Delray Democrat

February 2011
Message from the President

Next Meeting
Gov. Rick Scott has proposed a nightmarish budget that would cut
over $3 billion from public education, hundreds of millions from social
services for the elderly, children and the poor, and more. If passed, this Wednesday,
budget would be a disaster of epic proportions. In the coming months,
we will keep you updated on this and a variety of other dangerous February 23rd
7:00 - 9:00 pm
proposals coming from Republicans in Tallahassee. We are counting on
all of you to help inform the general public and rally them against these
plans, and we will give you specific information on how to help fight to at the
save our state.
Veteran's Park
But for now, I want you to read the following words that frame this fight
better than I ever could, words spoken last month by a great progres- Recreation Center
sive Democratic leader, former Florida Congressman Alan Grayson,
addressing guests at a Democratic club luncheon.He speaks of what
802 NE 1st Street
we Democrats stand for, of what we must now fight so hard for. (near the Intracoastal)
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“We, when we see somebody who is too old to work, we want that
person to have a pension or Social Security. If we see that person is
sick, we want that person to see a doctor. If we see that person is “Florida 2011
uneducated and wants an education, we want that person to be
able to get an education. The other side sees it differently. They Legislative Preview”
think that you are somehow taking advantage of them, to help
them. We try to help people, the other side tries to convince people featuring Kelly Skidmore
how much better off they’ll be if nobody helps them.

If you’re unemployed, we want you to have a job. The other side says plus exclusive new video,
‘Tough Luck, go look for a job, not my problem’. If you are someone “What It Means To be a
who loses your house, we want you to have a place to live. The other Democrat”
side says ‘Go move in with your in-laws’…
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We want everybody to be all that they can be…in my mind that goes to
the heart of what it means to be a Democrat…We recognize, we Demo- Refreshments & Networking
crats, that a rising tide lifts all boats, and that the only way to make 7:00 -7:30 pm
anyone better off, is to make everyone better off.
Make note:
That’s what it means to me to be a Democrat.”
Amen Our March meeting is

Daniel Tilson Wednesday, March 23rd

1
 President.............. Daniel Tilson Speaking Up & Out
danielptilson@gmail.com
413-446-7776 PLEASE CALL THE GOVERNOR AND YOUR
President Emeritus Sam Lender 243-8098 LEGISLATORS AND SAY:
State Committeeman/VP….. John Ramos
Board of Directors....Mary Irving, Janice
Botsko, Arlene Siegelwaks NO TO HUGE CUTS IN EDUCATION &
SERVICES!
Recording Secy ....Carol Gevirts
Corres. Secy ..…. Mariane Kulick NO TO BLOCKING OR REPEALING HEALTH
Treasurer ………. Norman Siegelwaks REFORM!
Editor ……….......Phyllis Gordon NO TO BLOCKING FAIR DISTRICTS
(demclub@live.com) AMENDMENTS!
Editorial Board.............Sylvia Gruber,
Mariane Kulick, Tom Lazenby. Dorothy
Siegal, Bernard Silverman, Carol Gevirts (AND WRITE LETTERS TO EDITORS
Production Mgr…Sharon Heller TOO!!)

Florida numbers
Find your local legislators:
PBC DEC Legislative Committee
Update 850-488-1827

The Palm Beach County Democratic Executive Commit- Senate President Mike Haridopolos:
tee has any number of committees that function on behalf 850-487-5229
of members and Democrats countywide. The Legislative
Committee meets regularly to discuss issues of national, House Speaker Dean Cannon:
state and local importance, and to draft letters to elected 850-488-1450
officials that represent the majority position of the DEC
membership on these issues. These letters are read aloud, Governor Rick Scott: 850-488-7146
discussed and voted on for approval by all members in
attendance at monthly DEC meetings, before being sent to Federal numbers
specific officials.
White House 202-456-1111
At the last PBC DEC meeting, the following two letters or 1414
were approved for delivery. Congress 202-225-3121

Letter 1: Sent to FL State Senators/Representatives, stat- Sen. Bill Nelson 202-224-

ing that Senate Bill (SB) 234, which would allow the “open 5247
carry” of previously permit-concealed firearms, should be
voted down. Sen. Marco Rubio (Coming Soon!)

Letter # 2: Sent to President Obama and copied to all mem-

bers of Florida’s U.S. Congressional Delegation supports
passage of House Bill (HB) 308, which seek to outlaw The opinions expressed herein
certain types of high-capacity firearms ammunition, like that are not necessarily those of the
used in the Arizona shootings of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Democractic Club of Delray Beach
Giffords and 18 others in January, 2011.

2
Fighting Against Health Reform Repeal
Daniel Tilson
L ate Night Political

L aughs

A
recent ruling by a conservative Florida District Court judge
declared federal health reform legislation, the Patient Protec
tion & Affordable Care Act (PPACA), unconstitutional. This
decision came within days of the release of a new Quinnipiac Univer-
sity poll, which found that half the state of Florida was already in favor
of repealing the landmark law.
Now, Governor Scott and the rest of the Republicans controlling state
“Sarah Palin is angry that Michelle
government are threatening not to move forward with implementation
Obama is suggesting that parents
of this law that stands to solve the crisis of over 4 million Floridians
encourage their kids to eat healthy.
with no health insurance.
Palin thinks that if we have healthy
The constant drumbeat of disinformation flowing from the Republican children, the terrorists have won.”
Party, Fox News and the rest of the right wing media machine, has David Letterman
helped convince millions that the federal government is somehow more
of a danger to them than irresponsible, out of control, for-profit health “A Washington Post columnist is
insurance companies. proposing February as a Sarah Palin-
Most of the anti-reform propaganda has focused on attacking the gov- free month. You know a better month?
ernment for requiring that uninsured individuals take responsibility for November 2012.”
obtaining health insurance - a requirement that opponents like to call Jay Leno
“big government mandates”.
The sad truth is that the opposition coalition has been successful in “While in Egypt, CNN’s Anderson
using name-calling, fact twisting and fear mongering to obscure any Cooper was attacked and beaten,
easy recognition of the core values behind health reform. We’re talk- which raises 2 questions. Is it safe to
ing time-honored, moral-ethical, faith-based values here, so-called send our media into these places? And
“family values” that most Floridians would normally be willing to em- how do we get Glenn Beck over
brace. there?”
.
Conan O'Brien
We’ve simply let too many of our family, friends and neighbors get
spun around and turned upside down about health reform by all the “It was recently the 100th birthday of
self-serving, money-grubbing media and political manipulators who Ronald Reagan, and all over America,
do the dirty work of defaming health reform. It’s time now to stand up Republicans celebrated by throwing
to them and do some truth-telling, anti-defamation work of our own. big parties and leaving the bill for
The awful truth is that Florida ranks 50th in the nation, fiftieth out of Democrats to pay.”
fifty, in percentage of children from 0-18 years old who have health
insurance. For 19-64 year olds, we jump all the way up those national Bill Maher
rankings, all the way from 50th to 49th.
“Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg
If not compassion and common sense, where the hell is our competi-
was named Time Magazine’s Person
tive spirit, our pride?
of the Year. I’m sorry if you don’t
It’s time to fight back and help our fellow Floridians see through all the recognize the name. A magazine is
anti-reform fakers and their falsehoods about “private sector solu- something people used to read.”
tions” and protecting “individual liberty”. If we are to see ourselves as
a good and just people, then the life and death needs of the many must Craig Ferguson
outweigh the financial, much less the political concerns of the few.
The Truth is out there. We just have to tell it.
3
Update on Doing Something
Redistricting Amendments
Mariane Kulick
The only cause for celebration for Democrats statewide

W
e have now, in Florida, the worst government
last Election Day was
that has ever ruled this state. We have a gover
the passage of “Fair
nor who was CEO of a health provider com-
Districts” Amendments
pany that bilked Medicare and American taxpayers out of
5 & 6. These are the
billions. We have an army of State Legislators who are only
new rules that are sup-
interested in cutting taxes for the wealthy and cutting ser-
posed to put an end to
vices for the poor and middle class. We are suffering an
the traditional “gerry-
education crisis, a real estate crisis and the largest unem-
mandering” of congres-
ployment crisis in the United States. To deal with these prob-
sional and legislative dis-
lems we have a state government totally unwilling to act on
tricts in order to keep the
behalf of the citizens it supposedly represents.
current party in power and give incumbents undue advan-
tages.
How did they get elected in the first place? It was because
many of our citizens were not aware of their plans and didn’t
But trouble started brewing right away. First, GOP lead-
bother to vote. There are thousands, maybe millions of
ership in Tallahassee chose two of the most openly vocal
people out there who see politics as dirty and having noth-
opponents of the public-spirited amendments to be in
ing to do with them. They are wrong. Politics has to do with
charge of the new redistricting process. Then they an-
all of us and only we can clean it up and change things. We
nounced a ridiculously long and drawn out schedule for
are setting up a committee committed to getting information
the process. Then in the first week of January, Governor
on important issues and legislation out to all the people in
Rick Scott quietly notified authorities that the administra-
our community. Every single person who receives this news-
tive steps needed to move these amendments forward
letter owes it to himself or herself, and to his or her children
would not be taken.
and grandchildren, to consider participating in this critically
important effort.
The good news is that in an attempt to force Governor
Scott and Secretary of State Kurt Browning to follow the
letter of the law and proceed with implementation of these
redistricting plans right away, a lawsuit has been filed by As they say, “If you’re not part
the Fair Districts sponsoring organization, along with an of the solution…”
alliance of other public interest and citizens’ groups.

It’s clear that the game plan for the Florida GOP is to use
any and every delaying tactic possible, knowing that they Please call me at 561-243-8098 and we will get started.
will ultimately lose the legal battles, but hoping to win the
political battle of not letting more fairly drawn districts have
much impact on critically important 2012 election cycle.

Please stay tuned in to this developing story, and please

call legislators and write to newspapers to demand an end
to the GOP’s effort to ignore the will of the voting public We Welcome Advertiser Support
and prevent this new fair redistricting process from being
implemented. Please call 561-265-4480

for Information on our

new low rates
4

From Congressman Ted Deutch
Recently, the new Republican-led House of Representa-
tives voted to repeal health care reform in its entirety. While
there are certainly ways to improve this historic law, a com-
plete repeal is impractical when reform is already making a
huge difference in the lives of so many people.
In Florida, Blue Cross Blue Shield just reported a 5 percent
increase in policies purchased by small businesses. This in-
dicates that small businesses, our economy’s driving force,
are using the new law’s tax breaks to better afford cover-
age for their employees. Families are breathing easier be-
cause insurance companies are now forbidden from deny-
ing coverage to children with preexisting conditions or kick-
ing young adults off their parents’ plans before they turn 26.
For the 20,000 seniors in my congressional district who face
astronomical prescription drug bills every year, reform is
finally phasing out the Medicare donut hole.
Florida hosts our nation’s second largest population of un-
insured Americans, a crisis that takes a toll even on those of
us who are covered. Each year, we face new premium hikes
from health insurance companies. As rising premiums force
employers to cut benefits or lay off workers, the number of
uninsured Floridians has grown. In 2000, 17 percent of Flo-
ridians lack coverage. Today, that number is over 22 per-
cent. The cost of caring for 4.1 million uninsured Floridians
is passed on to those with insurance in the form of higher
premiums.
A hallmark provision of the Affordable Care Act taking ef-
fect this year aims to thwart this trend. Health insurance
companies now have to spend at least 80 percent of our
premium dollars on actual medical care instead of bureau-
cracy, profits, and marketing. Insurers that fail to meet this
standard must provide their customers with rebates in 2012.
After all, no one pays insurance premiums to have claims
denied. We pay premiums in exchange for care when we
need it. Slowing rate hikes will stimulate our economy by
freeing up capital for businesses to expand and consumers
to boost their own spending.
Most people agree that access to affordable health insur-
ance is a matter of economic security. Talking with my con-
stituents, it is clear that growing our economy and creating
new jobs is their number one priority. Congress should not
waste time repealing legislation that is working; it should
focus on legislation that will get America working.
continuded next column
5
In the days ahead, I will keep you updated on my efforts to
shift the conversation in Washington to encouraging growth
and creating new jobs. It is an honor to serve you in Con-
gress.
“Every gun that is made, every
warship launched, every rocket
fired signifies ... a theft from
those who hunger and are not
fed, those who are cold and are
not clothed.”
- Dwight Eisenhower
PBC State Attorney Update
Palm Beach County State Attorney (SA) Michael
McAuliffe and his team continue to work hard to protect
the community and prosecute offenders. Recently,
McAuliffe’s “Predator Unit” investigated and prosecuted
a case involving the sexual abuse and exploitation of chil-
dren, resulting in what amounts to a life imprisonment sen-
tence for the offender. The Predator Unit is a collabora-
tion of the State Attorney’s office, the Sheriff’s Office, the
Boynton Beach, Boca Raton and Palm Beach Police De-
partments, and the School District Police Department.
The SA’s office has also recently introduced a new Elder
Abuse/Vulnerable Adult Investigations Protocol. This new
system will help protect seniors in Palm Beach County who
are victims of abuse, neglect or exploitation, both by build-
ing stronger cases for prosecution of offenders, and by
providing more assistance to senior victims. SA McAuliffe
worked with the Department of Children & Family Ser-
vices and other agencies to develop and implement this
important new project, which is expected to make a sig-
nificant difference in how law enforcement addresses crimes
targeting seniors.
For more information about these and other efforts of the
State Attorney’s office to protect PBC residents, visit their
website www.palmbeachstateattorney.com, and request
delivery of the office’s quarterly newsletter by emailing Sarah
Alsofrom at salsofrom@sa15.state.fl.us.
We reserve the right to edit material
submitted to the Delray Democrat
New Member Corner:
Meet Lui Jimenez
A
s a new member of the Democratic Club of
Delray Beach, I wanted let the rest of you
know a little about me and about why I decided
to get involved. I’m 24 years old and a senior at Florida
Atlantic University, studying Business & Marketing. I’m
also an insurance consultant, working in that industry
since I was 18 years old.
There are many reasons why I feel the need to speak up
now, but it started when I heard inspiring words that
changed my life: “You know, they said this day would
never come. They said our sights were set too high.
They said this country was too divided, too disillu-
sioned to ever come together around a common
purpose. But on this January night, at this defining
moment in history, you have done what the cynics
said we couldn’t do”. Yes, those words came from the
first African-American President of the United States of
America, Barack Obama.
This was the same guy who a decade earlier knew what it
was like to max out his credit cards, who had college
loans to pay back, who watched his ailing mother fight for
a fair shake from health insurance companies in the last
days of her life. But he did what great leaders do, rising
continuded next column
6
above adversity, making the most of whatever “chances”
life offered. The kind of chances we Democrats fight so
hard to preserve and protect, despite opposition; chances
for those of us who don’t have rich relations and easy
tickets to success, chances for African, Hispanic, Asian,
gay and all other Americans of all persuasions, from all
walks of life.
Knowing that, the question I keep asking is, why are
Republicans still able to be so competitive in elections?
The answer in my opinion is, in a word: Communication.
Are we afraid to use strong words to describe our oppo-
nent? Yes. Do we fail to deliver our message effectively to
our constituents? Definitely. Are we usually too late in
attacking the opposition on specific issues? Absolutely.
Sorry to say, but among many people my age, the Demo-
cratic Party is known as the “party of wimps”. I believe
it’s time to change that image, time to fight back. We
young people in particular need to join in, put our hearts
and minds into this, and make our voices heard.
That doesn’t mean we all have to agree on everything. I
don’t consider myself extremely liberal; in fact some of my
views might seem Republican. And that’s okay, because
our Democratic Party is what they call “The Big Tent”,
with room underneath for a wide range of opinions and
interests. If we just make time to pay closer attention,
understand the issues better and get more involved, then
my generation can have a huge impact on Politics and on
the future of our nation.
That’s why I got involved, to get my voice heard, to have
an impact and see some results, to make a difference. And
I hope others will follow. Together, like Barack Obama
once put it, we can “Be The Change” we want to see in
the world.
Life & Death Issues Bits and Pieces
Bill Weg

The one good thing about use of the term “Death Panels” by Sa- “Social Security is a
rah Palin and other conservatives during the long debate over
health reform is that it may have drawn much needed attention to program that works…it’s
issues of end-of-life counseling and decision-making.
fully funded for the next 40
As an emergency rescue officer and nurse’s aide, I have too often
witnessed the unfortunate and unwanted outcomes that can result years. Stop picking on
from unexpected, rapid-onset medical conditions.
Here’s a brief explanation of some of the terminology surrounding Social Security... I’m not
such situations.
going to go to any of those
DNR - is a legally binding “Do Not Resuscitate” order that any of
us can create and have as part of our medical records. This order
back-door methods to
informs any medical personnel who may be attending to us in the
whack Social Security
event of a sudden medical emergency that causes our heart to
stop beating that CPR - cardiopulmonary resuscitation - should
not be performed, thereby preventing unwanted end-of-life treat- ”
recipients.
ment.
- U.S. Senator Harry Reid
AD - Advance Directive - is a far more detailed ”Living Will” that
specifies exactly what medical procedures, treatments, therapies,
medications, and life support devices and techniques may be used
on you, should you no longer be able to make decisions as a
result of incapacities caused by illness or injury.

Palliative/Hospice Care - is a specialized level of care that is most

often delivered institutionally but which can also be delivered at
home, focusing on helping the end of life come with greater dig-
nity, less physical discomfort, and less emotional pain for the pa-
tient and the patient’s loved ones.

The first two of the above options can be chosen when one is still
Author Margaret Atwood
in relatively good health, by way of preemptively planning for and once wrote that politics is
taking control over one’s own end of life decision-making. The about “power: who’s got it,
last option is a kinder, gentler way of caring for those who have
reached the end-of-life stage.
who wants it, how it oper-
ates; in a word, who’s al-
We should all be able to agree that such decisions are highly per- lowed to do what to whom,
sonal and difficult ones that we and/or our families have a right to
make for ourselves. Therefore, we should also be able to agree
who gets what from whom,
that anyone who turns such issues into the stuff of political rheto- who gets away with it and
ric is doing a disservice to us all. how.”

7
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