresh chili each day as their reputation is built on good quality, fresh food.
An obviously if you are having a pool party where you have access to a house or facility, keep the food displayed inside if it is possible!
Leftover cooked carrots need to be refrigerated for proper storage after preparation. Cooked vegetables such as carrots can support the growth of harmful bacteria if not handled properly after cooking. Prompt refrigeration helps tremendously in reducing the chances that the carrots will support the growth of harmful bacteria.
It is not recommended to eat leftover ahi tuna that has not been cooked before initial consumption. Raw fish is highly perishable and loses flavor, color and moisture as it is held. Also, food borne pathogens are more prominent in raw fish and can grow to harmful levels as the fish ages.
The recommendation for thawed poultry in the refrigerator is a maximum of 3 days. If you put a frozen turkey in the refrigerator, once it has defrosted, you then have up to 3 days before it must be cooked.
The Government provided Food Safety chart is an excellent guide on how long to store foods in the refrigerator for both quality and safety. While you may be able to store food longer, it has been found that if you stay within these guidelines you will have both a safe and tasty food product to cons
If you are having a group gathering where you don’t know everyone’s allergy and health issues you might want to stay away from dishes containing peanuts and peanut butter. Reactions to peanuts and can range from mild to death.
Homemade lemonade or a jug of fresh water are great alternatives to sodas and if possible, even on a hot day, access to a jug of coffee is great for those that have had a little too much beer, wine etc, whose affects are often accelerated by being out in the sun.
Healthy food and calories are always something good to consider, but for the holidays and especially outdoor events, safety and freshness of the food you are serving should always be the greater concern.
And make sure there is plenty of water for the pets who are attending and watch what they are being fed! Real food is far superior for pets than any commercial pet food, but junk food and too much fat is bad for them, just like for humans and they do have a list of absolute no-no foods:
The “Not So Safe Food For Pets” List
The following foods are not safe for dogs, cats, potbellied pigs, or guinea pigs. Never give the following foods or beverages to your pets:
Alcohol of any kind
Anything with Caffeine
Bones from Ham, Chicken, or Turkey (any fowl)
Candied Yams
Casseroles (unless you absolutely know that none of the no-no foods are in them)
Chocolate and Cocoa (this includes things like brownies and chocolate chip cookies) and dark chocolate is the worst… exactly opposite from people.
Jell-O Molds
Macadamia Nuts (this includes things like cookies and pies) and go easy on nuts in general
Pecan Pie
Potato Skins
Careful of processed Pork Products because of the nitrates, especially ham.
Stuffing, unless you made it from scratch yourself. (it usually contains onions, which is very harmful to pets)
Anything with onions in it (and garlic should be fed in moderation)
Anything with Xylitol in it
Grapes or raisins
Raw eggs – this is only on the list because of possible exposure to salmonella bacteria, not because the raw eggs are bad for them. (It is the same as concerns over E Coli and other bacterial contamination with raw meat, even though the raw meat is great for them!)
Mushrooms
Baby food if it contains onion powder
Milk (and American Cheese) can be a problem for some dogs. And be aware that some animals can be lactose intolerant like some people.
Avocados – especially for birds and cats
Sage as well as many other herbs contain essential oils and resins that can cause gastrointestinal upset and central nervous system depression to pets if eaten in large quantities. Cats are especially sensitive to the effects of certain essential oils. (Often used in dressing and stuffing)
Also keep them away from any rising bread dough or other rising dough. It can kill them and kill them very quickly.
Related:
FIREWORKS DOS AND DON’TS
DO:
Use fireworks outdoors, in an area clear of dry vegetation and combustibles.
Follow the directions on the packaging.
Wear safety goggles and close-toed shoes.
Keep a hose or bucket of water handy, and soak each device after burning.
Keep kids and spectators at a distance.
DON’T:
Don’t freestyle. Avoid altering or combining fireworks, and steer clear of homemade devices made from illegal explosives.
Don’t try to relight a “dud” firework.
Don’t hold or light more than one sparkler at a time.
Pretty much everyone is aware that many people are allergic to peanuts, and many schools even ban any form of peanuts because of the dangers to children who may be allergic. Any severe allergy to a food, or something else, can be life threatening. (It may actually be the molds/fungus or aflatoxin that people are allergic to rather than the peanuts.)
What a lot of people aren't aware of are the other dangers of peanuts. I don't eat peanuts, in any form, mostly because of that. Peanuts can be confusing because we hear they contain a good fat, monounsaturated, but so do avocados, nuts (which peanuts aren’t)and olive oil, which would be healthier choices. Peanuts also contain a high amount of omega-6, but a more balanced omega-6 to omega-3 ratio would be best as in hemp seeds, fish oil or a high grade natural supplement. We also hear peanuts are high in antioxidants and some vitamins and minerals. The biggest claim to health lately has been that they contain resveratrol, which they do, but so do other foods, such as grapes, cranberries and blueberries, so you don't need to eat peanuts for that benefit either.
One problem with peanuts is that they are one of the most highly pesticide contaminated crops there is. One important reason to only use organically grown peanut products if you choose to continue to eat peanuts. Conventional peanut farmers have a disproportionately high rate of cancer, mainly because of all the pesticides they use, and because they eat a lot of peanuts.
But the most important reason not to eat peanuts or peanut butter is because they are often contaminated with aflatoxin. Aflatoxin is a mycotoxin that is produced by many different species of a fungus called Aspergillus. It is very dangerous, and it is a carcinogen. It is so potent it has been known to wipe out complete tribes in Africa because of contaminated food there. In smaller amount it can be a slow killer, as in cancer, and is believed to cause liver cancer. (Aflatoxin can be in other products as well, corn is another likely one, which is another thing I don't eat.)
Peanuts are particularly susceptible to contamination during growth and storage. Poor storage of peanuts can lead to an infection by the moldfungusAspergillus flavus, releasing the toxic and highly carcinogenic substance aflatoxin. The aflatoxin-producing molds exist throughout the peanut growing areas and may produce aflatoxin in peanuts when conditions are favorable to fungal growth.
Organic Peanut Butter is part of the top 5 items to buy organic. Why should you focus on peanut butter? This is because, many peanut farms contaminate their peanut crops with a chemical to treat mold. This mold is one of the major problems that causes peanut crops to die. This chemical is classified as a fungicide.
The peanut, or groundnut (Arachis hypogaea), is a species in the legume or "bean" family (Fabaceae).
The most common way most people get aflatoxin in their diets is through peanut butter. Peanuts have an especially high naturally-occurring concentration of aspergillus flavus mold. Furthermore, while most peanuts are roasted, the roasting process rarely kills all the mold. The longer peanuts sit around in the store or in your house, the more of the mold will grow back--and again, it generally won't be visible to the naked eye. The longer the mold grows, the more aflatoxin builds up.
Here's the most interesting thing about all this: usually your "organic" or "natural" peanut butters will have the highest aflatoxin concentration. The highest concentration of all, though, will typically be the stuff you buy in the store where they take peanuts and grind them into peanut butter for you while you wait. Because while the USDA and FDA has rules for how much aflatoxin is allowed in food before it's shipped to stores, there's no measure of it after it reaches the stores. Those peanuts could have been sitting on the shelves at the story for weeks or months at room temperature, building up mold. It's even worse if the air is mildly moist. Furthermore, if you fresh-grind those nuts into peanut butter, the mold keeps growing in the peanut butter.
This means that your safest source of peanut butter is generally your cheap, garden variety Jif or Skippy or the like (But Skippy just had a recall). The companies that make those generally get the peanuts fresh, roast and grind them immediately, put them through an effective cooking and homogenization process, then seal them in airtight jars. The mold buildup on those will be much lower than your typical "fresh" or "natural" peanut butters and they pretty quickly out of the stores.
The risks for children are the highest as their health can be even more impacted then adults because of their size and their still developing immune systems. And often they eat more of it regularly than adults. Pets can also have both allergies or negative affects from the molds, fungus and toxins.
By the way, the aflatoxin threat is taken seriously enough that OSHA actually requires workers dealing with large quantities of peanuts to wear facial masks so they don't breath in too much of the mold. And statistically, just as a rule of thumb, two tablespoons of peanut butter a day (regular or organic) produce a higher risk of death than living next to a nuclear power plant.
The number one thing to look for in organic peanut butter is that it is made from organically ‘grown’ peanuts and that it is a brand bought at a store where the jars move quickly!
From the lists and surveys, these seem to be the top 6 Organic Peanut Butters:
1. Nature's Promise - This peanut butter is made of 100% natural ingredients. Also, Nature's Promise has been around for a while, and supplies many products. Such as, milk, butter, broth, snacks, pizza, and cookies.
2. SunLand Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter- SunLand has been around since 1988, and it is dedicated strictly peanut butter. Best of all, it is United States based; New Mexico to be exact. SunLand's peanut butter is very unique also; the company has many different flavors. The flavors range from "Regular" to "Hickory Smoke".
3. Santa Cruz Organic Peanut Butter - Their peanut butter comes in four flavors; Dark Roasted Creamy, Dark Roasted Crunchy, Light Roasted Creamy, Light Roasted Crunchy. Although, this brand does not only make peanut butter. They also make a variety of items from juices to chocolate syrup.
4. Adams - Adams has been around since 1922. There peanut butter is 100% all natural. They make natural, organic, and no stir peanut butter. While their natural peanut butter has four choices, their organic peanut butter has two choices of varieties.
5. Justin's Organic - This brand is awesome. They now make chocolate flavored peanut butter. Those flavors are "Chocolate Peanut Butter", "Chocolate Hazelnut Butter", and "Chocolate Almond Butter". My personal favorite is "Chocolate Hazelnut Butter", and "Chocolate Almond Butter".
6. Maranatha Nut Butters - This company has been around since 1982 in Ashland, Oregon. The company to use the purest ingredients, and now allows for their peanut butters to be brought online. I favor two of the products by Maranatha Nut Butter. Those products are Dark Chocolate Peanut Spread and Dark Chocolate Almond Spread. Both have a dark chocolate flavor, making them both irresistible.
Does anyone else long for the days when rat droppings were the scariest thing about peanut butter? Anyone? Show of hands?
Let's see. The problems with peanut butter now include:
Really scary chemicals, including neurotoxins (as if we need something else getting on our nerves).
A peanut butter aisle so big that it makes you want to curl into a ball and rock back and forth -- right there in the store -- from stimulation overload. (Omega-3 peanut butter ... really?)
The Frankenut-butter threat. Although there are no genetically modified peanuts on the market right now, according to the National Peanut Board website, money is being poured into genomic research. (Note to peanut growers: Consider inserting the genes of a Labradoodle. As far as I can tell, no one is allergic to them.) But seriously, on the upside genetically modified peanuts could save lives.
OK,peanut allergies aside, some of the contemporary problems with peanut butter can be avoided by buying organic peanut butter. Of course, this begs some questions: Do any of these organic spreads taste good? And do you have to break the bank for a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich?
And while we're at it, is the "Skippy Factor" real? A while back, when I wrote about turkey, I spoke with Cooks Illustrated senior editor Lisa McManus. She described the Skippy Factor this way: Tasters often favor foods that are comfortingly familiar, such as Skippy peanut butter, over something higher quality. (This also explains why Cooks, which I read regularly, is so shockingly successful. Forthese food science geeks, taste trumps all. They don't really give a rip about health-consciousness or greenness or food trends.)
So, back to the point: Do organic peanut butters taste good? ARe they worth the extra money? And if they are… choose from the six organic creamy peanut butters that were readily available at local grocery stores that move off the shelves.
The best way to avoid any risks from peanuts is to avoid eating them. There is something you can do, though, if you still feel the need to consume peanuts and peanut butter, even with all the risks. One type of peanut has been fairly resistant to aflatoxin, and that is the Valencia peanut, which is grown mostly in New Mexico. These type of peanuts, when they are grown in the southwest of the US, mainly New Mexico, grow in dry conditions not conducive to aflatoxin, a mold which likes moisture.
One problem is that not all Valencia peanuts are grown in that area, but most are. If you use Arrowhead Mills organic peanut butter, you will avoid the pesticides and the aflatoxin, because it is made with organic Valencia peanuts, and that particular brand has never been shown to contain aflatoxin at all.
Although, that is no guarantees it will be that way forever, but it is certainly the safer way to go.
Choices:
Stop eating peanuts and peanut products
Eat regular peanut butter because is moves quicker and there is somewhat less chance of getting sick from the molds and fungus (aflatoxin)
Eat organic peanut butter because you won’t get the pesticides, but you might get more of the mold and fungus
Through care to the wind and take your chances…
So in the end we suggest… skip eating peanuts, peanut butter and organic peanut butter all together… period!! And definitely don’t feed feed them to your kids or pets!
For those who think speaking up doesn’t matter or won’t help here is an example where it did. But the goal needs to be full repeal and replacement of ObamaCare. Because you can bet that there won’t be this kind of compromise if Obama is re-elected, including with the micro chipping! M~
Secret shoppers aren’t anything new. Retail stores use them regularly to gather customer service data. But what happens when the government uses them to check up on doctors across the country? Is that going too far? That‘s exactly what’s about to happen to over 4,000 doctors in nine states.
The New York Times reports that 4,185 doctors in Florida, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia — 465 in each state — will be getting stealth calls from people posing as potential patients. The point is to see if doctors are discriminating against those with government care such as Medicare, and to decipher how long wait times are.
“Access to primary care is a priority for the administration,” Health and Human Services spokesman Christian J. Stenrud told the Times. “This study is an effort to better understand the problem and make sure we are doing everything we can to support primary care physicians, especially in communities where the need is greatest.”
But plenty of doctors don’t see this as a friendly phone call as much as a government encroachment. Or, worse, Big Brother.
“I don’t like the idea of the government snooping,” Dr. Raymond Scalettar, an internist in Washington, told the Times. “It’s a pernicious practice — Big Brother tactics, which should be opposed.”
And that seems to be the consensus of those physicians interviewed by the Times:
Dr. Stephen C. Albrecht, a family doctor in Olympia, Wash., said: “If federal officials are worried about access to care, they could help us. They don’t have to spy on us.”
The Times obtained a mock script of what a mystery caller might say:
Mystery shopper: “Hi, my name is Alexis Jackson, and I’m calling to schedule the next available appointment with Dr. Michael Krane. I am a new patient with a P.P.O. from Aetna. I just moved to the area and don’t yet have a primary doctor, but I need to be seen as soon as possible.”
Doctor’s office: “What type of problem are you experiencing?”
Mystery shopper: “I’ve had a cough for the last two weeks, and now I’m running a fever. I’ve been coughing up thick greenish mucus that has some blood in it, and I’m a little short of breath.”
Most offices will get two calls, one pretending to be from someone with private insurance and one from someone pretending to have government care. Still other offices will get a third call from government officials who “will ask whether the doctors accept private insurance, Medicaid or Medicare, and whether they take ‘self-pay patients’” in an attempt to note any discrepancies.
The use of the secret callers comes as a Massachusetts Medical Society released a report last month showing a dismal trend in the state where government health care has taken root: 53 percent of family physicians and 51 percent of internal medicine physicians are not accepting new patients, and wait times are increasing, averaging 36 days to see family doctors and 48 days for internists.
“Is this a good use of tax money? Probably not,” Dr. Robert L. Hogue, a family physician in Brownwood, TX asked the Times. “Everybody with a brain knows we do not have enough doctors.”
Read the NY Times article here. Read the full Massachusetts Medical society report here.
Jessica Kourkounis for The New York Times
“This is not a way to build trust in government,” says Dr. George J. Petruncio of Turnersville, N.J.
Philip Scott Andrews/The New York Times
Dr. Raymond Scalettar of Washington is dismayed at the idea of “snooping”.
While charges and counter-charges about Medicare are flying back and forth in Washington, hardly anyone seems to have noticed that Medicare’s financial problems have already been solved. They were solved by the health reform bill enacted last year, what some people call ObamaCare.
So why isn’t this front page news? Why aren’t people dancing in the street? Why isn’t the Obama administration boasting about this accomplishment far and wide? Probably because Medicare’s financial problems are slated to be solved by the unconscionable
rationing of health care for the elderly and the disabled, which will lead to the equivalent of death panels for senior Boomers and some disabled persons! Please stop laughing at Sarah Palin, she’s telling you the truth, and stop listening to the mainstream media and AARP, they aren’t!!
The most recent Medicare Trustees report conveys the same message as the last one: On the day that Barack Obama signed the health reform bill, Medicare’s long-term unfunded liability fell by $53 trillion. That sum is about three times the size of the entire U.S. economy. And, it gets better. Once the Baby Boomers work their way through the system, Medicare spending will grow no faster than the payroll taxes, premiums and general revenue transfers that pay for that spending.
So what does this mean for senior citizens who rely on Medicare? No one knows for sure. But it almost certainly means they will get less health care.
Last August, the Office of the Medicare Actuary predicted that within nine years Medicare will be paying doctors less than what Medicaid pays. Think about that. In most places around the country Medicaid patients have extreme difficulty finding doctorswho will see them. As a result, they end up seeking care at community health centers and in the emergency rooms of safety net hospitals. In a few more years seniors will be in that same position — with this difference. From a financial point of view, the seniors will be perceived as less desirable customers than welfare mothers. Also, by that point one in seven hospitals will have to leave the Medicare system.
As Medicare Chief Actuary Richard Foster (page 282) said in the 2010 Medicare Trustees’ report, “Well before that point, Congress would have to intervene to prevent the withdrawal of providers from the Medicare market and the severe problems with beneficiary access to care that would result.”
But suppose Congress didn’t intervene. Suppose that the law continues on the books exactly as it is written.
Consider people reaching the age of 65 this year. Under ObamaCare, the average amount spent on these enrollees over the remainder of their lives will fall by about $36,000 at today’s prices. That sum of money is equivalent to about three years of benefits. For 55-year-olds, the spending decrease is about $62,000 — or the equivalent of six years of benefits. For 45-year-olds, the loss is more than $105,000, or nine years of benefits.
In terms of the sheer dollars involved, the planned reduction in future Medicare payments is the equivalent of raising the eligibility age for Medicare to age 68 for today’s 65-year-olds, to age 71 for 55-year-olds and to age 74 for 45-year-olds. But rather than keep the system as is and raise the age of eligibility, the reform law instead tries to achieve equivalent savings by paying less to the providers of care.
What does this mean in terms of access to health care? It almost certainly means that seniors will have extreme difficulty finding doctors who will see them and hospitals who will admit them. Once admitted, they will certainly enjoy fewer amenities (no private room, no gourmet meal choices, and no cable TV perhaps) as well as a lower quality of care. We will have a two-tiered health care system, with the elderly getting second class care.
All these problems will be exacerbated by what ObamaCare does in the rest of the health care system. In just two years, 32 million people will become newly insured. If economic studies are correct, they will try to double the amount of health care they have been consuming. In addition, almost everyone else (including most above-average income families) will be forced to obtain more generous insurance than they have today. With more coverage for more services these people will also try to greatly expand their consumption of care. Yet the health reform act did not create one new doctor or nurse or other paramedical personnel to meet this increased demand.
We are about to experience a system wide rationing problem, which will be reflected in longer waits at doctors’ offices, emergency rooms and clinics and delays in getting almost every kind of care.
In such an environment you will be at a real disadvantage if you are in a health plan that pays doctors less than what private plans are paying. The disadvantaged patients will be the elderly and the disabled on Medicare, poor families on Medicaid, and (if Massachusetts is any guide) people who are newly enrolled in government subsidized health plans.
And here is the final tragic irony: The most vulnerable population are the ones whose access to care is likely to decrease the most under a health care act that was widely touted at the time of its passage as a humanitarian measure
John Goodman is President and CEO/Kellye Wright Fellow at the National Center for Policy Analysis.
This article originally appeared on Conservative Battleline Online and is reprinted with permission.
(NaturalNews) Millions of people eat and drink from plastic and styrofoam cups and containers every single day, and the US government now admits that many of these consumer products contain known cancer-causing agents. The formaldehyde preservatives found in many disposable coffee cups and foam take-out containers, as well as styrene, another chemical additive used in such products, have both been added to the federal government's list of known or suspected carcinogens.
The addition of these two chemicals, as well as six others, to the carcinogen list this year was reportedly a reluctant decision made by the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which has been pressured by the chemical industry for years to delay coming forward with this information. Nevertheless, both formaldehyde and a chemical known as aristolochic acid have now been categorized as "known human carcinogens," while captafol, cobalt-tungsten carbide, certain glass wool fibers, o-nitrotoluene, riddelliine, and styrene have been dubbed "reasonably anticipated to be human carcinogens."
"Reducing exposure to cancer-causing agents is something we all want, and the Report on Carcinogens provides important information on substances that pose a cancer risk," said Dr. Linda Birnbaum, director of both the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the National Toxicology Program (NTP). "The NTP is pleased to be able to compile this report."
The chemical industry was quick to denounce the findings, of course, claiming that there is no significant danger from exposure to these chemicals. And some federal officials seem to be kowtowing to this pressure by telling the public that the main concern is the industrial use of these chemicals, rather than consumer use. Even the American Cancer Society (ACS) has urged the public not to worry about continuing to use plastic cups or foam containers, despite the fact that many are loaded with some of the chemicals in question.
Source: Natural News - Friday, June 17, 2011 by: Ethan A. Huff, staff writer - Cross-Posted at True Health Is True Wealth
BILL GATES FUNDING COVERT VACCINATION NANOTECHNOLOGY
Excerpt:
The research of Clifford Carnicom, Will Thomas and others has exposed chemtrails as a primary vehicle through which Morgellons, modified molds, fungi and numerous other pathogens and nano-particulized toxins have been spread into the global population.
One area that bio warfare or population reduction research funded by the Dept. of Defense is reported to have focused on is pathogens that are race specific. The SARS outbreak of a few years back infected mostly those of Asian descent.
The World Health Organization has been caught on several occasions in recent years vaccinating women of childbearing age in third world countries with vaccines that promoted sterility. Researchers, Dr. Leonard Horowitz in particular, have presented very credible & convincing evidence that AIDS was a deliberately bio lab created pathogen engineered for the purpose of eugenically motivated population reduction. Additionally this virus appears to have been spread deliberately through WHO vaccinations in Africa shortly after 1975. Also spread into the gay population in 1975 in New York City through the Hep B vaccination trials.
THEY ARE NOW EXPOSED! A LAW YOU MAY NOT HAVE SEEN? BUT THEY ASSUMED YOU AGREE WITH ...
It is known that a public law in the United States allows the testing of chemicals and biologics on American citizens with their consent. Concern arises when we realize the true meaning of "consent" in this context.
Consent can be considered to be a condition that exists when both parties have knowledge of the terms of an agreement and neither party openly objects to it (Uniform Commercial Code - UCC).* Because this law is "public" or "available for review" publically, it is assumed that the public is acquiescing to (agreeing to) the activity stated in the law (under the UCC).* This is why it is often said, "Ignorance of the law is no excuse". If it is published, it is assumed that you are aware of it. If you are aware of it and you don't openly object, you are agreeing to it. You have consented.
After being arrested twice, dedicated activists tie themselves to tractors to stop plantings of GM potatoes
IN SOME AREAS GREENPEACE HAS BEEN TAKEN OVER BY UNWANTED ELEMENTS, BUT IN SWEDEN, THEY SEEM TO BE DOING A GREAT JOB.
HERE IS THE LINK IS PICTURES OF THEM, DOING WHAT IS NECESSARY TO STOP THE PLANTING OF POTATOES WITH A MODIFIED GENE THAT IS RESISTANT TO ANTIBIOTICS.
Friday, June 17, 2011 by: Jonathan Benson, staff writer
(NaturalNews) When petitions, protests, and even sit-ins were not enough to stop the biotechnology giant BASF from planting its genetically-modified (GM) Amflora potato in Sweden, Greenpeace activists there "walked their talk," so to speak, by literally tying themselves to the tractor plows that were about to be used to spread the GM seeds throughout fields.
As we recently reported here on NaturalNews, an initial group of activists, for the second year in a row, had been blocking the entrance to the BASF warehouse near the field where Amflora was to be planted, that is until police came and arrested them (http://www.naturalnews.com/032544_B...).
Now, a new group has taken their place to continue the efforts of the first by doing whatever it takes to stop BASF from planting the crops in violation of EU law, even if it means going directly after the company's planting equipment.
Amflora potatoes contain an artificially added gene that is resistant to antibiotics, which opponents say is contributing to the rising epidemic of antibiotic resistance around the world.
Amflora was also never properly investigated for safety, nor was it subjected to a rigorous environmental impact review as it should have been -- the Swedish government basically just allowed the European Commission to approve the "Frankencrop" arbitrarily without so much as a peep of opposition.
So activists have decided to take matters into their own hands once again, this time directly accosting BASF tractor plows, which were actually accompanied by a police escort in expectation of the activists. Police arrested seven members of the group early on, but a number of others made it through the blockade where they proceeded to tie themselves to the plows.
"What we see here happening is that the profit interests of a company like BASF is ranked higher than the health interests of the European public who by large majority rejects the cultivation of GMOs," said Ludvig Tillman of Greenpeace Sweden. "The Commission rubberstamped the approval of risky Amflora and the Swedish government did nothing but watching [sic]. So if they do not act, we have to act."
My car book says to roll down the windows to let out all the hot air before turning on A/C.
WHY ?
Car Air-conditioning - No wonder more folks are dying from cancer than ever before. We wonder where this stuff comes from but here is an example that explains a lot of the cancer causing incidents. Many people are in their cars first thing in the morning and the last thing at night, 7 days a week.
As I read this, it makes me feel guilty and ill. Please pass this on to as many people as possible. Guess it's not too late to make some changes.
Please do NOT turn on A/C as soon as you enter the car. Open the windows after you enter your car and then turn ON the AC after a couple of minutes.
Here's why: According to research, the car dashboard, seats, air freshener emit Benzene, a Cancer causing toxin (carcinogen - take time to observe the smell of heated plastic in your car).
In addition to causing cancer, Benzene poisons your bones, causes anemia and reduces white blood cells. Prolonged exposure will cause Leukemia, increasing the risk of cancer. Can also cause miscarriage. Acceptable Benzene level indoors is 50 mg per sq. ft. A car parked indoors with windows closed will contain 400-800 mg of Benzene. If parked outdoors under the sun at a temperature above 60 degrees F, the Benzene level goes up to 2000-4000 mg, 40 times the acceptable level.
People who get into the car, keeping windows closed will inevitably inhale, in quick succession, excessive amounts of the toxin.
Benzene is a toxin that affects your kidney and liver. What's worse, it is extremely difficult for your body to expel this toxic stuff.
So friends, please open the windows and door of your car - give time for interior to air out - dispel the deadly stuff - before you enter.
Thought: 'When someone shares something of value with you and you benefit from it, you have a moral obligation to share it with others.'
And for those snopes believers out there, this is what snopes.com says. It is not the air conditioning in the car but the Benzene producing agents that cause cancer.
(On a side note, snopes is a leftist leaning site associated with the George Soros network so you can’t necessarily believe or not believe everything they deem true or false, especially when it comes to politics and history!)
The solar flare on June 7th, 2011 was luckily pointed away from Earth but caused many to wonder if another solar flare is imminent, this one aimed directly at earth.
Now, due to the possibility of a large scale solar flare, officials in Europe and the United Kingdom are preparing what they call, “controlled” power cuts. What this actually means remains to be seen.
Snip
“Senior space agency scientists believe the Earth will be hit with unprecedented levels of magnetic energy from solar flares after the Sun wakes “from a deep slumber” sometime around 2013,” The Daily Telegraph reported in 2010.
Scientific America also is also running a compelling article on the subject. The article covers the fact that last weeks solar flare has “illuminated” the power grids vulnerabilities and reflects on the outcome of a massive solar storm.
“If the solar storm of 1921, which has been termed a one-in-100-year event, were to occur today, well over 300 extra-high-voltage transformers could be damaged or destroyed, thereby interrupting power to 130 million people for a period of years,” Joseph McClelland, director of the Office of Electric Reliability at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, said at a May 31 House Energy subcommittee hearing on the issue.
Reminder: Just last weekend intercepted agenda of discussions from the Bilderberg Conference:
UPDATED TOPICS: 6-10-2011 Bilderberg Meeting: Comet Elenin (or ELEnin Brown Dwarf Star), Solar Flares, Earthquakes, Tornadoes, Underground Cities, and related topics
Scientists have uncovered a trio of genes tied to migraine headaches, including one in which the link is exclusive to women, according to a study published Sunday.
Migraines are acutely debilitating headaches -- sometimes with an "aura", in which patients have the impression of seeing through frosted glass -- that strike up to 20 percent of the population.
Scientists describe the condition, which is three to four times more common in women, as a brain disorder in which neurons, or brain cells, respond abnormally to stimuli.
The precise cause it unknown, but inheritance is thought to play a significant role.
To assess the genetic component, Markus Schuerks of Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston coordinated an international sweep of genomes in 23,230 women, 5,122 of whom suffered from migraines.
So-called genome-wide association studies compare differences between individuals across the approximately three billion pairs of basic molecular building blocks found in the human genetic code.
The study, published Sunday in the British journal Nature Genetics, is the largest to date of its kind. It found variations in three genes that showed up more frequently in migraine patients.
Two of them, known as PRDM16 and TRPM8, were specific to migraines, as opposed to other kinds of headaches.
TRPM8, in addition, was linked to migraines only in women. Earlier studies have shown that the same gene contains the genetic "blueprint" for a pain sensor, in both men and women.
The third suspect gene, LRP1, is involved in sensing the external world and in chemical pathways inside the brain.
"The brain of a person with migraine responds differently to certain stimuli, their nerve cells 'talk' differently to each other," explained Shuerks in an email.
"Many neurotransmitters are involved in this cross-talk and some seem to have a special role in migraines. LRP1 interacts with some of these neurotransmitter pathways and may thus modulate nerve responses that promote or suppress migraine attacks."
None of the genetic variants appeared to be connected specifically to migraines with or without auras.
The findings, published in Nature Genetics, were replicated in two smaller population-based studies, one in the Netherlands and the other in Germany, and in a clinical group followed by the International Headache Genetics Consortium.
"Inheritance of any of the genetic variants alters migraine risk by about 10 to 15 percent," said Schuerks.
The influence of these genes is probably not large enough to be immediately used as a diagnostic tool. But the result "is an advancement of the understanding of migraine biology," he said.
Madeleine Morgenstern
terrified of, and finding out to your amazement that you’re having a good time.” 
