Merry Christmas! Here’s a List of Some of Your New Obamacare Taxes and Fees

/6 Comments/in , /by

Starting in 2014, President Barack Obama’s health care law will expand coverage to some 30 million uninsured people. At the same time, insurers no longer will be allowed to turn away those in poor health, and virtually every American will be required to have health insurance — through an employer or a government program or by buying it on their own.

For the vast majority of people, the health care law won’t mean sending more money to the Internal Revenue Service. But the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans will take the biggest hit, starting next year.

And roughly 20 million people eventually will benefit from tax credits that start in 2014 to help them pay insurance premiums.

A look at some of the major taxes and fees, estimated to total nearly $700 billion over 10 years.

— Upper-income households. Starting Jan. 1, individuals making more than $200,000 per year, and couples making more than $250,000 will face a 0.9 percent Medicare tax increase on wages above those threshold amounts. They’ll also face an additional 3.8 percent tax on investment income. Together these are the biggest tax increase in the health care law.

Read more from this story HERE.

Obama Gives Cold Shoulder to Egypt’s Secular Democrats

/0 Comments/in , , /by

Last July when Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton visited Egypt she was met with widespread protest from Coptic Christians and secular activists objecting to what they all believed was the Obama administration’s role in helping the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) ascend to power in Egypt.

The secretary had requested to meet with ten Christian leaders, myself included. All of those invited refused to meet with her and boycotted her visit. Most of us had been both publicly and privately warning members of Congress and the administration of the danger the Muslims Brotherhood poses and about their desire to turn Egypt into a theocratic Islamic fascist country. Yet we were ignored.

Going back to April 2007, Democrats made special efforts to link up with the MB when visiting then-House Majority Leader Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., met with Dr. Saad el-Katatni, the MB’s parliamentary leader, at former U.S. Ambassador Francis Ricciardone’s home, at a time when then-Secretary Condoleezza Rice has publicly refused to meet with the Brotherhood.

Mr. Ricciardone, who I can call a friend, once told me that his friendship with another MB leader, Essam El- Erain, extended for close to 30 years. Perhaps that was the catalyst for this meeting and subsequent meetings that took place at his residency.

A stream of meetings as well as public and private contacts followed between current U.S. Ambassador Ann Paterson and members of the Brotherhood since her arrival to Egypt shortly after the revolution. The ambassador seemed to favor the Brotherhood and the hardliner Salafis over the rest of the secular players in Egypt.

Read more from this story HERE.

Sellout: Karl Rove Commends Obama’s Commission on Gun Control, Calls for Comprehensive Bi-Partisan Solution

/69 Comments/in , /by

If there was any doubt about what side Karl Rove was on in the gun control debate, it should now be abundantly clear. Rove stepped squarely into the President’s camp on Monday, lauding calls for a commission to take on the problem of gun violence in America.

The former Bush strategist made clear that mental health and assault weapons should be constituents of a comprehensive bi-partisan approach to dealing with the issue.

Once again, Washington stumbles over itself in an attempt to come up with a “reasoned approach” to insanity.

Perhaps one of the more troubling aspects of the whole discussion was the fact that no one seemed to be concerned with the Constitutional issues surrounding the Second Amendment. How nice that the Republican establishment has such an historically illiterate and morally vacuous spokesman on its side!

Ho, Ho, Ho: United Nations Wants 5% Budget Increase

/8 Comments/in , /by

Late yesterday, the United Nations General Assembly approved a 5% budget increase for 2012-2013–with half of the additional spending going towards the UN’s “political missions,” which typically handle peacemaking and conflict resolution. In a time of global austerity, the UN’s career diplomats have decided they deserve more cash.

The spending is particularly concerning given the fact that the UN is hardly known for running a tight financial ship. Last week, the Associated Press published an article headlined: “Santa Arrives Early at UN,” referring to the newly renovated office of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who also received a “new armored car wrapped in a red ribbon with a big bow.” A significant amount of UN spending is also wasted on controversial propaganda, such as a recent art display depicting the proto-state of Palestine as encompassing all of the State of Israel.

The United States is responsible for 22% of the UN’s regular budget, including the political missions.

Read more from this story HERE.

The Changing Face of Old St Nick: How Santa Claus’s Image Has Evolved Through the Past 700 Years

/0 Comments/in , /by

After more than 700 years, quite a lot has changed in both the meaning and appearance of Christmas.

But when it comes to Old St Nick, ironically with his age, the one thing that may not have changed could very well be his big white beard as this unique collection of historical pictures show.

First pictured in the 4th century, in one seen example of a Russian icon dating to 1294, as history tells, St Nicholas Lipensky was a real man and bishop who would launch the many faces and stories we know today.

Born in Asia Minor, he is remembered for his charitable giving, notably to children, in one instance providing anonymous dowries to three young girls to prevent them from entering prostitution.

For three nights he is said to have walked by their home, tossing a bag of money through an open window for them to find in the morning.

Today he is buried in the Italian city of Bari where his tomb is visited by thousands every year.

Read more from this story HERE.

American Troops Share in the Holiday Spirit over Christmas Eve Dinner in Afghanistan

/0 Comments/in , /by

U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan took a short break from the frontline to celebrate Christmas Eve dinner among what many call their ‘second family,’ some 7,000-miles from home.

The men and women in Kabul’s U.S.-led coalition base dined among decorative paper snowmen, Christmas trees and Santa Clauses while underneath them their weapons temporarily rest, tucked beneath their seats.

Walking through the dinner line, some readily carried their assault rifles slung over their shoulders – a sign of work as usual – while outside some soldiers walked around wearing traditional red and white Santa hats.

American troops are serving their 12th Christmas in Afghanistan this year, with approximately 66,000 troops currently serving in Afghanistan.

‘When we’re here we try to put the family aside and not dwell on being away from them,’ Capt. Ray Davidson, the chaplain at outpost Arian told USA Today. ‘And then Christmas comes,’ he said of many soldiers’ shared pain at being away.

Read more from this story HERE.

Unemployed Single Mother with 5 Kids Gets Makeover and Job Opportunity in Unforgettable Christmas Surprise (+video)

/3 Comments/in , /by

An organization called “Style Me Hired” is presenting a new twist on the classic “makeover” story. In rough economic times, many women don’t just need a new hairstyle or bronzer– they need an entire lifestyle change.

That’s why Style Me Hired tackles both, giving struggling women a free makeover, and then presenting them with a unique job opportunity.

The most recent recipient was single mother of five Nanette Garvey, who was surprised at her Pennsylvania home by Marc Voci, the owner Marc Voci Salon in Folsom.

Garvey seemed unable to control her excitement, waving and smiling at the cameras as she left.

“I’ve never had anything like this happen to me” she said, emerging in black pants, tennis shoes, and a blue shirt.

Read more from this story HERE.

Christmas In An Anti-Christian Age

/1 Comment/in , /by

photo credit: nhvictory

For two millennia, the birth of Christ has been seen as the greatest event in world history. The moment Jesus was born in a stable in Bethlehem, God became man, and eternal salvation became possible.

This date has been the separation point of mankind’s time on earth, with B.C. designating the era before Christ, and A.D., Anno Domini, in the Year of the Lord, the years after. And how stands Christianity today?

“Christianity is in danger of being wiped out in its biblical heartlands,” says the British think tank Civitas.

In Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Ethiopia and Nigeria, Christians face persecution and pogroms. In Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan, conversion is a capital offense. In a century, two-thirds of all the Christians have vanished from the Islamic world.

In China, Christianity is seen as a subversive ideology of the West to undermine the regime.

Read more from this article HERE.

A Yeshiva Boy and Christmas

/1 Comment/in , /by

photo credit: lon r fong

When I was 20, I spent my junior year in college in England. When classes let out for the last two weeks of December, I traveled to Morocco, where something life-changing occurred.

What happened was that I felt a longing, even an emptiness, I had never before experienced. Something was missing from my life, but I could not at first identify it. I knew it was not about being without friends or family — after all, I hadn’t been with family or friends for the previous three months. And it wasn’t about being alone — I had gotten used to traveling alone.

This sense of missing something kept gnawing at me, until one day I realized what it was: I missed the Christmas season. I missed that time of year in America.

At first I denied it. Growing up in an Orthodox Jewish home and in yeshivas (Orthodox religious schools where half the day was devoted to religious, and half the day to secular, studies), I had, of course, never celebrated Christmas. How, then, could I miss something that I never had? How could I, raised in an Orthodox Jewish world, miss the quintessential Christian holiday?

But I could not conjure up any other explanation: I was in a non-Christian country, and therefore I heard no Christmas songs, saw no Christmas decorations, and Dec. 25 was just another day.

Read more from this story HERE.