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Monday, January 17, 2011

Which Fanbase deserves a Super Bowl More? VOTE

 There are four teams left in the 2010/2011 NFL playoffs. Four worthy cities hoping there team will be in the XLV Super Bowl at Cowboy's Stadium in Arlington,Texas. But what fan base deserves to have there team to make it their? 

Lets quickly look at the Teams:

NEW YORK JETS:

Long suffering Jets fans will say, US. Last time this team was in a Super Bowl was of course Joe "Willie" Namath and the Jan.12,1969  Super Bowl III win over the heavily favorite Baltimore Colts.   There Playoff History speaks for itself. In the 42 years since their ONLY Super Bowl win they have ONLY been in the playoffs 13 times, with a record of 10-13. I would have to rank them as the NUMBER ONE Fan Base to have there team in a SB. Long suffering the most, IT'S TIME!

GREEN BAY PACKERS:

Packers fans will say they deserve it more. A longer Playoff History dating back to the old NFL Championship Days from 1938, they have been in three Super Bowls I, II and XXXI. Winning two out of three. But since the lost to Denver Broncos in SB 31 in 1998, they have been in the Playoffs eight out of the next 13 years, with a record of 5-7. But , they also had Brett Favre! In a close call, I would have to rank them as the Third most deserving Fan Base to have their team in a SB.

CHICAGO BEARS:

THE BEARS! There fans will say they ARE! Also dating back to the old NFL Championship days from 1933, there Playoff History reflects two Super Bowl Appearances in SB XX ,Win, and SB XLI, Loss. We will always remember their key super star, Walter "Sweetness" Payton, RIP. Since there last SB win in 1986, they have been in the playoffs 10 times out of 25 years with a record of 6-9. I would rank them as the SECOND most deserving Fan Base to have their team in a SB.

PITTSBURGH STEELERS:

Steelers fans will say they are MOST worthy. There Playoff History dates back to 1947. They have been in the most Super Bowls of the four that are left, Seven. They have won a record six times, with there latest coming in Super Bowl XLIII in 2009. There Playoff Record is impressive, as are the many great players that they have had over the years. Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, Lynn Swan, "Mean" Joe Green to name just a few. I would rank them as the FOURTH Deserving Fan Base to have their team in the SB. There history is against them.

  

NOW IT'S YOUR TURN. VOTE FOR;

Which Fanbase deserves a Super Bowl More?


Tuesday, January 11, 2011

In Memorandum to the ARIZONA VICTIMS

The horrific, sensless, tragic events that unfolded on the morning of January 8, 2011 at around 10:10am in front of a safeway shopping store  in Tucson, Arizona. A deraged Gunman opens fire targetting Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who is still fightining for her life in an Arizona hospital but showing signs of improvement everyday. One can only hope and pray she makes a FULL recovery.

But what about the other victums who lost there life on that day. Much has been covered abour the Congresswoman, but not much has been said or learned about the six innocent bystanders who lost their lives on that day.

This is for them! May they rest in peace and NEVER be fogotten.

 

Gabriel Zimmerman who was 30 years old and he was Giffords director of community outreach. Politico adds that Zimmerman worked for Giffords since 2007,was the man behind the "Congress on Your Corner" events, organizing them, taking down names and phone numbers of people looking for help, doing the legwork needed to follow up on their problems. He was talking with the people waiting in line Saturday to see U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords when a gunman opened fire.




Dorthy Morris76 years old was killed Saturday in the Tucson, Ariz., shooting. Her husband, George, remains in critical condition. The couple were high-school sweethearts. George and Dorthy both grew up in Reno, Nevada. Friends describe the couple who have been married for more than 50 year as "much in love." George was a former airline pilot, and Dorthy a devoted wife.The couple have 2 daughters. George was shot twice, once in the shoulder and the other through the leg. He is currently in serious condition at the University Medical Center, Tucson."To be fine one moment than she's gone in another moment and be injured himself, I can't imagine what a terrible thing it is to overcome."


Dorwin Stoddard who was 76 years old and a pastor at Mountain Ave. Church of Christ. A retired construction worker who clung to his wife to protect her from the gunfire. She was hit by three bullets in her leg, but she is recovering in a hospital. When the shooting started Saturday, he dove to the ground, covering his wife Mavy. The couple had been grade school sweethearts growing up in Tucson. Mavy talked to her husband, who was shot in the head, for 10 minutes while he breathed heavily. Then he stopped breathing. "He heard the shots and covered my mom with his own body and protected her and saved her," said stepdaughter Penny Wilson."We'd like to compliment the hero that lies in our father and we are just blessed that he's walking with the lord now." said stepdaughter Angela Robinson.

Phyllis Scheck 79 years old has spent her winters in sunny Tucson, away from her home state of New Jersey. Eventually she became an Arizona resident, taking up with the town's robust community of retirees. A widow who had been married to Edward Schneck for 56 years until his death, Schneck had been a homemaker, loved making crafts and remained devoted to her family. Schneck was not especially active politically, according to her daughter. "I don't know why she was there," Rautenberg said. According to the Wall Street Journal, another daughter, B.J. Offutt, said her mother admired Rep. Gifford for her stance on border protection. Schneck is survived by three children, seven grandchildren and one great-granddaughter.



Christina Greene 9 years old  who was a student at Mesa Verde Elementary. She was taken with 10 other critical patient to the Hospital but later died. She was born on September 11, 2001, which led to her short life being marked by tragedy. The girl had been elected to student council at her school, showing a clear interest in policy issues. For this reason she had decided listening to Representative Gifford “She was very good public speaker. I sold her engaging in politics. She was a great leader,” Christina father said to the media. "She was very patriotic and wearing red, white and blue was really special to her," Roxanne Green told the Arizona Daily Star. No stranger to fame, Christina-Taylor's grandfather Dallas Green was a major league baseball pitcher who managed the Philadelphia Phillies when they won the 1980 World Series.

John Roll  U.S. District Court Judge a native Pennsylvanian, Roll graduated from the University of Arizona of the Law School's Graduate Program for Judges, was among the victims in the fatal shooting Tucson, Ariz. Friends and colleagues recall Judge Roll as a fair-minded jurist and advocate for his court. He lived close-by and decided to drop in and say hello to Giffords -- when he was shot and killed. Roll is survived by his wife, Maureen, three sons and five grandchildren. He was a 1991 judicial appointee of George H. W. Bush after a distinguished career as an Arizona state attorney, an assistant U.S.attorney in the state, and then as a state court judge.

 


Friday, January 7, 2011

Health Care Premiums SOAR!

Health Care reform at what COST?

FACT! Costs have gone up. Premiums of business will see a 10-15-20% or more rise due to increased use of  health care and expectations of future costs down the road due to the reform. Employee's will see higher payroll deductions as well.

Remember the major reform passed by Obamacare wont go into effect till 2014, so why are we seeing these increases now?

From the IRS: Starting in tax year 2011, the Affordable Care Act requires employers to report the value of the health insurance coverage they provide employees on each employee's annual Form W-2. It will be optional in 2011 but mandated in 2012!

This reporting is for informational purposes only, to show employees the value of their health care benefits so they can be more informed consumers. The amount reported does not affect tax liability, as the value of the employer contribution to health coverage continues to be excludible from an employee's income, and it is not taxable.

But for how long will that last. Can a tax on our health care coverage provided by our employer be deemed down the road as part of our salary and taxed?


A Washington Post Article, Workers' health insurance costs for 2011, will include higher premiums and co-payments. According to experts and industry insiders, recent trends suggest rates will continue to rise and employers will continue to shift more of the cost of health insurance onto workers - asking them to shoulder a larger share of premiums, for instance, or increasing out-of-pocket costs such as deductibles and co-pays.


Because this is the first new preimums period since key provisions of the new health-care law started taking effect, many workers will wonder how much of the plan changes they see is due to the legislation. Not much, say analysts. The law's most market-altering changes - including provisions that may or may not control premiums - don't kick in until 2014. So why are rates going up?

According to AARP Seventy-two employers with 3.7 million people on their payrolls expect the overall cost of providing health insurance to rise by an average 9 percent in 2011, according to the National Business Group on Health, an association of large employers.To cope with higher costs, 63 percent of the employers say they plan to raise the employee share of premiums, 46 percent will hike out-of-pocket maximums and 44 percent will increase in-network deductibles.

Listen with that said, I beleive every American should have Health Insurance. But we have to fix Obamacare, not repeal it. If we don't move in now to stem the tide, the costs for all of us will continue to rise out of control. Health care companies will use every last trick and unless put in check we will continue to see our premiums,out-of-pocket expenses, payroll deductions and co-payments continue to soar! This, I'm afraid is just the tip of the iceberg if we don't presure our elected officials to fix Obamacare!

WHAT DO YOU THINK?   UBTALKBACK

Monday, January 3, 2011

iPhone coming to Verizon vs AT&T

By now I'm sure you've heard that Verizon is getting the iphone in VERY early 2011. Some reports I've seen says by mid January but before Valentines Day. Whatever the date, IT'S COMING.

For me, a verizon customer, my contract has run out so I'm sitting back and waiting too see who calls with the best offer. I've been using my old four year old chocalate LG, ugh, biding my time to see how this all unfolds.

Here's what I have found out for you:

Apple wants this just as much as Verizon. Adding another network for the iphone, Verizon the largest U.S. mobile-phone company, can only help Apple gain more market share of the smart phone base. Reports say AT&T did ask for a gag on the announcement until after Christmas, hopefully trying to maxamize it's sales for the holiday season.

The news comes on the heels of the December 6 Consumer Reports survey of 58,000 readers who ranked current iPhone exclusive carrier AT&T as “the worst wireless carrier for customer satisfaction — and by an even wider margin than its similarly dismal fish in 2009.” Apple is tired of hearing about AT&T drawbacks, not all consider them bad though, but adding a choice helps Apple sell more phones.

The release of the iphone on Verizon will undoubtaly hurt AT&T. John Hodulik, an analyst at UBS Securities, “predicts that AT&T will sell 8.8 million iPhones in 2011, down from 15.6 million in 2010. Of the 13.3 million Hodulik expects Verizon to sell in 2011, about 2.3 million will be to AT&T refugees, he predicts. An additional 10 million will be current Verizon subscribers who upgrade from other devices, and the rest will come from other carriers,” BusinessWeek concludes.

The New York Times reported:
Around the world, many carriers, especially those that do not have access to the iPhone, have been promoting an array of handset models running on Google’s Android software. Collectively, those phones now outsell the iPhone.

Nielsen reported that Android accounted for 32 percent of the new smartphones sold in the United States in last six months. By comparison, the iPhone accounted for 25 percent. The numbers confirm those of other research organizations.

The Android’s rapid ascent threatens to blunt Apple’s lead in the market for high-end smart phones. No other Apple product brings as much revenue for the company as the iPhone, and analysts say that seeing that lucrative market imperiled may have finally pushed Apple into ending its exclusivity with AT&T.


It seems inevitable now: We could be just weeks – or even days – away from finally, officially learning there’s a CDMA-compatible iPhone for the Verizon Wireless network. Apple has ordered a spectacular 20-21 million iPhones from its Asia-based manufacturers, according to an article in Taiwan-based Digitimes.

This can only be good news for us consumers. Verizon I'm sure to keep customers, and try to capture more will offer deals on the phones as well as undercut AT&T pricing on plans. It spurs a whole new event launching the iphone again to a wider audience giving us all a choice and competion for our hard earned dollars. 

I'm waiting and hopeful this will be good news for us consumers. The clock has almost counted down to zero, lets see how this all unfolds.

What do YOU think...    UBTALKBACK...........