All Insurance America

Squirm if you must, but know your life-insurance options

admin — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 19:35:39 +0000

If you’re like me, life insurance instantly makes you think of death, and you squirm whenever the subject comes up. But as you get older, if you have a family or just want to cover funeral expenses, life insurance is worth considering.

There are three common kinds of life insurance — term, whole life and universal.

With term life insurance, you pay a premium (usually a fixed amount per month) for a fixed term, which usually ranges from 10 to 30 years. Terms can be longer or shorter depending on your age and your needs. If you die during the term, the insurance benefit is paid out to your beneficiaries. at the end of the term, the insurance ends.

With whole-life insurance, you pay a premium (usually a fixed amount per month) for a fixed term, which usually ranges from 10 to 30 years. Terms can be longer or shorter depending on your age and your needs. unlike term life insurance, the life-insurance benefit continues even after you have paid the premiums. Also, a whole-life policy builds up “cash value,” so you can borrow against the value if necessary.

Universal life is like whole life insurance, except the cash value and the premiums are variable. They are linked to outside indexes such as the stock market or interest rates, so if the index does well, you are paid up quicker, or if the index does poorly, you have to pay premiums for a longer time.

Term life is least expensive since there is no cash value or continuation of coverage after the term, and, conversely, whole life is the most expensive.

When shopping for life insurance, make sure to talk to several companies before making your decision. the pricing varies widely depending on each situation. Also, when comparing insurance companies, look at their complaint ratio in the state (available at insurance.ca.gov ) and also look for an insurance company with a good financial credit rating (ratings available at ambest.com ).

Many companies offer term life as part of the employee benefit package, so you also may be able to buy life insurance through your work at a good price.

If you already have life insurance policies in place, you should revisit them every two or three years to see if there are any new products or better pricing available, and also if you need to increase or decrease your level of coverage. If you have a will or living trust, consult with your attorney or financial planner to make sure your life insurance is integrated with your estate plan.

So set aside some time this year to learn about life insurance. Every situation is unique, and you need to evaluate how much life insurance you think you need and what you can afford. make sure to speak with colleagues as well as insurance agents so you can get different perspectives.

Upcoming due dates for individuals

April 17 – Individual tax returns due for 2011

Upcoming due dates for business

March 15 – Corporation tax returns due for 2011

Patrick Harper, CPA, a Fountain Valley resident, is a partner with Harper & Harper Tax and Accounting Services. Contact him at 714-274-9387 or patrick@harpercpa.biz

Still using Internet Explorer 6 / 7 to browse the web?

admin — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 01:01:18 +0000

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The winners and the losers

admin — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 22:35:33 +0000

Winner: the Utah Shakespeare Festival in Cedar City announced this week it is going to build a new $26.5 million theater it hopes will attract even more people to the Tony Award-winning event. With most of the money already in place, the festival has demonstrated its ability to successfully attract large crowds. more than 150,000 people attend each summer and fall. the new theater is planned as an open-air facility with a retractable roof, meaning it could house plays year-round.

Loser: Someone is terrorizing cabin owners in Southern Utah, breaking in, making a mess of things and, at times, leaving threatening notes. “Get off my mountain,” one of the notes said. as county records don’t indicate any one man who owns the mountain, authorities are perplexed. all they have to go on so far are some surveillance photos from a camera outside a cabin. the man hasn’t yet attempted violence against anyone, but authorities say it may be a matter of time. meanwhile, the one-man terrorism squad must not be doing wonders for the recreational real estate market in the area.

Loser: you would think state lawmakers had better things to do than pass bills that probably are unconstitutional and unlikely ever to go into effect. And yet HB511 passed out of a committee this week. It would give cities in Utah the power to condemn federal public lands. a legislative analyst attached a note to the bill saying it would violate the Constitution’s supremacy clause, which gives federal law precedence over state law. the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Ken Sumsion, said he considers that note “a badge of honor.” a better badge, perhaps, would be to find solutions to problems that actually work.

Karano beats Mwongeli to Ladies Open

admin — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 06:35:23 +0000

Kenya Ladies Amateur golf champion Mary Karano at the weekend beat a field of over 100 players at the Limuru Country Club to pick up her first national title this season.

Currently playing off handicap six, Karano shot an impressive four over 76 gross to clinch the gross title in the Silver Division during the Ladies Open sponsored for the third year running by Kenya Orient Insurance Company.

She beat Limuru’s Mwongeli Nzioka by three shots while finishing third on 80 gross was junior international Naomi Wafula, 13, from the Rose Naliaka Academy.

The Bronze title remained at Limuru with Isa Maina who shot gross 90 to win it by four shots from Agnes Nyakio and J. Ngure.

The nett title in the Silver Division also remained at home with Kanyiva Echaria who carded nett 69 to win by a shot from C. N. Wangari and the Bronze nett title went to N. Githere with an excellent score of nett 65, beating Hannah Njenga by five shots.

The Mixed Foursomes title this year was won by the pair of Margaret Wairimu and Jim Waweru with 36 points, beating Jane Njoroge and John Karume by two points and Martha Vincent and M. Muindi were third on 33 points.

Meanwhile, during the weekend’s Tusker Malt Golf Carnival at the par 72 Thika Sports Club course, the pair of Charles Ngunjiri and Watson Burugu posted a record 49 points to claim the overall title, beating a field of 174 golfers.

Playing off handicap 21 and 16 Ngunjiri and Burugu fired an impressive 27 points in the front nine which included a birdie four by Burugu at the par five-first hole, and 22 points at the back nine to win by one from Ruriu’s Peter Maina and David Mbugua.

“It’s team work and knowing each other’s game which contributed to our victory. we do play together once in a while which is the spirit of the Tusker Malt Golf Carnival,’’ said Burugu, who on his own put together a total of 43 points.

Highest winning score

Maina and Mbugua, both playing off handicap 28, each posted 23 and 25 for their 48 points. Finishing in third place with 47 points was the pair of Tom Ochieng and Francis Karu.

A strong back nine score of 24 points for a total of 46 earned the pair of Anthony Kioi and Anthony Mwenja the fourth slot.

The team of handicap four Jeremiah Karanja and Steve Mbuthia (11) – who combined 23 and 23 – lost to Kioi and Mwenja on countback for a fifth qualifying slot, pushing Wycliffe Murwayi and David Matano (24, 22) out of the prize list.

Royal Nairobi’s Tim Gitonga and Tabitha Muhinga posted 49 points to claim the guest prize in the tournament that had a field of 174 players.

KBL’s Effie Thiongo said she was encouraged by both the condition of the golf course and the level of performance.

Links Capital Advisors sells golf course in Michigan

admin — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 08:35:18 +0000

Links Capital Advisors recently completed the sale of Northville Hills Golf Club in Northville, Mich.

Boasting a design by the legendary Arnold Palmer, Northville Country Club is an 18-hole, 7,003-yard championship course with a slope of 132. Northville is one of the top daily fee courses in the Detroit metropolitan area. The unique layout encompasses native woodlands, natural wetlands, ponds and rolling slopes of Michigan Heather.

The 10,000-square-foot clubhouse is fully equipped with a pro shop, full service kitchen, dining room and a 200-person banquet room. Also on the property is a separate cart barn and maintenance facility.

According to Chris Charnas, president of Links Capital Advisors, “Wilson purchased a great asset in Northville Hills. The property has always had positive cash flow, and a new owner with fresh eyes will do even better.”

Charnas represented the seller, Capmark Bank, in the transaction and the buyer, Wilson Golf, was not represented.

Tags | Links Capital Advisors, Michigan

© 2012 Real Estate Communications Group. Duplication or reproduction of this article not permitted without authorization from the Real Estate Publishing Group. for information on reprint or electronic pdf of this article contact Mark Menzies at 312-644-4610 or menzies@rejournals.com

How to Break Down the OpEx vs. CapEx Cloud Computing Debate

admin — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 15:35:24 +0000

The debate about the economic benefits of cloud computing is intense, and is commonly boiled down to a talking point labelled OpEx vs. CapEx. very often, like many talking points, the headline conflict is really a stalking horse that conceals the true source of conflict.

In the case of OpEx vs. CapEx, what often underlies the discussion is really an indirect, coded debate about the future of IT infrastructure and operations groups: will they be operators of assets owned by the larger organization, or will they be operators of assets owned by an external provider?

It doesn’t take a genius to understand why being responsible for operating hundreds of millions of dollars of owned assets, along with all of the people associated with ownership (technical evaluation, vendor relationships, capacity planning, etc.), is typically seen as more prestigious and important than managing assets from an external provider who takes responsibility for all of those areas. an even more nightmarish vision is that infrastructure and operations groups will be cut out of the equation entirely, with application groups taking responsibility for dealing with external providers, leaving I&O with a dwindling responsibility set, managing an ever-eroding installed asset base.

Consequently, it makes sense that there is plenty of emotional energy around the issue of the cost of cloud computing, with the OpEx vs. CapEx topic commonly designated as the battleground. however, much of the discussion on these topics fails to comprehend the profound implications of different funding models, and how they map against the future of IT applications.

And let me say, up front, that in my view, all of this discussion is really about identifying the best possible method of running applications, because applications are where all the value of IT is created.

Here are some thoughts about nuances (and implications) of funding models that the current debate of OpEx vs. CapEx fails to capture:

All Things being Equal, OpEx should be more Expensive than CapEx

One of the benefits of the OpEx model is that there is no long-term commitment. When a user is finished with the resource, it is turned back to the provider, who holds utilization responsibility — that is, the provider has to figure out how to obtain sufficient usage of the resource to make it economically workable.

The lack of commitment is financially valuable, in that it frees the user from having to make a significant, long-term investment. In the financial markets, options have value and are assigned a price. It makes sense that, per unit of measurement, OpEx resources would be more expensive than CapEx resources. one only has to look at rental car pricing to recognize that we pay a premium for short-term commitment. We save money by paying that higher rate for a shorter period of time, which ultimately is less expensive than purchasing a car only to use it for a short while.

Choosing one Option Over another Is a Trade-off

The true question, therefore, is not which option costs more per measurement unit, but rather which option is least expensive over the total usage of the resource (or, more typically, over the total usage of all the resources used to operate the application). this calculation is much trickier than a unit-to-unit comparison. first, it requires forecasting total use over some period of time, typically a month. In other words, how many hours will this application be running per month? How much storage will it use? How much network traffic will be associated with it?

Second, it may have to take into account changing rental rates based on usage tiers. a gigabyte of storage that costs a certain rate if total storage used is 10 gigabytes may be less expensive if total storage used is 10 terabytes.

Third, it has to account for variable usage patterns — low use for some periods and very high use for others. For instance, a financial services company’s applications are likely to have monthly peaks, quarterly peaks and annual peaks, not to mention unexpected peaks driven by non-cyclical events like, say, modified laws that change the consumer attractiveness of certain kinds of financial instruments.

Making this tricky evaluation requires a comparison of TCO, where the “O” stands for operation, not ownership. For many usage patterns, it is likely that the rental model will be more attractive in aggregate use, even if it is more expensive per unit of measurement. Returning to the rental car example, even if a rental car costs more per day than purchasing a vehicle, if one uses a car for only five days a month, renting could end up being less expensive overall.

One can say, then, that the economic evaluation has to be more sophisticated to account for variable use, and therefore variable costs that are associated with the asset rental model. Naturally, the asset ownership model costs the same irrespective of the use pattern — whether full-time or no more than one hour per month.

Friction Affects the OpEx vs CapEx Evaluation

Of course, there are other factors that affect this calculus. Renting a car extracts a toll in time — walking through the rental process, listening to the extra insurance spiel, inspecting the rental car and so on. if one needs a car eight separate days a month, it might be less expensive to rent. Then again, one might be tempted to purchase to avoid the Groundhog Day-like repetitiveness of, “How are you going to handle insurance for this vehicle? Our liability top-up service releases you from having to pay a deductible fee.”

In other words, the friction of the experience is likely to sway the decision to pursue one option or the other. Ronald Coase, the Nobel Prize-winning economist, characterized the overhead represented by the rental car rigamarole as “transaction costs”: costs associated with an economic transaction that add additional burden to the choice.

With respect to IT applications, there has traditionally been extremely high friction associated with bringing them up and down — so much so that it’s usually easier to get them up and running and then avoid touching them as much as possible. For a rental model, that “set and forget” approach is a poor approach from a financial perspective.

When one really evaluates using assets in a rental model, it’s obvious that one should seek to reduce usage as much as is practical. James Staten, the well-known Forrester cloud analyst, characterizes this approach as “down and off,” arguing that one should always seek to reduce an application’s resources as much as possible so long as its functional and performance requirements are met. if there is no usage demand, the application should be shut down, only to be restarted when usage demand begins anew.

However, the organizational friction involved with resource management is so high that most IT groups, when performing an OpEx vs. CapEx analysis, assume full-time operation of the highest amount of resource required at application peak load, and then use that basis to evaluate the asset rental against and the asset ownership models. It simply doesn’t make sense to perform the evaluation in any other way. In fact, most organizations typically fail to even consider other options because it’s inconceivable that the friction could abate enough to make a different operational model possible.

The Future of OpEx vs. CapEx

This friction is vastly reduced, though, in a properly managed cloud environment. Tools can be used to automate resource instantiation and termination, even to the point where the application itself autonomously manages this process and no manual intervention is required. In this kind of environment, the “transaction cost” is so much smaller that “down and off” is much more viable.

Overall, the reduced operational transaction cost means that application operational models are going to change dramatically over time. In turn, this means that input assumptions to financial analyses will change as IT organizations begin to re-evaluate application resource consumption models. many application designs will move toward a continuous operation of a certain base level of resource, with additional resources added and subtracted in response to changing usage. the end result will be that the tipping point calculation is likely to shift toward an asset operation model rather than an asset ownership one.

At the very least, it will reduce the presumption that the only financially viable approach is to assume full-time peak load resource operation, and therefore predetermine an asset ownership model by default.

Bernard Golden is CEO of consulting firm HyperStratus, which specializes in virtualization, cloud computing and related issues. He is also the author of “Virtualization for Dummies,” the best-selling book on virtualization to date. Follow Bernard Golden on Twitter @bernardgolden. Follow everything from CIO.com on Twitter @CIOonline

Read more about it organization in CIO’s IT Organization Drilldown.

LYME REGIS: Kent House dentist goes private

admin — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 06:35:26 +0000

1st February 2012

LYME Regis dentist Paul Bester has announced his practice, Kent House Dental Care, will no longer offer NHS treatment as of April 1st 2012.

Dr Bester said the decision to go private and offer Denplan Care – costing between £8.98 and £28.80 a month – was “not an easy one”. he said it was down to changes and constraints imposed by the NHS, making it “increasingly difficult” to offer the service.

In a statement to the View From Lyme Regis, Dr Bester said: “Since the introduction of the latest NHS dental contract in April 2006, we have maintained the quality of care required by that contract. However, this is becoming increasingly difficult under the constraints imposed by the NHS and after much consideration we have decided no longer to offer NHS treatment from 1 April 2012.

“having provided NHS dentistry for 16 years now and having always been an ardent supporter of it, as many of you will know, I feel that both the recent contract which was introduced in 2006 and now the next one which will completely change the system again, no longer properly serve the original intention of the National Health Service.

“This has not been an easy decision for us, but one we feel necessary for the continuity of our business.

“Dental practices are independent businesses and investing in the future has become too uncertain under the terms of the new contract. just as PCTs can decide which dentists they give contracts to and the value of each contract, every dentist can choose to contract or not with the NHS.

“After a lot of research and taking into consideration the current economic climate, we are inviting patients to join Denplan Care – a comprehensive dental payment plan that will enable patients to budget for the cost of their dental treatment through a fixed monthly payment.

“Denplan Care includes all routine dental treatment including check-ups, hygiene treatment, preventive dental advice and therapy, crowns, bridges, fillings, dentures, gum and root canal treatments among others, providing patients with ongoing dental treatment without the worry of unexpected treatment costs. Depending on each individual’s oral healthcare needs, the cost of the plan ranges from just £8.98 – £28.80 a month.

“The plan also includes Denplan’s Supplementary Insurance cover, supported by a 24-hour Worldwide Dental Injury and Emergency Helpline.

“We asked Dorset PCT if we could possibly continue to treat children and adults who are exempt from dental charges, on the NHS, but they flatly refused. For this reason, children of registered Denplan patients will receive free check-ups and necessary treatment up to the age of 18.

“From the earliest stage, we have kept patients fully informed about what this change will mean to them, both in terms of changes to the charging process and in terms of the quality of care that they will receive.

“I apologise for any inconvenience caused, and I am truly sorry if this does not suit you as I love Lyme Regis and regard it a privilege to serve this wonderful community, but I feel that I really do not have a choice if I hope to continue practising here.

“We would like to thank all our patients for their support and loyalty and look forward to continuing to provide quality dental care for them and their families.”

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Jan. 30 Open Line

admin — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 09:35:51 +0000

Obama won the ’08 election because of a lot of independent voters voted for him. but this year, Obama has lost a lot of that support from independent voters, especially from all this race card-pulling BS.How much money is our governor paying an out of state company (North Carolina) to “evaluate” the residents of JDC for placement in “the community?”Obama said in his SOTUA “we don’t want to go back to the policies that got us into this mess.” Typical left winger, keeps saying the Bush policies got us in the recession but cannot name one single policy.You can’t make this stuff up. Politico’s Roger Simon: “These debates are making the Obama staffers in Chicago so giddy that after each one they are tearing off their clothes, running through Millennium Park and howling at the moon. and why shouldn’t they?”Nineteen debates and I still haven’t heard anything useful or an understanding of the human condition or the problems of real people, absolutely no ideas for solving the country’s problems, just constant petty in-fighting and bashing the only person even talking about the economy. the more debates the better Obama looks. more debates, please.Problems started for teachers about 40 years ago when mothers started going to work. Due to less time available, they started expecting teachers to help raise their kids instead of just teaching them.please stop all of the school administrator bashing and sales tax complaints. You are taking away time and energy from more important things like basketball coach bashing and cheerleading complaints.Anybody who wants the dropout age raised to 18 should be forced to teach a group of these students for 18 weeks the difference between gerunds and verbs along with other important skills they have not mastered in the previous 12 years of schooling.the loyal advocates promoting the admirable traits of Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum are very well-intentioned. but you have to understand. the big banks, the big brokerage houses have chosen Mitt Romney and they will spend whatever it takes. They have already spent $10 million in Florida and Gingrich has spent $300,000. honestly, who do you think will be winning that battle? after $10 million of negative ads, Superman would lose to Satan.Didn’t Representative Joe Walsh play that awesome guitar solo in “Hotel California?” I mean, like, it was one of the best of all time. he should have plenty of money for child support, shouldn’t he?some areas have a law where any home improvements have to be green, does Jacksonville have this law as well? This would be a way to conserve water and save on electric and gas prices as well.Everyone is making fun of Newt Gingrich’s Moon Colony but I have it from reliable sources (Sean Hannity) that he also plans to consolidate all of the food stamp offices into one. To get food stamps you have to apply at the Moon Base. a whole lotta shuttles going up but limited space for the return flights. when you have big ideas you need to solve two problems with one solution.General Motors’ CEO Dan Akerson is complaining that the Chevy Volt has become a “political punching bag.” According to a recent research study from the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, total taxpayer subsidies in the Chevy Volt amount to as much as $250,000 per car. we taxpayers foot the bill, and you whine. Do you believe those kids would have been driving 100 mph all the way from Brown County to Beardstown if the police were not chasing them? Do you think they or anybody would be running from the police if they did not know for sure that the police were going to try to ruin your life not for anything you have done to somebody but for your personal beliefs and decisions that hurt no one?One the best websites to learn about the connections between big money and politics is opensecrets.org.I can’t believe how much salt they put on the streets for the dusting of snow we had Friday night. and with no snow in the forecast it seems such a waste of our resources.I read the news report that the President of JP Morgan Chase will only receive a $1.5 million bonus rather than the traditional $3 million. It nearly broke my heart. obviously, the only possible solution is that all those on Social Security be assessed a 10% tax surcharge so that these tragedies can be avoided in the future. the plan is in place to make this permanent in November when one of their own will assume power and eliminate the capital gains tax and replace it with the new “fair” tax.As the Republican presidential candidates continue to degrade those on food stamps I wonder if they actually know who has been forced to ask for help? It may surprise them. what shouldn’t come as a surprise is that those 10 million Republicans on food stamps will remember the sneering comments they have made about them being on food stamps come next November. It’s an awfully big wheel that doesn’t go round.if some of you people knew the deputy, then you would know and understand why some are questioning the situation.the existence of Mexicans in this nation is not the problem. the problem is the existence of welfare.would you enjoy paying $8 for a gallon of gasoline, if you can find it? if you would, let’s attack Iran. I’m quite sure some of you morons commenting in the Open Line would like to propose the protocol of making our cops judge, jury and executioner by the way you sound in your posts. Let’s not let the court system or law work for us. Why not just end the chase before it began and shoot him right in the head after he got done doing the doughnuts and ran the stop sign. the minute he accelerated, fire a shot at his head hell, take them all out. They were breaking the law, right? What’s the difference in the danger? a cop going to one of the local fast food restaurants, which I have seen them do with lights on and siren, flying through intersections and high rates of speed or some teenage kid and his buddy’s drunk at 3 a.m. in the country. the cop does this action during daylight hours and then pulls up in the drive-through. the teen does this during the late night hours and is endangering mainly himself and whomever he has with him. the mainstream media appears to have been put under a “code of silence” about the first court proceeding to enter into the record evidence that Barack Obama is ineligible to be president based on the Constitution’s requirement that that office be occupied only by a “natural-born citizen.” the societal tensions Obama promised to ease have worsened by his politics of envy. the racial healing he promised has been made worse. despite overwhelming opposition, he forced a health plan on the people that few want. he has trampled on the Constitution, and infringed on powers granted to Congress. he has bailed out auto companies, investment bankers and insurance companies. he has given Constitutional rights to terrorists.I promised a few months back that I would cancel my subscription if you printed that filthy hate speech term in your paper again. I believe if you check with your subscription department, you’ll find that I am true to my word.a dwarf-tossing contest at a Windsor, Ontario, bar has stirred controversy, but local authorities say there is no law to prevent it. Pro-abortion people in the U.S. who favor Roe v. Wade certainly defend the right of dwarfs in Canada to do whatever they want with their bodies. the right of “privacy” with regard to one’s body trumps, right? None of us opposes public assistance for a limited period of time for those who are experiencing financial difficulty due to job loss, illness, or other serious problems. but no one that we know favors inter-generational public assistance, welfare with no end that goes from one generation to the next and then to other generations. we should draw sharp distinctions between the two. Why do Republicans hate Obamacare so? It is a godsend for millions without any kind of healthcare, will likely pump new blood into Passavant Hospital, maybe even saving it. beside that, it means the people actually get something back for taxes paid in, not squandered on foreign war spending. Thank you, President Obama.Everyone seems to be piling on President Obama for his green energy initiatives. I wonder what would have happened if during Jimmy Carter’s term of office our country had actually started down this road. Perhaps 40 years later we would have the alternative energy sources that we so desperately need. but back then gas prices went down, and we ignored the problem as a country. Ay, got to start somewhere, and no matter what you try some of the ideas aren’t going to work and some of the companies are going belly up. and your solution is to continue to pay the people who hate us forever? I love reading about how Wisconsin governor’s chief of staff, administrative assistant, and legal counsel have been arrested by the FBI. I don’t think even the Koch Brothers’ millions are going to save lo Scott boy on this one.It sure would be very nice if the city of Beardstown would put some barricades or else go down to West fifth Street and March Street and fix that huge bump in the road from the city tearing up the street for water or sewer repairs. It about tore the bottom out of our vehicle. Do your job, Gary Hamilton.It is sad to see how far things have come. I guess blaming third parties for the actions of anyone regardless of how reckless the behavior and regardless of any total lack of consideration for the safety of others involved even deadly consequences are now routinely blamed on others. welcome to the new liberalism.the boy driving that truck at 100 mph was completely disrespectful of the law and his passengers. he could have stopped the truck anytime. the blame needs to be put on him — not the police.OK, so maybe the Cass County history ladies aren’t going to abscond to Brazil with the proceeds from their book. but don’t you think someone in that group would have the courtesy to let the buyers know what the problem is? It’s not poor customer service, it’s poor manners. the boy involved in the fatal crash in Beardstown had about 30-40 miles in which to stop his truck. what was he thinking? he needs to be held accountable for his actions. when the police are behind you with red lights flashing, you better be stopping.I have been reading and hearing an increasing amount of information about planned Parenthood (a pro-abortion agency) and the Girl Scouts. Kathy Cloniger, CEO, admits that there is a tenuous, direct link and relationship with planned Parenthood. can anyone verify this? two sides to the issue, it seems. some say the GS will sell more cookies if this is true, others say they will sell less.It was the deputy’s fault not the kid. the cop should have stopped the chase and been more grown up. the license number is on the back of truck and front for a reason. the girl did want him to stop.To the people that think minor crime is not worth pursuing, or a policy should be made not to pursue, you are what is wrong with this country and state. the officer had all the right to pursue someone who was breaking the law because they did not stop when he turned on his lights. he did not know if he was in pursuant of an armed robber, rapist or just a doughnut maker. the driver should be charged with everything under the sun, including vehicular manslaughter. It is his fault the girl is dead, not the deputy. You people are why our prisons and jails are overcrowded. there is no respect for authority. maybe if the prisons were more like the one in Arizona and not a country club, criminals would think twice about committing the crime. the same with traffic laws. if you refuse to stop, or if you don’t have a license, your vehicle should be confiscated and sold at auction just like drug dealers are. there needs to be some consequences for your unlawful action.my heart goes out to the girl’s family who got killed in the crash in Beardstown. I would like to know if the police officer had gotten close enough to get the license number. if he had, the chase should have been suspended and they should have been waiting for him to come home then go arrest him.Wow, there are a lot of people in the area who worry more about what others do than what they themselves do. if half of the people would worry more about themselves than who is doing what that doesn’t concern them they would be better off.the high-speed chase didn’t have to happen, period. the police knew who mr. Hendricks was and where he lived. Supposedly he was with one of the young adults who lived at the home he had done the doughnuts in the yard of. the police knew who he was, they didn’t have to chase him as far as they did and if they had terminated the pursuit they’d probably all be alive and answering to the law the next day at home. Why can’t you idiots see this? there is no chase if the police aren’t chasing them. Place the blame where it belongs on the police not the frightened young adults. once the police saw he wasn’t going to stop and he hit speeds over 100 mph, it should’ve ended. Let him calm down and catch him later. Other cities and states do this, why can’t Illinois?New MSNBC anchor likens Obama-Brewer face off to 1957 integration confrontation in Little Rock. the race card is getting old. besides, Jan was talking to the white half of 0bama. is that racist enough for you?I wonder why JJ-C didn’t post my comment questioning Hochstadt’s motives for referring to Juan Williams as “the African American Fox News moderator.” a conservative would be called a racist for such a comment. Double-standard I guess.

Linked Local Network Celebrates First Anniversary with Sixth ‘Out of the Cyber World and into the Real World’ at Midtown Athletic Club

admin — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 18:35:19 +0000

In January of 2010, two men took business networking to a higher level. Utilizing the powers of social media, these men hosted the first ‘Out of the Cyber World and into the Real World’ in Downers Grove which attracted over 300 people. Mike Boehler and Fred McMurray knew they were on to something good with Linked Local Network. “We knew we are on to something good” states Mike Boehler.

Celebrating its first anniversary, Linked Local Network is sponsoring the sixth ‘Out of the Cyber World and into the Real World’ on January 11 at Midtown Athletic Club. This networking event runs from 5:30pm to 7:30pm. those attending have the opportunity to strengthen business relationships as well as the opportunity to meet new partners and prospective clients. Midtown Athletic Club is located at 1760 N. Hicks Rd, Palatine. The event costs $8 with pre-registration (http://cyber6.eventbrite.com) or $15 at the door; light appetizers will be served along with a cash bar. Door prizes include trial memberships to the club. Midtown Athletic Club, located next to the Deer Grove Forest Preserve in Palatine, provides members with a complete fitness, sports and social experience.

“We are very excited for the opportunity to show Linked Local members our newly renovated sports resort and discuss how we can help them grow their business through our membership base of 3,500 people” said Brad Franz, Corporate Wellness Director. “Not to mention that we’ve been hailed by many as their third place after home and work… a place to play tennis, stays fit and connect with friends.”

What started as a local group on LinkedIn with connected business associates has grown into a dynamic, social media networking group. “The events from this organization have given me the right venue to learn subject matters that I only heard of, but now better understand how they work”, comments Al Katz, President first Search, Inc.

Start the year out and help Linked Local Network celebrate their first anniversary. ‘Out of the Cyber World and into the Real World’ is a series of business networking events develop relationships beyond the confines of geographic boundaries.

For other events and classes sponsored by Linked Local Network, visit their website www.linkedlocalnetwork.com or contact Michele Rempel at mrempel@mandatek.com or by phone (630) 888-8571.

LINK LOCALLY, CONNECT GLOBALLYThe Linked Local Network creates & nurtures long lasting, mutually beneficial relationships that share information & resources by providing an integrated online & offline network that strengthens community by building the professional. The Linked Local Network delivers:

Relationships enabling businesses, organizations, & professionals to develop relationships beyond the confines of geographic boundariesInformation and business education thru workshops, seminars and summitsProviding an integrated online & offline networkResources – People, Goods & Services, Capital, and industry specific resources and information

Consumer Watchdog wants California to regulate health insurance hikes

admin — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 12:00:45 +0000

There’s a grassroots movement underway to change insurance law, giving California the power to regulate health insurance rate hikes.

The proposed initiative by Consumer Watchdog, a group based in Santa Monica, will require health insurance companies to ask permission from the state insurance commissioner before raising premiums. It’s modeled after Proposition 103, the organization’s 1988 ballot measure that now regulates how much auto insurance companies can charge.

“People can’t afford their health insurance,” says Consumer Watchdog President Jamie Court, “and this is going to put the power in their hands to tell the insurance company no when the rates are unjustified.”

Court says California is among 17 states without any regulation — and that that’s why health insurance premiums have gone up five times faster than inflation during the past decade.

Opponents of the measure say it will limit patient access to care.

“We feel it’s a deeply flawed measure that does nothing to address the cost drivers that are behind the increasing cost of medical care,” said Paul Phinney, president-elect of the California Medical Association. Meanwhile, Court says Consumer Watchdog is conducting an all-volunteer email campaign to gather the 505,000 signatures required by May 1 to put the initiative on the Nov. 2012 ballot. The first person to sign that petition: California Senator Dianne Feinstein.