Understanding Another's Point of View

I have been reading a lot lately, trying to understand why so many Tennesseans seem willing to vote against their own interests. It’s something that has puzzled me for some time.

I understand that sometimes two people can look at the same thing and see it differently. That’s human nature. To my surprise, I found we are not that different after all. We just differ by degrees.

For instance, we, you and I have strong feelings about fairness. We think it’s wrong that the top 1% of Americans own more than the bottom 50%, that it’s wrong for children to live in poverty. We believe that women should earn what their male counterparts do, especially when so many single, head-of-households are women. The list goes on.

Then I learned that Republicans believe strongly in fairness, too. But they define it as proportionality. If people work hard and are successful, they should get to keep that as much of that money as they can. If people are lazy no accounts, that may be their choice, but it’s not up to those who have to support their life styles.

In a way, I agree with that extreme view. If a person is a lazy slug, perhaps he should get a whack to the head to get his attention. Perhaps he should learn that in this country there’s no free lunch. Perhaps.

But the people I meet, those so called slugs, are the working poor. They work one, sometimes two or three jobs just to pay the rent. That leaves almost no money for food, clothing, and other basic needs. These people aren’t lazy. Not by a long shot. So, why is it that they need help?

I’ll tell you. In 1968, the minimum wage was $1.60/hr. A working person could pay the rent, feed and clothe a family of three. They didn’t live a king’s life, but they got by. And they had the gift of time. Time to be with each other. Time to parent. Time to go to the park and have a picnic.

Today, a person has to work three weeks at minimum wage to pay for a modest apartment. He or she has to work two jobs to be sure there’s food on the table and that their kids have shoes. There is no time. No time to love their children, to guide them to adulthood. No time to help them with their homework or listen to their concerns. They and their children are virtual strangers to one another. So, while I agree that lazy, no accounts might not deserve my help, I have yet to meet them in any great numbers.

I have met single moms who are waitresses. If anyone here has been a waitress, you know the toll that job takes on your body, how your feet ache at the end of the day from being on your feet for hours on end. Imagine what it was like back in 1995 when the minimum wage for wait staff was $2.13/hr., when there were no sick days, or healthcare.

Contrast that to today, when the minimum wage for wait staff is, wait, $2.13/hr, with no sick days and no healthcare.

Imagine the waitress, a mother with children to support, who has come down with a cold or a fever. Unlike us, she has a choice to make. Do I stay home to rest, and forego the money, or do I take myself, and my cold, to wait on my clients?

I can now see their point. I hope someday they can see mine.

When?

When will Tennesseans finally catch on to the destruction being wrought on the state by its elected politicians. When will Tennesseans realize the long-term damage being done to our state by legislators whose actions serve only themselves or their deep pocket donors.

We are the ninth poorest state in the nation. We are 44^th in education and 39^th in child poverty, with 26% of our children living below the poverty level. Instead of focusing their efforts on these issues, the ones that most affect the future of our state, our legislators spend their time waging war.

Instead of waging war on poverty, they wage war on the poor.

Instead of working to improve education, they work to privatize it so only the rich will have access to quality educations while the bulk of our children will be relegated to lower levels of quality.

Instead of feeding the poorest among us so they can come to school each day prepared to learn, they pass blame for poor performance on teachers, parents who work low paying jobs in an attempt to support their families, and anyone else they can effectively scapegoat.

When will Tennesseans finally take the steps needed to rid themselves of the self-serving legislators and lift the state up by its bootstraps?

November's a good time.

Responding to Chuck Fleischmann's email

“Secretary Sebelius is finally stepping down from her position atop the agency in charge of Obamacare.  All I can say is, it’s about time.  Obamacare has been a disaster for the American people, and Secretary Sebelius has played a large role in that disaster.  In fact, just over two weeks ago, she lied to Congress and the American people when asked about potential Obamacare delays.”

                                                            Chuck Fleischmann  Representative TN 3^rd District

I just got this in from the Congressman. All I can say is, going into his fourth year as Congresman, he has spent the bulk of his time working AGAINST the needs of his constituents. He and his cronies spent 50 MILLION DOLLARS in YOUR TAX dollars to try to stop, then overturn the Affordable Care Act. And, the damned fool is proud of it.

He’s proud  of the fact that, while over 7.1 MILLION AMERICANS have signed on for affordable health care, most of them for the very first time, he was worked against it.

He's proud that the TN state legislators did their best to deprive all the State's constituents, including his. 

He’s proud that he and his cronies spent the $50 million to send a message, even if it failed.

What’s the real message in all this?

It’s, “Hi, I’m Chuck Fleischmann, I am proud to have spent over three years in this battle to deny my neediest constituents much needed health care. As for myself and my family, we have excellent coverage – thanks to you and the $174,000 you pay me every year for a little over 100 days ‘work’. The fact that teachers work 180 days/year for 1/5^th of that number should not make you wonder if we’re over paid. After all, we’re the US Congress, the group most Americans hold in lowest esteem.

“ To be fair, there are other issues I could have worked on*, but I didn’t. I could have introduced bills to

Pass the American Jobs Act

Raise the minimum wage

Pass the Paycheck Fairness Act

Pass a Responsible Homeowner Refinancing Act

Create an infrastructure bank

Repeal tax breaks for outsourcing jobs

Create tax incentives for insourcing jobs

**See fuller list below

But I didn’t.

I did sponsor four bills in the House of Representatives which, by one account, govtrack.us*, had between ZERO and SIX percent chances of being enacted.

WHAT WERE THESE BILLS THAT RECEIVED SUCH LITTLE ATTENTION?

 H.R. 282: REFUND ACT                                                                            January 15, 2013

What does that name tell you about the bill?

The full title reads:

To rescind certain Federal funds identified by States as unwanted and use the funds to reduce Federal debt.

Out of 434 other representatives in the US House of Representatives, I was able to find only 33 to co-sponsor his bill. Chances of being enacted: 6%

Was there any real savings there? Not so much. States may say they don’t want the money but none of them try very hard to send it back.

H.R. 283: Account Act                                                                                 January 15, 2013

What does that name tell you about the bill?

The full title reads:

To require the approval by the head of an agency for any conference costing more than $25,000, and for other purposes.

Out of 434 other representatives in the US House of Representatives, I was able to find   20 members to co-sponsor his bill. Chances of being enacted: 1%

H.R. 1931: EASY Savings Act of 2013                                                                 May 9, 2013

What does that name tell you about the bill?

The full title reads:

        To amend title 5, United States Code, to enhance the authority under which  Federal

        agencies may pay cash awards to employees for making cost saving disclosures, and 

        for other purposes.

Out of 434 other representatives in the US House of Representatives, I was able to find 15 to co-sponsor his bill. Chances of being enacted: 1%

H.R. 2885: Growing Jobs Through Capital Act of 2013                                      July 31, 2013

What does that name tell you about the bill?

The full title reads:

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to temporarily exclude capital gain  from gross income.

Out of 434 other representatives in the US House of Representatives, I was able to find ANYONE to co-sponsor this bill. Chances of being enacted: 0%

Hey, it was my way to give money back to people who are already rich beyond their needs.

Thank YOU for the Money!

For this performance, Tennessee taxpayers (that’s YOU!) paid Me over $174,000 PLUS.

Let’s not forget that I did sign on to over 300 bills introduced by others, some of which damaged the lives of many of my District 3 constituents, including hospitals, nurses and doctors; teachers, fire fighters and police; low income parents of children ranging from newborns to school age; seniors, the underemployed and unemployed. But signing they endeared me to the people who matter – to me.

  

While There’s Time, Ask Yourself,

“Is it possible to elect to office a person with the competence to represent Tennessee’s interests, to work on issues that mean something, someone who is committed to the benefit of All Tennesseans?”

“Is it possible that there is one candidate on the ballot who has a proven track record of achievement in professional life whose work demonstrates the caring, commitment and competence our state needs in these chaotic times?”

Sure, it’s possible. But that’s not me, and I’m here. And, even though I’m doing nothing for my state, I still get elected. Why is that, do you think?

**Other Things I Could Have Done

Update and strengthen the Voting Rights Act

Revive the 2010 DISCLOSE Act to shed light on corporate money in politics

Pass a Supreme Court ethics act

Authorize states to restrict out-of-state campaign contributions

Institute a carbon tax to address climate change

Reduce tax breaks for oil companies

Increase support for sustainable clean energy

Pass an immigration bill

Ban assault weapons

Institute universal background checks for gun sales

Institute universal pre-K education

Pass a paid parental leave act

Hold a conference with the Senate to pass a federal budget

Revive domestic safety-net programs shredded by sequestration

Restore the 1.6 million jobs being lost to sequestration

Restore international development aid lost to sequestration

Restore sequestration cuts to Medicare’s fraud-control program

Renovate the U.S. Postal Service

Restore the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (aka food stamps)

Restrict junk food advertising to children

Cut subsidies to agribusiness

Pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act

Ban racial profiling by police departments

Reform drug laws to end mass incarceration

Hold open hearings on the NSA’s XKeyscore program

Hold open hearings on the NSA’s PRISM program

Restrict and regulate drone assassinations

End restrictions on the transfer of cleared prisoners from Guantanamo

Repeal the Hyde amendment and restore Medicaid funding for abortion

Remove military sexual assault proceedings from the military chain of command

Address the backlog on VA benefits

Are there any other things I could have done? Sure. But more than likely I wouldn’t have.

Thank you for your support – and for your welfare checks (the checks you pay for my welfare).

* http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/40-things-the-house-could-have-done-while-it

Angelo Prologue

George Lawson died today, not by intent and not by his own hand.

Traffic outside the bank was heavy but controlled. Smart street lights adjusted for the pattern. Anyone monitoring the flow would see nothing untoward. The short-term commercial parking spots in front of the bank filled and emptied in predictable fashion. No one took note of the black Econoline vans as they pulled in an parked.

Inside the bank, dozens of people stood at kiosks and ATMs, completing deposit tickets and withdrawing money. No one noticed the individual men standing in an unrecognized pattern throughout the lobby, two of them talking as if in normal conversation.

No one except George. While he didn’t know exactly what was going on, he felt it prudent to scan the room with his smart phone, recording the action, and pausing at key intervals to take close ups of the men in question.

He never heard the bullets that struck his forehead and heart. The phone falling from his hand recorded only shadows of images running helter-skelter until voices told them to stop. It recorded the orders that followed and the explosion that toppled a work station and sent a flow of paper forms over it.

George died trying to stream photos to the outside world. Whatever else he had done in his 32 years, he would be remembered in print for this, a stand-out among the eleven deceased whose day did not go as planned.

What Are Your Prescription Drugs Really Costing You?

What Are Your Prescription Drugs Really Costing You? 

David Belew loves his work. Ask him about his pharmacy and a smile fills his face. He radiates with pride. Dave is the second generation of Belew Drugs, a local independent community pharmacy begun by his father decades ago. The store is nestled in a small shopping center on Broadway. From humble beginnings, Belew now owns three pharmacies.

Just up the street, on the corner of Washington Pike and Whittle Springs Rd. is Mac’s Pharmacy. Owner Mac Wilhoit, like young Mr. Belew, is proud of his store. And, like Belew, Mac owns more than one pharmacy . Mac’s son, Mike, operates the store in Powell.

A steady stream of customers flow in and out of Mac’s. They are served by Mac and his staff, some of whom are students in pharmacy programs in three local programs, the University of Tennessee, South College and East Tennessee State University. Mac is vibrant, and welcoming. There’s an openness about him that resonates with his customers and this interviewer.

On the north side of the city, at 815 Merchants Road, Bob Boyd serves his clients at Norwood Pharmacy, like he has for decades.  He knows them well, and they know him.

Dave, Mac and Bob are some of the remaining islands of independent community pharmacies (ICPs) amidst a sea of big box pharmacy retailers. ICPs in Knoxville are outnumbered some ten to one. In a city which, like the nation, sees all pharmacies alike, what consumers don’t know about big box stores can hurt them financially -- to the tune of thousands of dollars each year per person.*

I know this because of what happened to me. A year ago this month, I went for a routine check up with my cardiologist in Michigan. Three days later, I was getting four stents placed in my arteries. With today’s technology, it’s virtually an outpatient procedure. Before leaving Michigan, the doctor gave me four prescriptions, which you’ll see below. The important thing to pay attention to is what happened next. 

Rather than wait to fill the scripts in Tennessee, I went to the Target store in a nearby shopping center.

I handed them the script for Plavix, a blood thinner, and asked for the cash price of the generic version to save money. The generic is called Clopidogrel; their price $126 for 30 tablets. I thanked the clerk and moved on. Second stop, Krogers, in the same strip of stores. Same script, $54 for 30 days. A local independent community pharmacy about a mile away quoted $18 for the same script and earned my business.

Follow me, now. When I returned to Tennessee, I priced Clopidogrel at Krogers, expecting a $54 quote. Their price, $196.  Target on the east side was within a dollar or two. At a number of independent community pharmacies in the city, and in local communities to the east, prices ranged from $12-$19 -- all things being equal.

Now, if you’re insured, you may not see this spread. You’ll pay a co-pay, perhaps, and be on your way. But Knoxville has tens of thousands of people without prescription drug coverage. They need to know the difference between (a) big box chains -- like the one on the corner of healthy and happy that charges the higher prices -- (b) its competitive counterpart that usually has the store on the opposite corner -- and (c) the community pharmacies that have served the city for decades. 

Why do they need to know this? Because, for many those price differentials drive some gut wrenching, life decisions -- like. “Do I pay for these meds, or my rent?”  “Do I manage my health or feed my children?”

To drive the point home, consider that I only referenced one drug. I needed four. The four together came to roughly $49/month at independents like Belew, Mac’s, Norwood and others. At the big box stores, the ones that . advertise endlessly on television, OVER $350. Dear reader, it means I could buy a seven month’s supply for what the big box stores charge for ONE month!  I could use that money to pay for all or part of six month’s rent or six month’s groceries.

As you think about that, i draw your attention to my home town, Cheshire, Connecticut. Growing up there in the middle 1950s-1960s, I recall there were three independent community pharmacies: Morton’s Pharmacy on the south side; Carrington’s by the church green; and, Cheshire Pharmacy, on the corner of W. Main and Maple Ave. Of them, Morton’s was the only one with a soda fountain. 

Today, there are none. Instead, there are a number of big box pharmacies, both stand-alone and inside the grocery chain stores. Morton’s is a CVS. I priced out the same four drugs. They range from $160 $208/month, or $1920-$2496/year. That’s between four and five times more than an independent. Cheshire is an upscale community, where money is less of an issue.But while the town has no independent community pharmacies, they do have residents who are uninsured. Like Knoxville, those people face difficult choices. Unlike Knoxville, they have fewer options. Fortunately, though, they have Costco, whose prices are a fraction of the cost. And, Costco Pharmacy sells to everyone, so there’s no need to have a membership.

At the end of the day, it’s up to each of us to decide where to shop. I have insurance, with a co-pay which varies by the pharmacy I choose. I could pay a lower amount if I use the insurances company’s preferred pharmacy or their mail order company but I don’t.  I want to make sure my uninsured friends have options, so I support my local independent community pharmacy, at the corner of fairness and compassion. I hope you do, too.

There’s an app for that:  If you want to check prices on prescription drugs, a new app available online for free is: www.goodrx.com The site is pretty informative and easy to use. just put in the name of the drug you want, the strength and number of tablets, along with you zip code and the app does the rest. Most times you don’t need their coupon. You just need to know which places have the best prices. Start by calling to confirm.I think you’ll find as good a deal or better at Independent Community Pharmacies every time.  

Good Shopping.

The Canadian Option for Brand Name Drugs

To be clear, brand name drugs are those that are still under patent. Since there are no generic equivalents, the prices generally are many times higher. For example, blood thinner Plavix retails for over $200, whereas the generic, Clopidogrel sells for between $12 and $196, as previously noted.

The alternative for brand names is to buy them from Canada.

No kidding. The Canadian government negotiated pricing with drug manufacturers and those negotiated prices are light years from what Americans pay, in any pharmacy. An acquaintance was paying over $1100/month for three drugs: Strattera, Seroquel and Abilify. Today, she gets them from Canada, for less than $200.

The state of Maine** passed a law permitting the importation of prescription drugs from Canada. The results were that the city of Portland, ME, saved some $200,000/year. A small manufacturer of wood sticks used in popsicles and corn dogs saved $400,000. Across the state, tens of thousands of Maine’s citizens are enjoying the benefits. One man saved $100/month on drugs for his son’s asthma. 

In Maine, where wages are modest at best, $100 goes a long way. It’s that way in Tennessee, too. So, a law to permit importing prescription drugs could save cities like Nashville, Memphis, Chattanooga, Knoxville and others thousands as well. The savings for Tennessee’s citizens and Tennessee corporations can be in the millions. 

There is plenty of precedence for importation. If Tennessee were to do that, they would be following actions taken by others:

“In fact, New Hampshire, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Rhode Island and North Dakota have already launched state Web sites that help consumers order prescriptions online from approved Canadian pharmacies. The cities of Springfield, Mass.; Montgomery, Ala. and Burlington, Vt. also operate voluntary mail-in programs that supply municipal workers and retirees with prescription medications from Canada.”      http://www.csg.org/knowledgecenter/docs/TA0406DrugImport.pdf 

Other Ways to Save

Buy the drug in double the dose and cut the tablets. Many drugs come with a score mark exactly for that purpose. For example, the man who buys Viagra in 50mg strength pays something like $30.50/tablet. The 100mg tablet sells for, you guessed it, $30.50/tablet. If he buys the 100 mg and cuts it in half, he has doubled the number of tablets, or halved his costs. You get the picture. Using the same example, Viagra 50mg through Canada retails for $12.33/tablet; the 100mg, $13.35. You do the math.

Now, this doesn’t work for all drugs. Time release drugs are an example. Ask your doctor for advice. And, while you’re at it, ask for free samples.

Middle class incomes have been declining for decades. The result is family budgets are strained to the breaking point. Independent community pharmacies understand that, as they always have. They show their understanding by keeping their prices reasonable and manageable for the majority of their clients. Big box stores don’t share that same concern. Their business model is less social, driven as it is by the need to maximize profits at all costs, while putting on a false front. It’s the story of the labrador and the Scorpion*.

Some states have representation, while others have elected officials who feign representation but have little to show in results. Those states with proper representation have laws permitting the importation of prescription drugs with positive results all around; savings for state and local governments (your tax dollars); savings for corporations with prescription drug benefit plans; savings for individuals and their families. Tennessee is not one of them. Perhaps someday, newly elected Tennessee legislators will come to serve, and things will improve for all Tennesseans. Perhaps.

Joe Malgeri

Dandridge, TN 

February 20, 2104

* Why generic drugs don’t necessarily mean lower prices

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/health-july-dec13-generics_12-23/ 

** Maine’s prescription for drug savings: Go foreign

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/health-july-dec13-mainerx_11-09/ 

My Opponent Says:

My opponent says we have a financial problem. Put plain, we’re spending too much money, a lot more than we can afford. We need fiscal responsibility.

My opponent says a lot of that money was not even ours. We borrowed that money. Now we have huge debts and the interest alone is a threat to our financial well-being.

My opponent says we need to cut ’Entitlement Spending’ to get our costs in line.

I have given his words a great deal of thought. It’s not that we’re spending too much money. It’s what we’re spending the money on!

It’s not that we borrowed way too much money and took on too much debt, It’s Why we borrowed the money and put ourselves in debt.

Let’s look at those issues. 

First, the billions we borrowed.

• We borrowed the money to finance tax breaks for the rich. If we didn’t have the money, why would we do that? 
• We borrowed that money from China. If we’re so sure they’re an enemy, why would we do that? 
• If China sees us in the same way, why would they loan us the money?
• We borrowed the money to pay for two wars, one of which we are still waging, and for incursions into sovereign nations we call allies. If we had, instead said, “We’re going to pay for these wars by taxing our citizens.”, there would have been no wars. If we had said, “We have to reinstitute the draft.” there would have been no wars, either.

Let’s look at where our money goes. The biggest slice of the spending pie is for the military, where we spend over $600 Billion each year. That’s ten times what our perceived threat, China, spends. Six hundred billion dollars is more than the military budgets of the next eighteen nations combined, most of whom are our friends and allies.

We all agree that we must be a strong nation, that a national defense is necessary. Can we all agree that overspending for armament that we neither need, nor will ever use is wasteful? We can do better!

Let’s look at where we are not spending money and see if there’s a threat to us for that reason.  We do not spend much money on the poor. In fact, we’re cutting the spending we are doing. On the face of it, that’s wrong. It’s immoral to leave children unfed and unclothed, and oftentimes on the street.

Morality aside, it’s also fiscally irresponsible.

When we don’t take care of the least of us,

            Early childhood development is stunted. Children who are poor start school fully two years behind their better cared for peers. They have a three million word deficit in  their vocabulary from the start.

When we don’t take care of the least of us,

• Children go to school hungry, ill prepared to learn. They fall behind once more.  
• Children go to school hungry. They pay less attention in class, they act out more in class,  and they miss more days of school due to illness. These are not discipline issues, they’re easily understood cause and effect relationships.

When we don’t take care of the least of us,

Large numbers of underperforming teenagers drop out of school. They’re unemployable.  In a nation that needs workers with better skills than ever, we are destroying resources in the millions. We’ll pay for that in the long run, in lower competitiveness, in higher social costs.

When we don’t take care of the least of us, we find over time that our place in the world has diminished. We have not taken care of the least of us, and our rankings have, indeed, plummeted, in all categories that matter, including life expectancy, quality of life, and opportunities for the future.

What we don’t invest in now, we pay dearly for later. The people we leave behind now will cost us an estimated $500 Billion in the future. See the connection?

If we look at out military arsenal, we have some 3,000 fighter aircraft and some 3,000 fighter pilots. The last combat pilot to engage the enemy, a junior officer at the time, is now a retired general. That’s a long time ago.

Three thousand planes is as many as China has, and thousands more than the rest of the world’s militaries. Yet. We have on order an additional 2,500. Why is that?

It’s not because the military wants them. Generals have time and time again said we don’t need them. And it’s not just planes they don’t need. It’s tanks and armored personnel carriers. If anything, they could use more drones. They’re more effective, and they’re a darn sight less expensive.

Why is it that we continue to build armament that our own generals don’t want?

It’s because Congress loves it. It keeps congressmen in office. It keeps their constituents working. It’s what is robbing our coffers of monies needed elsewhere –

For infrastructure, to replace the electrical grid systems that are on the verge of failure across the nation. We don’t have to fight and lose to a superior enemy force to be ruined as a nation. We just have to let the grid fail massively.

For infrastructure to replace the arteries over which all our nation’s commerce runs. Our roads and bridges are crumbling and collapsing around us. We don’t have to fight and lose to a superior enemy force to be ruined as a nation. We just have to let the infrastructure collapse under its own weight.

For the price of two jets, we can replace thousands of miles of roads and begin rebuilding failing bridges.

For the price of two jets,  we can rebuild crumbling schools, give better pay for teachers, invest in books and tablets, and expand wireless internet to all areas of the state.

We don’t have to fight and lose to a superior enemy force to be ruined as a nation. We just have to let the education systems that made us strong deteriorate around us, then let the vultures pick and choose who they want to educate, and take huge chunks of our tax dollars for profit – dollars that will never benefit the nation that needs to do better.

For the price of one jet we can feed 17,500 children for a year, and in the process advance their early childhood development, the first step in creating the nation we all want.

When we feed our children wholesome meals, we advance our nation. When we nurture our children, our fortunes improve. When we lovingly guide all our children our society strengthens and we become better for it.

Last, to his statements on ‘Entitlement spending’.  By and large, the spending he refers to implies that people feel, wrongly in his view, entitled, to Social Security and Medicare, like it’s owed them.

The nation’s seniors get these services because they are entitled to them, They paid in those dollars over their entire working lives for the express purpose of having a small nest egg for their senior years.  They are entitled.

As for the costs, it is not the costs of these programs that threaten our nation. It is the costs of wars, tax breaks for the non-job creators, the draining of government revenues, taxpayers’ dollars by corporations who are strategically keeping their profits off shore rather than pay their fair share of taxes, the draining of government revenues through unnecessary tax breaks that are the real causes of our fiscal problems.

The problem is not that we’re not taking in enough money. It’s that our legislators are preventing your government from receiving revenues from tax dodgers, in return for campaign contributions to keep them in office.

There are solutions to all this. Happily, they’re available and, while they’ll take time, they are easy to implement. We just have to agree that we want them.

We have to agree that rebuilding at home is better than incursions abroad. We have to agree that new roads and bridges, new electrical grids take priority over bombs and planes.

We have to agree that an educated population is preferable to a nation woefully overburdened with uneducated, unemployed, underutilized human assets.

We have to believe that we can be the nation we keep telling ourselves One Nation, Under God, Indivisible with Liberty and Justice for All.

Are we ready?