Economy forced you to consider career change?
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
Millions and millions of Americans have lost their jobs since this recession started in December of 2007; and the unemployment rate is expected to top 10-percent before the end of this year.
Job opportunities in the health care industry are on the rise.
The harsh reality is that a lot of these people have remained out of work for a very long time. Many of the businesses that used to employ them - the auto industry, finance, real estate and construction - have also been hit hard by the recession.
At the same time, other fields - like health care, clean energy, computer science and government - are expected to grow a lot in the years to come.
USA Today reports that millions of Americans are making dramatic job changes. A survey by Career-Builder shows 71-percent of workers who were laid off and haven't found jobs yet say they're looking for work outside their fields. This could mean the unemployment rate stays higher for longer - as workers need time to get training and then find jobs in a new field.
And these transitions aren't always easy. Sometimes the unemployed have to spend thousands of dollars getting that training - to learn skills needed for a new career. And then they find they have to take pay cuts.
The government is trying to help... the economic stimulus package included $4 billion over three-years to help retrain and place unemployed people in new jobs.
Here’s my question to you: Has the economy forced you to consider a career change?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Will truth about Jackson's death come out?
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
It might be a long time - if ever - before the public finds out what really happened to Michael Jackson. The Los Angeles coroner's office has now indefinitely delayed releasing the results of Jackson's autopsy.
After meeting with police, they say further investigation is necessary. Initially - the coroner said they might release results next week.
This is nonsense. Jackson died June 25 - more than a month ago - and officials still can't say what killed him. Investigators are trying to find out what substances he had in his body and if a powerful anesthetic - that's only supposed to be administered in hospitals - played a role.
Meanwhile search warrants filed in a Nevada court suggest that Jackson was a drug addict. Investigators believe searches of Dr. Conrad Murray's home and office will turn up evidence of excessive prescribing, prescribing to an addict, unprofessional conduct and finally, manslaughter.
A source tells CNN that Dr. Murray allegedly gave Jackson the anesthetic Propofol in the 24-hours before he died. Murray continues to deny that he prescribed or administered anything that could have killed the pop star.
It seems like the events surrounding Jackson's death will drag on forever - as those close to him play the blame game; and probably more than a few of them hope to get their hands on Jackson's estate, estimated to be worth at least $200 million.
Here’s my question to you: Will the truth about Michael Jackson’s death ever come out?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Should beer summit have yielded apologies?
Pres. Obama (R), Sgt. Crowley (2nd R), Prof. Gates (2nd L), and VP Biden (L) drank beers on the White House South last night. The so-called Beer Summit was held after Crowley arrested Gates at his home, sparking tensions and racial furor. (PHOTO CREDIT: SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
After beers at the White House - Sgt. James Crowley and Prof. Henry Gates say their talks were productive and that they plan to meet again.
The two men - at the center of what grew into a national conversation on race - met with President Obama and Vice President Biden at a patio table outside the White House.
Crowley says it was a frank discussion - that they agreed to move forward rather than dwell on the past. He didn't give more specifics except to say that no one apologized. Gates says he hopes the experience will "prove an occasion for education, not recrimination."
President Obama said he was thankful to both men for joining him for a "friendly, thoughtful conversation." The White House is probably glad to have this meeting done with, hoping the president can get the nation to focus on his priority of health care.
It probably wasn't the president's finest moment - a new Pew poll shows 41-percent of those surveyed disapproved of the president's handling of the Gates arrest - only 29 percent approved.
Gates was arrested for disorderly conduct - after making charges of racism against Crowley. President Obama inserted himself into the debate by saying the Cambridge police acted "stupidly" while admitting he didn't know all of the facts. Later, the president walked back his comments a bit - but stopped short of apologizing.
Here’s my question to you: Sgt. Crowley says no one apologized at the White House meeting. Were apologies in order?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
What does it mean if organic food is no healthier than regular food?
(PHOTO CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES)
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
Organic food is no healthier or more nutritious than regular food. But it is more expensive.
That's according to a study commissioned by the British government and published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Researchers looked at 50,000 studies conducted over 50 years - and found no significant differences in the foods. They focused on a wide range of crops and livestock raised and marketed under organic standards.
The few differences they found were about the kind of fertilizer used - like nitrogen or phosphorus - and how ripe the crops were when harvested. They say these differences are unlikely to provide any health benefit to consumers.
This will probably come as a blow to those who shell out a lot of money to buy the more expensive organic products because they think it's healthier.
Sales of organic foods have skyrocketed in the U.S. in the last 20 years; topping $23 billion last year.
Critics of the report say it ignores possible side-effects from pesticides and that organic farming may be better for the health of the animals. They say consumers who buy organic are supporting a system that bans the routine use of antibiotics and treats livestock better.
But if you buy organic food because you think it's more nutritious, you may want to think again. Plus, regular food is cheaper.
Here’s my question to you: What does it mean if organic food is no healthier or more nutritious than regular food?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Should federal government be involved in saving news media?
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
The news media are fighting to survive - and Dan Rather thinks the government should help rescue them. The former CBS anchorman is calling on President Obama to create a White House commission to help save the press.
Dan Rather believes journalism has declined to a point that it is time for the government to intervene.
Rather says such a commission could make recommendations on saving journalism jobs and creating new business models to help the industry survive. He says there are precedents for this kind of national commission - which have helped other failing industries.
Rather says the stakes couldn't be any higher. He told the Aspen Daily News: "A truly free and independent press is the red beating heart of democracy and freedom." And he says it's not just journalists who should worry about the fate of the press; but rather every citizen.
He also talked about "the dumbing down and sleazing up" of what we see on the news; and blames that on the blurry line between news and entertainment - along with corporate and political influence on newsrooms. He claims about 80-percent of the media is controlled by a handful of corporations.
Rather also talks about the decline in investigative and international reporting; and says the loss of reporters covering the two ongoing wars hurts our nation.
The bottom line as he sees it: If somebody doesn't step in and take action... the nation will lose its independent media.
Here’s my question to you: Should the federal government be involved in saving the news media?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
More or less concerned about global warming than 1 year ago?
Icebergs float off the coast of Greenland. Scientists believe Greenland - with its melting ice caps and disappearing glaciers - is an accurate thermometer of global warming. (PHOTO CREDIT: URIAL SINAI/GETTY IMAGES)
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
Global warming has become a religion among the "First World urban elites."
That's just one of the explosive charges made by Australian geologist Ian Plimer, who says man-made global warming is little more than a con on the public perpetrated by environmentalists and politicians.
According to the Vancouver Sun - the controversial geologist says that global warming is not caused by human behavior, rather it's an entirely natural phenomenon.
By looking at a time frame going back thousands of millions of years - he says the changes in the Earth's climate are cyclical and random. For example - polar ice has only been present on Earth for less than 20-percent of geological time; and animal extinction is a national part of evolution.
Plimer shoots down the current logic that global warming can be reversed. He gets especially worked up about carbon dioxide, saying it's actually at the lowest levels it's been for 500-million years.
Critics have slammed Plimer's book - saying he makes a lot of basic errors and manipulates data.
Here in the U.S., it depends on who you ask about global warming. The city of Chicago is seeing its coldest July in 67-years. The average temperature has been 68.9 degrees.
On the other hand, ask the people in parts of Texas, melting under a blazing sun and suffering through one of the worst droughts in many years if they think global warming is real.
Here’s my question to you: Are you more or less concerned about global warming than you were a year ago?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
What's behind steep drop in Obama approval rating?
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
President Obama has taken a hit in the polls. Gallup finds that the president's average job approval rating was at 56-percent last week; that was down from 59-percent the previous week.
This three-point drop is the largest week-to-week decline that Gallup has seen in the president's job approval rating since he took office in January.
And it's not just Gallup. The president has been under 60-percent approval in every single poll released so far in July. He was above 60-percent in most polls taken in June.
It's not clear why the president isn't as popular these days; but a couple of possible reasons stick out. Headlines in recent weeks have mostly been dominated by the debate over health care reform.
The president and Democrats are losing steam on this issue - a centerpiece of his agenda - now that it looks like neither house will pass a bill before their August recess.
Mr. Obama continues to pressure Congress to get it done this year - although polls show most Americans aren't in a rush to pass reform that quickly.
Also, President Obama waded into a firestorm last week by saying the Cambridge police acted "stupidly" in the arrest of Harvard Professor Henry Gates. That story still hasn't gone away - as the president, the professor and arresting officer James Crowley are set to have a beer at the White House tomorrow.
For a man with shrewd political instincts, it was not the president's finest moment.
Here’s my question to you: What's behind the steep drop in Pres. Obama's approval rating in the past several weeks?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Should fattening foods be taxed?
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
Slapping a tax on fattening foods could help pay for health care reform while also combating the nation's growing obesity epidemic. A new study by the non-partisan Urban Institute says a 10-percent tax on fatty foods could raise more than $500-billion over the next 10-years.
They liken it to the steep taxes on tobacco, which helped dramatically reduce the number of smokers in this country.
However, taxes alone won't do the job when it comes to battling obesity. The study also recommends banning advertising of fattening foods to children and better labeling these products.
Restaurants and beverage groups have already waged a multimillion-dollar media campaign against any new taxes on food or drinks. They say it's no time to add taxes on "the simple pleasures we all enjoy" and argue this tax would be unfair since it soaks the poor.
But the authors of the study say that as much as $180 billion of revenue raised could be used to subsidize poor families' purchase of fruits and vegetables; and to help make healthier foods available to them.
There's no question something has to be done. At the rate we're going, this study says 40-percent of adults will be obese by 2015. And it's costing us a fortune. Obesity-related issues like diabetes and high blood pressure cost more than $200 billion a year - half of which is paid by taxpayers, whether they're fat or not.
Here’s my question to you: Should fattening foods be taxed like tobacco?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Is cash for clunkers a good idea?
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
The "cash for clunkers" program is a win-win situation for everyone. That's according to the government - which says the $1 billion plan will help the environment, automakers and drivers who want to trade up out of their old cars.
Cars bought through the program must get at least 22 miles per gallon, like this Ford Focus. Rules are different for trucks.
Under the plan - taxpayer money will be used to give people a credit of up to $4,500 to replace their gas guzzlers. The idea is they use that money to buy certain new vehicles that are more fuel efficient.
The traded-in cars have to be less than 25-years-old; and their titles can't have any liens.
The program already has about 16,000 registered auto dealers signed on; and some say showroom traffic is already up since the program's official start on July 1.
About 250,000 cars are expected to be junked through this program before it ends on November 1. This will hopefully jump start auto sales - which have been down about 35-percent across the industry.
But not everyone is so sure that "cash for clunkers" is a good idea. Under the plan - the gas guzzlers must be destroyed. Some auto recyclers say they'll lose a lot of money in sales from old engines and other car parts.
They also say the program will hurt lower-income buyers who can't afford a new car - even with the government credit, and they say that destroying cars will drive up prices for spare parts.
Here’s my question to you: Is cash for clunkers a good idea?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
How confident are you that Congress understands health care issue?
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
As lawmakers continue to squabble over health care reform with no deal in sight - it turns out most Americans don't think members of Congress even understand the legislation they're crafting.
House Speaker Pelosi answers questions about progress on health care reform.
A new Gallup poll shows only 27-percent of those surveyed say Congress has a good understanding of the issues in this debate. That's compared to 48-percent of Americans who say they personally understand the issues.
Only 16-percent say that both they and their representatives understand the issue.
These numbers are pretty depressing; and they also explain why most Americans are in no rush to see health care reform passed this year.
Gallup suggests these findings go to the larger point of how little trust Americans have in the people they send to Washington to represent them. Another recent poll found only 17-percent say they have a lot of confidence in Congress.
Meanwhile the Democratic Party might be its own worst enemy when it comes to health care reform. House leaders now say that their chamber won't vote on the bill before the August recess, mostly due to concerns of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog Democrats.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had earlier insisted they had the votes to pass the bill before the August break; but now she says the House needs more time. The Senate has already said they won't vote on health care until the fall.
With majorities in both houses of Congress, it seems more than a little curious President Obama can't get his number one priority passed.
Here’s my question to you: How confident are you that Congress understands the health care issue?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
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