Eric Blair
Activist Post
Never let a good crisis go to waste. The international bankers are taking advantage of the "food crisis" by driving up food prices in what is shaping up to be a classic case of a manufactured bubble. It is also looking like a clear model of Problem-Reaction-Solution methodology. Create the food inflation problem (of course profiting all the way up), force an enraged reaction among the public, and take more sovereignty away with the solution of global food regulation.
On July 1st, I wrote an article titled USDA Reports Food Shortages: Wall Street 'Caught Off Guard' by Severity, quoting a USDA report "Commodity professionals were caught off guard Wednesday by a U.S. Department of Agriculture report showing 1 million fewer acres of corn planted this year than earlier projected, and almost 300 million fewer bushels of corn in storage." Well, the banksters seem to have made up some of their losses since being "caught off guard" by the severity of the global food crisis.
Take a look at the commodity price charts for wheat and corn. Pay particularly close attention to what has happened since July 1st.
These charts look like a technical trader's dream, almost as if a computer program was set to incrementally increase the prices as to not make too many headlines on the way up. The recent market speculation has now driven food commodity prices for corn and soybean to their 2-year highs. An emergency meeting Friday by the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome to address the urgent shortages and sudden surge in prices had this to say
View Full Article With Charts and Links HERE
Monday, September 27, 2010
Banks Are Failing At A Record Pace, The FDIC Bank Problem List Continues To Grow And Most Americans Don't Even Realize The U.S. Banking System Is Dying
endoftheamericandream.com
In the mainstream media, all the talk is about how the "recession" is over. But the truth is that our economic problems are far from over. In fact, the U.S. banking system is dying. U.S. banks continue to fail at a record pace. The FDIC list of problem banks continues to grow at an alarming pace. Loans and mortgages continue to go bad at an accelerating rate at banks across the United States. The truth is that we are in deep, deep trouble, and the vast majority of the American people do not even realize it. But the American people better wake up soon, because if the U.S. banking system dies, the American Dream is going to die along with it for tens of millions of Americans.
So far in 2010, 127 U.S. banks have been shut down by federal regulators. That puts us on pace to far surpass the total of 140 U.S. banks that failed last year. And last year was the most bank failures that the U.S. had seen since back in 1992.
So when will the number of bank failures start going down?
Will it ever start going down?
Can the U.S. financial system continue to handle dozens upon dozens of bank failures?
That is a legitimate question.
Unfortunately, it looks like the number of bank failures is only going to continue to get worse.
The number of "problem banks" is increasing at a truly frightening pace.
As of the end of 2008, there were 252 banks on the FDIC problem list.
As of the end of 2009, there were 702 banks on the FDIC problem list.
As we approach the end of September 2010, there are now 872 banks (well over 10 percent of all U.S. banks) on the FDIC problem list.
Does anyone else spot a trend?
So does the FDIC have plenty of assets with which to handle all of these bank failures?
No.
Today, the FDIC is backing approximately 8,000 U.S. banks that have a total of about $13 trillion in assets with a deposit insurance fund that is basically empty.
Well, to be honest, the situation is much more dire than that.
It is actually being reported that the FDIC's deposit insurance fund is sitting at about negative 20.7 billion dollars.
Negative 20.7 billion dollars?
That's not good.
And things are going to get even worse.
The FDIC now estimates that the deposit insurance fund will experience a $60 billion reduction due to additional bank closings between now and 2014.
Needless to say, that is not good news.
The U.S. banking system is basically a huge disaster area right about now.
And that suits the biggest U.S. banks just fine.
You see, the truth is that when small banks fail, the big dogs pick up market share.
In an article on our sister website entitled "Are We About To Witness The Greatest Banking Consolidation In U.S. History?", I discussed the rapidly growing market share of the banks at the top of the food chain....
Back in 2000, the "Big Four" U.S. banks - Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo - held approximately 22 percent of all deposits in FDIC-insured institutions. As of June 30th of last year that figure was up to 39 percent.
That is quite an impressive decade of work for the big boys.
And as more "small enough to fail" banks continue to go under, the big banks will be sitting there ready to gobble up the leftovers.
Isn't our system great?
Meanwhile, there are plenty of signs that part two of the double-dip housing crash has begun.
Meanwhile, health insurance companies have announced that they plan to raise premiums because of the new health care law.
Meanwhile, bankruptcy filings in the United States increased 20 percent during the twelve month period ending June 30th.
Meanwhile, millions of jobs are being outsourced and offshored and they are never coming back.
Is it any wonder that according to a new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll, 74 percent of Americans still believe that the U.S. economy is in a recession?
The truth is that the U.S. economy is a complete and total disaster area and we are in deep, deep trouble.
So, do any of you all think that there is much hope that the U.S. economy can be turned around?
Read Article With Links HERE
In the mainstream media, all the talk is about how the "recession" is over. But the truth is that our economic problems are far from over. In fact, the U.S. banking system is dying. U.S. banks continue to fail at a record pace. The FDIC list of problem banks continues to grow at an alarming pace. Loans and mortgages continue to go bad at an accelerating rate at banks across the United States. The truth is that we are in deep, deep trouble, and the vast majority of the American people do not even realize it. But the American people better wake up soon, because if the U.S. banking system dies, the American Dream is going to die along with it for tens of millions of Americans.
So far in 2010, 127 U.S. banks have been shut down by federal regulators. That puts us on pace to far surpass the total of 140 U.S. banks that failed last year. And last year was the most bank failures that the U.S. had seen since back in 1992.
So when will the number of bank failures start going down?
Will it ever start going down?
Can the U.S. financial system continue to handle dozens upon dozens of bank failures?
That is a legitimate question.
Unfortunately, it looks like the number of bank failures is only going to continue to get worse.
The number of "problem banks" is increasing at a truly frightening pace.
As of the end of 2008, there were 252 banks on the FDIC problem list.
As of the end of 2009, there were 702 banks on the FDIC problem list.
As we approach the end of September 2010, there are now 872 banks (well over 10 percent of all U.S. banks) on the FDIC problem list.
Does anyone else spot a trend?
So does the FDIC have plenty of assets with which to handle all of these bank failures?
No.
Today, the FDIC is backing approximately 8,000 U.S. banks that have a total of about $13 trillion in assets with a deposit insurance fund that is basically empty.
Well, to be honest, the situation is much more dire than that.
It is actually being reported that the FDIC's deposit insurance fund is sitting at about negative 20.7 billion dollars.
Negative 20.7 billion dollars?
That's not good.
And things are going to get even worse.
The FDIC now estimates that the deposit insurance fund will experience a $60 billion reduction due to additional bank closings between now and 2014.
Needless to say, that is not good news.
The U.S. banking system is basically a huge disaster area right about now.
And that suits the biggest U.S. banks just fine.
You see, the truth is that when small banks fail, the big dogs pick up market share.
In an article on our sister website entitled "Are We About To Witness The Greatest Banking Consolidation In U.S. History?", I discussed the rapidly growing market share of the banks at the top of the food chain....
Back in 2000, the "Big Four" U.S. banks - Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo - held approximately 22 percent of all deposits in FDIC-insured institutions. As of June 30th of last year that figure was up to 39 percent.
That is quite an impressive decade of work for the big boys.
And as more "small enough to fail" banks continue to go under, the big banks will be sitting there ready to gobble up the leftovers.
Isn't our system great?
Meanwhile, there are plenty of signs that part two of the double-dip housing crash has begun.
Meanwhile, health insurance companies have announced that they plan to raise premiums because of the new health care law.
Meanwhile, bankruptcy filings in the United States increased 20 percent during the twelve month period ending June 30th.
Meanwhile, millions of jobs are being outsourced and offshored and they are never coming back.
Is it any wonder that according to a new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll, 74 percent of Americans still believe that the U.S. economy is in a recession?
The truth is that the U.S. economy is a complete and total disaster area and we are in deep, deep trouble.
So, do any of you all think that there is much hope that the U.S. economy can be turned around?
Read Article With Links HERE
S. 510: 12 Reasons Why The Food Safety Bill From Hell Could Be Very Dangerous For The U.S. Economy
theeconomiccollapseblog.com
As you read this, there is a bill before the U.S. Senate that has the potential to change the U.S. food industry more than any other law ever passed by the U.S. Congress. In the name of "food safety", the U.S. government would be given an iron grip over the production, transportation and sale of all food in the United States. Hordes of small food producers and organic farmers could potentially be put out of business. If this bill becomes law, the freedom to grow what you want, eat what you want and to share food from your gardens with your neighbors could be greatly curtailed. It would give the FDA unprecedented discretion to regulate U.S. food production. A version of this bill was already passed by the U.S. House of Representatives last summer, and now S. 510, also know as the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, is in front of the U.S. Senate and it is expected to pass easily.
Because of how vaguely it is written and because of how much discretion it gives to the FDA, it is potentially a very, very dangerous law.
So who is actually in favor of it?
Well, big food corporations and big agriculture are actually very much in favor of this bill.
Why?
Is it because they are so concerned about food safety?
No.
In fact, virtually every major case of food contamination in recent U.S. history has come from large-scale industrial agriculture or large-scale industrial food production.
The real reason why they are backing S. 510 is because it will devastate their primary competition - small food producers and organic farmers.
In recent years, the demand for organic food has skyrocketed as the American people have learned the truth about how our food is actually made. Big agriculture and the giant food producers are losing profits as Americans increasingly vote with their wallets.
So now the food giants are using "food safety" as a way to get market share back. It is an open secret that many of those involved in drafting this bill and in pushing it through Congress have ties to food industry giants.
Thousands of small food producers and organic farmers will have their very existence threatened by this bill. It imposes a bureaucratic nightmare on all food producers that the big corporations will be able to handle easily but that will cripple much smaller operations.
Already, many farmers can see the writing on the wall. One small farmer recently described the mood among her fellow small farmers to the Wall Street Journal....
"I know people who have been small farmers for 25 to 30 years who are looking to get out of the business because food safety is becoming so alarmist."
But the bureaucratic nightmare is just the tip of the iceberg. To get an idea of just how dangerous S. 510 could potentially be to the already staggering U.S. economy, just check out the following quote from one opponent of this bill....
"If accepted [S 510] would preclude the public’s right to grow, own, trade, transport, share, feed and eat each and every food that nature makes. It will become the most offensive authority against the cultivation, trade and consumption of food and agricultural products of one’s choice. It will be unconstitutional and contrary to natural law or, if you like, the will of God."
-Dr. Shiv Chopra, Canada Health whistle blower
It would be hard to understate how dangerous this bill potentially could be. This bill gives the FDA the ability to exercise a ton of discretion. The FDA could end up exercising that discretion in a very reasonable way, or they could use it to shut down small food producers left and right.
When it comes to S. 510, the question that you need to ask yourself is this....
Do you trust the FDA?
If not, then there are some very real reasons for you to be concerned.
The following are 12 reasons why S. 510 could be absolutely disastrous for small food producers and for the U.S. economy....
#1 All food production facilities in the United States will be required to register with the U.S. government. No food will be allowed to be grown, distributed or sold outside this bureaucratic framework unless the FDA allows it.
#2 Any food that is distributed or sold outside of U.S. government control will be considered illegal smuggling.
#3 The FDA will hire an army of new inspectors to enforce all of the new provisions in the bill.
#4 The FDA will be mandated to conduct much more frequent inspections of food processing facilities.
#5 The fees and paperwork requirements will be ruinously expensive for small food producers and organic farms.
#6 S. 510 would place all U.S. food and all U.S. farms under the Department of Homeland Security in the event of a major "contamination" or an "emergency". What exactly would constitute a "contamination" or an "emergency" is anyone's guess.
#7 S. 510 mandates that the FDA facilitate harmonization of American food laws with Codex Alimentarius.
#8 S. 510 imposes an annual registration fee on any facility that holds, processes, or manufactures food. It also includes draconian fines for paperwork infractions of up to $500,000 for a single offense. Just one penalty like that would drive a small food producer out of business.
#9 S. 510 would give the FDA tremendous discretion to regulate how crops are grown and how food is produced in the United States. Basically, small farmers and organic farmers will now be forced to farm exactly how the federal government tells them to. It is feared that the U.S. government would soon declare that many organic farming methods are "unsafe" and would outlaw them. In addition, there is the very real possibility that at some point the U.S. government could decide that the only "safe" seed for a particular crop is genetically modified seed and would require all farmers to use it.
#10 S. 510 will give the FDA the power to impose a quarantine on a specific geographic area. Basically the FDA would have the power to stop the movement of all food in an area where a "contamination" has been identified. This would be very close to being able to declare martial law.
#11 S. 510 will give the FDA the power to conduct warrantless searches of the business records of small food producers and organic farmers, even if there has been no evidence at all that a law has been broken.
#12 Opponents of S. 510 believe that it would eliminate the right to clean and store seed. Therefore, control of the U.S. seed supply would be further centralized in the hands of Monsanto and other multinational corporations.
As mentioned above, this bill gives the FDA a ton of discretion. It is written very broadly and very vaguely. It opens the door for all kinds of abuses, but that doesn't mean that the FDA will behave unreasonably.
So should we trust the FDA?
Is there a viable future for small food producers and organic farmers in America?
Or is the handwriting already on the wall?
"If people let the government decide what foods they eat and what medicines they take, their bodies will soon be in as sorry a state as are the souls of those who live under tyranny."
-Thomas Jefferson
Read Original Article HERE
As you read this, there is a bill before the U.S. Senate that has the potential to change the U.S. food industry more than any other law ever passed by the U.S. Congress. In the name of "food safety", the U.S. government would be given an iron grip over the production, transportation and sale of all food in the United States. Hordes of small food producers and organic farmers could potentially be put out of business. If this bill becomes law, the freedom to grow what you want, eat what you want and to share food from your gardens with your neighbors could be greatly curtailed. It would give the FDA unprecedented discretion to regulate U.S. food production. A version of this bill was already passed by the U.S. House of Representatives last summer, and now S. 510, also know as the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, is in front of the U.S. Senate and it is expected to pass easily.
Because of how vaguely it is written and because of how much discretion it gives to the FDA, it is potentially a very, very dangerous law.
So who is actually in favor of it?
Well, big food corporations and big agriculture are actually very much in favor of this bill.
Why?
Is it because they are so concerned about food safety?
No.
In fact, virtually every major case of food contamination in recent U.S. history has come from large-scale industrial agriculture or large-scale industrial food production.
The real reason why they are backing S. 510 is because it will devastate their primary competition - small food producers and organic farmers.
In recent years, the demand for organic food has skyrocketed as the American people have learned the truth about how our food is actually made. Big agriculture and the giant food producers are losing profits as Americans increasingly vote with their wallets.
So now the food giants are using "food safety" as a way to get market share back. It is an open secret that many of those involved in drafting this bill and in pushing it through Congress have ties to food industry giants.
Thousands of small food producers and organic farmers will have their very existence threatened by this bill. It imposes a bureaucratic nightmare on all food producers that the big corporations will be able to handle easily but that will cripple much smaller operations.
Already, many farmers can see the writing on the wall. One small farmer recently described the mood among her fellow small farmers to the Wall Street Journal....
"I know people who have been small farmers for 25 to 30 years who are looking to get out of the business because food safety is becoming so alarmist."
But the bureaucratic nightmare is just the tip of the iceberg. To get an idea of just how dangerous S. 510 could potentially be to the already staggering U.S. economy, just check out the following quote from one opponent of this bill....
"If accepted [S 510] would preclude the public’s right to grow, own, trade, transport, share, feed and eat each and every food that nature makes. It will become the most offensive authority against the cultivation, trade and consumption of food and agricultural products of one’s choice. It will be unconstitutional and contrary to natural law or, if you like, the will of God."
-Dr. Shiv Chopra, Canada Health whistle blower
It would be hard to understate how dangerous this bill potentially could be. This bill gives the FDA the ability to exercise a ton of discretion. The FDA could end up exercising that discretion in a very reasonable way, or they could use it to shut down small food producers left and right.
When it comes to S. 510, the question that you need to ask yourself is this....
Do you trust the FDA?
If not, then there are some very real reasons for you to be concerned.
The following are 12 reasons why S. 510 could be absolutely disastrous for small food producers and for the U.S. economy....
#1 All food production facilities in the United States will be required to register with the U.S. government. No food will be allowed to be grown, distributed or sold outside this bureaucratic framework unless the FDA allows it.
#2 Any food that is distributed or sold outside of U.S. government control will be considered illegal smuggling.
#3 The FDA will hire an army of new inspectors to enforce all of the new provisions in the bill.
#4 The FDA will be mandated to conduct much more frequent inspections of food processing facilities.
#5 The fees and paperwork requirements will be ruinously expensive for small food producers and organic farms.
#6 S. 510 would place all U.S. food and all U.S. farms under the Department of Homeland Security in the event of a major "contamination" or an "emergency". What exactly would constitute a "contamination" or an "emergency" is anyone's guess.
#7 S. 510 mandates that the FDA facilitate harmonization of American food laws with Codex Alimentarius.
#8 S. 510 imposes an annual registration fee on any facility that holds, processes, or manufactures food. It also includes draconian fines for paperwork infractions of up to $500,000 for a single offense. Just one penalty like that would drive a small food producer out of business.
#9 S. 510 would give the FDA tremendous discretion to regulate how crops are grown and how food is produced in the United States. Basically, small farmers and organic farmers will now be forced to farm exactly how the federal government tells them to. It is feared that the U.S. government would soon declare that many organic farming methods are "unsafe" and would outlaw them. In addition, there is the very real possibility that at some point the U.S. government could decide that the only "safe" seed for a particular crop is genetically modified seed and would require all farmers to use it.
#10 S. 510 will give the FDA the power to impose a quarantine on a specific geographic area. Basically the FDA would have the power to stop the movement of all food in an area where a "contamination" has been identified. This would be very close to being able to declare martial law.
#11 S. 510 will give the FDA the power to conduct warrantless searches of the business records of small food producers and organic farmers, even if there has been no evidence at all that a law has been broken.
#12 Opponents of S. 510 believe that it would eliminate the right to clean and store seed. Therefore, control of the U.S. seed supply would be further centralized in the hands of Monsanto and other multinational corporations.
As mentioned above, this bill gives the FDA a ton of discretion. It is written very broadly and very vaguely. It opens the door for all kinds of abuses, but that doesn't mean that the FDA will behave unreasonably.
So should we trust the FDA?
Is there a viable future for small food producers and organic farmers in America?
Or is the handwriting already on the wall?
"If people let the government decide what foods they eat and what medicines they take, their bodies will soon be in as sorry a state as are the souls of those who live under tyranny."
-Thomas Jefferson
Read Original Article HERE
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Health Insurance Companies Say That They Plan To Raise Premiums Significantly Because Of The New Health Care Reform Law
endoftheamericandream.com
On some level, we all knew that this was going to happen. Health insurance companies across the United States are announcing that health insurance premiums are going to go up substantially. Why? Well, many of these health insurance companies are openly admitting that they are raising rates because of the mandates contained in Barack Obama's new health care reform law. Of course when the health care reform bill was being debated, Barack Obama swore up and down that this would never happen. At the time, Obama promised that the average American family would save $2,500 in yearly health care premiums under the new law. But did any of us actually believe that load of nonsense? The instant Obama made his pledge we all should have started reaching for our wallets. Of course this insane "health care reform" law was going to raise health insurance rates. The only question to be answered was by how much.
Already, Americans spend far more for health care than anyone else in the world. According to a recent report, Americans spend approximately twice as much as residents of other developed countries on health care. In return, Americans get surprisingly low quality and far less efficiency than other nations are able to achieve.
But soon Americans will be paying even more for health insurance.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the following are just some of the health insurance companies that have announced rate hikes that are at least partially attributed to Obamacare....
*Aetna says that the extra benefits that the new health care reform law is forcing it to cover are behind rate increases for new individual plans of 5.4% to 7.4% in California and 5.5% to 6.8% in Nevada.
*Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon claims that the cost of providing additional benefits under Obamacare will account for 3.4% of a 17.1% premium rise for small employers.
*Celtic Insurance claims that half of a whopping 18% health insurance premium increase it is seeking comes from complying with mandates in the new health care law.
All over America, health care insurance premiums are absolutely soaring. Whether it is as a result of Obamacare or not, health insurers have decided that this is the seasons to raise rates. Just consider the following excerpt from a recent article on Fox News....
Here is the terse reason CareFirst/Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Washington gave its subscribers for raising a monthly premium from $333 to $512 on a middle aged man who is healthy, is not a smoker and is not obese: "Your new rate reflects the overall rise in health care costs and we regret having to pass these additional costs on to you."
512 dollars a month for health insurance for one person?
The American people cannot possibly afford this nonsense.
But thanks to Obama, we are all now going to be forced to buy health insurance. Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and the rest of the Democrats have created a national health care nightmare and every single one of us is going to pay dearly.
And the health insurance companies don't even need the money. In fact, they are making record profits already. The truth is that America's health insurance companies increased their profits by 56 percent in 2009.
Yes, you read the correctly.
56 percent.
And now they are about to make even more money as they raise rates on you and I and the rest of the American people.
You see, the reality is that the large health insurance companies don't just make millions of dollars in profits.
They make billions.
According to a report by Health Care for America Now, America's five biggest for-profit health insurance companies ended 2009 with a combined profit of $12.2 billion.
That is the real reason why health insurance companies like to raise rates so much.
They have got to keep the record breaking profits rolling in.
For example, did you know that the top executives at the five largest for-profit health insurance companies in the United States received nearly $200 million in total compensation in 2009?
I would like to get a little slice of that.
Wouldn't you?
Life is good if you are a health insurance executive these days.
They seem to particularly like to stick it to small businesses.
According to an article on the Mother Jones website, health insurance premiums for small employers in the U.S. increased 180% between 1999 and 2009.
Things have gotten completely and totally out of control.
As I have written about previously on our sister site, the entire U.S. health care industry has become all about making as much money as possible. It has become an industry that is far more about greed than it is about actually taking care of people.
Meanwhile, the American people are getting drained in multiple ways.
We are all going to have to pay much higher health insurance rates and we are all going to have to pay higher taxes to pay for all of the new bureaucracy in the new health care law.
The reality is that there is no way that we can afford this new health care law. At this point, 61% of all American voters believe that the health care law will increase the federal deficit.
Without a doubt, Obamacare has quickly become one of the most unpopular laws in U.S. history. In fact, the political winds have shifted so much that now even many Democrats are openly campaigning against the health care reform law as the midterm elections approach.
So let us hope that at some point Obamacare gets repealed.
But for now, health insurance companies will continue to use Obamacare to continue to stick us with huge rate increases.
Isn't our system great?
On some level, we all knew that this was going to happen. Health insurance companies across the United States are announcing that health insurance premiums are going to go up substantially. Why? Well, many of these health insurance companies are openly admitting that they are raising rates because of the mandates contained in Barack Obama's new health care reform law. Of course when the health care reform bill was being debated, Barack Obama swore up and down that this would never happen. At the time, Obama promised that the average American family would save $2,500 in yearly health care premiums under the new law. But did any of us actually believe that load of nonsense? The instant Obama made his pledge we all should have started reaching for our wallets. Of course this insane "health care reform" law was going to raise health insurance rates. The only question to be answered was by how much.
Already, Americans spend far more for health care than anyone else in the world. According to a recent report, Americans spend approximately twice as much as residents of other developed countries on health care. In return, Americans get surprisingly low quality and far less efficiency than other nations are able to achieve.
But soon Americans will be paying even more for health insurance.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the following are just some of the health insurance companies that have announced rate hikes that are at least partially attributed to Obamacare....
*Aetna says that the extra benefits that the new health care reform law is forcing it to cover are behind rate increases for new individual plans of 5.4% to 7.4% in California and 5.5% to 6.8% in Nevada.
*Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon claims that the cost of providing additional benefits under Obamacare will account for 3.4% of a 17.1% premium rise for small employers.
*Celtic Insurance claims that half of a whopping 18% health insurance premium increase it is seeking comes from complying with mandates in the new health care law.
All over America, health care insurance premiums are absolutely soaring. Whether it is as a result of Obamacare or not, health insurers have decided that this is the seasons to raise rates. Just consider the following excerpt from a recent article on Fox News....
Here is the terse reason CareFirst/Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Washington gave its subscribers for raising a monthly premium from $333 to $512 on a middle aged man who is healthy, is not a smoker and is not obese: "Your new rate reflects the overall rise in health care costs and we regret having to pass these additional costs on to you."
512 dollars a month for health insurance for one person?
The American people cannot possibly afford this nonsense.
But thanks to Obama, we are all now going to be forced to buy health insurance. Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and the rest of the Democrats have created a national health care nightmare and every single one of us is going to pay dearly.
And the health insurance companies don't even need the money. In fact, they are making record profits already. The truth is that America's health insurance companies increased their profits by 56 percent in 2009.
Yes, you read the correctly.
56 percent.
And now they are about to make even more money as they raise rates on you and I and the rest of the American people.
You see, the reality is that the large health insurance companies don't just make millions of dollars in profits.
They make billions.
According to a report by Health Care for America Now, America's five biggest for-profit health insurance companies ended 2009 with a combined profit of $12.2 billion.
That is the real reason why health insurance companies like to raise rates so much.
They have got to keep the record breaking profits rolling in.
For example, did you know that the top executives at the five largest for-profit health insurance companies in the United States received nearly $200 million in total compensation in 2009?
I would like to get a little slice of that.
Wouldn't you?
Life is good if you are a health insurance executive these days.
They seem to particularly like to stick it to small businesses.
According to an article on the Mother Jones website, health insurance premiums for small employers in the U.S. increased 180% between 1999 and 2009.
Things have gotten completely and totally out of control.
As I have written about previously on our sister site, the entire U.S. health care industry has become all about making as much money as possible. It has become an industry that is far more about greed than it is about actually taking care of people.
Meanwhile, the American people are getting drained in multiple ways.
We are all going to have to pay much higher health insurance rates and we are all going to have to pay higher taxes to pay for all of the new bureaucracy in the new health care law.
The reality is that there is no way that we can afford this new health care law. At this point, 61% of all American voters believe that the health care law will increase the federal deficit.
Without a doubt, Obamacare has quickly become one of the most unpopular laws in U.S. history. In fact, the political winds have shifted so much that now even many Democrats are openly campaigning against the health care reform law as the midterm elections approach.
So let us hope that at some point Obamacare gets repealed.
But for now, health insurance companies will continue to use Obamacare to continue to stick us with huge rate increases.
Isn't our system great?
The Coming Persecution
"He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches" - Revelation 2:29
Wordview Times
Dr. David M. Berman
Now this is an article that should get your attention. Sadly, many refuse to be willing to consider the possibility of persecution against Christians in America. "It can't happen here." What a naive people we have become. Do we really believe that we are immune to what history so clearly teaches? History is full of examples of tyrannical governments persecuting Christians. We seem to think that if we just do our own thing while our country falls into the depths of anti-Christ paganism, they will leave us alone. What a blind people we American Christian have become. Blind as we go about our daily lives, so concerned with temporal things that we refuse to see the spiritual battle at hand.
The power of the mind to pretend that all is well is really quite amazing. All around us we see the increase in anti-Christian behavior. The only group of people that it is found acceptable to speak against are Christians. The spirit of anti-Christ is growing in America while at the same time there is a call for "understanding" when it comes to Islam. Although it is true that not every Muslim will go out and kill Christians, every study shows that a majority of Muslims are at least sympathetic to the terrorist cause. The ideology of Islamic fascism has declared war on us, killed nearly 3000 lives on 9/11, and yet the leftists treat them better than American Christians who have shown love and care for so many here in America and around the world. Why would there be more compassion and concern for Muslims than there is for Christians amongst the liberals? The answer is clear. The liberals are deceived by Satan who has blinded them. Liberals have a disdain for the bible and the preachers who dare to stand up and preach it with authority. When speaking of the hatred non Christians will have for true believers Jesus said;
"If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you" - John 15:19
American Christians have been drawn into a false sense of security because America has been the best, most free nation in the world. Most people believe in personal religious freedom. The problem is that the cultural elite who control academia, the media, and political establishments are mostly anti-Christ. The liberal elite, along with their minions of anti-Christ socialist mal contents are wielding great influence in our culture as to affect a change over time in attitudes about Christians. There was a day when Christians were seen as good people (though certainly imperfect humans) who cared about their neighbors and lifted up good moral values. After a constant barrage of anti-Christian teaching in the public school system, academia, and media/entertainment establishments, Christians are now seen as narrow minded fools. Those who fancy themselves to be "open-minded" are in fact the most closed minded people of all. They use vile language to attack Christians personally and dismiss every statistical fact of the breakdown of the family. They want a sort of spirituality that from a practical sense makes them their own god. Atheists worship their own minds, and liberal so called "Christians" worship their own feelings and thinking above the Word of God. While loving to quote scripture that makes them feel good, they seem to have a disdain for any passage that brings conviction of sin.
There is an increased call now for "hate speech" legislation. This legislation is a precursor to fully outlawed Christian speech. There is coming a day when preachers like me will be arrested for preaching against homosexuality. The day is coming when the law will not allow Christians to stand against sin publicly without a penalty. There will be an increase of the following;
1) We will be called the worst vile names.
2) We will be marginalized and seen as holding back "progressive ideas."
3) Persecuted physically for our stand.
4) The government will try to increase its authority over our children.
5) Parents who stand for their faith and inculcate it to their children will be accused of child abuse.
6) Increased employment discrimination.
7) Tax exempt status will be threatened based on a church preaching so called "hate speech" (as defined by the liberals).
8) Government Regulation of churches and Christian schools.
9) Confiscation of church property with bogus eminent domain claims.
10) Selective application of law without due process.
Even many in the "Evangelical churches" have fallen into sinful secularization of points concerning biblical doctrine. So called "Seeker sensitive" pluralistic movements are growing in Evangelical churches. Seeker sensitive churches are more concerned with not offending someone then they are with true conversion and discipleship. We also see the movement of pluralism embracing all kinds of heretical theology in the name of "unity of the Spirit."
Evangelical is a term that was used to combat the rise of social liberalism and the diminishment of biblical truth in "main line churches" in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Since then the main line churches have continued to preach a false gospel and accept all manner of sin as "God given." The problem now is that Evangelical churches are now going the same direction that the main line has gone. This will further erode the influence of truth in those churches and in one or two generations all truth will be lost.
I am called every nasty name under the sun for standing for the bible. Lied about, and swore at enough to make anyone weary. Having said that, I take comfort in the following scripture passage that tells me I will be hated by the world system and its promoters;
"Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake" - Matthew 5:11
The real sad thing to me is that so many Christians are being led astray by the social gospel and its central message of so called "tolerance." The problem with tolerance is that the very people who call for it are the most intolerant of all! There is a continued intolerance of Christian speech and even in "churches" people are offended by preachers who do not compromise biblical truth. Can you imagine the names that the Apostle Paul would be called today? He would not be invited to speak in many churches in our land since he would definitely offend someone. Today the Church wants non offensive leaders like Joel Osteen, Rick Warren, and Bill Hybels. The desire is for Leaders who have a pluralistic mind-set who are unwilling to take a biblical stand. Christians now want leaders that use enticing words of Man's wisdom rather than the plain biblical truth as preached by the Apostle Paul.
The day is coming my friends when you and I who hold the Word of God dear will have to choose as to whom we serve publicly. The day is coming when this culture will not tolerate true Christians at all. The time will come when preachers will be arrested and imprisoned for preaching the Word of God. In that day it will take more than having a cute Christian bumper sticker on your car, and a T-shirt with a Christian slogan on it to be considered a witness for Christ. In that day it may cost you friendships, money, jobs, property, and quite possibly your very life. Wake up America, for unless we as a nation have a revival through repentance, the day will come. I end with the following passages of scripture for those who will react as they always do when I confront these issues;
"Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?" - Galatians 4:16
It used to be in America that preachers were considered friends because they spoke the Word of God. Now preachers are held in contempt and considered enemies by the liberal establishments. As a minister of the gospel, a preacher of the Word of God, have I and other bible preachers now become your enemy because we tell you the truth?
"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils" - 1 Timothy 4:1
"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fable" - 2 Timothy 4:3-4
Wake up and smell the truth Church. Rise up and declare the name of your God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The God of the Apostles….Jesus Christ the Lord! God grant us grace and mercy that we may once again renew our relationship with you as the Church and nation. That our hearts be turned back to faith in your Holy Word, in Jesus' name. AMEN
Dr. David M. Berman
Senior Pastor, Author, Convention Speaker
211 Whitcomb Road
P.O. Box 10357
Swanzey, NH. 03446
Phone 603 352 9471
View Original Article HERE
Wordview Times
Dr. David M. Berman
Now this is an article that should get your attention. Sadly, many refuse to be willing to consider the possibility of persecution against Christians in America. "It can't happen here." What a naive people we have become. Do we really believe that we are immune to what history so clearly teaches? History is full of examples of tyrannical governments persecuting Christians. We seem to think that if we just do our own thing while our country falls into the depths of anti-Christ paganism, they will leave us alone. What a blind people we American Christian have become. Blind as we go about our daily lives, so concerned with temporal things that we refuse to see the spiritual battle at hand.
The power of the mind to pretend that all is well is really quite amazing. All around us we see the increase in anti-Christian behavior. The only group of people that it is found acceptable to speak against are Christians. The spirit of anti-Christ is growing in America while at the same time there is a call for "understanding" when it comes to Islam. Although it is true that not every Muslim will go out and kill Christians, every study shows that a majority of Muslims are at least sympathetic to the terrorist cause. The ideology of Islamic fascism has declared war on us, killed nearly 3000 lives on 9/11, and yet the leftists treat them better than American Christians who have shown love and care for so many here in America and around the world. Why would there be more compassion and concern for Muslims than there is for Christians amongst the liberals? The answer is clear. The liberals are deceived by Satan who has blinded them. Liberals have a disdain for the bible and the preachers who dare to stand up and preach it with authority. When speaking of the hatred non Christians will have for true believers Jesus said;
"If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you" - John 15:19
American Christians have been drawn into a false sense of security because America has been the best, most free nation in the world. Most people believe in personal religious freedom. The problem is that the cultural elite who control academia, the media, and political establishments are mostly anti-Christ. The liberal elite, along with their minions of anti-Christ socialist mal contents are wielding great influence in our culture as to affect a change over time in attitudes about Christians. There was a day when Christians were seen as good people (though certainly imperfect humans) who cared about their neighbors and lifted up good moral values. After a constant barrage of anti-Christian teaching in the public school system, academia, and media/entertainment establishments, Christians are now seen as narrow minded fools. Those who fancy themselves to be "open-minded" are in fact the most closed minded people of all. They use vile language to attack Christians personally and dismiss every statistical fact of the breakdown of the family. They want a sort of spirituality that from a practical sense makes them their own god. Atheists worship their own minds, and liberal so called "Christians" worship their own feelings and thinking above the Word of God. While loving to quote scripture that makes them feel good, they seem to have a disdain for any passage that brings conviction of sin.
There is an increased call now for "hate speech" legislation. This legislation is a precursor to fully outlawed Christian speech. There is coming a day when preachers like me will be arrested for preaching against homosexuality. The day is coming when the law will not allow Christians to stand against sin publicly without a penalty. There will be an increase of the following;
1) We will be called the worst vile names.
2) We will be marginalized and seen as holding back "progressive ideas."
3) Persecuted physically for our stand.
4) The government will try to increase its authority over our children.
5) Parents who stand for their faith and inculcate it to their children will be accused of child abuse.
6) Increased employment discrimination.
7) Tax exempt status will be threatened based on a church preaching so called "hate speech" (as defined by the liberals).
8) Government Regulation of churches and Christian schools.
9) Confiscation of church property with bogus eminent domain claims.
10) Selective application of law without due process.
Even many in the "Evangelical churches" have fallen into sinful secularization of points concerning biblical doctrine. So called "Seeker sensitive" pluralistic movements are growing in Evangelical churches. Seeker sensitive churches are more concerned with not offending someone then they are with true conversion and discipleship. We also see the movement of pluralism embracing all kinds of heretical theology in the name of "unity of the Spirit."
Evangelical is a term that was used to combat the rise of social liberalism and the diminishment of biblical truth in "main line churches" in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Since then the main line churches have continued to preach a false gospel and accept all manner of sin as "God given." The problem now is that Evangelical churches are now going the same direction that the main line has gone. This will further erode the influence of truth in those churches and in one or two generations all truth will be lost.
I am called every nasty name under the sun for standing for the bible. Lied about, and swore at enough to make anyone weary. Having said that, I take comfort in the following scripture passage that tells me I will be hated by the world system and its promoters;
"Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake" - Matthew 5:11
The real sad thing to me is that so many Christians are being led astray by the social gospel and its central message of so called "tolerance." The problem with tolerance is that the very people who call for it are the most intolerant of all! There is a continued intolerance of Christian speech and even in "churches" people are offended by preachers who do not compromise biblical truth. Can you imagine the names that the Apostle Paul would be called today? He would not be invited to speak in many churches in our land since he would definitely offend someone. Today the Church wants non offensive leaders like Joel Osteen, Rick Warren, and Bill Hybels. The desire is for Leaders who have a pluralistic mind-set who are unwilling to take a biblical stand. Christians now want leaders that use enticing words of Man's wisdom rather than the plain biblical truth as preached by the Apostle Paul.
The day is coming my friends when you and I who hold the Word of God dear will have to choose as to whom we serve publicly. The day is coming when this culture will not tolerate true Christians at all. The time will come when preachers will be arrested and imprisoned for preaching the Word of God. In that day it will take more than having a cute Christian bumper sticker on your car, and a T-shirt with a Christian slogan on it to be considered a witness for Christ. In that day it may cost you friendships, money, jobs, property, and quite possibly your very life. Wake up America, for unless we as a nation have a revival through repentance, the day will come. I end with the following passages of scripture for those who will react as they always do when I confront these issues;
"Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?" - Galatians 4:16
It used to be in America that preachers were considered friends because they spoke the Word of God. Now preachers are held in contempt and considered enemies by the liberal establishments. As a minister of the gospel, a preacher of the Word of God, have I and other bible preachers now become your enemy because we tell you the truth?
"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils" - 1 Timothy 4:1
"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fable" - 2 Timothy 4:3-4
Wake up and smell the truth Church. Rise up and declare the name of your God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The God of the Apostles….Jesus Christ the Lord! God grant us grace and mercy that we may once again renew our relationship with you as the Church and nation. That our hearts be turned back to faith in your Holy Word, in Jesus' name. AMEN
Dr. David M. Berman
Senior Pastor, Author, Convention Speaker
211 Whitcomb Road
P.O. Box 10357
Swanzey, NH. 03446
Phone 603 352 9471
View Original Article HERE
Bio-Remediation or Bio Hazard? Dispersants, Bacteria and Illness In The Gulf
Huffington Post
Riki Ott
Ocean Springs, MS -- A grandmother made me rethink all the bio-remediation hype. The "naturally-occurring oil-eating bacteria" have been newsworthy of late as they are supposedly going to come to the rescue of President Obama and BP and make good on their very premature statement that "the oil is gone."
We were talking about subsurface oil in the Gulf when she said matter-of-factly, "The bacteria are running amok with the dispersants." What? "Those oil-eating bacteria -- I think they're running amok and causing skin rashes." My mind reeled. Could we all have missed something so simple?
The idea was crazy but, in the context of the Gulf situation -- an outbreak of mysterious persistent rashes from southern Louisiana across to just north of Tampa, Florida, coincident with BP's oil and chemical release, it seemed suddenly worthy of investigating.
I first heard about the rash from Sheri Allen in Mobile, Alabama. Allen wrote of red welts and blisters on her legs after "splashing and wading on the shoreline" of Mobile Bay with her two dogs on May 8. She reported that "hundreds of dead fish" washed up on the same beach over the following two days. This was much too early for the summer sun to have warmed the water to the point of oxygen depletion, but not too early for dispersants and dispersed oil to be mixed into the Gulf's water mass. By early July, Allen's rash had healed, leaving black bruises and scarring.
Other people -- both residents and visitors to the Gulf Coast -- wrote of similar rashes or other skin problems like peeling palms. The rashes have been diagnosed as scabies and staph infections, including MRSA, the potentially lethal Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. Most cases lingered for months, as the rash did not respond well to antibiotics, steroid creams, or steroid shots.
That should have been a clue that maybe the primary cause was not biological, but chemical. A secondary biological infection might clear up with antibiotic treatment, but then keep reoccurring because the primary chemical illness had not been treated.
Retired Registered Nurse Allison Schmidt agrees. Referring to Allen's case, she said, "I can say without hesitation that these skin rashes have nothing to do with scabies. Scabies is a parasite, which causes a skin infection and is extremely contagious. It spreads from person to person by direct skin contact or by wearing an article of clothing worn by an infected person." Schmidt said, "If this were scabies you would see entire families infected and NOT just a single family member."
Another clue to the real cause of the mystery rash is its prevalence across the entire oil-impacted Gulf. Something in the water or air, or both, could explain this. While public officials and BP claim that dispersant use was halted in May for Corexit 9527A and on July 19 for Corexit 9500A, evidence collected by Gulf residents has shown that dispersants are being used in nearshore and inland waters, close to highly populated areas across the Gulf. Further, oil and the Corexit marker have been found in air and inland water.
I have heard from Gulf residents and visitors who developed a rash or peeling palms from contact with Gulf water, including such activities as swimming or wading, getting splashed, handling oiled material or dead animals without gloves, and shucking crabs from the recently opened Gulf fisheries. I have also heard from people who developed the same symptoms after contact with Gulf air by wiping an oily film off their airplane's leading edges after flying over the Gulf (absorbent pad tested positive for oil) or swimming in outdoor pools, or splashing in puddles, after it rained.
Outraged by the unprecedented release of oil and toxic chemicals in the Gulf, Nurse Schmidt and Mike McDowell developed a project to test Gulf rainwater for harmful chemicals. Schmidt said, "We are convinced the chemicals used in the Gulf to help disperse oil have evaporated and will eventually come down mixed with the rain."
Another clue, more like a condemnation, is that NOAA and EPA decided to use dispersants in the Gulf without considering what harm the chemicals and dispersed oil might do to people, specifically, the general public. Dr. Sylvia Earle, former chief scientist of NOAA, and other scientists, criticized the agencies' decision, in part, based on concern about harm to human health. Other scientists have also criticized the agencies' decision. Citing the National Academy of Sciences, a Texas Tech University professor testified in Congress that the chemicals break down cell walls, making organisms (including people) more susceptible to oil. The professor called the Gulf an "eco-toxicological experiment," which is inexcusable, because OSHA has known about harm from solvent exposure since at least 1987. Don't these federal agencies talk amongst themselves -- or with others?
Which all brings me back to the grandmother. After talking with her, I've been reading about bacteria, and I now think the Great Gulf Experiment is going very badly for humans. One can only wonder about the rest of the ecosystem.
There are two distinct types of bacteria based on the structure of their cell walls. Gram-positive bacteria have a single-membrane cell wall, while Gram-negative bacteria have a double-membrane cell wall. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteria are "Gram-positive," while the oil-eating bacteria are Gram-negative.
But! A component of the double-membrane cell wall structure of Gram-negative bacteria can irritate human skin, causing inflammation and activating the immune system. In other words, oil-eating bacteria, just because they are Gram-negative, can cause skin rashes. In the case of Alcanivorax borkumensis, the reaction can erupt on the skin like MRSA infections.
To make things a little scarier, some of the oil-eating bacteria have been genetically modified, or otherwise bioengineered, to better eat the oil -- including Alcanivorax borkumensis and some of the Pseudomonas. Oil-eating bacteria produce bio-films. According to Nurse Schmidt, studies have found that bio-films are rapidly colonized (p. 97) by other Gram-negative bacteria -- including those known to infect humans.
Scientists anticipated early on that the Gulf leak would cause populations of oil-eating bacteria to soar. Still, infections are not likely in healthy people. However, exposure to oil weakens a person's immune system function, as does the mental stress of dealing with disaster trauma. And then there are people who are more at risk than others to bacterial infections, especially when first challenged with oil and solvent exposure. This includes children, people with cystic fibrosis or asthma, and African Americans (who are prone to blood disorders), to name a few.
Is this the perfect storm -- an exploding population of opportunistic Gram-negative bacteria (some natural, some not), millions of gallons of food (oil) for the bacteria, and a susceptible population of stressed-out people?
Perhaps. If the outbreak of skin rashes across the Gulf is any indication, the health care providers, media, and Congress ought to be taking a hard look at this question. Further, people ought to be connecting the dots to illnesses that surfaced in Exxon Valdez spill responders and to the illnesses occurring now in Michigan residents coping with the Enbridge oil pipeline spill.
In the Gulf, Nurse Schmidt believes:
This is like a major bacterial storm. It could be the reason we are seeing a variance of symptoms in different individuals. In some people, we see respiratory complications, while in others we see skin or GI symptoms. I think it is due to a multitude of colonized bacteria -- which may have been triggered by BP's disaster.
The nurse and I think the grandmother is onto something.
View Article With Links and Pics HERE
View Related Article HERE
Riki Ott
Ocean Springs, MS -- A grandmother made me rethink all the bio-remediation hype. The "naturally-occurring oil-eating bacteria" have been newsworthy of late as they are supposedly going to come to the rescue of President Obama and BP and make good on their very premature statement that "the oil is gone."
We were talking about subsurface oil in the Gulf when she said matter-of-factly, "The bacteria are running amok with the dispersants." What? "Those oil-eating bacteria -- I think they're running amok and causing skin rashes." My mind reeled. Could we all have missed something so simple?
The idea was crazy but, in the context of the Gulf situation -- an outbreak of mysterious persistent rashes from southern Louisiana across to just north of Tampa, Florida, coincident with BP's oil and chemical release, it seemed suddenly worthy of investigating.
I first heard about the rash from Sheri Allen in Mobile, Alabama. Allen wrote of red welts and blisters on her legs after "splashing and wading on the shoreline" of Mobile Bay with her two dogs on May 8. She reported that "hundreds of dead fish" washed up on the same beach over the following two days. This was much too early for the summer sun to have warmed the water to the point of oxygen depletion, but not too early for dispersants and dispersed oil to be mixed into the Gulf's water mass. By early July, Allen's rash had healed, leaving black bruises and scarring.
Other people -- both residents and visitors to the Gulf Coast -- wrote of similar rashes or other skin problems like peeling palms. The rashes have been diagnosed as scabies and staph infections, including MRSA, the potentially lethal Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. Most cases lingered for months, as the rash did not respond well to antibiotics, steroid creams, or steroid shots.
That should have been a clue that maybe the primary cause was not biological, but chemical. A secondary biological infection might clear up with antibiotic treatment, but then keep reoccurring because the primary chemical illness had not been treated.
Retired Registered Nurse Allison Schmidt agrees. Referring to Allen's case, she said, "I can say without hesitation that these skin rashes have nothing to do with scabies. Scabies is a parasite, which causes a skin infection and is extremely contagious. It spreads from person to person by direct skin contact or by wearing an article of clothing worn by an infected person." Schmidt said, "If this were scabies you would see entire families infected and NOT just a single family member."
Another clue to the real cause of the mystery rash is its prevalence across the entire oil-impacted Gulf. Something in the water or air, or both, could explain this. While public officials and BP claim that dispersant use was halted in May for Corexit 9527A and on July 19 for Corexit 9500A, evidence collected by Gulf residents has shown that dispersants are being used in nearshore and inland waters, close to highly populated areas across the Gulf. Further, oil and the Corexit marker have been found in air and inland water.
I have heard from Gulf residents and visitors who developed a rash or peeling palms from contact with Gulf water, including such activities as swimming or wading, getting splashed, handling oiled material or dead animals without gloves, and shucking crabs from the recently opened Gulf fisheries. I have also heard from people who developed the same symptoms after contact with Gulf air by wiping an oily film off their airplane's leading edges after flying over the Gulf (absorbent pad tested positive for oil) or swimming in outdoor pools, or splashing in puddles, after it rained.
Outraged by the unprecedented release of oil and toxic chemicals in the Gulf, Nurse Schmidt and Mike McDowell developed a project to test Gulf rainwater for harmful chemicals. Schmidt said, "We are convinced the chemicals used in the Gulf to help disperse oil have evaporated and will eventually come down mixed with the rain."
Another clue, more like a condemnation, is that NOAA and EPA decided to use dispersants in the Gulf without considering what harm the chemicals and dispersed oil might do to people, specifically, the general public. Dr. Sylvia Earle, former chief scientist of NOAA, and other scientists, criticized the agencies' decision, in part, based on concern about harm to human health. Other scientists have also criticized the agencies' decision. Citing the National Academy of Sciences, a Texas Tech University professor testified in Congress that the chemicals break down cell walls, making organisms (including people) more susceptible to oil. The professor called the Gulf an "eco-toxicological experiment," which is inexcusable, because OSHA has known about harm from solvent exposure since at least 1987. Don't these federal agencies talk amongst themselves -- or with others?
Which all brings me back to the grandmother. After talking with her, I've been reading about bacteria, and I now think the Great Gulf Experiment is going very badly for humans. One can only wonder about the rest of the ecosystem.
There are two distinct types of bacteria based on the structure of their cell walls. Gram-positive bacteria have a single-membrane cell wall, while Gram-negative bacteria have a double-membrane cell wall. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteria are "Gram-positive," while the oil-eating bacteria are Gram-negative.
But! A component of the double-membrane cell wall structure of Gram-negative bacteria can irritate human skin, causing inflammation and activating the immune system. In other words, oil-eating bacteria, just because they are Gram-negative, can cause skin rashes. In the case of Alcanivorax borkumensis, the reaction can erupt on the skin like MRSA infections.
To make things a little scarier, some of the oil-eating bacteria have been genetically modified, or otherwise bioengineered, to better eat the oil -- including Alcanivorax borkumensis and some of the Pseudomonas. Oil-eating bacteria produce bio-films. According to Nurse Schmidt, studies have found that bio-films are rapidly colonized (p. 97) by other Gram-negative bacteria -- including those known to infect humans.
Scientists anticipated early on that the Gulf leak would cause populations of oil-eating bacteria to soar. Still, infections are not likely in healthy people. However, exposure to oil weakens a person's immune system function, as does the mental stress of dealing with disaster trauma. And then there are people who are more at risk than others to bacterial infections, especially when first challenged with oil and solvent exposure. This includes children, people with cystic fibrosis or asthma, and African Americans (who are prone to blood disorders), to name a few.
Is this the perfect storm -- an exploding population of opportunistic Gram-negative bacteria (some natural, some not), millions of gallons of food (oil) for the bacteria, and a susceptible population of stressed-out people?
Perhaps. If the outbreak of skin rashes across the Gulf is any indication, the health care providers, media, and Congress ought to be taking a hard look at this question. Further, people ought to be connecting the dots to illnesses that surfaced in Exxon Valdez spill responders and to the illnesses occurring now in Michigan residents coping with the Enbridge oil pipeline spill.
In the Gulf, Nurse Schmidt believes:
This is like a major bacterial storm. It could be the reason we are seeing a variance of symptoms in different individuals. In some people, we see respiratory complications, while in others we see skin or GI symptoms. I think it is due to a multitude of colonized bacteria -- which may have been triggered by BP's disaster.
The nurse and I think the grandmother is onto something.
View Article With Links and Pics HERE
View Related Article HERE
Is NC Preparing For NWO/Martial Law Takeover Soon?
American Holocaust
Pamela Schuffert reporting from Western NC
I was recently informed by a retired military source, that NC legislation had just been passed stating that, IN A DECLARED "STATE OF EMERGENCY" CAUSING FORCED EVACUATION, NC CITIZENS WOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO TAKE THEIR ARMS WITH THEM WHEN FLEEING THEIR HOMES AND EVACUATING THE AREA AFFECTED.
What a brilliant piece of NWO agenda "anti-gun" legislation!
You must understand: the NWO elements of our nation and cooperating elements from foreign nations, have been meeting continually to try to come up with a successful ploy to remove the arms from the American people, as a major part of the NWO agenda for our nation.
They know that the American people will fight to maintain their freedoms and rights guaranteed not ONLY under the US Constitution, but at any other time as well... including defending themselves and their freedoms during the time that the NWO minions from hell plan to rescind the US Constitution and march us to the death camps in prisoner boxcars and shackles, to remove patriotic Americans from their beloved homeland and turn this nation into one more prisoner nation under world globalist COMMUNISM, or the NWO.
Unfortunately for the NWO, they will someday find this piece of anti-American legislation to be largely unenforceable when their planned time of forced evacuation finally comes to NC. Far too many Americans are now much better educated on the hidden NWO/world globalist agendas for our nation and her citizens, and as they have told me across America in words similar to the following, "We will never surrender our freedoms and our lives to the NWO, we will never be taken alive to the camps, and we prefer to fight and die IN freedom, FOR FREEDOM!"
View Original Article HERE
Pamela Schuffert reporting from Western NC
I was recently informed by a retired military source, that NC legislation had just been passed stating that, IN A DECLARED "STATE OF EMERGENCY" CAUSING FORCED EVACUATION, NC CITIZENS WOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO TAKE THEIR ARMS WITH THEM WHEN FLEEING THEIR HOMES AND EVACUATING THE AREA AFFECTED.
What a brilliant piece of NWO agenda "anti-gun" legislation!
You must understand: the NWO elements of our nation and cooperating elements from foreign nations, have been meeting continually to try to come up with a successful ploy to remove the arms from the American people, as a major part of the NWO agenda for our nation.
They know that the American people will fight to maintain their freedoms and rights guaranteed not ONLY under the US Constitution, but at any other time as well... including defending themselves and their freedoms during the time that the NWO minions from hell plan to rescind the US Constitution and march us to the death camps in prisoner boxcars and shackles, to remove patriotic Americans from their beloved homeland and turn this nation into one more prisoner nation under world globalist COMMUNISM, or the NWO.
Unfortunately for the NWO, they will someday find this piece of anti-American legislation to be largely unenforceable when their planned time of forced evacuation finally comes to NC. Far too many Americans are now much better educated on the hidden NWO/world globalist agendas for our nation and her citizens, and as they have told me across America in words similar to the following, "We will never surrender our freedoms and our lives to the NWO, we will never be taken alive to the camps, and we prefer to fight and die IN freedom, FOR FREEDOM!"
View Original Article HERE
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