Thursday, September 2, 2010
Thursday Must Read: Foreclosures Are Bad for Your Health; Illegal Immigration Plummets
Politics / Business / Health & Medicine Robert Gammon — Thu, Sep 2, 2010 at 10:48 AM
Stories you shouldn’t miss:
1. Losing your home to foreclosure is not only devastating to your finances, it’s also bad for your health, the CoCo Times reports, citing a new study released today by the Alameda County Public Health Department. The department conducted extensive surveys of Oakland residents caught in the foreclosure crisis in the past few years and found that they’re much more likely to suffer from physical and mental health problems than the rest of the population. Oakland has been particularly hard-hit because about 25 percent of all homeowners in the city entered into foreclosure between 2006 and 2009 — far more than the state and national averages.
2. According to Fox News and Republican politicians, illegal immigration in the United States has reached epidemic levels, but in truth the number of immigrants who entered the country unlawfully in 2009 declined for the first time in two decades, California Watch reports, citing a new study from the nonpartisan Pew Hispanic Center. Overall, the number of illegal immigrants plummeted 8 percent last year nationwide, a decrease of about 1 million people. In California, the number of illegal immigrants dropped 3.8 percent.
3. Oakland Police Chief Anthony Batts says the city’s police department remains productive despite the lay-off of eighty cops in July, the Trib reports. Batts said the recent uptick in crime in Oakland mirrors crime spikes during summer months in recent years.
4. US Senator Barbara Boxer traded barbs with GOP rival Carly Fiorina in an East Bay debate last night, calling the former head of Hewlett Packard a failed “Wall Street CEO,” the Trib reports. For her part, Fiorina attacked Boxer’s long record in the Senate. The two also differed on nearly every political issue. Boxer, for example, wants to end the Bush tax cuts for the rich while Fiorina wants to continue them, and Boxer is seeking climate-change legislation while Fiorina opposes such efforts. Right-leaning columnist Dan Walters of the Sacramento Bee called the debate a draw — until the end, saying Boxer finished stronger.
5. California environmentalists suffered a series of setbacks when the state Legislature failed to enact several bills before yesterday’s deadline after intense lobbying from chemical manufacturers, the LA Times reports. State lawmakers voted down an attempt to ban plastic bags in grocery stores and an effort to prohibit the use of the toxic chemical bisphenol-A, which is used in baby bottles and sippy cups. The Legislature also failed to vote on a bill that would have required state utilities to increase their use of renewable energy to 33 percent.
6. And Santa Cruz County is poised to become the first county in the state to place a moratorium on PG&E’s SmartMeters in part because of concerns about their health effects, the Santa Cruz Sentinel reports. Last month, the Santa Cruz County city of Watsonville became the second city in California, after Fairfax in Marin County, to enact a ban on SmartMeters.
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The mêlée over illegal immigration has just begun and the Tea Party members, Conservatives and independents should be mindful of Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer of Californians record. Boxer debated candidate Republican challenger Carly Fiorina, former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, for US Senate seat, confronting each other in the first of their debates this election season. Fiorina took the lead in in the political discussion that was informative, even when both contributors were argumentative. Voters must make the best assessment between the two very dissimilar candidates, from opposed ends of their political philosophy. Both opinionated over how to best construct a jobs program; about their records in the environment, business sector, public, foreign policy, the economy and internal government strife and even abortion. This first upfront in the face debate was barbed, in a performance of competing arguments with the candidates in an all-out attack on each other’s records.
The questions were balanced from voters, but discord remained as the smear tactics continued losing sight in some cases of the original questioning. In the offset it came to voter’s questions about immigration, which as now surfaced as a red-hot button issue commencing with the federal lawsuit against the state of Arizona. Even the sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa county is being dragged over the tiles for exerting his state authority to apprehend illegal aliens. Unless I missed it on C-SPAN there was no mention of Immigration Chief John Morton with ICE arresting only criminals and releasing thousands of illegal aliens back on the streets, in a De Facto Amnesty. Although Madam Fiorina supports the "Dream Act” it must be noted she does not agree with any AMNESTY. The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act would provide a pathway to citizenship for undocumented students who came to the United States as minors and finished high school.
Boxer on the other hand believed in Comprehensive Immigration Reform, known by most prudent Americans as Amnesty. This would commence with a massive expenditure to taxpayers, through forced taxes to pay for Amnesty, with welfare programs not far behind. Like her counterpart Sen. Harry Reid, her stance on stopping illegal immigration is in one word" Un-American" She is obviously for an open border because her record shows that. Voted--YES--on continuing federal funds for declared "Sanctuary Cities". Bill Table S.Amdt.4309 to S.Con.Res ; on Mar 13, 2008. Voted--YES--on comprehensive Immigration reform Bill S.1639 ; on Jun 28, 2007. Voted--NO--on declaring English as the official language of the US Government Bill. S.Amdt.1151 to S.1348 ; on Jun 6, 2007. Voted--YES--on eliminating the "Y" nonimmigrant guest worker visa Bill S.Amdt.1153 on S.1348 ; on May 22, 2007. Voted--YES--on building a fence along the Mexican border. Bill H R 6061 ; on Sep 29, 2006. The 2006 Secure Fence Bill was a fallacy, as it wasn’t built as originally intended and still remains uncompleted. Voted--YES--on establishing a Guest Worker program. Bill S. 2611 ; on May 25, 2006.
VOTED--YES--ON ALLOWING ILLEGAL ALIENS TO PARTICIPATE IN OUR SOCIAL SECURITY Bill S.Amdt.3985 to S.2611 ; on May 18, 2006. Voted—NO-- on allowing more foreign workers into the US for agricultural work. Bill S.2260 ; on Jul 23, 1998. Voted--YES--on a visa for skilled workers. Bill S. 1723 ; on May 18, 1998. Voted--NO--on limiting welfare for immigrants. Bill S.947 ; on Jun 24, 1997. SPONSORED PROVIDING FUNDING FOR SOCIAL SERVICES FOR ILLEGAL ALIENS. Funding (S.AMDT.4072 to S.2611) 06-SP4072 on May 18, 2006. According to NumbersUSA website Sen. Boxer has a "D" in Immigration enforcement and her stance categorizes her, with an open border mentality. The majority of Democrats have already breeched their oath of Allegiance to the American people, by catering more to the health care, education and other benefits to the illegal alien invasion force, while in many states the underprivileged citizens are either turned away or left to their own devices—when it comes to public assistance.
California is a—SANCTUARY CITY—and state, supported by lawmakers such as Senator Boxer. California has become a harbor for millions of illegal aliens that are benefiting from a damaged federal, state and county entitlement system. In part it has been compromised by hundreds of thousands of instant-citizenship for babies of illegal aliens, tapping into all manner of cash payments and so much more, leaving the state’s welfare system dragging its tail. Overall billions of your tax dollars are being swallowed up by people who shouldn’t be here--nationwide. We have a good chance now to remove all pro-amnesty, pro-illegal immigrant politicians and all elected officials and elect new unblemished legislators. Warn your Senator or Congressman by calling the Washington switchboard 202-224-3121. If you are not in-line with the peoples wishes, you will be out in November.
Making room in the jobless line isn't just about removing incumbents, Anti Liberal, Anti-Democrat or most issues. Even Medical Care reform is not the major issue. Its about the failure of both parties to listen to the American people. One major issue is illegal immigration and taxpayers have the IRS extorting money from them, to pay for every conceivable entitlement that Americans cannot get. The lies about the border fence and not following the design of the 2006 Secure Fence act .It's about incomprehensible billions of dollars that we are spending on corporate welfare--as the pay nothing to illegal workers other then wages; not the education of their children, health care, unemployment benefits or undisclosed social programs. We the taxpayers are the dumb fools who pay for it all? Millions are slipping past the border and it will never, ever stop, until we have politicians who are working for the American people. They are taking low skilled and manual labor jobs and lowering wages to an estimate of $200 billion a year.
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