My Lamppost

Who are you going to vote for President? My father tends to vote according to his wallet. My mother veers toward the religious issues, abortion rights chief among them.

It seems that your Presidential vote in November 2008 will be influenced by your personal agenda and then perhaps by your social standing. In other words, if you’re wealthy or a business owner, you may vote according to taxation ideology. If you’re Hispanic, African American or a woman, you may vote according to health insurance or taxation ideology. If you’re vote is influenced by religion, you may vote according to tenets outlined in your particular religious constitution, i.e., Bible, Koran, Torah, etc: chiefly abortion rights and same sex partnerships.

When Ronald Reagan, our 41st U.S. President who served from 1981 – 1989, ran for re-election, he asked if we were better off than we were 4 years earlier. In other words, did we have more money? Were we making more money? Did we have a good or better job? Did we feel good about our country? The populace seemed to get the point, agreed that they were better off, and elected him to a 2nd term overwhelming over Walter Mondale. I’m not a Reagan apologist. Many things did not go as planned. What I liked about him was that he had charisma, made us feel really good about being Americans, was able to criticize without extracting pounds of flesh (Berlin Wall speech comes to mind). Supply side economics (aka trickle down economics) didn’t work out the way he planned but his plan was new and revolutionary. Many benefited from his economic policies. Many didn’t. But, he tried. He believed in being a good person to his spouse, to his friends, to his colleagues in power. He was decent. He believed in wealth, did not punish those for being rich and tried to legislate a trickle down effect where millions of others could get rich also.

I am neither a conservative nor liberal. I believe in some ideologies promoted by both Republicans and Democrats. I also disagree with some ideologies promoted by both Parties.

• I am a business owner.
• I believe in helping people.
• I don’t believe in Imperialism.
• I do believe in maintaining a prepared self-defense system, i.e., military.
• I believe, from experience, that we need health insurance reform but think it’s necessary that it not be taken over by the State.
• I don’t think there should be a wide divide between rich and poor, at least between those that are rich and those that want to be rich. To those that want a monthly paycheck without working for it, well, I don’t want to pay for you.
• However, if you want to work but can’t, we’ll find a way to take care of you.
• If you’re a veteran and are handicapped mentally, physically or emotionally, my country should support you, reward you and thank you.
• I believe that smoking is not healthy but it doesn’t mean I advocate going into Tobacco Road in South Carolina and immediately eliminating 1,000’s of farming, infrastructure, and managerial jobs as well as family structures. Let’s create a plan to grow something else or retrain the affected population so that they can continue to work and live a meaningful, contributory life.
• I don’t believe in building walls to prevent people from entering our country especially after the symbol of our country in the 80’s - Reagan - sat atop the Berlin Wall and raged against that “communist symbol”.
• I also believe that emigration to the United States is a privilege and a right. Hispanics must promote, nurture and preserve their culture - continue to speak Spanish - but they must also learn to speak English like the Italian immigrants did in 1880-1920 when millions of them entered the United States to escape injustices, poverty and disease in Italy. Same should be said of Asians, Filipinos, Russians – all ethnic groups emigrating to the U.S. Preserve your traditions but help build a unified America. Sure, monitor emigration. Repel those that seek to hurt America. But, make a plan for those that can and want to contribute. Retrain immigrants like you would retrain workers on Tobacco Road.
• How about the War in Iraq? Not sure I was a proponent of the war in Iraq. But since we’re in there, why would we leave a political vacuum and potential unrest in a region uniformly known for 1,000’s of years of turmoil and unrest? Don’t you think that Obama or Clinton would immediately gain the advice of their military chiefs and, after say, 10 minutes, decide that we had to stay in after all? I’m not opponents of Clinton or Obama – I just don’t trust them on this issue. Obama could be naïve; Clinton’s been there. She knows better.
• And my last point: why must every Democrat seek to punish the rich? What is wrong with getting rich, being rich and staying rich? There are bad rich people and there are bad poor people. Sure, there are company executives that steal and cheat. There are still those executives that do everything legally yet everything immorally – accepting huge stock payoffs while 2,000 employees are laid off. Wrong message to send. But, what? We’re going to legislate against it? The media pick up on it and skewer these people anyway. They really don’t ever get away with it and they represent such a minor percentage of wealthy people anyway. Millions of people that are rich today didn’t begin life as wealthy people. However, they did see an America that allowed them to get rich. So, why should someone that risks everything, works tirelessly for 18 hours a day, pays taxes and employs people be punished because someday that risk pays off in the form of a lot of money? The stock market is famous for promoting the phrase “high risk, high reward”. If you risk your time and energy, social relationships, deferment of a home so you can pay an employee’s salary and oil bills, why would you not deserve to be wealthy? Do you know why Michael Jordan made $30 million in the last year of his contract with the Chicago Bulls? Because he made his owner 10x (guess) that amount throughout his playing days. Heck, his visits to the arenas of opponents were typically sold out events – how much money did he make for them? How much did he make for the entire NBA during his playing tenure? The $30m was a thank you note for all that he had done. He deserved it.

Do you know what millions of people with money do - including the rich, wealthy and upper middle class? They own businesses that employ millions of people. When interest rates are stable (and low enough) they build real estate, they add onto their plants, they buy machinery, they buy office supplies, they entertain at restaurants that employ cooks and waiters, they buy nice cars sold by car salesmen, take their cars to gas stations to buy gas from gas station owners. Their employees buy homes which have to be built by construction companies or financed by bankers or mortgage brokers. Finished raw materials for home construction must be purchased from lumber yards. Their employees get married and have kids. Kids eat a lot so there are many supermarket visits where a lot of fruits and vegetables are purchased. Fruits and vegetables are picked by farmers. Kids go to schools (and daycare) that employ teachers. The point is that there is a trickle down effect here. People make money in our capitalist system because others can afford to SPEND it.

Rich people, or let’s just say people with expendable income, also donate time and money to charities. I’m not naïve: many would not donate if the tax code did not provide incentive but… I’m also not naïve: many still would give to charities despite the tax law. Charities employ administrators who, in turn, designate donations to needy people.

So, again, I ask the question: why must there be advocates of increasing the taxes for rich people? Why not decrease taxes for the rich and middle class? Right, you ask, where’s the money going to come from?

We spend, what, a half billion dollars a day in Iraq? There is money in the budget to address social and financial disadvantage and misfortune. The problem is that the lobbies for the military are stronger than the homeless lobby. We just need, as a country, to get smart about keeping the dream alive for everyone that wants to participate in the dream.

In short, we are only as good as our weakest links: racial divides, class divides, laziness, obesity, imperialism, know-it-all-ism, homelessness, intolerance et al. Let’s get with it

So, who will you vote for? I’m thinking McClintama!

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Yeah, yeah, Barack Obama has swept the past 9 consecutive democratic primaries by my count, has grabbed the spotlight and has the edge in charisma. As a result, you’d think that he was ahead by a McCain-country mile.

Well, after his 9-state sweep, Obama is ahead by only 98 delegates with the March 4th democratic primary elections upcoming. (On March 4th, Democratic state primaries are held in Rhode Island, Vermont, Texas, and Ohio.) Because the Democratic primaries were not winner take all primaries, Hillary Clinton was apportioned delegates based on her percentage of votes, thus keeping the 2nd place finisher in the race. But, it is getting tight now.

What does Obama’s 98 delegate lead mean? Is he ahead by a McCain country-mile or is the Democratic race basically tied?

If you look at the number of state primaries remaining (14) as well as the number of delegates up for grabs (922), you’d think the race was about tied and that no matter the results of March 4th, Hillary Clinton would still live to fight another day.

But, on closer look, it appears Hillary Clinton has to win either Ohio or Texas to remain in the race.

Here’s why:
Given the past 9 primaries, Obama has won by an average of 64%. Let’s say he sweeps the March 4th primaries (TX, OH, VT, RI) with the same vote percentage and let’s say Clinton takes the remaining 36%. Obama would win 237 out of 370 pledged delegates available while Clinton would capture 133, leaving them with 1,609 and 1,407 delegates, respectively. The math says that Obama would be ahead by 202 delegates, not counting superdelegates. A lead of 202 delegates with momentum could prove insurmountable given that the state primaries that follow, even though they represent the remaining 720 delegates, really do not have many delegates to give separately, other than Pennsylvania and Indiana.

If Clinton loses Texas and Ohio, she would have to literally shut out Obama in Pennsylvania and Indiana to come back which in all likelihood won’t happen given Obama’s would-be momentum and that we’d be in the homestretch of the primary race.

Remaining Democratic State Primaries:

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Tonight, Wednesday, February 20, 2008, in Los Angeles, beginning right after 7pm and lasting until close to 8pm, the moon moved under the long shadow of Earth to give us the first total lunar eclipse since last August 28, 2007. A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth is exactly aligned between the Sun and Moon. Tonight’s lunar eclipse could be seen in the Americas, Europe and Africa. The next total lunar eclipse will be on December 21, 2010.

First lunar eclipse picture was taken at about 7:03pm, PST on Wednesday, February 20, 2008.

Second lunar eclipse photo: Note the rusty red light of the moon. It is actually indirect light from the Earth’s atmosphere.

Third lunar eclipse picture: the Moon reflecting the Sun’s light as it emerges from the Earth’s shadow. (photos courtesy of Palmerino Photography)

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Republicans are known for their unity and today Mitt Romney sought to unite the Republican party and its conservative base behind John McCain. A fractured Republican party leading up to the September nominating convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul would not have proved strategic with the general election only a couple of months after that.

It was clear that McCain and Romney did not see eye to eye. McCain is known as more of a moderate Republican often walking across the aisle to work with Democrats. Romney advocates a more staunch conservative Republican ideology. But, Romney has conceded that Republican Party unity and the chance to settle the Party going into general elections is paramount and more important than his own aspirations - at least in this election year. But, believe me, Republicans do not forget. When it comes time for Romney to run again in 2012 or 2016, he will have support as a result of his actions today.

I prefer McCain’s strategy of reconciliation and compromise to Obama’s “We Need Change” credo. In our government, we don’t suffer naive mavericks gladly. Reagan, no matter what you think, was a maverick but a maverick with a plan and respect for his colleagueas. Hell, he once was a Democrat. The President of the United States has to compromise, negotiate, prod and convince Congress and the House of Representatives that his ideas are worth merit - that is unless the majority on both sides belong to the President’s Party. So why Barack Obama is giving the indication he will go it alone and change Washington is beyond me. Washington “insiders” don’t change unless there’s something in it for them.

So What Happens to Romney’s Delegates?

B Simpson asked that very question. Delegates - both pledged and super delegates - are not bound to vote for the candidate that leaves a primary race for President in our United States. However, delegates usually vote according to the retired candidates’ endorsement. For example, today, February 14th, 2008, Mitt Romney officially endorsed John McCain for President and asked his delegates to follow suit. It is expected that his 280 delegates will unite behind Romney’s sentiment and vote for McCain also. This is typically what happens in a Priamry race as a candidate begins to emerge. However, this year may be different. The reason Huckabee is still in the running is because a good percentage of conservative Republicans stand behind his ideologies and are unsure of McCain’s conservative leanings. Well, it’s more like they doubt that McCain will aptly represent their conservative social agenda. So, don’t be surprised if, at the Republican convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul in September, some of Romney’s delegates swing to Huckabee. Last point, the swing in delegate votes from Romney to Huckabee could be a mute point if McCain secures more than the 1,191 delegates needed to nominate the Republican candidate for President BEFOREHAND. If all of Romney’s delegates were to swing to McCain, McCain would have 1,123 delegates today, just 68 delegates shy of the nomination.So, there you go - delegates can do whatever they want to do at the convention. I’m even pretty sure that they don’t have to endorse McCain if they feel too separated
from his agenda. If the race were closer and McCain needed the votes, you’d see some major concessions coming from the McCain camp. He already has made quite a few to the conservative base, I’m sure, which accounts for his large lead over Huckabee.

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We were watching a rerun of the show Numb3rs last night and the theme happened to be biblical numerology. It’s interesting that Hebrew and Greek languages do not have numbers; rather, they give numeric values to letters. A numeric value given to letters or a string of letters is called the gammatria. For example, the name Jesus in Greek is translated to Iasous. Knowing that each letter in Greek has a corresponding numeric value, we deduce that the numeric value for Iasous (Jesus) is 888:

Here are some other values and the corresponding alpha meanings:

1 = Unity

2 = Male/Female, Yin/Yang

3 = Divine Perfection, Trinity

4 = Creation

5 = Grace and Redemption

6 = Man

7 = Spiritual Perfection

8 = New Beginnings

9 = Judgement, hmm, I don’t like judgement. It’s not my inclination to think that God judges. Therefore, I go with Gifts of the Spirit

10 = Divine Perfection

12 = Governmental Perfection

40 = Probation or Trial

153 = Divine Intervention - disciples catch 153 fish after the Resurrection; “fish” is translated to “ixthus” in Greek which has a numerical value (or gammatria) of 1224, which is 8 x 153.

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Mitt Romney, former Governor of Massachuetts, has retired from the 2008 Presidential race.

Romney is a Republican and was competing against John McCain, Senator from Arizona, and Mike Huckabee, former Governor of Arkansas, for the privilege of representing the Republican Party in the general election for President in November.

Initially it was believed that Mitt Romney was the Republican Party’s best chance of beating either Clinton or Obama on the Democratic side in the general election. he understood the economy, backed the conservative policies of George Bush and appealed to conservative Republicans. That is, until Super Tuesday ended.

In Super Tuesday voting, it was clear that Mike Huckabee had as much of a stronghold on conservative Republicans as did Romney and, in the end, Huckabee won (with McCain’s help beginning in West Virginia). Romney won the states of Alaska, Colorado, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, North Daokata and Utah. However, Huckabee took the states known for their conservative appeal and the states many describe as the conservative base of the Repblican Party: the South. Huckabee won the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee and West Virginia. In the end, Romeny emerged with about 50 more delegates than Huckabee but he fell short of convincing conservatives of the same ilk that he should be their choice for President. And that spelled doom for Mitt Romney’s campaign.

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McCain Widens Delegate Lead - Clinton Can’t Shake Obama

With the race for the White House as hot as ever, the focus on delegate counts seems to be at a modern historic high. John McCain took a large step toward securing the Republican nomination for President on Super Tuesday by winning 601 pledged delegates. He now has a total of 1,000 combined pledged- and super-delegates and leads Romney by 434 delegates. McCain needs 488 more delegates to gain his Party’s nomination (1,191 total). Mitt Romney secured 176 delegates in Super Tuesday voting while Mike Huckabee impressively kept pace with 147 delegates.

On the Democratic side, the nomination is still up for grabs which is making delegate counting a fun exercise. Barack Obama won more states in Super Tuesday voting yet Hillary Clinton emerged with more delegates, 739, to Obama’s 700 delegates. In total Clinton leads Obama in a tight delegate race, 1,000 to 902. The candidate securing 2,025 delegates wins the nomination.

SUPER TUESDAY - February 5, 2008

ALABAMA

ALASKA

ARIZONA

ARKANSAS

CALIFORNIA

COLORADO

CONNECTICUT

DELAWARE

GEORGIA

IDAHO

ILLINOIS

KANSAS

MASSACHUSETTS

MINNESOTA

MISSOURI

MONTANA

NEW JERSEY

NEW MEXICO

NEW YORK

NORTH DAKOTA

OKLAHOMA

TENNESSEE

UTAH

WEST VIRGINIA

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Huckabee Strikes First, Wins West Virginia

McCain delegates, sensing 3rd place finish, back Huckabee, block Romney

SUPER TUESDAY - February 5, 2008

WEST VIRGINIA

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Hillary Clinton Campaigning for Her Husband, Bill Clinton

Much has been made of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s High School Yearbook picture. My Lamppost has a picture of Hillary that is young also but a little bit older than her high school days. Enclosed is the My Lamppost Editor in much younger days posing with Hillary Clinton in Fall, 1992, in El Paso, Texas.

Ms. Clinton was campaigning for her husband in those days.

Her husband, Bill Clinton, won the United States Presidential General Election in November, 1992 when he beat incumbent President George H.W. Bush*. He became the 42nd President of the United States on Wednesday, January 21, 1993 and went on to serve 8 years as President, 1993 - 2001.

* In 1992, Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, ran for President against the 41st President of the United States, George H.W. Bush, a Republican from Texas. There was a 3rd candidate for President and his name was Ross Perot, Independent from Texas.

Did Perot prove instrumental in helping Clinton gain the White House or in helping Bush lose the White House? Consider this: Clinton handily won the 1992 Electoral Vote over Bush and Perot by a score of 370 -168 -0, respectively. However, the Popular Vote was closer. Clinton beat Bush 44.9 million votes to 39.1 million votes, a difference of only 5.8 million votes. Perot garnered 19.7 million popular votes on his own. Interesting, isn’t it?

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Diabetes Statistics, Symptoms Types and Recipes for Healthy Living

My grandmother lived with diabetes for a long time. She proved, along with many others afflicted with this disease that, if controlled, it is treatable and does not have to adversely affect ones’ quality of life

My grandmother was diagnosed with diabetes mellitus later in life, just around retirement age. Initially, her diabetes mellitus was treated with prescription insulin but as time passed, her condition became a bit more severe. As a result, what was originally diagnosed as Diabetes Mellitus II transformed into Diabetes Mellitus I, a condition treatable only through insulin injections. Until her last days, I remember my grandfather injecting her daily in her stomach and legs.

Diabetes Mellitus is diagnosed when a body cannot properly produce or use sufficient levels of insulin to break down glucose sugars in the bloodstream. Glucose sugars are broken down by insulin normally, then stored as energy in our cells. The inability to break down glucose sugar, thus resulting in heightened levels of glucose in the bloodstream, is called hyperglycemia. That is, the blood gets “over-sugared”.

Hypoglycemia, by contrast, occurs when there’s not enough glucose sugar in the blood and is a common affliction in diabetics, like my grandmother. Low blood sugar, which is also referred to as diabetic shock or an insulin reaction, afflicts diabetics for a number of reasons: 1)too much insulin in the blood; 2)insulin was taken without food in the stomach and 3)a heavy exercise regimen. I remember that my grandmother always traveled with a can of Coke just in case she felt faint as a result of low blood sugar.

Type of Diabetes Mellitus

There are three (3) main types of diabetes: Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, and Gestational Diabetes. My grandmother was first diagnosed with Type 2. Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus is a less threatening metabolic condition. It is not an autoimmune condition. It is typically managed through diet and exercise, perhaps with pills taken orally. With a proper diabetic diet, Type Two diabetes can be managed. But, gradually, my grandmother’s Type 2 worsened into Type 1 diabetes. Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus is a more serious form of diabetes. It is not a metabolic malady but an autoimmune condition where the pancreas never regains the ability to produce insulin. It is treatable though as my grandmother found out with insulin injections. Gestational diabetes affects pregnant women who have never before had diabetes. There is a 4th type of diabetes but it’s referred to, not as diabetes mellitus but as diabetes insipidus. Diabetes Insipidus is caused when the kidneys cannot hold their urine. it is not related to heightened levels of insulin in the blood.

Diabetes Statistics

Since diabetes is not an ailment that can be seen, like a scratch or a broken finger, it is a quiet disease. We never would have known Mary Tyler Moore suffered from Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus had she not informed the public. So, just how many people have been diagnosed with diabetes mellitus? Diabetes statistics are staggering: over 21 million people have diabetes - that’s almost 7% of the American population, about 1 in 14 people. About 70% of diabetics have been diagnosed while 30% of diabetics aren’t aware that they have diabetes. In addition, diabetes seems to strike more men than women but perhaps that’s because of work-related diets and stress.

Diabetes Symptoms

Some diabetic symptoms to watch: frequent urination, frequent thirst and an increased appetite, weight loss.

Diabetes Recipes - Your Weight and Diet Will Help You to Live Longer with Diabetes

An unhealthy diet can tax the body’s organs. After a prolonged regimen of unhealthy living, it is not uncommon for the body to break down. You can do your best to avoid this by eating nutritiously and exercising. Here is a good, easy and fun diabetic recipe:
Grilled Chicken Pizza

• 1 - 10-oz cornmeal pizza dough
• 1 - tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp basil
• 8 oz cooked chicken breast, diced or chopped
• 1/2 cup reduced-fat, low-sodium marinara sauce - a good healthy marinara sauce can be prepared in 10 minutes
• 2 tbp chopped onion
• 1 tbp freshly grated Parmesan/Romano cheese
• 1/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• Once the pizza dough is prepared, bake it for 3 minutes until you see the topside puff and bottom side lightly brown. Place toppings on top then bake again for 5 minutes or until the dough is cooked through and the toppings are well assimilated into the pizza dough.

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