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Relevant Quotes for Today

"This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself -- nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance. In every dark hour of our national life a leadership of frankness and vigor has met with that understanding and support of the people themselves which is essential to victory" -- President Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1933.

"It was natural and perhaps human that the privileged princes of these new economic dynasties, thirsting for power reached out for control over government itself. They created a new despotism and wrapped it in the robes of legal sanction. In its service new mercenaries sought to regiment the people, their labor, and their property. And as a result the average man once more confronts the problem that faced the Minute Man.

"The hours men and women worked, the wages they received, the conditions of their labor -- these had passed beyond the control of the people, and were imposed by this new industrial dictatorship. The savings of the average family, the capital of the small-businessmen, the investments set aside for old age -- other people's money [OPM] -- these were tools which the new economic royalty used to dig itself in. Those who tilled the soil no longer reaped the rewards which were their right. The small measure of their gains was decreed by men in distant cities. Throughout the nation, opportunity was limited by monopoly. Individual initiative was crushed in the cogs of a great machine. The field open for free business was more and more restricted. Private enterprise, indeed, became too private. It became privileged enterprise, not free enterprise.

"For too many of us the political equality we once had won was meaningless in the face of economic inequality. A small group had concentrated into their own hands an almost complete control over other people's property, other people's money, other people's labor -- other people's lives. For too many of us life was no longer free; liberty no longer real; men could no longer follow the pursuit of happiness.

"Against economic tyranny such as this, the American citizen could appeal only to the organized power of government. The collapse of 1929 showed up the despotism for what it was. The election of 1932 was the people's mandate to end it. Under that mandate it is being ended.

"These economic royalists complain that we seek to overthrow the institutions of America. What they really complain of is that we seek to take away their power. Our allegiance to American institutions requires the overthrow of this kind of power. In vain they seek to hide behind the flag and the Constitution. In their blindness they forget what the flag and the Constitution stand for...

"The brave and clear platform adopted by this convention, to which I heartily subscribe, sets forth that government in a modern civilization has certain inescapable obligations to its citizens, among which are protection of the family and the home, the establishment of a democracy of opportunity, and aid to those overtaken by disaster.

"We do not see faith, hope, and charity as unattainable ideals, but we use them as stout supports of a nation fighting the fight for freedom in a modern civilization...

"Governments can err, presidents do make mistakes--better the occasional faults of a government that lives in a spirit of charity [love] than the consistent omissions of government frozen in the ice of its own indifference.

"There is a mysterious cycle in human events. To some generations much is given. Of other generations much is expected. This generation of Americans has a rendezvous with destiny" -- President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Democratic National Convention, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, June 27, 1936.

You have been reading excerpts from The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope, available at www.healthylivingusa.com/theconnectiontohope, www.amazon.com or your local bookstore.

Healthcare - A Bittersweet Noun

PR Log (Press Release) – Apr 21, 2010 – Senator Teddy Kennedy carried the life of universal healthcare in his soul for decades. Just months after his passing, universal healthcare was born and is now a full-fledged noun that is carried in the soul of a nation.

On March 23, 2010, at 9:03 A.M., President Barack Obama signed the historic national healthcare bill, The Patient Protection and Affordable Healthcare Act - Public Law 111-148, amid fanfare, jubilation and the Obama campaign slogan – “yes we can;” while stupefied opponents in other corners of Washington and beyond threatened immediate repeal – as though the concept operates in Washington. The “full-fledged bittersweet noun” is impacting some Americans in a curious way.

It took sixty-five years and five attempts to pass a national healthcare bill in the United States of America. President Truman was the first to ask Congress to pass national healthcare legislation in 1945. President Nixon was the second; followed by Presidents Carter, Clinton and Obama.

Because healthcare costs now represent seventeen percent of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP), President Obama and the 111th Congress acknowledged the need of a comprehensive healthcare bill, in spite of unprecedented partisan opposition. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the non-partisan independent reporting agency within the legislative branch of the United States government that was created through the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974, did an analysis of the bill and reports a savings of $143 billion in the first decade and $1.2 trillion in the second.

The first national healthcare proposal was vehemently opposed and described as “socialized medicine” when the mere mention of the word “socialism” conjured up hatred and disdain due to world conditions at the time. Truman eventually backed away and focused on healthcare for the elderly through the Social Security Act. The second and third healthcare bills were quashed with promises of self-regulation by insurance companies. The promises, however, went the way of the legislation. The fourth attempt alienated the small business sector and died a slow dead amid the replay of self-regulation. The fifth attempt faced fierce partisan opposition that was derailed by sheer courage on the part of its proponents.

Fundamental changes in the healthcare industry will be made incrementally through 2014 to create a safety net for all American citizens throughout the generations. The process of change, if done correctly, will fine-tune healthcare like a musical instrument before the symphony. Such sweeping legislation has not been passed in the U.S. since President Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act of 1935 and President Johnson signed the Social Security Amendments of 1965.

The next step in the process, according to Linda E. Schexnayder, author of The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope (The Connection to Hope) published by Healthy Living USA Publishing Division Nevada, is to prompt the American people to embrace healthy living as a personal responsibility. She believes there is a linkage between chronic illness and polluted air, contaminated water, and chemical–laden food.

“A robust Healthy Living Public Service Campaign by radio, television, Internet, national mailings and conferences should be launched immediately to help American citizens equate healthy living with the cost of healthcare reform. Thus far, the conversation has leaned toward training more doctors, nurses, technicians and other medical professionals, but it must lean more to the prevention side of reform. All Americans must have access to clean air, pure water, whole food and physical education to avert sickness and disease—we can no longer consider it a niche market. Behavior modification in cooperation with national healthcare is expected. And as behavior changes, industries will grow and jobs will be created to the benefit of the economy. Who wins? Everybody does—the individual and their family, the employer, the insurance provider, the government and the economy,” Schexnayder said.

But who will undertake such a public service campaign that clearly must engage through the next decade? Who will approach Congress, FDA, and EPA to request or demand legislation and regulations to ensure America’s access to quality air, water and food? Who will advocate air purifiers, water filtration systems, organic food, and personal fitness?

“Land of the free; home of the brave” is a truism of America that’s been demonstrated so many times in the past by honorable men and women of all races and creeds that one could say it’s irrefutable. But today, Americans find themselves being measured again—in the arena of healthcare.

Will Smith's Wisdom

Obama’s 2011 Budget Girds Up Economy

Need over deficit. Obama answers the call of the American people over cries of the opposition to decrease spending. The jobless rate and tight consumer credit dictate portions of the President’s 2011 budget.

PR Log (Press Release) – Feb 15, 2010 – President Obama’s 2011 budget of $3.8 trillion was delivered to Congress amid outcries and charges of excessive spending. Though the economy grew 5.8% last quarter—the fastest pace since 2003, unemployment remains at 9.7 percent and consumer credit is still tight.

Tax credits favoring low- and middle-income Americans and small businesses mirror the 2010 budget. Individuals with income over $200,000 and couples with income over $250,000 are seeing a rollback of some tax credits that low- and middle-income Americans have never enjoyed, according to budgetary comments. They, along with major corporations, banks, oil companies and natural-gas companies, are being called the losers in the budget by some reports. But there is a substantial difference between not having food and not having a Lamborghini.

Outcries over deficits are more prevalent today than in the past. However, the graph of the National Debt 1950 – 2010 in Chapter 6 of The Connection to Hope by Linda E. Schexnayder shows that the greatest dollar increase in the National Debt of the United States was realized between 2001 to 2009. The debt went from $5 trillion in 2001 to almost $14 trillion, an increase just shy of 200%. The second greatest dollar increase came during the Reagan administration—from slightly under a trillion dollars to $3.25 trillion, an increase of over 200%. A portion of the increase came from tax cuts for the rich, as was part of the increase for the most recent surge. Reagan did put a plan in place to cover the cost of his tax cuts. He subtly revised the1969 Alternative Minimum Tax, originally known as the millionaire’s tax, that was designed to close loopholes utilized by the very rich to avoid paying taxes -- some millionaires indeed paid zero federal taxes -- and targeted middle-income Americans.

The Connection to Hope further states that most of the debt incurred from 1940 through 1973 was wartime debt: World War II, Korean Conflict, Viet Nam Conflict—a quarter of a trillion dollars. Non-wartime debt began with the Ford administration (1974-1977)—half a trillion dollars. It grew marginally under the Carter administration (1977-1981)—almost a quarter of a trillion dollars. Then the Reagan administration (1981-1989) added two and a quarter trillion dollars. The National Debt grew from $3.25 trillion to $4.27 trillion under Bush-41 (1989-1993)—increased partly by the Persian Gulf War of 1991, when Saddam Hussein was driven out of Kuwait. It grew another trillion dollars during the Clinton administration (1993-2001) then began to diminish its pace in 1996 and stopped growing in 1999. Clinton was the only president in recent memory to balance the budget and leave office with a surplus. The surplus was wiped out and the National Debt began to grow again during Bush-43 (2001-2009).

Curtailment of government spending is a top priority of American citizens, but restoring the economy is essential to that ultimate goal and President Obama seems attuned. He is imposing a three-year spending freeze on many government programs.

The deficit for the current fiscal year is expected to peak at almost $1.6 trillion, then start to shrink to just below $1.3 trillion in 2011, according to the President’s budget. Reputable economists have said that extremely high deficits would not sustain economic growth over a protracted period.

The Government Printing Office (GPO) announced that the 2011 budget is available for review online. The authentic online version is available through a direct link on the Latest Resources panel on GPO’s Federal Digital System (FDsys), www.fdsys.gov. Copies may be ordered online at http://bookstore.gpo.gov/collections/budget.jsp. Budget of the U.S. Government is $37, Budget Appendix is $73, Analytical Perspectives is $52, Historical Tables is $49, and the CD-ROM is $25. For more information on purchasing, call 202-512-1800.

The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope is available at www.healthylivingusa.com/theconnectiontohope and www.amazon.com.
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About Healthy Living USA and Healthy Living USA Publishing Division Nevada: We strive to help our clients become healthier in all areas of human life: spirtually, mentally, physically, socially and financially, thereby achieving wholeness and prosperity.

Obama/GOP Q&A in Baltimore Becomes Washington-Style Knock-Down-Drag-Out

Now that the hoopla has subsided, the dust has settled and the majors are somewhat satiated; what happened at the Obama/GOP Q&A in Baltimore? What did the American people really see during this layered production?

PR Log (Press Release) – Feb 04, 2010 – The Obama/GOP Q&A in Baltimore on Friday, January 29, 2010 could be described as an event none of us has seen before, not even in the political debate forum. While watching the events unfold on screen, beginning with the first question, one could have wondered if Jaws and a hundred plus of his cousins had invited the President over for lunch.

The American people saw another world; the world of politicians—spurious arguments that are normally delivered in sound bites to the media on staged platforms for greatest affect. They heard pseudo words and phrases made-to-order for them—button-pushers to incite and inflame heads of households that are surviving on nutrient-sparse “cup-a-soup” and “top ramen;” so unfamiliar with lack that they have yet to acknowledge what they are experiencing—the dawning of middle-class insecurity. Chapter 6 of The Connection to Hope by Linda E. Schexnayder, highlights their circumstance as calculated to minimize the economic and political clout of the middle-class of America, according to a reputable economist who threads lightly. The chapter features graphics of U.S. jobs that were projected to move overseas and never return by design, which could be one of the reasons why the job market is not rebounding as it should; a reason, to date, which has not been a factor of any recession.

The American people have not forgotten the policies of the previous administration and the laws passed by the 107th, 108th, 109th and 110th Congress which aided this recession. Many of those who spoke in Baltimore were a part of that era. So how could the response to the Q&A be anything other than disdain. The transportation mode of Star Trek would have been suitable to most viewers eight hours later to instantly beam each of the participating congressional representatives into the bedrooms of hungry weeping children as they lay, desperately trying to sleep, while wishing they had more “cup-a-soup" or “top ramen.” After such an experience, perhaps those members of Congress would “get it.”

Millions upon millions of Americans now hurt in silence, weep in silence, hunger in silence and hope in silence for redemption that is on par with Congress and all government employees.

The last presidential election was democracy operating at its best. That’s good news. Had it not happened that way—if the people had not arisen and exercised their constitutional privilege, the greatness of the United States of America would today be in question. Few know and understand how close the country was to economic implosion. Shouts of “Armageddon is coming” in the streets and gridlock to the bunkers would not have been newsworthy. For that heroism, however, they get whining elected officials who, for eight years, drove this country into the vulnerable position in which it finds itself today. For that heroism they get a Superior Court ruling that violates existing campaign finance law to allow corporations to continue their pursuit of unfettered economic power and control over middle-class America.

Overall, the American people got a hefty serving of frivolity. And though the cameras are turned off, it continues. Perhaps this will be the prompt that summons fair-minded rank-and-file Republicans to check their leadership.

The twenty-year campaign is ended; the masters of it are gone—from political office at least. It’s time now to do the work of the people.

The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope is available at www.healthylivingusa.com and www.amazon.com.
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About Healthy Living USA and Healthy Living USA Publishing Division Nevada: We strive to help our clients become healthier in all areas of human life: spirtually, mentally, physically, socially and financially, thereby achieving wholeness and prosperity.

Obama Still Seen As Conduit to Progress

PR Log (Press Release) – Jan 28, 2010 – Just as Moses led the children of Israel out of bondage thousands of years ago; just as Franklin D. Roosevelt led the American people out of a Great Depression; just as John F. Kennedy delivered the United States from a nuclear war of obliteration with the Soviet Union; just as Ronald Reagan led the German people to unification; Barack Obama seems destined to delivery the American people from the clutches of free-wielding constitutional-stompers as they prepare to run the final leg of the economic race between the “haves” and the “have nots” during a time of the highest income inequality ever experienced in this country, which went full throttle after the S&L crisis twenty years ago.

The word is “jobs” — living wage jobs; that is the hope, at least.

The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope takes a look at the Department of Labor Employment Trends of this decade as reported on PBS (Public Broadcasting Service). It highlights Bill Moyer’s PBS NOW: America and Jobs and David Brancaccio’s PBS NOW: Inequality of Wage Earners in America.

According to Chapter 6, Who Controls America?, “Over half of Fortune 500 companies have moved jobs offshore, including famous names from many fields: Oracle, Dell, HSBC, Delta Air Lines, Novartis, J.P. Morgan Chase, Hewlett-Packard, American Express, and British Airways.” The worst that was expected has now been compounded by the current recession. Corporations used the recession as a cover to move millions of jobs overseas in management, accounting, office operations, computer technology, art design, life sciences, architecture, and legal. In some cases, they packed and moved the whole office. That is in stark contrast to the Kennedy’s "War On Poverty,” years when the economy was vibrant and anyone who wanted a job had one. People were being hired on the spot and trained on the job at top wages — Americans were prosperous and happy. The Kennedy policies were executed so robustly that their benefits were realized for almost two decades—then came the residue of Nixon. The author of The Connection to Hope, Linda E. Schexnayder, describes this recession as “the dawning of middle-class insecurity.

In his State of the Union Address last night, President Obama claimed the creation of two million jobs through the Recovery Act during his first year in office. Two millions jobs sustained or created in one year is a beginning; 14,000,000 more are needed.

Fifty-three percent of the American people pledged their cooperation to the President in the 2008 Presidential Campaign. "I’m asking you to believe, not just in my ability to bring about real change in Washington…I’m asking you to believe in yours," was President Obama’s request. The challenge was accepted. A majority of Americans chose unity over division. So the failure of the President would not be his alone; it would be the failure of all—responsibility is mutual.

After eight years of gross mismanagement in our national government, did any American in partnership think the economy, healthcare and the environment would be revamped in one year? Scott Brown is an aberration of Massachusetts voters.

The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope is available at www.healthylivingusa.com/theconnectiontohope and www.amazon.com.

Obama Theme Book, The Connection to Hope, Attacks Unconstitutionality of USA PATRIOT Act

PR Log (Press Release) – Jan 25, 2010 – Eight years after its initial passage, the USA PATRIOT Act faces yet another opponent. Chapter 5 of The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope attacks the unconstitutionality of the Act, and calls on Congress to repeal it or make final constitutional adjustments to every section in violation. The majority of the author’s 443 tweets, last count, on Twitter.com under the name, skyhighhopes, make reference to Chapter 5 of the book and quote the congressional record of remorseful congressmen, who were trying to curtail sneak-and-peek searches by eliminating funding for section 213 of the Act. The book challenges American citizens of goodwill to prompt changes. After reviewing a few web pages of the publisher’s website, www.healthylivingusa.com, one might even say that a crusade has been launched against PATRIOT.

The USA PATRIOT Act was passed in 2001 by the 107th Congress and signed by the 43rd President of the United States on October 26, just 45 days after 9/11. The constitutional breaches were obvious then, but most of them had sunset clauses. Congress reauthorized PATRIOT in 2005 and 2006, extending some of those sunset clauses and making others permanent. Several federal courts have already ruled many provisions of the Act unconstitutional.

On October 20, 2009, H.R. 3584, cited as “USA PATRIOT Amendments Act of 2009,” was introduced in the House of Representatives by Congressman Conyers of Michigan and supported by Nadler of New York, Cohen of Tennessee, Harman of California, Jackson-Lee of Texas, Holt of New Jersey, Honda of California, Michaud of Maine, Pingree of Maine, Schakowsky of Illinois, and Johnson of Georgia. It was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and the Committee on Financial Services.

According to a summary written by the Congressional Research Service, a nonpartisan arm of the Library of Congress, USA PATRIOT Amendments Act of 2009 would amend the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to revise requirements relating to roving electronic surveillance, production of records for counterterrorism investigations, and use of pen registers and trap and trace devices (devices for recording incoming and outgoing telephone numbers). It extends through December 31, 2013, provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act authorizing: (1) roving electronic surveillance; and (2) orders for the production of records for counterterrorism investigations—extending audit requirements relating to orders for tangible things, pen registers and trap and trace devices, the use of national security letters, and amending the federal criminal code to reduce the period -- from 30 to 7 days -- for giving notice to the target of a search warrant in a criminal investigation.

The summary further states that the National Security Letter Reform Act of 2009 extends through December 31, 2013, the authority for issuance of national security letters, modifies the standard for issuing national security letters to require a separate writing -- documenting specific and articulable facts -- showing reasonable grounds to believe that the information sought pertains to a foreign power or an agent of a foreign power, and requires notice to a recipient of a national security letter of the right of judicial review of any nondisclosure requirement. The Act sets forth procedures for judicial review of a national security letter nondisclosure order, requires the Attorney General to authorize use of any information obtained from a national security letter in a criminal investigation, and to establish minimization and destruction procedures for information obtained from a national security letter that is no longer of interest in an authorized investigation.

In committee, the bill was recommended to the full House for consideration and placed on the calendar of business, the order in which legislation is considered and voted on, but health care has taken precedence. Every bill must be approved by both Houses of Congress then merged into one before it can be signed by the President. Sometimes the text of one bill is incorporated into another bill, and in those cases the original bill would appear to be abandoned. So even if the bill is passed successfully, the process could take a while.

In spite of the forward motion of the bill in the 111th Congress, the author of The Connection to Hope seems doubtful that any corrective version of the Act would restore civil liberties and nullify constitutional breaches that have existed for eight years.

Any loyal American could very well ask, “Is time on the side of the American people if this process of correction is prolonged?” and “What is the agenda of the proponents of the Act.?”

The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope is available at www.healthylivingusa.com/theconnectiontohope, www.amazon.com, and your local bookstore.

New Book On Obama Conciliatory But Critical of National Governance

PR Log (Press Release) – Jan 22, 2010 – Healthy Living USA Publishing Division Nevada announces the release of a new book, The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope (The Connection to Hope), to accentuate two of the five areas of healthy living as outlined in their mission statement—social and financial health through “politics of life.” The author, Linda E. Schexnayder, uses a pixelated photo of President Obama on the cover in shadowy blue, symbolizing a president of all true-blue Americans, a subtitle in the book. She unfolds the history of national governance, an America in trouble today, and the America of the future.

Refreshing symbolism runs throughout The Connection to Hope with unique poetry from the author’s collection of inspirational poems entitled, The Poetry of the Heart Collection. Striking titles such as “Sunflower,” written for 9/11, Iraq War, and Afghanistan War victims jerks at the heart in a moment of realization. “Snowflake,” written for victims of abuse, impacts the soul to eject pain, sorrow, and guilt prompted by the experience.

Though a picture of Obama is on the cover of the 316-page paperback, the author seems to be focused on the average American pulling himself up by the bootstraps and making his life better on a level playing field made so by the national government thru laws and policies of economic and environmental advantage across the spectrum of American life.

Pride, responsibility of American citizenship and oneness of purpose threads the book from beginning to end. Upstarts, local economic development, and daily participation in the “politics of life” are encouraged by the author to jumpstart the economy and personal wealth. The Connection to Hope is about the American people’s ability to run their own country according to the Constitution. As a handbook, the author includes the directory of the 111th Congress to facilitate contact with congressional representatives, the Constitution of the United States of America for easy reference, and patriotic songs of the nation and the military—“Off we go into the wild blue yonder,” “Eternal Father strong to save,” “Then it’s HI! Hi! Hey! The Army’s on its way,” “From the Halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli” could conjure up memories long forgotten and stories to be told for history’s sake. Anyone needing assistance with flag etiquette can get that too.

Quotes of Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy — Chapter 8, The Party of Kennedy — and the Bible are invoked by the author throughout the book to inspire and encourage readers to political action as a lifestyle, rather than every four years. She strongly denounces anger, bias, name-calling, and spin as means of shaping the national agenda. The National Debt, joblessness, federal trade deficits, and the USA PATRIOT Act are covered ever so delicately.

One could be pleasantly surprised when reading Chapter 16, the last chapter—written on the lighter side, which admonishes citizens to be prepared if or when invited to the White House, how to contact the president to offer opinions and/or suggestions, and how to get greetings from the president to loved ones on special occasions. The author even offers suggestions to the president on how to restore the economy from the local level up rather than from the national level down. This is a “feel good” political book, if such a thing is possible, that could leave you with a new perspective of American politics—that is the goal. The author doesn’t present herself as an expert of American politics or history, but as an American exercising her 1st Amendment rights. Clearly much research has gone into the writing of the book. It’s inspiring, informative and thought-provoking to say the least! Expect emotions to rise in crescendos without warning.

The publisher offers the “National Citizens-Response Ranking” on its website, www.healthylivingusa.com/The2008PresidentialElectionHandbookAndCommentaryTheConnectionToHope to rank American citizens according to their knowledge of the United States Constitution and their participation in the “politics of life.” Results of the 10-question test and a score sheet are returned to examinees by email.

According to the author, who is CEO of Healthy Living USA Publishing Division Nevada, delegate to the 2008 Nevada State Democratic Convention, and an educator, she began writing the book in 2007 as cathartic therapy to minimize an emotional experience encountered at the Nevada Clark County Library District in 2004 that was secretly mandated by the USA PATRIOT Act -- ruled unconstitutional recently by a federal court. As she continued her book research, other factors of national governance became alarming—the manner in which members of the legislative and executive branches ignored the mandates of the people, the assaults on the Constitution with impunity by national leaders, and the lack of response from a fearful and passive people whose hearts had become indifferent, hopeless and paralyzed; unable to govern themselves.

The 2008 President Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope is available online at www.healthylivingusa.com/theconnectiontohope and www.amazon.com or you may get it at your local bookstore.

Chapter 1 - A Connection to Hope - Page 6

God Bless the USA

…I’m proud to be an American
where at least I know I’m free,
And I won’t forget the men who died
who gave that right to me,
And I gladly stand up next to you
and defend her still today,
‘Cause there ain’t no doubt I love this land
God Bless the U.S.A.


The Stars and Stripes Forever

The emblem of the brave and true
Its folds protect no tyrant crew;
The red and white and starry blue
Is freedom’s shield and hope…
Sing out for liberty and light,
Sing out for freedom and the right.
Sing out for Union and its might…


America, My Country, Tis of Thee

Our fathers’ God to Thee,
Author of Liberty,
To thee we sing,
Long may our land be bright
With Freedom’s holy light,
Protect us by thy might
Great God, our King…

In unity sublime [of the highest moral or spiritual value]
To broader heights we climb,
Triumphant over Time,
God speeds our way!…
The hope of all the world,
In peace and light impearled,
God hold secure!

Chapter 1 - A Connection to Hope - Page 5

Here are excerpts of our songs of hope that have been
sung every day by someone in this country for over two
hundred years. Some date back to the 1700s; making our
nation ever-present before God:





God Bless America,

God bless America,
Land that I love,
Stand beside her and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above…
God bless America,
My home, sweet home.
God bless America,
My home, sweet home.


America the Beautiful

America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!…
America! America! God mend thine ev’ry flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control…
Thy liberty in law!
America! America! May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness,
And ev’ry gain divine!,…


Battle Hymn of the Republic

Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
His truth is marching on…

Chapter 1 - A Connection to Hope - Page 4

For many years, however, I had resigned myself to working at a polling place on election day and processing the decennial census. It was my way of contributing as a citizen with relative ease. But the ease is gone.

So, why was I singing America‘s songs with apparent sorrow in my heart? — The USA PATRIOT Act.

Our government passed a law in 2001 which allows it to legally spy on its citizens. Federal law enforcement agencies can enter your home or business without your permission or the permission of the judicial system., search and seize your personal or business property, and leave you wondering. They can confiscate your phone records from your carrier and your library records from the county without your permission or knowledge. An unscrupulous guy could send his official buddy after you or any member of Congress who doesn’t vote as expected, if he so chooses. It doesn’t matter that he’s no longer in an official capacity in government or that they are violating the Bill of Rights. It smacks of unrestrained power, doesn’t it?—a renegade on the loose.

Why would Congress pass such a bill? Were they so paralyzed with fear that they couldn’t think clearly? Nevertheless, those who voted for the bill and the subsequent reauthorization of it should give an account to the American people as to why they voted for a bill that is in clear violation of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America; the right to privacy. (See Chapter 5, "Our Companion in Democracy,” for more information on the USA PATRIOT Act). If our Congress makes laws that are contrary to the Constitution, and if our judicial and executive branches of governance trample the rule of law because they feel preeminent; it will set a precedence that will continue until it eventually runs into a wall of citizens’ resistance.

I had finally found the source of my anguish—a major constitutional breach in our country had gone unnoticed and unchallenged by most. How could such a major impact on our lives go unnoticed? This act defines the scope of our task of restoration into the next decade.

Chapter 1 - A Connection to Hope - Page 3

Not even the administrators could tell me, or would not tell me, the reason for the sudden change. After years of checking out books, suddenly, I had been stripped of the privilege. Consequently, I refused to provide additional information and they refused checkout. I returned the ten or twelve items I had checked out previously and left. As I walked out I felt the loss of a personal experience and liberty that I had enjoyed most of my life. Who or what was responsible for this? Orwell’s 1984 came to mind—is big brother h-e-r-e? Never mind being tracked by satellite twenty-four hours a day or being monitored by camera moments after I exit my home; this was different. It was cloaked. The intensification of my patriotism was actualized at that moment.

Peace and security in my homeland had been a constant state of being to that day. The Constitution—unchangeable except by great contemplation and extended consideration—somehow had been circumvented to intrude on my privacy and freedom. But how? That single act by the county library represented a fundamental shift in the structure of our democracy. It seemed unreal. Yet, it was.

As I went about my daily activities after that day, America’s songs began to pop into my head more and more. And without conscious thought, I began to sing them aloud. Months turned into years as I pricked my ears for the outcries against the constitutional violations that were assaulting American citizens. But there was only deafening silence. There was no revolt; not even an inkling of one. It was as though everyone was in total denial—the “what do you have to hide” psychology had worked. An affront to our civil liberties was met with submission. Was it the beginning of a “clear and present danger?”

My mom and my mentor were such strong activists in the political process that I had a natural inclination to politics at a very young age. Long before I was able to vote I could “talk politics.” It was exhilarating to me as a teenager to participate
in political debates. Back then there was no personal ridicule associated with the process; political opinions were respected and opposed politely.

Chapter 1 - A Connection to Hope - Pages 1 and 2

“Few will have the greatness to bend history; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation ... It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.” Robert (Bobby) Francis Kennedy, University of Cape Town,South Africa, “Day of Affirmation” Speech, June 6, 1966

Americans are people of hope. It’s not a confidence we’ve aspired to in a presidential election year, but a part of the natural fabric of our country; galvanized by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. We’ve spoken words of hope more during the 2008 Presidential Election season, than at any other time in our generation, as a testament to our resolve to reverse the moral and economic deterioration we are facing in our nation today.

The heightened sense of patriotism we have experienced in the first decade of the twenty-first century allows us, in small measure, to understand the intensity of the passion, strength, power, and force that our forefathers garnered to stand against a
mighty empire—a dynasty who claimed them as its own from distant shores—to establish a government in which every man could rule himself according to the principles of God. They sought a model to ensure God’s humanity to all people throughout all generations. It is evident through history, that they came to know, as we do today, that such a nation is a work ever in progress. And our greatest challenge is choosing leaders who believe in the tenets of our Constitution and Bill of Rights, who understand and are willing to undertake the process of perfecting the union, and who honor God and serve the people.

Tens of millions of us enjoy the ceremonial splendor of the Fourth of July, our nation’s birthday, because it revitalizes and fortifies the American spirit and connects us to our hope of peace, security, prosperity, and freedom in this generation. It’s the time when we are reminded that some of America’s songs are prayers; communion with God on behalf of our nation. These prayers have been voiced daily in our country for generations — contributing to the high blessings and favor
we have received from above. But what would happen if we, as a nation, no longer
sought God and his ways of doing things? What would happen if we began to pervert the Constitution and the Bill of Rights which is evidently rooted in scripture?

On a Saturday morning back in 2004, I made my weekly trip to the public library as usual. I browsed for an extended time, chose items, then joined the checkout line. When I arrived at the counter the clerk informed me that my library card had been cancelled. “It’s a mistake,” I assured him, “just swipe my card again.” But it wasn’t a mistake. The library had indeed cancelled my card within the seven-day period of my last visit. I was told I had to provide more information for reinstatement. And as patron after patron complied, I resisted. I sought an answer, but none was given.

The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope

The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope evolved from a 2004 experience at a Las Vegas Public Library at the first covert application of the USA PATRIOT Act to the Las Vegas Library District. The 107th Congress failed the American people in 2001 when it passed the USA PATRIOT Act (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act) in the dead of night, without reading or debating it. Their lack of due diligence has nullified our fourth amendment rights and caused the American people great anguish. Every elected public official swears to uphold the Constitution of the United States of America. Did they? Even more telling, the citizens of this great land have not arisen to correct this injustice.

Shall the USA PATRIOT Act continue without a formidable challenge to its right to exist by the citizens of this country? Without such a challenge, "we the people" will have failed in our responsibility to self-govern.

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”— Preamble to the Constitution of the United States of America

A McClatchy piece by William Douglas reports, "Opponents of the USA Patriot Act say that a congressional move to consider temporarily extending three key provisions that are due to expire at year's end opens the door to try to alter or eliminate some of the national security strategies implemented by former President George W. Bush and embraced by President Barack Obama..."

Congress has met the USA PATRIOT Act at the crossroads of change several times before, but has not altered or eliminated any section that would restore our fourth amendment rights. We have given them eight years to correct a mistake which many of them acknowledge making. True-blue Americans are all for stopping terrorism, but we are not for minimizing our Bill of Rights. Benjamin Franklin, a great American who worked on a committee of five to draft the Declaration of Independence and signed our Constitution, once said, "Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."

So let the eradication of terrorism be done within the parameters of the Constitution of the United States of America and previous existing laws. (see http://www.mcclatchydc.com for the complete story by William Douglas).

Read Chapter 5 of The 2008 Presidential Election Handbook and Commentary: The Connection to Hope for more information and to become active in this cause. Available at www.healthylivingusa.com/theconnectiontohope and amazon.com or pick it up at your local bookstore.