Steve Jobs? Can he have some privacy?

The Press, is being despicable. (see The New York Times today) Disgusting, even.
Yes, public figures are forcibly under a microscope. Why are they examined so closely? Because they are famous and the press makes a lot money off them. They also have a responsibility to give us more information if they are having a problem that will effect us, the people, in a meaningful way.
They are NOT responsible to the public about private family members or themselves coping with an ongoing health issue that is life threatening. Beyond disclosing what Mr. Jobs has already (and we do know about his illness,) why does he have to tell us if he is going to live or die?
Would you berate your grandmother about her possible death just to know if she left you money in her will?
Please.

Is it because Apple share holders might lose some money? Come on, you can’t be serious. His life is in question!
LEAVE HIM ALONE.
I too am a cancer survivor, by the way.

Let's fix America!

Dear Americans,
Here are some ideas as to how we should repair America:
1. As for the “financial world as we know it,” throw it away because it is not worth fixing. Good riddance!
2. Restore large and small businesses that are American owned with funds allotted by the bailouts. A multibillion dollar business must help fund programs that help the American people live at a reasonable level of comfort without debt. There should be a cap on their earnings that reflects their equal efforts to help poorer segments of the economy.
3. Subsidized areas of the economy that are essential: lodging, jobs, education, medicine and protection.
4. Provide adequate shelter and food for everyone. Persons with more than one dwelling should help by providing housing to those who have none. They can sell the extra properties or develop them for use as public housing.
5. Provide a “job” to all that can work at a minimum (but higher than it is now) wage so they can feed and clothe themselves.
6. Bailout the American school system. Give money to states and local governments to pay for a completely new educational model. Emphasis should be on the liberal arts, math and science in keeping with the high quality of learning in other countries such as England or France. Teachers and other educators should be valued with a higher pay bracket such as lawyers and doctors and other professionals.
7. Guarantee health care to all. Use a system such as the very successful Kaiser HMO to build a national system so that all Americans can obtain care.
8. Use local police, law enforcement and the National Guard to keep law and order. Local police and fire departments should also be compensated with higher pay and venerated for the extraordinary duties they perform.
9. Insure that everyone is safe, warm, fed and educated.

The present order of the American economy compensates individuals with (income in
the millions and billions) assets that could feed whole countries around the world.
Their earnings are obscene. Why is government regulation so lax? Why is the imbalance so obvious and accepted by such intelligent educated people? The majority of people here in the US struggle to provide the basics for their families, let alone those who are working three jobs to pay for college or training for a trade. The division is classes has grown into a giant chasm that may claim the life blood of the existence of America. America, as we have known it, is dying. We must accept that. New financial models, new systems for organization, new technologies for production, new economic structures for manufacturing need to be built from the ground up. The important priorities such as those delineated above must be addressed by the government and our people. The lesson to be learned is improvement begins at the bottom and grows up, not the old status quo of Reagan’s“trickle down”. This and only this thinking will mean renewed prosperity and justice for us all.

Elizabeth Brady

The Middle East

World, get a clue!
The Palestinians and the Israelis have been at this conflict since 1947 and the Balfour Declaration that took Palestine away from it's people. Study the history of the Middle East just for five minutes and you will find out that this conflict is deeply rooted in both societies. No one in Israel or Palestine is at fault. Europeans, especially the WWII allies, are at fault for alleviating their guilt after the war by plopping the disenfranchised Jews in the Palestinian homeland. Would you like it if someone came along and said move out of your state, we need it for the American Indians?
Divide the holy land in half, one for Israel and one for Palestine. Divide Jerusalem, where many religions have important monuments, and make the old center a city state like the Vatican in Rome. Put a peace keeping force between the two countries until they give up struggling. Until then, there will always be cycles of violence and poor women and children dying on both sides.
This is the bare truth.
The US, to this day, has backed Israel because the Jewish population in our country is large and financially integral to our economy. So be it. We can support Israel and Palestine both.
As I said, get a clue - like the one I'm giving you now - and gather the world to support and bring about the existence of two free and autonomous states of Israel and Palestine. Gather to bring about peace in the Middle East. Is there anyone for this job?
How about it, Secretary Clinton?