Hearing aids and health care

Just thinking and wondering what would happen if both of my hearing-aids died today and I can't afford to buy them anytime soon. I need those hearing-aids to communicate with my family, friends and co-workers. Its a necessity, not cosmetic or anything. Most insurances do not cover at all or only cover partial. I have other bills like everyone else including those who are "able" who don't have any disabilities to spent money on.

While I am against socialist concept of health care and prefer to have the flexibility to get the insurance we want through our employment or other means. There should be a way that the government can work with the employers to provide health insurance for ALL employees. Those who are unable to work should be able to get health care through the government.

Its one of those thoughts I have been thinking lately. The only hope—for the doctors, for their patients, for all of us—is for the doctors to assert a moral principle. Individual freedom and personal choice, rooted in American values, provide principled health care, moral health care, and the best health care. That is why United States have the best in the world. The only problem is that "lack of funds" by those who needs medical attention.

Today, we need to define, understand and establish health and medical ethical boundaries. Both morality and politics must be discussed before the relation between political rights and health care can be appreciated. If the government controls everything, do we think it will be more responsive to the needs of individual patients? We should look at the public education as an example.

However, as you can see, public education have not been doing so good lately in the United States. Other countries are gaining ahead of us in educating our kids.

Now, I have Multiple Sclerosis to deal with and my financial picture is not very pretty.

City Zoning Laws are preventing us from "Going Green"

In Columbus, Ohio - Going green is not productive due to zoning laws. In today's Columbus Dispatch, there is an article called "Family might get burned by solar panels". Where the city basically disagreed with itself when they gave a homeowner permission and then they got a violation notice.

Columbus have this website called "Get Green Columbus". On February 22, 2007, Mayor Coleman, with the support of City Council, signed the U.S. Mayors' Climate Protection Agreement. However, according to the latest article we have read, it is not really happening. In 2006, they have this "Green Principles" in which The City of Columbus is committed to achieving an environmentally sustainable community that meets today’s needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs, and accepts the responsibility to promote these Green Principles in policy decisions and programs.

Many companies, local governments and others are going green. "Going green" means to pursue knowledge and practices that can lead to more environmentally friendly and ecologically responsible decisions and lifestyles, which can help protect the environment and sustain its natural resources for current and future generations.

U.S. EPA have a website that is called Green Power. The Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that supports the organizational procurement of green power by offering expert advice, technical support, tools and resources. Partnering with EPA can help your organization lower the transaction costs of buying green power, reduce its carbon footprint, and communicate its leadership to key stakeholders. Green power is electricity produced from a subset of renewable resources, such as solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, and low-impact hydro. Buying green power is one of the easiest and most effective ways to improve your organization’s environmental performance.

What can a local zoning code do about these huge global issues? Local zoning regulations can help promote solar power by making sure residences have access to the sun.

GOP's political divisiveness is getting out of hand.

I agree with McCain that the nation's problems are too daunting for political divisiveness. Divisiveness is creating dissension or discord. It seems the political climate in our nation has been more divisive than any I have ever witnessed in my lifetime. We call ourselves Christians? If the Republican Party want people to see them with approval, they better stop being arrogant, wrong attitudes, ignorance, stereotyping, and alienation. My current view with GOP is that they are strong-willed people who are so controlling that they are not yielding to the wishes of others. More often than not, self-willed people will not listen to advices of others. A self-will person will always insisting stubbornly and arrogantly of having their own way.

What we all need is diversity and unity with proper attitude. We all are living in the same country and we are actually living in a society that we all have to live together. We all are suffering the same and we all will overcome together.

Happy Thanksgiving and Thoughts

I grew up in Duxbury, MA which is part of Plymouth Colony. Pilgrims and Thanksgiving started by the Puritans, who were "The Separatists" in England in the 16th century. These are the founders of our country for whom immigration to America constituted withdrawal from the mother church. The Puritans reached North America with the English settlers who founded Plymouth Colony in 1620. It remained the dominant religious force in New England throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. It was the Puritans who started "Thanksgiving". In 1620 one of the separatist congregations sailed for New England on the Mayflower.

The Puritans were interested in establishing a degree of separation of church and state because they had been persecuted by the English government and wanted to ensure their own freedom of religion in Massachusetts Bay. They also disagreed with the Catholic/Anglican idea that the church should be should be universal, encompassing every member of the community. This implied a division between the institutions of society (government) and the institutions of the church.

What have I learned.... Trust was essential in our Government.

I saw a party that I have respected for years have lost their reputation. Jesus Christ, whom many Republicans claim to follow, however they are either hot or cold toward Him, because a "lukewarm" commitment makes Him want to vomit. In essence, Republican conservatives have become "lukewarm" on life, on marriage, on limited government, on parental rights in educating and raising children, on faith, on family and on freedom. In this day and age with many a so-called “true” Christians languishing in lukewarm faith formalism where spiritual-filled gifts are used for self-served purposes rather than God's glory.

The Republican Party even referred themselves as "God's Own Party," indicating unswerving commitment to faith, family and freedom. Before we condemn the so called conservatives that are similar to Scribes and Pharisees of the bible for their failures, we all must be sure that we are not overlooking our own spiritual shortcomings. Do any of our personal habits that we are ashamed of that we need to change?

An honest Christian with an open Bible and a pad and pencil is sure to find out what is wrong with them very quickly. They could wonder why they are not making progress in their Christian lives. Often some members of the party are blinded by their own self-arrogant that effectively blocks out any possible effort for them to see the truth. Think of Joe the Plumber-and you see the core of the Republican Party but they won't or don't or can't because they are blinded by idealism.

If the Republican Party want people to see them with approval when they are displaying that Jesus is infinitely valuable to them, but they dare not make the opinion of others the measure of their faithfulness. They may be blind and resistant to truth because I am seeing discrimination, wrong attitudes, ignorance, stereotyping, and alienation.

We need to change idealism of the conservatives. They have adopted about how things "should be done" which often gets challenged by the way things are in reality.

Christianity is still true and meaningful, it must not only save but serve FIRST out of love. When we trivialize the Scriptures, we reduce God’s Commandments of our Christian Life to formulas (legalism), or we rationalize away the demands (liberalism), or we fabricate a list of things (agenda) we are going to do for God (moralism), all three (legalism, liberalism and moralism) replaces God’s grace and need for Jesus Christ. If we allow ourselves to the bondage to a corruption of nature (i.e., legalism, liberalism and moralism), then we are not free as the Bible defines it.

Legalistic: Conservatives will make rules that will make them feel very safe by imposing standards on others. If they are not following their formula of legalistic beliefs, then they are not true Americans.

Liberalistic: Some will rationalize that certain rules, regulations, laws in the Bible do not apply today, they can interpret incorrectly that we do not need to follow such rules, regulations and laws. This can lead to wrong concept of true liberalism.

Moralistic: Those who follows their resolutions according to their understanding of the Scriptures that being radical and focusing on agendas to accomplish God’s will, they will impose on others even though they do not believe with their interpretations.

A good quote:

Divisions and separations are most objectionable in religion. They weaken the cause of true Christianity ...But before we blame people for them, we must be careful that we lay the blame where it is deserved. False doctrine and heresy are even worse than schism. If people separate themselves from teaching that is positively false and unscriptural, they ought to be praised rather than reproved. In such cases separation is a virtue and not a sin. J.C. RYLE

There are religions teach that God is all justice while others say that God is all love. People become arrogant like the philosophers who have their own concepts, views, ideas and theories of what the world can be or should be. When we conceive ourselves to be honest seekers who cannot accept such myths (or truth) that we are in a state of dangerous self-deception which is a grave situation. Our flaw, blunder or shall I frankly say our sin is to follow what we are born with and ignore what we can be born-again with. It is not the Bible but rather the Spirit of God within us leads us to better understanding of the Living Word. If a spiritually dead person tries to read the Bible, is the Bible working for them? Jesus did not promise any of us that consistent Christian living would be easy!

I can become a heretic if I do not know what the bible say about faith and Paul admonished Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:15 that he is to "be diligent to present himself approved to God, a worker who doesn't need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth". I believe Paul's advise is to me and I should take very this seriously that the true meaning of a Christian. True Christians knows that not everyone is willing to be a Christian. I can't be like a Pharisee to make sure they don't break God's "rules".

I have said it before and I will say it again, I have learned that democracy does not give me any real power at all because in God's providence, He allowed democracy to basically swamps each of us Christians among non-believers.

Christian Grace is about loving other people that we have the freedom to do so but at the same time, respect how they practice their beliefs. A Christian life in this world should be different from the world, being in the world but not of the world. A humbled Christian is a Christian with flaws which humbles them that is more useful to God than hypocrite action that puffs them up. Charles Elliot said it nicely, "Hypocrites we are: but we are on the way to liberation even from our own hypocrisy". James 1:26 says, "If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless."

Lately, many conservative Christian leaders are hypocrites and they are no help to the people of America.

Local News: Library

I love libraries and I usually support them. I will support $25M bond issue in May (From the Columbus Dispatch)

The bonds are to help to upgrade and expand facilities at the main library and the Lane Road branch. Based on the average residential property value in Upper Arlington, the new bond issue would cost the owner of a $300,000 home $100 to $105 per year.

The first reading of the legislation to place the bond issue on the ballot is scheduled to come before council on Nov. 24, with the second and third readings scheduled for Dec. 8 and Jan. 12.

Rankings:
Population of 25K , # 3 UPPER ARLINGTON PUBLIC LIBRARY, Upper Arlington, Ohio
Population of 500K # 1 COLUMBUS METROPOLITAN LIBRARY, Columbus, Ohio
Top Ten Libraries in Each Population Category

OSU study: Disabled can find obstacle at polls

Dozens of Franklin County polling sites failed to meet accessibility standards for voters who need wheelchairs or walkers or have other disabilities, according to a study that Ohio State University students undertook this summer. Read more from the Columbus Dispatch Newspaper

Economic Effects those with Disabilities including Deafness

Within the economical world, the design of the deaf person's economic environment MAY BE viewed as disabling factor. In the cultural model, the Deaf belong to a culture in which they are neither infirm nor disabled. Other disabilities including those with Multiple Sclerosis are the same way. We all are ABLE and we all are able to be part of the economical system along with the normal and able people. I have Relapsing-remitting Multiple Sclerosis (RRMS) (Diagnosed in April 2002). (deafness caused by nerve damage, MS caused by nerve scars.) I am healthy today and hardly get sick however my MS can affect my daily activities. I am also legally deaf. With the help from technology, I can hear almost normal but totally deaf without them. A disability is a body function is impaired compare to the usual normal healthy abilities of a body and within a body, including physical impairment, sensory impairment, cognitive impairment, intellectual impairment mental illness, and various types of chronic disease (like mulitiple scleorsis). When we are talking about deafness, deaf is a disability in wich you have a loss of one of the 5 senses that enable a human being to be "normal".

The sources of people with disabilities problem were people around them and how they were coping them. This is not my first time dealing with this since I have been dealing with this ever since I was a child, from a "disability's perspective" and I often raise this question "Who define my own quality of life?". We live in a world which places great emphasis on beauty, wealth and power with people with disabilities are often a symbol of the opposite. We need to have a solid and sound concept to understand disabilities and how those with disabilities can enjoy quality of life.

Another view, parents of children with disabilities areis NOT easy because they work much harder than parents of "normal" kids. Its very tough for parents to find the "right" path for our disabled children. the disability rights movements are still educating people about the structural and attitudinal barriers in the United States and similar industrialized countries that are the fundamental cause for the discrimination and oppression faced by disabled people, INCLUDING parents whose children are disabled.

Government have been taking away programs that has helped many children and many parents today are getting more fustrated, including those with autism. This year's election will be a big factor.