College financial bubble

Is the long term cost really worth it? The college financial bubble.

Religion of US Presidents

At a minimum three (3) US Presidents were Unitarians:
- John Adams
- Millard Fillmore
- William Howard Taft

Unitarian: Unitarians adhere to strict monotheism, and maintain that Jesus was a great man and a prophet of God, perhaps even a supernatural being, but not God himself. They believe Jesus did not claim to be God, and that his teachings did not suggest the existence of a triune God. Unitarians believe in the moral authority, but not necessarily the divinity of Jesus.

$ billions more in state budget ??? - and a man who made a difference

Billions $,$$$,$$$,$$$ more to be spent by the state of VA to release people with significant disabilities from state facilities according to news reports ( click here). On the other hand the state is slashing funding to help people with disabilities who are already living in their own homes in local communities across the state.

When Gilmore (R) was Governor, the late Keith Kessler (< click here) a quadriplegic, in 1997 engaged in a 120+ day “hunger strike” to obtain the assistance of a personal attendant so he could remain in his own home and stay out of a nursing home. This was back in the day before their was a Virginia Medicaid Personal Attendant Service (PAS) program. Keith faxed the governor every day during the hunger strike as well as posted online on Virginia Handinet for people with disabilities. Ultimately, Gilmore issued him a “pardon” ( a stay out of nursing home pass) and Keith obtained an in-home assistant aid(s). He remained at home until he passed away in February 2010.

Now the state is cutting funding for PAS and other services for people with disabilities living in the community. Here in Bedford County / City - 46 people will have their cases closed by a local non-profit, if the House of Delegates budget passes as is. In addition 46+ attendants will loose their jobs. Undoubtedly, most of the people will be "re screened" by their Local Department of Social Services and Health Department. Most will qualify for more costly Medicaid Services funded by taxpayers for in-home care or placement in a nursing home. And the state will pay much more. Taxpayers are caught in a "Catch 22-

In 2003, Keith with Governor Mark Warner.

PS: Keith wrote with a stick in his month, tapping on a computer screen.

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State Senator Newman from the Lynchburg area is a stong supporter of helping people with disabilities. See http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?091+ful+SJ350ER

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Why does this blogger care about people with disabilities?

See the following links on facebook:

- Father was a disabled WW II veteran -

- Brother was profoundly disabled -

- Brother-in-law a a significant disability -

- Psalm 139 -

- When life throws you out of the saddle -

Other links:

 - Wifes story -

- Son aka "The plumber" is a youth minister -

- This blogger -

Whitehead Media Associates based in Lynchburg  interviewed this blogger on Friday, February 8, 2011 for the first segment of an upcoming 6 part series on TV's Sunday morning at 9 AM program on CW5. The "Conversations" TV program will focus on disability issues facing people with disabilities in the Lynchburg area. 

"Too many people parked in nursing homes" (click on link)

Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law Statement on Arizona Shooting

by Robert Bernstein, PhD, Executive Director

Our hearts go out to Representative Giffords, her staff, and the residents of Tucson who were victims of the tragic shooting this past Saturday.

And while the details of the shooting and the history of the suspect are still to be determined, early information suggests that investigators may discover evidence of untreated mental illness.

It would be a mistake to conclude that incidents such as this are characteristic of people who have mental illness. In fact, these events are very rare. Studies show that having a mental illness, in itself, does not increase one's propensity to commit serious violence; other factors come into play, including co-occurring substance abuse, trauma and, perhaps in this instance, today's vitriolic political climate.

Over the past decades, a handful of similar tragedies-at Virginia Tech, in the New York City subway and elsewhere-raised immediate concerns about mental healthcare in this country. These concerns soon translated into efforts for quick-fixes, typically, efforts to enact laws making it easier to commit people to psychiatric hospitals or to court-order outpatient treatment. The fact that Arizona has had such laws in place for many years points to the hollowness of these solutions. The plain truth is that America's mental healthcare system is horribly broken and horribly underfunded. And across the nation, budget cuts continue to eviscerate community mental health programs that reach out to vulnerable individuals and put them on a path to recovery.

Our hope is that this time we will come together in the wake of tragedy in a different way. Rather than stigmatizing people who have mental illnesses with false stereotypes or pursuing laws that try to use courts to compensate for gaps in basic services, the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law urges a meaningful effort to address the core issues here. The nation's system of community mental healthcare, now struggling to provide even late-stage crisis services, should be equipped to ensure that early, effective assistance is available to people who need it.

Media reports have highlighted Representative Giffords' haunting, cautionary words about today's heated political rhetoric. Another concern of Representative Giffords' merits equal attention: as a state legislator and, more recently, on the Hill, Representative Giffords has a long, distinguished record of advocating for accessible mental health services and fighting the discrimination that burdens people who have mental illnesses.

We at the Bazelon Center are grateful to Representative Giffords for her leadership in advocacy for mental health issues. We hope and pray that this tragic act brings at least some kind of silver lining; necessary mental health system reforms that she would be proud of.