ForwardSTL

Oct 08

Todd Akin Voted to End Head Start the Same Year he Voted to Increase His Salary | Fired Up! Missouri -

Sen. McCaskill is showcasing the fact that Akin was one of only 36 members who opposed the Head Start Funding Bill which passed 381-36. However, that’s not the worst of it.

Common ground and common sense on reducing abortions | St. Louis Post-Dispatch -

A five-year study in St. Louis, in which more than 9,250 women ages 14 to 45 were given free birth-control options and family-planning education, showed that women who have access to affordable contraception rarely have unintended pregnancies.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch endorses President Obama for re-election | Occasional Planet -

In a very thoughtful, eloquent and balanced editorial published on Sunday, October 7, 2012, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch called for voters to re-elect President Obama on Nov. 6.

Are the STLPD Using City Officers to Investigate Online Piracy? | Punching Kitty -

According to a report from Ars Technica, St. Louis has received a grant from the federal government with the goal of using city officers to investigate online piracy.

A breakdown of the most recent Obama versus Romney polls | Ryan Witt, Examiner -

Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney has made large gains against President Obama in the polls released since the first presidential debate.

Dave Spence (r): corporate downsizing | Show Me Progress -

We miss the campaign land yacht. Spotted in a parking lot in west central Missouri. “Honk for more TARP bailout money for banks” must have already been taken.

Sinquefield's hefty donations keep him atop of Power Players list | St. Louis Beacon -

The retired financer emerged as Missouri’s top contributor to political candidates and causes during the current campaign season, according to an analysis of state and federal donations.

St. Louis ranks in middle of pack for economic vitality | St. Louis Business Journal -

The St. Louis metro area ranked 49th out of 102 metro areas on the On Numbers Economic Index for October, a new index that measures relative economic vitality.

For Families Of Medicare Recipients, Insurance Choices Are Tricky | St. Louis Public Radio -

When a spouse or parent signs up for Medicare, it is often perplexing — and unnerving — for the rest of the family who may have grown used to cushy employer-sponsored coverage.

Colorado Schools Will Cut Carbon Emissions Dramatically with Solar | Sustainablog -

SolarCity announced on October 1st that it is going to install more than 5,000 solar panels on 14 schools across the Boulder Valley School District (BVSD), already one of the ‘greenest’ school districts in the country.

Reaching The O’fallon Park Recreation Center | Urban Review STL -

Many residents using the new facility, as well as YMCA/Herbert Hoover staff, will drive there.

After death, new Missouri law protects utility workers | People's World -

A new utility workers protection law, passed in Missouri thanks to a staunch unionist in the legislature and signed in mid-September by Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon, could become a model for other such legislation nationally.

Countdown: Election Day is in 21 days | Missouri Democratic Party -

Election Day is in 21 days and you have until Wednesday to register to vote!

Dr. Todd Akin Speaks On Abortion | The Impudent Observer -

I recognize that members of the Democratic Party are in allegiance with the Devil so let me suggest those people cease reading this article.

Oct 05

Letter to the Editor, Jefferson County Leader | Bunnie Gronborg

On March 25, while we were still being entertained by the Republican primaries, Rick Santorum said that Mitt Romney’s ties to RomneyCare would make him the “worst Republican in the country to put up against Barack Obama” in the general election.

In November, America will decide the future of health care reform. On one hand, we have the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or ObamaCare (www.healthcare.gov); and on the other, well, many are uncertain as to what we have. In a schizophrenic whirling dervish act, Romney’s positions on health care change rapidly, depending on his audience.

Candidate Romney at once says he is happy to be called the “Grandfather of Obamacare”, and as Governor Romney on February 2, 2007, he said, “I’m proud of what we’ve done”, and added that the 2006 law “will be a model for the nation”. The Massachusetts law was indeed the model for Obamacare. Gymnast Romney then flips, and says he will repeal Obamacare, but flips again for a different audience and says he will keep some of the provisions, like preventing insurance companies from denying care based on pre-existing conditions. The problem of course is that provisions he “likes” can’t be cherry picked out of the law. Without the “Patient Protection” part of the law, insurance companies would be able to charge an unlimited amount of money for a policy that covers pre-existing conditions.

Well, I’m NOT confused by Romney’s act, because by choosing the author of the Ryan Plan as his VP, and saying he would sign the Ryan Plan into law, Romney has come down on the side of killing Medicare as we know it, and turning it into a worthless coupon program, instead of the guaranteed benefit we have now. Without that guarantee, good luck trying to buy a policy with a coupon on the open market. Costs are shifted to seniors with NO PREMIUM OR COVERAGE GUARANTEES.

As in ObamaCare, the Romney/Ryan Plan makes the same $716,000 billion savings to Medicare (that do not effect any benefits); BUT, the RR Plan sends the money to a slush fund, while ObamaCare returns that savings back to the health system. That savings under ObamaCare extends the life of the Medicare Trust Fund to 2024, while Romney/Ryan only extends it to 2016.

Good luck to parents of sick children with chronic conditions who now have coverage because of Obamacare. Good luck to youth who can now be covered on their parents’ policies until age 26. Romney/Ryan may say they want insurance plans to cover your child, but without the protection of Obamacare, you won’t be able to afford those plans.

Good luck to the elderly, disabled and poor on Medicaid, because the Romney/Ryan Plan will block grant (limit) funding to the states. NO SOUP FOR YOU!

And good luck, Mitt, because I hope and pray your endless flipping act will cause you to flop on November 6.

Bunnie Gronborg Festus, MO