Revel poolside amid flickering tiki torches and listen to the beat of steel drums with a cool beverage in hand during the fourth annual Tahitian Party on June 22 from 6:30 to 10:00 p.m. Throw on a hula skirt and or Hawaiian shirt and relish the atmosphere of Tahiti in Cedar Rapids thanks to Howard Hall's famous Tahitian Room located in the basement of the Brucemore mansion.  Enjoy roast suckling pig, noshes, and Polynesian drinks. Bid on exclusive Brucemore experiences in the silent auction such as special floral packages from the Brucemore Cutting Gardens Flower Shop, VIP ticket packages for Brucemore events, and exclusive group experiences on the estate. Food and drinks will be provided by Benz, Braise, First Avenue Wine House, Ruzicka's, Wright Touch Bake Shoppe and Catering, and Zins Restaurant.  All proceeds will benefit the rehabilitation of the Garden House. This is an event you will not want to miss.

Sarah Olson, member of the Tahitian Party Steering Committee, said, "The Tahitian Party is one of the events I look forward to most each year. Relaxing poolside with friends, soaking up the historic charm of the Brucemore mansion and estate, and enjoying exotic beverages and foods is the perfect way to spend a summer night out in Iowa."

The Garden House has had many tenants and uses over the past 100 years. Mold, mildew, crumbling plaster, and rotten wood have caused the building to become uninhabitable. This summer, Brucemore will repoint the chimneys, replace the roof, repair the recessed gutters, consolidate the rotten wood, and paint this building.

Tickets are $60 per person.  Please call (319) 362-7375 to make reservations by Wednesday, June 13. Sponsorship levels are also available beginning at $100 and offering additional benefits. Tahitian Star Title Sponsors include Kathleen and Tom Aller; Bradley and Riley PC; Brenda Duello; Klingler Painting and Decorating; Paulson Electric Co.; Rinderknecht Associates, Inc.; Shuttleworth and Ingersoll PLC; Simmons Perrine Moyer Bergman PLC; and Wells Fargo. Mercy Medical Center is the Printing Sponsor.

Brucemore, Iowa's only National Trust Historic Site, is located at 2160 Linden Drive SE, Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The 26-acre park-like estate in the heart of Cedar Rapids boasts a Queen Anne style mansion built between 1884 and 1886. Brucemore has been home to three prominent families who used the estate as a center for culture and the arts. The estate continues to be a hub for cultural, philanthropic, and educational activities. Each year thousands of visitors attend specialty tours, concerts, fine arts performances, children's programs, holiday celebrations, preservation events, and garden workshops on the estate. For more information, call (319) 362-7375 or visit www.brucemore.org.

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa today received full Senate passage of his legislation to impose a nationwide ban on the chemicals used to make the dangerous drugs known as "K2" or "Spice." As Judiciary Committee Ranking Member, Grassley advanced the legislation, named for a young Iowa man who took his own life after using the drug.

"An 18-year-old constituent of mine tragically took his own life after using this drug," Grassley said.  "Other deaths around the country have been linked to it.  It's poison. Its manufacturing processes are largely unknown and 100 percent unregulated.  In some instances, the drug is made on the floor of a household garage.  People are spraying chemicals on a pile of dried plant clippings, putting that in an envelope and selling it to kids.  Anybody who ingests this substance is risking their lives.  A federal ban will go a long way in  preventing this poison from causing any more harm."

Grassley said the federal ban will prevent foreign manufacturers from getting their products into the United States in the first place.  And a federal ban is necessary to get the material out of stores in all 50 states.  The existing state bans vary from state to state and may not be broad enough to anticipate the chemical tweaks that cynical manufacturers use to evade the ban.  "And the clock is ticking on how long the current federal regulatory ban will remain in place," Grassley said.  "Congress needs to finalize a permanent, comprehensive ban effective in all 50 states."

Last year, Grassley introduced the David Mitchell Rozga Act, S. 605, named for the 18-year-old from Indianola who took his own life in June 2010, soon after using K2 purchased from his local shopping mall.  Poison control centers and emergency rooms around the country are reporting skyrocketing cases of calls and visits resulting from K2 use, with physical effects including increased agitation, elevated heart rate and blood pressure, hallucinations, and seizures.  A number of people across the country have acted violently while under the influence of the drug, dying or injuring themselves and others.

The Senate approved the Grassley legislation as part of legislation re-authorizing a key component of Food and Drug Administration funding.  The Senate also approved bans of the chemicals used to make other dangerous synthetic drugs, "bath salts," "2C-E" and others.  The measures were included in an amendment from Sen. Rob Portman.  "I appreciate Sen. Portman's attention to this issue and work to move forward on a ban," Grassley said.

The House of Representatives passed similar legislation last December.  Grassley said he hopes the House will give final passage to the synthetic drug ban as soon as possible.

"The chemicals used to produce these drugs have no household use," Grassley said.  "The manufacturers and sellers of these products are engaging in a cynical money-making ploy that plays with human life.  Until a final ban is in place, everyone should stay away from these products."

It's necessary for Congress to act to ban the chemicals used to make the new wave of synthetic drugs because the federal Drug Enforcement Administration's capacity to ban chemicals is limited.  Grassley's legislation treats K2 like other banned narcotics such as methamphetamine and cocaine.  The same is true for the bills on "bath salts" and "2C-E."

The "Understanding the True Cost of College" Act Will Ensure Families Know Exact Cost of College When Deciding Which School to Attend

WASHINGTON, D.C. [05/24/12]? U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) said families and students will gain a more accurate picture of exactly how much college will cost them before deciding which school to attend under bipartisan legislation he authored and introduced today. Sens. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Tim Johnson (D-S. Dak.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) joined as original cosponsors.

Sen. Franken's "Understanding the True Cost of College Act," introduced Thursday, would create a universal financial aid award letter so that students can easily compare financial-aid packages between schools.  It would clarify what financial aid families will receive from a school and create standard terms for the aid offered so that students can accurately compare offers from different schools. Right now, schools do not use standard definitions or names for different types of aid, so students and families often report having difficulty figuring out the differences between grant aid?which does not need to be repaid?and student loans, which do need to be repaid.

"The amount of debt students in Minnesota graduate with has skyrocketed, and part of the problem is that students often don't have a clear picture of how much their education is going to actually cost them," said Sen. Franken. "My legislation will require schools to use a universal financial aid letter so students and their families will know exactly how much college will cost, and will help them compare apples to apples when deciding what school a student will attend."

"This commonsense legislation helps empower students and families with necessary information to make an informed choice about college," said Sen. Harkin. "Faced with soaring tuition and mounting debt, students lack the consistent, clear and useful financial aid information they need to compare their options and make the decision that is right for them.  As Congress grapples with the pressing and complex issue of college affordability, this bipartisan legislation addresses a key piece of the puzzle and will help millions navigate the maze of financial aid information thrown their way through a standardized, comprehensive, consumer-friendly form.  This is not about more information, but about the right information that students need when making such an important decision about their future."

"I am proud to help lead the Understanding the True Cost of College Act, which would mandate fairer and more accurate disclosure in financial aid offers to students," said Sen. Blumenthal. "It would provide for clearer terminology and definitions colleges use in their financial aid letters. Students would better understand the differences in the financial aid packages they receive from each institution, and make more informed decisions in choosing college."

"College affordability must be a top priority for the federal government so that millions of students  and future students at America's colleges and universities can graduate with a diploma and not a pile of debt," said Sen. Schumer. "I am proud to have partnered with Senator Franken to create a requirement that all higher education programs inform consumers about their financial aid options in a uniform manner, which allows them to make apples-to-apples comparisons when considering a college's price tag. This proposal will help ensure that students receive a top-notch education that is as affordable for families and students as possible."

"This initiative will empower students and parents with the information they need to make the best financial decision for their families and to avoid taking on more debt than they will be able to repay,"said Sen. Grassley. "This is one way to address the problem of student debt on the front end rather than after the fact.  Also, the more we can help students and parents become savvy shoppers, the more colleges will be forced to rein in rising costs to compete for students."

"I believe in America's opportunity ladder, and higher education is an important rung on that ladder,"said Sen. Mikulski."This legislation will help families who are stressed and stretched to make an informed financial decision by requiring all colleges to provide basic information on the costs of enrolling at the school of their choice. Higher education is part of the American dream - it shouldn't be a financial nightmare."

"Not all student aid is created equal and students deserve to know exactly what kind of debt they are taking on and how much they will have to pay back," said Sen. Wyden. "Student aid packages vary from school to school and are often difficult to compare with each other. The difference between a $20,000 grant and a $20,000 high interest loan can mean the difference between an affordable and an unaffordable education for many students, yet often times this distinction may not be readily apparent. Students deserve to know as simply and clearly as possible what they are taking on and the choices they have."

"Students today have enough obstacles keeping them from a quality education, deciphering the paperwork shouldn't be one of them.  We need to make it easier to understand the options for financial aid and exactly what the full cost will be," said Sen. Cardin. "I am proud to be a cosponsor of legislation that requires uniform, consumer-tested financial aid award letters with standard definitions.  This will go a long way toward helping students fully understand their funding options and commitments."

The "Understanding the True Cost of College Act" would:

• Require institutions of higher education to use a uniform financial aid award letter.

• Call on the Department of Education to work with colleges, consumer groups, students, and school guidance counselors to develop standard definitions of various financial aid terms for use in the uniform financial aid award letters.

• Establish basic minimums of information that must be included in the uniform financial aid award letters, such as: cost of attendance; grant aid; the net amount a student is responsible for paying after subtracting grant aid; work study assistance; eligible amounts of federal student loans; expected federal loan monthly repayment amounts; and disclosures including disclosures related to private loans, treatment of scholarships, and the terms and conditions of federal financial aid.

• Require the Department of Education to establish a process to consumer test the uniform financial aid award letter and use the results from the consumer testing in the final development of the uniform financial aid award letter.

In Minnesota, Sen. Franken's bill is supported by the University of Minnesota, the Minnesota State University Student Association, the Minnesota State College Student Association, and the Minnesota College Access Network. Nationally, the bill is supported by the American Federation of Teachers-AFL-CIO, the National Consumers League, Campus Progress Action, the Institute for College Access and Success, Education Trust, and the National College Access Network.

The national mood remains anxious, worried.  We have millions of Americans out of work, many of them Baby Boomers who've seen what they worked for these past 30 years disappear:  a predictable career, financial security, home equity, retirement savings. The foundation they've worked so hard to build seems to have collapsed before their very eyes.

"They feel lost. They see hedge-funders and investment bankers as having hijacked the American Dream from the middle class," says Peter Weddle, former CEO of Job Bank USA, Inc., and author of A Multitude of Hope: A Novel About Rediscovering the American Dream (www.AMultitudeofHope.com).

"Boomers - and all working Americans, for that matter - feel as if all of the opportunity has been sucked out of the land of opportunity, and they don't know how or even if they can succeed in this changed world."

But America is still the leader of the global economy and its future is as bright as it ever was, Weddle says. Why? Because Americans are individually prone to innovation and creativity, and collectively, the most diverse pool of workers in the world, he says.

"For all the unresolved immigration issues we have in the United States, we still have the best workforce on the planet.  Our diversity gives us a huge advantage over the competition in the global economy," Weddle says. "We have every kind of talent the world has to offer, while other countries such as China, India and Japan have very homogenous cultures so everyone basically brings the same talent to the table."

That talent, however, is being wasted.  The U.S. workplace has become an investor-driven market, a place where workers are treated as disposable cogs who are costs to be minimized rather than capabilities to be maximized on-the-job, Weddle says. The only way out, therefore, is something he calls "economic disobedience."  If every American stands up and demands their right to be employed as a person of talent - and if they then elevate that talent and bring it to work with them - they can reclaim the American Dream, Weddle says.

He sees Baby Boomers already beginning to do this. The number of 50- to 64-year-olds enrolled in college jumped 17 percent from 2007 to 2009, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

"These are the people who see this time as a moment of liberation - a chance to reinvigorate their talent so they can perform at their peak on-the-job," Weddle says. "And that self-reliance and individual determination is how our country will recapture its mojo."

A national human resources expert, Weddle says people don't necessarily have to go back to school or reinvent themselves. But they do need to identify their talent - their innate capacity for excellence - and take a proactive approach to integrating it into their career.

"It may be a gift for getting things organized, for resolving conflicts, for explaining complex topics in simple terms," he says. "Every single one of us has a talent and when we apply it at work, our job satisfaction - and our pay - goes up.

"Instead of work being a four-letter word, it becomes something to get excited about and to feel good about. We rekindle our self-confidence, self-respect and determination and we produce an economic revolution that restores democratic capitalism."

About Peter Weddle

Peter Weddle, a former recruiter and human resource consultant, is the CEO of the International Association of Employment Web Sites, a trade organization. He has written or edited more than two dozen non-fiction books regarding careers and employment; "A Multitude of Hope" is his first work of fiction. Weddle is the founder and former CEO of Job Bank USA, Inc., one of the largest electronic employment services companies in the United States.