Double your donations to Haiti Renewal Fund…

Lynn and I offer challenge grant, matching up to $2 million donated to Haiti Renewal Fund.  Watch my 1:35min video below…

Haiti Renewal Fund delivers first grants, launches new website…

Haiti Renewal Fund’s first project released $20k to our partner, CURE International, to purchase and transport autoclaves (medical sterilizers) for doctors in Haiti.  Autoclaves and other medical equipment left Dallas last Tuesday aboard 3am flight to Haiti.

Haiti Renewal Fund’s second project released $125k to our partner, Water Missions International (WMI) who addresses a problem that plagued Haiti even before the earthquake:    contaminated drinking water.  WMI installed 9 water treatment systems in the last 10 days with 20 more in the works.  Visit HaitiRenewal.org to watch 3-min video of WMI teaming with Operation Blessing to restore water to Haiti’s largest hospital.

Donations before March 1, 2010 are deductible for 2009. Lynn and I match every dollar up to $2 million.  Will you partner with us?

Please visit www.HaitiRenewal.org or send your checks to NCF/Haiti Renewal Fund, 11625 Rainwater Drive, Suite 500, Alpharetta, GA 30009.  Haiti’s future begins now.

God bless,

HaitiRenewal.org

HaitiRenewal.org launches with $2 million matching grant from Friess Family Foundation.

Renewal efforts extend beyond immediate, short-term relief and promote the long-term rebuilding and revitalization of Haiti — its infrastructure, its economy, its people — its future.

Visit www.HaitiRenewal.org.

Chances for Children Launches “HaitiRenewal.org” with $2 million from Foster Friess

PHOENIX (January 19, 2010) – While emergency efforts bring immediate relief to Haiti, Craig Juntunen, founder of Chances for Children, launched the “Haiti Renewal Fund” January 19. The fund, designed to assist in a fresh renewal of the devastated nation of Haiti, opens with an initial matching grant of $2 million from Jackson Hole residents Lynn and Foster Friess.

“In a few weeks or months the enormous worldwide relief effort in Haiti will meet food, water and shelter needs, but what then?” said Juntunen, who will be raising additional monies for the fund.

Juntunen’s Chances for Children foundation operates an orphanage near Port-au-Prince and last year placed 36 Haitian orphans in adoptive families. It will expand to meet the soaring number of newly-orphaned children and also encourage Cure International, an organization that operates hospitals in nearby Dominican Republic and Honduras, in its goal to open a new children’s hospital in Haiti.

Water Mission International adds water purification units to the equation. Phoenix attorney, sculptor and Cure International board member Marilyn Quayle, her husband former Vice President Dan Quayle join Foster Friess and Craig Juntunen in advising Georgia-based National Christian Foundation, the fund administrator, on allocation of funds.

“So much well-intentioned funding is wasted in corruption and institutional overhead,” said Juntunen who serves without salary. “We are grateful for the oversight of these compassionate individuals and for the long track records of success and fiscal responsibility of the charities involved.”

Juntunen authored Both Ends Burning, chronicling his personal transformation from a self-serving life to adopting three young children from Haiti in 2006 with his wife Kathi: Espie, Quinn and Amelec, who turned nine January 16th.

To have someone like Craig who knows all the players because of his love of and involvement in Haiti ‘creates a real marriage made in heaven,” Friess said.

Checks written to “Haiti Renewal Fund/NCF” may be sent to the National Christian Foundation, 11625 Rainwater Drive, Suite 500, Alpharetta, Georgia 30009 or by clicking here to donate online at http://www.haitirenewal.org.

BIOS:

Craig Juntunen founded Chances for Children with proceeds of sale of his successful business and also fundraised for a college scholarship fund, the Special Olympics and other local and regional charities. He quarterbacked a Canadian Football League team and is a member of the State of Idaho Athletic Hall of Fame.

Foster Friess founded the Brandywine Funds and since selling his firm in 2001 encourages private sector solutions in order to curb increasing intrusiveness of government. Foster and his wife Lynn of 47 years through their Friess Family Foundation fund water purification units in Malawi and mobile medical vans for the medically underserved.

Call at least 3 Massachusetts voters TODAY!

Ted Kennedy’s hometown newspaper endorsed Scott Brown for Senate Saturday!

The stunning showing of Scott Brown doesn’t reflect a Republican resurgence but instead the disgust of disenchanted Democrats and Independents with the bullying and corrupt machinations to orchestrate a government dictated health care system that would increase cost and limit quality and choice of care.

If you don’t have three voters you can call, forward this email to your entire list to see if they do. In addition to asking your three Massachusetts friends to vote tomorrow, ask them to call three of their friends. This election is sure to go down to the wire.

To our Democratic friends, we urge you to contemplate do we really want a one party system in our country. One party rule, whether by Republicans or Democrats, is not in our nation’s best interest. Scott Brown will end a one-party supermajority in Washington.

Here is recent Scott Brown editorial. Here is an “over the top” video presentation of what is at stake.

For America,

Dr. Hamid writes on missing balance in US diplomacy w/ Muslim world…

Article The missing ‘balance’ in US diplomacy with Muslim world from www.tawfikhamid.com.

The rising cases of home-grown Islamist Radicalism in the US and the several terror plots that were discovered in 2009 in the US are alarming. The five Muslim students who went to Pakistan to wage Jihad against their own country, the Fort Hood Massacre, and the latest Christmas airline terror attempt are just a few examples of many.

In fact, statistically speaking, the number of home-grown Islamist terror plots inside the US was the highest since 2001. In trying to understand this trend in the first year of the current Administration, one should question whether some actions of the President are perceived in a way that is encouraging the Jihadists to intensify their attacks on the US. While there could be several explanations for this sharp rise of terrorism cases in the US after President Obama took office, the possibility of adverse reactions to some of his actions should not be discounted.

Firstly, from a cultural perspective, the Arab world resonates with appearances of strength and weakness. This could be related to the admiration of the role played by wars and the military defeat of non-Muslims in the early expansion of Islam or it could be also be related to the classical Islamic notion of God that is based on ‘fear’ from his power. Other factors such as ancient Arabic poems that glorified tribal warfare played a role in creating this mentality that respects power.

Irrespective of the cause of this psychological makeup, it is vital to mention that actions taken by the US in its outreach efforts to the Muslim world MUST be evaluated carefully so that they are not perceived by the Jihadists as signs of weakness. A delicate balance is needed so that the US can win the hearts and minds of moderate Muslims without being perceived as a weak country as this perception can actually aggravate the problem of Jihadism. Such notions are indeed, foreign to a Western mentality, but it is crucial to be able to understand these cultural “translation” issues. Some of the actions of President Obama that could have been perceived as weakness by the Jihadists include:

1-     Excessive bowing to the King of Saudi Arabia instead of giving him the normal Saudi greetings or hug. Bowing is seen by many Muslims as a sign of extreme weakness and an act of worship that should be given only to God. President Obama could have given the king a traditional Saudi hug without doing an act of worship as the latter would only make the President perceived as weak in the eyes of the radicals.

2-    Giving the closure of Guantanamo Bay a priority on the President’s agenda was another action that could have been perceived as a sign of weakness by many radicals. Many believed that the existence of the Guantanamo Bay prison was used as a recruitment tool for Al-Qaeda. However, statistics are showing that the number of terror attempts and attacks on the US have actually increased after active steps were taken to close the prison when President Obama took office in 2009.

3-     Raising the issue of possible punishment for CIA officials for using tough measures against the terrorists could be perceived by the Radicals as another sign of US weakness. This issue should have been dealt with in a very secretive manner within the government to avoid giving the Jihadists a feeling of victory that might encourage them to do more attacks on the US – as well as revealing sensitive information regarding our intelligence gathering methods.

4-    Defending the rights of Muslim women to wear the Hijab without showing the same level of care to defending the rights of Muslim women who want to practice their freedom to be ‘westernized’ or to choose their faith has sent another message of weakness that could aggravate Islamic radicalism. The president praised Nashala Hearn (a Muslim) from Muskogee, Oklahoma for standing for her right to wear the Hijab and invited her to be a guest in Ramadan dinner at the White House in September 2009.

On the other hand, the President did not show the same level of care by showing a clear stand beside Muslim women who want to practice their freedom in the US. One of the recent Muslim victims for freedom was Noor Faleh Almaleki- a 20-year-old woman from Iraq who was killed in the US by her father who ran her over with a car because she had become “too westernized”.

Furthermore, President Obama neither praised nor invited Rifqua Bary (a Muslim) – who could be killed for apostasy inside the US according to Islamic Sharia rules – to show a similar stand  with her rights to choose her beliefs. Showing such care to young Muslim women who want to wear the Hijab and failure to show the same level of care to Muslim women who want to be ‘westernized’ or who want to practice freedom of religion in the US was another action that can only be perceived as weakness by the Jihadists that invites more aggression against the US.

The above factors may not be perceived as weakness in Western minds; however, what is more important is how they are perceived in the Jihadists’ and Radical’s minds. Presidential actions can not be interpreted as weakness, because if so, this will actually aggravate Islamic Radicalism. A careful balance and consideration of cultural notions is needed in US diplomacy to ‘win the hearts and minds’ of Muslims without being perceived as weak. US actions need to be developed and carried out through the lens of the target audience – not from a Western perspective – in order to create a positive impact on the Muslim world.

State Attorneys General unite to declare Senate health bill unconstitutional…

Texas Attorney General joins twelve other state Attorneys General in declaring Senate health care bill unconstitutional.  Abbott singles out what he calls the Nebraska Compromise where billions of dollars of new Medicare obligations would be imposed on 49 states while singling out one (Nebraska) for special treatment.

Abbott writes, “Not only does the Nebraska Compromise offend basic principles of fairness and equality, it violates fundamental principles of nondiscrimination that are at the heart of the US Constitution.

Additionally, Abbott points out that if passed, the Senate bill would establish a federal government mandate requiring all citizens to buy something (health insurance).  Congressional Budget Office takes similar position saying, “the imposition of an individual mandate (to buy health insurance)… would be unprecedented.”

Attorney General Greg Abbott’s full letter here.

What’s to hate in Health Bill?

Here’s a list from a left wing blog, FireLakeDog:

1. Forces you to pay up to 8% of your income to private insurance corporations — whether you want to or not.
2. If you refuse to buy the insurance, you’ll have to pay penalties of up to 2% of your annual income to the IRS.
3. Many will be forced to buy poor-quality insurance they can’t afford to use, with $11,900 in annual out-of-pocket expenses over and above their annual premiums.
4. Massive restriction on a woman’s right to choose, designed to trigger a challenge to Roe v. Wade in the Supreme Court.
5. Paid for by taxes on the middle class insurance plan you have right now through your employer, causing them to cut back benefits and increase co-pays.
6. Many of the taxes to pay for the bill start now, but most Americans won’t see any benefits — like an end to discrimination against those with preexisting conditions —until 2014 when the program begins.
7. Allows insurance companies to charge people who are older 300% more than others.
8. Grants monopolies to drug companies that will keep generic versions of expensive biotech drugs from ever coming to market.
9. No re-importation of prescription drugs, which would save consumers $100 billion over 10 years.
10. The cost of medical care will continue to rise, and insurance premiums for a family of four will rise an average of $1,000 a year — meaning in 10 years, your family’s insurance premium will be $10,000 more annually than it is right now.

Another left wing blogger, Charles Lemos from MyDD.com calls the Senate health bill, “a Frankenstein monster of bill whose sum of parts more reflects the narrow and profane interests that are overrepresented in the United States Senate.”

Should Senate Democrats have listened to advice of their former party chairman, Howard Dean?  A physician by trade, Dean says that his colleagues put short term political gain ahead of the long term future of America.  Dean pleaded “kill the bill” and start over.

Democratic co-chairman of Congressional Progressive Caucus, Congressman Raul Grijalva says, “Compromises in that chamber (Senate) not only are unjustified on a policy level but also have been unproductive on a political level.”  Lemos also writes, “it’s not compromise. It’s highway robbery. It is a legalized swindle, an extortion most foul.”

Liberals aren’t alone in their opposition.

Here are reasons why other, everyday Americans oppose Senator Reid’s health plans…

Small business owners:

– Washington’s forced employer health mandate further cripples small business growth, investment and job creation.

Constitutionalists:

– federal government now mandates Americans buy a product from a private corporation (insurance) for the first time in history.

Fiscal Conservatives:

– increases Medicare payroll tax by 0.9 points for individuals making more than $200,000 per year and married couples earning above $250,000

– new $2.3 billion annual tax on innovator drug companies

– new $2 billion annual tax on medical device manufacturers

Internal Revenue Service:

– IRS workers now burdened with implementing and overseeing new taxes on middle class Americans.

Young, Healthy Americans:

– Wellpoint estimates insurance premiums for young Americans to skyrocket 35% to as high as 154%, varying on state.

Everyone not living in Nebraska:

– thanks to last minute deal rewarded for Senator Nelson’s vote, federal taxpayer funds now subsidize 100% of Nebraska’s Medicaid program… in perpetuity!

We received the following letter today.  If you are unhappy about having to foot the bill for Nebraska’s neediest patients, let him/her know!

God Bless,

Foster (:>)**********
___________________________________________________________

Sent: Monday, December 21, 2009 1:57 PM

To: Foster Friess

Subject: How You Can Help Stop the Health Care Now!

This is now spreading across the nation.  If you have a Senator that is going to vote for Health Care and if done immediately by enough, it could stop the national demise of this so called Health Care in its track!

Here is one letter that is being sent to Senators, you can use it or edit as you please.  This will have an immediate impact!

Dear Senator (your own Senators name):

We understand that Senator Ben Nelson succeeded in getting the federal government to cover all Nebraska’s Medicaid expenses in partial return for his Health Care vote!

This, of course, means that (name your state) taxpayers will have to help fund Nebraska’s Medicaid program in addition to paying for our own at a time when our own state is already strapped for money!

We are hereby requesting that you inform Senator Reid that you will not vote for the Health Care legislation unless (name your state) is also provided federal funding for all its Medicaid expenses.

Your vote is, apparently, every bit as crucial as Senator Nelson’s, so there is no reason to expect that you cannot give us as your constituents the same protection as he has obtained for his.

We want to make sure you consider us no less important than Senator Nelson did his constituents and would certainly expect you to immediately request no less for our state or make sure Senator Reid knows you are not going to be voting for Health Care!

Thanks so much for looking out for us no less than Ben Nelson did for his constituents.

Very truly yours,

[Here's the thing:  We are sure every single Senator is going to get this kind of request, and, if we make sure they get enough of them, they are going to have to tell Reid that their constituents are just as important as Nelson's, and Reid is going to have to back down and start renegotiating with Nelson.  I think Sanders of Vermont got the same deal, by the way.  I think Reid has made a bad mistake here and that this approach is probably the most effective one we have at the moment.

The way to contact your Senator is simply Google their name and go to their official web site for their email, phone or address.

Please pass this information to other people you think would be willing to protest the purchase of votes by sticking other Senators' constituents with helping foot Nebraska's Medicaid bill.

It is now or never!  Do it now and enjoy Christmas with a good conscience, finish off this year doing all you could to help save our Republic!  Go to your Senator’s web site now!]

More reasons liberals oppose Reid-Obama health plan…

Liberals continue voicing concern over Senator Reid’s health care bill…  Here are two lists from a liberal blog;  one on reasons to Kill the Bill, the other on ways to Fix the Bill…

Top 10 Reasons to Kill The Bill…

1. Forces you to pay up to 8% of your income to private insurance corporations — whether you want to or not.
2. If you refuse to buy the insurance, you’ll have to pay penalties of up to 2% of your annual income to the IRS.
3. Many will be forced to buy poor-quality insurance they can’t afford to use, with $11,900 in annual out-of-pocket expenses over and above their annual premiums.
4. Massive restriction on a woman’s right to choose, designed to trigger a challenge to Roe v. Wade in the Supreme Court.
5. Paid for by taxes on the middle class insurance plan you have right now through your employer, causing them to cut back benefits and increase co-pays.  Read more reasons to kill the bill.

35 Ways to Fix the Senate Health Bill…

1. Add a robust public option open to all Americans.
2. Remove the rollback of a woman’s right to choose.
3. Repeal the anti-trust exemption for private insurance companies.
4. Add early Medicare buy-in.
5. Add a real employer mandate.  Read more ways to fix the bill.

Why government programs always expand…

Reason.tv shows how virtually all government programs mushroom well beyond their initial scope and size…