Pray for America Our Father who art in Heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever Amen. Stature of Liberty Check this site out. Recipe For A Happy Life Trust Him I Was There... CitizenLink Focus on Family & Social Issues in Politics. You can take action to learn more and voice your opinions to the politicians. Issues and Legislation Current Action Alerts Send emails to your elected officals. Two commercial airliners crashed into both towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, a third crashed into the Pentagon in Washington, DC, and a fourth was hijacked and crashed near Pittsburgh September 11, 2001. America was attacked by an apparently select group of reprobate terrorists whose minds and beliefs were so twisted that they thought they were doing what was "good". However anyone with even the slightest sense of moral values would definitely believe what they did was an extreme act of demonic violence. They have murdered more people in a few demonic acts than even what may occure in any few hours of war in the short period of time. (Except maybe Hitler, but I'm not sure if he even killed 30,000 in just the short period of time but I'm not a historian so he may have.) Anyway we need to focus on how to help & turn to God and pray for all the victims, their families, the rescurers and the leadership of this country. Worldly Ways The ways of the world. It includes sad things in society today but I had to add some positive things there too. Welcome to www.christianvotes.com You can make a difference by voting and letting your voice be heard. "Each election year, Christians are offered the opportunity to make their voices heard. When the Christian votes, he or she is allowed the chance to set the moral tone for the future of local, state, and national leadership. It is critical that Christians fulfill their biblical obligation and take advantage of their right to vote." Remember ... TWO THOUSAND ONE, NINE ELEVEN A tribute to those who died Sept 11, 2001. Attack on America WORLD TRADE CENTER MEMORIAL 3,031 large flags in Utah A reverent silence prevails in this eerie representation of those who died on Sept. 11th. IF I KNEW If I knew it would be the last time That I'd see you fall asleep, I would tuck you in more tightly and pray the Lord, your soul to keep. If I knew it would be the last time that I see you walk out the door, I would give you a hug and kiss and call you back for one more. If I knew it would be the last time I'd hear your voice lifted up in praise, I would video tape each action and word, so I could play them back day after day. If I knew it would be the last time, I could spare an extra minute to stop and say "I love you," instead of assuming you would KNOW I do. If I knew it would be the last time I would be there to share your day, Well I'm sure you'll have so many more, so I can let just this one slip away. For surely there's always tomorrow to make up for an oversight, and we always get a second chance to make everything just right. There will always be another day to say "I love you," And certainly there's another chance to say our "Anything I can do?" But just in case I might be wrong, and today is all I get, I'd like to say how much I love you and I hope we never forget. Tomorrow is not promised to anyone, young or old alike, And today may be the last chance you get to hold your loved one tight. So if you're waiting for tomorrow, why not do it today? For if tomorrow never comes, you'll surely regret the day, That you didn't take that extra time for a smile, a hug, or a kiss and you were too busy to grant someone, what turned out to be their one last wish. So hold your loved ones close today, and whisper in their ear, Tell them how much you love them and that you'll always hold them dear Take time to say "I'm sorry," "Please forgive me," "Thank you," or "It's okay." And if tomorrow never comes, you'll have no regrets about today. Below are links to various news & information sites. BLOOD DONATION ELIGIBILITY GUIDELINESGENERAL GUIDELINES To give blood for transfusion to another person, you must be healthy, be at least 17 years old, weigh at least 110 pounds, and not have donated blood in the last 56 days. "Healthy" means that you feel well and can perform normal activities. If you have a chronic condition such as diabetes or high blood pressure, "healthy" also means that you are being treated and the condition is under control. Focus on the Family "Focus on the Family began in 1977 in response to Dr. James Dobson's increasing concern for the American family. A Ph.D. in child development (University of Southern California), he had served 14 years as associate clinical professor of pediatrics at the USC School of Medicine and a concurrent 17 years on the attending staff of Los Angeles Children's Hospital in the divisions of Child Development and Medical Genetics. What he had seen included massive internal and external pressures on American households, causing unprecedented disintegration. Yet there seemed to be no comprehensive, rational and biblically based conception of the family for those in greatest need." Pray Where You Are Pastor Small came across this information a few days ago. Steve Hawthorne has produced a workplace prayer tool for the 911 remembrance. This 15-30 minute "prayer and share" experience is an excellent vehicle for gathering people in the workplace for a brief period of prayer. AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL America The Beautiful, or so you used to be. Land of the Pilgrims' pride; I'm glad they'll never see. Babies piled in dumpsters, Abortion on demand, Oh, sweet land of liberty, your house is on the sand. Our children wander aimlessly poisoned by cocaine, Choosing to indulge their lusts, when God has said abstain. From sea to shining sea, our Nation turns away From the teaching of God's love and a need to always pray. So many worldly preachers tell lies about our Rock, Saying God is going broke so they can fleece the flock. We've kept God in our temples, how callous we have grown. When earth is but His footstool, and Heaven is His throne. We've voted in a government that's rotting at the core, Appointing Godless Judges who throw reason out the door, Too soft to place a killer in a well deserved tomb, But brave enough to kill a baby before he leaves the womb. You think that God's not angry, that our land's a moral slum? How much longer will He wait before His judgment comes? How are we to face our God, from Whom we cannot hide? What then is left for us to do, but stem this evil tide? If we who are His children, will humbly turn and pray; Seek His holy face and mend our evil way: Then God will hear from Heaven and forgive us of our sins, He'll heal our sickly land and those who live within. But, America the Beautiful, if you don't then you will see, A sad but Holy God withdraw His hand from Thee. ~Judge Roy Moore WORLDNETDAILY EXPOSES HOW FIRST AMENDMENT HAS BEEN HIJACKED IN ITS NEW BLOCKBUSTER, 'THE MYTH OF CHURCH-STATE SEPARATION' * In Texas, a U.S. District judge decreed that any student uttering the word "Jesus" at his school's graduation would be arrested and locked up. "And make no mistake," announced Judge Samuel B. Kent, "the court is going to have a United States marshal in attendance at the graduation. If any student offends this court, that student will be summarily arrested and will face up to six months incarceration in the Galveston County Jail for contempt of court." * In Missouri, when 4th-grader Raymond Raines bowed his head in prayer before his lunch in the cafeteria of Waring Elementary School in St. Louis, his teacher allegedly ordered him out of his seat, in full view of other students present, and sent him to the principal’s office. After his third such prayer "offense," little Raymond was segregated from his classmates, ridiculed for his religious beliefs, and given one week's detention. * In New York, kindergartner Kayla Broadus recited the familiar and beloved prayer ­ "God is great, God is good. Thank you, God, for my food" ­ while holding hands with two students seated next to her at her snack table at her Saratoga Springs school early last year. But she was silenced and scolded by her teacher, who reported the infraction to the school’s lawyer, Gregg T. Johnson, who concluded that Kayla’s behavior was indeed a violation of the "separation of church and state." "The constitutional separation of church and state" ­ a reference to the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights ­ is a phrase Americans hear literally every day from the news media, from legal organizations, from politicians and pundits, and especially from zealous attorneys and judges. "Separation of church and state" was used by the ACLU to demand that a banner proclaiming "God bless America," erected outside a school shortly after Sept. 11, 2001, to honor the 3,000 murdered Americans, must be taken down. "Separation of church and state" was used to deny a little, handicapped girl the right to read her Bible on the bus on the long trip to school. "Separation of church and state" was used to take Justice Roy Moore's 10 Commandments monument out of the Alabama Judicial Building, and it is being used right now to challenge the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance. The phrase is repeated so often and with such assurance, one would think it is the keystone phrase of the U.S. Constitution. And yet ­ the words "separation," "church," or "state" are not found in the First Amendment, nor in any other founding document for that matter. In fact, the entire "constitutional separation of church and state" is a recent fabrication of activist judges who have ignored the Constitution's clear meaning. Indeed, says U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist, in the stunning November issue of WND's Whistleblower magazine, "There is simply no historical foundation for the proposition that the Framers intended to build the 'wall of separation' [between church and state]." Titled "THE MYTH OF CHURCH-STATE SEPARATION," this special edition, says WND Editor Joseph Farah, is "a definitive, once-and-for-all, legal and historical refutation of the fiction that the Constitution was intended to prohibit or infringe on freedom of religious expression ­ whether at home, church, school, or in the public square." "It's a myth," said Farah, "and this issue of Whistleblower slam-dunks the case proving that's all it is." Starting with the famous 1801 letter written by the Baptists of Danbury, Conn., to newly elected President Thomas Jefferson ­ and Jefferson's brief response, in which he coined the phrase "a wall of separation between church and state" to assure his constituents that the new Constitution would not establish a national church or otherwise infringe on their religious liberties ­ this special Whistleblower edition attacks the church-state issue from every conceivable angle. Contents include: * An overview of the church-state debate by Joseph Farah * "How courts invented church-state 'wall of separation'" by David Barton, showing how, after 150 years of honoring the Founding Fathers' intent, activist judges took a radical new direction. * "Where it all started" ­ allowing readers to read the actual letters between the Danbury Baptists and Thomas Jefferson * "The war on Christianity in public schools," a jaw-dropping excerpt from David Limbaugh's bestselling new blockbuster, "Persecution." In this exclusive and in-depth (8,000-word) article, Limbaugh shows how a decades-long legal assault on religious expression in America has paved the way for outright persecution of Christians. * "Rehnquist: U.S. not founded on church-state separation," a dazzling opinion in which the U.S. Supreme Court's current chief justice, William Rehnquist, makes it crystal clear how the high court ignored history, legal precedent and the constitutional framers' clear intent in its landmark decision banning prayer from public school. * "Separation of atheism and state" by Bob Just, showing how citizens can reconnect America with her Judeo-Christian roots by going on the offensive * "What you can do" by David Kupelian, with more ways Americans can bring God and country back together again These and many other articles make the November Whistleblower the most devastating journalistic expose yet of the fraudulent "separation of church and state." "You will positively cheer when you read this issue," said Farah. "It is the silver bullet people have been waiting for, that will finally shoot down this insidious charade that has been destroying every last vestige of our Christian heritage from America. Maybe this edition of Whistleblower will finally help turn things around." SUBSCRIBE TO WHISTLEBLOWER and receive 12 powerful monthly issues, beginning with "THE MYTH OF CHURCH-STATE SEPARATION." http://www.shopnetdaily.com/store/item.asp?ITEM_ID=108 Society's Mentality No wonder why I feel alone in my values! Fear of terror may raise heart disease risk "Aug 09 (Reuters Health) - Israeli women who are extremely afraid of terrorism appear to have higher levels of a marker of blood vessel inflammation, a sign they may be at risk of cardiovascular disease, researchers report. The investigators found that women who said they were particularly afraid of attacks such as suicide bombings were 70 percent more likely to have high levels of C- reactive protein (CRP), linked in several studies to an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, sudden cardiac death and artery disease, among other conditions. "This study demonstrates for the first time, in a sample of apparently healthy workers, that the psychological reaction of chronic fear of terror has a negative impact on health in women," Dr. Samuel Melamed of Tel-Aviv University in Israel and colleagues write in the medical journal Psychosomatic Medicine. "International studies are needed to explore the extent of fear of terror in other countries, and the relative risk of physical morbidity in women," they add. This is not the first study to link mental state to inflammation. Previous research has shown that repeated episodes of acute or chronic stress can culminate in chronic inflammation, leading to cardiovascular disease. To investigate whether the same pattern occurs in people living under the threat of random acts of violence, Melamed and his team surveyed 1152 healthy, employed adults living in Israel, which "has been subject to a continuous threat of terror" since September 2000. The investigators asked the participants if they had a deep concern for their personal safety, whether they got particularly nervous in crowded places, and if they were very afraid that an attack will hurt themselves or their families. The authors found that women tended to have more fears related to terrorism than men. More than 26 percent of women exhibited a high state of fear, most of them for at least one year, compared with 11 percent of men. Women who reported a high fear of terrorism were more likely to have high levels of CRP, even after removing the influence of general anxiety, depression and other factors that can influence CRP. Men's fears appeared to have no relationship to their levels of CRP. These gender differences appear consistent with previous research, Melamed and his colleagues write, which has also shown that women show more signs of depression, post- traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and other mental health problems after a terrorist attack than men. Bill Gates' Speech to Mt. Whitney High School in Visalia, California. Worthwhile reading for anyone. Love him or hate him, he sure hits the nail on the head with this! To anyone with kids of any age, or anyone who has ever been a kid, here's some advice: Bill Gates recently dished out at a high school speech about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world. Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it! Rule 2: The world won't care about you self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself. Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both. Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss. Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different word for burger flipping -- they called it opportunity. Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes learn from them. Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you are. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room. Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life has not. In some schools they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as many times as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life. Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interest in helping you find yourself. Do that on your own time. Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs. Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one. Lessons learned from people who's wallet was stolen. The next time you order checks have only your initials (instead of first name) and last name put on them. If someone takes your check book they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your first name but your bank will know how you sign your checks. Put your work phone # on your checks instead of your home phone. If you have a PO Box use that instead of your home address, if you do not have a PO Box use your work address. Never have your SS# printed on your checks -- you can add it if it is necessary. But if you have it printed, anyone can get it. Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine, do both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place. A corporate attorney sent the following out to the employees in his company. I pass it along, for your information. We've all heard horror stories about fraud that's committed on us in stealing a name, address, Social Security number, credit cards, etc. Unfortunately I, an attorney, have firsthand knowledge because my wallet was stolen last month. Within a week, the thieve(s) ordered an expensive monthly cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a credit line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from DMV to change my driving record information online, and more. But here's some critical information to limit the damage in case this happens to you or someone you know: We have been told we should cancel your credit cards immediately. But the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them easily. File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where it was stolen, this proves to credit providers you were diligent, and is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one). But here's what is perhaps most important: (I never even thought to do this) Call the three national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and Social Security number. I had never heard of doing that until advised by a bank that called to tell me an application for credit was made over the internet in my name. The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit. By the time I was advised to do this, almost two weeks after the theft, all the damage had been done. There are records of all the credit checks initiated by the thieves' purchases, none of which I knew about before placing the alert. Since then, no additional damage has been done, and the thieves threw my wallet away this weekend (someone turned it in). It seems to have stopped them in their tracks. The numbers are: Equifax: 1-800-525-6285 Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742 Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289 Social Security Administration (fraud line): 1-800-269-0271 National Do Not Call Registry "The National Do Not Call Registry is open for business, putting consumers in charge of the telemarketing calls they get at home. The Federal government created the national registry to make it easier and more efficient for you to stop getting telemarketing calls you don’t want. You can register online at WWW.DONOTCALL.GOV or call toll-free, 1-888-382-1222 (TTY 1-866-290-4236), from the number you wish to register. Registration is free." Internet ScamBusters Unfortunately there are people who have no conscience who prey on hurting people. Check this site out for online scams to be sure you don't get taken advantage of. Grassfire.net "the homepage for conservative activists. Our mission is to use the power of the internet to promote conservative awareness and activism at the grassroots level." TechTV News & technology news. The Internet Fraud Complaint Center IFCC is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center. You can report any terriorist activity here. American Red Cross Disaster Relief DISASTER AND TRAUMA "Regularly updated collection of news, notices, articles, and related links to provide the latest information and resources related to caring for those affected by the September 11th terrorist attacks." Stress Helping kids through crisis situations. WorldNetDaily.com "A Free Press For A Free People" CBN James Dobson Focus on the Family National Day of Prayer WRCM GoCarolinas.com CNN News CBS News ABC News The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention offers its own page of news, facts, and updates. Suspicious mail If you're worried about handling mail, the U.S. Postal Service offers advice and safety tips. New York Times MSNBC News NBC News FirstGov for Seniors The Weather Channel One Afganistan's thoughts on Bin Laden A look on the brighter side of this tragedy God Bless America Battle Hymm Of The Republic Song!! "HOLD ONTO YOUR DREAMS" Listings of U.S. Government information and resources in America Responds to Terrorism. Submit Services Message Board I got this from an email & thought I'ld add it here. "We would like to extend our deepest sympathies to those who lost loved ones in this most devastating tragedy. Our hearts and prayers go out to the victims and their families. We have created a new message board for visitors to leave their comments and offer their condolences to victims. Please stop by and leave your comment" Medicare/Medicaid Consumer Protection Tips UKTG Home Page Site provides information on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder which many folks in NYC will be dealing with due to the terriorist attacks. Heart of Darkness Experts Explain Why Terrorists Hate So Much This explains why people are given over to what I call "reprobate minds" and why it is so important to love and care for your children (and each other). "Working down from bin Laden to his ideological clones, we reach the roots of the evil. Surprisingly, they are misguided adolescents, who are all too ready to strap themselves to explosives for the promise of eternal pleasure from 30 virgin brides, not to mention a place in the history books. "That's a pretty heady mix," Mirow says. "It's not hard to make a terrorist, given the right set of cultural circumstances." All adolescents face the task of discovering and becoming who they are meant to be, but deprived backgrounds and distorted ideology may breed terrorists, not productive members of society. "The most violent kids are the ones who are covering up the greatest emptiness. They see others as objects to fulfill their own needs," Mirow explains. Mass murderers and political leaders involved in exterminations, like Sadaam Hussein, Hitler, Stalin, and Milosevic, were often childhood victims of severe abuse, emotional neglect, and lack of love, Andrei Novac, MD, tells WebMD. He is an associate clinical professor of psychiatry and director of the Traumatic Stress Program at the University of California, Irvine, in Newport Beach. A terrorist leader like bin Laden can fill the painful void left by an absent or neglectful parent, explains Guy Sapirstein, PhD, an adolescent trauma psychologist in Newton Center, Mass." Osoma Bin Laden's Special Song I got this email from a friend & thought I'ld add it for those who like numbers. Thought you guys would be amazed at all this stuff put together like this... I know I was... Look at this: The date of the attack: 9/11 - 9 + 1 + 1 = 11 September 11th is the 254th day of the year: 2 + 5 + 4 = 11 After September 11th there are 111 days left to the end of the year. 119 is the area code to Iraq/Iran. 1 + 1 + 9 = 11 Twin Towers - standing side by side, looks like the number 11 The first plane to hit the towers was Flight 11 I Have More....... State of New York - The 11 State added to the Union New York City - 11 Letters Afghanistan - 11 Letters The Pentagon - 11 Letters Ramzi Yousef - 11 Letters (convicted or orchestrating the attack on the WTC in 1993) Flight 11 - 92 on board - 9 + 2 = 11 Flight 77 - 65 on board - 6 + 5 = 11 Crazy huh?? I couldn't have said this better. Lisa shares my feelings exactly! TIMES RECORD NEWS, Wichita Falls, Texas: By: NICK GHOLSON Some people, it seems, get offended way too easily. I mean, isn't that what all this prayer hullabaloo is all about - people getting offended? Those of us in the majority are always tiptoeing around, trying to make sure we don't step on the toes or hurt the feelings of the humorless. And you can bet there's a lawyer standing on every corner making sure we don't. Take this prayer deal. It's absolutely ridiculous. Some atheist goes to a high school football game, hears a kid say a short prayer before the game and gets offended. So he hires a lawyer and goes to court and asks somebody to pay him a whole bunch of money for all the damage done to him. You would have thought the kid kicked him in the crotch. Damaged for life by a 30 second prayer? Am I missing something here? I don't believe in Santa Claus, but I'm not going to sue somebody for singing a Ho-Ho-Ho song in December. I don't agree with Darwin, but I didn't go out and hire a lawyer when my high school teacher taught his theory of evolution. Life, liberty or your pursuit of happiness will not be endangered because someone says a 30 second prayer before a football game. So what's the big deal? It's not like somebody is up there reading the entire book of Acts. They're just talking to a God they believe in and asking him to grant safety to the players on the field and the fans going home from the game. "But it's a Christian prayer," some will argue. Yes, and this is the United States of America, a country founded on Christian principles. And we are in the Bible Belt. According to our very own phone book, Christian churches outnumber all others better than 200-to-1. So what would you expect - somebody chanting Hare Krishna? If I went to a football game in Jerusalem, I would expect to hear a Jewish prayer. If I went to a soccer game in Baghdad, I would expect to hear a Muslim prayer. If I went to a ping-pong match in China, I would expect to hear someone pray to Buddha. And I wouldn't be offen ded. It wouldn't bother me one bit. When in Rome..."But what about the atheists?" is another argument. What about them? Nobody is asking them to be baptized. We're not going to pass the collection plate. Just humor us for 30 seconds. If that's asking too much, bring a Walkman or a pair of ear plugs. Go to the bathroom. Visit the concession stand.... Call your lawyer. Unfortunately, one or two will make that call. One or two will tell thousands what they can and cannot do. I don't think a short prayer at a football game is going to shake the world's foundations. Nor do I believe that not praying will result in more serious injuries on the field or more fatal car crashes after the game. In fact, I'm not so sure God would even be at all these games if he didn't have to be. That's just one of the downsides of omnipresence. If God really liked sports, the Russians would never have won a single gold medal, New York would never play in a World Series and Deion Sanders' toe would be healed by now. Christians are just sick and tired of turning the other cheek while our courts strip us of all our rights. Our parents and grandparents taught us to pray before eating, to pray before we go to sleep. Our Bible tells us just to pray without ceasing. Now a handful of people and their lawyers are telling us to cease praying. God, help us. And if that last sentence offends you -- well............just sue me. submitted by Lisa Trapp, KY As John Stossel would say "Give me a break!" Lost a good link? The Net's ever changing nature means that Web pages and sites appear and disappear constantly. The Wayback Machine is a digital archive that lets you search for Web pages that no longer exist in their original locations. The site currently features a special collection of pages related to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Dietary Supplement T3 Recalled Global Enterprises is recalling T3, a dietary supplement containing tiratricol, a potent thyroid hormone that may cause serious health consequences, including heart attacks and strokes. FDA Weighs In On The Importation Of Drugs Thinking of buying drugs overseas? See what the Food and Drug Administration has to say about importing drugs for personal use. Here's the congressional testimony of William K. Hubbard, Senior Associate Commissioner for Policy, Planning and Legislation, FDA. Perhaps we are asking the wrong questions during election years. Our Senators and Congressmen/women do not pay into Social Security and, of course, they do not collect from it. You see, Social Security benefits were not suitable for persons of their rare elevation in society. They felt they should have a special plan for themselves. So, many years ago they voted in their own benefit plan. In more recent years, no congressperson has felt the need to change it. After all, it is a great plan. For all practical purposes their plan works like this: When they retire, they continue to draw the same pay until they die, except it may increase from time to time for cost of living adjustments. For example, former Senator Byrd and Congressman White and their wives may expect to draw $7,800,000.00 (that's Seven Million, Eight-Hundred Thousand Dollars), with their wives drawing $275,000.00 during the last years of their lives. This is calculated on an average life span for each. Their cost for this excellent plan is $00.00. Nada. Zilch. This little perk they voted for themselves is free to them. You and I pick up the tab for this plan. The funds for this fine retirement plan come directly from the General Funds-our tax dollars at work! From our own! Social Security Plan, which you and I pay (or have paid) into-every payday until we retire (which amount is matched by our employer) --we can expect to get an average $1,000 per month after retirement. Or, in other words, we would have to collect our average of $1,000. monthly benefits for 68 years and one (1) month to equal Senator Bill Bradley's benefits! Social Security could be very good if only one small change were made. That change would be to jerk the Golden Fleece Retirement Plan from under the Senators and Congressmen. Put them into the Social Security plan with the rest of us ... then sit back and watch how fast they would fix it. If enough people receive this, maybe a seed of awareness will be planted and maybe good changes will evolve. As John Stossel would say "Give me a break!"