Opportunity Newspaper

Published: Since 1988

Address: 87-01 Midland Parkway Jamaica NY 11432

The OPPORTUNITY

Phone: (718) 607-8840

Publisher: North American Publications

Vol. XI - No. 3

20,000 Copies - Printed Monthly - Reaching 140,000 People

February 2009

Serving: Jamaica, Hollis, St. Albans, Cambria Hghts, Queens Village, Rochdale, Laurelton, Springfield Gdns, Rosedale, Elmont, Ozone Pk

Can Bill Thompson Beat Mike Bloomberg - ABSOLUTELY

By: Joseph Wallace and Aaron Slaughter

Well maybe not absolutely, but we predict a tough race for Mayor Mike. Let's take a look at the dynamics of the upcoming mayoral race assuming a head to head battle between Mike Bloomberg and Bill Thompson in the general election in November.

The most important factor will be the economic crisis. Far too many New Yorkers are underwater. Far too many have lost their jobs or fear for their jobs. People are worried about how they will cover their mortgage or pay their rent or how they will heat their homes or be able to afford transportation.

The average New Yorker does not have a golden parachute nor a bailout plan.

The deciding factor in this election, just like the election won by President Barack Obama, will be which candidate can be trusted to truly look out for the interest of the ordinary citizen during a time of deep crisis. And then there are a number other important factors that will affect the outcome of this race. The answers to these questions will not be as simple as some people think.

Let's look first at some very general numbers. There are 8.2 million New Yorkers in the five boroughs. We are 35% White, 27% Hispanic, 26% Black and 12% Asian. Bill Thompson should do well among African American voters. Bill Thompson, like President Obama is not basing his candidacy on race. This campaign will be based simply on competence of the candidates and the issues. However, coming on the heels of the pride African Americans feel in electing an African American president, an energized African American vote should turn out strong for Bill Thompson.

Among other voters, many politically active New Yorkers are not happy with the way Mayor Bloomberg overturned term limits and that the richest guy in the city is attempting to purchase a third term as mayor in defiance of the will of the people who voted for term limits. There is a lot of passion on this issue. And to be sure, Bill Thompson and Anthony Weiner will be hammering this point home daily on the morning talk shows as this campaign heats up.

Photo credits - Marla Maritzer

Bill Thompson Announcing Term Limits Lawsuit

Now here is an interesting fact, according to the 2000 census, there are 1.7 million people in New York City who have some kind of disability. Not all of those who are disabled use Access-A-Ride but by inexplicably refusing to use his mayoral power so far, to block this unconscionable proposal by the MTA to hike fares 150% on disabled New Yorkers who use Access-A-Ride, the Mayor has signaled a willingness to balance the budget on the backs of the neediest of New Yorkers.

Bill Thompson calling this proposed increase reprehensible, has gone public and vigorously opposed this discriminatory fare increase. Mayor Bloomberg may soon find that disabled persons are passionate about their rights. They vote and they have family members and friends who are watching who also vote.

In a related issue, the MTA has proposed subway and bus fare hikes, tolls on East River bridges and massive subway and bus service cuts. Again these are deeply passionate issues for New York voters already pushed

to the breaking point by the weight of the economic crisis. Yet the Mayor remains unopposed to these fare hikes and has the power as Bill Thompson has said, "to avoid raising revenues on the backs of working men and women in our city."

Bill Thompson, the man who oversees the city's finances, the city's Chief Financial Officer, is vigorously opposed to these fare increases and service cuts explaining, "as New York City Comptroller, I certainly understand the fact that the MTA must quickly raise revenues and cut expenses in order to prevent a massive and imposing budget deficit ... but I am here tonight to tell this [MTA] board in no uncertain terms that exorbitant fare hikes and drastic service cuts ... are not the only solution. " Thompson proposes closing the MTA budget gap by assessing drivers in the 12 county region served by the MTA an annual fee of approximately $100 when registering their vehicles.

(Continued Next Page)

February 2009

The Opportunity

Page 2

Can Bill Thompson Beat Mike Bloomberg

(Continued from Front Page)

Bill Thompson's plan helps share the pain. Those who drive cars benefit from mass transit because there are fewer cars on the roads each day because of mass transit. The $100 annual registration fee would be for vehicles weighing 2,300 pounds or less with an additional 9 cents for every pound for vehicles over 2,300 pounds. This would encourage the use of smaller more fuel efficient vehicles.

Thompson estimates this plan will raise $1 billion in revenue and when combined with a reinstated commuter tax the plan could generate up to $2 billion annually for transit needs without the expensive infrastructure that tolling requires. Bill Thompson is working hard to win support among Albany Legislators for his proposal.

EDUCATION Getting back to analyzing the numbers of voters likely to turn against Mayor Bloomberg, there are a huge number of parents of children in NYC Public Schools hopping mad at the Department of Education and deeply upset with the Mayor on education.

By way of background, the Mayor has always campaigned as the candidate who would make a difference in education. He replaced the Board of Education, and its problem plagued local School Boards with the Department of Education with extended Mayoral control and giving more power to the school's Chancellor while holding the Chancellor more accountable.

Interestingly, Bill Thompson who favors Mayoral control of the Department of Education actually helped lay the groundwork for morphing the Board of Education into the Department of Education when he served as President of the Board of Education for five terms starting in 1996 and he continues to support Mayoral control.

However, Thompson is deeply opposed to major failings under this new system. There are two things missing from the Bloomberg administration's approach - transparency and parental involvement. There is a widespread perception that the Department is arrogant and out of touch.

Thompson has said, "with its top-down approach, the current administration has sought to avoid debate and public scrutiny, while fundamental decisions regarding education reform have been made by executives with no education background ... it was never intended to be a green light for unchecked executive power. " Then there has been a major failure by the Department of Education in involving parents in the education policy process.

When the Board of Education became the

more centralized Department of Education, School Leadership Teams were mandated for every school. These teams were to be equally composed of parents, teachers and administrators.

According to Thompson, "parents who have an enormous stake in their children's educational success, MUST have a true voice in decisions that impact their children's schools ... Every study indicates that parental involvement equates with student achievement. The Department of Education has failed to ensure that School Leadership Teams have an effective role in influencing school policy ... Last year, the department's own office of Family Engagement and Advocacy found that only 51% of the schools surveyed have a functioning leadership team. Indeed, most parents don't even know what a School Leadership Team is."

Under the Bloomberg administration, the Department of Education is operating from an unapproachable ivory tower. This is not accountability. This is not transparency. This is a dictatorship. Elected officials find it very difficult to get information from the DOE. For parents, it is nearly impossible to have their concerns heard.

The complaints of angry parents about issues affecting their childrens' education fall on deaf ears. Make no mistake, many will vote against Bloomberg. Many will vote for Bill Thompson who has a clear track record in advocating for greater transparency and parental involvement when it comes to education in our city. And as a former Board of Education president and tireless advocate for quality education, Bill Thompson is in a unique position to deliver on education reform, unlike Mayor Bloomberg who made the same promise and has failed to deliver.

SENIORS Recently, City Hall and the Department of Aging (DFTA) announced a plan to restructure senior citizen centers in New York City and issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) calling for modernization and consolidation of senior centers.

On December 11, 2008, joined by elected officials, seniors and advocates, Bill Thompson held a news conference on the steps of City Hall stating, "I demand that City Hall and DFTA immediately withdraw their misguided plan to restructure senior centers. Today we are raising our voices to say that the City must stop this plan to fundamentally tear apart a network of centers and services that serve as a vital safety net for seniors. This is no modernization, it's a major consolidation.

Shame on City Hall for moving ahead with these cuts."

Bobby Sackman, Executive Director, Council of Senior Centers and Services of NYC said, we stand proudly with Comptroller Bill Thompson and appreciate his support in asking Mayor Bloomberg to withdraw the senior centers RFP. Seniors across the city have expressed their opposition.

We are asking the Mayor to listen to these seniors."

Once again, seniors vote and they have concerned loved ones who vote. Watch out for those seniors Mayor Bloomberg.

MAYOR MIKE Now let's look at Mayor Mike. New Yorkers in general like the fact that the richest man in the city, the 8th richest man in the nation is our Mayor. Hey, if he can run a multi-billion dollar business certainly he can do a good job running the city. We look for a leader (Continued on Page 7)

FEBRUARY 2009

THE OPPORTUNITY

PAGE 3

What President Obama and Governor Paterson Can Do About Wall Street

By David E. McClean

Just before the end of the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln wrote a message eerily relevant at this present moment: “We may congratulate ourselves that this cruel war is nearing its end. It has cost a vast amount of treasure and blood. . . . It has indeed been a trying hour for the Republic; but I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me to tremble for the safety of my country. As a result of the war, corporations have been enthroned and an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money power of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until all wealth is aggregated in a few hands and the Republic is destroyed. I feel at this moment more anxiety for the safety of my country than ever before, even in the midst of war. God grant that my suspicions may prove groundless.”

there are technical answers to these questions.

But they are answers that defy logic when public policy considerations are included in the discussion.

Regulation of Mortgage Brokers. This recommendation speaks directly to the present crisis.

Mortgage brokers should be qualified through new uniform licensing, required to abide by a code of ethics that contains statutorily mandated provisions, operate under stipulated procedures, and have their licenses subject to revocation based upon a number of factors that include public complaints, dishonest conduct, or regulatory infraction, among other things. Mortgage brokers that collude with borrowers to provide false documentation, or that induce borrowers to provide false documentation, should face a life-time bar from that business, and any related businesses. As part of this standard, mortgage brokers should have their offices subject to regular examination by a designated examining authority. The bar to becoming a mortgage broker is abysmally low, and persons who were one day working on loading docks or behind the wheels of rigs were drawn into the easy money that this so-called industry offers.

During the past several years, we have witnessed many scandals and abuses in and by corporate America and, more specifically, “Wall Street” - that catch-all label for the financial services industry. The financial services industry rests at the root of the present financial crisis.

What follows are some specific regulatory reforms that can be implemented quickly (this Codes of Ethics for Brokerages. Brokerages year), and implemented without very much cost (a.k.a. investment banks and broker-dealers), or difficulty. unlike their registered investment adviser cousRegulation of Hedge Fund Managers. A few ins (which manage mutual funds and (some) years ago, the courts vacated a new SEC rule that hedge funds), are not required to have codes of required many hedge fund managers to register ethics. This is curious, given the number of sigwith the SEC, leading many hedge fund manag- nificant client abuses that take place in the secuers that registered under the rule to de-register rities brokerage industry each year. (and become, once again, largely unregulated).

While brokerages may weave ethics educaThis was because the SEC had exceeded its authority in the way it drafted the rule. However, tion into their professional education initiatives, it is not in the public interest that no new rules there is no requirement that they do so. So not to regulate these powerful market players have only don’t brokerages have mandated codes of been proposed since then. Hedge fund regula- ethics, they don’t have mandated ethics education (whether regulation of the funds themselves tion or training either. Given the transactionor the managers of the funds) will serve to set a based compensation model (pay-per-trade) that tone of accountability in what is now an industry is still in place (a model that has been criticized, separate and apart from the mutual fund indus- sharply, by such industry leaders as John Bogle and Arthur Levitt), the fact that brokers, investtry, which is highly regulated. ment bankers and many research analysts are The burdens imposed under the vacated rule not held to a written standard of conduct by the were not onerous, and the public (via the SEC firms they work for is scandalous in itself. True, staff) would get some transparency regarding codes of ethics are no panacea (Enron had one), the activities of hedge funds and their manag- yet they set a tone and some established policies ers if a similar rule were introduced today. Many regarding conduct, beyond mere compliance, hedge fund managers do not have a problem and actual ethics education would serve as a with at least some regulation, and their inves- reminder that certain conduct will not be tolertors most certainly would prefer regulation. So ated. what is the hold up? How is it that a “mom and In addition, brokerages should have Chief pop” investment advisory business that manages Ethics Officers who report directly to (and give (merely) tens of millions of dollars has to register with the SEC, yet investment advisers that recommendations to) the top executive or board manage billions or tens of billions of dollars are of directors (preferably the latter). This should be able to avoid registration altogether? Of course, an office separate and apart from other “Chief”

officer positions. Such would allow for an independent hand in reviewing and critiquing firm practices from a purely ethical perspective. The Chief Ethics Officer and Chief Compliance Officer would work in tandem to oversee firm conduct and head-off (not just remedy) abuses.

Credit Default Swaps. In addition to the need for clearing houses for these contracts (already in the works, although there are some false starts), market players, and banks and brokerages in particular, should be required to index to capital the insurance protection they are offering. Firms should not be permitted to write whatever level of protection (insurance) they want to without having to look over their shoulders at their capital positions. The reason that they would not want such indexing to capital has to do with the enormous profits (premiums) they receive from “writing” protection. Indexing to capital will limit those profits. It will also help to reduce the risk that tail events, such as what developed in 2006-2008, will not cause the ruin of large and important institutions. As we have come to appreciate (I hope), that has to matter more than short-term profits.

Risk and Compliance. Senior risk and compliance officers must be given more autonomy and authority within banks and brokerages autonomy and authority that will permit them to report their concerns directly to the board of directors (if there is one), without interference from business units. Risk officers, in many cases, have a kind of presumed authority in firms, but often get out-maneuvered by production personnel (traders, mostly) who live and die by short-term results. Chief Risk Officers should have the authority to shut-down or wind-down trading strategies or market exposures that they believe place the firm at risk in the long-term.

This means that these professionals should be “off the desk” - not unduly influenced by the demands (and sometimes ravings) of traders and other producers in the firm. Also, there should be a rebalancing, as shift of emphasis from quantitative risk measures toward qualitative ones (such as conflicts of interest, dubious reporting lines, poorly established authority among business unit personnel, and subjective, professional assessments of conditions that are not captured by quantitative risk models). This means moving toward an Enterprise Risk approach, and away from a mere portfolio risk approach.

Continued on page 6

PAGE 4

THE OPPORTUNITY

FEBRUARY 2009

The American System of Healthcare Delivery

By Bernard D. Lewin M.D.

Is access to good health care a right or a privilege? While the question has been an unresolved subject of debate for decades, forty seven million uninsured and tens of millions of underinsured Americans share an uncomfortable reality.

The simple fact is that the system of health care delivery is broken. The cost of health insurance continually increases while benefits are applied unequally and at times arbitrarily and difficult decisions often hinge on bottom line of profit margins rather than on medical necessity.

doctor recommended, could not be considered a good health insurance plan. Well, unless you were fortunate enough to have the same level of coverage as the President of the United States or congressional members, it is more likely, than not, that your insurance plan, has many, if not all, of the constraints contained in the hypothetical plan mentioned above.

Furthermore, consider this. Catastrophic, severely limiting illness requiring intensive investigation and management can befall anyone Employed Americans under 65 years of age at anytime, but by and large such misfortune are often covered through insurance policies with occurs at a disproportionately high frequency widely different levels of benefits based on cost. among the elderly - not the young.

Premiums are paid through the contributions of both employer and employee. The plans vary in The same insurance that covered your routine amount of copayments and deductibles paid by needs while you were young, your annual physithe insured and each plan has a list of drugs they cals, your sore throats, simple infections, colds, will pay for and another list of drugs not cov- headaches, rashes, and the like with haste and it by the brand name. ered. Employers often change plans altogether expedience, can suddenly appear woefully inadevery few years due to burdensome costs, and equate in the face of serious illness, when greater Patent laws permit the Pharmaceutical compadoctor enrollment in plans show wide variation. expenditure is needed to keep you going. nies to have exclusive rights to a new drug, after approval, for a certain length of time. During Most Americans who lose their jobs lose Health insurance, like marriage, is a contract this time a brand name is given to the drug and their insurance. Americans over the age of 65 between two parties that binds them in sickness the industry spends an enormous amount of time are generally covered by Medicare. This gov- and in health. Both parties suffer whenever there and money in advertising the brand name to the ernment backed insurance covers doctor visits, is a breech. It would be a mistake to look at the point that the much less expensive, yet equally hospitalization, and sometimes drugs. Most breakdown in health care delivery solely in terms effective, generic drug is all but forgotten. And doctors accept Medicare payments in full after of a malfunctioning insurance industry. the public believes the generic form is inferior. the patient pays the annual deductible and any necessary copays. Unemployed Americans, Two other areas deserve scrutiny and illumiKeep this in mind. All significant medical under 65, and below the poverty line can enroll nation. The pharmaceutical industry has given us research, lectures, and papers always use generic in Medicaid which covers most health care costs drugs that save countless lives. These medicines drugs, and describe drugs generically. There is including drugs. require large costs for research and develop- no room for far too expensive and often meaningment. Once approved by the FDA, these drugs less brand names in the hallowed halls of mediHowever, many primary care physicians do are often marketed far too high for the individual cine. If all drugs were dispensed generically, the not accept Medicaid because of the relatively consumer or health insurer to afford. health of Americans would be unaffected and low reimbursement rates. Those millions of billions of dollars would be saved annually. And Americans who are either unemployed, or work Americans sometimes have to choose between most important of all, more drugs would reach on jobs where insurance is unavailable - the food and medicine. My patients often ration their more patients and more lives would be saved! working poor, or whose assets and resources are drug allowance doing without needed medicines greater than that allowed by Medicaid, yet insuf- at times because the cost is too great. Profits for Finally, one must take a close look at the medficient to purchase insurance on their own, con- the industry are enormous. A portion of the profit ical professions’ role in all this. For the most stitute the large ranks of the uninsured. is spent lobbying Congress to block legislation part, doctors, nurses, their assistants, hospitals regulating the industry. Another part of the profit and chronic care facilities are doing a magnifiIn spite of all of this, when Americans are is spent on perks for physicians and institutions cent, heroic service, but the medical profession polled as their satisfaction with their current to get the brand name drugs on formularies and cannot escape without bearing some burden for insurance policies and their willingness to par- prescription pads. rising health costs. ticipate in a single payor system, they express a reluctance to change. However, I believe that And yet another part of the profit goes toward Not infrequently, tests are ordered and prothere are some considerations, unexplored by selling to the public, the myth, that the vastly cedures performed that are based on reimbursepollsters, which deserve attention now. more expensive brand name drugs are superior ment potential and fear of lawsuits over medical to their generic counterparts. Truth is that all necessity and legitimate inquiry. Anyone who Just about everyone would agree that any drugs are discovered or produced generically. has ever been admitted to a hospital for whathealth insurance plan that refused coverage for The generic name reflects the chemical compoever reason can tell you that she had a chest Xray preexisting illness, or that refused to pay for cer- sition of the drug. All students of medicine learn on admission and several tubes of blood drawn tain procedures that your doctor thought were the nature and application of drugs generically. routinely every day throughout the hospitalizanecessary, or refused to pay for hospitalization When your doctor thinks about what drug you tion. Certainly there are times when this is warbeyond a certain predetermined length of time, need, he thinks generically. He wants you to or refused to pay for certain drugs that your have the generic form of the drug even if he calls Continued on page 6

THE OPPORTUNITY

FEBRUARY 2009

PAGE 5

SENATE MAJORITY LEADER SMITH ANNOUNCES INTERACTIVE PUBLIC BUDGET FORUMS

E

NCOURAGING AN UNPRECEDENTED

level of public participation, State Senate Majority Leader Malcolm A. Smith recently announced a menu of options through which all New Yorkers can actively participate in this year’s state budget process. By engaging individuals and public interest groups through interactive forums, Smith hopes the public’s input can be used to help formulate the basis of innovative approaches to tackling the state’s budgetary issues.

Visit our website at http://www.nybudgetideas.org

“While we’re reviewing the Governor’s proposal and drafting alternatives to address the fiscal crisis, we want to hear directly from the people because this is their budget,” said Senator Smith. “There is no silver bullet to closing a budget gap of this magnitude.

Across the state we’ve met with individuals and groups, discussing their budgetary priorities and ideas to revitalize our economy. Today marks a new level of interaction between the people of New York and their State Senate.”

Share Your Budget Ideas With the New York Senate To open the Senate to new ideas, Smith and Senate Democrats have set up a newly launched, easily accessible system from which the public can submit proposals in a number of ways:

Visit Our Website: http://www.nybudgetideas.org

Leave a Voice Message (Toll Free): 800-706-9995

Text Your Ideas: Text message “NYSS” to 41411

E-mail Your Ideas: budgetideas@@senate.state.ny.us

Smith concluded, “I urge all New Yorkers to take action and submit alternative proposals that will help us develop a comprehensive plan to revitalize our economy and put our state on a path to fiscal solvency.”

PAGE 6

THE OPPORTUNITY

What President Obama and Governor Paterson Can Do About Wall Street Continued from page 3 Executive Compensation Fallacies. President Obama should use his office to point out and attack a fallacy that executives continue to employ. This is the fallacy of incentivization. The fallacy goes like this: CEOs and other senior executives make what they do because that is the only way to incentivize them to perform well for stakeholders. This is rubbish. It reduces the reasons to perform well in business to dollars, when human beings enter the business world for numerous reasons, and perform their jobs well for reasons that go well beyond their paychecks. There is the personal satisfaction that comes from creating value, from running an organization that pursues excellence and satisfies customer and client needs, from innovation, and, frankly, from the dignity that work affords. Academic studies have exploded the fallacy of incentivization, along with the sister fallacy that there is a link between CEO and executive/ company performance and levels of compensation. This fallacy is propagated for no other reason than

FEBRUARY 2009

The American System of Healthcare Delivery Continued from page 4

a princely sense of entitlement to large sums of money. Senior executive ranks are an incestuous club where the members bid up one another’s compensation packages as they cross-pollinate, as directors, on each others’ boards. Senior executive pay (anything over $750,000 in total compensation) should be subject to the approval of the shareholders of public companies, not their boards of directors.

ranted and just as certainly there are times when it is not. Streamlining just these two practices would save additional billions annually.

for by skyrocketing premiums from the pockets of the American people.

This is not who we are. This is not who we have to be.”

Whether or not you believe that good health care is available only to the privileged, who can seriously assert that good affordable health care is a God given Right in America today. Where then is the solution to be found for a runaway, unregulated system that doles These changes and reforms should be accompanied by a new out medical care that ranges from round of soul-searching among supreme to adequate to insufficient American business executives, and to non existent?

Wall Street executives in particuA system that can be admired lar. For that to happen, they need to understand that there is a tie that sometimes and at other times is binds business to civics - a tie that shameful, unethical, immoral and many (although not all) have been nearly criminal. The inalienable right of every American citizen too blind to see. to life, liberty, and the pursuit of ____________________ happiness, cannot, in my opinion, be realized in the absence of good David E. McClean is a consulhealth care available for and to all. tant to financial services firms. He teaches business ethics at Rutgers President Obama said it best, University (Newark, NJ).

“Skyrocketing profits of the drug and insurance industries are paid

No matter what side of the fence we lean on, who can deny that the government has a responsibility to see to it that the health of its people not be placed in jeopardy. National Health Insurance by whatever name it is called would immediately bring a halt to uncontrolled spending, ensure an equality of healthcare coverage for all regardless of their ability to pay, bring all the drugs to all the people who need them, free doctors from the fear of unnecessary lawsuits and crippling malpractice premiums, and ultimately lead to a more healthy, more serene, more productive populace.

The author Bernard D. Lewin M.D. is a practicing physician in Jamaica, Queens specializing in internal medicine.

E-Mail: BLEWIN3@nyc.rr.com Tel #: (718) 740-5440

February 2009

The Opportunity

Page 7

Can Bill Thompson Beat Mike Bloomberg

(Continued from Page 2)

who is strong and competent, a leader who will keep things going in what is surely the toughest city in the world to run.

Well, it can be said that Mayor Bloomberg has kept things going. But there is a perception that this has been a mediocre Mayorship.

He has been an OK mayor during a time of prosperity and relative ease. He has run the city like a businessman, sensitive to the bottom line of the balance sheet. But how will he behave during this severe economic crisis where it will take great courage and vision to show sensitivity to the interests of people undergoing real suffering. He does not score high marks on the sensitivity issue.

Again first and foremost - who will be the candidate who anxious New Yorkers perceive to be putting their interest first during times of crisis.

There is the fact that Mike Bloomberg will spend 10's of millions of dollars during an economic crisis to essentially purchase the Mayorship. New Yorkers are not stupid and they are watching while they are hurting.

In overturning term limits he has put his own self interest first. This is not showing

GOD IS THE HERITAGE OF HUMANITY

Excerpt from Book There is a tremendous privilege that all Human Beings on this planet are Heir to, and en tled to. GOD, and all That entails, whatever one’s concept, and beyond one’s concept, is the Heritage of Humanity. GOD is the very Root and Core of all that is our Being. We literally and truly Live, Move, and have our Being in GOD. GOD Vibra on, GOD Consciousness, includes Abundance on All Levels. Health, Longevity, Freedom, Consciousness, Power, Joy, Ecstasy, the thrill of Love Divine, all of this and so much more is the birthright of every Human Being alive.

How does one begin to consciously enjoy this if one is not doing so at the moment? It is simple, yet it can be the hardest thing in the world to do because of the very nature of its simplicity. You have a choice at each moment whether to live in the Vibration of Trust and Faith in Who and What you are and in Your Source, or to live in the Vibra on of Doubt and Uncertainty. You alone must decide whether to live in Fear or Confidence, whether to live in the Feeling and Vibra on of Poverty and Lack, or in the Vibra on of Abundance. Regardless of what present state you find yourself in, at every moment you do have a choice!

You should not and you can not wait for outer circumstances to adjust themselves before you make that choice. If at the me you are suffering a state of illness, you do not wait to get be er and then begin to tune into health. At this very moment, without wai ng to see what progress is being made, without waiting to see the outcome you begin to invoke Health, to Breathe it, to Feel it, to Ask for it, to Bathe in it, to radiate Health! You have a choice. You can do that, or you can retain the Feeling and Vibra on of Illness. You can nurture it in your Heart and thus radiate Illness.

The same thing applies with Abundance or the feeling of Lack. You can have two cents in your pocket yet

sensitivity to the will of the people who voted for term limits and the fact remains that he has put himself and what he wants first.

More damaging is how he went about overturning term limits. The calculation probably went something like this - "OK, with the help of my billionaire buddy Ron Lauder we'll muscle and sway the City Council. Then with the vote taken and the legal obstacle out of the way, we'll just throw so much money into the election that we can't lose."

This can be viewed in one of two ways.

The brute force theory is - he who carries the biggest stick wins and should win (common practice in third world countries).

On the other side of the coin, among the functions elected officials deal with, governing, lawmaking and such, it is the will of the people that is most sacred. It is the will of the people that put them in office, it is the will of the people that they are elected to serve. Mayor Bloomberg has violated the will of the people.

Using brute force to do this often works but in doing so, the law of truth is violated.

Mayor Bloomberg, the "Force" is no longer with you. Your Mayorship, your ability to

govern, those who support you in the hope of realizing gain, the city council members, the top gun political consultants you have hired all join you in the attempt to make that which is false appear true. Again you may succeed but all New Yorkers are drawn into the problem of this deception. The truth will always win in the end and the first casualty is always lost trust and credibility.

Bill Thompson on the other hand has a number of factors on his side; the African American vote, his opposition to fare hikes, service cuts and East River tolls, and his education and senior advocacy track record.

And we did not even mention that as the City's Chief Financial Officer, the one who knows best how the money flows, Thompson is uniquely qualified to deal with the City's financial crisis. One example is he knows the money is there for the property tax rebates while the Mayor is trying to revoke that rebate. We believe Bill Thompson the peoples' "David" can beat the financial "Goliath" Mike Bloomberg. That is if he can succeed in getting his message out to the people of New York.

Let's see what happens.

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Only those who Master Life, truly Enjoy It. The rest of us suffer the effects of our thinking, of our nega vity, and of outer circumstances that we unconsciously draw to ourselves. We must learn through a process of Iden fica on, Invoca on, and Empowerment to live the Life our Vision shows us we can, and should live.

A life of Joy, a life of Freedom, a life of Power, a life of Love ~ these are not far-fetched visions. These are not Sky-dreams. This is the Absolute Reality of Life as it is being lived in countless worlds other than this one and including this one.

We have inspira ons from historical religious figures and from people in our current mes who are living this Life and enjoying the fruits of such a Life. Their stories have come down to us filled with miracles, but they who live such lives tell us that there is no such thing as a “Miracle,” an “Awe-filled Magic Show.” They are simply living according to the TRUE LAW of their BEING.

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February 2009

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The First & Only Do-It-Yourself Guide to Delaying Home Auctions

We have helped hundreds in foreclosure over the past 10 years. We will show you how to buy me in your home with 100% Legal Strategies That Work

With Even the Most Hopeless Case You Can Easily Get Another Year in Your Home from the Date of Your First Scheduled Auction - And We Will Show You EXACTLY HOW TO DO-IT-YOURSELF IF

YOUR HOME IS IN FORECLOSURE YOU ABSOLUTELY NEED TO KNOW HOW TO STOP AN AUCTION

Lawyers use the same techniques that you will learn but charge on average: $3,000 - Auction Stopping Court Filing $3,000 - For a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy Fees Using Our Do-It-Yourself Kit: $40 - Auction Stopping Court Filing $90 - Auction Stopping Bankruptcy My name is C. Cardona. Using the Do-It-Yourself Stop Auction Kit, I have been able to keep my home for over a year and a half from the time of my first scheduled auction.

This material works. You will be able to stand up to the bank and delay several auctions.

We Show You Exactly How to File Ready to Go Legal Templates Blank Legal Forms Step-by-Step Exact Instructions And We Make It Easy to Understand

WE DON’T SIMPLY DISCUSS THEORY WE SHOW YOU EXACTLY HOW TO FILE With Our Kit - Stopping Your Auction is 99.9% Assured

The Do-It-Yourself Stop Foreclosure Auction Toolbox E-Book.

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