Good for Kerry, Everyone Knows Swifties Lied About Him

Our infant mortality rate is atrocious being the country that we are. We are 33rd in the world.

I could continue to make a list but that is not the point. The point is that blind nationalism does nothing to help improve our country.

I invite you to research and come up with 5 things you would like to see the US improve upon.

Uhm, that's not exactly something that would cause me to live elsewhere.

In my post I said: "I've been to 14 countries. None of them give you the freedoms that the U.S. does."

Now what the heck does birthrate have to do with the freedoms we have in this country?

You aren't even replying to what I said... Just some random firing of synapses.

Birthrate? Big deal.. It's not as if all the women in the U.S. are going to stop having children. I've already had 2 kids, and plan on having 2 or 4 more. (Only have them in pairs so they have a partner to grow up with )

Yeah, John Kerry hasn't done shit.....





Crossed Party Lines to Support a Balanced Budget and Cast the Decisive Vote to Create 23 Million New Jobs. Shortly after joining the Senate, John Kerry crossed party lines to bring fiscal discipline back to Washington.

1. Fought for Gramm-Rudman-Hollings, Deficit Reduction Act, Balanced Budget Act. John Kerry cosponsored and voted for the landmark Gramm-Rudman-Hollings balanced budget and deficit reduction bill to end runaway deficits. In 1993, John Kerry supported the Deficit Reduction Act, which put America back on track toward a balanced budget and fiscal discipline. John Kerry's vote reduced the deficit and resulted in the creation of 23 million new jobs. John Kerry also voted for the historic 1997 Balanced Budget Act, which dramatically reduced spending and balanced the budget for the first time in a generation.
   

Stood Up for Small Business. As chairman of the Senate Small Business Committee, John Kerry promoted policies to increase access to capital, open international markets, foster innovative technology companies, reduce red tape and increase federal contracting opportunities. He also created and improved the MicroLoan program, expanded the successful nationwide Women's Business Centers (WBC) and loan programs that help the small businesses of reservists stay afloat while they are on active duty.

Sponsored an amendment to the 1993 Crime Control bill which provided for $150 million to hire 100,000 new police officers - a measure widely regarded as having helped to lower the crime rate across the country.


Fought to Modernize and Strengthen America's Military. John Kerry has supported over $4 trillion in defense funding and has supported virtually every successful weapons system in use by today's military. In 2002, John Kerry voted for the largest increase in defense spending since the 1980's. And he has supported pay increases, benefit increases, and quality-of-life improvements for members of the military.

John Kerry was an original co-sponsor of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act of 2001. He also helped pass legislation in response to September 11th that placed armed Coast Guard personnel on high-risk vehicles such as oil and gas tankers as they enter port.

Wrote Pre-Cursor Bill to S-CHIP, Providing Coverage for up to 5 Million Children. John Kerry's 1996 bill, the Healthy Children, Family Assistance Health Insurance Program, was the precursor to the successful State Children's Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP) that became law in 1997. S-CHIP provides funding to cover 5 million children.

Improved Coverage and Care for America's Veterans. He fought vigorously for full funding of Veterans Administration (VA) health care and opposed the Bush administration's exclusion of Priority 8 veterans and its elimination of VA outreach efforts. He sought improved prescription drug benefits and authored legislation in 2003 to let veterans fill prescriptions written by non-VA doctors through the VA pharmacy.

Improved Post-Natal Care. John Kerry co-sponsored an amendment that successfully required health care plans to provide coverage for a minimum hospital stay for a mother and child following the birth of the child.

Fought HIV/AIDS. John Kerry was among the earliest supporters of the Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency (CARE) Act, which today is the largest discretionary federal investment in treatment and support services for individuals and families living with HIV or AIDS. Today, 533,000 Americans with HIV/AIDS receive better treatment through this program.

Addressed America's Nursing Shortage. John Kerry wrote the Nurse Reinvestment Act to help relieve a nationwide, crisis-level shortage of registered nurses by encouraging more young people to choose a career in nursing. Today, enrollment rates at undergraduate nursing programs are up by 17 percent.



Abroad: Served as an elections monitor as part of a Senate delegation that uncovered the fraud that led to the ouster of President Ferdinand Marcos. He was a strong proponent of U.S. participation in the NATO intervention that put an end to the ethnic cleansing in Kosovo. He worked with the United Nations and Cambodian government officials to facilitate the creation of the genocide tribunal in Cambodia that will prosecute key members of the Khmer Rouge. He sponsored the Code of Conduct of Arms Transfers Act, which prohibited U.S. military assistance and arms transfers to nations that do not adequately protect the human rights of their citizens. And he co-sponsored bipartisan legislation which imposed sanctions on Burma's military regime for detaining Aung San Suu Kyi and repressing her National League for Democracy party.

Fought Global HIV/AIDS. John Kerry authored major elements of the Global AIDS and Tuberculosis Relief Act of 2000, legislation which at the time provided the most money ever for fighting AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis around the world. He sponsored the bipartisan U.S. Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2002, comprehensive legislation that was unanimously approved by the Senate and became the foundation of the global AIDS legislation that was passed by congress and signed by President Bush.

Fought International Crime, Corruption and Drug Trafficking. John Kerry chaired the landmark hearings that uncovered the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) scandal - the largest banking corruption scandal in modern times. He led hearings which provided evidence that Haitian military officials were involved in drug trafficking to the United States. He also led hearings on corruption and drug trafficking by Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega, and introduced legislation requiring the Reagan administration to cut off foreign aid to Panama because of drug-related corruption within its government.

Uncovered Government Corruption. John Kerry went on a fact-finding mission to Nicaragua and presented his findings to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Based in part on John Kerry's groundbreaking findings, the committee reached a consensus decision to investigate the Contra guerillas and their connection to drug trafficking in the United States. The resulting investigation uncovered the Iran-Contra scandal, a scheme that diverted profits from illegal arms sales to Iran to support the Contra guerilla fighters in Nicaragua.



Took on the Task of Investigating POW/MIA Issues. John Kerry and John McCain "doggedly investigated" an important and volatile issue which some described as an "unglamorous task that nobody else wanted." Regarding the investigation, John McCain said, "John Kerry handled the chairmanship of that committee with tremendous skill." In 1994, John Kerry sponsored an amendment with McCain that urged the American government to lift its 25-year trade embargo with Vietnam. He then worked closely with McCain and President Clinton to facilitate full normalization of trade and diplomatic relations with Vietnam.

Fought to Help Victims of Agent Orange. Beginning more than 15 years ago, John Kerry introduced legislation to assist veterans in receiving medical compensation after being exposed to the toxic chemical Agent Orange. John Kerry even testified before Congress to force the government to care for Vietnam veterans. John Kerry's bill, the Comprehensive Agent Orange Scientific Evidence Review Act, sought to require that the Veterans Administration(VA) look into the "health effects of exposure" to Agent Orange. John Kerry also voted to pass the Agent Orange Act of 1991 and the Veterans' Agent Orange Exposure and Vietnam Service Benefits Act of 1989.

Fought to Protect America's Environment. John Kerry has been described by the League of Conservation Voters as an "environmental champion." He introduced legislation to improve standards for clean air and establish a fund to finance emissions reductions. He secured millions of dollars in funding to clean America's waterways, harbors, and drinking water, worked to strengthen the Safe Drinking Water Act, and introduced legislation in 1996 to ensure "protection in the quality of our water." He sponsored legislation that extended and strengthened laws protecting marine mammals from commercial fishing. He helped protect America's National Parks and National Forests from pollution, excessive logging, and overdevelopment while ensuring that endangered species are preserved for all Americans to experience. He has opposed opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling for over a decade, ensuring that future generations can experience this national treasure. He strongly advocated for U.S. participation in the Kyoto accords and other international environmental initiatives, and personally participated in many major world environmental summits, including conferences at Rio di Janiero, Kyoto and the Hague.

Fought for America's Veterans. John Kerry has been a tireless champion of mandatory funding for veterans' health care. He fought vigorously for full funding of VA health care and opposed the Bush administration's exclusion of Priority 8 veterans and its elimination of VA outreach efforts. He sought improved prescription drug benefits and authored legislation in 2003 to let veterans fill prescriptions written by non-VA doctors through the VA pharmacy. As chairman of the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, John Kerry investigated the fate of missing American soldiers in Vietnam and brought about the resolution of this difficult issue for their families and for the governments of both countries. In 1994, he sponsored an amendment with Senator McCain that urged the American government to lift its 25-year trade embargo with Vietnam. He then worked closely with Senator McCain and President Clinton to facilitate full normalization of trade and diplomatic relations with Vietnam.

Stood Up for America's Children. John Kerry wrote the bill that became the foundation for the 1997 State Children's Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP), which provided states with federal funding to help extend health insurance coverage to children whose families do not qualify for Medicaid. He introduced legislation to expand state and local early childhood development efforts, including education, child care and health care for children between birth and six years old. At the end of 2000, a version of this bipartisan legislation was signed into law. To address the needs of America's at-risk youth, John Kerry led the effort to establish the YouthBuild program, which provides young people with basic education toward a diploma and the skills training they need to get a good-paying job. YouthBuild also teaches leadership and civic engagement while providing students with adult mentors who help them overcome personal problems and participate in a supportive community with positive values. Fought for Affordable Housing. As a member of the Senate Housing Subcommittee, John Kerry has a long record of fighting for affordable housing. He shaped the first significant rewrite of the public housing program in over 20 years and worked to craft and pass a bill that helped save the government billions of dollars in rental assistance payments, preserved thousands of affordable rental apartments, and helped finance the rehabilitation of those apartments. With Senator Jim Jeffords (I-VT), John Kerry sponsored the Affordable Housing Preservation Act to foster local partnerships between non-profits, state and local governments, and private landlords in order to keep existing housing projects available and affordable for low-income tenants. He worked to create and implement the "mark-up to market" program and he co-authored the Affordable Housing for Seniors and Families Act of 2000.

Thank you so much for that, Viv.

Oh, hell, the Electoral College was designed by the Federalists to steal elections from the American "mobs" way back in the late 1700s. "Functioning as intended" ever since. Bush stole nothing. He was handed the office by a system that was designed to give the appearence of democracy to an oft-fooled, politically-lazy nation.

There is "freedom to" and there is "freedom from". In my experience, the U.S. has severe issues with the latter concept, and approaches the top of the heap in the former.

Sorry, Siro Mfume's points are good enough to debate.

Not birthrate. Infant mortality rate you half-wit.

Also, you brought up freedom, not me.

14 whole countries? Wow, you've pretty much seen the globe.

Now take your smartass attitude and direct it elsewhere. I am finished with you troll.

Awww, had to resort to name calling. Boo hoo hoo.. I'm rubber you're glue, whatever you say bounces off of me and sticks to you

Fine, you said "infant mortality rate". You still brought up an issue that wasn't in the post you were replying to. Nice try though.

Briana Dawson

It's my post. I can talk about whatever I damn well please.

Stop trolling. We know that you think everything is fine in America and nothing can improve.

Of course, you also think dead babies is the same as born babies. My expectations of you are low at this point.

I was dissappointed that Kerry never made clear his famous "flip-flop", too.

He voted for protecting the troops, and then they tacked on a "give Halliburton lots of money" clause into the same measure, and he voted against it. Everyone should have. That's not flip-flopping, that's sniffing out bullshit and choosing not to eat it.

I think dead babies are the same as born babies????

Whatever. "Turbo"

Zoom Zoom

Briana Dawson

Yes, you do.

Here's a hint.

http://www.geographyiq.com/ranking/ranking_Infant_Mortality_Rate_aall.htm

I'm still trying to puzzle this post out. Does this mean that because the 14 countries Briana has been to have fewer freedoms than the US that it doesn't matter if we have places to improve? Or perhaps it was a reference to Kris Kristofferson's line in "Me and Bobby McGee":
"Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose"


Oh.. the iorny! Not even replying to what was said.

Zuzu, I <3 you

he made it clear in all 3 of his debates with Bush --the media ignored it and let flip-flop stick.


Hell they ignored Bush's biggest flip-flop that Kerry mentioned in debate #2 --That Bush was all hot to get Osama --and then he said Osama wasn't much on his mind.

2 minutes isn't enough time to clear an issue that the voting populace is obviously choosing not to research for themselves, and that your snivelling little opponents are using to make you appear weak. He should have spelled it out, using very small words.

2 things define your statement:
- the 14 countries you've traveled to
- the things you consider freedom

I live in a country that may lack some of the "freedoms" the US has. For example we have laws on guns that would be considered outrageous by many Americans. But as I don't value the right to carry a gun I don't think my freedom is affected. A totally different example could be patent law. We've a lot more restrictions and don't allow things to be as frivolous. Yet again as this liberates us from the outfall I don't mind at all.

Personally I can't immediatly think of 1 example of freedom I lack compared to a US citizen that I could really consider freedom.

I do agree that Kerry's vocabulary was a bit high falutin' for the average American, but I liked not being talked down to. Bush addresses the populace like we're in grade school. It's repulsive to me.

My point is that the media largely ignored anything Kerry sad on his stump speeches --and barely commented on his debates at all --heck most media said the debates were a "draw".

You mean you don't know how to copy/paste from Kerry's campaign website, Kendra?

I'm not saying it's perfect; I'm saying it's the best. Rooting for the home team. I don't go prostrating myself at the EU or the UN's feet hoping they'll forgive me for my lack of "progressiveness". The issues with my country are for me and my fellow citizens to work out-the rest of the world needs to butt out. And I will never be embarrassed or ashamed to be an American.

The US is the greatest nation on earth. Perfect? Not by any means, but then who is? But certainly the best. And every year sees the arrival thousands of immigrants who agree.

-Kiamat Dusk
...unabashed patriot...

Well she can probably read that website, which is more than I can say for some folks.

Yet I'll bet if I quoted from Bush's website, or even the White House, you'd be all over that like a snack cake. Right?

Hey, one propaganda campaign isn't much better than another. I'm a bit more picky about sources I trust, which is more than I can say for some folks.

The Dems need to accept the fact that political campaigns are won in 30 second sound bites, not truths. The Reps seem to have figured it out already. If you've got a catchy little soundbite that discredits your opponent, it doesn't matter if it's true or not. If you can think up a scathing but amusing nickname for him or her, even better! It will stick like glue and all the media puppets will use it, thinking they're clever.

They all need to sit down and watch the Daily Show before they're allowed to campaign for anything. They get it.

Actually, Clinton perfected this first; unfortunately, Bush learned the lesson better than Gore or Kerry.

You have to go back a bit further to Reagan to see who perfected the political sound bite...

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/sound-bite.html