Read this! Paul Douglas: A Message From a Republican Meteorologist on Climate Change

Paul Douglas: A Message From a Republican Meteorologist on Climate Change:

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  Ok I'm a optimist when it comes to the possibility for humanity to wise up and follow the bread crumbs to the realization that the world is changing and we caused it. But we also can fix the problem by giving up what made it this way.
   Are carbon production and use has gotten out of hand.  And now our weather is changing in Record Breaking ways.  Temperatures are on the rise when they should be low. Wet weather is moving in when there should be ice and snow.  This is not something to be rejoicing for, this is something to be worried about.
   Now I'm no extremest and saying you need to throw out your car and anything carbon producing, NO!  What I'm saying is use it a little less. If you can, carpool with a friend. Take the train, Use public transportation. Turn off the lights if you don't need them. Recycle your plastic, paper, metal, electronics and batteries. Change the bulbs to be more efficient. Put in windows that don't leak heat and AC. Trade in your car for a hybrid or electric car. But do these over the course of a year or 2 or 3.  These changes are not super expensive to make and if you do them over time, you'll find your not only saving money but you can get a tax return of a higher amount each year.
 Seriously people, the world is changing now because of what we didn't do 20-30 years ago. Now it's getting to the point where we HAVE to start changing or we will end up not making problems for ourselves. But problems for our children and our grandchildren. Our Generation is screwed. But lets not screw it up for our kids and the generations coming after us.
  If were lucky, we may be able to save thousands of lives in 20 years and then millions of lives in 50 years.  I think that's a pretty good thing to leave behind when I pass on. A healthy Great - grandson is all I want to leave behind me. That's why I make the changes. So I can tell my son, "Yeah we needed to change, Son. And you know what....We did."

TRUE STORY: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing? «

TRUE STORY: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing? «:
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It really makes you think about what you could be missing.

Worth a read!

  Started reading this on Suicide Girls this morning and thought it was worth passing it on.

CULTURE: Occupy Rising: The American Spring Is Here

Copied from: Confessions of a ‘Bad’ Teacher - NYTimes.com

I have a sister who's a Teacher. I have a Fiance who is a Teacher. I have 2 cousins who are Teachers. I have many Friends who are Teachers.

I think Teachers are the ones who can save our future generations from poverty and criminal lives. Unfortunately the government and state systems put in place to help these great people are failing them miserably. They are strangling the system and laying off the staff that is needed to make it all work. They have not only ham-stringed the Teachers in both lack of staff and pay but they also then smear their reputations when they fail to meet unrealistic standards in the reduced environments of our current schools.

Schools that are in badly needed upgrading and refurbishing. No Air-conditioning for the spring and summer months. Inadequate locker storage for students books and supplies. Computers that haven't been upgraded since 2004. Textbooks without a current map of the world or up-to-date world facts. Heck the teachers have to buy and supply the students with all papers and writing assignments out of their own pocket! Not out of a separate fund that should be given by the state for copies and material, out of Teachers own paycheck! which then cuts their pay in half.

Not to mention that the parents of most of the kids are taking the kids word about the teachers as the truth. They are not appreciating that a kid who complains about their teacher most likely is the one misbehaving and causing the problems in the schools. But instead of the parents Dealing with the kids, the parents are then blame the Teachers for their problems. WHY!? The Teachers are paid to TEACH, not to curb your kids attitude and discipline them since you have been spoiling them for years.

The parents even allow their kids to bring a cellphone to school. If you need to give a kid a cellphone, make it only able to make phone calls. No Text or anything else, otherwise you end up with a distracted or disruptive kid, texting, listening to music and not paying attention.

Teachers should have more respect then they do. They are working harder and longer hours then ever before and more responsibility for your kids then you have shown since their birth. Teachers can't stop working and go home like everyone else. They have stacks of papers to grade and lesson assignments to create on a daily basis. When they go home it is usually to a stack of papers to work on and barely enough sleep to survive. Heaven for bid if they decide to have a family. When do they have time to meet someone and start a family. Let alone if they decide to have kids of their own. How do you spend time with you 2 year old son when you have to take care of 28-30 other peoples kids first? It's NOT FAIR!

Their needs to be a Massive Dramatic change in how Teachers are treated and supported. I personally think that every politician in the United States needs to take a 20% pay cut. Which can not be counted as a taxable donation or that can be refunded. In addition all political campaigns that are held, half of the money raised must automatically be pushed towards the public schools in their perspective states, since most of it is used for TV ads and smear campaigns. This money is immediately put to paying for the refurbishing of Public Schools and the hiring of Teachers and support staff as well as supplies for all the Public Schools in the United States.

Politicians have been taking money from the public school systems for years. I think it's time to start putting it back in.

Confessions of a ‘Bad’ Teacher - NYTimes.com:

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Shit Chicagoans Say - YouTube

This is so true of anybody who has lived or worked in Chicago. I myself have said at least Half of what these guys & gals have said. But exchange Cubs with White Sox.

Shit Chicagoans Say - YouTube:

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My letter sent today to Illinois Representatives Dick Durbin and Mark Kirk

 Below is a letter I sent today to my state representatives in Illinois, requesting their support for: 

Proposed 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution:

 

This information came from posts on Facebook and online at several blogs and forums. After reading it I realized that this needs to be passed on as far as it can go so that all United States citizens can contact their state representatives in Washington and help protect their rights.

Sir,
  As you know there is a new 28th amendment to be voted on soon. I would like this to be pushed forward. "Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators and/or Representatives; and, Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators and/or Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States ."
 
The article below disturbs me and I'm afraid that the people of the citizens, including my self, have been taken advantage of for too long by the unfortunate self-serving politicians in Washington.

I challenge you to read this and NOT have the will to pass it on to all your friends!

No one has been able to explain to me why young men and women serve in the U.S. Military for 20 years, risking their lives protecting freedom, and only get 50% of their pay. While Politicians hold their political positions in the safe confines of the capital, protected by these same men and women, and receive full pay retirement after serving one term. It just does not make any sense..

Monday we learned that the staffers of Congress family members are exempt from having to pay back student loans. This will get national attention if news networks will broadcast it. When you add this to the below, just where will all of it stop?
This will take less than thirty seconds to read. If you agree, please pass it on.

This is an idea that we should address.

For too long we have been too complacent about the workings of Congress. Many citizens had no idea that members of Congress could retire with the same pay after only one term, that they specifically exempted themselves from many of the laws they have passed while citizens must live under those laws. The latest is to exempt themselves from the Healthcare Reform... in all of its forms. Somehow, that doesn't seem logical. We do not have an elite that is above the law. I truly don't care if they are Democrat, Republican, Independent or whatever. The self-serving must stop.

If each person that receives this will share it, in three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message.. This is one proposal that really should be passed around.

Proposed 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution: "Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators and/or Representatives; and, Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators and/or Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States ."
By: Patrick J Hunt

  These kinds of actions that the politicians in congress have been passing amendments for their own needs and not the needs of our Citizens as well as the members of our armed forces is unforgivable.
 I'm hopeful that I can count you as not someone who would support legislature that benefits all citizens and not just you and your fellow politicians. As with our men and women in the armed forces of the United States of America, Service is it's own reward.
 Thank you for your attention,
Tom Shields

George Lucas & The Han Shot First Controversy

George Lucas Now Says That Han NEVER Shot First As He Shoves Star Wars 3D Down Your Throat:

We Don't Care What You Say, George: Han Shot First! | GeekDad | Wired.com: 


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I'm sorry dudeS but I have to go with George on this. It's his creation and he gets to do whatever the heck he wants with it. Just because everyone else saw what they wanted doesn't make it right. He Created Star Wars, thus he can change it. Honestly we should be happy and grateful he created it at all and shared it with all of us.

Honestly I'm really getting sick and tired of all this. Granted I think it did make Han Solo super cool that he shot Greedo first. But to be honest, I also held it against him that he did that later on when I saw the footage of Jabba meeting him at the Falcon. Things might have been different if he hadn't shot Greedo first.

But we can argue this "till the cows come home". The point I'm trying to make is that George Lucas gave us all a gift....STAR WARS! Regardless of what he does with the series and the changes he makes, it belongs to him. He created it, he stood by it and he has been made famous by it. People love this series for all that it is, was and will be. I've been a fan of the series since I was a kid and I can't say I'm overly disappointed at all with the changes and improvements he has made to the series.  Because it's not my place to be angry at something that I have no right to be. It's not mine! Nor is it yours or anybody else's Except George Lucas!

He Created one of the most famous and incredibly unique series in Film history! Everyone who has come after him has built off of what he started and did. The themes and metaphors he used in this series has been around for years, long before he even started writing the script.  He is simply trying to build a better mouse trap with what he has already done. People say that it wasn't broke so stop trying to fix it. Well your wrong! To his wonderfully creative eye, it is broken and he feels he needs to fix it. Why does he get to make that decision and not you? BECAUSE HE CREATED IT!!

  So please people, Fanboys and all. Stop harassing this truly magnificent man for giving us this blessing that is Star Wars and stop making it out that he did something wrong, when really he's doing what should have always been. It just took longer for him to get there. For that I am Truly grateful to George Lucas for giving me a treasure that I have been enjoying again and again since I was a child. I'm going to go see Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace in the theaters because I love the movie and I want George Lucas to get what he deserves. My Thanks.