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Government
US ANIMAL HOUSE?
Does anyone know why Congress has fallen to an all time low, with a single digit approval rating?
It's not because it continues to fail in approving their agenda. That's not it. The US public sees our dysfunctional Congress, which appears to act more like an animal house divided than a house of representatives for The United States of America.
MISSION IMPOSSIBLE?
A Jew, a Communist and a practicing Catholic were working a construction site in Argentina. It’s not a joke but a story Pope Francis told to a group of young Cubans urging them to seek friendships across the political divide. “They were all working for the common good,” Francis said. “This is social friendship, to look for the common good.” It is a poignant message in the Cuban nation split between pro and anti-regime sentiments.
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AMERICAN POPE
As the first Pontiff from Latin America, he can be referred to as a truly American Pope. So will The Holy Father teach our US politicians a good lesson in humility and how to get along with one another, or is that really asking for too much?
After touring Cuba and lecturing the Castro brothers about the importance of religious freedom and service, The Pontiff is expected to arrive today and meet with President, Vice President and will also address a joint session of Congress.
US RACE AND IMMIGRATION REFORMS
According to MSNBC/Telemundo/Marist Poll of the United States findings, immigration reform and race relations continue to be hot-button issues in the headlines and for the 2016 presidential campaign. When it comes to U.S. immigration policy, many Americans, including more than eight in ten Latinos, think that birthright should remain in place so that children born in this country receive U.S. citizenship, regardless of whether or not their parents are undocumented immigrants. Americans divide about whether or not the term “anchor baby” is offensive.
TWO FOR TWO?
Here we go again, folks... The possibility of another federal government shutdown, which would be the second in two years is growing. US House conservatives oppose any funding for Planned Parenthood.
A move that blocks funding for Planned Parenthood would almost certainly lack the votes to pass the Senate, and would be vetoed by President Obama.
But House Republicans lack GOP votes to approve a funding measure that continues Planned Parenthood, and don't want to negotiate with Democrats.
House Democrats are demanding negotiations with GOP leaders on a budget. They also want spending limits known as the sequester to be lifted, and it’s not clear they’d back a short-term spending measure written by the GOP with no concessions.
Boehner: Shutdown will hurt anti-abortion rights movement http://www.politico.com/story/2015/09/boehner-shutdown-will-hurt-pro-li…
The Government May Shut Down Again, And Rand Paul Says Democrats Are To Blame http://thkpr.gs/3700419 via @thinkprogress
Here’s what another government shutdown could look like http://on.mktw.net/1Kfld0S
SINKTEMBER STOCKS?
The Dow plunged 470 points, while oil prices sink 8 percent in a grim beginning for a weak September.
US stock-market sunk as it kicked off September with heavy losses on the heels of the worst month for Wall Street since 2012 with serious concerns over the strength of the global economy.
U.S. stocks suffer 3rd-worst drop of year on weak China data http://on.mktw.net/1Jzh6eF
Wall Street kicks off stormy Sept: Dow plunges 470 points on weak China data http://usat.ly/1EyPojc via @usatoday
Dow nosedives 470 points on more China fears http://cnnmon.ie/1Fg4vZD via @CNNMoney
CONGRESSIONAL VACATIONS
US Congress will soon return from yet another long vacation, and the do nothing legislative group will be facing their own version of Mission Impossible filled with perilous political predicaments.
While some say our national leadership will certainly have its hands full, others fear it will be business as usual and very little will get accomplished before their next vacation.
5 perilous issues for Boehner when Congress returns http://usat.ly/1Eea1B3 via @usatoday
Obama’s Quiet Vacation Will Yield to a Noisy September http://nyti.ms/1PtBIpQ
YOGA THERAPY
During the last 10 years, the number of articles in peer-reviewed journals worldwide about clinical trials of yoga therapy to alleviate disease-related symptoms increased 3-fold. This large-scale analysis of published research studies spanning 46 years, 29 countries, and more than 28,000 study participants is published in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine website until September 17, 2015.
Pamela Jeter, PhD, Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD) and Maryland University of Integrative Health (Laurel, MD), Sat Bir Khalsa, PhD, Harvard Medical School (Boston, MA), and coauthors found that yoga therapy was most often used for the treatment of mental health, cardiovascular disease, and respiratory disease. They report their findings in the article “Yoga as a Therapeutic Intervention: A Bibliometric Analysis of Published Research Studies from 1967 to 2013.” This study was supported in part by the Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust (PYP USA).
SOCIAL SECURITY LAW
80 years ago today, back in 1935, US Congress passed the Social Security Act and President Franklin D. Roosevelt immediately signed it into law.
Provides for federal contributions of up to $15 a month a person, starting soon, to help states pension their most needy aged residents.
Establishes a great national annuity system by which an estimated 25,000,000 workers and their employers will be taxed billions of dollars through the years, and workers will be paid $10 to $85 a month by the government when they are 65 and jobless.