5th in the US for stroke deaths, South Carolina may also rank high for memory impairment

High infant mortality is not a thing of the past in South Carolina. The State currently ranks 6th highest in the Nation for infant deaths according to the US Census. Its time to take a stand on behalf of Russell Dill, buried in a neglected Spartanburg, SC cemetary and all past and present victims of failed conservative health policies.

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Along with residents of other States in the stroke belt (Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia, Kentucky, Texas and Missouri) all of which happen to dominated by conservative "Red" politics, South Carolinians may also be suffering from increased rates of mental impairment and other forms of cognitive decline. For details read the New York Times Article here.

With 53.34 deaths per hundred thousand, South Carolina ranks 5th in the US for stroke deaths according to the statistics furnished by the Center for Disease Control (CDC).


South Carolina 8th most obese state in the USA
In a related story, South Carolina ranks 8th in the US for obesity. With nearly 31% of the population suffering from a health problem that translates into heart disease, diabetes and many other serious and expensive problems.


In fact South Carolina is:
No. 7 in the U.S. for diabetes.
No. 10 in the U.S. for high blood pressure (hypertension)
No. 30 in the U.S. for physical exercise
Source


South Carolinians need health insurance and health education to help with high incidences of stroke, HIV and other health problems
South Carolina ranks 13th from the bottom in the number of people with health insurance (US Census).

So why would South Carolina conservatives like Jim Demint and Nikki Haley trash "Obamacare", consider privatizing the State health insurance exchange and endorse huge cuts to Medicaid under those circumstances?


Poor health: a fact of life in Jim Demint's South Carolina
South Carolina teen pregnancies, HIV and AIDS
Elderly and dying face Medicaid cuts in South Carolina
Senator Demint trashes Medicare
More on South Carolina's uninsured

Jim De Mint's South Carolina: 4th highest unemployment rate of all 50 States

As of September 2010, Jim DeMint's South Carolina has the 4th highest unemployment of all 50 States. Makes you wonder why DeMint voted against extending unemployment benefits.

Check the Bureau of Labor Statistics ranking here: http://www.bls.gov/web/laus/laumstrk.htm

DeMint wants the rest of the US to adopt so-called right to work legislation that has contributed to the poverty in South Carolina. Hear him lie about non-existant federal laws that he claims force workers to join unions.



Conservatives like Jim DeMint want to get rid of unions and destroy the right of workers to organize. Their intent is to keep wages down. Low wages mean a wider gap between rich and poor, less purchasing power in the hands of the majority of middle class people and while short term profits rise, the long term economic forecasts seem bleaker with each government report because businesses neither hire nor invest unless there is demand for the goods and services they provide.

Furthermore, conservative resistance to spurring efficiency by replacing and repairing existing infrastructure like the Charleston, SC port and building new transit and communication systems will mean a continual downward spiral in both profits and purchasing power which will be exacerbated by even more calls for cut backs and austerity by Conservative elites like Jim DeMint.

Governor Haley's solution to South Carolina's jobless crisis: drug testing for the unemployed

Demint turns his back on jobs in South Carolina to lead anti-earmark movement

Jim DeMint's ambition to lead a National movement to further impoverish the middle class has him turning his back once again on his own struggling State of South Carolina. His demagogic anti-earmark campaign which everyone acknowledges will make only a microscopic dent in government spending threatens the development of the Charleston Ports: one of the only job producing bright spots in the State that ranks 4th in unemployment. According to the South Carolina State Ports Authority, container volume increased 17.5% for the year 2010.

DeMint wins earmark freeze
Elimination of funds could hurt Charleston port improvement


By JAMES ROSEN and DAVID LIGHTMAN - McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint won one of the biggest legislative victories of his career Monday when Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell agreed to the South Carolina Republican’s demand for a freeze on spending earmarks.

But DeMint’s stance could hurt the State Ports Authority’s ability to fund a study on improving the Charleston port.

McConnell made his concession a day before DeMint, overwhelmingly elected to his second term two weeks ago, had vowed to force incoming Senate Republicans to hold an internal vote on the earmark moratorium.

The two senators have clashed repeatedly over spending bills and other GOP priorities, but DeMint commended the Kentuckian’s move Monday.

“Senator McConnell’s support for the earmark moratorium demonstrates the kind of bold leadership our party needs,” DeMint said. “His statement today and tomorrow’s vote to enact the moratorium will send a clear signal to voters that Republicans heard the message of the last election.”

An earmark ban could imperil funding for dozens of key projects in South Carolina, among them the U.S. Corps of Engineers funding of a study on deepening the Charleston port.

State and local port officials say South Carolina stands to lose millions of dollars to other East Coast states with harbors deep enough to accommodate a new generation of larger cargo ships.

Halimah Abdullah contributed to this account

Read more: http://www.thestate.com/2010/11/16/1563793/demint-wins-earmark-freeze.html#ixzz15YD5RGxf

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