Author Archives: bfialindathieman

Someone Competent for President

Posted on February 15, 2007 by bfialindathieman

Someone Competent for President by Linda Thieman You have to see this site! My thanks to Sam for giving me a time slot to pop my head out of my self-imposed political-isolation here at the Hermitage to make a … Continue reading →

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Joyce Schulte Visits Storm Lake School

Posted on April 25, 2006 by bfialindathieman

Joyce Schulte Visits Storm Lake School by Joyce Schulte Greetings……..I had a marvelous day recently in a 3rd grade class. Jan McKenna, Storm Lake, invited me to spend “the entire day” in her classroom and I took her up … Continue reading →

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Blog for Iowa is Back Up Under New Management

Posted on April 7, 2006 by bfialindathieman

Blog for Iowa is Back Up Under New Management Yes, fellow progressive Iowans, Blog for Iowa is back online under new management, to my great delight! There will be a short transition period during which we may or may not … Continue reading →

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St. Francis and the Birth of Earth Day

Posted on March 9, 2006 by bfialindathieman

St. Francis and the Birth of Earth Day by John McConnell, Earth Day Founder and Iowa Native This article was submitted to Blog for Iowa by the founder of Earth Day himself, Iowa native John McConnell. WHAT WOULD ST. … Continue reading →

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FALLON WINS DELEGATE COUNT IN POLK, JOHNSON AND STORY COUNTY CONVENTIONS

Posted on March 5, 2006 by bfialindathieman

FALLON WINS DELEGATE COUNT IN POLK, JOHNSON AND STORY COUNTY CONVENTIONS In results from three Democratic county conventions that broke into preference groups for governor on Saturday, State Representative Ed Fallon finished above all his opponents, including Secretary of State … Continue reading →

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HIDDEN SACRIFICE: Analysis Discovers Big Cuts Ahead for Iowa in Bush Budget

Posted on February 24, 2006 by bfialindathieman

HIDDEN SACRIFICE: Analysis Discovers Big Cuts Ahead for Iowa in Bush Budget Iowa Fiscal Partnership Behind the curtains of George W. Bush’s five-year plans for domestic services are substantial cuts to Iowans. These were not evident from the widely circulated … Continue reading →

Posted in Bush Tax, Iowa in the News, Main Page | 1 Comment

Controversy, Cruelty and Cats: North Iowa Town in Uproar

Posted on February 23, 2006 by bfialindathieman

Controversy, Cruelty and Cats: North Iowa Town in Uproar by Linda Thieman On Monday morning, February 20, 2006, Joel Kolker, manager of Kiefer Built Trailers in Kanawha, Iowa (Hancock County) stood in front of a meeting of approximately 120 employees … Continue reading →

Posted in Calls to Action, How You Can Help, Iowa in the News, Main Page | 8 Comments

New Bankruptcy Law Fails; Vast Majority Can’t Repay Debts

Posted on February 23, 2006 by bfialindathieman

New Bankruptcy Law Fails; Vast Majority Can't Repay Debts

Hastings Group

At the time that Congress passed the infamous bankruptcy law, Chuck Grassley said the bankruptcy changes would clean up “a convenient financial planning tool where deadbeats can get out of paying their debt scott-free.”

NACBA Analysis of More than 60,000 Consumers Processed Under New Law Asks: “Where Are the Deadbeats” Congress Expected to Find and Stop With Onerous Rule Changes?

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The first analysis of tens of thousands of consumers seeking protection since a new federal bankruptcy law went into effect last October concludes that the changes put in place by Congress are not working as intended. The report by the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA) finds that of the 61,355 consumers seen so far by credit counseling firms – the required first stop under the new bankruptcy law – nearly all (97 percent) are unable to repay any debts and that four out of five would-be filers (79 percent) were forced into dire financial straits by circumstances beyond their control, such as the loss of a job, catastrophic medical expenses or the death of a spouse.

Entitled “Bankruptcy Reform's Impact: Where Are All the Deadbeats?,” the NACBA analysis is based on data provided by a cross-section of six large and small credit counseling firms that have been authorized by the U.S. Justice Department's Executive Office for U.S. Trustees to provide bankruptcy screening. The credit counseling firms responding to the NACBA survey were: Money Management International (Houston, TX), GreenPath Inc. (Farmington Hills, MI), Springboard Nonprofit Consumer Credit Management (Riverside, CA), Hummingbird (Raleigh, NC), Institute for Financial Literacy (Portland, ME) and ByDesign Financial Solutions (Los Angeles, CA).

Brad Botes, executive director, National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys, said: “Contrary to the claims of proponents of bankruptcy law changes that they would zero in on the alleged legions of 'deadbeats' who supposedly were crippling the U.S. economy with 'billions of dollars in losses associated with profligate and abusive bankruptcy filings,' the federal bankruptcy law changes that went into effect on October 17, 2005 are doing no measurable good whatsoever. Instead, they have put new hurdles in the path of people who are already flat on their back due to financial crises over which they have no control, such as the loss of a job, catastrophic health care bills, and so on.”

Botes noted that bankruptcy filings are down because many Americans may mistakenly believe that the courthouse doors are barred to them. The NACBA executive director said, “Credit counseling organizations now know what bankruptcy lawyers and other experts said all along: Congress got it dead wrong when it passed the bankruptcy law. Even though the process is now more cumbersome, time consuming and expensive than before, consumers who need help should still seek out a bankruptcy attorney to explore their options and figure out how to navigate this trickier and more confusing process.”

John Rao, attorney, National Consumer Law Center, said: “Bankruptcy judges, attorneys, academic researchers and others warned Congress that the bankruptcy filing rate was a 'symptom' and not the 'disease' itself. So long as people lose their jobs, have uninsured medical problems, and face other catastrophic circumstances, they will need the protection of the bankruptcy system. This data is evidence of that. All Congress has succeeded in doing with the new law is to delay and drive up the cost of bankruptcy protection for those who desperately need it.”
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Fallon Reschedules Health Care Tour for Thursday and Friday of This Week

Posted on February 22, 2006 by bfialindathieman

Fallon Reschedules Health Care Tour for Thursday and Friday of This Week State Representative and gubernatorial candidate Ed Fallon (D-Des Moines) will visit 8 cities in central and eastern Iowa on Thursday and Friday to introduce his plan for universal … Continue reading →

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LGBTA Student Day At Capitol March 1st in Des Moines

Posted on February 22, 2006 by bfialindathieman

LGBTA Student Day At Capitol March 1st in Des Moines The Iowa Pride Network's College Coalition has announced a lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and allied (LGBTA) Student Day at the Capitol for March 1st at the Iowa State Capitol … Continue reading →

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