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This
SeniorArk.com
Home Page
is one of the most valuable pages a Senior can read each day.
 is a free,
volunteer site, BY SENIORS, FOR SENIORS.
But you
may
find that our Senior survival tips have
considerable value for children of
all ages. We are not a dead, static senior citizen site, but are
updated
EVERY DAY,
including most holidays. SeniorARK was
begun in November 2005. By February, 2012 we are only completing the
foundation, but we already receive over 100,000 visits per month from
inquiring, and sharing, Seniors. (165,581 in a recent month) You have created
hundreds of pages, chock full of over 4,999 links, tips,
and other resources to help our generation cope with the inevitable challenges that come in retirement.
We believe that surviving in retirement
does not rely on one "silver bullet", but instead is the result of
doing many things a little better. As we share our tips and
information with each other, we can build a sturdy SeniorARK
for everyone. By its nature, SeniorARK will always be
under construction. Please be one of the
Senior builders of SeniorARK by your sharing.
Remember: AMATEURS built the ARK---
PROFESSIONALS built the TITANIC.
WE KNOW YOU HAVE THE
ANSWERS. LET'S SHARE THEM WITH EACH OTHER!
YOU ARE THE PULSE OF SENIORARK. PLEASE SEND YOUR COMMENTS,
SUGGESTIONS, TIPS, RECIPES, HOBBIES, HUMOR, AND LINKS TO:
seniorark@aol.com
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CURRENT COMMENT (OR IS IT A RANT?) FOR OUR
READERS
We have always had an
EDITOR'S
page with an explanation
of how and why this site was begun. But now,
in addition, we will produce a special
EDITOR'S DAILY COMMENT.
On that page you may find timely information
on anything from a threat to Social Security
or Medicare, to how our editor is feeling
today, or how the weather is developing around
our headquarters, or why we support a critical
upcoming vote in Congress.
We hope you will make the
page a part of your daily online activity. We
will change the comment every 2 to 3 days.
There will be important links to information
on your health, Medicare, Social Security,
money, and much more. A special email address
will be provided for your important feedback.
And we encourage your feedback. Plug in and
become an empowered Senior!
This Current Comment,
below, is
posted for January 30 - February 6, 2012
YOU HAVE THE POWER - - IF YOU
USE IT !!!!!
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What are
folks paying for homeowner's
insurance in your state? Are
rates going up or down in your
state? What is the national
average?
Here are the
answers.
|
DID YOU KNOW?
Why the
Republican Congress Must Go
Robert Fassbach, editor, SeniorArk.com
SerniorArk.com Short
Editorial - February 3, 2012 - Today the
Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the
economy is showing strong signs of a rebound. In a
recovery, numbers go up and numbers go down. Today
employment numbers went up in a big way. 243,000
new jobs were created in January, 257,000 in the
private sector. For several months now, there has
been a decline in employment in the government
sector, so the total of jobs created is reduced to
253,000. The unemployment figure dropped
from 8.5% to 8.5% from the month before, and down from
a recession high of 10%. The runaway, out of
control job-loss train that
Obama inherited has been stopped, and reversed.
Good news, right? It would seem not. All day long Republicans
of all stripes talked the numbers down: "It should
have been better (even though economists predicted
120,000 jobs)." "Are the jobs good-paying."
"Obama has caused this to last longer than
necessary." Bull
 I
said to my wife this afternoon, sometime between 4:00
and 5:00, "Let's turn on Fox News to see how they are
spinning this good news".
We were
Immediately
rewarded with a very lively conversation between Neil Cavuto and Mike Huckabee. Huckabee said something
like "There is no getting around it, this is good
news. Surely you want good news on the economy."
Cavuto's response seemed to startle Huckabee, and
it sure made my blood boil: "No, I want the
economy to stay stuck in the mud", Cavuto said.
Excuse me, did I hear that correctly? Yes I did.
Cavuto is willing to sacrifice our economy, the
unemployed, and ultimately the security of our
nation by wishing the economy would stay stuck in
the mud. A defeated economy could enhance
Republican chances in the next election. Is power
really that valuable?
For Seniors, this would
mean more pressure on leaders to cut Social
Security and Medicare to save money.
Cavuto is not out there on an
island by himself. He is simply reflecting the
stance of Republicans in Congress
who have consistently blocked the President's efforts
to get this economy going. They are trying to cut
spending in a recession, something economists say
is a big mistake. They have fought tax cuts for
the middle class
because that could stimulate consumer spending.
They have refused an
infrastructure bill, choosing instead to allow our
roads, sewers, and bridges to crumble. After all,
with all the construction people working, the
economy might recover too soon. These Republicans
are obstructionists standing in the way of
economic expansion. They must go if they do not
help this recovery to continue.
Unilateral strike
on
Iran could trigger world depression
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- A
unilateral Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear
facilities would likely have dire consequences,
including a regional war, global economic collapse
and a major power clash.
War
Costs Dominate Our Growing
National Debt
Posted by
SeniorArk January 27, 2012 - The
cost to the United States of the
wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and
Pakistan over the past 10 years
has been somewhere between $3.2
and $4 trillion dollars, according
to a study released this week by
the Eisenhower Research Project,
based at Brown University in
Providence, Rhode Island. A report
on National Public Radio's All
Things Considered, meanwhile,
quoted a former Pentagon
official's estimate that the cost
of air conditioning alone for U.S.
personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan
runs to more than $20 billion a
year.
"The human and economic costs of
these wars will continue for
decades, some costs not peaking
until mid-century," according to
the "Cost of Wars" report, done by
more than 20 economists, political
scientists, and other specialists.
It continues, Many of the wars'
costs are invisible to Americans,
buried in a variety of budgets,
and so have not been counted or
assessed. The cost of treating
wounded soldiers will continue for
many years, and may approach a
trillion dollars by itself.
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THIS
IS THE
"EXPOSE POLITICAL
MISINFORMATION BOX"
*
PRESIDENT OBAMA'S RELIGION:
THE LIE:
Obama is a Muslim.
THE TRUTH:
Obama is a
Christian. Before becoming President
he was
an active member of Chicago’s
Trinity United Church of Christ for
20 years. President Obama has said:
"I’m a Christian by choice. My
family didn’t ... frankly, they
weren’t folks who went to church
every week. My mother was one of the
most spiritual people I knew, but
she didn’t raise me into church. I
came to my Christian faith later in
life. ... It was because the
precepts of Jesus Christ spoke to me
in terms of the kind of life I would
want to lead. Being my brother’s
keepers ... treating others as they
would treat me ... also
understanding that Jesus Christ
dying for my sins spoke to the
humility we all have to have as
human beings. ... We’re sinful, and
we’re flawed, and we make mistakes,
and we achieve salvation through the
grace of God. ... We can still see
God in other people and do our best
to help them find their own grace.
So that’s what I strive to do and
pray to do every day. ... I think my
public service is a part of that
effort to express my Christian
faith."
*A
SHOCKER ON
GASOLINE
PRICES: THE
LIE: Gas prices at the
pump are high because of Obama's
regulations and his attitude toward
producing more oil.
THE TRUTH: We have a surplus of
gasoline, diesel fuel, and airline
fuel. So much, in fact, that these
products were THE LARGEST
EXPORTS FROM AMERICA TO OTHER
COUNTRIES IN 2011. Gasoline
prices are high in the U.S. because
producers are causing a shortage by
EXPORTING it to FOREIGNERS. So much
for energy companies working to make
us energy-independent!
IS
THIS THE REAL "MISSION
ACCOMPLISHED"?
Source:
America's top export in 2011 was
. . . fuel?
Washington Post -December 31, 2011
Fuel is now the top US export. The
Associated Press reports that
America is on pace to ship out more
gasoline, diesel and jet fuel than
anything else in 2011...
*
TAXES AND JOB
CREATION: THE LIE: President Obama has
destroyed job creation because he
continually has been raising taxes.
THE TRUTH: The President is
responsible for middle-class tax cuts
of at least $240 billion his first
year in office, has continued the
give-away Bush tax cuts for the rich,
and passed 17 tax cuts for small businesses.
Currently he is proposing continuing
the existing cuts for 2012, or even reducing
further the
payroll taxes on the first $106,800 that
every American earns.
 Jobs
were lost at a rapid pace for only the first
few months after Obama became President
(January 2009). This was caused by the momentum of
the near depression he inherited. Since the first
quarter of 2010, there has been an increase in
private sector employment EVERY MONTH.
(Click graph to enlarge the facts.)
Jobless claims
drop to near four-year low
msnbc.com
-
January 20,
2012
The Labor Department reported that
seasonally adjusted jobless
claims fell 50000 in the week
ended Jan. 14, to 352000 from a
revised 402000 the prior week.
...
It is
critical that we Seniors listen
very carefully to what is being
said during the coming election
year. Misinformation is presented,
repeated endlessly, and then
accepted as the gospel truth by
millions. SeniorArk will try to
stay on top of this, AND PRESENT
THE TRUTH IN THIS GREEN-BORDERED
BOX NOW, AND ALL THROUGH 2012.
Armed with the truth, Seniors can
make informed decisions next
November. Find it here.
CLICK HERE TO READ EARLIER
LIE/TRUTH
ITEMS |
*
YOU CAN HELP TO ROOT OUT MEDICARE FRAUD
Seniors can be of great help in saving
money for our health system by reporting
FRAUD.
WHAT IS MEDICARE FRAUD? Fraud occurs
when someone intentionally falsifies
information or deceives Medicare. Abuse
occurs when doctors or suppliers don’t
follow good medical practices, resulting
in unnecessary costs to Medicare,
improper payment, or services that
aren’t medically necessary. A complaint
about the quality of care you got from a
doctor, hospital, or other provider or
facility is not considered fraud or
abuse. If you have a complaint about
your quality of care, please
click here.
Examples of possible Medicare fraud are:
-
A
healthcare provider bills Medicare for
services you never got.
-
A
supplier bills Medicare for equipment
you never got.
-
Someone uses another person’s Medicare
card to get medical care or equipment.
-
Someone bills Medicare for home
medical equipment after it has been
returned.
-
A
company offers a Medicare drug plan
that hasn’t been approved by Medicare.
-
A
company uses false information to
mislead you into joining a Medicare
plan.
Read complete Medicare article on
Preventing Medicare Fraud and Abuse
*******
Seniors, always remember, if you are
EVER in need of ANYTHING,
email:
seniorark@aol.com
We may not
be able to help, but we WILL TRY.
And we WILL answer your email.
Email
us--we want to be bothered.
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February 3, 2012 - This recent image
provided by NASA, captured by the
Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO),
shows an M9-class solar flare
erupting on the Sun's northeastern
hemisphere just 4 days after a
previous strong CME that sparked
aurora around the world on the 22nd
of January. A very fast coronal mass
ejection (CME) traveling four
million miles per hour (6.4 million
kilometers per hour headed towards
the Earth. A rush of radiation in
the form of solar protons
bombarded the Earth. The radiation
storm is the largest of its kind
since 2005 but still ranks only a
three on the scale of one to five,
enough to be considered "strong" but
not "severe". Credit: NASA / Getty
Images
February 2, 2012 - The president,
speaking at the National Prayer
Breakfast today, recounted his own
path to faith after growing up in a
household “that wasn’t particularly
religious.” He said he begins each
morning with a prayer, and he
concluded with a personal anecdote
about a day when, while vacationing
as president in North Carolina, he
made a pilgrimage to a mountaintop
retreat to visit the Rev. Billy
Graham, who was 91 years old at the
time.
Graham prayed for Obama, the
president recalled, and then Obama
returned the favor.
“I didn’t really know what to say,”
Obama said. “What do you pray for
when it comes to the man who has
prayed for so many? But like that
verse in Romans, the Holy Spirit
interceded when I didn’t know quite
what to say. And so I prayed —
briefly, but I prayed from the
heart.”
He added: “I have fallen on my knees
with great regularity since that
moment — asking God for guidance not
just in my personal life and my
Christian walk, but in the life of
this nation and in the values that
hold us together and keep us
strong.”
Romney: "The challenge right now –
we will hear from the Democrat Party
the plight of the poor, and – and
there’s no question, it's not good
being poor and we have a safety net
to help those that are very poor. But
my campaign is focused on middle
income Americans. My campaign – you
can choose where to focus. You can
focus on the rich. That's not my
focus. You can focus on the very
poor. That's not my focus."
(In fact, according to the
non-partisan Tax Policy Center,
the largest benefits of Romney's tax
plan go to the wealthy, NOT the
middle class.)
This rings as a fowl for the man who
recently suggested that we allow
foreclosure to run its course, SELL
THE HOMES TO INVESTORS, and then let
investors
rent them out. (in fact, last year
Romney invested heavily in funds
where investors buy foreclosed
homes)
This man also said in Florida that
he would not cut Social Security or
Medicare. But he also says he supports
the Ryan plan that devastates these
programs. Which position is a lie?
SeniorArk can in no way support
Romney. He is not committed to the
programs most Seniors must keep.
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___________________________________________
Updated:
Saturday February 04, 2012
Did you read something on this page, and
now it's gone? If so, you will probably find that it has been
archived to this page.
TODAY'S IMPORTANT NUMBERS
-
Saturday February 04, 2012
***********************************************************
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*
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|
style='font-size:9.0pt;'>The Gross National Debt
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January 2001 the
national debt was $5,728,195,796,181
January 2009 the national debt was $10,656,877,048,913
|
* 3 - Most abundant elements in known universe: hydrogen,
helium, oxygen. (BBC News, Science and Environment)
* 3,000 - Approximate number of people killed by
terrorists on 9/11/2001
* 300,000 - Approximate number of Americans killed BY
GUNS, BY EACH OTHER, AT HOME, since 9/11/2001.
* 37 Days - Time it takes for 3,000 Americans to be killed by
guns at home by each other.
* 1 - There is only one way to say RE-COG-NIZE. Reconize
does not exist.
* 1 - There is only one way to say NU-CLE-AR. Nucular does
not exist.
* #1 offender -
Wal-Mart is #1 with employees
receiving state-funded health care
in every state that released the data.
* 70% - Of all products sold at Wal-Mart are imported from
China, the largest Communist country in the world.
* $600 Billion - We will borrow from Chinese Communists
because we extended tax cuts to the top 1% of Americans
* 17.4 million. American homes that have difficulty putting
food on the table every day.
* 46 million - Americans living in poverty.
* 40 - American billionaires who have agreed to donate half
their fortunes to charity
* 85% - Seniors who already receive Social Security benefits
electronically (no paper check)
* 20 million $$ - Amount Sarah Palin has "cashed in on" since
her 15 minutes of fame. So much for so little.
* 10,000 - Number of boomers who begin collecting Social
Security every day
* All
but 4 - Number of Republican Representatives who voted to end
Medicare with a voucher instead in 2011.
* 0 - Number of Democrats who
voted to end Medicare with a voucher instead.
* 211 - Average days from layoff to finding a new job in the
current economy
* 3,000,000 - Soft drink vending machines in the U.S. One for
every 100 people.
* 237 - Miles the average European walks per year
* 87 - Miles the average American walks per year
* Don't ask, don't tell - Miles I
walk per year
* 27% - Gift cards never redeemed in the
U.S.. Over $8 Billion worth of gift cards were never used from
2006.
* $700 - $1000 per MONTH. Amount
Medicare Advantage insurers are paid by Medicare for your
care.
* $772,000,000 - Amount AARP was
paid by health insurance companies in 2008. Beware their
opinions on this subject.
* $15,000-plus - Average 2011 cost
for an employer-based family health insurance policy
* 35 cents - amount health insurers want
to pocket for every health insurance dollar received
* 2.1 - USA spends $2.1 trillion/year on
health care. Double per person spent in any other country.
* 45 million - # of Americans on
government-run health insurance - It's called Medicare!
* 46 - years Medicare has served the needs
of America's Seniors - July 30, 2011 > 46th birthday
* 43rd - U.S. life expectancy - 42 nations
are higher. We wonder why this is so.
******
Do you know there are now
9 news sections on
www.seniorark.com?
Volunteers scour the web EVERY DAY to find the most
important and interesting articles for Seniors
***********************************************************
Primary News Sections
·
The Home Page you are now viewing, for the
very latest news for Seniors
·
The
"News" page for today's news on health and other items of
interest
·
Up-to-date
news on Medicare, including Part D information (last
section)
·
Up-to-date
news on Social Security, including other pension related
news (last section)
·
News on
Senior Health Issues, (last section), older than the
current
"news" page
Archived News Sections - Articles you remember reading somewhere,
but can no longer find.
·
Hot News items that have been
moved very recently from the page you are now reading
·
Older Medicare News
·
Older Health Articles with summary
·
Older Health Articles listed, without a summary
SOME SIGNIFICANT RECENT NEWS HEADLINES - from the web:
(Green indicates
a health article) For todays headlines, please go to
NEWS.
MedPage Today -
February
1, 2012
By Emily P.
Walker, Washington Correspondent, MedPage Today WASHINGTON
-- Enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans has risen by 10%
in the past year and premiums have dropped by 7%, despite
billions of dollars in reimbursement cuts to the program,
...
The Associated Press -
Posted by SA January 2, 2011
WASHINGTON
(AP) - Baby boomers take note: Medicare as your parents have
known it is headed for big changes no matter who wins the
White House in 2012.
New Census Figures Highlight
Older Adults' Financial Struggles
MarketWatch
9, 2011 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- New Poverty Rate More
Reflective of Economic Realities for Seniors; Tied to
Increased Health Care Costs New poverty figures
released this week by the US Census Bureau show a large
increase in the number of poor ...
Shortage of doctors trained to
treat elderly grows more stark as baby boomer
...
Washington Post
It's a nationwide shortage and it's going to get worse as the
70 million members of the baby-boom generation — those now 46
to 65 — reach their senior years over the next few
decades. The American Geriatrics Society says today there's
roughly one ...
Excerpt from an article on
"MARKET WATCH.com" October 29, 2011 entitled:
by Paul B. Farrell -
America’s an addict, out-of-control, doesn’t care who gets
hurts
Yes folks, I am
mad as hell. The America I believed in when I volunteered for
the Marine Corps, went to Korea, that America has been
hijacked by an irrational, dark force that’s consuming our
political system. We saw this coming a few years ago reviewing
Jack Bogle’s warnings in “The Battle for the Soul of
Capitalism.” Buffett called that one: “There’s class warfare,
all right. But it’s my class, the rich class, that’s making
war, and we’re winning.”
Today that toxic
mind-set is a metaphor visible everywhere, in images like
Dexter’s Four Horsemen, visions of America descending into a
self-created Inferno.
My America is out
of control, babbling nonsense, acting like a junkie, addict,
very bad alcoholic. Been there. Now decades in recovery. Also
worked years professionally with hundreds from Betty Ford
Center. Today everywhere I see a nation consumed by
addictions: self-centered, selfish, greedy, aggressive, power
hungry, lost souls with no moral compass, in denial of their
suicidal mission, incapable of stopping. (read
complete article
)
Seniors can get preventive
services at no cost thanks
to Medicare changes
Hometownlife.com
As executive director of
Michigan's Area Agencies on
Aging Association, I know
that the costs of health
insurance and prescription
medications are of constant
concern to our senior
citizens. I also know how
important it is to take care
of our health as ...
First
GPS-Enabled Walking Shoes
Help Caregivers Track
Alzheimer's Patients
Popular
Science
Some Alzheimer's patients
become paranoid and confused
by new jewelry or clothing
and remove them, according
to Andrew Carle, a professor
at George Mason University's
College of Health and
Human Services, who advised
the project and discussed it
with ...
GOP not
always against entitlements
WASHINGTON —
It's a
massive health care
entitlement with unfunded
future costs over $7
trillion. Many conservatives
are still upset at the way
it was rammed through
Congress. But when the
Republican presidential
candidates were asked last
week asked if they would
repeal the Medicare drug
benefit, they said no way.
After all, Republicans
created it. Republicans want
to pull the plug on the
health care overhaul they
call "Obamacare," but that
law is arguably less a
deficit driver than the
Medicare drug plan they are
defending.
Voice of
America - David Byrd
Photo: AP Spc.
Gavin Fruge, 22, of Crowley, La., left, watches a
rebroadcast of President Barack Obama's speech on proposed
troop withdrawal with fellow soldiers at Kandahar Airfield
in Kandahar, Afghanistan, (file photo) A new report
The hard truth about
health
care: Government works
Washington Post (blog)
Instead, it's where our
conversation about health-care costs never quite goes.
The Republican plan, in fact, heads in the opposite
direction: The GOP outsources Medicare to private
insurers and gives senior citizens checks that cover
less and less of ...
(RTTNews) - Senate Democrats have called on
Republicans to take the House-passed Medicare plan
off the table in bipartisan deficit reduction talks,
claiming that the plan effectively dismantles the
program.
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 ARE
YOU FALLING INTO THE DOUGHNUT HOLE?
**15 ways to survive a fall
into that dreaded abyss**
February 04, 2012
Yes, Part "D" is a bizarre system, crafted
by a slight-of-hand Congress, mostly written by
the drug and insurance companies. Yes
it can be overwhelming to the Senior who needs more than a
minimal amount of medication each year. But do not despair.
There are specific things you can do
today to survive this convoluted program, and the doughnut
hole at its center.
Read Complete Article
Also, what you do today can slow, or prevent, a fall
into the doughnut (donut) hole. See:
Surviving Medicare Part "D".
************************************************************
MANY ELIGIBLE LOW-INCOME SENIORS NOT
APPLYING FOR PART D SUBSIDY
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the
Congressional Budget Office have estimated, respectively, that
about 2.6 million to over 4 million individuals who may
qualify for the Medicare prescription drug low-income subsidy
are not receiving it. Various barriers, such as reluctance to
disclose personal financial information or lack of knowledge
of the subsidy, may prevent potentially eligible Medicare
beneficiaries from applying for the subsidy. To view the
highlights of the report, go to:
http://www.gao.gov/highlights/d08812thigh.pdf.
To see if you qualify, or to apply, go to:
http://www.socialsecurity.gov/prescriptionhelp/
Also
see:
Latest Health News ,
Latest Medicare News ,
Latest Social Security News |
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 SeniorArk
FunSpot
Updated:
02/04/2012
Also, enjoy our massive: "just
for fun" , "humor", and "photo" sections
|
*******
******
*******
The irony of life is
that, by the time
You're old
enough to know your way around,
You're not going anywhere.
Thanks to
LadyBethofNJ
******
redneck griddle
Think Big!
*******
******
Say "Cheese!"
******
This amazing link to a man and a lioness is worth
seeing.
http://videos2view.net/lioness.htm
******
******
For more, go to:
Fun Pages, or
Humor Pages, or
Funny Images
, or
Funny
Videos
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