One Amazing Girl

Congratulations to second grader Lori Anne Madison, age 6, the youngest person ever to compete in  the national spelling bee. In addition, she is adorable. She ended by missing "engluvies." the term for a bird's craw., Earlier, she correctly spelled "dirigible." Previously,in Virginia, she won by spelling the word "vaquero," the Spanish translation of "cowboy" often used in parts of the South.

Lori likes to study while swinging upside down or jumping on her trampoline, according to her bio on the event's website. She's also a competitive swimmer, has won math and science awards, and takes karate, dance and tennis classes.

This is a fabulous unbelievable feat and we will watch her bloom in the future. 

China Pakistan Connection

We have 90,000 American troops in Afghanistan now. This is a problem and we need to get them out !!
Pakistan takes billions of dollars from Americans...oh yes, we have to borrow the money from China to give it to Pakistan. Pakistan used to charge the US $250 per truck for the military to enter Pakistan. Now Pakistan has demanded $5,000 per truck to use the Pakistan road. HMMMMMM!!


The Travis Manion Foundation was founded after a young man serving his country was killed during a second tour of duty. I encourage you to donate. Thanks to our Gold Star families who gave so much.



]

Middle East Status Summary

This weekend 60 adults and 30 kids were killed in Syria by the government led by Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian President. We  have 90,000 American troops in Afghanistan fighting a war.
Also this week, Pakistan thumbed its nose at the US by sentencing the doctor who located Osama Bin Laden to 33 years in prison for treason. Bin laden killed Americans and Pakistani citizens.
Iran says will agree to more talks, but Iran is still getting enriched uranium for nuclear weapons. - despite harm to their economy by reduced oil sales. Is China helping Iran...with our money?.
Egypt completed the first round of open elections and there will be a run off election between Mohammed Morsi and Ahmed Shafiq, a former general who was Mubarak's prime minister. Both bad?
Americans can not keep intervening into the wars of the Middle East. Americans have  become weary of war...plus America has no money. If America would go to war again, we  would have to borrow the money from China and increase our deficit by trillions of dollars more.
Let the Republicans argue for war,,,Americans won’t buy it.

I feel candidate Whelan is not fit for the office of Congress. He refuses to defend and protect the United States of America. He has no wife, kids or other responsibilities. If Whelan wants to go to Congress, he must show he loves the US and is willing to sacrifice, like so many others have. On this Memorial Day, I urge you to not elect Whelan. Let him enter the military, grow, become a man, stop getting his political money for signs from his parents. Whelan...not now...not now.

ELECT GOODWIN

VOTE - GOODWIN for CONGRESS

Because, GOODWIN has been there for women, kids, education, seniors, veterans, disabled, families. - GOODWIN can represent your needs. Air and water quality.  Everybody is looking for a hero. Loraine GOODWIN will be our congressional hero in CD 16 where EVERYBODY COUNTS!!! DIVERSITY is better.

All of our veterans are heroes - sacrifice to save America.  Whelan is out of school and working only 2 years ( not married, no kids) - his parents bought the signs. Whelan, Garcia and Techerra rejected serving America and our families over the past TEN YEARS after President Bush declared war - they do not represent us in Congress.

Democrats, Independents and Republicans - Vote for GOODWIN

www.drgoodwin.info / email: saveourvalley@hotmail.com

Loraine Goodwin for Congress

The BEST CHOICE is LORAINE GOODWIN. Dr Loraine Goodwin has held elected office and has proven she can improve the district, bring in new jobs with federal money, and balance a budget while ensuring minimal job loss or reduction. Whelan is just a couple of years out of law school. His family gave him money for a lot of signs, etc. This is not high school. Whalen has no experience with women's issues, kids, education, the disabled, seniors, or family issues. Whalen is single and no kids. Whalen confused medicaid with Medicare. None of the  Republican candidates has chosen to be a patriot. None of the Republican candidates has signed on to protect and defend the United States and the Constitution over the past ten years since President Bush declared war. They let others fight, suffer, sacrifice and even die - even women. No - not Whalen, Garcia or Tacherra chose to defend the U.S.
Vote for Loraine Goodwin. Loraine Goodwin has been fighting for women's issues, kids, families, the disabled, veterans and seniors for decades. Loraine Goodwin will not throw you under the bus to save cash for the young Turks. Loraine Goodwin is transparent and you know who she is working for - YOU. Education, experience, skills, abilities and knows the real issues. Loraine Goodwin served in elected office and has shown she can create new jobs and bring in federal money, help the kids and community, and balance a public budget and minimize job loss. Diversity and a strong central valley. If you like education, you'll love Loraine Goodwin. Loraine Goodwin is a UC alumnus and will strongly support the UC Merced programs. GOODWIN also sits on our area air and water boards to protect our community. VOTE for GOODWIN

Fresno Bee Racism Sexism CD 16 Election

Fresno Bee article is racist and sexist.
 
In listing Dr Loraine Goodwin as a candidate for CD 16, it mentions she is a physician. But they


fail to mention her years of work in women's health and preventive medicine. 


Dr Goodwin also has a law degree from San Joaquin College of Law and she works as a legal 


arbitrator and mediator. She also sits on the California Air Hearing Board, Central Region and 


the IRWMG where she acts to protect valley air and water. Dr Goodwin also sits on the 


Madera behavioral health board, which provides help to the poor, homeless and addicted. She 


also sat on the Madera American Disabilities Act Advisory Board which initiated ADA 


requirements to remove barriers for disabled. 


Dr Goodwin comes from a Fresno farm family that has farmed for generations. She 


understands farming needs and wants to encourage young farmers. 


If you believe in education, you can believe in Dr Goodwin. As a member of the Madera Unified 


School Board, she started the "Farm-to-school Program which gives fruits and vegetables to 


kids and pays farmers over $500,000 a year - Goodwin has proven she can bring money into 


the central valley, keep staff working and finances sound. 


Dr Goodwin stands up for women, children, disabled, seniors, families and students. We must 


act to reduce racism in the central valley. It is a hard fight...it keeps coming back. Join the 


GOODWIN TEAM. 


Don't trust what you read in the Fresno Bee.

One View - Amazon Studio a Bad Idea

The Morning Read: Why Amazon Studios is a very bad idea for writers

PLUS ELI ROTH'S DOING RIGHT BY HORROR AND TALKING 'STAR WARS' WITH KIDS

By Drew McWeeny FRIDAY, NOV 19, 2010 11:20 AM

Barton Fink is a good example of of what happens to screenwriters in Hollywood, and he got off easy.

Credit: 20th Century Fox

Welcome to The Morning Read.

Let's kick off today's column with a bit of a public service announcement.  Have you read about the Amazon Studios announcement?  Basically, Amazon decided to get involved in the production of content, and they've created a brand-new program that is part contest, part development fund, and all garbage.

I've gotten several e-mails from people asking me my take on this, several of which were from very excited writers looking at this as a way to finally get around the "no manager or agent" conundrum.  And I empathize with any writer out there with a script who can't get people to read it.  I get what is attractive about the idea of a brand-new way of getting around the system, but this is not it.  Have you read theDevelopment Agreement or the Contest Terms and Procedures?  They are fascinating and revealing and completely insane.

I'll put it this way:  if you upload your script or your movie to their contest, you are essentially kissing it goodbye forever.  Line after line of the legalese on these pages just confounds me.  "You agree to be automatically entered into any future contests for which your work is eligible.  The specific contest rules for future contests will be posted on this page when they are announced."  And considering one of the rules of this contest grants Amazon Studios a free 18-month option on your work the moment you upload it, the idea that they can enter you in a contest later and tell you the rules after they do so seems positively batty.  The "development agreement" is a contract you're signing, not an entry form for a contest, and in it, you grant them a free option on your work for a year and a half, and if they do end up producing your work, there's a set fee.  Period.  That's all it is.  A set rate.  The same no matter what the project is, and no matter what happens with it.  That is, simply put, immoral.

Beyond that, once your script is uploaded to Amazon, anyone can revise it.  Try to wrap your head around that.  Anyone can revise your screenplay.  They can do anything they want to it.  And if that revision ends up being what gets made, that person becomes part of that set price I mentioned earlier.  It's a mind-boggling proposition, and runs completely counter-intuitive to the idea of giving writers a platform for their work.  The thought of some random person having the legal right to revise my screenplays makes me sick to my stomach, and I seriously believe that the people who created the Amazon Studios idea are either very stupid or very evil.  It is an idea designed to exploit and strip-mine creativity, and it sounds to me like someone's idea of a social media experiment gone wildly wrong.  There's nothing about this that sounds to me like it will result in good filmmaking.  The entire notion of a "test movie" is bizarre, especially when you're talking about having people shoot entire feature films as tests.  That side of the contest is so much weirder than the screenplay side that I can't even really understand it.

Look, collaboration is one of the key components of filmmaking.  I absolutely believe that.  But I also believe that you have to be able to pick your own collaborators based on their history, your history, common artistic goals, respect, and much more.  "Crowdsourcing" is a big buzzword right now, and under the right conditions, I can see how useful that is.  But for filmmaking?  This is poison.  This is very bad thing.  To me, this smacks of the sort of "let's suck someone's blood" mentality that marks the very worst of Los Angeles.

I've spent the last few years entangled in a business arrangement with a producer who I will simply refer to here as "The Gimp."  At the very beginning of our relationship, The Gimp talked a good game.  He promised easy access to production funds.  He spun fanciful stories of lands where tax incentives just fell of the trees, ready to be picked up and spent by any filmmaker who just happened along.  He told tales of the cast that was eager and ready to go, and he even went down the road of hiring a director and making premature announcements.  All of it was what I wanted to hear.  All of it sounded great.

But the truth about The Gimp is that he is all talk.  Those production funds always managed to stay a week or two away from escrow.  The tax incentives only seemed to be opportune in states without soundstages.  Or film crews.  And that cast that was promised seemed to vanish into thin air when push came to shove.  And not just once.  Not just twice.  It was a cycle, a pattern, a twisted game of self-affirmation that The Gimp was playing at my expense.  And because of the option The Gimp had on the material, there was nothing we could do to reclaim it from him.  At that point, it's a waiting game, but at least we'd been paid for the option, which is the way it should work.

In the end, the worst part is the feeling that The Gimp never cared at all about the story we were trying to tell.  Instead, what we offered was a film that could be made at a price just low enough that it would justify a padded budget that could be pocketed, an easy way out of potential bankruptcy, and until he actually made it, there were other ways to make money on our work, ways that had nothing to do with actually telling our story.  I've got stories stretching back twenty years about people indulging their own ego and greed at the expense of writers who genuinely just want to tell a story.

Amazon Studios throws a ton of numbers at you up front, and it claims to be about giving power to the people, but it smells to me like one more case of the writer being the bottom of the pile.  Seriously… I implore you… if you believe your work is of any value whatsoever, don't fall for this.  I'm curious to see if other writers or advocates for writers weigh in on this one.  For now, John August is the only one I've seen jump in, and he makes the point with elegance as usual.

The worst part of saying all that is I know how defensive some people will get, because they will want to believe that this is the short cut they've been looking for.  The truth is that there are no short cuts at all.  You've got to work to get your ideas in front of people, no matter who you are, and the business is getting more competitive as it contracts and changes.  There is nothing more important than a well-executed good idea, and if you're looking for something to give you hope, then why not look at the example of "Clown"?

Remember that?  A few weeks ago, I ran a piece about "Alma," the animated film that Guillermo Del Toro is helping to turn into a feature based on an acclaimed short done as a personal side project by Rodrigo Blaas.  In that piece, I also included a YouTube trailer for a fake movie called "Clown."  One of the things that was really ballsy about the "Clown" trailer was the way they threw on the title "A Film by Eli Roth," even though they had no connection to him.  Well, now it looks like they do.  Roth is producing the film, with Jon Watts and Christopher D. Ford, who made the short, directing and writing the film together.  I have to say, I loved the "Clown" trailer, and I'm excited to see the film, and I love the way the film got in front of Eli, and then made the jump from joke to reality.

There's another film Eli also just helped set up that sounds great, the new one from Nicolas Lopez, a Chilean filmmaker whose earlier films "Promedio Rojo" and "Santos" both showed huge personality and promise.  The notion of Lopez taking his personal observations about the February earthquake in Chile and what happened afterwards and turning that into a horror film is exciting because this isn't something born from somebody watching old movies and just regurgitation someone else's ideas.  This is personal, and those are often the best films.

That's why I find that whole Amazon Studios thing so unsettling, and the way the media is just swallowing it without digesting it or analyzing it or looking at how it treats the people it professes to help is disturbing.  When you're telling a story, it's not just about putting events in a certain order or creating some clever gag or sequence.  It's about voice and perspective and tone, and it seems unlikely you'll get that from something anyone can alter at whim.  Explore alternatives, but be smart about it.  There are always new ways in, new ways to get attention for a good project.  Put your faith in yourself and your idea, not some horseshit Amazon Studios Ponzi scheme that will just use you as oil in their machin
e

Rep Jeff Denham Leads The DC Fight Against Valley High Speed Rail

Rep Jeff  Denham Leads The DC Fight Against Valley High Speed Rail

Today congressional representative republican Jeff Denham led a 4 hour meeting in Washington, DC in his fight against high speed rail (HSR). As a state senator, Jeff Denham kept mass transit out of the central valley for the past ten years and, in his new position in Congress, he is determined to keep high speed rail out of the valley for the foreseeable future. Today many local leaders met in Washington, DC to discuss HSR. Denham argues HSR is too expensive and all the valley needs is a couple more lanes on highway 99. Denham has no clue as to the needs of the valley. HSR is needed for the students of UC Merced, for valley seniors and disabled (like our veterans) and for those looking to expand businesses and jobs.
Denham has decided to run for Congress in CD 10 (Turlock to Modesto) in 2012. We must get Denham out!!


Some of the issues I am most worried about include;
1) Funding - I believe the HSR will attract a lot of riders. But people will not use the HSR system if our elected officials have no confidence in it or they constantly talk about "it's too expensive to ride." We need to work out the riding costs so that poor valley residents can use the system and we need to elect people who can discuss all of the issues, but not drag the progressing project down, causing the valley to lose jobs, money, business, investors and an improved quality of life.
2) Excess costs - the costs are increasing on the project and we need to see who is being paid too much and eliminate waste, fraud and abuse.
3) We need to keep the federal money spent in the US. If a lot of the federal funds are going into foreign pockets, then, I want to halt the project until we can get American vendors, specialists, etc. All of the materials must be made in the US, including the rail cars. I do not believe Americans will have confidence in  a China-made rail system.

There are other issues, but these are on the top of my list at this moment.

Denham admits he will get nothing done. No casino for North Fork Rancheria. No High Speed Rail for California. Denham says his goal is to save money and return to 2006.

Hmmmmm. 2006 .....Bush was president and Wall Street corruption and greed was at its peak. In 2006 large corporations were scamming the public and over-extended, sending jobs and American money abroad...and California had been fending off bankruptcy for about ten years with increased borrowing. In 2006, Madoff was a hero.

Denham's idea, more roads and maybe in 6 years....
Goodwin looking GREAT right now.

Why Japanese meltdown means lower U.S. mortgage rates
by Peter Miller

Japan, the world’s third-largest economy, has been hit with an unprecedented series of tragedies. One result from these unfortunate events is likely to be continuing low mortgage rates for those in the U.S.
A massive earthquake and a tsunami of astonishing force have lead to thousands of deaths as well as enormous property losses. Reports indicate that damages could total over $100 billion.
Failures at the Fukushima nuclear facilities have brought on a separate set of problems. At this point, several reactors have been lost and the ultimate extent of the ensuing environmental damage is unknown.
Impacting the bond market
One by-product of the tragedies in Japan has been a massive sell off of stocks and the massive purchase of bonds.
Why bonds?
Bonds pay a given rate of interest. Investors know exactly what return they can expect with bonds and that bond returns have some certainty in troubled times. Alternatively, corporate profits are less certain and so are stocks.
Bond pricing
More demand means bond prices are rising. As bond prices rise, interest rates go down.
For example: Imagine you can pay $100 for a bond that yields 3 percent. Demand for bonds increases and you can sell the bond for $105. This means that while the bond still pays 3 percent, the yield has declined. The new owner is paying $105 to obtain $3 in income, a yield of 2.86 percent.
Or, imagine if the bond sold for $98. It would still pay a $3 dividend but the yield would increase to 3.06 percent because it now takes less money to get the $3 dividend.
Mortgages
Investors can put their money into bonds and they can also invest in mortgages. To investors, 10-year bonds and 30-year mortgages have a lot of similarities — the reason 30-year mortgages compare with 10-year bonds is that very few mortgages last 10 years.
The result is this: If interest rates for bonds go down, the same will happen with mortgage rates (and vice versa).
The usual thinking has been that interest rates would rise in 2011 because the economy was (and is) showing modest signs of “recovery,” or at least some improvement from the depths of misery seen in 2008. Now, however, all bets are off.
As a result of the earthquake, the tsunami, a volcanic eruption and the nuclear meltdowns, Japanese funds that might have been spent on U.S. goods will instead go for infrastructure and repairs. Productivity will be lost and with it income and savings. Less business activity suggests lower corporate profits, a reduced need for oil and therefore some reason to buy bonds.
The Federal Reserve says, “low rates of resource utilization, subdued inflation trends, and stable inflation expectations, are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate for an extended period.”
Translation: Given the historically-low mortgage rates seen last year, it’s been difficult to believe that interest levels would remain so low but here we are despite rising fuel and food prices. It now seems possible that today’s mortgage rates will settle around or below 5 percent for at least the next several months — a window of opportunity for those who wish to purchase or refinance mortgages

FRESNO BEE LIES TO GET HMONG EMOTIONAL APPROVAL

FRESNO BEE LIES TO GET HMONG EMOTIONAL APPROVAL

       FRESNO BEE GOES FOR RACISM AND LIES TO CUT MINORITIES


The Fresno Bee printed that the "Obama Administration" denied General Vang Pao the honor of burial at Arlington Cemetery..

The TRUTH is that President Obama's administration had nothing to do with the denial that was presented at General Vang Pao's funeral on February 5th. The decision to deny General Vang Pao was based on a decision by the white generals who oversee the military cemetery. President Obama does not select who is buried at Arlington, he is busy with a few actual wars.

The Fresno Bee struck a low blow to inject racial hatred against President Obama into the decision. Also it shows that these valley republican newspapers are prone to lie in order to get public sentiment on their side. We certainly can not trust what we read in the Fresno Bee or the Modesto Bee.

The TRUTH is that the burial issue will eventually come before President Obama, after the Hmongs appeal this decision by the generals. Amazing as it may seem, President Obama does not even handle the first appeal, so the next decision will also be made by a military review committee.  Eventually, the issue will reach the President - but it will be months because the military has a policy of following the "chain of command" and you can not circumvent the process.

The Hmong community understands the truth and will not be deceived by cheap political antics by the Fresno Bee.
See:  Youtube:  CentralValleyCd19 (posted today - 2/6/2011)

MUSD SEEKS NEW SUPERINTENDENT - MEETING TONIGHT

MUSD SEEKS NEW SUPERINTENDENT

Please attend the MUSD Superintendent search session TODAY at 6:30 PM at Desmond School (Find location in Yellow Pages Maps).

I feel we need a person who actually lives in Madera. All of the MUSD administrators live in Clovis because the MUSD is so Bad and they want their kids to have a good education which can be provided in the Clovis School District. None of these administrators have buy-in for helping MUSD. MUSD is stuck in "mediocrity" and needs to recruit excellence. Most of the MUSD administrators are over-paid...and they want more. If you want to live in Clovis, get a job in Clovis. A person who lives in Madera will support our Madera businesses and schools, not the Clovis businesses.

If we citizens must pay for the MUSD administrators, I want to see some EXCELLENCE.

In addition, we have "white flight" in Madera where the white students are attending private schools and MUSD is left with 60% to 80% Hispanic students. Since our schools are mostly Hispanic, we need to recruit a minority Superintendent.

I expect the new Superintendent to have a DOCTORATE and be a well-rounded professional in education.

The only person I am familiar with at MUSD who could possibly be the next Superintendent is Deborah Woods. Anyone else currently in the district is unacceptable, unless they work for a greatly lower salary. Hence, that would mean we would get significant financial savings in return for a less-educated MEDIOCRE Superintendent. I know Porterfield wants the job but, for a number of reasons, he is not a good choice and does not provide the ROLE MODEL needed.

Please attend the meeting tonight - 6:30 PM, Desmond - or tomorrow at Madera High School, 6:30 PM.

Our kids can not succeed unless you demand EXCELLENCE.

Reprinted from POLITICO

JAKE SHERMAN | 1/31/11 9:14 AM EST

Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Calif.) caught lots of flak earlier this year for hosting a swank, rock ‘n’ roll fundraiser months after his freshman class was swept to Washington after promising a renewed commitment to frugality and economic restraint.

And all that ire was before the nearly $80,000 in expenses was disclosed.

The night before lawmakers were sworn in, the first-term congressman’s political action committee appears to have doled out $25,000 to have LeAnn Rimes perform in Washington at the W Hotel for an event that raised eyebrows in both Republican and Democratic circles.

The PAC paid the W Hotel $22,000 for catering and lights, and audio services ran up a $5,000 tab. It also paid $10,000 for “floral expense and event design.”

It was a particularly bizarre event, even by Washington standards. Denham invited the media to the W Hotel before the event, where he vowed that “we’re conservatives but that doesn’t mean we can’t have fun.”

“Obviously this isn’t just about raising money, this is about having a good time,” Denham said to reporters before the fundraiser. “We have a great entertainer here in Grammy Award-winner LeAnn Rimes. And we’re excited about that, and excited about the event tonight.” Reporters were not permitted to attend the fundraiser itself.

The money that the PAC raised hardly covered the cost of the event — it took in $85,000. The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians donated $50,000 to the committee, and the Morongo Band of Mission Indians Native donated $25,000. Blue Shield of California’s PAC chipped in $5,000 and the American Association of Clinical Urologists and a Tennessee-based donor gave $2,500 each.

Although Denham was the face of the event, the political action committee raises money for a slew of first-term Republicans, including Reps. Scott DesJarlais (Tenn.), Robert Dold (Ill.), Renee Ellmers (N.C.), Jeff Landry (La.), Tom Marino (Pa.), Tom Reed (N.Y.), David Rivera (Fla.), Jon Runyan (N.J.), Steve Southerland (Fla.), Marlin Stutzman (Ind.) and Kevin Yoder (Kan.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0111/48487.html#ixzz1CdRE69JZ

Clovis, CA: Vets will sponsor dinner to honor fallen soldiers tomorrow, Saturday, from 4 to 6 PM. Cost is $10.00 for spaghetti dinner and the money will be used to build a memorial to soldiers killed in Afghanistan and Iraq

NEW CONGRESS OFF TO BAD START

I don't feel great about this "new" Congress - looks like the same "old boys club " to me. Jeff Denham has been given the job of frat party thrower and fundraiser. Hence, on the day BEFORE he even gets into office, he throws a $2,500 a plate dinner at a luxury hotel in D.C.. I guess the economy is doing very well after all.

Next Boehner starts crying repeatedly. He is like an old depressed drunk. In fact, he has around eleven brothers and sisters. His sister said, “John is a little man and he has a big job ahead of him." With family confidence like that, it is no wonder Boehner started the, "my gavel is bigger than yours" contest. Yes, it sounds like a penile problem to me too. In fact, as Boehner was waving his gavel around with great pride about its size, the gavel began to resemble a "penis analogy" to me.  Let the frat party begin.

Next these guys, getting high salaries, decide to read the Constitution aloud on the House floor. Maybe these guys should have been reading the Constitution instead of partying, drinking and womanizing at the lavish party the night before. Yes, we got to pay to hear these inept congressmen read the Constitution aloud. It was sad to hear some of the congressional members stumble over the words. That reading exercise cost us citizens around a million dollars or more...our tax money.

The Republicans said the only idea they had for reducing federal spending was to cut the congressional budget. Later, it was revealed that actually the congressional budget would be too hard to cut, so the reduction will be greatly reduced and the congressional party can continue. 

Boehner said first job, as Speaker of the House, is to repeal health care reform legislation. The Congressional Budget Office says that will cost over $230 billion dollars with the investments already made - plus the Senate will not pass the repeal bill, so it is a waste of time and money - but a good show for gullible Republicans. On a news interview show when Boehner was asked what he planned to cut to reduce federal spending as promised during the campaign, Boehner said, in spite of all of his years in the House, he "had no specific ideas."

BOTTLED WATER A HEALTH HAZARD - TELL THE KIDS AND SAVE BIGTIME

BOTTLED WATER A HEALTH HAZARD - TELL THE
KIDS AND SAVE BIG TIME

TELL KIDS BOTTLED WATER NOT BETTER THAN TAP WATER AND SAVE MONEY

Schools sell bottled water to kids - around $1 a day - and
the costs add up for families. Kids feel because the water is sold that the
bottled water is BETTER - NOT TRUE!!!! School administrators don't care and
continue to allow this message to be given on a daily basis. Tell kids in your
communities the truth about bottled water. Also, the water sold at schools is
often kept at varying temperatures (unrecorded) and for varying lengths of time
(unrecorded). These storage conditions can make the water even worse with higher
bacterial counts. These elevated levels of bacteria can increase oral bacterial
count and increase cavities and gum disease.

Here is an article on
BOTTLED WATER from the web:

How much do you know about the bottled water
you drink? Not nearly enough, according toa new report released today from Environmental Working
Group (EWG)."Bottled water companies try hard to hide information you
might find troubling," says Jane Houlihan, senior vice president of research for
the Washington D.C.-based research and advocacy group.
EWG analyzed the
labels of 173 unique bottled water products and company websites to determine if
companies disclose information on where water comes from, how or if their water
is treated, and whether the results of purity testing are revealed. The
nonprofit also looked at how effective (and advanced) any water treatment
methods are. Researchers followed up by calling dozens of bottled water
companies to find out which ones willingly tell consumers what's in their
bottles.
The Environmental Protection Agency says on its website that
consumers have the right to know where their water comes from and what's in it
so they can "make informed choices that affect the health of themselves and
their families." Tap water is regularly tested and consumers can find their local water info
online. That's not necessarily the case with bottled water, which is
not required to disclose that information to consumers. "Bottled water is a food
product and every one of these companies is complying with federal law,"says Tom
Lauria, of the International Bottled Water Association.
More than half of the
bottled water products surveyed failed EWG's transparency test --18 percent
didn't say where their water comes from, and another 32 percent did not disclose
any information on treatment or purity of water.
Only three brands earned the
highest possible marks for disclosing information and using the most advanced
treatment methods available- Gerber Pure Purified Water,
Nestle PureLife Purified Water, and Penta
Ultra-PurifiedWater.
On the other end of the spectrum, these six
brands got the worst marks in EWG's report because they don't provide consumers
with the three basic facts about water on product labels or their company
website - Whole Foods Italian Still Mineral Water,
Vintage Natural Spring Water,Sahara Premium Drinking
Water, O Water Sport Electrolyte Enhanced Purified Drinking
Water,Market Basket Natural Spring Water,
andCumby's Spring Water.
How does your bottled water brand
stack up? Here's a look at the 10 top-selling* U.S. brands:
1.     Pure Life
Purified Water (Nestle),EWG grade = B
2.     Arrowhead Mountain Spring
Water(Nestle), EWG grade = C
3.     Aquafina Purified Drinking Water(Pepsi),
EWG grade = D
4.     Dasani Purified Water (Coca-Cola),EWG grade =
D
5.     Deer Park Natural Spring Water(Nestle), EWG grade = D
6.     Ice
Mountain Natural Spring Water(Nestle), EWG grade = D
7.     Ozarka Natural
Spring Water (Nestle),EWG grade = D
8.     Poland Spring Natural Spring
Water(Nestle), EWG grade = D
9.     Zephyrhills Natural Spring Water(Nestle),
EWG grade = D
10.  Crystal Geyser Natural Alpine Spring Water (CGRoxane), EWG
grade =  F
Filtered tap water received the best grade (an A) from EWG because
if you change your filter regularly, EWG says it is purer than bottled water,
plus it saves money (bottled water can cost up to1,900 times more than what
flows from your tap). Drinking tap water also takes less of a toll on the
planet. EWG offers plenty of tips for filtering your tap
water so that you can drink the healthiest water
possible.

What should you do when bottled water is your only
option?"While our top choice is filtered tap water, when you do need to choose
bottled water, we recommend brands that tell you what's in the water and that
use advanced treatment technologies like reverse osmosis and micro-filtration," says
Houlihan. Advanced treatment technologies remove pollutants that other methods
don't. You should look for bottled water products that tell you where the water
is coming from and how pure it is.
Here are the results for all 173bottled water brands
included in the report. You'll find that some less popular brands rank even
lower than our list of top-sellers.
The advice to drink filtered tap water
can seem confusing when there are often reports about the contaminants found in
municipal water supplies. Just last month, for example, EWG announced that cancer causing hexavalent chromium (chromium-6) is in 31cities' tap water. Houlihan says
chromium-6 is as likely to be in your bottled water as it is in your tap water
and we need action from the federal government on this. She points out that a
reverse osmosis filter can remove the worrisome contaminant. You can guarantee
its removal in your home supply, but in many cases you don't know what's in the
bottle you're drinking from.
*Sales rankings from the Beverage
MarketingCorporation.

JOIN US IN EDUCATION REFORM

A new report that showed a nearly 3 percentage point jump – from 18.9 percent to 21.7 percent – in California’s high school dropout rate from 2007-08 to 2008-09 triggered alarmed headlines around the state. Locally, however, the concern had an additional dimension: Data showing San Diego County’s dropout rate increased from 17.1 percent to 20.4 percent from 2007-08 to 2008-09 may not be accurate because figures for San Diego Unified, by far the county’s largest school district, were in doubt. Why? The district’s dropout rate inexplicably soared from 9.2 percent to 23.5 percent.

Send your name and email address to: saveourvalley@hotmail.com. List your special concerns.

MEXICAN GANGS TARGET FAMILY KILLING THE WOMEN

The tale of Marisela Escobedo continues after her murder. Marisela was a nurse in the U.S. who retired after her16-year-old daughter, Rubi Marisol, was found killed and dismembered in August 2008. The suspect, her live-in boyfriend, Sergio Rafael Barraza, escaped into Mexico, joined a gang and had Marisela killed outside the governor's mansion to stop her cries for justice. (see prior article)

Now the gang has targeted Marisela's husband by setting ablaze his lumber business in Ciudad Juarez.

ELECT Loraine GoodWIN to Congress The Best Choice for Congress GoodWIN  GoodWIN


Denham has said if he is elected he will go to DC and fight to get rid of health care. This will be a long battle and, since he has lost sight of the real problems, we will all lose as the insurance companies steadily increase premiums everyw months.
I do not want to encourage 2 years of endless party-based bickering.
Elect GoodWIN to Congress. GoodWIN will work for you by focusing only on CD 19 to increase jobs, cash and credit for businesses, improve education, and improve health care.
GoodWIN lives and works in CD 19. You would not elect someone from an outside community to your city council!!!

VOTE LORAINE GOODWIN for Congress GoodWIN GoodWIN GoodWIN GoodWIN

MODESTO BEE and FRESNO BEE Fight to Keep Valley Poor and Uninformed....VOTE LORAINE GOODWIN for Congress

Modesto Bee and Fresno Bee want you to vote for the candidate that will help the rich guys - not YOU. Yes, When the newspapers said Denham was the choice and the Modesto Bee said Goodwin had too many degrees and they were confused by them - it was clear they were not working in the best interest of the readers. The Bees do not want to give good wages or provide health care for employees. In fact, they want you to elect the candidate who will get rid of health care for employees and not require a livable wage.

Denham wants to get rid of health care. Denham has never helped with health care, jobs. financial problems, etc. in his 8 years in office. Now people in the valley are being offered health care in warehouses - like a very poor third world country. This is not the American way and is unacceptable.

The Bees are making a lot of money for executives. In fact, they are now using BLOGGERS for articles, so they have even cut their editorial staffs. Bloggers are free. So, they fire writers and our valley unemployment increases. No, the newspapers do not care about you or your families.

ELECT LORAINE GOODWIN to Congress.