Cleo's Mom

Because this forum isn't just for success stories. And my experience is valid and to show that the band doesn't work for everyone so that others don't think that it's just them and they are alone in what they often call their failure when it isn't due to anything they did. And where did I attack the band? I have told the truth about my experience about the band. If you think that's attacking the band, then that's your problem.

It was unions that built the middle class Posted: Saturday, August 26, 2006 By By Richard A. Levins MinutemanMedia.org As Labor Day approaches, it's time for an honest assessment of where working people are. Wages, even for college graduates, are falling behind inflation. The number of families in poverty is growing. The middle-class debt load is off the charts and the personal savings rate is below zero. The costs of a college education, of health insurance, of energy for heating and driving, and of pharmaceuticals grow out of reach for more Americans with each passing day. What economists call the "income distribution" is, from a middle class perspective, as bad as it has been since the Great Depression. During the Roaring '20s, the split between rich and poor grew exceptionally large, leaving relatively few in the middle class. In the decades following the Depression, things began to change for the better as income and wealth became more evenly distributed. But now we are back to where we were as the nation stood on the brink of its greatest economic catastrophe ever. The very rich are richer than ever, but the rest of us are falling behind at an increasingly rapid pace. The history of labor unions in America helps tell the story of why we are losing the middle class. Private-sector unionization was legislated during the Depression. Union membership grew into the mid-20th century, then began a slow decline that continues today. Remember the income distribution numbers: a weak middle class in the Depression, a strong middle class in the decades following, and a weakening middle class now. The way these numbers generally track those for union activity is no coincidence. Unions equalize power in the market place between those who work and those who own something. Those who work are the stuff of which the middle class is made. Those who own fill the ranks of the very wealthy. When the balance of power is with labor unions, the gains from production stay with the middle class. When the balance shifts as it has today, the very wealthy take an ever-larger share from economic activity. As the very wealthy become even more so, they do not spend money in the way middle-class people do. After all, how many houses and cars, no matter how fine, can one have? Once people have more money than they can possibly spend on goods and services, they no longer use it in ways that stimulate the economy. Instead, they use the power their money brings to get more tax breaks, less regulation, more support for globalization, and policies that favor capital over labor. The middle class continues to weaken. In spite of all this, we are told not to worry, because the United States is becoming what some politicians call an "ownership society." Instead of supporting unions that bring decent wages to working people, we are advised to buy shares in the corporations that profit when wages are falling. Meanwhile, we ignore the most important aspect of our economy -- that we are a great market for goods and services. The trouble with all strategies that trade good jobs for cheap toasters is that they eventually erode that very market for the goods and services. A handful of hyper-wealthy individuals, along with millions of people living on the economic edge, are not the sound, stable market needed for growth. Only the middle class, with buying power widely distributed, can provide that. And that is what we are losing today. This Labor Day, let's remember that rebalancing power in the economy is essential if the middle class is to thrive. Doing this, however, will require more than our government alone reasonably can be expected to deliver. We must act together in the marketplace as well. The way to do that is the way we have always done it -- to join and support the unions that built the middle class in the first place. Richard A. Levins is a senior fellow at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy -- www.iatp.org. He is a professor emeritus of Applied Economics at the University of Minnesota. His most recent book, "Middle Class * Union Made" is available from Itasca Books at www.itascabooks.com

"I'm proud to be here with people who understand that it's more than just sending an email to get you going. Every once and awhile you need to get out on the streets and get a little bloody when necessary," Rep. Mike Capuano (D-Ma.) told a crowd in Boston on Tuesday rallying in solidarity for Wisconsin union members. He's absolutely right. Our history is filled with stories about those working class people who took to the streets to support better wages, safer working conditions ,etc and were beaten, or even killed. They were our martyrs. So, our streets are red with the blood of those who fought for the things we enjoy and take for granted today. Today's protestors know this.

WI voters are having buyer's remorse: A Public Policy Polling survey of Wisconsin voters indicates that if given the chance to redo November's elections, they would vote for Walker's opponent, Tom Barrett. If an election were held today, Barrett would defeat Walker 52 percent to 45 percent, according to the firm's findings. Most of this change stems from a sharp decline in support from union families (go figure) who would vote against Walker by 31-points, up from 14 in November. The good news for Walker is that a good chunk of that 17 point drop is camped outside his office building at this very instant. So if he acts now he can avoid a tiresome statewide campaign swing in one fell swoop. [PPP] Americans around the country are not on Walker's side and neither are the voters of Wisconsin. This man's political career is over. One term governor. Also, to prove that he isn't concerned about jobs (just union busting) - he turned down billions in federal money for a rail system that would create about 5500 jobs. That money, and the jobs, are now going to Illinois.

And the point of your post is??? That if your band worked for you it should work for everyone? We're all just turning cartwheels that yours was a textbook case of success but for you to assume that for those us for whom the band doesn't work didn't follow the rules is just not true. Have you not taken the time to read these posts? Seriously, those of us who have problems with the band DESPITE FOLLOWING THE RULES don't need posts like this that just come across as smug. Post them on lapband success stories where they belong. They offer nothing to the dialogue here.

ElfiePoo; That's where I am. A band that has never controlled hunger or provided for satiety. So now that it is unfilled I don't get stuck but it does provide some restriction. I can feel pressure/pain if eat too fast or the wrong foods. I don't have the capacity for food at any one sitting that I used to have - but again none of this translates to a sensation of satiety or keeps me from being hungry. I have lost 75 lbs but most of that was from me alone, not the band. I started my weight loss journey in January 2006 and didn't have surgery until September 2008. By that time I had lost 40 pounds (includes 20 from the 6 month pre-op diet required). Then another 10 on the 2 week liquid pre-op diet and another 10 on the 2 week post op diet. So 2 weeks after surgery I had lost 60 pounds. I didn't have as much to lose as some people - I started at a BMI of 34.8 before surgery. In a few months after surgery I lost 15 pounds for a total of 75lbs and that's been it ever since. I think someone on here posted that perhaps they weren't as successful with the band because they had already lost a lot of weight pre-band and I think that is true for me too. I mean if you're eating habits were fast food, junk food, lots of calorie laden pop, etc and you didn't have to do the 6 month diet or the liquid pre op diet and then got the band - you'd be singing the praises about how much weight you are losing. Because it would represent a huge change in calorie consumption. But that is a different issue than the band NEVER controlling my hunger which is the number one reason I got it. I hope you get your issue resolved and get to a pain free point. And I hope you find something that works for you. Keep us posted. I care.

Biden: Unions Created America's Middle Class Appearing before a packed Pipe Fitters union hall in Opa-Locka, Fla., Sen. Joe Biden set the tone for his 90-minute Working Families Vote 2008 town hall meeting right off the bat. I'm in the U.S. Senate because of the union movement. I got elected by 3,000 votes in 1972 because of organized labor. Biden, wearing a suit and a Pipefitters Local 725 hat, spoke with more than 250 boisterous union members who'd gathered to participate in the town hall, part of a series the AFL-CIO is holding with presidential candidates in cities across the nation. Biden's appearance combined serious discussion about policy on issues like the war in Iraq, retirement security and the freedom to join and form unions with personaloften poignantrecollections of how the union movement helped shape his career. He also showed a penchant for humor, peppering his remarks with amusing anecdotes that the crowd of union workers clearly enjoyed. In the neighborhood I grew up in, you either became a fireman, policeman or a priest. I couldn't do any of those things so I became a U.S. senator. In his opening remarks, Biden went after the Bush administration's appalling record on workers' rights. This president didn't just declare war on Iraq, he declared war on the union movement in this country…for this (administration), labor reform means get out of the way. Biden went on to praise the union movement as "the only thing that keeps the barbarians at the gate." "There is a middle class in this country for one reason and only one reason: the union movement," Biden said to roaring applause.

Move over corporate-sponsored tea party phonies - these are real middle class people in support of real middle class issues: http://front.moveon.org/50-photos-from-the-50-state-rallies-to-save-the-american-dream/?id=26344-1468554-EpcmAox

Add to this poll that 3, maybe 4, moderate republican WI senators are thinking about voting no on Walker's bill. Walker is not going to pass this union busting bill without some kind of compromise. Mon Feb 28, 2011 at 06:47 PM EST Yes, Breaking: CBS/NYT Poll Shows Huge Support for Unions CBS/NYT just released their polling on unions. Wisconsin governor Scott Walker and his Republican buddies will not be happy with the results. On collective bargaining rights: Americans oppose weakening the bargaining rights of public employee unions by a margin of nearly two to one: 60 percent to 33 percent. While a slim majority of Republicans favored taking away some bargaining rights, they were outnumbered by large majorities of Democrats and independents who said they opposed weakening them. By party ID: The poll found that an overwhelming 71 percent of Democrats opposed weakening collective bargaining rights. But there was also strong opposition from independents: 62 percent of them said they opposed taking bargaining rights away from public employee unions. Independents on our side in big numbers - I like the sound of that. And a 2:1 edge overall? That's landslide territory, not even close. On cutting pay and benefits: Those surveyed said they opposed, 56 percent to 37 percent, cutting the pay or benefits of public employees to reduce deficits, breaking down along similar party lines. A majority of respondents who have no union members living in their households opposed both cuts in pay or benefits and taking away the collective bargaining rights of public employees. The above is the question that most often tilts away from us, at least in the context of these recessionary times. Could it be that Republicans are SO overplaying their hands that there's a backlash brewing in favor of unions, even on pay issues? Also, again - independents and non-union households...on our side. On current pay levels: 61 percent of those polled — including just over half of Republicans — said they thought the salaries and benefits of most public employees were either “about right” or “too low” for the work they do. OK, now we're really cooking. Even Republicans don't think pay is too high for public sector employees? Holy cow. Something's going on here. The numbers are slightly tighter for whether retirement benefits are too generous for public workers - but even there, the plurality tilts toward the union position. Forty-nine percent said police officers and firefighters should be able to retire and begin receiving pension checks even if they are in their 40s or 50s; 44 percent said they should have to be older. There was a similar divide on whether teachers should be able to retire and draw pensions before they are 65. Folks, we're going to win this. The numbers are just too lopsided. It's no wonder some Republicans are starting to back down, even those not known for moderation, like Florida's Rick Scott. The tide is turning. Let's keep fighting. Update: And a few other interesting points: Asked how they would choose to reduce their state’s deficits, those polled preferred tax increases over benefit cuts for state workers by nearly two to one. When tax increases poll better than your position, you've got a bit of a problem. Listening, Gov?

It was when the workers, who through their sweat and blood and who created the profits for their rich employers, rose up and went on strike and died for it but who in the end were able to negotiate for better wages and working conditions. This was the beginning of the middle class. Up until this time, there were two classes - the very rich and the poor (the workers who made the very rich rich). As time went on and workers were able to negotiate for better wages, better working conditions, the end of child labor, the 40 hour work week, overtime, etc.. the middle class exploded and America grew and prospered. As union membership declined so has the middle class and this coincides with the wealthy getting wealthier while holding more of the wealth in fewer hands. That is the ultimate goal of those on the right - to go back to that two class system - the poor and the very rich, but not before they cut most of the funding for the poor. And there we'll be - back to where we were at the beginning of the 20th century. That's what they mean when they say "taking our country back"

Not necessarily. My idiot former surgeon had a nutritionist and they weren't on the same page about what to eat post op.

I've noticed that many of us who have problems with the band have a 4cc band. This is not a call for all the successful 4cc bandsters to reply - it's just something that I noticed. It takes expertiese to fill them, unlike the clod my idiot former surgeon was with two slams 1cc, then 2cc's. I am going to give you the advice I have given many time to those with problems: Get a copy of all your test results, pre and post surgery but most importantly the operative report. Ask for the serial number of your band and contact the maker of the band with your story. Find out when it was manufactured. You will also learn it's expiration date (for sterility). All this might be a huge eye opener and all of it is information you are entitled to. Plus this will show your surgeon that you mean business. Then find a surgeon who is willing to give you a second opinion. Your insurance might pay for this. Then take all these test results for the second opinion. That's how I found my current surgeon. He gave me the second opinion and told me I didn't have a 10cc band like my former surgeon told me but rather a 4cc band. I quickly left my former surgeon and went to the new one and never looked back. Good luck and let us know how things go.

Wow, ElfiePoo. I could have written much of what you have. I have a 4cc band and was filled with 1cc then 2cc by my idiot former surgeon. Slam, bam - which you can't do with a 4cc band. It has to be filled with finesse. At 3cc's it was too tight and I had major problems of pain, reflux, heartburn. My doctor blamed it on me. When I tried to eat it caused pain, so I would eat just a little and very slowly like they tell you. And I physically couldn't eat anymore but I WAS STILL HUNGRY AND NOT THE LEAST BIT SATISFIED. So I would wait awhile and eat a little more. You are not supposed to have to do this. But even then I wasn't satisfied. It was a horrible experience. I was hungry at 1cc, too. But now I am unfilled now and still hungry but I don't have the other problems, including getting stuck. I was lucky that I did find a new surgeon - the one I went to for a second opinion armed with a huge folder full of my records, reports, test results and CD's of upper GI's. Do you think getting a total unfill might be a first step to try before you get your band removed? Wow, I just hope you get this all resolved and I am so glad you posted this. And just let any of the rah, rah, cheerleaders for and defenders of the band dare enter here and try to blame us.

I would be very suspicious of a doctor who won't tell you what size band you have. I got a copy of my operative report (you should ask for yours) and that's how I found out my former doctor lied to me about the size band I had. He told me a 10cc when it was 4cc. That explained why I was having so many problems with a 3cc fill. I couldn't figure out why only 3cc's in a 10cc band would cause so many problems. One of many reasons he is my former surgeon.

This just validates the point I have made often on here that I don't think a lot of surgeons know what the hell they are doing beyond the basic surgical implantation of the band. And even then there's room for improvement (left shoulder pain, etc..) They are all over the place with what they require of patients pre-band and post band with regard to eating, pre-and post op liquid diets (if they even require them). how the band works, drinking, Protein, everything. And what he told you is in contradiction to those who post that you get a feeling of fullness (satiety) from the food in the pouch pressing on the vagus nerve and from that often posted website of the doctor who says the band isn't about restriction and indeed the food doesn't remain in the pouch very long. Everyone who replies will tell you what their doctor told them about liquids and it will vary greatly. There just isn't a standard of care/rules, etc.. with the band and if they knew how it worked there would be.

In the never ending saga of republican hypocrisy we have this story. Now keep in mind that thirteen republican state attorney generals are suing the federal government over the Affordable Health care and that they are using tax payer money to do so. If they are so cash strapped, where are they getting this money? Nebraska is one of those states and the Nebraska republican governor Heineman has the nerve to go hat in hand to the federal government. It sure takes cajones. Also, keep in mind that these same republican governors who regularly bash Obama and the federal government and the stimulus were more than happy to take that stimulus with one hand while criticizing it with the other. Now, they want the federal government to bail them out by not making spending cuts that will affect them. Hmmm. I thought the republicans said they had a mandate from the people to cut spending. But again, in true hypcritical fashion - they support cuts as long as it doesn't affect them (and that goes for people who support cuts in spending too - as long as they don't lose their job or are otherwise affected by the cuts then they're okay.) Governors to feds: Avoid causing states any more painSunday, February 27, 2011By Liz Sidoti, The Associated PressWASHINGTON -- Their states on the brink of financial catastrophe, governors pleaded Saturday for the divided federal government to avoid doing anything that would hamper the tenuous economic recovery back home. Their message to Washington: Prevent a government shutdown, abstain from spending cuts that dramatically will affect states and end even preliminary discussions about allowing states to declare bankruptcy. "Anything that Congress does that will undermine our recovery is quite troublesome to us," said Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire, head of the National Governors Association, as she opened the bipartisan group's winter meeting. "We're asking for cooperation." "We don't need a hiccup now in our recovery," she added. "We are fragile." States have made $75 billion in budget cuts and raised taxes by $33 billion over the past two years to make up for budget shortfalls caused by the recession. Governors drained reserve cash funds and oversaw several rounds of severe budget cuts, so much so that Republicans and Democrats alike now are focused on how to completely remake state governments. The overall economic situation in states is improving. "Recovering, not recovered," as Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, a Democrat, put it. High unemployment persists. Even more dire budget situations are to come. Over the next 21/2 years, states face an estimated $175 billion more in budget gaps that they have no choice but to fill. The hole is caused partly because an initial infusion of cash from President Barack Obama's economic stimulus law, as well as extensions of that money, will dry up in June. States received $103 billion in Medicaid money and $48 billion in education dollars to soften the recession's blow. Ms. Gregoire and the NGA's vice chairman, Gov. Dave Heineman, R-Neb., recently met with House and Senate leaders as well as Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, and asked them to be mindful of how the loss of the money, as well as further spending cuts, could hurt states. The warnings come just as the Commerce Department reported that state and local responses to the fiscal crisis were undercutting the national recovery, slowing economic growth. Governors said the report only proved their point. "For two years, governors have said when we cut we impact the recovery," said Ms. Gregoire. "We know we have to make the cuts, but we can ill afford to have Congress on top of that cutting us more because the result will slow the recovery in our home states and in the nation." Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe, a Democrat, noted that, unlike the federal government, states are required to balance their budgets. Noting the painful cuts, he said, "We don't have any choice." To ease the pain, Maine Gov. Paul LePage, a Republican, urged the federal government to loosen regulations that he says are hindering the recovery. The governors met in Washington as Republicans who control the House and Democrats who run the Senate are in a high-stakes debate over the federal budget and trillion-dollar deficits. GOP leaders have faced pressure from a contingent of newly elected tea party-supported lawmakers to cut spending even deeper than originally planned, setting up a clash with the White House and Senate Democrats over legislation necessary to keep the government running past this coming Friday's deadline.

ABSOLUTELY AWESOME POST!! You really nailed it. I have always said that if the band did what it was supposed to and curbed my hunger - I would take care of the rest - eating small amounts, eating healthy, chewing, not drinking with meals and exercising. Well, I have done and continue to do all those things but the band NEVER curbed my hunger at any fill level so now I am unfilled and there is no difference in hunger. The only difference is that I don't get stuck. I can still get a pressure or uncomfortable feeling if I eat too fast but after everything I've been through it's just living with hunger. And you're right - it shouldn't be about willpower because if it were - then we wouldn't need the surgery. I read so many smug posts that elude to that. My husband died at age 56 of esophageal cancer after years of GERD that turned into Barett's esophagus that turned into cancer. And you don't survive esophageal cancer even if caught early (and he was getting yearly scopes so his was caught very early). So all this reflux, GERD, heartburn and vomiting that those who rely on a too tight band experience will someday have grave consequences.

Obviously I wasn't talking about posters like you. You haven't been on here as long as I have. I have seen MANY posters who put up with a lot of unhealthy side effects to get to that number on the scale. They do this at their own peril. And as for the band working - it does for some and it doesn't for others. It doesn't work for me and I have followed all the rules.

Ask yourself why he is your fiance and what you expect of a life married to him. Count me among those who say to get rid of him. The quicker the better. He does not sound like someone you can count on or who cares about you.

The above demonstrates my point that the left doesn't really care about "fairness" or whatever; they just want to destroy America. This is a serious charge and of course you offer no proof. You don't even define what "destroy America" means. Because the unions created the middle class in America and the middle class is America.

Of the 28 other (not right to work states) 20 of them have a positive general fund balance. It's not surprising that half of the rtw states are in the south. They've been in a race to the bottom for a long time - just look at any measure - education level, quality of schools, income, health, etc.. and the south fares poorly.

Here is the list of the 22 states. Of them, Alabama, Arizona, Idaho, Kansas, Mississippi either have a negative general fund balance or they spend more than their revenues: The following states have passed right to work legislation: Alabama Arizona Arkansas Florida Georgia Idaho Iowa Kansas Louisiana Mississippi Nebraska Nevada North Carolina North Dakota Oklahoma South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Virginia Wyoming

Something to think about... > > > > Only 5 states do not have collective bargaining for educators and have deemed > it > > illegal. Those states and their ranking on ACT/SAT scores are as follows: > > > > South Carolina - 50th > > North Carolina - 49th > > Georgia - 48th > > Texas - 47th > > Virginia - 44th > > > > If you are wondering, Wisconsin, with its collective bargaining for teachers, > is > > ranked 2nd in the country. > > > Below is the link to view all 50 states. > > and the item from The Economist! > > http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/states/USCHARTsat.html > > > > http://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2011/02/unions > >

When even a reporter for the republican cable news station "gets it" you have to know how blatant the union busting in WI and elsewhere is: He also said that of the top 10 contributors to the last election 7 were corporate and went to republicans, the other 3 were unions and went to democrats, so, he said, it's easy to see why the republicans want to bust unions - they want the democrats to lose a big part of their base. It's not about collective bargaining or what carter did or how much teachers make or any of those other distractions (hey, look over there) - it's about busting unions and the democratic party. Fox’s Shep Smith: Pretending Wisconsin Is About A Fiscal Crisis Is “Malarkey” Smith’s conversation today with commentator Juan Williams would likely surprise loyal viewers of both Fox News and MSNBC. Shep’s repeated assertion that there is no longer a budget crisis in Wisconsin and that the battle in the state is all about politics and union-busting was most shocking because that’s the exact argument many of MSNBC’s commentators have made, and continue to be suggesting. Shep suggested that the Democratic party could be in big trouble if their biggest donors, the unions, lose their power and summed it up as “bust the unions – it’s over.” Furthermore, Shep brought up the fact that the “Koch brothers, among others, were organizing to try to bust labor – it’s what big business wants to do.” Given that the Koch brothers contributed to the campaign of Wisconsin Governor Walker, Shep said people should not be surprised that now they want unions busted. Despite Shep claiming “I’m not taking a side on this, I’m telling you what’s going on,” Williams warned Shep that “just by telling the facts, you’re angering a lot of people.” Oddly, it seems Shep’s unexpected disclosure of facts does give some credence to at least the Koch brothers component of Ed Schultz’s argument that the union showdown is part of a right wing “master plan.” However, given that Shep adamantly declared “to pretend this is about a fiscal crisis in the state of Wisconsin is malarkey,” it seems like Fox News’ participation in such a “master plan” isn’t what Schultz might have suspected