Rocky

Must be REALLY old... because the AFDC program ceased to exist with enactment of the Welfare Reform Act of 1996... replaced with TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) Block Grants to states allowing the state (of California for example) to determine the structure of welfare assistance programs that followed... but Congress still established time limits on any given family's eligibility.

News flash! The evening news on the local CBS station ( kpho.com ) had a blurb (tonight) for people wondering what's going on with Gil Grissom (actually, William Petersen)... they said that he's taking time off from taping CSI so that he can be in a stage gig in Rhode Island.... and will be back in a few weeks (which, of course, he said in the last episode he appeared in). And while I'm at it... how about the guy filling in (not as boss..., that's Willows). Liev Schrieber was the Manchurian Candidate... in the recent remake of the 50s or 60s vintage Sinatra version. The character, Mike Keppler... is certainly a strange one.

Sounds like Bing Crosby to me... and perhaps only a little like Como.

Or perhaps about the Boys of Summer SWINGING for the fences!

I disagree ChasUFarley... HOWEVER... IF the law (if it were to pass) were ENFORCED, then certainly it would quickly fill up the correctional facilities. BUT like many immigration laws (which are OFTEN not enforced, for similar reasons) it will be ignored. Law enforcement agencies will say "we don't have the resources to enforce this." And they will be correct. THAT is why I believe the ONLY thing such a law would do is further exacerbate custody battles in divorce cases.... and as I said before, that's VERY BAD all around... but mostly for the kids. A parallel to another socially controversial topic -- abortion. If abortion is RE-outlawed, abortion will NOT be eliminated as a birth control method. Abortion would, instead, go underground. Doing so would cause a public health catastrophe... as abortions would no longer be subject to the regulation of sanitary conditions in hospitals and/or licensed clinics. I do NOT approve of abortion. But I know that to stop (well, really to only reduce the number of) abortions, an indirect route must be taken, with more preventative strategies. So to with spanking. Outlawing it won't eliminate it. Only providing societal conditions that reduce stress in the lives of parents AND provide for effective disciplinary techniques/strategies without spanking/hitting/beating or any variation thereof -- has any chance of reducing whatever problem may exist in a family where spanking occurs more than on a rare occasion and/or which is more than just a light, quick attention getter that doesn't provide more than a very brief sting. Just my opinion.

Hey good buddy Zshot... me thinks that if you ever have the pleasure of (responibility for) parenting a young child... you might have more compassion for overwhelmed parents! However, you still might have a good point... ok, you (DO) have more than one good point. Children should definitely NOT be beaten... no question about that. AND obviously there's still plenty of debate about spanking. The biggest downside I see to such an ominous (potential) law is that it would UNdoubtedly be used most by divorcing parents in contested custody cases to gain legal advantage AND to alienate a child against the other parent. And THAT is VERY BAD all around.

Oh, I thought you had the source from which you took the quote... doesn't it say that (apparently AS OF the date of that court decision): "Neither Republicans nor Democrats nor a broad range of interest groups is prepared to support an employer sanction program that actually would work.” ?? Now, I think we know that the last Congress, which was of the same party as the prez, did NOT effect ANY helpful immigration related measures... I'm also thinking that some leaders from the new Congress have expressed a desire to deal with immigration reform... and that the new Congress is likely to be better able to put something together that can make it to the prez, which the prez would want to sign... Sooo... I suppose we could be keeping a lookout for this kind of provision in any immigration legislation this year.

CoolWaters, What is the date of that court decision? Having that information may help put that insight in perspective. Thanks

Very thought provoking questions Kathy... tnks. :)

Nor have I heard... however, LG's profile shows that he was logged in this afternoon...

AND changing the subject back AWAY from ME... Indeed... and not that it matters much at this point, but the idea of hitting businesses in the pocketbook came up in Arizona a couple years back... introduced by State Sen. Bill Brotherton D-Phoenix, in a legislature in which both the House and Senate were (and still are, btw) controlled by the Rs. Guess what happened to Mr. Brotherton's proposal. Well, IF it had been made law already, you'd have heard about it, and been able to point to it's either success or failure in addressing the problem... BUT the argument against the proposal at the time was that it would "hurt small businesses." Now, please understand, templelady... I AGREE with you. The ONLY thing that gets the attention of the businesses is to hit them hard in the pocketbook. Well, the idea IS gathering momentum in plenty of states and in Congress. I don't know how far the lawmakers will take it, but we should keep our ears and eyes open to try to find out.

Gawrsh Rhino... didn't know your skin was THAT thin... that "repugnican" comment wasn't aimed at you anyway... that's what I call elected right wingers... generally speaking. AND please don't be putting words in my mouth. Text in RED above (my emphasis of YOUR quote) is NOT from ME... Oh, yes... I don't want to forget... Rhino... I suppose I should thank you for making this about ME? ...rather than about the topic that Hap started...

Well Doc Sudo... I'm NOT a Mac user... I understand the F1 KEY... but the humor being connected to the F1 Mirage fighter plane... I did NOT get. And I served in the USAF. The work horse fighter plane when I was in was the F4 Phantom. The F-15 was just being introduced. I saw Harriers on TV, but not in real life... The most exotic plane I ever saw in person was the SR-71. Now THAT was awesome! And still is. But even that's relegated to graveyards and museums because satellite technology rendered it obsolete as a recon intelligence gathering tool. And then there were the countless C-130s (I rode in one once... on my way to the USA to go to ROA) and C-141s which I believe have also been decommissioned... and replaced by the C-17 STOL cargo plane. (Short Take Off and Landing). C-17s were only in the dreamed of (and maybe on the drawing board) stage when I was in.

Probably BOTH! :D

You, my friend, would NOT be the only one! :blink:

23 days...

I vote for the Minnesota Twins. just kidding!

Maybe that guy was putting together an audition tape to replace Jay Leno... after all, it was a RIP OFF of Jaywalking. It would be funny if it weren't tragically sad. And I thought I saw the Alamo (San Antonio, TX), and a truck with a Dallas Cowboys star (probably in TX).

Welllllll, I didn't mean to say that you COULDN'T... just that it's up to you. AND that you didn't offend me...

Well, I'll watch it... at least long enough to figure out if it's going to be a decent game. Of course, I'm not exactly on the coast... about 360-375 miles from it via LA... Oh yes... and I'd guess that SimonZelotes will be interested... he's a Bears fan, I think...

Wow... be careful, you might make me blush! Well, out here in Mountain Standard Time, it's not 9PM yet, so in a little while I'll get to watch Crossing Jordan... most of the shows I like are crime dramas with just a hint of comedy... well, Law & Order doesn't really have comedy, just smart a$$ remarks sometimes. Anyway... all of what you described as your concerns Kathy point to socialism. The fact of the matter is that the US has a significant degree of socialism already. And rightfully so. Because laissez-faire economics (from the French, essentially meaning "leave 'em alone") with NO controls ultimately becomes severely oppressive to ALL except for the ownership class (the Ted Turners, Mark Cubans, Bill Gates, Donald Trump, Warren Buffett, etc.). Fortunately, many of those folks recognize the need for mechanisms to "level the playing field" for the average American... BUT few of them will make that happen on their own. So, even they support some socialist aspects to our society/economy. As to WHAT CAN WE (each of us alone, and/or together) DO? That's NOT an easy fix. BUT it IS available to learn how and get busy doing something to influence change. That's where a citizen activist comes in. But very few activists can accomplish very much on their own. Margaret Mead (1901-1978) said, " Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it the only thing that ever has. http://www.quotationspage.com/search.php3?...rtsearch=Search You can find groups already begun by doing internet searches. One caveat, however, this particular area of interest brings a lot of people with a lot of passionate feelings... but it's very easy to get sidetracked without the "thoughtful" aspect of the groups of committed citizens. And in this area of concern, there's a WHOLE LOT of hate and racism. Now, there are INDEED thoughtful people who want to do the right thing(s), but the fringe elements are there and it takes experience to figure out who's got it together and who doesn't. And no one can give you their experience... so, only you can figure that out for you. AND don't worry about needing to have make up... er, hugs, yeah that's it HUGS with me... I am not offended by anything you've had to say. :D

How about them Colts! Nice game... great comeback. They EARNED their trip to Miami... And good for all you Colts fans. I'll buy the next round.

Well, I suppose you're having something, but I'm not sure what it is. ;) AGAIN -- there is NO such thing as government assistance programs for higher education that target NON US citizens. There ARE assistance programs FOR US citizens. In FACT -- the NEW Congress (the House anyway) just passed a bill that will lower student loan interest rates... It will likely pass the Senate, but the SHRUB has threatened a veto. The ONLY government assistance programs targeted to NON US citizens are for LEGAL refugees, for relocation assistance. On a state by state basis, laws and/or voter initiatives have been passed (just this year in AZ) to prohibit administering various general assistance programs (ie. food stamps, TANF, etc.) to ILLEGALS. I just don't understand where you're getting your information.

YIKES... I better get back to the TV (and stop posting)... it seems the Brady Bunch needs me!

Needless to say, COMMUNISM is even more radical than socialism. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communism "Communism is an ideology that seeks to establish a classless, stateless social organization, based upon common ownership of the means of production." Now, I mentioned communism in an earlier post... an example of COMMUNISM (common ownership of resources) is the (at this time hypothetical, and very unlikely to ever happen) private scholarship funds targeted to minority students. Under communism, there would be NO private ANYTHING. And thus there would be NO targeting minority students for scholarships, because there is NO class distinction. And while this might sound like a nice, romantic notion... it's COMMUNISM. It AIN'T gonna happen. And I don't think it should happen. For plenty of reasons.