Award for Mercer County Office On Aging

We have a lot to be thankful for this time of year and I am reminded of how much the Mercer County Office on Aging contributes to senior issues.

Eileen Doremus, Executive Director of Mercer County Office on Aging, was recognized by the city of Trenton Monday evening, December 19 at the Marriott.

In an email to Staff and Advisory Council Members, Ms. Doremus noted, " This is a team award." and proceeded to include each member's contributions in her thank you.

I can affirm that her leadership and teamwork is what makes this group so effective.

The City of Trenton's Annual Senior Gala is an opportunity to network and to acknowledge the concerns of senior citizens and ways to meet their needs. The presentation of the highly coveted "Community Award" noted how Director Doremus succeeded in helping older Americans "connnect" with the community. Doremus expressed her thanks again to Diane McKnight, Director of the Jennye Stubblefield Senior Center, and Katherine Woods, Nutrition Site Manager, for the certificate recognizing Mercer efforts in this area.

This community "connection", highly debated and funding compromised, is always vulnerable to funding cuts on a regular basis. The Office On Aging gives seniors opportunities to give back to their friends and families while they enjoy nutrition programs and social interaction. Hopefully, dedicated professionals like Executive Director Doremus can ensure that this positive direction will continue.

I read once that a hive of wasps, for example, sends its oldest members to the front of the hive to defend it if threatened. The theory seems to be that the younger wasps are the most valuable to the hive and have a preferred status for survival.

Thank goodness we are not shoving senior citizens to our front lines because they are considered expendable. I like to think we are more advanced on the evolutionary scale and, as such, value seniors and the elderly for the enrichment of our entire society. This is something that sets us above lower forms of life...or does it?

Congress is jammed up again on budget issues. Everytime this happens, there is a hue and cry about Social Security entitlements and the barrel of that cannon swivels around again...kapow!

When a community like the City of Trenton reaches out and acknowleges the Mercer efforts and teamwork for seniors, we all cheer. It recognizes senior issues as a productive direction for the future. The Office on Aging here in Mercer keeps chugging along, hoping for more funding, working on schedules that would knock Rocky to his knees, but always with determination and the gift of foresight that has been finally honored.

Let us keep this in mind in our next election and hold candidates accountable to our needs and issues.

Seniors rock!

Social Security "Entitlements"

I am so steamed up about this debt load from the War in Iraq that words fail me.

Back in July I wrote about this use/misuse of our Social Security Trust Fund monies.

The blog date is July 27, 2011, and the article said it pretty well. Instead of sputtering in frustration today, I invite you to read it again.

This week Congress is again waffling on budget concerns and passed a "two month extension" of approval for budget appropriations. Are they kidding?

Imagine that you are an accountant trying to keep your client organized and projections relevant. Imagine that you are a SSI or Social Security recipient and need monthly income to survive. What are they thinking?

It is time to send a bulldozer down to Washington and flatten some offices. Maybe if they have to stand in the street, like the protesters in New York and Los Angeles, Congress might get down to business faster and have much more focus.

No, I do not consider myself a tea party fancier. I am a frustrated liberal who is appalled by the lack of common sense in our capitol.

Let's cut our military budget back to Eisenhower (pre-Regan days) and let states and private enterprise do their own thing. Ethics and regulation, oversight and supervision is just so much crap. I would dearly love to hear a professorial discussion between Newt Gingrich and Barack Obama. They are both teachers and of high intellect. (Really) I would like to see just what is going on. Then we can turn our sights to Congress and the apparent dim-wits who are really running our country.

To Congress: Get a life. Get some smarts. For crying out loud, get over project and pork barrel swaps and pay attention to what the country really needs.

Get rid of lobbyists because the types of industry and business they foster are not good for the long run. An example: Buffets and catered cocktail parties to sway legislation to build a "bridge to nowhere", or "let elephants perform in the circus", or "count the number of times a shrimp jerks its legs when exposed to nasty stuff".

I am not exaggerating too much; these examples are just a bit altered from the real McCoy.

The kind of changes in our economy that we need are down at the grass roots level. Forget the 50 thousand dollar loans. Do you have any idea how many really small incubator loans can be made for that sum?

There is a church project to buy a $100 heifer for a needy woman in a poverty stricken country. The opportunity the heifer represents is hope. The heifer grows and is bred. It has a calf and gives milk. The heifer is potentially a calf producer, the milk is nutritious and can also be sold. After a couple of years, the calf/cow represents independence.

For our circumstances, micro loans can do the same thing.

Large loans incur a lot of interest and this cost is out of proportion to fledgling business ideas. Micro loans are better able to let a good idea take root and grow.

Lets think about that kind of helping hand at this holiday season.

Seniors rock.

Holiday Thanks for End of Iraq War

Today, December 18, will go down in history as the end of our involvement in Iraq. Well, hopefully that is the case.

From the first step on Iraq soil to our last nighttime trek into Kuwait, this has been a sad sojourn for America and its allies. Gas price per gallon today is $3.05 per gallon at the pump. That has nothing to do with winning or losing the war but it did have a lot to do with why we went into Iraq.

At the time President Bush was trying to convince the world that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction, we were one of the countries that had had trouble negotiating for oil with Saddam. The French were successful but Britain and the US were not getting anywhere. I was not paying attention to oil at the time but did try to affirm those reports of the infamous "weapons of mass destruction". All the quotes and sources that both the Brits and Bush were using seemed to be repeating the same origins. Now wouldn't you think that Hillary Clinton and others who opposed going in would have been smart enough to figure that out?

If everyone else is on the bandwagon, you are labeled as unpatriotic by your peers. It gets harder and harder to stay the course. I applaud those who did have the common sense to vote against our involvement. Locally, Congressman Rush Holt voted against going in. He is and was a very smart man.

What did this war really mean for our country? Now we add up the cost.

Brown University has carried out research and one study is "Cost of Wars Project".
It estimates that it cost the US between 3.2 to 4 trillion dollars to look for the phantom weapons of mass destruction. The Department of Defense cedes 357.8 billion but that was borrowed monies so there is interest due. Expect another trillion or so in the future to care for the maimed veterans who have survived to come home.

Ahem. Borrowed monies. Borrowed from where? Try our Social Security Trust Fund on for size. I am not going to say more but if a Republican Congressman stands in front of me to insist that he "must" cut my social security benefit which I am living on, because it is a superfluous "entitlement"....well, sir, follow the bear over the mountain.

Before I finish today, I suggest clicking on to the following link for a first hand reply to Newt Gingrich's blithe consideration of poverty.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/13/opinion/granderson-poor-families/index.html This is a link to a thoughtful article prompted by recent Newt Gingrich's comments.

The Social Security Trust Fund is this government's largest creditor. Don't tell me you're going to take away my Social Security just so you won't have to pay the interest on the Bush Iraq War Debt!

Seniors rock.

Pre-Holiday Jitters

Andrea Boccelli sang "Amazing Grace" on Good Morning America today. It was a hanky box spot for sure. He is just beautiful and his voice is wonderful for these special hymns. "I was blind and now I see..." just set me bawling in front of my cat and coffee. I managed not to spill my coffee and luckily no one else caught the spectacle. I just couldn't pass it up, even if I would be late to go to school. I just felt enveloped by his warm tenor voice, the Christmas decorations, the whole holiday thing....

Wow, I just took a look at the calendar. Where does the time go?

Aside from the fact that I am a year older...and I feel a year older...But, hey that's not an excuse to stop perking along. If we were roasting coffee beans what kind would you be? (Just not that super expensive kind that is harvested from monkey dung...or whatever...geez, please.)

No, I think I would be Evergreen Mountain berries that think they grew from New England or New Zealand, or some place that coffee doesn't usually grow, because I am a non-conformist for sure. Picture a greenhouse stuffed with ripening coffee berries on the slopes of New England's Mt. Washington...and when the weather gets nippy, imagine being toasted...and then steeped into your by-the-fireplace brew.

I think this nonsense is coming out of a campus-rat frazzled brain. I have a major exam tomorrow, a filming on Friday, and another presentation next week. Phew!
It is supposed to be time for holly and evergreens and I am pricked by exam schedules. I think even my teachers are burned out.

The December angst has not settled in yet and I still watch commercials thinking that "That one is nice." or "Maybe that would be great for my son-in-law." Come to think of it, there are only a handful of shopping days left before Christmas or the other celebrations in December.

I don't think I can handle anymore stress. If you have a computer you probably already shop online. Of course there are shipping costs and waiting for parcels to arrive. I found that calling stores before time to see if they carry an item does cut down on the randomness of the shopping experience. Sometimes, the stores just do not know what they have in stock and you waste a trip anyway.

I am trying not to get overly excited about this but the holidays are almost upon us.

If you know someone who is elderly or disabled, drop in on them or at least phone. Sometimes a cookie gift just might brighten up their day.

Years ago, my mom and two daughters used to get together two weekends before Christmas and bake cookies. Through the years, when grandchildren arrived, they were also included. We have some wonderful photos of the kids helping decorate the sugar and spritz cookies.

When my mother declined to the level of nursing home care, we still kept her supplied with homemade cookies. I brought in platefuls for the nurses and staff with tags that noted that my Mom and Santa had gotten togther in order to thank everyone for their friendship and caring.

If you know anyone who is hospitalized or in a nursing home this holiday season, I suggest that you drop in and pay them a visit. It is appreciated more than you know.

As senses deteriorate in an aging person, the ability to hear lasts longest. Melody and rythmn also stimulate the senses and make everyone feel so good. Try singing with some of these elderly folk and you will all have such a great time.


As the evergreen boughs come out and the ribbons unfurl, think about the end result and having family and friends home for the holidays. Ahhh. So much better this year.

Santa's elves rock.

About Thanksgiving and Rivers and Woods

Thanksgiving. I just finished writing about the holiday and for the second time, watched my article vanish. Somewhere out there there is my neat story about the holiday. I am not sure if it is Google or the prompt that keeps asking me to try the "new page"(that is what happened the last time when I said I would try). It blipped out into the nether sphere.

Oh well.

I feel like Scrooge at Christmas time. My leg is propped up on a cushion and I am not driving to visit family. Bummer. My doctor wrapped it beautifully in an ace bandage and it felt better so I think I will follow his advice and chill.

I do miss family. I miss the connecting and conversation. Phone calls and facebook just are not the same. There is an odyssey quality to "over the river and through the woods". Sometimes we would put a log on the Franklin stove and sit back with peppermint cocoa and feel the holiday seep into our bones. Sitting in the living room, in a house set into the hemlocks and rocks with an address known as "Lime Kiln" or "Bear Cave Road", somehow says it all. It's about history and the journey.

One of the articles on TV today was about an octopus that had left his ocean lair for open air to look for lunch on land. I watched fascinated as he went to dinner "over the river and through the woods to Grandmother's House". I know many of us are also travelling this week in order to greet family and friends and share in this harvest tradition. I guess, looking at this octopus as he felt he had to seek broader hunting options, that we have something in common.

This is the time of year to be celebrating joy and family, of course. The media is full of the usual obligatory story line of giveaways and reunions. We keep tissues at the ready. But come on now, what about the shenanigans in Washington? Once again the Social Security program issue is up for grabs. I am not a Tea Party follower but we have to get a grip on our finances and it should not come at seniors' expense.

Senior centers feature donations of day old bread, damaged fruits and vegetables, foodstuffs that markets are not able to merchandise and there is a scramble as seniors pick over damaged goods to stretch limited pensions. Many seniors have a history that dates back to the Great Depression where salvage skills meant survival.

When Social Security was first designed, it coincided with the growth and lobbying of evolving corporations who were defensive of social oriented programs that might cut into their profits.

I am reminded of the woman who personally thanked President Roosevelt after Social Security was first implemented and she finally had eye glasses and coal for her furnace.

Today, our society is fractured, in most households both mothers and fathers work, and most families today are not able to care for the elderly. Social Security has become a lifeline.

The Protest Wall Street movement has spread all over the world as the basic needs for food and shelter have become global priorities. If we are not going to address these issues now, there is going to be a bigger catastrophy than global warming as social unrest floods our world.

I think back to Thanksgivings where we did celebrate harvest. That was the time when pigs became sausage, beef was canned, frozen or dried into jerky, vegetables were salted down or put in the root cellar to be enjoyed in the winter months. The jars of fruit and pickles were jewels in the basement as precious as a savings account. But now your Thanksgiving basket is likely to be store-bought bread, canned cranberry sauce, canned veggies, and the ubiquitous frozen turkey. That takes money and therefore becomes that perfect example of what has happened to our society.

With all the resources this country has, we should not let Congress lynch seniors on a limb of expediency while most of our country's resources are held by an elite one percent.

I am dedicating my comments today to my family and grandchildren, my friends, and especially to my mom and all those loved ones we lost this year.

Seniors rock.

Death Derivatives Must Be Stopped

In case you forgot: I told you so. Not just once but twice.

Derivatives are bad. Betting on bundles of stuff like life insurance policies and using retirement trust funds to do it is making retirees invest in interests that would profit by their deaths.

Keith Fitz-Gerald, the Chief Investment Strategist for Money Morning, in the October 12, 2011 edition, calls death derivatives the next global "black swan". He finally picked up on what I have been harping on for over 18 months.

Insurance companies should not be in the life and medical business. Life insurance policies that pay out when a person dies, have a liability for the insurance company at the time they have to pay the claim. They are required to keep reserves to pay claims and the longer a policy holder lives, the longer they have to keep money around and the less profit they make.

If an insured dies in an expected time, the company covers it. If it takes longer, that money is tied up until needed. Worse yet is that dropped policies can be rescued if someone invests (picks up premium payments) and plans on a return soon, ie a cancer patient or someone who statistically will not live past a certain point.

Banks pick up these policies, bundle them, make money on the transfer fees or speculating on possible return, so they add them to inventory.

The SEC asked one of these companies, Life Partners to describe how they managed to set a value on their product. Keep in mind that there is nothing tangible to back these bundles up other than the possibility that the insured will die sooner rather than later.

I think derivatives are gambling, a huge Ponzi scheme that will drag down the world economy, because there is nothing tangible to back them up.

See my posts of 5/14/11, 2/14/11 and the initial one about murder derivatives May 3, 2010.

And an afterthought, I imagine that some of the profits of these billions of unsecured dollars find their way to the bonuses of major bankers and enable their lavish life styles. This is not the way our Calvinest hard work ethics is supposed to work.

What ever happened to ethics? Shouldn't Wall Street's way of doing business reflect tangible things like selling a real product instead of gambling?

Maybe those Wall Street picketers are on to something.

Seniors rock.

Is This the New Normal?

I am watching Sunday morning news reports while reading Google computer generated news items and, as the scramble of images fires up my brain, I wonder: Is the ugliness of today and media presentations the sign of a new "normal"?

President Obama is faced with another budget showdown on September 30 if our legislators cannot agree on another budget extension. That means another "a-ha!" moment for seniors who wonder if social security checks will be issued October 1.

And that is not the best part....

President Obama has trumpeted that the challenge facing our country is the choice of taxing our millionaires and billionaires...or making seniors pay more for Medicare. "Its simple math..." he says.

The issues going on behind the scenes break down to scaling back tax subsidies, letting Bush tax cuts expire, or making the investments tax a flat 15%. Presently, many wealthy investors manage to pay much less or even zero dollars as they take advantage of tax breaks and deductions. The Republican alternative is to cut back on seniors' Medicare and Social Security benefits while keeping billionaires tax structure status quo.

Has anyone heard about the protests in Wall Street this week? Protests so large that 80 people were brutally arrested in just one day? There seems to be a media blackout about volatility in the heart of our New York financial district. There are hundreds of protesters, living in the streets, until their point is made. We are covering the events in Syria and Arab countries more thoroughly than we are in New York City.

What is going on here? Do any of you remember the protests of the sixties? I do. I remember Kruschev pounding his shoe at the UN. We were huddled in the Student Center at Rutgers at the time and were sure that a bomb was going to be launched at any minute. I remember protests about the Vietnam war. Getting married and dropping out of school meant that my husband was deferred from being drafted in that ill devised entry which cost thousands of American lives. I remember Kent University and the Black Freedom movement, I remember Michael Luther King before he became charismatic Martin Luther King and the symbol of African American justice in America. I remember those protests and the media coverage that let the rest of the world understand their messages.

So how come there is no coverage about this protest in New York? This "Occupy Wall Street" protest is intended to bring attention to their desperation: "We are the 99 percent...getting kicked out of our homes...forced to choose between groceries...medical care...getting nothing while the other one percent is getting everything."

Some protesters have joined ranks as college graduates with hefty tuition bills, over a hundred thousand dollars, with no job opportunities in sight. Others have lost homes and find the tent city accommodations on the street to be their "normal".

Wall Street has become demonized, but more importantly, what was once viewed as an engine of our capitalist economy is now facing transparency, regulation, more bankruptcies, for a new reality. These 21st century protestors march for the same human basic needs as those in France and Russia a hundred years ago.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Lets hope this is not the new "Normal".

Seniors vote.