Watching the News

the other night i was watching the news. i am a person that tries to keep an open mind and judge things by common sense; which i think is lacking in this day and age. (my mother always told me i march to my own beat (LOL). i definatly have opinions, but also try to see both sides of the story before i form an opinion. race, religion, political parties and so forth do not sway me in any one direction; common sense does, and i guess i see irony in many things. so as i said i was watching the news and both of these stories made me think....

Democratic President Obama Issues First Execitive Orders;

retreived 1-22-09 from; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTuHgewKn1g

interesting speech, but what caught my attention was this...

Obama Freezing Some Aides' Salaries;

retreived 1-22-09 from; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMKKozEvBnQ

following that story this next story was broadcasted. unfortunatly i can not find it in video, so i will have to print it out for you to read (sorry, i'll condense it and if you want to read the whole story you can go to the link provided at the end).
as i live in utah (the most republican state in America)this did raise my hackles a bit as it seems to me that our seniors, mentally ill & physically ill,law inforcment,baby your baby,our schools, abused aid and so forth are the ones that will be affected....
Utah parents, advocates beg state's lawmakers not to cut funding for autism services, disability programs
From the Salt Lake Tribune.
Deep cuts proposed for the Department of Health appeared to salvage other programs defended by Utahns Wednesday. Winners ranged from parents with autistic children in preschool to low-income women with breast cancer relying on publicly-funded insurance.
Renae Bolson, a single mother diagnosed with breast cancer, said Medicaid's coverage helped keep her alive. Without it, "my family would have been planning my funeral," Bolson said.
Under revisions made Jan. 21, state money that flows to local mental health programs would be cut $3.5 million in 2010, instead of $8.6 million.
Rather than eliminating Meals on Wheels for thousands of vulnerable seniors, a far fewer number would lose their access to the program.
But other cuts remained deep...
A proposed $3.5 million cut in 2010 would eliminate Adult Protective Services and its 45 positions...
Officials believe cutting the program would endanger residents and make Utah the only state in the nation without such services. Law enforcement or other agencies would likely need to increase their involvement, which would cost the state money for training, said Nels Holmgren, the director of the Division of Aging and Adult Services.
A proposal to reduce cuts to substance abuse programs hinges on making people help pay for their treatment. But that could lead to the further loss of federal Medicaid dollars and is unrealistic...
About 200 people had packed Wednesday's hearing, begging lawmakers to spare programs ranging from disability services to the four autism preschools.
Dozens of parents...convinced lawmakers to not close the schools.
The families suggested the state put more money into the program, which has a waiting list of nearly 300...
"If you take this away, that is nothing but pure cruelty," said Gloria Stratford...
Advocates urged lawmakers to save Medicaid programs by temporarily tapping rainy day funds, repaying them with expected federal stimulus funds.
"Economic recovery is on its way from the federal government," said Lincoln Nehring, Medicaid director for the Utah Health Policy Project. "There are resources within the state that [could] help mitigate the economic challenge that we currently face." ...
Melissa Gilley said the Baby Your Baby program helped to ensure the safe delivery of her daughter...
"You're cutting people's quality of life. We're real human beings here, we're not just another number," said LouAnne Stevenson, who said she would become suicidal without treatment for clinical depression...
Several speakers said the so-called savings would result in more costs in the future. For example, cutting 5,600 women from Medicaid-funded prenatal care could result in astronomical hospitalization costs, according to March of Dimes spokesman Stephen McDonald.
A study of mothers who didn't receive prenatal care showed their babies were two times more likely to be born prematurely and severely underweight and need time in intensive care, he said.
Retreived 1-22-09 from: Utah parents, advocates beg state's lawmakers not to cut funding for autism services, disability programs

as i said, i don't affiliate with any party and i'm one of those that stay nuetral with the attitude of "show me what you will do" and as i have had the experience of living both VERY POOR & VERY COMFORTABLE i have witnessed both sides and can relate to both. however, this really makes me think of what i want my government to focus on.

sorry this is so long---i'm getting my Robin Hood outfit out just in case LOL.

one last note; the mention of utah not wanting to "dip into their rainy day fund" which consists of approximatly 400 million dollars.

couldn't this be considered a "rainy day?"

for more on utah's "rainy day funds" follow this link
Retreived 1-22-09 from; http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,705277414,00.html