Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

Stellar

Stellar's Journal
Stellar's Journal
April 19, 2017

Katherine Johnson










April 14, 2017

Twins get accepted into 40 colleges between them, receiving $900K in scholarship offers

http://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/twins-accepted-40-colleges-receiving-900k-scholarship-offers/story?id=46774897



A pair of twin high school seniors are making their family proud after the two have been accepted to 40 colleges between them, earning over $900,000 in scholarship offers.

Akhya C. and Akhea S. Mitchell both attend Troup County Comprehensive High School in LaGrange, Georgia, earning a 4.5 GPA and a 3.9 GPA respectively.

Due to their stellar grades and involvement in various student organizations, the two were able to afford to apply to 42 colleges in total for about $200, their mother, Kalitha Reynolds, told ABC News.

Along with using the Common Application -- which allows students to apply to up to 700 colleges and universities for a flat rate that ranges from $25 to $90 -- the Mitchell twins also took advantage of college fairs, they told ABC News.

"We started out by attending college fairs and taking advantage of free applications on site," Akhya, who is one minute older than her sister, said. "And some colleges offer days where the application was free so we took advantage."

The two credit a school organization called She's D.O.P.E. for helping them navigate the college application process.

Chicago student gets accepted into 23 black colleges, offered $300K in scholarships
94-Year-Old woman fulfills lifelong goal of graduating from college


More at the link.
April 14, 2017

Trump Just Quietly Hobbled Obamacare While You Were Distracted

President Trump’s efforts to repeal and replace Obamacare have been a complete failure so far, and the plans Republicans put forward never even came close to fulfilling Trump’s campaign pledge to deliver a health plan that would cover everyone at a lower cost.

Each failure has brought complaints from Trump and his allies that their failure is the fault of Democrats who refuse to work with them on their sinister plans that would leave over 24 million people uninsured.

Then Trump, Mike Pence and Paul Ryan warned us that Obamacare is going to collapse if they don’t act.

Now, with ObamaCare working and millions thankful it hasn’t been destroyed by political assassins, the new Trump strategy is to destroy it just to prove the Republicans are right.

The latest Republican concocted changes are straight off a wish list put forward by big insurance companies who want fewer regulations, more freedom to do as they wish, and greater profits.

They were quietly released while most Americans were more concerned about Trump’s bombing in Syria, political battles with Russia and the threat of nuclear war with North Korea.

“Many of the changes announced Thursday follow recommendations from insurers,” reports the Los Angeles Times, “which wanted the government to address shortcomings with HealthCare.gov markets, including complaints that some people are gaming the system by signing up only when they get sick and then dropping out after being treated.”

That, of course, flies in the face of reality. A tenet of Obamacare is that everyone is required to sign up or face financial penalties, which keeps churn down. That is why under Obamacare, the number of people in the U.S. with health insurance exceeds 90 percent for the first time ever.

Here is the laundry list of the changes announced today to cure Obamacare the way Dr. Frankenstein would:

The annual sign-up period is being cut in half, so insurance companies don’t have to spend as much time marketing. Experts on consumer needs say this will only insure fewer people sign up.
Curbs on “special enrollment” options which allow people to sign up outside of the enrollment period. Insurers say this just encourages people to sign up only when they are sick. ObamaCare advocates say it is another way to limit sign-ups during the year.

Insurance companies for the first time have the right to withhold medical insurance and services to anyone who isn’t fully paid up on their past premiums, no matter what their circumstances. In other words, when the consumer is in the worst possible situation, the insurance companies can cut them off completely.

Insurers have more flexibility to design special policies for young people, who tend to be healthier and use the insurance benefits less. This takes the balance out of the system so that people who are healthy and working don’t have to subsidize people who are old and sick. It is another way to ensure the system fails.


More at link:
http://occupydemocrats.com/2017/04/13/trump-just-quietly-hobbled-obamacare-distracted/
April 9, 2017

Janet Jackson Reportedly Splits From Wissam Al Mana

Multiple outlets are reporting that Janet Jackson’s marriage to Wissam Al Mana, her husband since 2012, is over.

The couple recently welcomed baby boy Eissa Al Mana on Jan. 3, months after the 50-year-old announced she was postponing her Unbreakable World Tour in order to plan her family. Brother Tito confirmed the news last summer during a radio interview with Andy Cohen.

Page Six offers conflicting reports over whether the split was amicable, with one source claiming Jackson thought her husband, 41, “had become too controlling during the pregnancy.”


HuffPo

Profile Information

Name: C.S. H.
Gender: Do not display
Home country: U.S.A.
Member since: Fri Aug 8, 2008, 10:48 AM
Number of posts: 5,644
Latest Discussions»Stellar's Journal