atienne's Comments (303)

“What an awful way to die. Me, personally...I'm not going near the edge of ANY large drop off. Not by myself and surely not with someone else. Call it paranoia but going by the edge of a cliff with your spouse is never a good idea!!!”

“Siamese Trainer-I'm a woman:) But...I got information about the plan to help out homeowners and also information to not take this situation to one of those loan mod companies which I already knew all of that. It also stated that these fraudulent practices were being investigated. A short time later, that mortgage servicer was shut down and GMAC took it over. It was already a subsidiery of GMAC but during my struggles, there were several class action lawsuits being brought against them the more this came out. Once GMAC took the reigns, I continued my efforts. It was like night and day with GMAC. My paperwork was sent, I was contacted and given the trial mod. I stayed in contact constantly and never went under the assumption that they were working hard to keep my in my home. *I* had to work hard to do that. None of my paperwork had the kind of language from the story. I am now in a lower interest rate with affordable payments.”

“Luziannagirl-I was threatened constantly with foreclosure...I wasn't going ANYWHERE!! I knew what they were doing wasn't legal and I also challenged them to provide our original loan document. They couldn't and was staying right where I was until they either modified my loan-my payment was on autopay til they started raising it higher and higher (no ARM, either) and stood my ground. They would have had to drag me out physically! I worked hard for my home and those sheisters weren't going to take it!!”

“I went through this. I didn't have an ARM but my mortgage company kept on raising our payment...saying we owed escrow-then they were paying our taxes which we weren't behind on. Anyway, our payment more than doubled!! I fought them constantly to no avail. GMAC took over our loan and I fought them, too! Under the Obama plan, I went through the hoops and circles-got the trial mod...which my paperwork did NOT say what is reported in this story and got my perm modification after the trial but I had to stay on them. No where did my paperwork say any of that so I'm not sure that is accurate in the story.

These banks are fraudulent and will scam people anyway they think they can get away with it! Combine that with the fact that most people don't read anything they sign or have a lawyer check it...and it's a recipe for disaster! Most people think the banks are actually going to work hard for them-you have to be on them so much that you take a chance on being charged for harrassment but that's how you have to do!! I wrote the WH about the old mortgage places and sent copies to them...never trust them which seems to be what many people are doing!”

“Thank you, Dipconsult! I do feel (and I'm ready for the attacks here) that if these are truly progressives doing all this bashing and carrying on, then they are certainly no better than those on the right who do the same!

Impatient, quick to turn their backs and a "give me what I want" mentality.

I want good health care reform but I'm a realist-I won't get exactly what I want!

I want people to be married if they desire to be-sexual orientation shouldn't matter! I won't get that either.

I want our soldiers to be used as a last resort not the first-if we can get out of this mess in Afghanistan, I believe this president wants to use our military as a last resort as well.

Perhaps O would be better suited for Europe!”

“Very nice, MsBeal! I find it odd that people are going nuts about the troops being sent to Afghanistan! This was a theme all through the campaign...the the forces would draw down from Iraq and we must concentrate on Afghanistan/Pakistan...you could go back to any interview O gave and hear him say this over and over. Now it's this big shock???

I said it before...to withdraw just because the nation tires of this war would be irresponsible or to leave them there without a clear mission would be copying the LAST administration.

If we to were withdraw, how could anyone say there wouldn't be any backlash??? The Right would go so crazy (and they are the craziest bunch imaginable) that they'd be in the streets and getting people on board in no time.

Since none of us knows or has read anything about the Senate Bill-it's not public so don't pretend to know the facts...all we can do is disect what we learn from certain senators. No, it's not going be a great bill says those who have championed the health care reform that most of us wanted (single payer or public option) but there are pieces of the bill they can work with.

Oh yeah...Gitmo...it IS in process people...stop stomping your feet over what is in process-that borders on the childish. Don't we get enough of that kind of behavior from our Righwing brothers and sisters?”

“Denalidog-sorry for your hurtful past but is this really the point of the story? No...the point is her husband
SHOULD be able to retire and not keep working for the insurance. The point is they should not lose all of their savings and everything they worked for to pay for medical bills.

The point is, she should not be turned down for treatment because of her tumor.

Ms. Palnick speaks for her and many others who are facing this dilemma and right now, it would appear that their only choice is for her husband to keep working. But what about his health? What if he's unable to keep up the hours required for a doctor?

This is why we've been fighting for reform. Your whole life shouldn't have to plummit into the depths of debt and loss because of illness.

I'm glad your sister can still work but many can't. Perhaps her symptoms haven't kept her out of the workforce. I have Systemic Lupus, RA, Fibro...I still work but many of my brothers and sisters with Lupus cannot. We are all different...no reason to compare.

Best wishes of health to Ms. Palnick!”

“I agree Batmancw...it's always doom and gloom and arguing. That's pretty much what rules the headlines!

I'm sure there's plenty of 'goosebump' stories out there that we'll just never know about because they don't grab the headlines like the fighting, violence and silly drama stories do.”

“Wow! No wonder people say Democrats never get anything done. All I see here...if you're truly Dems anyway, is a bunch of whining. I'm sorry to say it, but it's true.

Maybe instead of whining, you should have been on your representives like white on rice! We didn't let the teabaggers, the birthers or the 'health-care reform protesters' ( I use that term lightly-those fools were protesting but it surely wasn't healthcare reform) take over our town halls!! Our Dems got together and made sure AS the majority, we ACTED like it!!!

And you know what??? No one paid us any attention. I blame the media for that. If we would have acted like loons, then we would have been all over the cable networks!

This isn't over and while it's not going to please everyone...before you start jumping ship, stomping your feet saying you won't vote, etc. Let's get all the facts first!

I'm not going to be the puppet the media pulls by the strings. I would say it's safe to say...none of us are in the senate or in congress, correct? So we really don't have the facts just yet.”

“Thank you Huffposters for correcting the author for using the term 'baby-daddy' incorrectly. Honestly, if you don't know slang, please don't use it.

I find it disgusting that the Obamas are referred to as 'baby-daddy' or 'baby-mama'. These are married adults who had their children after they got married and are very much involved in the kids lives. That does NOT constitute a 'baby-daddy'.

Not to be rude but it does not make you sound hip, with it, or in it. It makes you sound foolish using derogatory terms to describe the President and compare him to a worthless, uninvolved father.

On to the topic-I can believe this. My husband and I were in our early 20's when we got married and we BOTH wanted to have children. We were very blessed with a wonderful daughter and son while in our 20's. It was hard and bumpy but we made it! No parents paying a dime for anything! We sold all of our 'cool' stuff we aquired before the kiddies came along and did it on our own. It CAN be done but you better have the strength to do it! It's not all cute clothes, coo-coo's and precious moments!”

“There are people here in the U.S. that can't afford the Always, Tampax, etc. I've seen young girls steal because they didn't have the money to get what they needed or roll up balls of toilet tissue from public restrooms.

I have to say TB92 hit a big ol nail on the head. Culture has a lot of to do with it. Menstruation is nothing new at all (yes, I hate my period-it's bloody, painful, makes me very ill and short of the big H, there is nothing I can take because of blood clot risk). How menstruation is viewed per culture is something that needs to be looked and see what work can be done there.”

“This is a tear jerker...not in the fact that they passed but that they went together. When my daughter and I watched the Notebook, she asked, 'Can that happen?' I told her that I'm sure there's love so strong, soul mates so closely bonded that they can't bear being apart.

I believe our feelings play a very large part on our physical selves. That's why you see some people survive death sentences like certain forms of cancer and others with the same kind of cancer are gone quickly.

My husband and I, no matter what our problems...I've always felt that were almost one and the same. So close, that we have to remind ourselves we are different human beings. He's always said, if anything ever happened to me, he'd be done. Stories like this make you believe that people do indeed feel this way.

I hope those two souls are still together!”

“I think seeing Crowe as Robin Hood will really shake things up. I LOOOOVE Cate Blanchette. She is just too good.

I didn't like Costner's version except for Rickman and Morgan Freeman-it was too much of a comedy. I like my midevil movies serious!!”

“More people need to speak the truth about the fraud that is SP! I am SO sick of this nimrod making money cos she's attractive and people actually giving her credence as if she could lead anything!

She is a reality-star politician. She has no substance, lacks the intellectual capability to even speak proper English yet here she is making millions and these talking heads pretend to take her seriously.

It is a shame and an embarrassment to the American People that someone like her is thrust onto the national scene.

My wish is that there is something, a scandal...anything that blights her off the stage. While it would be rather funny to see her eaten alive in a campaign, I can't stomach much more of her.

She and her followers make me physically ill. It's one thing for her to be a dimwit and wink and smile her way to the top, but it's something else entirely for people to follow her, believe in her and actually find her worthy of public office.”

“If you really are a Democrat, Philss...then that's just a shame. While I agree that this health care package currently is not what most of us want, it's more than has been done in how long? Once we get this going, this will open the door for future tweaks to the bill. It may not be signed, but we haven't come this close before.

Our troop numbers are shrinking in Iraq. As for Afghanistan...I have to wonder if people were listening at all during the campaign. Did you not hear him speak over and over that we would increase our committment in Afghanistan? And we are. An irresponsible administration would just up and pull out. We have troops on the ground there that have been committed to a mission and just to up and pull out is NOT solving any problems. That would be what the LAST administration would do or worse yet, leave our troops there with NO plan!

Gitmo is in the process of closing. Get over it! People like you remind me of little children who whine cos they didn't get what they wanted for Christmas. Grow up, see that the spinning wheel spins slowly with all of the spokes that make decisions. Stand up and be a Dem or sit out like the pouty child.

Adults don't pount, we strive to get things done!”

“Tell it Dupree!! I think the phrase "microwaved minute" is one of the best phrases I've heard in ages!

You said it all!”

“ExPatPatti, thank you! I believe you don't have to be world traveled but be world sensitive. There's nothing wrong with caring about American citizens and their plight. I care very deeply about what goes on in my own country, my own community. But what is wrong with extending caring to other cultures and people of the world who know a suffering unlike what is currently wrong in the US?

Humanity doesn't stop at the US borders.”

“Cherybaby-Good for you! Seriously! You don't need to be a Goodwill Ambassador. But, I suspect that many of the bashers aren't probably doing much of anything to make a difference. I suspect a good majority are just bashing because they enjoy it. They don't have her life so instead of looking at the greater good and sitting down and thinking 'What can I do?' they tear down people that try.”

“I find all this bashing interesting. It says a lot about why we are where we are as a country. Those of you bashing...Have you been to any of these places she's been? If not, how do you know what fuels a person's passion? Suffering in the states I'm sorry to say is NOT the kind of suffering in places like Darfur.

Why must you put compassion towards other human beings in a negative light? A wonderful friend of mine traveled to Africa and did medical work there. One visit and he was impassioned to spend most of his life fighting for the justices of human beings.

While we all know Jolie had a wild streak, most of us who don't jump to bash a person at every opportunity that a trip to a war-torn country, seeing murdered children, the hunger and sickness...that can turn any wild-heart into a full-blown humanitarian.

I'm not writing this just as a defense to Jolie but seriously...what is WRONG with you that must criticize? Are YOU visiting soup kitchens or trying to help your communities?

If so, what's YOUR motive?”

“Suri also wears a lot of dresses...maybe we should string her mom up for that, too!! I used to LOVE dressing up in my aunt's old formals and wearing their heels. I played pretend all the time and I'd wear whatever heels I could find. Now, they make them for little ones and when my daughter was young, she wore them sometimes with her fancy dresses. I never thought I was damaging her in any way. I never thought myself to be the worst mom of the year. And you know what? I'm not!!!

I don't know anything about their personal lives but bashing the woman cos her kid likes to play dress-up? Isn't that kind of petty?”

“EmmaQuigley...why is it that people on the right always ASSume that people on the left or in the middle have no 'values'? Why do you think the way you live is the ONLY way? I'm getting pretty sick and tired of having 'values' thrown in my face...usually by a bunch of hypocrites!

I have values as well...treat people with the respect they deserve. I believe in family and working hard to achieve goals. I believe in education and goodwill. For the most part, I've tried to live my life by those values. Raise my children in a loving home, got married and stayed FAITHFUL (that's something that a lot of people forget to do while preaching values), worked hard for an education and even when becoming ill with a chronic illness, I still continue to work and do my share. So, my dear...just what values are those of us who are not on the right supposed to have?”

“Thanks for the tip:)”

“I am 39 and read all 4 books in a row! I got into the story and then once I do that, I need to finish (my own obsession). I didn't like the film and I absent-mindedly said I'd take my daughter and best friend to see it. They want a girls night out!

I so desperately didn't want to spend money on it (money is tight) that I won tickets off the radio a month ago and that's what I'm using them for!!

Besides, I'm hardcore True Blood over here...no other vamp or supernatural story compares!”

“Thank you for this post! Unlike you, I was a fan. ABC was the first record I bought at the local Murphy's Mart and my brothers supplied me with every album thereafter til I was grown!

I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Jackson when I was ten years old, along with 3 of his brothers, his mother and Janet who at that time was seen on Different Strokes. My brothers and I were just 3 fans, hanging out at the Hilton Hotel, hoping wildly to meet our idol! We were singing a medley of Jackson 5 songs when his mother spotted us! Her and a shy Janet came over and we introduced ourselves and she led us up to Mr. Jackson's room. Janet said barely nothing and that was ok. She may have been a star by then but she was shy and I understood that! Mr. Jackson was rehearsing in the hotel room when his mother took us in. He was so gracious, listened to us sing his songs and watched us dance and we all got backstage passes to the show. As a ten year old, that was the highlight of my life:)

This is It, reminded me of that. Watching a genius, completely engaged in their art while at the same time, completely aware of all those around him. I was moved to elations of those of a child. I was thrilled, moved to tears and filled with joy all in one film.”

“I can't believe I read this post but...why would he get invited? What an odd bunch of people. Clint Eastwood and Quentin Tarantino to Kim Kardashian and Levi Johnson? Strange party.

I'm sure he has no friends in the 'celebrity' circle and maybe he'll learn for next time...you don't go by yourself at first til people start caring about who you are!

Still, you'd think the comedians could have got some good stuff...at least photo ops for later.

I kinda feel sorry for him. Don't kill me:) He's a yokel thrown into this mess and it probably ain't gonna be pretty!”