Clipmarks | masbury's clips

1/3 of Americans struggled to pay for healthcare in past year

Thu, 01 May 2008 03:04:15 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: But I'm sure they're comforted by knowing that their loss is infinitely more desirable to America than a system that could be labeled "socialized medicine."

Clip Source: www.democracynow.org

Study: Nearly 1/3 of Americans Struggle to Pay for Medical Care, Insurance

A new study released Tuesday from the Kaiser Family Foundation shows nearly one-third of Americans have faced major difficulties paying for medical care or health insurance in the past year. One-quarter of workers say they made job decisions based primarily on healthcare considerations.

Tags: healthcare

McCain healthcare proposal mirrors Bush

Thu, 01 May 2008 02:57:04 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: And haven't seven years of Bushplan done us a world of good?

Clip Source: www.democracynow.org

McCain Healthcare Proposal Mirrors Bush Admin

On the Republican side, Senator John McCain has unveiled the healthcare plan he’ll campaign on this November. At a speech in Tampa, Florida, McCain called for a similar approach to President Bush’s failed healthcare effort. Tax rebates would go to individuals seeking private insurance outside of company health plans. McCain says he’d promote the use of health savings accounts and grants for hospitals that cut costs. And McCain vowed to create a program to help care for vulnerable Americans but offered no details.

Tags: mccain, election, healthcare

It wasn't Affirmative Action that bumped your kid's college acceptance

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 18:34:22 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Yet another way the rich stick it to us while we blame the poor: Twice as many as assisted nonwhite admissions are rich white kids with connections. Only 40% of financial aid goes to students with financial need. ... many get into exclusive colleges [both private and state schools] the same way people get into trendy night clubs, by knowing the management or flashing cash at the person manning the velvet rope

Clip Source: www.boston.com

selective colleges are

boasting

they have increased their black and Hispanic enrollments,

National Merit scholars or

high school valedictorians.

What they almost never say is that many of the applicants who were rejected were far more qualified than those accepted. Moreover, contrary to popular belief, it was not the black and Hispanic beneficiaries of affirmative action, but the rich white kids with cash and connections who elbowed most of the worthier applicants aside.

15 percent

are white teens who failed

minimum admissions standards

White students who failed to make the grade

were nearly twice as prevalent on such campuses as black and Hispanic students who received an admissions break based on their ethnicity

A sizable number are recruited athletes

A larger share, however, are students who gained admission through their ties to people the institution wanted to keep happy

colleges routinely favor those who have connections over those who don't

Clip Source: www.boston.com

enrollments of Pell Grant recipients

shrinking

Tags: affirmative action, race, education, politics, news

GAO: Faulty defense accounting, 3rd year in a row

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 17:56:19 GMT

clipped by: masbury
clipper's remarks: Little accountability, transparency; cites large contractor billings in "miscellaneous" category; we really don't know how our money is being spent, or if contractors are taking us to the cleaners in the GWOT (global war on terror)

Clip Source: www.peace-action.org

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) admonished the DOD’s “Global War on Terrorism” (GWOT), for the 3rd year, citing a lack of transparency and accountability for the over $495 billion appropriated to this program so far. “Operation Iraqi Freedom” represents over $300 billion of that Federal spending; but according to their own report, “problems with the processes for recording and reporting GWOT costs raise concerns that these data may not accurately reflect the true dollar value of war-related costs.”

The GAO expects the Federal government to ‘incur significant costs in the foreseeable future’ even if there is a significant troop withdrawal. Already the Iraqi occupation sets a high precedent for the number of private contractors in charge of operations there. The GAO cited contractors, specifically, for reporting large billing obligations in “miscellaneous” categories.

the GAO expects

difficult trade-offs as the Nation faces an increasing number of long-range fiscal challenges.

Tags: dod, war on terror, economy, taxes