It might have been, but raising $1.3M doesn’t mean you’ll make a ton of money yourself. It just means you’re good at your job. He might have been making $40K a year, which in Texas, is respectable, but not necessarily enough to guarantee the ability to pay for health insurance.
Freshman Congressman Allen West, who represents Florida’s 22nd congressional district, has come out against President Obama’s green energy initiative on Fox News. Oddly enough, he had appealed to two different agencies in his first months in office for federal largesse for renewable energy and transportation projects in his home state of Florida.
West, writing with three other members from the Florida delegation, said the funding would “reduce fragmentation” and “upgrade the rooftop solar market” in Broward County, part of which is in Florida’s 22nd congressional district that West represents.
“If funded by the Department of Energy, this innovative program will benefit residents, small commercial establishments, the local economy, and environment for many years to come,” West and his colleagues wrote. “We are proud to support solar power as a smart choice for commercial and residential property owners, as well as the development of new and innovative strategies to reduce market barriers and costs.”
He had also publicly opposed federal stimulus money on improving infrastructure and yet once in office he wrote to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood seeking federal funds to improve a traffic corridor in West Palm Beach.
Right back to crazy town we are.
One of Florida’s largest counties will stop adding fluoride to the water supply before the end of the year, commissioners decided this week, in a move that some opponents say was influenced more by tea party propaganda than it was by health or financial considerations.
The issue was pushed by tea party activists, charged one commissioner who voted to keep fluoride in Pinellas County’s water supply. Fluoride is a chemical credited with dramatically reducing cavities and tooth decay.
WarrenM
1604
And then in 10 years when everyone has cavities, they can retroactively blame Obamacare somehow. It’s perfect.
What, you gonna trust some dentist with a fancy “post-graduate” degree from some silver spoon school to tell you what’s good for your teeth?
I’m about as left as they come (well, outside of Code Pink types), and I’m not particularly in favor of more crap than necessary in my drinking water. IMHO people can teach their kids to brush their damn teeth properly, thanks.
WarrenM
1607
Realistically, just putting it in the water is easier and better for society at large.
Are there any medical studies that show that flouride in water is unhealthy?
JoshV
1609
Yeah, aren’t there some pretty obvious studies showing the benefits from way back when they decided to add the flouride?
Fine, if that’s what the majority of people drinking the water in a community want. I’ll still filter that shit if so, and I’ll still vote against it.
You know what also helps against kids getting cavities? Not having them run around with a freakin’ “juice box” or soft drink in their hand 24/7. Their appetite at mealtimes also improves markedly, and they don’t end up being big ol’ fatties before they’re 12 years old, either. Amazing! What will science discover next?
ShivaX
1611
I can find you about 10k crazed conspiracy theorists who will tell you all about it.
There are approximately 744,000 Google search results for “fluoride mind control” (not in quotes).
Athryn
1613
This is one of the stupidest opinions I’ve ever seen on these boards. I bet you think vaccines cause autism, too.
It was recently removed from the water supply here in Calgary too, and from what I recall the debate wasn’t so much about negative effects but the claims were that it didn’t show enough positive effect, a general resentment of ‘forced medication’, and that it would save some money.
But this is Alberta…
WarrenM
1615
It wasn’t put in the water on a whim or to take over your parenting duties. It was put in because studies showed that it improved … oh you know what? Fuck it. You obviously know best.
O RLY? You don’t think childhood obesity (and tooth decay, BTW) is caused at least in part by drinking lots of fructose- or sucrose- laden fluids all day?
And no, I don’t think vaccines cause autism, thanks. I just don’t want extra crap in my water. What’s so hard to understand about that?
And WarrenM, I’m not a parent. As I said, if the majority in my community wants to add flouride to the water, fine. I don’t have to drink it, do I?
Also, supposedly “there’s no scientific evidence” against the practice of putting rBst in dairy products. I still don’t want that shit in my milk.
Athryn
1617
What I want to know is how flouride in the drinking water causes childhood obesity.
I know, but I was wondering if there was any reputable research that questions the use of it?
Please show me where I made that claim. I was simply suggesting a way that parents might (if they have the stones to stand up to their 4 year-olds) reduce the chance of their kids getting cavities, and as a side benefit reduce their chance of them getting fat.
Anyway, whatever. You drink what you want and I’ll drink what I want.
