21 Nov 2011

Upcoming American Red Cross blood drives December 1-15

By Marvin Whittaker
Think outside the box this holiday season.  The perfect gift is at the nearest American Red Cross blood drive or blood donation center.  And, unlike the latest fashion trend, video game or golf club, it costs nothing but an hour of time. When someone donates blood, they give the perfect gift - another hug, another laugh, another smile, another chance - to a patient in need.

All blood types are currently needed. Approximately every two seconds a patient in the United States needs blood. By taking time to donate this winter, you can help the Red Cross ensure a stable blood supply for all patients who need blood products.

How to Donate Blood
Simply call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or visit redcrossblood.org to make an appointment or for more information. All blood types are needed to ensure a reliable supply for patients. A blood donor card or driver's license, or two other forms of identification are required at check-in.  Individuals who are 17 years of age (16 with parental permission in some states), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements.

About the American Red Cross
Governed by volunteers and supported by giving individuals and communities, the American Red Cross is the single largest supplier of blood products to hospitals throughout the United States. While local hospital needs are always met first, the Red Cross also helps ensure no patient goes without blood no matter where or when they need it. In addition to providing nearly half of the nation's blood supply, the Red Cross provides relief to victims of disaster, trains millions in lifesaving skills, serves as a communication link between U.S. military members and their families, and assists victims of international disasters or conflicts.


Blood Donation Opportunities

CARROLL COUNTY
12/2/2011, 2:00 pm- 6:00 pm, Plumtree Lodge, 15-940 Plum Tree Drive, Lanark

CLINTON COUNTY
12/4/2011, 8:00 am-12:00 pm, Assumption Catholic Church, 147 Broadway Street, Charlotte

12/15/2011, 10:00 am- 4:00 pm, Lyondell Chemical Company, 3400 Anamosa Road, Clinton

HENRY COUNTY
12/2/2011, 9:00 am- 2:00 pm, Wethersfield High School, 439 Willard, Kewanee, IL, Henry,

12/14/2011, 2:00 pm- 6:00 pm, First Christian Church, 105 Dwight St., Kewanee, IL, Henry,

12/14/2011, 10:00 am- 2:00 pm, Kewanee High School, 1211 East 3rd Street, Kewanee, IL, Henry,

12/15/2011, 2:00 pm- 6:00 pm, American Legion, 509 N. School Street, Atkinson, IL, Henry,


MERCER COUNTY
12/12/2011, 2:00 pm- 6:00 pm, New Windsor Presbyterian Church, 4TH & Walnut/ Box 245, New Windsor

WHITESIDE COUNTY
12/1/2011, 9:45 am- 4:00 pm, CGH Medical Center, 100 E. LeFevre Road, Sterling

12/6/2011, 8:00 am-11:00 am, Old Fulton Fire Station, 912 4th Street, Fulton

12/7/2011, 2:00 pm- 6:00 pm, Rock Falls Blood Donation Center, 112 W. Second St., Rock Falls

12/7/2011, 9:00 am- 2:00 pm, Fulton High School, 1207 12th Street, Fulton

12/10/2011, 8:00 am-12:00 pm, St. John's Evangelical Church, 703 3rd Avenue, Sterling

12/12/2011, 11:30 am- 5:30 pm, Prophetstown-Lyndon-Tampico CUSD #3, 79 Grove St., Prophetstown

12/13/2011, 1:00 pm- 5:15 pm, Old Fulton Fire Station, 912 4th Street, Fulton
21 Nov 2011

Grassley Praises Restored Funding for U.S. Counternarcotics Programs

By Grassley Press

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, co-chairman of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, today said House and Senate appropriators are restoring funding for Defense Department international counternarcotics programs.  Grassley, along with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, caucus chairman, had urged appropriators to restore the funding, which lapsed Oct. 1.

"The funding lapse was worrisome," Grassley said.  "It put counternarcotics efforts at risk of losing momentum and backsliding on progress in hotbed areas.  It's a relief that for the safety and security of the United States, funding for U.S. counternarcotics programs abroad will be restored very soon."

The appropriators' language restoring the funding is available here, p. 280.  Letters from Grassley and Feinstein to try to restore funding are available here, here and here.

-30-
21 Nov 2011

PIZZA MAN Quad Cities feature film update

By Doug Miller
The live action motion picture production of PIZZA MAN to be made by Brookspics Productions is slated to begin in the spring of 2012. Brookspics, which is owned by Mel Brooks, has been approved for production by Betsy Steinberg, Managing Director of the Illinois Film Office. PIZZA MAN is a horror/thriller film and has been in active development and preparation since June of this year through the efforts of Producer, Rainer Soehnlein in cooperation with Great River Studios, LLC of Rock Island, Illinois. Great River will be the production management, service, equipment and facilities company associated with the local production of the film in the Illinois Quad Cities area.

An extensive location scout took place during the months of August and September of this year with the film's director Steve Haberman and Great River Production Executive, Doug Miller, along with numerous associates from Great River Studios. Production budgets have been finalized and logistics have been coordinated for the production with the cooperation of numerous Quad Cities residents, various Great River production partners and the Cities of Rock Island and Moline with locations selected in both of these communities thus far. The projected budget of the film is $5 million dollars

Steve Haberman, the writer-director of PIZZA MAN, is a longtime collaborator with Mel Brooks having written two movies with him: LIFE STINKS and DRACULA - DEAD AND LOVING IT. He also wrote the feature SCREW LOOSE and the documentary SHADOWS IN THE DARK: THE VAL LEWTON LEGACY. His short film, BLIND CURVES, which he wrote, produced and directed, won 17 international film festivals, including the Eastman Kodak Film of the Year and Best Short Film of the Year from the Photographic Society of America. An expert on horror films, he authored the book SILENT SCREAMS, the definitive history of horror in the silent era. He performed the commentary on 15 classic horror films including the original Universal Pictures' DRACULA and THE MUMMY for which he won the Rando Award for Best Commentary of the Year. He recently produced, directed and edited the HBO special MEL BROOKS AND DICK CAVETT - TOGETHER AGAIN.

For more information about PIZZA MAN and or interviews with Mr. Haberman please contact Doug Miller, Great River Studios Production Executive at 563-349-1041.
21 Nov 2011

Village Christmas Walk

By Karen Anderson
You won't want to miss the Village of East Davenport Christmas Walk, Friday night, Dec. 2 & Saturday night, Dec. 3--featuring free horse drawn wagon rides through the Village, living Christmas window tableaus, live nativity--with real animals to pet, Santa, street carolers, musicians and performers. The fun begins each night at 6-9 P.M.. Village Sparkle Fireworks display will light up the Village skies at 9 P.M. on Saturday night, Dec. 3rd. The Village of East Davenport is located at the intersection of East River Drive and Mound Street extending northeast for a few blocks over to Lindsay Park and the McClellan Heights area.
15 Nov 2011

Herman Cain Campaign War Chest Skyrockets

By J D Gordon
Presidential candidate Herman Cain is "in it to win it," according to newly released financial numbers. The Herman Cain Campaign reports receiving over $9 million of financial support from Cain backers since October 1st. Twenty-five percent of these newly received contributions have come in the last ten days.

The generosity of Mr. Cain's followers has more than doubled in the past five weeks, compared to the financial gifts received in the previous two quarters combined. According to the campaign's third quarter FEC filing, Mr. Cain's campaign received $4.7 million from May through September 30th. The campaign has received a total of $14.1 million in financial support since the start of the campaign.

"Mr. Cain's vision to renew our country and create new jobs via his bold "9-9-9 Plan" is resonating across America," said Mark Block, Chief of Staff to the Herman Cain presidential campaign. "Mr. Cain's business experience and executive leadership is needed to put America back on the track to prosperity. Voters want to be part of the Cain Train so they are donating their time, talent and treasure to make sure Mr. Cain is our next president."
15 Nov 2011

Cain Favors Supreme Court to Strike Down Obamacare

By J D Gordon

Cites New Job Layoffs in the Medical Device Industry

Des Moines - Presidential candidate Herman Cain favors the Supreme Court to strike down Obamacare citing Constitutional concerns and recent news that Stryker medical devices will lay off 5% of its workforce, about 1,000 jobs, in preparation for the medical device tax contained in the legislation.

"We cannot afford a piece of legislation that robs Americans of their freedom to choose whether or not they want to purchase insurance," said Cain. "The news this week that Stryker will layoff 5% of its workforce is more evidence that Obamacare is costing jobs, extending our unemployment problem."

The Supreme Court announced Monday that it would review President Obama's health care plan, particularly the mandate for the purchase of insurance.

Michigan based Stryker, is a maker of hip replacements and other medical devices. Unemployment in Michigan in September of this year was running higher than 11% and the layoffs were another piece of bad news for this pivotal election state.

"I spent 40 years in business creating jobs and fixing broken companies. I can fix this broken economy with the help of voters in 2012," said Cain.
15 Nov 2011

Rivermont Collegiate Open House Coffee

By Tammi Burrell
RIVERMONT Open House Coffee

Saturday, November 12th - 8:30 - 11:00 a.m.

RIVERMONT COLLEGIATE is the Quad Cities' only private, independent, nonsectarian college prep
school, serving preschool through grade 12.

• Dedicated faculty
• Small class sizes & individualized attention
• Safe, family-life environment

Can't make it Saturday?
Join us Thursday, November 17th
Open House - 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.

Brittany Marietta - Director of Admission
(563) 359-1366 ext. 302
marietta@rvmt.org

RIVERMONT COLLEGIATE
1821 Sunset Drive - Bettendorf, IA 52722
(563) 359-1366 - www.rvmt.org

(located directly off 18th Street, behind K&K Hardware in Bettendorf)
15 Nov 2011

With Deficit Reduction Deadline Looming, Harkin, DeFazio Wall Street Trading and Speculators Tax Generates More Than $350 Billion

By Sen. Tom Harkin
Tuesday, November 15, 2011

With a deadline looming for the deficit reduction committee, lawmakers supporting The Wall Street Trading and Speculators Tax have sent a letter to the committee urging them to adopt their proposal.  The lawmakers, led by Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Congressman Peter DeFazio (D-OR), outlined the revenue generating impact of their bill.  Analysis conducted by the Joint Committee on Taxation found that the Wall Street Trading and Speculators Tax Act introduced earlier this month will raise $352 billion over the time period of January 2013 through 2021. The Joint Tax Committee also estimated that the Act raises $218.6 billion in the last 5 years, on average over $43 billion per year.

"As you work to craft a comprehensive deficit reduction plan, we believe you should incorporate reasonable spending cuts and ask the wealthiest Americans and most profitable corporations to pay their fair share. However, we understand through media reports and talking to our colleagues that revenue options remain the largest challenge in your negotiations to obtain significant deficit reduction. We believe we have a viable revenue option that deserves serious consideration," wrote the lawmakers. "Given the extraordinary profitability of Wall Street banks while the rest of the economy is suffering, there is no question that Wall Street can easily bear this modest tax. In fact, while Wall Street lobbyists will express great concern with our proposal, they will not tell you that the European Union is considering a similar proposal, but with a tax rate that is more than three times higher."

The Wall Street Trading and Speculators Tax places a small tax of three basis points (3 pennies on $100 in value) on most non-consumer financial trading including stocks, bonds and other debts, except for their initial issuance.  For example, if a company receives a loan from a financial company, that transaction would not be taxed.  But, if the financial institution traded the debt, the trade would be subject to the tax.  The tax would also cover all derivative contracts, options, forward contracts, swaps and other complex instruments at their actual cost.  The measure excludes debt that has an original term of less than 100 days.  

The full text of the letter can be found here.
15 Nov 2011

Facts are Stubborn Things-U.S. Guns in Mexico

By Sen Chuck Grassley

Senate Judiciary Committee Oversight Hearing with Attorney General Eric Holder, Nov. 8, 2011

 

U.S. Guns in Mexico

 

Attorney General Holder: "[O]f the nearly 94,000 [weapons] that have been recovered that have been traced in Mexico in recent years, over 64,000 of those guns were sourced to the United States of America; 64,000 of 94,000 guns sourced to this country."

FACT

The definition of a "U.S. source gun" used in these often cited statistics was not created by the ATF and is overly broad.  It includes guns manufactured in the United States even if never sold by a federally licensed gun dealer in the United States.  Such weapons may have been legally exported to foreign governments or stolen before falling into the wrong hands.  That cannot be properly blamed on Americans exercising their Second Amendment freedoms.

According to ATF statistics, of the 21,313 guns submitted for tracing by the government of Mexico in 2009, only 5,444 of them (25 percent) traced back to federally licensed gun dealers in the United States.  Similarly, in 2010, of 7,971 guns submitted for tracing by the government of Mexico, only 2,945 (37 percent) traced back to federally licensed gun dealers in the U.S.

The reason for the large disparity between the overall numbers of guns submitted in those two years is that in late 2009, the government of Mexico provided the United States with a large list of guns it had been stockpiling for years.  Accordingly, 2009's numbers do not reflect guns that were seized exclusively in 2009, but rather for a number of the preceding years.

Additionally, any statistics on the percentage of such guns tracing back to the United States are further skewed because of selection bias.  As it has been widely noted, the government of Mexico only provides guns to the United States for tracing that they already have reason to believe originated here.  There is no reason to submit for tracing guns that are known to originate in Mexico.

In a November 8, 2011, court filing, the Chief of ATF's Firearms Operations Division made a declaration that "in 2008, of the approximately 30,000 firearms that the Mexican Attorney General's Office informed ATF that it had seized, only 7,200, or one quarter of those firearms, were submitted to ATF for tracing."  Based on these statistics, it's clear that the total sample of guns submitted for tracing is not representative of all the guns found in Mexico, and there isn't evidence that the other 75 percent of those guns were sold in a U.S. gun store.

Documents related to the FACTS.

15 Nov 2011

Treasurer Fitzgerald Tells Holiday Shoppers to Gift Themselves with Tax Deductions from College Savings Iowa

By Michael Fitzgerald

Contributions made through December 31, 2011 can be deducted from 2011 state taxes.

DES MOINES, IA (11/15/2011)(readMedia)-- State Treasurer Michael L. Fitzgerald has a simple solution for the gift-giving dilemmas that are usually associated with the holiday season. "Instead of trying to put together a wish list of toys that will soon be lost in your children's closet, invite the special people in your life to give one of the most meaningful gifts a child may ever receive - help toward paying for a college education," stated Fitzgerald. "Opening a College Savings Iowa account has two-fold benefits, not only are you helping a child prepare for his/her future education, but you can take advantage of the tax benefits as well. It's the perfect gift!"

College Savings Iowa lets anyone - parents, grandparents, friends and relatives - contribute towards college costs on behalf of a child. Iowa taxpayers contributing to College Savings Iowa can deduct up to $2,865 per account from their state taxable income in 2011.* To take advantage of this great tax-savings opportunity, investors can contribute online at www.collegesavingsiowa.com. All other contributions must be submitted by December 31, 2011. If the contribution is being mailed, checks must be postmarked by December 31, 2011. For more information about College Savings Iowa, call 888-672-9116 or visit collegesavingsiowa.com.

Ugift® - Make giving college savings easier

"When you're saving for college, you need all of the help you can get. That's why College Savings Iowa is pleased to offer the Ugift® service to plan participants," stated Fitzgerald. This easy-to-use service allows participants to invite family and friends to celebrate a child's milestones by contributing to his or her College Savings Iowa account.

To learn more, participants can log on to their existing College Savings Iowa accounts and click on the Ugift logo or go to www.collegesavingsiowa.com and click on Plan Details. Then click on Ugift FAQs under the Plan Details section.

* Adjusted annually for inflation. If withdrawals are not qualified, the deductions must be added back to Iowa taxable income.

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