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EDITOR:

Remember Harry and Louise? I do. TV ads in which Louise voices her fears of a government takeover of health care. Whispers of shortages, denials and death panels swept the country. Deep pockets paid for those ads and deep pockets paid for the busloads of tea party protesters who roamed about, spreading fears that, somehow, never materialized with the passage of the Affordable Care Act. Years before, in response to the Clinton administrations ill-fated attempt to establish universal health care, the ultra-conservative Heritage Foundation had developed a plan that utilized existing insurance companies to provide coverage for everyone. As governor, Mitt Romney instituted the Heritage plan in Massachusetts. His party backed the plan at that time, but when President Barack Obama wanted to use that same plan nationwide, they renamed it Obamacare and fought vociferously against it. Socialism, you know. Government takeover of health care. No choice of doctors. Poor Louise. Poor Harry.

I remember, too, President George W. Bushs support for Medicare Part D, the prescription drug coverage. The same bill specifically encouraged the development of Medicare Advantage plans, in which the insurer would get the money that we paid into Medicare,as well as additional premiums paid separately by each enrollee. The hope was that these managed care plans would be so well accepted that traditional Medicare would eventually fade away, leaving the field once more to the private insurance companies. This same bill also forbade Medicare from negotiating prices with drug companies, a restriction that did not apply to private insurers. The Advantage plans were widely accepted, and no one seemed to notice or care that the drug formulary sent out by each insurer, along with the tier levels of drugs and the list of participating pharmacies were, in effect, the insurance companies telling us what drugs we could take, and where we could buy them. These decisions were made based upon the prices they negotiated with drug companies. Now Congress considers allowing Medicare the same right to negotiate. Outrage! Socialism! People will die! Have you seen those commercials? Shades of Harry and Louise.

Lola Johnson

Kingsford

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Echoes of 'Harry and Louise' ads | News, Sports, Jobs - The Daily news - Iron Mountain Daily News

Malema said the ANC tried to lure them with positions but they stood firm on the demands the party made ahead of the coalition talks.

Dont try and obsess us with positions, we are obsessed with the land. Anything that is going to deliver the land, we will deliver it into any municipality. We want the land. We are fighting battles of our forefathers that they could not conquer.

Why do you want us to stop when we can see potential of getting the land by giving them their minuscule municipality and we take the land? Why? because we want the land and we did a commitment that we will get land in our lifetime and we are going to do everything in our power to deliver the land.

Theirs, Malema said, was to kill the ANC but if we say guys lets combine our numbers in parliament and pass a law that women get free sanitary towels, why would you say we shouldnt speak to the ANC about that which has a potential for women to get free sanitary towels?

We are not saying lets combine our numbers and put Malema as deputy president, we say lets combine our numbers to pass a law for clinics to open 24 hours. You come and say CCT dont speak to the ANC, hey man we are still waiting for 2024 to rule but what if there is an opportunity to deliver this thing quickly before 2024? asked Malema.

He also took a swipe at ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba who just days after rejecting the EFF's deal to work together in hung municipalities has also seemingly been left out in the cold after the DA refused to support his mayoral ambitions in Johannesburg.

It's politics my child, dont act like Mashaba and say I dont talk to, I dont talk to now he is unable to get the mayorship with this I dont talk to thing of being too forward. Just walking around not knowing politics.

Malema has also defended his decision to have tea with former president Jacob Zuma ahead of his incarceration for refusing to appear before the state capture commission of inquiry.

Others are saying we lost elections because Malema went to drink tea with Zuma. What if that tea is the one that moved us from five to three in KZN in eThekwini?

If that tea was hitting us it was supposed to hit us there first. No it didnt, I dont know how they are looking at this maths. From five to three Malema you cost us votes from eight councillors to 24 councillors in eThekwni after the tea.

He said he went to Nkandla to tell Zuma that he will get arrested should he remain steadfast in his refusal to appear before the commission of inquiry into state capture.

I didnt go there to beg Zuma for anything, I went there to tell Zuma to go to the commission. Now youre fighting with me to tell a person to do the right thing, you say we cant vote for you because you went to drink tea but I didnt just drink tea, I was telling this old man that youre going to be arrested if you dont go to the commission. Did he not get arrested? He didnt listen. Had he listened to me, he would not have gone to jail, Malema said.

Malema has maintained that this was to convince Zuma to do the right thing and if that has cost the EFF votes then he was prepared to take any form of punishment, including being removed from his leadership position.

I will never stop telling people to do the right thing. If that is going to cost us votes so be it. Im prepared to go home at my grandmothers house because theres no-one there. Go live there and let you be with your EFF that you want to lead with lies, saying we should not go around telling people the truth that they must go to the commission. Youre saying that is wrong when we ask a person to comply with the law of SA.

We will never stop telling the truth. It doesnt matter how much it will cost us but the truth will remain the truth and one day it will pay off. They will thank us that these are the people who liberated us.

TimesLIVE

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'I told Zuma he will get arrested' : Malema defends 'tea party' and ANC coalition talks - TimesLIVE

The Republican primary in the Attorney Generals race had another wild twist Monday evening when Louie Gohmert, the Tea Party congressman and outspoken Trump enthusiast, declared he was officially a candidate.

Gohmert had fueled speculation that he was going to run when he announced that he was exploring that option. That event was particularly chaotic as a live feed failed to operate. However, video of the event shows Gohmert talking about Ken Paxtons legal woes. We could lose that seat, he said.

There was a lot of drama Monday about whether Gohmert would actually file since he had a self-imposed deadline of raising 1 million over ten days. Ultimately, Gohmert made his announcement on Newsmax saying that he had achieved his fundraising goal.

With Gohmert jumping in, another candidate jumped out. And though State Rep. Matt Krause ended his bid for attorney general, he is now running for Tarrant County District Attorney. Earlier this month Republican incumbent Sharen Wilson announced she was not running for re-election. Krause gained infamy earlier this year when he launched an investigation into books at school districts and libraries.

Other Republicans still in the primary for attorney general include current Land Commissioner George P. Bush and Eva Guzman, a former Republican member of the Texas Supreme Court. Bush courted the Trump endorsement, but ultimately was given the cold shoulder.

For now current Attorney General Ken Paxton appears to have all the momentum. Polls show him comfortably on top in the Republican primary, though they were conducted before this latest shakeup.

And Gohmert could be on to something in regards to Paxtons legal woes. Six years ago he was indicted by a grand jury for felony securities fraud. He is also allegedly being investigated by the FBI for a separate incident of bribery and abuse of office.

Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

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A Wild New Shakeup in the Republican AG Primary - The Texas Signal

Activities for the annual RISE (Rebels Impact through Service and Engagement) fundraiser will begin this month. The fundraiser benefits the Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology Program at UAB.

Here are a list of this years events:

When: Dec. 5, 4-6 p.m.

Where: Vestavia Hills High School - Gym

Cost: $10 per child/Adults Free

Details: Featuring Santa Claus (free pictures), a sing-a-long with Jovi the Elf, snowballfights with Buddy the Elf, crafts and food!

Web: on gofan.co under Vestavia Hills High School

When: Feb. 5, 10-11:30 a.m.

Where: Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church/Tyson Hall

Cost: $10 per child/Adults Free

Details: Featuring a tea party with Alice in Wonderland, the Mad Hatter, and Fancy Nancy. For ages 2 and older.

Web: Tickets on gofan.co under Vestavia Hills High School

When: Feb. 12, 8 a.m. to noon

Where: Vestavia Hills Civic Center, 1973 Merryvale Road 35216

Details: Come find a treasure!

When: March 5, 8:30 a.m.

Where: Vestavia Hills High School Football Stadium

Cost: $20 per person (includes t-shirt)

Details: For children in grades1-5. Register online no later than Feb. 22.

Web: go.uab.edy/vhhsrise

When: March 5, 10 a.m.

Where: Vestavia Hills High School Front Parking Lot

Cost: $20 per person (includes t-shirt)

Details: For children grade 6 and above and adults. Register no later than Feb. 22.

Web: go.uab.edy/vhhsrise

When: March 19, 9-11 a.m.

Where: Vestavia Hills Civic Center (Formerly Golds Gym)

Cost: $15 per child/Adults Free

Details: Featuring Touch-a-Truck and Character Party.

Web: Tickets available on gofan.co

Submitted by Kym Prewitt.

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RISE to begin this month - VestaviaVoice.com - Vestavia Voice

HUNDREDS of people took to the streets of Worcester to challenge violence against women and girls.

An estimated 400 women, male and non-binary allies joined forces at Boston Tea Party at 7.30pm on Thursday evening (November 25) before making their way through Worcesters city centre.

Attendees were encouraged to make as much noise as possible when they passed pubs and venues where women had experienced violence and sexual assaults.

Powerful banners were also on display, conveying messages such as My body, My property, Your respect.

Organisations including Worcestershire's Women's Equality Party, West Mercia Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Centre, West Mercia Women's Aid, Joy Project, Out2gether, University of Worcester and Worcester Community Trust all took part.

Sarennah Longworth-Cook, co-founder of Out2gether, an LGBTQ+ group for Worcestershire, said: "We're here tonight because we have a lot of women members, and that includes a diversity of women, so we have lesbians, bisexual women, trans women and non-binary persons.

"But we also find anyone who's visibly LGBTQ+ on the streets experiences the same violence - whether that's verbal abuse, physical violence or the threat of violence from straight men - as the rest of the women who are here.

"So we really want to add our voice to the women's voice, and say 'this is just not good enough.

"We all have a part to play in this, the statistics for male violence are so high.

"It means it might not be all men, but it's probably men we work with and live alongside, they're in our lives whether we know it or not."

After making their way through the city centre, the march came full circle to Boston Tea Party, where walkers warmed up with teas and coffees and further talks were held.

One woman, who wished not to be named, said: It is amazing to see so many people have come out for the march, there are so many more here than I was expecting.

But at the same time, I think it shows the shere amount of women who have been affected by male violence, and there will be countless others at home who couldnt make it here tonight, too. It has to stop.

Edward John McCrorie Mayne was one of the male walkers who was supporting from the back of the demonstration.

He said: "Two out of three women are sexually harassed or assaulted on the street, that just isn't acceptable.

"As a guy I feel like we need to stand behind the women and say 'this is not ok', we need to make the streets safe again.

"It's all good women coming forward and speaking out, but this actually needs to be backed by us as well, and it starts by us showing our support.

"So that's why I came out tonight, to show my support.

"I think some men can feel offended when they're asked to come and support women because they think 'I'd never do anything like that, so why should I support it?'

"Well, we need to stand behind women and show we're with them."

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PICTURES: Hundreds took to the streets for Reclaim the Night march - Worcester News