Oct. 4, 2016

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - After listening attentively, prayerfully and objectively to the first presidential debate, it is crystal clear to me that Secretary Hillary Clinton is the most qualified to be the 45^th President of these United States of America.  She really has a comprehensive vision and plan to make this country stronger militarily, economically, educationally, racially and globally.  She is prepared; she is competent; she is thoughtful; and she has the temperament and judgment to be our next president.

Donald Trump’s comments, values, and negative campaigning over the last several months, especially in the Republican Primary, have proven to many that he is not ready to be president of the most powerful country in this world.  We will do our children and grandchildren great harm if we elect this man as president.   I don't need to articulate the vile, atrocious, bigoted, sexist, ugly and racist things he has consistently said about women, Mexicans, Muslims, Blacks, gays, and his opponents in the Republican Primary; and most disrespectfully,  about President Obama.

Listen – as a Black man, a Black pastor, a Black father, Black grandfather, Black brother, Black uncle and a Black husband – Donald Trump’s efforts for over five years to delegitimize the first Black president – is blasphemous.  Yes, he is the founder of the “birther” movement. He led this racist movement where millions of his supporters questioned and believed that President Obama was not a citizen of this country.  He knew what he was doing.  He appealed to the darkest and most prejudicial  side of his supporters.  He used the color of the president‘s skin and this “birther” issue to become who  he is now – the Republican nominee for the president.  As for me and my household, this is one of the primary reasons that I cannot support Donald Trump.  The man is not right; and has hurt too many people. This man is not fit to be our Commander-in-Chief – period!

This country is in a bad place right now.  We need a leader who can bring us together; not divide us. We have growing racial tension and unrest.  We need a president who has experience working with diverse communities.  Mrs. Clinton has always been an advocate for social justice.  We are far too often under terror attacks in this country and abroad.  Secretary Clinton will be a strong and steady hand in fighting Isis and keeping this country safe.  Mr.  Trump can very easily, with his instability and temperament, lead us into World War III.  The stakes are too high to sit this election out or to support someone who truly does not have the expertise, experience, and moral excellence to succeed President Obama as the next president.

Therefore, I have prophetically and prayerfully come up with 15 reasons why millennials, blacks, minorities, women and others ought to consider voting for Secretary Hillary Clinton.  Let us count the reasons:

1. Secretary Clinton is, in the words of President Obama, "the most qualified person to have ever run for the presidency; she is highly qualified and prepared to be the 45th President of the United States."

2.  Secretary Clinton was a strong and relentless advocate for the candidacy and presidency of this country's first African American president.  She was a vocal critic of the backwards "Birther Movement."

3.  Secretary Clinton has been in public service for 30 years. She has an impressive record of standing up for children, the elderly, and poor and distressed communities.  After graduating from the prestigious Yale Law School, she chose to devote her talents to defend and improve the plight of poor children as a staff member of the Children's Defense Fund.

4. Secretary Clinton has a rich history of supporting the right of all citizens to exercise their fundamental right to cast a ballot.  She will continue to work hard to attack legislation designed to cause significant burdens for eligible voters or deny them their constitutional right to vote.

5. Secretary Clinton will be a fearless leader for strengthening, saving and sustaining our Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

6. Secretary Clinton will lead the way for the advancement of Obamacare and the expansion of Medicaid.

7.  Secretary Clinton will sponsor legislation for criminal justice reform; and support programs to help ex-offenders find jobs, housing, mental health care and hope.

8. Secretary Clinton will not build walls.  She will build bridges for  all  people  of  color  to  legally  and  morally  enjoy  the American dream.  She understands that we are a nation of immigrants.

9. Secretary Clinton will support and find ways to ensure economic growth in Africa.  She will work to help educate and improve the health of African children; and empower struggling African countries.

10. Secretary Clinton will help build a viable economy that will create good-paying jobs for minority communities.  She will increase the minimum wage to a respectable “living” wage.  She will promote the development of minority businesses; and ensure that governmental agencies support Black-owned and other minority businesses.

11. Secretary Clinton will build a better, stronger public education system; and reduce the high drop-out rate in inner cities.  She will become the "Education President." She will support new avenues and programs that will leave no child behind.

12. Secretary Clinton will fight against all forms of racism and discrimination.  She has the experience, expertise and a track record for standing up against bigotry and bullying.

13. Secretary Clinton will appoint and select a cabinet and administration that will reflect the demographics of this nation.

14. Secretary Clinton will defend this nation.  She will protect this nation, and seek peace and strength across the globe.

15. Secretary Clinton will be the first female president of this great country because she is gifted, talented, thoughtful, prepared, experienced, and compassionate. She knows we are truly "stronger together!"

Dr. R. B. Holmes is publisher of the Capital Outlook Newspaper, pastor of the Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Tallahassee, Fla., and former president of the National Baptist Congress of Christian Education.

Oct. 2, 2016

National Urban League, Leading Black Organizations, ‘Strongly Urge’ 2020 Census to Count Prisoners in their Home Communities
By Hazel Trice Edney

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - America’s state and federal prisons house at least 1.6 million mostly Black and Latino inmates who come from families and communities in cities around the nation.

Yet, the U. S. Census Bureau counts those prisoners as residents of the cities where that correctional facility is located instead of residents of the home cities, where many of them will return. This phenomenon that some call “prison gerrymandering”, could severely damage local budgets and skew critical data needed by policymakers to make decisions, says Marc Morial, National Urban League President/CEO and former chair of the 2010 Census Advisory Committee.

Morial is leading a campaign to end the Census Bureau’s Residence Criteria and Situations Rules that could cause the same misleading counts in 2020.

“In 2009, when I was appointed chair of the Committee, much of the underlying policies and decisions had already been locked in as decennial plans are solidified a few years prior to beginning the actual Census. Despite this, in our Committee meetings, members raised many issues, including the Residence Criteria and Residence Situations Rule,” Morial wrote in a Sept. 30 letter to U. S. Census Bureau Director John H. Thompson. “We had many discussions about the erroneous manner in which the Bureau applied this rule to count incarcerated persons at the prison of the confinement instead as part of their home community.”

Morial concluded, “After much deliberation, Bureau staff assured us that this would change for the 2020 Census. Yet, here we are with a proposal that will instead continue the very prison gerrymandering system that we opposed.”

Morial plans to meet with Thompson during which he will discuss his concerns as well as the concerns of other civil rights leaders after seeing that the same criteria have shown up again for the 2020 Census rules released on June 30, 2016.

Early last month, a separate letter to Karen Humes, chief of the Census Bureau’s Population Division, expresses similar concerns from Morial, Rev. Al Sharpton president/CEO, National Action Network; Melanie Campbell president/CEO, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, and Hilary O. Shelton, director of the NAACP, Washington Bureau.

That letter also outlines a racially disparate impact.

“In 2014, there were nearly 1.6 million Americans in state or federal prison. Of the male population an estimated 37 percent were Black 32 percent White and 22 percent Hispanic; of the female prison population, 50 percent were White and 21 percent were Black,” it states. The disparity is clearly seen when comparing to America’s Black population of 12 percent.

It explains that the count of inmates in prisons where they live results in “policy, politics economics and demographic trends” that give a “distorted picture of this nation’s economic and social health.”

It also tells how the proposed rule “undermines the constitutional guarantee of ‘one person, one vote’” by “diluting the representational equity of a prisoner’s home community.”

The leaders argue that it is unfair to allow the location of the prison to receive the benefits of the Census count because “a local governing body cannot represent inmates nor can they affect them with local regulations. Inmates are literally not a part of that community in any manner absent their forced physical location.”

The economic disparity is equality important, the Sept. 1 letter states. It quotes a 2014 article form the Annual Review of Sociology regarding incarceration, prison reentry.

“Though almost all communities are touched to some degree by prisoner reentry, poor urban communities bear a disproportionate share of the burden, both in terms of prison admissions and releases,” the article states. “As a result, the criminal justice system now touches nearly as many people in poor communities as the education system or the labor market.”

NUL, NAACP, NAN, and NCBCP are America’s premiere Black organizations representing civil, voting and economic justice. The joint letter no doubt carries an implication that if the rules are not changed, mass protest could follow.

“The goal of the Census Bureau is to provide the best mix of timeliness, relevancy, quality and cost for the data it collects and services it provides. Additionally, the decennial census is supposed to tell us who we are and where we are going as a nation. Therefore, it should be axiomatic that the decennial census would count inmates as part of their home community. The Bureau must reconsider its proposed 2020 Census Residence Criteria and Residence Situations Rule,” the letter states. “We strongly urge the Bureau to change the ‘usual residence,’ rule. The 2020 Census must not disenfranchise almost 1.6 million American residents. An accurate representational count is the only way to ensure that all who use Census data will have the requisite statistics to undergird effective public policy.”

Oct. 2, 2016

Do You Really Need an Annual Physical?
By Glenn Ellis

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - Regular physical exams are annual rituals for many Americans. A physical examination is a routine series of tests your primary care provider (PCP) performs to check your overall health. The exam is also known as a wellness check. You don’t have to be sick to have such an exam.

The idea behind an annual physical exam is simple: in order to prevent costlier future problems, you religiously go to your doctor each and every year, even when healthy, for a general checkup, which is covered by your health insurance, in order to catch any disease at its earliest treatable stage. And we're not just talking about cancer. Theoretically, the annual physical should help catch early diabetes, hypertension, neurological disorders, etc.

People make appointments to see their doctor for many different reasons. Some only go to the doctor when they are experiencing a new problem or concern and are looking for a specific diagnosis or treatment. Others see their doctor at more regular intervals for ongoing follow-up of a chronic problem or disease. For many people, however, how often you should get a regular annual physical checkup is not clear.

If you are one of the 45 million Americans expected to get routine a physical this year, you may want to reconsider.

According to The American College of Physicians, “Present data does not offer adequate evidence justifying annual complete examination of the patient, without symptoms, at low medical risk”.

Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, one of the experts involved in developing President Obama's Affordable Care Act, argues that for many people, annual routine physicals are "worthless." He says, "not having my annual physical is one small way I can help reduce health care costs -- and save myself time, worry and a worthless exam".

This information could be confusing to Americans who have been hearing about the benefits of "preventative care." We know that there are certain preventative screening tests that work: mammograms, colonoscopies, blood pressure checks and pap smears can catch serious problems early when they can be treated more successfully. The frequency they're needed may differ depending on an individual's particular risk level. Not getting a yearly physical doesn't mean that you should skip these tests.

Needless to say, many in the alternative health community are all over this, essentially saying, "I told you so." Even many in the medical community endorse the conclusion.

A peer reviewed study recently published in 2012, in the Cochrane Library, concluded that the annual physical exam, a fundamental component of modern medical practice, may be pretty much useless in terms of benefitting health.

The unequivocal conclusion: the appointments are unlikely to be beneficial. Regardless of which screenings and tests were administered, studies of annual health exams dating from 1963 to 1999 show that the annual physicals did not reduce mortality overall or for specific causes of death from cancer or heart disease. And the checkups consume billions, although no one is sure exactly how many billions because of the challenge of measuring the additional screenings and follow-up tests.

Despite the dim light the review casts on annual exams, researchers and independent experts say it’s not necessarily time to give up on routine screenings and doctors’ visits.

Regular health screenings, during your routine doctor visits can easily detect the two most common chronic conditions - diabetes and high blood pressure - before they cause serious health issues. Or maybe you have already been diagnosed with a chronic health condition. The Centers for Disease Control cites that seven out of every 10 deaths are caused by chronic disease. But proper disease management, by your doctor and you, can prevent unnecessary hospitalization and reduce the cost of primary care.

Remember that old saying about an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of cure? It more than applies to your regular doctor's visit.

It's important for you to play an active role to get the most out of your regular doctor's visit. Before your exam, review and update your family health history, be prepared to ask if you're due for any general screenings or vaccinations, and come up with a list of questions if you have particular health concerns.

The rising cost of healthcare combined with busy work schedules means that many people are putting regular checkups during a normal doctor’s visit on the back burner. But the hard truth of the matter is that regular doctors' visits can mean the difference between life and death.

It is essential that you have regular medical, eye and dental checkups if you want to live a long and healthy life. Doctors are able to spot issues early on as well as offer practical advice on healthy living.

You can lower your chances of developing health issues in the future by maintaining a healthy diet; exercising regularly; having a good oral health routine; and booking regular medical, dental and eye checkups.

And by the way, by seeing your doctor on a regular basis, you get the benefit of their input on whether, or how often, you may need to get a complete annual physical exam.

Remember, I’m not a doctor. I just sound like one. Take good care of yourself and live the best life possible!

The information included in this column is for educational purposes only. It is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. The reader should always consult his or her healthcare provider to determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation or if they have any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment plan. Glenn Ellis, is a Health Advocacy Communications Specialist. He is the author of Which Doctor?, and Information is the Best Medicine. A health columnist and radio commentator who lectures, nationally and internationally on health related topics, Ellis is an active media contributor on Health Equity and Medical Ethics. Listen to Glenn, every Saturday at 9:00am (EST) on www.900amwurd.com, and Sundays at 8:30am (EST) on www.wdasfm.com. For more good health information, visit: www.glennellis.com