That was the headline in my local paper last Thursday.

In Holmdel New Jersey:

the first-aid volunteers who use their own cars for calls are not reimbursed for the gasoline they use when responding to an emergency.

An average round trip to and from the local hospital is 24 miles and an full shift average for them...they could make five trips in shift....125 miles..that adds up at the pump fer sure.

the article states that most of the volunteers using their own cars on fixed incomes. I'm going to interpret that to mean they are retired.

Also the same thing is happening in my town right next door. and I imagine it's happening all over.

I wonder what's going to happen to the American Cancer Society's driver program..volunteers drive cancer patients to and from chemo treatments. I did it for a year...the average was a lot more than 25 miles per trip because those folks were restricted by their HMO's and there's no VA hospital around here offering chemo.

And, I heard from a friend that there is at least one food pantry he knows of that can't afford to deliver the food to their clients who can't get to the pantry themselves due to lack of public transportation or they can't afford to put a little gas in their car.


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This is George Bush's and his base's wet dream...Grover Norquist is chilling the champaign..and the tree hugging Greeneis say "let them raise it to $10.00 a gallon if that's what it takes to get American's to conserve."..Gee Greenies, what's your plan for keeping volunteer first-aiders and drivers for the ACS in the road?

Tree-hugging greenies? Gee, you almost make it sound like an uncomplimentary label.

That said, how do you suppose the tree-hugging greenies are getting around? Perhaps, aside from those who are not doing it on bicycles and skateboards, there are some viable alternatives also available to "volunteer first-aiders and drivers for the ACS."

BTW, as you follow the reports on "first-aid" folk and ACS drivers immediately with -


- is the implication really what you mean - that the agenda for GW and GN is in part to thwart volunteer efforts?

I'd always understood the basic agenda they shared was to get the government out of helping people - individuals, reserving its largess for a select handful of wealthy and well-connected people, firms and industries, with generous volunteers (aka "the community") taking over the helping-hand aspects.

I'd argue recent developments actually run contrary to their shared agenda, but for the fact that I don't believe they actually give a shit either way about those genuinely in need, and so caring about whether the community's help is truly available is irrelevant.

They have cut down on police patrols and Meals on Wheels for the elderly have lost a lot of their volunteers.

Every dead SS recipient is "cash in the bank".
You aren't against "growing" the economy, are you?
How patriotic

If I weren't staring SS in the face your humor would be more appreciated but as it is what is going to happen in 10 years, 20 years, should the baby boomers just die and deplete the excess population?

How about paying the first-aiders for their gas usage? Just because Republicans don't want to pay for the defense of America doesn't mean that those people who defend America should pay for it out of their own pockets.

I never understood the Republican's belief that they can get something for nothing by getting other people to pay for it.

That kinda seems the Rep gameplan, except for "the haves"

Thank you Bushwa for pointing that out. In my head I'm not putting Greenies in the same bucket, but I guess I did when I put them back to back like that.

I'm just so dang mad... Everyone wants lower prices but nobody want's to give up their air conditioning, their creature comforts, their routine. If that keeps up the government will be able to handle and absorb the unrest, arrest the occasional resister and we will fall into Fascism. It will be a silent coup.

I just hate to read about the real human suffering skyrocketing fuel costs are generating. That it's all by design makes it is terrorism for sure. OPEC announced if anyone bombs Iran the barrel price for oil will immediately be $400.00/bbl. I can't find that source on the internets, but that was news that I heard last week or the week before on NovaM Radio news.


Then you got ANWR and global warming and I wonder, 'What happens to the pipelines that are resting on top of permafrost when the ground melts?'

Bushwa asked:

No, not at all; the former doesn't give a rats ass about the has-lessors and the has-leasts. Indeed, this will be the Repukes opportunity to privatize first-aid. As far as the Greenies go...I guess I'm getting too much of an earful of complaining about the Greenies from my Conservative Republican sister and from my brother-in-law, the Conservative Republican who live in Alberta, (they're over run with spotted owls now, poor dears, and because they invest they know how Greenies can stall a project and drive up costs indefinitely for the minutest things so they see Greenies from a different angle than I do). (p.s., I did not know that Greenies also want smaller government)

Personally I think it's high time industry hired more Greenie design engineers/operating systems guru's and acted on their suggestions before they call in the investors. But I'm not to happy about them looking forward, almost, to $10.00/bbl oil because that's what they think it takes to get the sheeple's attention. There will be riots and destruction. before the sheeple wake up. HalliBurton is counting on it and has been building jails/detention centers all across America...just waiting.

If either Israel or the US bombs Iran...fuggetaboudit.

Yeah, First-Aide should fall under homeland security! Oh. I forgot, DHS will only get involved if they can privatize it and run it for profit.

How about about green vehicles for towns....bio-diesel ambulances...and any volunteer who buys a hybrid gets a tax writer-off for it, just like Bush gave to the Hummer buyers and buyers of SUVs like the Escalade and other gas guzzling SUV's.

Yeah, and what about Child Protective Services transportation costs?????

And here in my county of Monmouth, the Repuke Freeholders who are currently in the majority want to close the youth detention center to "save taxpayers money". That means the kids here will have to be transported even farther, twice as far at least, to the next county of either Mercer or Middlesex, to be processed adding to overtime costs of arresting officers and increased fuel expense further taxing the reserves of the towns here driving costs up exponentially, not to mention the hardship put on the families who have to travel that much further to visit family members, but at least the expense of the detention center can be removed from the budget. That way the Repukes can blame the Policeman's Union for high OT payments when re-election time rolls around, and justify not giving P.O's a pay raise when a pay raise is warranted. Oh and they can brag about removing millions in costs from the County budget.

I would have no trouble believing it. Look at how they've gutted the food and drug administration and all the problems we are now having with tainted meat and vegetables.

Precisely. Just wait till the school year starts, they are already talking about cut backs in bus service. We are just seeing the tip of the iceberg so far. We are in a world of hurt and it's just now starting to hit.

Hey, I know your neck of the woods well. Used to live behind that big movie theatre in Middletown, on the road to East Keansburg (?) or North Middletown now I guess. You reminded me of something I need to do, thanks.

I was thinking about my personal situation. I live in a rural area. To see friends, go out to dinner or hang is about a 40 mile drive round trip. I got a big vehicle in case I hit a deer stuck in headlights. That trip used to cost 5 bux now 20 dollars.

How does that figure in with the Pursuit of Happiness ?

Hey, I know your neck of the woods well. Used to live behind that big movie theatre in Middletown, on the road to East Keansburg (?) or North Middletown now I guess. You reminded me of something I need to do, thanks.

I was thinking about my personal situation. I live in a rural area. To see friends, go out to dinner or hang is about a 40 mile drive round trip. I got a big vehicle in case I hit a deer stuck in headlights. That trip used to cost 5 bux now 20 dollars.

How does that figure in with the Pursuit of Happiness ?

Brother, you've been gone a while, eh? It was replaced by a Target. There's a megaplex a little further up where the drive-in used to be. Do you remember the Hazlet Drive-in from years ago?

I dunno how rising gas prices figures in to the pursuit of happiness unless it's a call to get active politically and replace every stinking BigOil Whore in the Congress and the Senate with new Progressive blood and to get meaningful campaign finance reform passed.

Yes, I was living there when people were trying to save the Hazlet drive-in from being wiped out. Was a pretty good Greek Diner up the Road from there right ? In fact there was a diner near that theatre in Middletown, so I guess it's gone now too ? If there is a Target at the other place then 35 must be a mess unless they cleaned that up. Oh well, way things are going, Target will be closing stores soon too, ya just never know.

Anyway, I can't do anything about gasolene prices, I am not One of the Good-Ole_Boys from Post Oaks, Houston, Tx. Just feels like Economic oppression you know, another way to suppress the masses. I guess high gas prices are here to stay. Iran is waving the sables again today so up up up goes the price of Earle. Must have been something the Dummy said while this latest roadtrip. Am sure Japan makes good ice cream too.

Wish I lived near that Train Station in Middletown but not Hazlet, witnessed a crossing fatality there. I remember deer crossing the tracks down there too, would not have thought they would be so close to the suburbs. Ya know, Rebublicants are holding up everything in Congress then blaming it on Democrats. McConnell ought to just stick his tongue on that third rail of Medicare and grab the nearest grounded rod. That would be fun to see, electrifying I tell you, electrifying.