PoliticalAction.com Blog

What: “AMERICAN DRUG WAR” – Free Screening in a Movie Theater!
When: 06/18/09, 6:45 PM-9:00 PM
Where:

Anthony Wayne Movie Theater
109 West Lancaster Avenue Wayne, PA 19087

Details:
AMERICAN DRUG WAR (2007, 120 minutes):
35 years after Nixon started the war on drugs, we have over one million non-violent drug offenders living behind bars.
The War on Drugs has become the longest and most costly war in American history, the question has become, how much more can the country endure? Inspired by the death of four family members from “legal drugs” Texas filmmaker Kevin Booth sets out to discover why the Drug War has become such a big failure. Three and a half years in the making, the film follows gang members, former DEA agents, CIA officers, narcotics officers, judges, politicians, prisoners and celebrities. Most notably the film befriends Freeway Ricky Ross; the man many accuse for starting the Crack epidemic, who after being arrested discovered that his cocaine source had been working for the CIA.
AMERICAN DRUG WAR shows how money, power and greed have corrupted not just drug pushers and dope fiends, but an entire government. More importantly, it shows what can be done about it. This is not some ‘pro-drug’ stoner film, but a collection of expert testimonials from the ground troops on the front lines of the drug war, the ones who are fighting it and the ones who are living it.
After 4 years of production including several sold out test screenings in New York, Austin & Los Angeles, the final version of American Drug War “the last white hope” is locked and loaded.
For more info, and to view the trailer, visit http://www.americandrugwar.com/
BONUS SCREENING OF LEAP PROMO (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition) before “American Drug War” 6:45 P.M. – LAW ENFORCEMENT AGAINST PROHIBITION (15 minutes):

After nearly four decades of fueling the U.S. policy of a war on drugs with over a trillion tax dollars and 37 million arrests for nonviolent drug offenses, our confined population has quadrupled making building prisons the fastest growing industry in the United States. More than 2.2 million of our citizens are currently incarcerated and every year we arrest an additional 1.9 million more guaranteeing those prisons will be bursting at their seams. Every year we choose to continue this war will cost U.S. taxpayers another 69 billion dollars. Despite all the lives we have destroyed and all the money so ill spent, today illicit drugs are cheaper, more potent, and far easier to get than they were 35 years ago at the beginning of the war on drugs. Meanwhile, people continue dying in our streets while drug barons and terrorists continue to grow richer than ever before. We would suggest that this scenario must be the very definition of a failed public policy. This madness must cease!

Please note that Betsy Metz pays “out of pocket” to rent the movie theater for one night every month. While donations are gladly accepted, bringing guests is highly preferred. Please bring at least one guest , this event is being held to wake people up to the truth about the failed drug war. If you’re fed up with wasteful spending, and have no idea how much time, money, and lives are lost in this “war” on drugs you need to be at this event.

What: WASHINGTON, YOU’RE FIRED! Free Screeing in a Movie Theater!
When: 06/18/09, 5:00 PM-6:30 PM
Where: Anthony Wayne Movie Theater
109 West Lancaster Avenue Wayne, PA 19087

Details:
WASHINGTON, YOU’RE FIRED! (2008, 77 minutes):
Have you ever wondered what all of those “terror-related” bills, passed over the last eight years, have collectively done to the U.S. Bill of Rights? Do you really know what “Habeas Corpus” means?
Washington, You’re Fired explains all of those unfamiliar terms that keep getting thrown around in the press… “Posse Comitatus,” “Habeas Corpus;” “Torture.” Includes breakdowns of The Military Commissions Act, The John Warner Defense Act, The USA PATRIOT Act, and other astonishing bills that you may not be familiar with, such as The Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act. This film captivatingly delivers an education into detrimental legislation that will affect generations of Americans to come. With Special Guests: Jonathan Turley, Meria Heller, Charles Goyette, Ann Wright

Ron Paul on Hypocritical Posturing Toward China

Ron Paul’s Statement on H Res 489 Regarding Tiananmen Square, June 3, 2009:

I rise to oppose this unnecessary and counter-productive resolution regarding the 20th anniversary of the incident in China’s Tiananmen Square. In addition to my concerns over the content of this legislation, I strongly object to the manner in which it was brought to the floor for a vote. While the resolution was being debated on the House floor, I instructed my staff to obtain a copy so that I could read it before the vote. My staff was told by no less than four relevant bodies within the House of Representatives that the text was not available for review and would not be available for another 24 hours. It is unacceptable for Members of the House of Representatives to be asked to vote on legislation that is not available for them to read!

As to the substance of the resolution, I find it disturbing that the House is going out of its way to meddle in China’s domestic politics, which is none of our business, while ignoring the many pressing issues in our own country that definitely are our business.

This resolution “calls on the People’s Republic of China to invite full and independent investigations into the Tiananmen Square crackdown, assisted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the International Committee of the Red Cross…” Where do we get the authority for such a demand? I wonder how the US government would respond if China demanded that the United Nations conduct a full and independent investigation into the treatment of detainees at the US-operated Guantanamo facility?

The resolution “calls on the legal authorities of People’s Republic of China to review immediately the cases of those still imprisoned for participating in the 1989 protests for compliance with internationally recognized standards of fairness and due process in judicial proceedings.” In light of US government’s extraordinary renditions of possibly hundreds of individuals into numerous secret prisons abroad where they are held indefinitely without charge or trial, one wonders what the rest of the world makes of such US demands. It is hard to exercise credible moral authority in the world when our motto toward foreign governments seems to be “do as we say, not as we do.”

While we certainly do not condone government suppression of individual rights and liberties wherever they may occur, why are we not investigating these abuses closer to home and within our jurisdiction? It seems the House is not interested in investigating allegations that US government officials and employees approved and practiced torture against detainees. Where is the Congressional investigation of the US-operated “secret prisons” overseas? What about the administration’s assertion of the right to detain individuals indefinitely without trial? It may be easier to point out the abuses and shortcomings of governments overseas than to address government abuses here at home, but we have the constitutional obligation to exercise our oversight authority in such matters. I strongly believe that addressing these current issues would be a better use of our time than once again condemning China for an event that took place some 20 years ago.

Heroically, he stands up for non-intervention and against hypocrisy on this resolution that passed 396 to 1.

By Rod Nickel; Editing by John Picinich
Reuters, Jun 1, 2009
Straight to the Source

[Editors Note: Read the statement the Organic Consumers Association joined in opposition to GE wheat here. Take Action.]

SASKATOON, Saskatchewan (Reuters) – Farm and environment groups opposed to genetically modified wheat are countering a call from other farm organizations for biotech companies to commercially develop it.

Fifteen groups in the top wheat-exporting countries of Canada, the U.S. and Australia released a joint statement of opposition to GMO wheat on Monday. It follows the May 14 call by GM wheat supporters in the three countries for synchronized production of GM wheat.

“Genetic engineering for wheat would be a calamity for all wheat farmers,” said Julie Newman, a member of the Network of Concerned Farmers in Australia. “Consumers across the world have already rejected the idea of GE wheat.”

Monsanto Co shelved plans for a herbicide-tolerant GMO wheat in 2004 in the face of opposition from U.S. wheat buyers, farmers and exporters such as the Canadian Wheat Board that feared a loss of overseas customers. Major export markets in Europe and Asia are particularly sensitive to concerns about GM food.

The farm groups’ main concern is that loss of markets will hurt prices for farmers, said Katherine Ozer, executive director of the Washington D.C.-based National Family Farm Coalition.

“If (genetically engineered) wheat is released commercially, contamination would be inevitable and markets would view all wheat produced from these areas as GE unless proven to be non-GE,” the groups stated. “Farmers growing GE wheat will take on all of the responsibilities, costs and liabilities, with little available legal recourse to recover their losses.”

Other groups signing the statement include the National Farmers Union, Canadian Biotechnology Action Network, the Organic Federation of Australia, Biological Farmers of Australia, Greenpeace and the U.S.-based Organic Consumers Association.

Farmers who support development of GMO wheat say genetic engineering would help wheat stay competitive with other key crops like corn, soybeans and canola that have GM seed options. But GMO opponents counter that unlike GMO crops grown primarily for feed, oil and fiber, wheat is mainly used for human consumption and would be subject to labeling requirements in many countries.

YOU’RE FIRED!

Signed,

Many of your constituents

By BRIAN BLACKSTONE – Wall Street Journal

WASHINGTON — U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday urged lawmakers to commit to reducing the nearly $2 trillion budget deficit, warning that the government can’t borrow “indefinitely” to meet the growing demand on its resources.

Mr. Bernanke also reiterated that the pace of economic contraction appears to be slowing, setting the stage for a return to growth later this year.

“Unless we demonstrate a strong commitment to fiscal sustainability in the longer run, we will have neither financial stability nor healthy economic growth,” Mr. Bernanke said in prepared testimony to the House Budget Committee. (Read the full remarks.)

The White House estimates that the budget deficit will reach around $1.8 trillion this year and fall to about $900 billion by 2011. That, Mr. Bernanke said, will push the debt-to-GDP ratio from 40% before the financial crisis began to 70% by 2011, which would be the highest since after World War II.

“Certainly, our economy and financial markets face extraordinary near-term challenges, and strong and timely actions to respond to those challenges are necessary and appropriate,” Mr. Bernanke told the House panel.

However, the retirement of the Baby Boom generation will place even more of a burden on entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare, and “we will not be able to continue borrowing indefinitely to meet those demands,” he said.

Mr. Bernanke suggested that fiscal concerns may already be having an effect in the markets. Yields on longer-term Treasury securities and fixed-rate mortgages have risen, he noted.

“These increases appear to reflect concerns about large federal deficits but also other causes, including greater optimism about the economic outlook, a reversal of flight-to-quality flows, and technical factors related to the hedging of mortgage holdings,” he said.

Mr. Bernanke adhered closely to the Fed’s cautiously upbeat outlook for the economy. Consumer spending, he said, has been flat since the start of the year and sentiment has improved. Housing, he said, “has also shown some signs of bottoming” and lean inventories should eventually spur production.

Still, he cautioned that even when an upturn begins, growth will remain below its long-run potential “for a while.”

“Sizable” job losses, he said, should continue for “the next few months,” pushing the unemployment rate higher. The government releases May payroll figures Friday. Economists expect another payroll decline of over 500,000, raising the jobless rate past 9%.

Against that backdrop of widening economic slack, inflation should fall over the next year compared to 2008, Mr. Bernanke said, though an improving economy and stable inflation expectations “should limit further declines in inflation.”

Meanwhile, Mr. Bernanke said the ability of banks to raise new capital “suggests that investors are gaining greater confidence in the banking system.”

But while financial conditions have improved since the start of the year, they remain under stress and continue to act as a brake on the economy, he said.

111th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 2629

To protect the American people’s ability to make their own health care decisions by ensuring the Federal Government shall not force any American to purchase health insurance.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

May 21, 2009

Mr. PAUL introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

To protect the American people’s ability to make their own health care decisions by ensuring the Federal Government shall not force any American to purchase health insurance.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Coercion is Not Health Care Act’.

SEC. 2. NO FEDERAL REQUIREMENT FOR HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE.

Participation in, or access to, any program of the Federal Government or eligibility to receive any benefit under Federal law shall not be conditioned on the purchase or maintenance of health insurance coverage.

SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON FEDERAL AUTHORITY.

No individual or agency of the Federal Government shall ever require any individual to purchase health insurance coverage.

111th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 2630

To protect the privacy of patients and physicians.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

May 21, 2009

Mr. PAUL introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

A BILL

To protect the privacy of patients and physicians.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Protect Patients and Physicians Privacy Act’.

SEC. 2. PATIENT RIGHT TO OPT OUT OF ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS SYSTEM.

All individuals shall have the ability to opt out of any Federally mandated, created, or funded electronic system for maintaining health care information.

SEC. 3. REPEAL OF STANDARD UNIQUE HEALTH IDENTIFIERS.

(a) In General-

(1) Section 1173 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1320d-2) is amended by striking subsection (b).

(2) Section 1177(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1320d-6(a)) is amended by striking paragraph (1).

(b) Prohibition of Federal Expenditures- No Federal funds shall be used to support, encourage, or otherwise promote the use of standard unique health identifiers (such as those described in section 1173(b) of the Social Security Act, before the amendment made by subsection (a)(1)) in any Federal, State, or private health care plan.

SEC. 4. REQUIREMENT OF INFORMED CONSENT FOR SHARING INFORMATION FROM ELECTRONIC MEDICAL RECORDS.

(a) Limitation on Sharing Information From EMRs-

(1) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in paragraph (2), no information from any electronic medical record maintained by a health care provider and created pursuant to a Federally mandated, created, or funded program may be shared with another health care provider absent a signed, informed consent from the patient involved.

(2) EXCEPTION FOR EMERGENCIES- Paragraph (1) shall not apply in a medical emergency.

(b) Limitation on Merger of Information- No health care information from an individual medical record shall be placed in a Federally mandated, created, or funded electronic system of health care information, absent a signed, informed consent from the patient involved.

(c) Definitions- In this subsection:

(1) INFORMED CONSENT- The term `informed consent’ means, with respect to the sharing of information concerning a patient, a written document certifying that the patient gives permission to such sharing of information.

(2) MEDICAL EMERGENCY- The term `medical emergency’ means any situation where the failure to provide immediate medical treatment or assistance could result in serious injury, loss of life, or both.

SEC. 5. PROVIDER FREEDOM FROM REQUIRED PARTICIPATION IN AN ELECTRONIC HEALTH CARE RECORDS PROGRAM.

(a) In General- The Federal Government may not require a health care provider to participate in any Federally mandated, created, or funded electronic system of maintaining health care information.

(b) Limitation- No health care provider shall be denied participation in, or otherwise sanctioned with respect to participation in, a Federal health care program because the provider refuses to participate in a Federally mandated, created, or funded electronic system of maintaining health care information.

Texas Straight Talk – A weekly column
Rep. Ron Paul (R) – TX 14

With a faltering economy, and skyrocketing costs, healthcare continues to be a critical issue for all Americans. Unfortunately government encroachment into the doctor/patient relationship is poised to exacerbate our problems with healthcare.

As an OB/GYN with over 30 years of experience in private practice, I understand that one of the foundations of quality healthcare is the patient’s confidence that all information shared with his or her healthcare provider will remain private. And yet, the Federal Government plans to undermine this trust with establishment of mandatory electronic medical records collections and “unique health identifier” numbers assigned to all Americans. Funding for this program was among the numerous provisions jammed into the stimulus bill rushed through Congress earlier this year.

Electronic medical records that are part of the federal system will only receive the protection granted by the federal “medical privacy rule.” This misnamed rule actually protects the ability of government officials and state-favored special interests to view private medical records without patient consent.

Aside from those concerns, the government’s ability to protect medical records is highly questionable. After all, we are all familiar with cases where third parties obtained access to electronic veteran, tax, and other records because of errors made by federal bureaucrats. We should also consider the abuse of IRS records by administrations of both parties. What would happen if unscrupulous politicians gained the power to access their political enemies’ electronic medical records?

For these reasons I have introduced the Protect Patients’ and Physicians’ Privacy Act, HR 2630, which allows patients and physicians to opt out of any federally mandated, created, or funded electronic medical records system. The bill also repeals sections of federal law establishing a “unique health identifier” and requires patient consent before any electronic medical records can be released to a 3rd party.

I have also introduced the Coercion is Not Health Care Act, HR 2629. This legislation forbids the federal government from forcing any American to purchase health insurance, or conditioning participation in any federal program on the purchase of health insurance. Forcing Americans to purchase government-approved health insurance is a back door approach to creating a government-controlled healthcare system. Congress would define what policies and coverage requirements satisfy their mandate. Does anyone then doubt that what conditions and treatments are covered would be determined by who has the most effective lobby? Or that Congress would be capable of writing a mandatory insurance policy that fits the unique needs of every individual in the United States?

With these conditions in place, I foresee the eventual imposition of price controls and limitations on what procedures and treatments that are covered. This will result in an increasing number of providers turning to “cash only” practices, making it difficult for those relying on the government-mandated insurance to find healthcare – the exact opposite of the desired result! Consider the increasing number of physicians who are already withdrawing from the Medicare program because of the low reimbursement and constant bureaucratic harassment from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Congress should put the American people back in charge of healthcare by expanding healthcare tax credits and deductions, increasing access to Health Savings Accounts, respecting privacy and the doctor/patient relationship. Further politicizing and bureaucratizing of healthcare will only increase costs and reduce quality, as demonstrated by most other countries with socialized medicine.