REAL TIME COUPON FEATURES ON TRI-CITIES ON A DIME

Wednesday, December 31, 2014

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY - WISE WORDS OF CHIEF JOSEPH OF THE NEZ PERCE

12/31/14
Dear Readers:  I published this about 6 months ago and think it it worth repeating, especially the last sentence.

It seems that 135 years later, nothing has changed in Washington!

[On a visit to Washington, D.C., 1879]
"At last I was granted permission to come to Washington and bring my friend Yellow Bull and our interpreter with me. I am glad I came. I have shaken hands with a good many friends, but there are some things I want to know which no one seems able to explain. I cannot understand how the Government sends a man out to fight us, as it did General Miles, and then breaks his word. Such a government has something wrong about it. I cannot understand why so many chiefs are allowed to talk so many different ways, and promise so many different things. I have seen the Great Father Chief [President Hayes]; the Next Great Chief [Secretary of the Interior]; the Commissioner Chief; the Law Chief; and many other law chiefs [Congressmen] and they all say they are my friends, and that I shall have justice, but while all their mouths talk right I do not understand why nothing is done for my people. I have heard talk and talk but nothing is done. Good words do not last long unless they amount to something. Words do not pay for my dead people. They do not pay for my country now overrun by white men. They do not protect my father's grave. They do not pay for my horses and cattle. Good words do not give me back my children. Good words will not make good the promise of your war chief, General Miles. Good words will not give my people a home where they can live in peace and take care of themselves. I am tired of talk that comes to nothing."

GEE, WOULDN'T IT BE NICE IF WE EARNED $15.00 AN HOUR? HERE ARE SOME CONSEQUENCES

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UPDATE 12/31/14:  Thought this article was important enough to share again.  

Dear Readers: 

I came across this article today about the battle over the $15 minimum wage, and I thought you would appreciate some statistics. Now I'm for anybody earning as much as they possibly can, however, the reality is not all of us can start off earning $15 an hour in our current economy. Some jobs must remain at a wage for those who are entering the labor force for the first time. And it seems that most of these jobs come in the fast food industry. One item that the article below does not cover is the impact of those who are on a fixed income. For those who who are in that particular category there is no "minimum wage", or increase to that fixed income to compensate for the raise in prices that will result in the increase of the minimum wage.  Enjoy the article and the graphic presented below:

"If the minimum wage for fast food stores was raised to $15 the Daily Signal illustrates that the following could happen, assuming a store made changes to maintain a positive profit margin:
The Daily Signal also reports that when this is applied to some of our favorite fast food items: 
  • A Big Mac meal increases from $5.69 to $7.82.
  • Wendy’s Son of a Baconator combo increases from $6.49 to $8.92. 
  • Taco Bell’s 3 crunchy tacos combo increases from $4.59 to $6.31. 
  • A Whopper meal increases from $6.15 to $8.46. ubway’s turkey breast Footlong increases from $6.50 to $8.94.

Kind of takes away one of the main reasons people buy fast food in the first place, right?

Their study also came up with some other effects that would be likely: 
  • Utilizing higher skilled workers to gain efficiency and productivity. 
  •  Substitution of labor with automation. 
  •  Many businesses will close their doors rather than risk so much capital with such a tiny return.

The Heritage study took into account 24 years of various studies on operation expenses of fast food stores, as well as 32 years of studies on how prices affect demand for such foods. In other words, Heritage’s conclusions are informed by facts and history.

Obviously, whether these conclusions will have an impact on proponents of a $15 minimum wage, as their stated goals are to increase income and employment and the $15-an-hour wage will yield neither, remains to be seen."

9 FACTS ABOUT HOW THE POOR IN AMERICA LIVE - SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT


Tuesday, December 30, 2014

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY - A PERFECT MARRIAGE


PAWS AND STRIPES - AN ORGANIZATION THAT HELPS OUR VETS WITH PTSD - LEARN MORE ABOUT THEM

Dear Readers:

Those of you who know me personally, and my readers who read my web page, know that I have a special place in my heart for our American Vets, especially those who suffer from PTSD.  I wanted to share some information about an organization that trains Shelter Dogs to help our Vets with PTSD.  The organization is called "Paws and Stripes".  I will be placing their link on the left side column of my web page - look for this logo:
They were recently on Fox News morning show (here is the link - http://video.foxnews.com/v/3882885176001/shelter-dogs-helping-our-heroes-with-ptsd/?#sp=show-clips):
Here is an excerpt from their web page:
Paws and Stripes is a nonprofit​​​​​​​​​ organization providing service dogs​​​​​​​​​​ for wounded military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury through integrating service dog training and education with mental health support.

​We help veterans​​​​​​​​​​ so they can live the full and rich lives​​​​​​​​​​ they deserve.

Our dogs come only from local rescues​​​​​​​​​​. Our service dog trainers​​​​​​​​​​ teach the dogs and the veterans as a team​​​​​​​​​​.

These dogs are not pets, they are service dogs with the complete protection and rights granted by the American with Disabilities Act.

Our program is funded through generous grants and donations​​​​​​​​​​ from people like you. Our veterans are never obligated to pay​​​​​​​​​​ a penny​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ of the program's costs to enroll. 

The link to their web page is - http://www.pawsandstripes.org/#!who-we-are/cee5

LAUGH FOR THE DAY - MAXINE ON ORGANIZATION


Saturday, December 20, 2014

LAUGH FOR THE DAY - IRONY

Dear Readers: 

I was reading an article today about aging and wrinkles and what foods can help you look better. As I was reading I happen to look in the upper right hand corner of the web page titled, "2014 Best Skin Tighteners" and "Top 5 Wrinkle Creams".  Talk about an advertising faux pas. 

The sentence with the arrow on the left said reads:  "Yet experts say it's time to forget the expensive creams and procedures.  The key to aging gradually is simple:  Eat healthy." 

Saturday, December 13, 2014

PICTURE FROM THE PAST - WORLD WAR II - POSTERS

Original Photograph by Marty Zimmerman/AP Photo

The art assembly line of female students busily engaged in copying World War II propaganda posters in Port Washington, New York, on July 8, 1942. The master poster is hanging in the background. [source]


LAUGH FOR THE DAY - MAXINE'S OPINION ON 'HAPPY HOLIDAYS'

Amen, Maxine!

Friday, December 12, 2014

A PICTURE FROM THE PAST



Original Photograph by War Department/National Archives

Girls deliver ice. Heavy work that formerly belonged to men only is being done by girls. The ice girls are delivering ice on a route and their work requires brawn as well as the partriotic ambition to help., 09/16/1918  - World War I

LAUGH FOR THE DAY - BEING GRUMPY


Thursday, November 20, 2014

LAUGH FOR THE DAY – HOT FLASHES


THOUGHT FOR THE DAY – THE TREE

Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.
Abraham Lincoln

Monday, November 17, 2014

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY - RELATIVITY



When you are courting a nice girl an hour seems like a second.  When you sit on a red-hot cinder a second seems like an hour.  That’s relativity.
 Albert Einstein

Sunday, November 16, 2014

A LITTLE INSPIRATION FROM THE MCGUIRE SISTERS SINGING "HE"


THOUGHT FOR THE DAY FROM ABRAHAM LINCOLN


"SCHOOL LUNCHES MAY BE BETTER THAN LUNCHES PACKED AT HOME"

Dear Readers:

Just read an article on school lunches.  After reading the article, it seems to me that the best way to counter those "not so good packed" lunches is to send home some suggestions to the parents.  You will note that down toward the end of the article I highlighted what I believe is the crux of the whole matter and begs the question, "What good are school lunches if the student throws it away?"  At least with the bagged lunch they aren't hungry, which makes them inattentive, and creates disciplinary problems in the classroom.  


From Reuters - published November 14, 2014

"In a study of three rural Virginia elementary schools, both packed and school lunches almost entirely met nutrition standards, but those packed at home tended to have more calories, fat and saturated fat.

“We assumed there would be differences between school and packed lunch, but not such stark differences,” said lead author Alisha R. Farris of the Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia.

“I also think, for a long time, people have viewed packed lunch as the healthier option, but our results show that's really not the case,” Farris told Reuters Health by email.

She and her coauthors used checklists to record the nutritional content of daily lunches at three elementary schools for five school days, with each researcher assigned to 10 students.

Of the 1,314 lunches they observed, the school provided 57 percent. Calories, carbohydrates, fat, saturated fat, sugar, vitamin C and iron were higher, on average, for packed lunches compared to school lunches.

School meals averaged 512 calories and 13 grams of fat per lunch, compared to 608 calories and 21 grams of fat for packed lunches. Packed lunches averaged 10 grams more sugar than school lunches.

Protein, sodium, fiber, vitamin A and calcium were lower in packed lunches compared to school lunches, according to the results in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.

About 60 percent of public elementary and secondary school students in the U.S. get their lunches free or at low cost from the National School Lunch Program, the authors write, and the NSLP is required to meet nutrition standards aligned with the 2010 Healthy and Hunger-Free Kids Act.

Both school and packed lunches were quite close to nutritional standards, according to Jason Schaub of The University of Arizona in Tucson, who was not part of the new study.

“What’s more revealing though is the sources of calories in these meals; bagged-lunches contained more savory snacks and sugar sweetened beverages with fewer fruits and vegetables,” Schaub told Reuters Health by email. “This is significant because children start developing preferences and behaviors towards food at a young age.”

Farris agreed. “Sugar-sweetened beverages and dessert items are very rare items in school lunches but are quite common in packed lunches.”

Vegetables, on the other hand, are more common in school lunches, she said.

The researchers did not measure what or how much the students actually ate for lunch.

“Food-waste in the National School Lunch Program is tremendous, with reports of over 45 percent of all food served going to waste, including over 50 percent of vegetables served,” Schaub noted.

Older kids may have more options for lunch so these results may not be applicable to them, Farris said.

“Our results may not be applicable to other elementary students either, because of differences by state, region and local environments,” she noted.

To make packed lunches healthier, parents could substitute water or milk for a sugar-sweetened beverage and substitute fruit for dessert, she said.

“Involving children in the packing decisions is a great way to encourage them to eat what is being provided as well,” Farris said."

Saturday, November 15, 2014

LAUGH FOR THE DAY - BEST THINGS IN LIFE!


THOUGHT FOR THE DAY - TROUBLES



I’ve heard there are troubles of more than one kind; some come from ahead, and some come from behind.  But I’ve brought a big bat.  I’m all ready, you see; now my troubles are going to have troubles with me!

DR. SEUSS