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Since 2002. Anonymous Letters to the Editor with pictures. Published Monday through Friday by Noon.
| Do not hire Jim Miller of Lighthouse Landscaping, Key Largo. Do not give him cash or check. Do not do business with him. He has been taking money from people and not doing the work. Money in the many thousands of dollars. Monroe County has flagged and flagged him. He does not show up for the board hearings. Do not hire Jim Miller of Lighthouse Landscaping. He drives an older model black SUV. He says he can do all kinds of things, but does not have the license to do anything. Beware. ~starsandsky14@yahoo.com |
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| [“Clear Channel”] I think US1 radio is 104.1, and I don’t believe Captain Morgan sponsors fantasy fest any longer. They were not even in the parade. The sponsor was 3wishes.com this year. But if you don’t like corporate sponsorship, I think there’s a couple of options – buy it yourself, or move to a government controlled country (and we know how the conspiracy theorists on the CT feel about that) |
 [What a long strange trip its been] I wrote in a couple of years ago about the BP 29 bust and the late Jerri Montell (Allen) and I think I mentioned that she left behind a son who didn’t know who his birth father was. John David Moss was a name that came up in my investigations and while I was pretty confidant that this guy was the same Johnny Moss as the DJ at Fitzgerald’s I was just waiting for a final confirmation. He’s listed as the father on the birth certificate and the son bears an obvious resemblance. All the players were in KW at the time. It’s been 35 years and I’m going to put them together.
Guess what? The son is a DJ just as his father was. He lives about 75 miles from his old man. I probably wouldn’t have tracked him down if he didn’t do something stupid in September. When I saw his mug shot, I knew. I saw his name in the Good Old Days section of bigpinekey.com and finally got some answers. |
| [“Hates it here”] Great rebuttal post! I like the ‘open air asylum’ analogy. I prefer ‘far from normal, close to perfect – for some of us’. Bottom line, if you don’t like it here, don’t move here. But a lot of us like it here, regardless of your opinion |
 [Wells] Here is the science presentation about shallow injection wells. You can skip a lot of the scientific graphs and stuff and go to the Summary last page. It’s all about the water quality we depend upon and it will get worse with the Cudjoe Sewer shallow wells if we allow that. And here is just one law on the books. Section 403.086 (10) (h), Florida Statutes: “If it is demonstrated that a discharge, even if the discharge is otherwise in compliance with this subsection, will cause or contribute to a violation of state water quality standards, the department shall: 2. Order the point or method of discharge changed.” Why are we letting DEP and FKAA and the County Commission flaunt the very rules set up to protect us? Can the TDC spin this one away when there’s no fish or no reef? allowInjectionWellsAudioPowerpointPresentation1172014(1) |
| [High Water] My porch which is 3′ above sea level had 4″ of water on it after the last rain. Does that tell you something? |
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 [Kim] Can you hold a full champagne glass on your ass? Link |
| Regarding Commissioner Neugent’s odd letter you published yesterday and the comments on it, there was one thing left out. Dump the Pumps organization filed a petition on the DEP permit they gave Little Palm Island to run sewage lines through ‘Outstanding Florida Waters’ to the mainland. Those pipes are old water pipes and boats sometimes run over them as they are in very shallow waters between Bahia Honda and Looe Key Sanctuary and they were never even properly permitted 20 years ago. A disaster waiting to happen. It was Dump the Pumps scrutiny and challenge of that permit which forced DEP to withdraw that idiotic plan. Still Neugent does not listen or seem to care to trust any but “our engineers” when there is ample evidence that this whole system needs a good kick in the butt. Way to go, Dump the Pumps! |
 [“Battle of the pills”] I will try and explain it to you again. They do not make more than one size pill for this type of drug. They all have the same dosage. What part of that do you not understand? There is only one pill (except the generic brand) that they make , and the generic bill has the same dosage too. One not two, not three, but only one. Can you understand it now? There is only one dosage that is made worldwide. Please try your hardest to let this soak in. I know it’s hard too, but give it a try. |
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| [“Clear Channel”] I don’t think they own stations here any longer. They sold out. Does anyone know who owns all the radio stations in the Keys now? or at least the majority of them? |
 [Americans like dry martinis] During WW 2 the GI’s in England called martinis ‘Montgomerys’ they were 11 parts gin and one vermouth. Named after British Field Marshal Montgomery because it was said he would not attack unless he outnumbered the Germans by 11 to 1. |
| [“Walmart”] Some people who live down here don’t want Walmart, but sure as shit there will be lines of people wanting to be hired by Walmart despite what they do and how they handle their employees. And sure as shit, Walmart will turn a profit because they will offer merchandise at way lower prices than Mom and Pop can. So a word to the wise, if you can’t fight ’em, (and you can’t fight Walmart), join ’em. Chances you are going to shop there anyway. |
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| Contact Us. Click this link to post any opinion, ads, changes to an ad, complaint, kudos, or anything else. One link fits all. We read them all. Contact Us |
 [House for Sale] Extremely well maintained canal front home featuring 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, dining room, kitchen nook and family room with phenomenal boating access to Pine Channel – a direct shot from your back door! Some newer appliances which include a Bosch Silence Plus dishwasher and new central air conditioning unit. The beautifully landscaped backyard transforms into your own tropical oasis. The property is on a great boating canal on Little Torch Key and is listed at $279,000. Video Classified Ads > House For Sale |
| What’s the sell-by date of salt? There isn’t any. Salt is basically a rock and will last just as long. It’s blue cheese I worry about. How do you tell if it’s gone bad? |
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| [“We just bought a house on BPK. Can we swim in the canals? What’s the fun things to do? Is Eden Pines a good neighborhood?”] To the best of my knowledge, the canals in Eden Pines are not flow-thru, nor do they flush completely on the tides. I think one is slated for the County sponsored canal clean up study that’s coming. If I remember correctly EP was a subdivision where the County could not get adequate response from the residents for the study. Is EP a good neighborhood? Did you not do your research prior to closing? EP is probably better than the northern neighborhood you moved here from. That being said, it’s not Shark Key or Cudjoe Gardens, and it is Big Pine, not exactly Beverly Hills. Fun? That depends. If you’re here for the weather and are now expecting to party because you worked the best years of your life away, you’re good. Hopefully, you’re in peak condition are here for the water and you’re excited about working on your diving or maybe you’ll take up SCUBA, spear fishing, kayaking, or something healthy. If you came here from a major city and are not a water baby, you’ll probably be ready to move in three years. There’s nothing to do here and nothing ever happens. Don’t worry, there are tons of realtors down here who will help you move. |
 Sherlock Holmes: The Valley of Fear Episode 1. The Valley of Fear, the last of the four Sherlock Holmes novels, ranks among Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s best work. The mystery begins with a coded warning of imminent danger, drawing the illustrious Sherlock. Listen |
| The C2C Connector trail is getting bigger and bigger connecting more places than ever. Link |
 [Homeless] You think that the degenerate bums that infest our island, prey on it’s citizens and generally ruin the environment are more pleasant to be around than those tax paying, law abiding home owners who are the foundation of our community? If you like them so much please invite them to live at your home then. |
| [The Movies] World War Z was a terrific movie. I especially liked the crowd scene special effects. They were so realistic I was able to forget for a while that I was watching a movie. |
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| [Wells] I find little difference between septic systems and shallow injection wells. They should have let us keep our septic systems if they are just going to pollute the water with this multi-million dollar farce called sewers. |
 Try to attend the Orchid Society‘s meeting next Sunday, the 15th. The very knowledgeable Dr. Martin Motes will be there with all sorts of information about Vandas. For our November Newsletter go to Full Menu > Ongoing Events |
| Contact Us. Click this link to post any opinion, ads, changes to an ad, complaint, kudos, or anything else. One link fits all. We read them all. Contact Us |
 What happened to the traffic impact study for the new swimming hole park? With the existing traffic light at Key Deer Blvd., the new crosswalk at the school and flea market, and the curve of US1 northbound I smell gridlock! If anyone has the results of the impact study please post it. |
| [“Immigration reform”] It’s not immigrant children who come to our country to pillage our resources without contributing to our country. You’re thinking of multinational corporations. |
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| If you are offended by Fantasy Fest why do you go down there? |
 [Lost Cat] I miss my cat terribly. Her name is Powder Puff. She disappeared in September from Ramrod Key’s Tobago Lane. She is so precious. We all miss her. She is a white Siamese with blue eyes, has a tabby brown tail with a cotton ball tip (the name Powder Puff), a brown spot on her nose, and caramel spots on her white body. Really pretty kitty. I got her from the pound in March. She was very unhappy there when I picked her up. She moved right in at this home and was so happy. My other kitty and her became big buddies. Then in Sept. she disappeared on a Monday. If you have seen her, please call Classified Ads > Lost and Found |
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| [Wells] How did central sewer work out for Bay Point? That area’s central sewer went online in 2005 with the promise of improving their water quality. Their treatment plant uses shallow well effluent disposal. Here’s what a Bay Point resident writes: “Bay Point seems like a done deal and we can swim in shit. No wonder there were less lobster in the ledges, You couldn’t see the bottom from all the muck that was growing around it. Visibility was horrible all summer. Why do homeowners have to take Aqueduct to court for wrong-doing? Don’t they serve the county? What kind of political favors? This is mind boggling.” The County needs to immediately order deep effluent wells put in at Cudjoe, Pipe Bay Point’s waste to the Cudjoe plant. Abandon the Niles Channel crossing except for emergency use and build an additional treatment plant on the outer islands with deep wells or large inland surface disposal. Abandon the E-One based pressure sewer system and replace it with a normal gravity system using normal explosion-proof centrifugal pumps in the lift stations. For isolated properties, put centrifugal sewer pumps in the right of way and pump the effluent to the closest lift station or manhole instead of trying to pump for miles just because the grinder salesman said his pump can do it. It is time to quit experimenting on how to save money with substandard and illegal sewer collection systems. This is not the place for environmental experimenting. |
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| Do Republicans believe in Ebola? |
| Contact Us. Click this link to post any opinion, ad, changes to an ad, complaint, kudos, or anything else. One link fits all. We read them all. Contact Us |
 [“Walmart Coming to Keys“] Man pleads not guilty to lewd act in Walmart. Man pleasured self with help of a stuffed animal. If we had our own Walmart in the Keys at least we would have dates on a Saturday night (and disease free ones at that). Link |
| [Porn Draws Perverts] They might be right! Here’s a short video from Fantasy Fest I found online. Some real attention seeking barkers thinking fake saggy fun bags, body paint and a beer is a costume. Note the number of dudes with cameras that surround them. they’re a testament to the crowd that comes and what they come for. Porn Video |
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| VA retail immunization care coordination program at Walgreen’s. Free flu shot for veterans. Link |
 Southernmost Aikikai is now meeting at Forever Fitness on Cudjoe Key Mondays 7-8:30 pm, Thursday 7-8:30 pm and Saturday 11:00 -1:30. Aikido is a martial art of movement, containment and self defense. Full Menu > Ongoing Events |
| [Bubba System] A while back there was a comment that the nice lady, Beth Ramsay Vickery who spearheaded the No Name Key electrification was also George Neugent’s campaign manager and that, maybe, Neugent with all his “environmental” bona fides would nominate her to the County Planning Board as payback. Guess that’s how it works because that’s just what happened yesterday. Surprise! Surprise! |
 In the early 1990’s I too found a broken Leatherman tool on the side of the road. The guy at the sport store gave me the address to send it back (no internet back then). I’m now on my 3rd new knife thanks to Leatherman. |
| The Coconut Closet (upstairs at the Habitat for Humanity building on Big Pine Key) is having a sale on extra store fixtures such as mannequins, clothing racks, etc. While you’re there, check out our latest sale on gently used men’s and women’s clothing. The Coconut Closet is open Thursday, Friday and Saturday, from 9 AM – 2 PM and staffed by volunteers, with all proceeds going to Habitat for Humanity in Key West and Lower Keys. |
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| You know you’re dealing with a good business when the employee you’re talking to says “we” instead of “they”. |
| Contact Us. Click this link to post any opinion, ads, changes to an ad, complaint, kudos, or anything else. One link fits all. We read them all. Contact Us |
 [“Hates it here”] So many people come here on vacation with pockets full of money, eat out every day, charter boats, get drunk every night and dance. They move here thinking that’s what life is like in the Keys only to find out that you can’t live like that unless you’re very wealthy and have a liver of iron. |
| [Tomb of the unknown] Soldier yelling at laughing crowd in 2010. Video |
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| Funny how the County Commission is going cheap on the people’s sewer system, still claiming concern for the use of taxpayer money after they went and blew a pile of it on fixing that entire bridge to nowhere and nobody and that pie in the sky marina project |
 It is truly amazing how some people can view the myriad of evils perpetuated daily on other human beings then proclaim that those who are connected someway in this everlasting struggle are a part of the problem, all the while proclaiming their purity of soul by not being able to fathom the mind set of such misguided souls. Make a weapon you are branded as a subhuman. When the self righteous man comes to remove your head from your body and it is only you alone standing between him and your loved ones you may be thankful for the weapon maker, unless your would-be executioner agrees to spare you of this atrocious deed if you, in turn, agree to be subservient to his ideology for the rest of your natural life. There are different ways to look at situations like this, but the word ‘reality’, I believe, pretty well sums it up. |
| Brokaw, The Greatest Generation and the candy bomber. Video |
 FTR argues arctic sea ice recovery. |
| In their quest to be known for health, CVS Pharmacy got rid of all tobacco products and replaced them with hard liquor sales in most of their stores. |
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| [“Clear Channel”] First of all it’s 104.1 US1 Radio, not 104.7. It was 104.7 many years ago. Secondly, we are not owned by Clear Channel. They sold off all their properties. |
| Contact Us. Click this link to post any opinion, ads, changes to an ad, complaint, kudos, or anything else. One link fits all. We read them all. Contact Us |
 The cool thing about having a Walmart here is that most of our women already look like Walmart women and will blend in seamlessly. A few however may have to dress up a little to meet the marts dress standards. |
| [Captain Doom and Gloom] It looks like all the computer whores are grouping together to make people buy new hardware and operation systems or we won’t be able to use the old hardware and programs we have. Forced marketing I call it! |
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| Throughout the last election we were bombarded with Democratic ads complaining about the huge contributions made by right wing groups such as the Koch Brothers. The actual numbers are in. Here are the top twenty. #1 – Tom Steyer – $73 M and #2 Mike Bloomberg – $20 mil. Koch brothers rank #23 and 25 at about $2.2 mil each. For details on top 100, go to: https://www.opensecrets.org/overview/topindivs.php# |
| There are a few folks that still think FOX news in the boogieman. Funny part is they are the only news that told us the truth, the truth about, everything. |
| Contact Us. Click this link to post any opinion, ad, changes to an ad, complaint, kudos, or anything else. One link fits all. We read them all. Contact Us |
| 1. IRS targets Obama’s enemies: The IRS targeted conservative and pro-Israel groups prior to the 2012 election. Questions are being raised about why this occurred, who ordered it, whether there was any White House involvement and whether there was an initial effort to hide who knew about the targeting and when. 2. Benghazi: This is actually three scandals in one: The failure of administration to protect the Benghazi mission. The changes made to the talking points in order to suggest the attack was motivated by an anti-Muslim video. The refusal of the White House to say what President Obama did the night of the attack 3. Watching the AP: The Justice Department performed a massive cull of Associated Press reporters’ phone records as part of a leak investigation. 4. Rosengate: The Justice Department suggested that Fox News reporter James Rosen is a criminal for reporting about classified information and subsequently monitored his phones and emails. 5. Potential Holder perjury I: Attorney General Eric Holder told Congress he had never been associated with “potential prosecution” of a journalist for perjury when in fact he signed the affidavit that termed Rosen a potential criminal. 6. The ATF “Fast and Furious” scheme: Allowed weapons from the U.S. to “walk” across the border into the hands of Mexican drug dealers. The ATF lost track of hundreds of firearms, many of which were used in crimes, including the December 2010 killing of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. 7. Potential Holder Perjury II: Holder told Congress in May 2011 that he had just recently heard about the Fast and Furious gun walking scheme when there is evidence he may have known much earlier. 8. Sebelius demands payment: HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius solicited donations from companies HHS might regulate. The money would be used to help her sign up uninsured Americans for ObamaCare. 9. The Pigford scandal: An Agriculture Department effort that started as an attempt to compensate black farmers who had been discriminated against by the agency but evolved into a gravy train delivering several billion dollars in cash to thousands of additional minority and female farmers who probably didn’t face discrimination. 10. GSA gone wild: The General Services Administration in 2010 held an $823,000 training conference in Las Vegas, featuring a clown and a mind readers. Resulted in the resignation of the GSA administrator. 11. Veterans Affairs in Disney World: The agency wasted more than $6 million on two conferences in Orlando. An assistant secretary was fired. 12. Sebelius violates the Hatch Act: A U.S. special counsel determined that Sebelius violated the Hatch Act when she made “extemporaneous partisan remarks” during a speech in her official capacity last year. During the remarks, Sebelius called for the election of the Democratic candidate for governor of North Carolina. 13. Solyndra: Republicans charged the Obama administration funded and promoted its poster boy for green energy despite warning signs the company was headed for bankruptcy. The administration also allegedly pressed Solyndra to delay layoff announcements until after the 2010 midterm elections. 14. AKA Lisa Jackson: Former EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson used the name “Richard Windsor” when corresponding by email with other government officials, drawing charges she was trying to evade scrutiny. 15. The New Black Panthers: The Justice Department was accused of using a racial double standard in failing to pursue a voter intimidation case against Black Panthers who appeared to be menacing voters at a polling place in 2008 in Philadelphia. 16. Waging war all by myself: Obama may have violated the Constitution and both the letter and the spirit of the War Powers Resolution by attacking Libya without Congressional approval. 17. Biden bullies the press: Vice President Biden’s office has repeatedly interfered with coverage, including forcing a reporter to wait in a closet, making a reporter delete photos, and editing pool reports. 18. AKPD not A-OK: The administration paid millions to the former firm of then-White House adviser David Axelrod, AKPD Message and Media, to promote passage of Obamacare. Some questioned whether the firm was hired to help pay Axelrod $2 million AKPD owed him. 19. Sestak, we’ll take care of you: Former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel used Bill Clinton as an intermediary to probe whether former Rep. Joe Sestak (D-Pa.) would accept a prominent, unpaid White House advisory position in exchange for dropping out of the 2010 primary against former Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.). 20. I’ll pass my own laws: Obama has repeatedly been accused of making end runs around Congress by deciding which laws to enforce, including the decision not to deport illegal immigrants who may have been allowed to stay in the United States had Congress passed the “Dream Act.” 21. The hacking of Sharyl Attkisson’s computer: It’s not clear who hacked the CBS reporter’s computer as she investigated the Benghazi scandal, but the Obama administration and its allies had both the motive and the means to do it. 22. An American Political Prisoner: The sudden decision to arrest Nakoula Basseley Nakoula on unrelated charges after protests in the Arab world over his anti-Muslim video is an extraordinarily suspicious coincidence. “We’re going to go out and we’re going to prosecute the person that made that video,” Hillary Clinton allegedly told the father of one of the ex-SEALs killed in Banghazi. 23. Get rid of inconvenient IGs: Corporation for National and Community Service Inspector General Gerald Walpin was fired in 2009 as he fought wasteful spending and investigated a friend of Obama’s, Sacramento Mayor and former NBA player Kevin Johnson. The White House says Walpin was incompetent. 24. Influence peddling: An investigation is underway of Alejandro Mayorkas, director of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, who has been nominated by Obama for the number two post at the Department of Homeland Security. Mayorkas may have used his position to unfairly obtain U.S. visas for foreign investors in company run by Hillary Clinton’s brother, Anthony Rodham. Get off the Kool Aid, start thinking for yourself. |
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| ERRATA: A POSTER WROTE: “Tim Scott is not the first black Republican Senator. Edwin Brooke was elected to the Senate from Massachusetts in the ’60’s”
A CRITIC WROTE: “Dear FTR, You may have thought you were being cute criticizing Obama for the military having finished “zero-zip-nada” of the Ebola treatment hospitals, but what you really did was denigrate the great work being done by our Army engineers. They are fast, but they aren’t miracle workers. They are doing the best they can under difficult circumstances. One of the treatment centers is almost finished and ready to be put to use. Maybe if you got your news from someplace other than Fox News you’d know that.” FTR’S RESPONSE: The critic should open his/her eyes and his/her mind, but perhaps he/she is so brainwashed that he/she cannot accept any info that is not prewashed and approved by left. Perhaps he/she is blinded by the fear of Fox news. Nonetheless, Fox News had nothing to do with my posting, which was written on 11/6, about the USA failing to provide hospital beds to Liberia in a timely manner. Fox was not a source. The source was the Washington Post. Read it for yourself at: Link Just for the record, the delay in building facilities was not the engineers fault, it was the failure of the Obama admin to act. It was his/their inability to think and act decisively. The Liberia epidemic began in March ’14, it’s been there so long that it now seems to be receding on its own. Obama did not order the military to Liberia until mid-September. He and his did so only after months of vacillating. PART 2) We’ve got to ask ourselves why so many left fielders fear the truth. Perhaps the following will shed some light on that subject. An averaging of recent polls about Obamacare/Democare reveal that a majority of Americans disapprove of it while only about 38% approve of it. It looks like the more we see of it the less we like it.
Not long ago he was speechifying and carelessly admitted that the bill was purposefully written to be as confusing and obtuse as it could be. He stated that if the public had known of the realities and the costs of the bill it could not have passed. He was speaking proudly, bragging of hustling the American public. He even stated that the American public was “stupid”. Here’s what Gruber said: “Lack of transparency is a huge political advantage. And basically, call it the ‘stupidity of the American voter’ or whatever, but basically that was really, really critical to getting the thing to pass.” He also said: “This bill was written in a tortured way to make sure [the Congressional Budget Office] did not score the mandate as taxes. If CBO scored the mandate as taxes, the bill dies. OK? So it’s written to do that. In terms of risk-rated subsidies, if you had a law which said healthy people are going to pay in — you made explicit that healthy people pay in and sick people get money — it would not have passed. OK? Lack of transparency is a huge political advantage.” It is a sorry fact that Team Obama had to lie to the American public and the CBO to pass Obamacare/Democare. This is just another item of proof that an attitude of contempt for the American voter and the truth is an essential attribute if you want to be a member of Obama’s team. It is elitist arrogance at its worst. You’ve got to wonder why so many Democrat legislators failed to do their job of understanding the law that they were enacting. Remember that every Democrat Senator voted for Obamacare/Democare. BTW…if you have chosen not to participate in Obamacare/Democare, grab your ankles….the penalty for not signing up triples this year. Smile. |
FTR’S RESPONSE: Yep, you’re right, I was wrong. In fact there have been several black senators, Obama was one of them. I failed to sufficiently qualify my statement concerning Scott’s election. I failed to add the qualifying statement that Scott was the first Black Senator elected in the south since Reconstruction. Sorry.
Its approval rating is certain to plummet even further when the public learns of the comments and attitude of one of the bills chief architects and a paid consultant to the Obama admin, Jonathan Gruber. He was paid nearly half a million of your tax dollars by Obama for his work on Obamacare/Democare.