Controversial Billboard In Texas

Obama Urges Chinese Leader to Revalue Currency

Obama speaks at the United Nations General Assembly on thursday in New York about pressuring the Chinese Prime Minister, Wen Jiabao, to revalue the chinese currency.

Prime Minister Wen Jiabao barely budged beyond his familiar talking points about gradual “reform” of China’s currency policy, leaving it unclear whether Mr. Obama’s message would change Beijing’s economic or political calculus.

Florida Pastor is Getting Way Too Much Face Time

Terry Jones, pastor of the Dove World Outreach Center, is getting too much time in the news. It's funny how this pastor of a tiny church can get so much attention. First, he decides to cancel the burning in exchange for the mosque to be built in a different location, but now he is reconsidering because he claims the Muslim leader lied about moving the mosque.

(GAINESVILLE, Fla.) — The leader of a tiny church on Thursday backed off his threat to burn the Koran, saying he gave up the plan in exchange for a deal to move a planned Islamic center and mosque away from New York's ground zero. The imam planning the center, however, quickly denied any such deal.

The Rev. Terry Jones had been under intense pressure to back off, including a statement from President Barack Obama and a personal call from U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates. Jones made his announcement outside his church alongside Imam Muhammad Musri, the president of the Islamic Society of Central Florida.

Read more: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2017321,00.html#ixzz0z5gWGmak

Christian Church Takes Freedom of Speech too Far.

In a nation of tolerance, is this tolerant? America is considered a melting pot of different religions and cultural backgrounds where people are free to live and exercise freedom of speech, but this is publicly unacceptable.

The FBI has begun to collect information relating to a plan by a radical Christian pastor in Florida to stage a public Quran burning on the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks this Saturday. Given constitutional provisions protecting the freedom of expression, however, officials say they don't believe the FBI or any other federal authority has the power to stop at least a token Quran burning by the Rev. Terry Jones of the Dove World Outreach Center.

I find the name of the church quite ironic. Dove, which symbolizes peace, but the burning of the Quran is anything but peaceful.  World Outreach suggests that the church is willing to reach out to the world, but instead the church seems to be pushing people away.

Economy within an Economy

Initially, I thought I had found an article on air pollution and overcrowding in China; however, as I read through the article I found something more interesting. Road repairs and the mass amount of people living in Beijing contributes to a serious traffic jam on two highways; as a result, it takes five days to travel 350 miles from Inner Mongolia to Tianjin. While motorist sit in frustration, others have managed to capitalize on the opportunity:

The tie-up has created an economy of its own. Vendors sell boxed lunches, ramen noodles and drinking water to the captive audience, often at jacked-up prices. Roving gangs reportedly have preyed on fatigued motorists, siphoning gasoline as they snooze.

And because of the long-standing problems along the highways, dozens of small hotels have cropped up, catering to drivers who seek a respite to catch more serious sleep.

"Business is good," said Li Chenli, a 40-year-old receptionist at a hotel in Xinghe, a stop along the route. "But we don't like the traffic jam. It's hard for relatives to come to visit. Life is inconvenient. Wherever you go, you're just waiting and waiting."

The Cost of Healthcare Just Got More Expensive

Giving the current state of the economy, where millions of people are struggling to make ends meet, U.S. employers are making their employees foot most of the healthcare bill.

Workers saw average copayments for routine office visits increase 10% and deductibles continue their surge upward.

In 2010, more than a quarter of American workers with employer-provided health coverage were in plans with deductibles of at least $1,000.

"It's really bad news for everybody," said Helen Darling, president of the National Business Group on Health, an organization of large employers that provide coverage to about 50 million workers, retirees and dependents.

Overall, premium growth slowed slightly this year to 3%, with the average annual cost of a family health plan reaching $13,770. Workers picked up 30% of that bill. The average plan for an individual cost $5,049.

Global Warming: Another Oil Explosion

In his book, Tom Friedman talks about the need for America to create tools and systems that will allow the earth to grow cleaner. Rep. Henry A. Waxman echoes this same idea in his statement about the recent oil platform explosion:

"In the wake of the BP catastrophe, this is an extremely disturbing event,'' said energy committee chairman Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Beverly Hills), who has led an investigation into the BP spill. "I call on the administration to immediately redouble safety reviews of all offshore drilling and platform operations in the gulf and take all appropriate action to ensure safety and protection of the environment."