In 2012 the choice is now either 3.4 percent student loans or access to affordable health care?

CAROLE G. IN ATLANTA SAYS:  PERSONALLY, I DO NOT KNOW WHY IT IS SO DIFFICULT TO GET HEALTH CARE FOR ALL AMERICANS, IN AMERICA. OTHER COUNTRIES, EVEN THIRD WORLD COUNTRIES, HAVE MANAGED TO TAKE CARE OF THEIR SICK AND SUFFERING.

WHY DON’T SOME HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS AND INSURANCE COMPANIES WANT THE GOVT. TO REGULATE OR AUDIT THEM? THEY HAVE BEEN GETTING AWAY WITH EXPLOITING THE CONSUMER LONG ENOUGH. WHY CAN’T THEY UNDERSTAND THAT THE COST OF HEALTHCARE IN AMERICA HAS REACHED CATASTROPHIC LEVELS AND WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT OTHERWISE IT IS THE ONE THING THAT CAN TRULY BANKRUPT THE COUNTRY?  THAT, AND THE WARS THAT WERE STARTED BY THE BUSH GOV’T THAT HAVE US BOGGED DOWN.

WE CANNOT AFFORD TO STAY IN THESE WARS, AND WE ALMOST CANNOT AFFORD TO LEAVE. GOD KNOWS WE HAVE SPENT BILLIONS IN THESE WARS AND I DO NOT HEAR ANYONE COMPLAINING. AS A MATTER OF FACT, THE SAME PEOPLE CRYING NO HEALTH CARE FOR THE MASSES ARE THE SAME ONES SAYING ‘SEND MORE TROOPS TO WAR AT THE EXPENSE OF OUR ECONOMY.’

THE ONES WHO SAY WE ARE KILLING UNBORN BABIES AT HOME, ARE THE SAME ONES SAYING SEND OUR BABIES TO GIVE THEIR LIVES IN A WAR BASED ON LIES. (NOT TO MENTION THE UNTOLD INNOCENT PEOPLE OF IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN.) WE ARE IN A VERY DIFFICULT SITUATION,  BUT IF AMERICANS DO NOT DIE IN WARS THEY WILL CERTAINLY DIE, AND ARE CERTAINLY DYING AT HOME FROM SICKNESS AND TOO MANY DRUGS BEING PUMPED INTO THEIR BODIES AND FROM LACK OF CARE. COME ON!!!! DO NOT THINK OF YOUR POCKETS ONLY, HAVE A HEART FOR HUMANITY.  DRUG MANUFACTURERS DO NOT WANT HEALTH CARE REFORM. THEY WANT UNLIMITED PROFITS. WHERE ARE THE ETHICS THEY PRINCIPLES WE HEAR SO MUCH ABOUT? WHERE ARE THE CONSERVATIVE  CHRISTIAN VALUES?

WRITE TO YOUR SENATOR AND EVERY ELECTED OFFICIAL IN YOUR STATE. URGE THEM TO PASS HEALTH CARE REFORM. DO NOT ALLOW THE FILTHY RICH TO DICTATE WHAT HAPPENS TO THE POOR. VETERANS RETURNING FROM IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN ARE BEING DENIED HEALTH CARE DUE TO BUREAUCRATIC FOUL UPS. PLEASE DO NOT ALLOW THE OPPRESSORS TO WIN. 

 UPDATE POSTED MAY 10, 2012:  Sadly, the oppressors have won.  Now Health Care Reform is in the hands of the Supreme Court. In the hands of a justice who mouthed that the President is a liar during the State of the Union address.  A Supreme Court where a majority of the justices seem to care less about what is ethical, fair and honest jurisprudence and more about what is philosophical doctrine.  We only have to visit some of the health clinics in poor innercity neighborhoods in many areas of America to see the devastating effects of a lack of health care; the effects of health care out of the reach of poor and lower incomed Americans.  Many of the one percenters need to take a trip into some parts of innercity America.   This week Republicans want to strip away more of the access to health care for poor Americans  by holding hostage the loan rates for college students.  They will NOT vote to prevent the student loan rate from doubling from the now 3.4 to 6.8 percent unless they are allowed to strip away some of the key benefits of health care reform!!!  How can people who call themselves principled, christians, conservatives, etc. etc., do so much to prevent students from lower income families to access a college education?  How can they hold the health of average Americans hostage? 

When President Obama was first elected Republican leader, Mitch McConnell said: “The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.”

Again in July 2011, as reported  by Matt Schneider | 5:42 pm, July 10th, 2011 Mr. McConnell restated his position:  Sen. McConnell: Making Obama A One-Term President Is My Single Most Important Political Goal.”   This is at a time when the country is in a deep recession, something that the Republicans did nothing about except to fight as hard as they could and can to protect the vast wealth of the one percenters in America.  Nothing seems to be more important to the Republican leadership than prevent the wealthiest Americans from paying their fair share of taxes, getting the largest return on their investments, keeping President Obama from being re-elected and keeping America a very divided nation of very rich, a small middleclass and a massive amount of poor underclass.

• National health care reform helps all Americans | OregonLive.com

•  www.oregonlive.com › The Stump › oped

• Health Care Reforms www.nachc.org/

• Health care reform in america  – www.voices.org/ What are the Pros and Cons
  for 50K Americans in 2012?

• Health Care Reform  www.acslaw.org/  Constitutional? See what the experts have to say.

• What does health reform  www.preventioninstitute.org/mean for public health?
  Access updates and resources.

• Senate Republicans Block Bill to Freeze Student Loan Rates  apicciano.commons.gc.cuny.edu/2012/…/senate-republicans-block-bi…

• Alexander Calls For Vote On “Bipartisan Proposal” To Reduce …  www.chattanoogan.com/2012/…/Alexander-Calls-For-Vote-On-Bipar… Our only disagreement with Senator alexander is that the filthy rich are not creating jobs

• Student Loans News – The New York Times   topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/…/s/student_loans/index.html

• House Democrats Announce New Bill to Keep Student Loan Interest ….  democrats.edworkforce.house.gov › Media Center › Press Releases

CAROLE G.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA

(This post was first submitted to OneWorld Nov. 9, 2009 by Carole G. from Atlanta, Georgia; it was updated on 5/10/12)

http://www.oneworldpi.org/health/health_videos.html 

During the month of May OneWorld  Progressive Institute– your community resource for health literacy, education and civic engagement– will be airing informative education programs focusing exclusively on women’s health and well-being.  Watch AT&T Uverse, Channel 99, statewide in CT, and your local PEG access channel in Southern Connecticut (Comcast Channels 10, 15, 18, 26 & 34; Cox 15, and Charter Communications Ch. 21)  for our outstanding education programs on women’s health: Maintaining Health & Well-Being As Women Age, Gynecologic Cancers, Cancer Genetic Screening, Counseling and Testing, and Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery (NOTES).

The national education campaign’s goal is to give women a personal and urgent wakeup call about their risk of heart disease.

1.      Who Are We Trying to Reach? We are focusing on women between the ages of 40 – 60, the age when a woman’s risk of heart disease starts to rise. 

• Because heart disease develops gradually and can start at a young age-even in the teenage years, the message is also important for younger women.
• Older women have an interest too—because it’s never too late to take action to prevent and control the risk factors for heart disease. 
• Even those who have heart disease can improve their heart health and quality of life.
• Heart disease kills more women age 65 years and older than all cancers combined.
• Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women age 65 years and older
• It’s the third-leading cause of death for women age 25 to 44 years
• And the second-leading cause of death for women age 45 to 64 years.
• Women under the age of 65 years who have a family history of heart disease should pay particularly close attention to the heart disease risk factors.
• Still, all women, of all ages, should take heart disease seriously.

2.  Heart Disease Disproportionately Affects Women of Color. African American and Hispanic women in particular have high rates of the major risk factors for heart disease, including:

• Obesity- More than 80 percent of midlife African American women are overweight or obese
• Physical inactivity- Move. Take brisk walks regularly to lower blood pressure, BMI, cholesterol, and blood glucose.
• High blood pressure – 52 percent of midlife African American women have high blood pressure
• Diabetes - 14 percent have been diagnosed with diabetes.
• Hispanic Women: About 83 percent of midlife Hispanic women are overweight or obese, and more than 10 percent have been diagnosed with diabetes.
•    Smoking and Heart Disease  www.webmd.com/heart-disease/guide/smoking-heart-disease

The campaign is especially aimed at women ages 40 to 60, the age when a woman’s risk of heart disease starts to rise. But its messages are also important for younger women. Heart disease disproportionately affects women of color. African American and Hispanic women in particular have high rates of the major risk factors for heart disease, including obesity, physical inactivity, high blood pressure, and diabetes.

The Heart Truth Women of Color initiative, with its partners, focuses on extending The Heart Truth messages, and engaging in national and local activities to help more women of color understand The Heart Truth-and inspire them to take action to reduce their risks for heart disease.

The campaign tells women that “The Heart Truth starts with you.    

•  Talk to your doctor, find out your risk, and take action today to lower it.”

•  Its messages are underscored by the moving stories of real women who are living with heart disease.

•  Sharon, Orlinda, Olga, and others have allowed the campaign to tell The Heart Truth using their faces, voices, and experiences in hopes that their Stories From The Heart will help other women take heart health seriously.     

• Additional Resources include: Online Toolkit will help you find and use other resources.
• This Faith-Based Activities Toolkit contains ideas and resources you can use to plan your own faith-based Heart Truth program.     

The Organizations Linked Below Provide Much Information for Hispanics & Faith-based Women Nationally and Internationally.  Explore all the links and learn more about Women of Color & Heart Disease.

National Latina Health Network (NLHN) launched www.nlhn.net/ Promoting health education for Latinas and families
Heart Healthy Day started in 2007 by conducting heart health screenings and education sessions in New York City, NY, Houston, TX, Chicago, IL, and Miami, FL, reaching more than 2,000 individuals with The Heart Truth messages. The NLHN’s Heart Healthy Day was covered by Telemundo, a media partner of the NLHN, and reached an estimated audience of 48,430,700. The NLHN also incorporated The Heart Truth into the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s (NHLBI) Su Corazon, Su Vida community education program to reach Latinas with low reading and health literacy levels.

The Heart TruthVideos – Want to know more about heart attack warning signs and risk factors like high blood pressure?

The Heart Truth Videos are short films that spotlight heart attack warning symptoms, heart attack risk factors, and the NHLBI’s The Heart Truth campaign.  See these videos and learn what to look for.   See these videos and learn what to watch for

• Heart Attack Warning Symptoms

• Heart Attack Warning Symptoms (Spanish)

• Heart Disease Risk Factors

• Heart Disease Risk Factors (Spanish)

• The Heart Truth Campaign

•  This Faith-Based Activities Toolkit contains ideas and resources you can use to plan your own faith-based Heart Truth program.

•   See also: National Institutes of Health

• U.S. Department of Health & Human Services  

•  womenshealth.gov – The Office on Women’s Health provides information, tools, calculators, and statistics on women’s health topics … Heart attack for women. … May 1, 2012

• Women’s Health Calendar - Empowering women to live healthier lives!

Below are additional National Links Specifically for Women of Color:

1.  AME Church Connectional Health Commission— www.amechealth.org

2.  Association of Black Cardiologists, Inc.— www.abcardio.org

3.  Black Women’s Health Imperative  www.blackwomenshealth.org

4.  Favaloro Foundation: www.fundacionfavaloro.org/welcome/welcome_index.htm

5.  The League of United Latin American Citizens, Women— www.lulac.org/women.html

6.   The Links, Inc.— www.linksinc.org

7.  MANA, A National Latina Organization— www.hermana.org

8. Miss Black USA— www.missblackusa.org

9. National Association of Latina Leaders http://www.latinaleaders.org

10. National Black Nurses Association—www.nbna.org/

May is Women’s Health Month – and OneWorld is bringing to television some very special programs expressly for women.  These programs can be seen on AT&T Uverse – dropdown menu Channel 99.  The times and topics are listed by stations – alphabetically: Branford, East Haven, North Haven. Our programs are also on Comcast Channels 10, 15, 18, 26 and 34, and on Cox Chan 15 and Charter Communications – Community Visions – Channel 21.

The following programs can be seen during the month of May starting Sun. 5/6/12,  7- 8PM on Citizens Television, Comcast Channel 26 in Hamden, New Haven and West Haven.   In response to those who have called inquiring why they cannot see our programs during the week, please know that OneWorld has no control over the fact that CTV will air the program only at 7PM on Sundays. 

1. Gynecological Cancers with Drs. Schwartz and Rutherford & community participants.  5/6/12
2. Tips for Maintaining Health & Well-Being As Women Age w/ multicultural women MDs 5/13/12
3. Cancer Genetic Screening, Counseling & Testing w/ Ellen Matloff, Yale Genetics,    5/20/12  

4. Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery (NOTES) w/ Yale MDs & Nurse,  5/27/12   

OneWorld programs can be seen on the stations listed below at various times:

1.  Branford Community TV (BCTV, Comcast Channel 18) www.branfordtv.org
2.  East Haven Public TV (ETV), Comcast Channel 18 – www.easthaventv.org/
3. North Haven Community TV (NHTV), Comcast Chan. 18 – www.nhtv.com
4. Comcast of Middletown, PEG Access Channel 15 (Cromwell, East Hampton, Middlefield, Middletown & Portland)
5. Comcast of Seymour, PEG Access Channel 10 (Covers Valley towns of: Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Bethany, Derby, Naugatuck, Oxford, Shelton & Seymour.)
6. Comcast Channel 26, Citizens Television, (covers Hamden, NH and WH) OneWorld programs air on Sundays at 7pm on Chan. 26
7. Comcast of Clinton, PEG Access Chan. 34 (covers – 9 towns – will be reinstated shortly)
8. Cox Communications Chan 15 www.patv15.com/ (covers: Meriden, Southington & Cheshire.) 
9.  Charter Community Visions 21: www.communityvision21.com/ (covers Trumbull, Monroe,    Newtown, Brookfield, New Fairfield, Sherman, Bridgewater, Roxbury, New Milford, Kent, Southbury, Woodbury, Bethlehem, and Washington

• NH Girl Friends, Inc Annual Books & Art Fair – April 28, 2012 – Wexler Grant School, NH – 10:00AM – 3:00PM
  Two dynamic & interactive workshops:

• Building A MOVEMENT for Academic Excellence in the Black community, and

• Living Beyond Racial Stereotypes.

• For more info please call: Enola Aird, 203-605-5033.

WHO:   The New Haven Chapter of Girlfriends,  Inc. , a national organization founded during the Harlem Renaissance to cultivate bonds of friendship and promote the well-being of the African American community.

WHAT:    A Books and Art Fair & Two Dynamic & Informative Workshops:   This day of fun,  learning, and inspiration will feature books, art, music, a variety of vendors,  food, a children’s reading room, and two thought-provoking, action-focused panels:  

Living Beyond Racial Stereotypes: A  candid, solutions-oriented discussion about why it’s crucial for us to reject the stereotypes that limit us as a people.

Building a Movement for Academic Excellence in the Black Community:  Panelists will share concrete and practical suggestions for mobilizing the Black community to provide maximum support for the academic achievement of Black children.

• WHERE:  Wexler Grant School, 55 Foote Street, New Haven, CT.

• WHEN:   Saturday, April 28, 2012

•  TIME: 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM.

 WHY:   To highlight the importance of reading to the success of Black people—past,  present, and future–and to collect books  or distribution to children in the Newhallville-Dixwell community.  Please come and participate, contribute, be inspired, learn.

A solid education is the foundation of our children’s future success. As parents we can MAKE a Positive Difference.

 Are we saying that children at any age should be allowed to damage property and injure others?  Of course not; that would be irresponsible.  But as Abby Anderson pointed out in our Juvenile Justice program, when White children act-out negatively in school or elsewhere, they are most often evaluated for mental health issues; they are clinicalized.  When Black children act out negatively, they are criminalized and the police are called, and the children are arrested, handcuffed and often locked up by police until parents can come and take responsibility for them.  WHY IS THIS SO?  Are we  aware that some of the perceptions about Black children being violent are so engrained that we react without thought?

OneWorld plans to reair the Profiling CT Juvenile Justice System program in June.  Unfortunately, in the Hamden, New Haven and West Haven area (Comcast Chan. 26) OneWorld programs are restricted to one airing per week and that is on Sundays at 7pm. OneWorld has no control over this restriction.   For those with AT&T Uverse, OneWorld programs can be seen daily on the 99 (drop down menu) listed alphabetically by stations:  Branford TV, ETV, No. Haven TV, North Branford.   Our programs are also on Cox 15, Charter 21 and Comcast Chans 10, 15, 18, & 34.  The guests on this program were very on target in helping us to understand what is happening in the CT Juvenile Justice System.  It is clearly also happening in other places.  In fact, the guests emphasized that this is what is traditional across the United States of America.  WHY? What are we doing to these children?  What messages are we sending and to whom?

Should a Six-year old Kindergartner Who Threw a Tantrum at School Be Handcuffed & Placed in a Police Holding Cell? It is a case of Zero Tolerance School Policy Gone Awry!  It is MADNESS!  A Six-year-old little girl who did not have a weapon arrested?!!!  Placed in handcuffs!!! Where were the adults at the school? What were they doing? Why weren’t they arrested for abrogation of responsibility? 

Below are links to various media reports on this story of this six-year old being placed in handcuffs.  We also invite you to go to the other links listed to learn about America’s Zero Tolerance School Policy.  What exactly is going on in our schools? Are the police now the line of first response when small children throw tantrums? Or is there something else going on here? Click the various links from the many sources listed. Read the complete story. Then ask yourself these and other questions.  What exactly are we doing as a society? What are the real objectives we are trying to achieve?

Questions to Ponder Seriously:  Some of the questions we need to ask ourselves are:  

• 1) What do we expect of and from our Police Depts.?  Are we putting them in untenable situations?
• 2) Should the police be called on a six-year-old kindergarten student who has no weapons, but who seems to be very emotionally upset, or even out-of-control? 
• 3)  Are the police trained social workers and  psychologists?  What are they expected to do except arrest the child?  Of course, we would hope that adult thinking would kick in.  What is the real purpose in calling the cops?
• 4)  When the cops are called in these situations what does it say about the professional skills and abilities of the adults who are supposed to be in charge of the classroom or school where these events occur?  Are these adults simply abrogating their responsibilities?  How many parents expect to go to the police Lock Up to get a 6 Y-O?
• 5)  What is the purpose of the 1994 Zero Tolerance Policies in Schools in 2012?  Please visit this link to learn more and to read the Pros and Cons of the debate:  Debate: The “zero tolerance” policy in US schools is an …  www.debate.org/…/The-zero-tolerance-policy-in-US-schools-is-an-
• 6)  Read a 2009 comprehensive report that shows the results of schools shifting from a prevention and correction model to a reactive and punitive model here:  NASP CQ 37-5 – Zero Tolerance Policies and the Public Schools …
• www.nasponline.org/publications/cq/mocq375zerotolerance.aspx.  Finally, read the current report at this link:
• 7.) New studies confirm lack of evidence for “zero tolerance” programs …  View various media links below with different aspects of this incredible story

1. liftingtheveil.blog.com/…/new-studies-confirm-lack-of-evidence-for-…
2.  Link to updated article By JEFF MARTIN and JERI CLAUSING | Associated Press – 53 mins ago Police handcuff Georgia kindergartner for tantrum | The Salt L ake …
3. www.sltrib.com/sltrib/…68/police-albuquerque-arrested-girl.html.csp  
4. MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. (AP) — Police in Georgia handcuffed a kindergartner after the girl threw a tantrum and the police chief defended the action.
5. The girl’s family demanded Tuesday that this central Georgia city change policy so that other children aren’t treated the same way. They say the child was shaken up by being put in a cell at the police station.
6. Salecia Johnson, 6, was accused of tearing items off the walls and throwing furniture in an outburst Friday at Creekside Elementary School, Macon television station WMAZ-TV (http://on.wmaz.com/HPb7nr) reported. Police said the girl knocked over a shelf that injured the principal.
7. The school called police. The police report says when an officer tried to calm the child in the principal’s office, she resisted and was handcuffed. The girl was charged with simple assault and damage to property.
8. . Police handcuff Georgia kindergartner for tantrum
9. Fox News‎ – ATLANTA – A kindergartner who threw a tantrum at her small-town Georgia school was taken away in handcuffs, her arms behind her back.
10. News for Police handcuff Ga. kindergartner for tantrum
11.   Police in Ga. handcuff kindergartner, 6, for tantrum; schools wrest… - Washington Post‎ -