Home Improvement Contractor - Licensed Contractors

Can someone recommend me a home renovation contractor in Vancouver West? I am planning to renovate my bathroom and kitchen.

I have asked a question earlier about a home renovation contractor? Thanks for the detailed answer and links. I forgot to mention that I live with my elderly mom and so I would need someone who install special showers for seniors as well. Does the contractor you know do this type of installation?

How long should a complete one story home renovation take? I'm renovation the second floor of my home 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, new dry wall, flooring, windows, bathroom fixtures(shower, sink, and toilet) and electrical and paint, Contractors said it would take two and a half months, its going on four months and theyre no even half way done?

can anyone recommend a contractor for home renovations in southern maine? someone that is reputable and keeps cost down to minimum want to renovate kitchen and get an addition

Where can I connect with a Local Contractor who would be willing to show / help me to do additon to my home? I would like to build a 14' x 22' additon on to my home and I would like to have a licenced local contractor to show me how ( so I can learn ) but also, I can only afford to buy the materials needed. I cannot afford the labor. I would be willing to work and to help ( evenings and weekends ) I want to build this addition for my wife but I cannot afford what some of the local contractors charge. Any suggestions ? I am not afraid of hard work ( I currently work two jobs ), but I am trying to see if I can find a honest - possibly retired - contractor who has experience building homes / renovations. Any answers would be greatly appreciated. I live in Shamokin Dam, PA poohandhunnypot@verizon.net

A contractors quote to do an ALMOST COMPLETE renovation to a 1300 sq ft home is $50K!!? I think that is steep for something that wouldn't be a total renovation. If I do it myself with help from friends, how much can I save? I've never done it before, but my friends have experience in specific areas. The kitchen cabinets need to be sanded and painted, but the floors, counter tops, and appliances will be upgraded. I'm not looking for some dream kitchen, just something really nice. Same thing for the bathroom.I will put laminate hardwoods in the living and dining room.The electrical will be done by a pro, as will the HVAC. Removal of paneling and replacing carpet in bedrooms(3).Overall, the house is structurally sound. Excuse me for writing a book:) but I need some advice on what i may be getting into.

Why do women feel that it's okay to discriminate on the basis of gender when choosing a gynecologist? Many women are only willing to be examined by female gynecologists. Would it therefore be reasonable to dismiss a female home renovation contractor from consideration because of her gender? Helena: Your dishonesty is exposed by the cacophony of women defending their sexist preference for female-only gynecologists. Try again...

Bid Documents for Home Renovation? Who can point me to sample bid documents I can use for a home renovation project? I'm looking for a document that accompanies the architectural drawings that provides great detail about materials to be used and other requirements of any contractor.

Any know of good landscape design/renovation software? I'd like to start a small landscape & home renovation business on a budget. Know of any software, downloads or websites that are easy to use? I'd use independent contractors & doing the marketing, getting the jobs & designing the projects. Any ideas for getting started are appreciated. Thanks for your answers! To last answer: Link takes me to website analysis (???)

What can I write off from my home renovations on my Canadian income tax? I'm an independent contractor with a home office. Can I include outdoor work, such as interlock and fencing?

Washington DC Townhouse Renovation Cost? I asked local contractors but they never answered me... Does anyone know the average home renovation costs for a home in DC? I know it's pretty broad but this would be my first time so I wanted to get an idea of exactly it would take. Thanks! :) Say a 2 level, 3 bed/2.5 bath, 1200 sq.ft. ?? Framing, electrical, hvac, dry wall, plumbing?

how do you find a reliable, fair-priced contractor for home repairs and renovations?

Home Renovation Process? My husband & I just bought a home from 1898. We are going to renovate the property. (We're keeping the fine details that make this a wonderful period home. Restoration/renovation.) Does anyone know of a book that tells you the process of working with a contractor? We are hiring a project manager for this monumental project, but we wanted to have some idea of the process. Does anyone know of any books on remodeling/restoration? Not a do-it-yourself b/c we won't be doing the work ourselves. I've checked on several book sites & it offers me do-it-yourself books. Thanks in advance for your help.

is home construction taxable? I recently completed a $250,000 addition/renovation on my home. The contractor wants to charge me 6% tax...is that legal? What am I being taxed on?

Home Renovation Tax Credit Question? Hello, Are these expenses eligible for the HRTC? 1) Adding insulation to a house 2) Repairing crack in the foundation and replacing the drywall around it. Both were done by a contractor. Thanks!

Ok, So What Is Your Worst Renovation Experience With A Contractor? I run a Contractor Referral Service in Colorado Springs, CO. Our goal is to keep homeowners from making a mistake in hiring a contractor to work on their home. Often, homeoweners are so concerned with getting a "cheap price", they set themselves up to be ripped-off. I would just like to hear stories from others who have been taken-in by unscrupulous or unqualified contractors across America!

what to check for during home renovation? during renovation how do i check if the contractor has done a good job

Is contractor responsible if damage is done during renovation in older home? I have a home built in 1978. A contractor was hired to replace the floor in the upstairs bathroom and add tile. Apparently the plumbing code has changed since then and the contractor was using nails for the cement board based on today's building code and punctured a hole in the plumbing. He immediately knew he hit a pipe but claimed that the pipes were too close to the floor and it wasn't his fault. The contractor has completely denied negligence saying it isn't his fault that the pipes were located where they were. I say, how was I suppose to know, I'm just the homeowner, not the expert. There was over $20K in damage to the house from the water leak. My homeowner's insurance covered about half of the damage. I would like to be compensated from the contractor for the remaining money that I have lost but they continue to deny negligence. Any thoughts? Would I have a case in small claims court? Is the contractor negligent?

Home renovation~ anyone? In Hong Kong, if you want to hire a contractor to renovate your property, you have got to draw up a mutual agreement to protect both interests. From what I have seen in the reality show; The Apprentice (can't remember which season) there was one part where Donald Trump assigned the groups an empty hse each and had them hired a contractor... but the contractor didn't deliver as promised. Is drawing up such mutual agreement a feasible idea? because from what I observe, especially in my country (M'sia) ppl hire contractor based on trust, that means I trust you to carry the work in utmost good faith, and when the job is done, I will pay you. As happened to my cousin when she bought a new hse years ago, the contractor actually threatened her for more money, otherwise he would do something nasty to her hse. Not jz that, the work completed wasn't up to std and she had to hire another contractor to carry on the work. So i wonder has anybody experience such thing b4, and how do u solve that?

Home Depot Canada "You can do it, we can help"? Does anyone have experience using Home Depot Canada for home remodeling and renovations? How's their contractors? Are they better or worse, cheaper or more expensive than the average contractor you find in the phone book? Please share your experience.

Any opinions on Affordable Home Renovations in Carmel, IN? Any other good contractors in the Carmel, IN area you would recommend?

When you're having a home modeler renovate a house, what form do you use for the estimate? I have a blank Form 515 Sumary of Estimate with the itemized reverse. Is this adequate for home remodelling or renovation? Or should I use some other form for getting a contractor's estimate on the work and materials? Please advise me. The work is quite extensive. It includes roofing, flooring, and many things inbetween.

how to begin a complete home renovation? i have a house that i would love to keep, the location is great but the house layout is not working for me. i dont know where to begin - what kind of contractor should i look for? do i hire an architect first? here is what i want to do: 1. tear down walls and recreate spaces - including moving windows where necessary 2. move an upstairs bathroom 3. create a master bedroom suite with new bathroom space 4. move laundry room upstairs 5. finish off basement 6. create an open floor plan down stairs by removing walls where possible 7. open up the foyer from front door 8. expand on existing sunroom and construct a new one 9. concrete porch repairs 10. brick driveway i estimate the house construction will take approximately 6 months to a year to complete. i plan to move out of the house and rent an apartment for the duration of the project. i want to 'go green' as much possible. the location is 15 minutes east of philadelphia. any one with experience? been through a renovation of this kind? all knowledge and tips on how to start and what to look for would be great! thanks!

Should a LicensedContractor have enough capital to start a project for Home Renovations? I'm trying to have my house renovated through my bank and they won't allocate any money out until each phase is completed. My contractor wants 10% down but my bank is saying that he should have enough capital to start the project if he's in this business. I'm caught in the middle. Who's right?

when can a home repair contractor put a caveat on my home? I had a renovation company hired for two home repair jobs. The workmanship was totally unacceptable, so after consideration and disgust from friends, i cancelled my cheque. he is now calling me threatening to put a caveat on my home, Is this normal practise. the debt is less than $500

Materials list for a home renovation job - need to create from an estimate/invoice? In the Contractor edition of 2010 QB Pro, is there a way to create a materials list to take to the store off of an estimate or an invoice? There's a note in the Help section about a building materials list but it's only available in other versions of QB. It seems like this would be an obvious feature to have in a contractor's edition. We need the list to state the items and quantities compiled together. There are reports that provide the costs for the jobs, compiling all common items together, which is great, but no way to add a quantity column. It only provides the total cost of each item which doesn't help when trying to create a materials shopping list to purchase all of the materials at the store because not all estimated costs are the same even for the same item code used.

Structural Engineer, Contractor, or Home Inspector- who to call? I purchased a 40 year-old home four years ago and I've recently started some DIY projects. I pulled down some 70's style wood paneling and ceiling tiles and found hairline cracks in the ceiling (appears to be drywall) and a bigger crack in drywall. The stair moulding has separated from the wall. A web search mentions that these could be 'settlement cracks' but I want it checked out before I start any major renovation projects. Who is the best person to evaluate this- an engineer, a contractor or home inspector?

What are the names and numbers of contractors that are building homes in your area? This Is J. S. Construction in Richmond Hill, Ga. We are looking to help rebuild homes destroyed by disasters. We currently work in Richmond Hill, Savannah, and Effingham Co... We have been building homes for seven years now including Framing, Renovations, Vinyl Siding, Interior Trim, Custom Decks, and Hardi Plank Siding. We are currently looking to evolve our business and if you know any contractors their names and numbers would be greatly appreciated. Thank You.

How do I get rid of mold in the bathroom ceiling for good?I have an infant so I'm afraid to bathe her in there We are undergoing a major renovation at our home. Our contractor had put the walls up but not a roof yet. We had very heavy rainfall that night and water was streaming down our kitchen, laundry, and bathroom walls. Nevertheless, we are dealing with mold now because of the water damage. Our contractor said he cannot do anything about it until we get to the drywall stage which could be another few weeks because of all the inspections required before we get to that point. I'm really scared to even go in the bathroom for fear my 9 month old daughter will get sick. Our contractor admitted it was his fault and that he will fix it. He wants to put bleach on it and KILZ? over it. I don't think that is going to fix the mold problem. What is the BEST way to get rid of the mold problem for good? Thank you.

What is the best book for first time DIY home renovations? I am very interested in home renovation, such as kitchens/bathrooms/etc., and was wondering what book is best for first time DIYers. I want a book which is detailed on the proper ways of demolition to finishing, and plus what tools and materials we should use. A few books that I found were: Make It Right : Inside Home Renovation with Canada's Most Trusted Contractor by Mike Holmes Renovation: Completely Revised and Updated by Michael W. Litchfield Black & Decker Complete Home Improvement: with 300 Projects and 2,000 Photos (Black & Decker Complete Photo Guide) Complete Do-It-Yourself Manual: Completely Revised and Updated any other book suggestions?

What are the ballpark estimates for these wheelchair friendly home renovations? A co-worker is holding a workshop in which they are presenting many different things related to accessible housing for people with disabilities. As a last minute thought, they wanted to add some ballpark figures for what it might cost a person to add certain accessibility-related renovations/ modifications to their home. I am looking for contractors (in Canadian $$$ - Manitoba especially) who might be able to offer *really* rough estimate to these renovations. These estimates are just to give workshop participants an idea of what they might be getting into financially: - the upper and lower cost of a wheelchair accessible ramp built up to the front entrance of a home four standard steps up, labour and materials in. - the lower to upper cost of widing a standard 32" to a wheelchair accessible 36" door in a home - the cost of lowering counters in a standard (~200 sq f) kitchen, dropped counters, no cupboards - anything else you might have worked on? I TOTALLY understand that it is nearly impossible ot give any kind of accurate estimate because prices vary by region and design, etc., etc.,. I'm more looking for a baseline and any feedback a contractor or jack-of-all trades might have would be greatly appreciated.

Should I sue my home improvement contractor or report him to the police? I paid a contractor $29,000 for home improvement renovations and repairs, including painting my house, dry walling, putting new steps on the property and many more improvements and repairs. He left without completing the project. I estimate that he owes me about $9,000 in unfinished work. He dug out the patio, left a big hole, and walked away. He did not replace glass in doors and windows, and failed to do many other things. I have a written contract. I don’t think he has an official contracting business, but the partial work that he did was excellent. He felt he underestimated the cost of the work. I noticed that he was delinquent in paying his property taxes and the timing was such that it appears that he used my money to pay his taxes because records indicate that they were paid. Retaining a lawyer will cost me $5000 with no promises that I will retrieve my money. I know that this was not his main job. Should I spend this kind of money on an attorney or do you have other ideas. This happened three years ago, so I know the contractor does not intend to complete the job. Should this be a police matter or an attorney matter. This may also be considered contractor fraud. I might be spending additional money on an attorney and getting nothing for it. What should I do? What steps should I take?

Looking for a good contractor to do major home renovations.? How can I find a good / trustworthy contractor. I am inland from LA, California. I don't know anybody who has had any renovations done recently, and am not sure where to look for someone to complete the task (well). We're looking to redo floors of the whole house, bathrooms, and the kitchen. What is the best way to find a GOOD contractor and/or designer. If you have any personal recommendations, sites, or places I should go, that is also welcome :) Realized I didn't phrase that too well. We want to completely remodel the kitchen and bathrooms, as well as redo the floors of the whole house (likely in laminate wood-like flooring - we have a pool so don't want to do real wood).

Are you a home improvement nerd? If we need anything done on our home we have a professional contractor do it. However we don't subject our freinds to endless discussions of tedium about our home. Do you know any home improvement geeks? Is there a polite way to tell them that there renovations are BORING!

home renovations? I own a two family house, and I'm looking to finish my basement and re-do a whole kitchen on another floor in a house well over 70 years old. can anyone give me an idea as to how much three average size rooms may cost to re-do flooring, ceilings and to isulate walls etc. what types of questions should i ask the contractor to ensure they are capable of fullfilling my requests? I'm trying to avoid bad work at a costly consequence in the future. Please no contractors with bids I am just looking for guidence. Thank you in advance.

What would be the most organized way to write up a list of things that need to be bought/done for a home reno? To get a loan for home renovations, we need a contractor to write up a quote for all work to be done, plus the cost of any materials. Since my father in law is a contractor and he and my husband will be doing the work, there won't be a quote needed for labour, but we will need one for materials. He would like us to write out what work it is that needs to be done and what things we need to buy so he can better understand what quotes he needs to give. He'd then re-write everything in a professional quote for us to take to the lender's. So, I don't really know how to do this. Would it be more organized to write out a list of the actual construction we want done, with measurements for each new room, followed by an itemized list of purchases we need to make, like a new bathtub, new bathroom vanity, new vinyl windows throughout the house, replace carpeting with XX flooring... What's going to be the easiest method to do this for a contractor who is family and not charging you for their services? And yes, he'd really rather we write everything we want done and bought so it's easily accessible to him and he's not constantly asking "what did you want done in this spot again?"

What are the steps to remove the exist walls in order to install drywall? Hey, I'm really new at all home improvement renovation stuff so please don't mind me if I don't use the correct terms. My walls are old and has tons of little cracks/holes in them. I was thinking about renovating my bedroom walls. Do I need to hire contractors to knock down the walls to the very bottom of the wooden wall mounts piece so I could apply drywall sheets? Thanks.

Florida Licensed Contractors? I am looking to open an Interior Design business in the state of Florida. Along with interior design, we would like to offer other home renovations such as new carpet, paint, tile, etc. What kind of license would that require and how do I go about getting one? Thank you for your answers.

What are some easy home improvements that you can do yourself? My boyfriend and I are renovating our new condo. A couple things we just can't do with out a contractor but we're looking to cut down renovation costs by doing things ourselves (for example: painting). Is it hard to install cabinetry or bathroom fixtures (vanities/sink tops) if you have no handy skills. Any suggestions from anyone experienced in do-it yourself projects would be greatly appreciated.

More Republican corruption coming out of Alaska? First Palin and her trooper-gate. Now Republican Senator Stevens was convicted of seven felony corruption charges today for lying about free home renovations and other gifts from a wealthy oil contractors. The 'moral' republican party is basically giving the Dems the 60 seats needed for a Super Congress. Don't complain when this happens, the Republican congress has brought it on themselves.

I live in SoCal, and I'm wondering if there's anywhere I can go to train to become a contractor.? I live in SoCal, in the LA area, and I'm wondering if there's anywhere I can go to train to become a contractor. I know there's different kinds of contractors, but is there anywhere I could get training in multiple types of contracting, like masonry, landscaping, flooring, and other things. I want try and get into home renovations and such things for a living.

Money for home improvement? Hi there! Our home is in desperate need of renovation. We have been told numerous times by contractors to renovate it, but once they inspect the house further, they tell us to completely tear it down because it is unsafe. Our house is being lifted off of it's foundation because it's sliding down a hill. It's just a mess and it hasn't been worked on in 20 years due to financial issues. I found out that there are some government grants that provide money to renovate homes. Does anyone know of any reliable grants to demolish and rebuild your home for safety reasons? Thank you so much!

Nieghbours from HELL!? How do i get my neighbors to move??? I really lucked out with 2 males in there 50's unemployed and living with there mother with no social life or friends.... On one of there first encounters i was told " we don;t like that your fixing up your house cause it makes us look like poor people" Or we don't approve of you having the city trim the trees in the ravine behind your lot.... Or we don't approve of you moving your AC unit to the other side of your house... The mothers are ok with me but the 2 sons are perhaps jealous of my success, iv been told im not accepted in the hood cause im not Scottish.....I'm Italian/Professional gay male full time contractor.... Home renovations are my passion for my client sand at home and they see fit to make it difficult for me anytime i take on new projects around the house ie: calling building inspectors and MLS.... I sometimes have fun with them i just need to lean a ladder on the fence and leave it there all day and they will be looking outside the whole day to watch if there is any activity....HA HA ...sorry but sometimes you just have to have fun........... There is a lot more to this but to make it short, last summer one neighbor accused me for break and enter into his home, had me falsely arrested, had it not been for not of my video surveillance to prove my innocents i would have been charged. Since them the police have been very helpful....both neighbors have been charged with harassment and threatening....the only recourse to put a stop to the constant resentment in the 1 1/2 years i have been here... I really appreciate any suggestions you have next to moving which is not a Option....

How do we keep people from discussing home improvements (BORING!)? Some of my guests are losing patience with a few couples that we have over for cocktails on the weekends. The problem is they go on forever in the most inane detail about home improvements. This is the new age version of someone carrying a flip wallet full of family pictures and holding you up for what seems an eternity If we need anything done on our home we have a professional contractor do it. However we don't subject our freinds to endless discussions of tedium about our home. Do you know any home improvement geeks? Is there a polite way to tell them that there renovations are BORING! Anybody else feel this way? @chocolate lover: Just ask them to give you money or cut a check that should shut them up @kiwi: I'm proud of you, however don't you think that the money would be better spent on something like.... I dont know maybe...........the needy or hungry? You'd feel great and the feeling would last longer than the thrill of new cupboards.

Can a vendor put a lien against my house for materials used to renovate my house? I recently hired a company to renovate my house and the company went out of business during the renovation. I still have a fair amount of work to be done. I was recently contacted by the owner of the company and told that he needs to get the materials out of my house or 84 Lumber will put a lien against my house. The material was to be used for a deck. I already paid the contractor, Case Handyman, for the materials. I do still have the final payment to finish the project, about $10,000. Can a vendor, such as home depot, lowes, etc. really put a lien against my house for material purchased by a contractor for home renovations? This is in Maryland. Thanks!

How do I figure out what to charge someone for home renovations? I just got my contractors license started my own llc in construction. I have been building houses under another company for years now. Already I am getting calls for jobs like tile, floor installation etc. How do I figure out what to charge someone for a certain job like installing a new plywood floor. Or a drywall job? I don't want to wing it and just throw a number out there and screw someone over. I need to know how to charge someone the right amount for the right kind of job. Also, I work in the Delaware area.

How do I get grants for renovating an old home? My contractor told me that I could probably get a good bit of the money that I am paying out for renovations back but he was not sure how I would do this. The house is in Alabama and was originally built in the 1830's and then added onto in 1910. Any help and direction that you guys could give would be SO appreciated. Thanks!

Is there a list of allowable deductions and amounts needed? I am a teacher and my husband is in construction.? We have also purchased our first home and did extensive renovation on this 100 year old structure. Is any of the renovation, materials, or labor/contractor costs deductable?

How can I get my contractor license quickly, and is there any agency out there that can help prep my papers? I'm good at what I do and, I want to expand this year really big on home/ commercial renovations and much more. I want much bigger paying jobs than what i'm getting now and, in the past I turned down a few because of this. I know by getting the license I have plenty of more jobs and higher pay too. I have a good strong crew that know what they are doing and mostly all the tools to build a house. If anyone knows a good and efficient way of applying or go to an agency in newyork area please inform me I would apreciate it very much.

What are peoples' expectations and view on renovations? I'm doing a project for school that requires my group to understand what information and features people are interested in when thinking of renovation. Thanks for the help! What problems do you have with the prospect of renovating your home? (aim for outcomes) Do you perceive contractors as trustworthy? I'm doing a school project that involves determining what features and information people want for renovations. Thank you! Do you understand the process in making your home eco-friendly (materials, cost, tax rebates, etc.)? What do you think about making your home eco-friendly (is it likely, not likely...)? Do you find the idea of home renovations overwhelming? If so, why? (ex. I don't understand all the steps in the process) What problems do you have with your home (ex. heat escaping, high utility bills)? Also, it would be great if you could add some details about yourself. Ex. what kind of house, whether you are planing on doing any renovations, whether you would interested in making your house green, etc.

Is it true that ServiceMagic and Revovation Expersts, two lead companies for contractors are the same company? I noticed some information that said that ServiceMagic has bought Renovation Expersts. Both companies market leads on various services, mostly home improvement. I joined both but wonder if I am wasting my money.

Heloc freeze..need advise? We are in mid project with some home renovations and are a little worried about having our HELOC frozen and not being able to finish. Our lender is Washington Mutual. Does it make sense to cash out around $20K out of our HELOC (interest rate 6.35%), put into our savings (APY 4.07%) for a cushion just in case? There is a bonus to consider...our contractor who is doing the work gives us a $7 per hour discount what we pay in cash so if I do cash out some of the HELOC..we will have the cash to pay the contactor (thus saving money). Paying him part in cash would reduce our bill by at least a few hundred dollars a week on average) I obviously can't pay him ALL in cash for obvious reasons. What do you think?

Cost for having grounding wire installed, other electrical issues fixed? Specifics from my home inspection: - Ungrounded three-prong outlets in three rooms. (Original two-conductor wire is still used for the three-prong outlet). - Outlet with reversed polarity - Need weatherproof cover for exterior outlet. This is for a one-story bungalow-style house, built in 1935 in North Carolina. I am looking for the total cost to have these items done. I realize there are a great number of dependencies to be considered, and that the range from low to high may be large, but I need to put something on a spreadsheet right now. I am attempting to get estimates on a long list of repairs and renovations that I will need a house I'm under contract to purchase so that I can have my lender put together a construction loan. I have a contractor coming out next week (so please don't respond "you need to have an electrician take a look..." Of course, I do).

Can a contractor put a lien/lean on my house? We have been doing house renovations for about a year now. The contractor we have being using never shows up to complete a job and the work that they have done is horrible. The owner asked us last year at the start of the job if we would mind paying him under the table because he had made too much money and didn't want to be over taxed. We agreed to do this because it worked out cheaper for us. Now, after a year, we have decided to not use them for any more of our renovations and we have received a final bill. We don't feel they deserve payment for the poor work that's been done. Can a contractor place a lean on our home for money owed that is undeclared income?

Communal lights with no switches? Any replacement ideas? We recently moved into a newly converted two condo building. The contractor who did the renovation before the people downstairs and we bought our condos installed an outside light for the front and back doors and lights in the front and back staircase, which are hook up to the communal electricity circuit/meter. There are no switches for any of these lights. The only thing we can influence is a timer in the basement that can be set for a certain lighting period. We are not sure if this was a safety/security requirement for condos or what, but both parties agree that this is annoying. We don’t necessarily need the light on in the staircase all the time when the exterior lights are on, and when someone comes home after the “shutting off time” we currently have set around midnight, there’s no way to switch a light on in the staircase. So here’s our question: Is there anything we can easily install now that would allow us to turn the lights on and off when we really need them? Are there any substitutes to regular switches or something? The best thing we can think of are pull chain lights that we could install in the staircase. We would extend the timer period to be on all night, which would then allow us to switch the staircase lights on and off at will. The only issue would be that the exterior lights would be on all time. Maybe someone was in the same situation and found a great solution. We just don’t like wasting energy and our money :-). Thank you!

Ok, So What Is Your Worst Renovation Experience With A Contractor? I run a Contractor Referral Service in Colorado Springs, CO. Our goal is to keep homeowners from making a mistake in hiring a contractor to work on their home. Often, homeoweners are so concerned with getting a "cheap price", they set themselves up to be ripped-off. I would just like to hear stories from others who have been taken-in by unscrupulous or unqualified contractors across America!

Liberals are followers and Bush is a leader. Its better to be right than popular? President Bush's Accomplishments Abortion & Traditional Values 1. Banned Partial Birth Abortion — by far the most significant roll-back of abortion on demand since Roe v. Wade. 2. Reversed Clinton's move to strike Reagan's anti-abortion Mexico Policy. 3. By Executive Order (EO), reversed Clinton's policy of not requiring parental consent for abortions under the Medical Privacy Act. 4. By EO, prohibited federal funds for international family planning groups that provide abortions and related services. 5. Upheld the ban on abortions at military hospitals. 6. Made $33 million available for abstinence education programs in 2004. 7. Supports the Defense of Marriage Act — and a Constitutional amendment saying marriage is between one man and one woman. 8. Requires states to conduct criminal background checks on prospective foster and adoptive parents. 9. Requires districts to let students transfer out of dangerous schools. 10. Requires schools to have a zero-tolerance policy for classroom disruption (reintroducing discipline into classrooms). 11. Signed the Teacher Protection Act, which protects teachers from lawsuits related to student discipline. 12. Expanded the role of faith-based and community organizations in after-school programs. Budget, Taxes & Economy 1. Signed two income tax cuts, one of which was the largest dollar-value tax cut in world history. 2. Supports permanent elimination of the death tax. 3. Turned around an inherited economy that was in recession, and deeply shocked as a result of the 9/11 attacks. 4. Is seeking legislation to amend the Constitution to give the president line-item veto authority. 5. In process of permanently eliminating IRS marriage penalty. 6. Increased small business incentives to expand and to hire new people. 7. Initiated discussion on privatizing Social Security and individual investment accounts. 8. Killed Clinton's "ergonomic" rules that OSHA was about to implement; rules would have shut down every home business in America. 9. Passed tough new laws to hold corporate criminals to account as a result of corporate scandals. 10. Reduced taxes on dividends and capital gains. 11. Signed trade promotion authority. 12. Reduced and is working to ultimately eliminate the estate tax for family farms and ranches. 13. Fight Europe's ban on importing biotech crops from the United States. 14. Exempt food from unilateral trade sanctions and embargoes. 15. Provided $20 million to states to help people with disabilities work from home. 16. Created a fund to encourage technologies that help the disabled. 17. Increased the annual contribution limit on Education IRA's from $500 to $2,000 per child. 18. Make permanent the $5,000 adoption tax credit and provide $1 billion over five years to increase the credit to $10,000. 19. Grant a complete tax exemption for prepaid or college tuition savings plans. 20. Reduced H1B visas from a high of 195,000 per year to 66,000 per year. Character & Conduct as President 1. Changed the tone in the White House, restoring HONOR and DIGNITY to the presidency. 2. Has reintroduced the mention of God and faith into public discourse. 3. Handled himself with enormous courage, dignity, grace, determination, and leadership in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 hijackings and anthrax attacks. He almost single-handedly held this country together during those searing days: Just three days after the attacks, in his address at the National Cathedral, the President reassured the nation when he said: "War has been waged against us by stealth and deceit and murder. This nation is peaceful, but fierce when stirred to anger. This conflict was begun on the timing and terms of others. It will end in a way, and at an hour, of our choosing." On Friday, September 14, 2001, President Bush visited Ground Zero. Standing on a crushed and burned fire engine atop the smoldering pile at Ground Zero, he put his arm around a retired firefighter who had volunteered to help, and began speaking to the crowd. Rescue workers shouted that they could not hear him. Someone handed him a small American flag and bullhorn. The President spontaneously shouted: "I can hear you. The rest of the world hears you. And the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon." The crowd roared with cheers and chants of "USA! USA! USA!" Then he raised that American flag and rallied a nation. Education & Employment Training 1. Signed the No Child Left Behind Act, delivering the most dramatic education reforms in a generation (challenging the soft bigotry of low expectations). The very liberal California Teachers union is currently running radio ads against the accountability provisions of this Act. 2. Announced "Jobs for the 21st Century," a comprehensive plan to better prepare workers for jobs in the new millennium by strengthening post-secondary education and job training, and by improving high school education. 3. Is working to provide vouchers to low-income students in persistently failing schools to help with costs of attending private schools. (Blocked in the Senate.) 4. Requires annual reading and math tests in grades three through eight. 5. Requires states to participate in the National Assessment of Education Progress, or an equivalent program, to establish a national benchmark for academic performance. 6. Requires school-by-school accountability report cards. 7. Established a $2.4 billion fund to help states implement teacher accountability systems. 8. Increased funding for the Troops-to-Teachers program, which recruits former military personnel to become teachers. Environment & Energy 1. Killed the Kyoto Global Warming Treaty. 2. Submitted a comprehensive Energy Plan (awaits Congressional action). The plan works to develop cleaner technology, produce more natural gas here at home, make America less dependent on foreign sources of energy, improve national grid, etc. 3. Established a $10 million grant program to promote private conservation initiatives. 4. Significantly eased field-testing controls of genetically engineered crops. 5. Changed parts of the Forestry Management Act to allow necessary cleanup of the national forests in order to reduce fire danger. 6. Part of national forests cleanup: Restricted judicial challenges (based on the Endangered Species Act and other challenges), and removed the need for an Environmental Impact Statement before removing fuels/logging to reduce fire danger. 7. Killed Clinton's CO2 rules that were choking off all of the electricity surplus to California. 8. Provided matching grants for state programs that help private landowners protect rare species. Defense & Foreign Policy 1. Successfully executed two wars in the aftermath of 9/11/01: Afghanistan and Iraq. 50 million people who had lived under tyrannical regimes now live in freedom. 2. Saddam Hussein is now in prison. His two murderous sons are dead. All but a handful of the regime's senior members were killed or captured. 3. Leader by leader and member by member, al Maida is being hunted down in dozens of countries around the world. Of the senior al Qaeda leaders, operational managers, and key facilitators the U.S. Government has been tracking, nearly two-thirds have been taken into custody or killed. The detentions or deaths of senior al Qaeda leaders, including Khalid Shaykh Muhammad, the mastermind of 9/11, and Muhammad Atef, Osama bin Laden's second-in-command until his death in late 2001, have been important in the War on Terror. 4. Disarmed Libya of its chemical, nuclear and biological WMD's without bribes or bloodshed. 5. Continues to execute the War On Terror, getting worldwide cooperation to track funds/terrorists. Has cut off much of the terrorists' funding, and captured or killed many key leaders of the al Qaeda network. 6. Initiated a comprehensive review of our military, which was completed just prior to 9/11/01, and which accurately reported that ASYMMETRICAL WARFARE capabilities were critical in the 21st Century. 7. Killed the old US/Soviet Union ABM Treaty that was preventing the U.S. from deploying our ABM defenses. 8. Has been one of the strongest, if not THE strongest friend Israel has ever hand in the U.S. presidency. 9. Part of the coalition for an Israeli/Palestinian "Roadmap to Peace," along with Great Britain, Russia and the EU. 10. Pushed through THREE raises for our military. Increased military pay by more than $1 billion a year. 11. Signed the LARGEST nuclear arms reduction in world history with Russia. 12. Started withdrawing our troops from Bosnia, and has announced withdrawal of our troops from Germany and the Korean DMZ. 13. Prohibited putting U.S. troops under U.N. command. 14. Paid back UN dues only in return for reforms and reduction of U.S. share of the costs. 15. Earmarked at least 20 percent of the Defense procurement budget for next-generation weaponry. 16. Increased defense research and development spending by at least $20 billion from fiscal 2002 to 2006. 17. Ordered a comprehensive review of military weapons and strategy. 18. Ordered a review of overseas deployments. 19. Ordered renovation of military housing. The military has already upgraded about 10 percent of its inventory and expects to modernize 76,000 additional homes this year. 20. Is working to tighten restrictions on military-technology exports. 21. Brought back our EP-3 intel plane and crew from China without any bribes or bloodshed. Globalization & Internationalism 1. Challenged the United Nations to live up to their responsibilities and not become another League of Nations (in other words, showed the UN to be completely irrelevant). 2. Killed U.S. involvement in the International Criminal Court. 3. Told the United Nations we weren't interested in their plans for gun control (i.e., the International Ban on Small Arms Trafficking Treaty).* 4. The only President since the founding of the UN to essentially tell that organization it is irrelevant. He said: "The conduct of the Iraqi regime is a threat to the authority of the United Nations, and a threat to peace. Iraq has answered a decade of UN demands with a decade of defiance. All the world now faces a test, and the United Nations a difficult and defining moment. Are Security Council resolutions to be honored and enforced, or cast aside without consequence? Will the United Nations serve the purpose of its founding, or will it be irrelevant?" We all know the outcome and the answer. 5. Told the Congress and the world, "America will never seek a permission slip to defend the security of our country." Government Reform 1. Improved government efficiency by putting hundreds of thousands of jobs put up for bid. This weakens public-sector unions and cuts undeserved pay raises. 2. Initiated review of all federal agencies with the goal of eliminating federal jobs (completed September 2003) in an effort to reduce the size of the federal government while increasing private sector jobs. 3. Led the most extensive reorganization the Federal bureaucracy in over 50 years: After 9/11, condensed 20+ overlapping agencies and their intelligence sectors into one agency, the Department of Homeland Security.* 4. Ordered each agency to draft a five-year plan to restructure itself, with fewer managers. 5. Converted federal service contracts to performance-based contracts wherever possible so that the contractor has measurable performance goals. Health 1. Strengthen the National Health Service Corps to put more physicians in the neediest areas, and make its scholarship funds tax-free. 2. Double the research budget of the National Institutes of Health. 3. Signed Medicare Reform, which includes: A 10-year privatization option. Prescription drug benefits: Prior to this reform, Medicare paid for extended hospital stays for ulcer surgery, for example, at a cost of about $28,000 per patient. Yet Medicare would not pay for the drugs that eliminate the cause of most ulcers, drugs that cost about $500 a year. Now, drug coverage under Medicare will allow seniors to replace more expensive surgeries and hospitalizations with less expensive prescription medicine. More health care choices: As President Bush stated, "…when seniors have the ability to make choices, health care plans within Medicare will have to compete for their business by offering higher quality service [at lower cost]. For the seniors of America, more choices and more control will mean better health care. These are the kinds of health care options we give to the members of Congress and federal employees. What's good for members of Congress is also good for seniors. New Health Savings Accounts: Effective January 1, 2004, Americans can set aside up to $4,500 every year, tax free, to save for medical expenses. Depending on your tax bracket, that means you'll save between 10 to 35 percent on any costs covered by money in your account. Every year, the money not spent would stay in the account and gain interest tax-free, just like an IRA. These accounts will be good for small business owners, and employees. More businesses can focus on covering workers for major medical problems, such as hospitalization for an injury or illness. At the same time, employees and their families will use these accounts to cover doctors visits, or lab tests, or other smaller costs. Some employers will contribute to employee health accounts. This will help more American families get the health care they need at the price they can afford. Homeland Security, Border Enforcement & Immigration 1. *See Government Reform above. Under President Bush's leadership, America has made an unprecedented commitment to homeland security. 2. Has CONSTRUCTION in process on the first 10 ABM silos in Alaska so that America will have a defense against North Korean nukes. Has ordered national and theater ballistic missile defenses to be deployed by 2004. 3. Announced a 9.7% increase in government-wide homeland security funding in his FY 2005 budget, nearly tripling the FY 2001 levels (excluding the Department of Defense and Project BioShield). 4. Before DHS was created, there were inspectors from three different agencies of the Federal Government and Border Patrol officers protecting our borders. Through DHS, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) now consolidates all border activities into a single agency to create "one face at the border." This not only better secures the borders of the United States, but it also eliminates many of the inefficiencies that occurred under the old system. With over 18,000 CBP inspectors and 11,000 Border Patrol agents, CBP has 29,000 uniformed officers on our borders. 5. The Border Patrol is continuing installation of monitoring devices along the borders to detect illegal activity. 6. Launched Operation Tarmac to investigate businesses and workers in the secure areas of domestic airports and ensure immigration law compliance. Since 9/11, DHS has audited 3,640 businesses, examined 259,037 employee records, arrested 1,030 unauthorized workers, and participated in the criminal indictment of 774 individuals. 7. Since September 11, 2001, the Coast Guard has conducted more than 124,000 port security patrols, 13,000 air patrols, boarded more than 92,000 vessels, interdicted over 14,000 individuals attempting to enter the United States illegally, and created and maintained more than 90 Maritime Security Zones. 8. Announced the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), an internet-based system that is improving America's ability to track and monitor foreign students and exchange visitors. Over 870,000 students are registered in SEVIS. Of 285 completed field investigations, 71 aliens were arrested. 9. This week, the US-VISIT program began to digitally collect biometric identifiers to record the entry and exit of aliens who travel into the U.S on a visa. Together with the standard information, this new program will confirm compliance with visa and immigration policies. 10. Eliminated INS bureaucratic redundancies and lack of accountability. 11. Split the Immigration and Naturalization Service into two agencies: one to protect the border and interior, the other to deal with naturalization. 12. Signed the workplace verification bill to prevent hiring of illegal aliens. 13. Established a six-month deadline for processing immigration applications. 14. Information regarding nearly 100% of all containerized cargo is carefully screened by DHS before it arrives in the United States. Higher risk shipments are physically inspected for terrorist weapons and contraband prior to being released from the port of entry. Advanced technologies are being deployed to identify warning signs of chemical, biological, or radiological attacks. Since September 11, 2001, hundreds of thousands of first responders across America have been trained to recognize and respond to the effects of a WMD attack. Judiciary & Tort Reform 1. Is urging federal liability reform to eliminate frivolous lawsuits. 2. Killed the liberal ABA's unconstitutional role in vetting federal judges. The Senate is supposed to advise and consent, not the ABA. 3. Is nominating strong, conservative judges to the judiciary. 4. Supports class action reform bill which limits lawyer fees so that more settlement money goes to victims. Politics 1. His leadership resulted in Republican gains in the House and Senate, solidifying Republican control of both houses of Congress and the presidency. 2. Signed an EO enforcing the Supreme Court's Beck decision regarding union dues being used for political campaigns against individual's wishes. Second Amendment 1. Ordered Attorney General Ashcroft to formally notify the Supreme Court that the OFFICIAL U.S. government position on the 2nd Amendment is that it supports INDIVIDUAL rights to own firearms, and is NOT a Leftist-imagined "collective" right. 2. Signed TWO bills into law that arm our pilots with handguns in the cockpit. 3. Currently pushing for full immunity from lawsuits for our national gun manufacturers. 4. *See Globalization & Internationalism. Traditional Values, Compassion & Volunteerism 1. Endorses and promotes "The Responsibility Era." President Bush often speaks of the necessity of personal responsibility and civic volunteerism. He said, "In a compassionate society, people respect one another and take responsibility for the decisions they make in life. My hope is to change the culture from one that has said, if it feels good, do it; if you've got a problem, blame somebody else — to one in which every single American understands that he or she is responsible for the decisions that you make; you're responsible for loving your children with all your heart and all your soul; you're responsible for being involved with the quality of the education of your children; you're responsible for making sure the community in which you live is safe; you're responsible for loving your neighbor, just like you would like to be loved yourself." 2. Started the USA Freedom Corps, the most comprehensive clearinghouse of volunteer opportunities ever offered. For the first time in history, Americans can enter geographic information about where they want to get involved, such as state or zip code, as well as areas of interest ranging from education to the environment, and they can access volunteer opportunities offered by more than 50,000 organizations across the country and around the world. 3. Established the The White House Office and the Centers for the Faith-Based and Community Initiative — located in seven Federal agencies. The faith-based initiative supports the essential work of these important organizations. The goal is to make sure that grassroots leaders can compete on an equal footing for federal dollars, receive greater private support, and face fewer bureaucratic barriers. Work focuses on at-risk youth, ex-offenders, the homeless and hungry, substance abusers, those with HIV/AIDS, and welfare-to-work families. 4. The White House released a guidebook fully describing the Administration's belief that faith-based groups have a Constitutionally-protected right to maintain their religious identity through hiring — even when Federal funds are involved. 5. Issued an EO implementing the Supreme Court's Olmstead ruling, which requires moving disabled people from institutions to community-based facilities when possible. 6. Increased funding for low-interest loan programs to help people with disabilities purchase devices to assist them. 7. Revised the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Section 8 rent subsidies to disabled people, permitting them to use up to a year's worth of vouchers to finance down payments on homes. HUD has started pilot programs in 11 states. 8. Committed US funds to purchase medicine for millions of men, women and children now suffering with AIDS in Africa. 9. Heeding the words of our own Declaration of Independence, the president laid out the non-negotiable demands of human dignity for all people everywhere. On January 29, 2002, he said, "No nation owns these aspirations, and no nation is exempt from them. We have no intention of imposing our culture. But America will always stand firm for the non-negotiable demands of human dignity." As stated by the President, they are a virtual manifesto of conservative principles: Equal Justice Freedom of Speech Limited Government Power Private Property Rights Religious Tolerance Respect for Women Rule of Law

Has anyone here at YA ever had their kitchen completely remodeled before? If your answer is yes, then how.....? long did you have to wait from the very beginning of demolition until your remodeling job was finally finished? (This is question A). We're creeping up on one month since we demolished our kitchen on the day after Thanksgiving this year (Nov. 28, 2008), and I feel as if I'm going crazy trying to get this kitchen project finished! I know it isn't going to be too much longer, (B) but I was wondering if this is about the average wait for a partial do-it-yourself job in most major kitchen remodeling projects? I know this project could have been finished long before now if we had 'farmed out' this remodeling job to professionals, but all of the contractors we spoke with wanted a fortune to do our kitchen project, even though the U.S. is now in a major recession. (C) Any suggestions from any of your past experiences doing major home renovations on how to continue being patient until the project is finally finished? I thought we were going to do most of the work from stripping down the walls and installing brand new insulation, which we did; putting up new sheetrock, which we had done; installing new wood cabinets, which were done on Dec. 23rd; painting the walls, which we're doing on Sat., Dec. 27th; laying the tile floor, which is now going to be done by a professional; putting in the new countertops, which is being done by the company we purchased our granite from on Mon., Dec. 29th; and my husband installing all of the new kitchen appliances that we have picked out and priced but haven't purchased yet!?! My hubby and I are going on Saturday, Dec. 27th to order and pay for our new appliances and we'll check into the length of delivery time. Considering the bids that we have received from companies to remodel our kitchen, we've saved ourselves a considerable amount of money, and I suppose the length of time really shouldn't bother me. But I can't help but be a little aggravated at not having a kitchen sink and a stove for almost one full month. (D) Do you have any good suggestions that might help me relax some and keep me from being so irritated when I think about the length of time that it's taking to get our kitchen totally finished? I'm not sure how much longer I can hold out on this project without losing my temper, since I was hoping that we would have our kitchen finished before Jan. 1, 2009. Obviously, it's going to be longer than we had previously thought to get everything installed, hooked up and working, and finally, what that was taken out of the old cabinets will be trashed or put back in a new space. Please be sure to answer all of my questions A through D. If you have not had previous experiences in remodeling, then your "no, I haven't had this problem before" answers won't be of any help to me! That being said, what I am looking for from YA is advice from people who've had any similar types of lengthy remodeling experiences! Thanks for any helpful suggestions you can share with me! =) Wow. Almost everyone had great suggestions and it's nice to know that I'm not the only person who has been a little agitated about not having a kitchen sink or stove for a month. I didn't realize that it's normal for a remodel to take up to two months, but thank you for all your input and encouragement! It's hard to choose a best answer here and I wish I could give it to all of you who seriously answered my questions but I have to chose one person. We had both of our baths retiled and a new jacuzzi tub and a custom built shower put in our bathrooms. Now, we need to update with next fixtures, new mirrors and repaint. What we had done wasn't that much of an inconvenience since we did them at different times.

Have you, or anyone you know, found a new place of residence to be less that fully satisfactory..? February 14 2007 -- Less than a year after moving into her new 2,100-square-foot house in Lenexa, Kans., Susan Sabin has strung up lemon lights in her front window. The lemons, she says, go perfectly with the home's most prominent features: jammed doors, warped windows, bent pipes and cracked walls. "The house is essentially splitting in two," says Sabin. At the peak of the recent housing boom, home buyers scooped up a million newly built homes every year while homeowners poured more than $200 billion into renovations. But now stories of shifting soil, leaky roofs, damaged stucco and other construction defects abound. Contractor problems rank among the most common consumer complaints, according to the Better Business Bureau, and a recent Criterium Engineers study found that 17 percent of new residential construction projects inspected by the firm in 2006 had at least two significant problems.

Why do libs avoid President Bush's Accomplishments? President Bush's Accomplishments Spotted at Rightnation.us and GOPUSA.com reprinted here for your pleasure. I encourage people who support Bush to learn how effective our President has been, and liberals ought to browse this too. Just remember, the liberal media can't cover up the truth of his accomplishments. The Bush Administration 2001-2004 Abortion & Traditional Values 1. Banned Partial Birth Abortion — by far the most significant roll-back of abortion on demand since Roe v. Wade. 2. Reversed Clinton's move to strike Reagan's anti-abortion Mexico Policy. 3. By Executive Order (EO), reversed Clinton's policy of not requiring parental consent for abortions under the Medical Privacy Act. 4. By EO, prohibited federal funds for international family planning groups that provide abortions and related services. 5. Upheld the ban on abortions at military hospitals. 6. Made $33 million available for abstinence education programs in 2004. 7. Supports the Defense of Marriage Act — and a Constitutional amendment saying marriage is between one man and one woman. 8. Requires states to conduct criminal background checks on prospective foster and adoptive parents. 9. Requires districts to let students transfer out of dangerous schools. 10. Requires schools to have a zero-tolerance policy for classroom disruption (reintroducing discipline into classrooms). 11. Signed the Teacher Protection Act, which protects teachers from lawsuits related to student discipline. 12. Expanded the role of faith-based and community organizations in after-school programs. Budget, Taxes & Economy 1. Signed two income tax cuts, one of which was the largest dollar-value tax cut in world history. 2. Supports permanent elimination of the death tax. 3. Turned around an inherited economy that was in recession, and deeply shocked as a result of the 9/11 attacks. 4. Is seeking legislation to amend the Constitution to give the president line-item veto authority. 5. In process of permanently eliminating IRS marriage penalty. 6. Increased small business incentives to expand and to hire new people. 7. Initiated discussion on privatizing Social Security and individual investment accounts. 8. Killed Clinton's "ergonomic" rules that OSHA was about to implement; rules would have shut down every home business in America. 9. Passed tough new laws to hold corporate criminals to account as a result of corporate scandals. 10. Reduced taxes on dividends and capital gains. 11. Signed trade promotion authority. 12. Reduced and is working to ultimately eliminate the estate tax for family farms and ranches. 13. Fight Europe's ban on importing biotech crops from the United States. 14. Exempt food from unilateral trade sanctions and embargoes. 15. Provided $20 million to states to help people with disabilities work from home. 16. Created a fund to encourage technologies that help the disabled. 17. Increased the annual contribution limit on Education IRA's from $500 to $2,000 per child. 18. Make permanent the $5,000 adoption tax credit and provide $1 billion over five years to increase the credit to $10,000. 19. Grant a complete tax exemption for prepaid or college tuition savings plans. 20. Reduced H1B visas from a high of 195,000 per year to 66,000 per year. Character & Conduct as President 1. Changed the tone in the White House, restoring HONOR and DIGNITY to the presidency. 2. Has reintroduced the mention of God and faith into public discourse. 3. Handled himself with enormous courage, dignity, grace, determination, and leadership in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 hijackings and anthrax attacks. He almost single-handedly held this country together during those searing days: Just three days after the attacks, in his address at the National Cathedral, the President reassured the nation when he said: "War has been waged against us by stealth and deceit and murder. This nation is peaceful, but fierce when stirred to anger. This conflict was begun on the timing and terms of others. It will end in a way, and at an hour, of our choosing." On Friday, September 14, 2001, President Bush visited Ground Zero. Standing on a crushed and burned fire engine atop the smoldering pile at Ground Zero, he put his arm around a retired firefighter who had volunteered to help, and began speaking to the crowd. Rescue workers shouted that they could not hear him. Someone handed him a small American flag and bullhorn. The President spontaneously shouted: "I can hear you. The rest of the world hears you. And the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon." The crowd roared with cheers and chants of "USA! USA! USA!" Then he raised that American flag and rallied a nation. Education & Employment Training 1. Signed the No Child Left Behind Act, delivering the most dramatic education reforms in a generation (challenging the soft bigotry of low expectations). The very liberal California Teachers union is currently running radio ads against the accountability provisions of this Act. 2. Announced "Jobs for the 21st Century," a comprehensive plan to better prepare workers for jobs in the new millennium by strengthening post-secondary education and job training, and by improving high school education. 3. Is working to provide vouchers to low-income students in persistently failing schools to help with costs of attending private schools. (Blocked in the Senate.) 4. Requires annual reading and math tests in grades three through eight. 5. Requires states to participate in the National Assessment of Education Progress, or an equivalent program, to establish a national benchmark for academic performance. 6. Requires school-by-school accountability report cards. 7. Established a $2.4 billion fund to help states implement teacher accountability systems. 8. Increased funding for the Troops-to-Teachers program, which recruits former military personnel to become teachers. Environment & Energy 1. Killed the Kyoto Global Warming Treaty. 2. Submitted a comprehensive Energy Plan (awaits Congressional action). The plan works to develop cleaner technology, produce more natural gas here at home, make America less dependent on foreign sources of energy, improve national grid, etc. 3. Established a $10 million grant program to promote private conservation initiatives. 4. Significantly eased field-testing controls of genetically engineered crops. 5. Changed parts of the Forestry Management Act to allow necessary cleanup of the national forests in order to reduce fire danger. 6. Part of national forests cleanup: Restricted judicial challenges (based on the Endangered Species Act and other challenges), and removed the need for an Environmental Impact Statement before removing fuels/logging to reduce fire danger. 7. Killed Clinton's CO2 rules that were choking off all of the electricity surplus to California. 8. Provided matching grants for state programs that help private landowners protect rare species. Defense & Foreign Policy 1. Successfully executed two wars in the aftermath of 9/11/01: Afghanistan and Iraq. 50 million people who had lived under tyrannical regimes now live in freedom. 2. Saddam Hussein is now in prison. His two murderous sons are dead. All but a handful of the regime's senior members were killed or captured. 3. Leader by leader and member by member, al Maida is being hunted down in dozens of countries around the world. Of the senior al Qaeda leaders, operational managers, and key facilitators the U.S. Government has been tracking, nearly two-thirds have been taken into custody or killed. The detentions or deaths of senior al Qaeda leaders, including Khalid Shaykh Muhammad, the mastermind of 9/11, and Muhammad Atef, Osama bin Laden's second-in-command until his death in late 2001, have been important in the War on Terror. 4. Disarmed Libya of its chemical, nuclear and biological WMD's without bribes or bloodshed. 5. Continues to execute the War On Terror, getting worldwide cooperation to track funds/terrorists. Has cut off much of the terrorists' funding, and captured or killed many key leaders of the al Qaeda network. 6. Initiated a comprehensive review of our military, which was completed just prior to 9/11/01, and which accurately reported that ASYMMETRICAL WARFARE capabilities were critical in the 21st Century. 7. Killed the old US/Soviet Union ABM Treaty that was preventing the U.S. from deploying our ABM defenses. 8. Has been one of the strongest, if not THE strongest friend Israel has ever hand in the U.S. presidency. 9. Part of the coalition for an Israeli/Palestinian "Roadmap to Peace," along with Great Britain, Russia and the EU. 10. Pushed through THREE raises for our military. Increased military pay by more than $1 billion a year. 11. Signed the LARGEST nuclear arms reduction in world history with Russia. 12. Started withdrawing our troops from Bosnia, and has announced withdrawal of our troops from Germany and the Korean DMZ. 13. Prohibited putting U.S. troops under U.N. command. 14. Paid back UN dues only in return for reforms and reduction of U.S. share of the costs. 15. Earmarked at least 20 percent of the Defense procurement budget for next-generation weaponry. 16. Increased defense research and development spending by at least $20 billion from fiscal 2002 to 2006. 17. Ordered a comprehensive review of military weapons and strategy. 18. Ordered a review of overseas deployments. 19. Ordered renovation of military housing. The military has already upgraded about 10 percent of its inventory and expects to modernize 76,000 additional homes this year. 20. Is working to tighten restrictions on military-technology exports. 21. Brought back our EP-3 intel plane and crew from China without any bribes or bloodshed. Globalization & Internationalism 1. Challenged the United Nations to live up to their responsibilities and not become another League of Nations (in other words, showed the UN to be completely irrelevant). 2. Killed U.S. involvement in the International Criminal Court. 3. Told the United Nations we weren't interested in their plans for gun control (i.e., the International Ban on Small Arms Trafficking Treaty).* 4. The only President since the founding of the UN to essentially tell that organization it is irrelevant. He said: "The conduct of the Iraqi regime is a threat to the authority of the United Nations, and a threat to peace. Iraq has answered a decade of UN demands with a decade of defiance. All the world now faces a test, and the United Nations a difficult and defining moment. Are Security Council resolutions to be honored and enforced, or cast aside without consequence? Will the United Nations serve the purpose of its founding, or will it be irrelevant?" We all know the outcome and the answer. 5. Told the Congress and the world, "America will never seek a permission slip to defend the security of our country." Government Reform 1. Improved government efficiency by putting hundreds of thousands of jobs put up for bid. This weakens public-sector unions and cuts undeserved pay raises. 2. Initiated review of all federal agencies with the goal of eliminating federal jobs (completed September 2003) in an effort to reduce the size of the federal government while increasing private sector jobs. 3. Led the most extensive reorganization the Federal bureaucracy in over 50 years: After 9/11, condensed 20+ overlapping agencies and their intelligence sectors into one agency, the Department of Homeland Security.* 4. Ordered each agency to draft a five-year plan to restructure itself, with fewer managers. 5. Converted federal service contracts to performance-based contracts wherever possible so that the contractor has measurable performance goals. Health 1. Strengthen the National Health Service Corps to put more physicians in the neediest areas, and make its scholarship funds tax-free. 2. Double the research budget of the National Institutes of Health. 3. Signed Medicare Reform, which includes: A 10-year privatization option. Prescription drug benefits: Prior to this reform, Medicare paid for extended hospital stays for ulcer surgery, for example, at a cost of about $28,000 per patient. Yet Medicare would not pay for the drugs that eliminate the cause of most ulcers, drugs that cost about $500 a year. Now, drug coverage under Medicare will allow seniors to replace more expensive surgeries and hospitalizations with less expensive prescription medicine. More health care choices: As President Bush stated, "…when seniors have the ability to make choices, health care plans within Medicare will have to compete for their business by offering higher quality service [at lower cost]. For the seniors of America, more choices and more control will mean better health care. These are the kinds of health care options we give to the members of Congress and federal employees. What's good for members of Congress is also good for seniors. New Health Savings Accounts: Effective January 1, 2004, Americans can set aside up to $4,500 every year, tax free, to save for medical expenses. Depending on your tax bracket, that means you'll save between 10 to 35 percent on any costs covered by money in your account. Every year, the money not spent would stay in the account and gain interest tax-free, just like an IRA. These accounts will be good for small business owners, and employees. More businesses can focus on covering workers for major medical problems, such as hospitalization for an injury or illness. At the same time, employees and their families will use these accounts to cover doctors visits, or lab tests, or other smaller costs. Some employers will contribute to employee health accounts. This will help more American families get the health care they need at the price they can afford. Homeland Security, Border Enforcement & Immigration 1. *See Government Reform above. Under President Bush's leadership, America has made an unprecedented commitment to homeland security. 2. Has CONSTRUCTION in process on the first 10 ABM silos in Alaska so that America will have a defense against North Korean nukes. Has ordered national and theater ballistic missile defenses to be deployed by 2004. 3. Announced a 9.7% increase in government-wide homeland security funding in his FY 2005 budget, nearly tripling the FY 2001 levels (excluding the Department of Defense and Project BioShield). 4. Before DHS was created, there were inspectors from three different agencies of the Federal Government and Border Patrol officers protecting our borders. Through DHS, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) now consolidates all border activities into a single agency to create "one face at the border." This not only better secures the borders of the United States, but it also eliminates many of the inefficiencies that occurred under the old system. With over 18,000 CBP inspectors and 11,000 Border Patrol agents, CBP has 29,000 uniformed officers on our borders. 5. The Border Patrol is continuing installation of monitoring devices along the borders to detect illegal activity. 6. Launched Operation Tarmac to investigate businesses and workers in the secure areas of domestic airports and ensure immigration law compliance. Since 9/11, DHS has audited 3,640 businesses, examined 259,037 employee records, arrested 1,030 unauthorized workers, and participated in the criminal indictment of 774 individuals. 7. Since September 11, 2001, the Coast Guard has conducted more than 124,000 port security patrols, 13,000 air patrols, boarded more than 92,000 vessels, interdicted over 14,000 individuals attempting to enter the United States illegally, and created and maintained more than 90 Maritime Security Zones. 8. Announced the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), an internet-based system that is improving America's ability to track and monitor foreign students and exchange visitors. Over 870,000 students are registered in SEVIS. Of 285 completed field investigations, 71 aliens were arrested. 9. This week, the US-VISIT program began to digitally collect biometric identifiers to record the entry and exit of aliens who travel into the U.S on a visa. Together with the standard information, this new program will confirm compliance with visa and immigration policies. 10. Eliminated INS bureaucratic redundancies and lack of accountability. 11. Split the Immigration and Naturalization Service into two agencies: one to protect the border and interior, the other to deal with naturalization. 12. Signed the workplace verification bill to prevent hiring of illegal aliens. 13. Established a six-month deadline for processing immigration applications. 14. Information regarding nearly 100% of all containerized cargo is carefully screened by DHS before it arrives in the United States. Higher risk shipments are physically inspected for terrorist weapons and contraband prior to being released from the port of entry. Advanced technologies are being deployed to identify warning signs of chemical, biological, or radiological attacks. Since September 11, 2001, hundreds of thousands of first responders across America have been trained to recognize and respond to the effects of a WMD attack. Judiciary & Tort Reform 1. Is urging federal liability reform to eliminate frivolous lawsuits. 2. Killed the liberal ABA's unconstitutional role in vetting federal judges. The Senate is supposed to advise and consent, not the ABA. 3. Is nominating strong, conservative judges to the judiciary. 4. Supports class action reform bill which limits lawyer fees so that more settlement money goes to victims. Politics 1. His leadership resulted in Republican gains in the House and Senate, solidifying Republican control of both houses of Congress and the presidency. 2. Signed an EO enforcing the Supreme Court's Beck decision regarding union dues being used for political campaigns against individual's wishes. Second Amendment 1. Ordered Attorney General Ashcroft to formally notify the Supreme Court that the OFFICIAL U.S. government position on the 2nd Amendment is that it supports INDIVIDUAL rights to own firearms, and is NOT a Leftist-imagined "collective" right. 2. Signed TWO bills into law that arm our pilots with handguns in the cockpit. 3. Currently pushing for full immunity from lawsuits for our national gun manufacturers. 4. *See Globalization & Internationalism. Traditional Values, Compassion & Volunteerism 1. Endorses and promotes "The Responsibility Era." President Bush often speaks of the necessity of personal responsibility and civic volunteerism. He said, "In a compassionate society, people respect one another and take responsibility for the decisions they make in life. My hope is to change the culture from one that has said, if it feels good, do it; if you've got a problem, blame somebody else — to one in which every single American understands that he or she is responsible for the decisions that you make; you're responsible for loving your children with all your heart and all your soul; you're responsible for being involved with the quality of the education of your children; you're responsible for making sure the community in which you live is safe; you're responsible for loving your neighbor, just like you would like to be loved yourself." 2. Started the USA Freedom Corps, the most comprehensive clearinghouse of volunteer opportunities ever offered. For the first time in history, Americans can enter geographic information about where they want to get involved, such as state or zip code, as well as areas of interest ranging from education to the environment, and they can access volunteer opportunities offered by more than 50,000 organizations across the country and around the world. 3. Established the The White House Office and the Centers for the Faith-Based and Community Initiative — located in seven Federal agencies. The faith-based initiative supports the essential work of these important organizations. The goal is to make sure that grassroots leaders can compete on an equal footing for federal dollars, receive greater private support, and face fewer bureaucratic barriers. Work focuses on at-risk youth, ex-offenders, the homeless and hungry, substance abusers, those with HIV/AIDS, and welfare-to-work families. 4. The White House released a guidebook fully describing the Administration's belief that faith-based groups have a Constitutionally-protected right to maintain their religious identity through hiring — even when Federal funds are involved. 5. Issued an EO implementing the Supreme Court's Olmstead ruling, which requires moving disabled people from institutions to community-based facilities when possible. 6. Increased funding for low-interest loan programs to help people with disabilities purchase devices to assist them. 7. Revised the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Section 8 rent subsidies to disabled people, permitting them to use up to a year's worth of vouchers to finance down payments on homes. HUD has started pilot programs in 11 states. 8. Committed US funds to purchase medicine for millions of men, women and children now suffering with AIDS in Africa. 9. Heeding the words of our own Declaration of Independence, the president laid out the non-negotiable demands of human dignity for all people everywhere. On January 29, 2002, he said, "No nation owns these aspirations, and no nation is exempt from them. We have no intention of imposing our culture. But America will always stand firm for the non-negotiable demands of human dignity." As stated by the President, they are a virtual manifesto of conservative principles: Equal Justice Freedom of Speech Limited Government Power Private Property Rights Religious Tolerance Respect for Women Rule of Law

Contractor Agreement for work done..? Hi, I had just open a small company as contractor for general works like home/ office renovation. Will like to know if once the renovation works are done, are we required to let our clients sign on any form to show that the job is done so as to avoid any disagreement in the future. If it is necessary, will appreciate if anyone can show me the template/ sample as I had sourced through the internet but can't find anything suitable. I managed to find a couple of them but are quite complicated and detailed which I think might not be suitable for a small company like mine.. Thank you..

Caught in the middle...what to do? My parents house was ruined on the bottom level by Hurricane Ike. They are neck deep in renovations and generated-power and contractors, and are very stressed out and on edge, understandably. They finally secured satellite internet and sent link to their new website with photos to family and friends, which include the latest photos of the destruction in their home and neighborhood. My cousin, who is very close to the same age as me and like a sister (my mom's sister's daughter) responded to the email by saying, "I didn't know you had a website. Thanks for sharing. Liked the photos." My mom called me crying because she felt this response was inappropriate, and I don't know what to do. Should I call my cousin and tell her to call my parents and apologize? I believe she may have seen the pics of the house and devestation but then seen more outdated photos of a beautiful trip to Thailand and then gotten distracted and sent off a thoughtless email from work. I feel like I am trying to justify my cousin's actions, but I don't know if I should. I also think my parents might be overreacting to an email. What should I do?

Should I take a hostess gift? My husband is a contractor who worked on the renovation of an old home. The home owner is throwing a Thank You party for all the contractors and their families now that the house is finished. Since this is a thank-you party, do I take a hostess gift? Thanks for your help!

Will a convicted felon effectively represent Alaska? http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/stevens_trial WASHINGTON – Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens was convicted of seven corruption charges Monday in a trial that threatened to end the 40-year career of Alaska's political patriarch in disgrace. The verdict, coming barely a week before Election Day, increased Stevens' difficulty in winning what already was a difficult race against Democratic challenger Mark Begich. Democrats hope to seize the once reliably Republican seat as part of their bid for a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. Stevens, 84, was convicted of all the felony charges he faced of lying about free home renovations and other gifts from a wealthy oil contractor. Jurors began deliberating last week.

some one broke into my home? So i just bought my first home in Dec, Im having it remodled before i move in the renovations are almost done and some crack heads break into my home and steal the brand new a/c unit all the copper pipeing door handels anything metal they could take. They took the contractors tools and supplys. they flooded the basement. I called the police they took finger prints.I called my home owners insurance and they told me they will not insure anything and they are going to cancel me because i have not moved in to the house yet.. What the hell. I was having $26,000 worth of work done on the house how the hell was i able to live in the house..does anyone have any suggestions or any advice please help im lost..

203K loan Contractors?!? I am looking for a final accurate answer.. true or false? - Can you do your OWN renovations for your home using 203k Loan funds? Some say no, some say yes. I was told yes , as long as your qualified to do such.. you won't get funds upfront , you'll be reimbursed and you have to follow the time frame guidelines. Does anyone know the real answer? Thanks!

Is anyone interested in helping a family rebuild their lives? I own a contractor referral service in Colorado Springs, CO. We are sponsoring a Christmas Blessings Program to bless a special family. We have selected the family and are prepared to move forward with organizing their blessing. The family resides in this area: we will be re-furnishing and renovating their home, starting a sholarship fund for their children, providing them with a new car (hopefully) and bringing them into the 21st Century with at least two new computers for the children. We need volunteers to help with the construction/renovation, etc. You may IM, email, or call us if you're interested.

is it typical to give your general contractor a completion bonus (it wasn't completed early)? The contractor was about 4 months late on the home renovation, but he did excellent work (and we are now friends). We'd like to give him some type of bonus, but we don't want to throw our money away if the amount we are consisdering is too small (thus, receiving no benefit from the amount we actual would give)

Do I need building permits to replace my windows? I live in a tract home made in the late 40's early 50's. all of the windows are single pane the wood framings are rotted and they are in need of replacement. Some of the windows are made from floor to ceiling in which case I might have to stucko the remainder of the outside walls when I replace the big ones with the regular sized windows. I am told by friends and some contractors that I don't need a permit to replace the windows since I am not doing any major renovations that effects the floor plan or square footage of my home. Is this true? By the wayI live in Orange County , California.

What is a reasonable cost overrun on a construction project? I recently had some renovations done on my home. The final bill presented by the contractor is considerably more than the estimate he gave me. What is considered an acceptable margin of error for a construction cost estimate?

how to undo the bad luck from broken mirror in my house? there are some renovation going on in my house these days. The contractor took eight mirror down from the wall in my living room. when they put them back on to the wall, one is broken. today when I came back home from shopping, I saw another mirror broken. I am really worry about the bad luck. Could anyone tell me how to undo the bad luck? Thanks

Will there be a Lift Upgrading Programme (LUP) for Blk 249, Tampines Street 21, S 520249? Where can I find the cheapest but good home renovation for my resale 3-room flat? I'm only doing minor renovation like shower screen, built-in wardrobe for 1 bedroom, bi-fold door to my kitchen and a small, extended kitchen cabinet to cover my rubbish-chute? Tell me the name, location, contact of the reno contractor if possible, please. Thank you.

Fire - Advice from landlords? The house that we rent out had a fire. I've already informed the insurance company, there's an adjuster coming out, and the tenants are staying somewhere else. If anyone else has been in this situation, I'm wondering if there's any helpful advice for us. Should we drive 10 hours to check things out? If so, when? How many repair/restoration estimates should I try to get aside from the one my insurance uses? I'd planned on doing other work to the home. Can I have a contractor do that work at the same time and split the billing appropriately, or will that screw up the insurance and tax stuff? Please provide any additional ideas. We've never had a big insurance claim and I don't want to overlook stuff. We had previously planned on having the tenants out by April, doing some renovations, and putting it up for sale. I don't know how much this will change things. One bedroom is destroyed and there's a lot of smoke damage throughout the upstairs.

Is this why the libs hate BUSH?

general questions about remodeling well my immediate family is moving into a new home soon and i will be in charge of the renovations and remodeling. id like to leave the back yard open for patio space and the pool the we will be installing. but on top of the first or second story id like to add an open sun room of sorts. my question is; has anyone had any experience with adding another level to their homes? we will be intentionally buying low and getting out more for the remodeling. we will have between 20 and 100 thousand for the projects(depending on certain factors of course). ive found a nice home that would leave around 75k for the projects.to give a little info on my projects- i see a semi sun room the i will use for my weights and workout equipment. there will be no inner walls and the outer walls would be only a few feet high with the rest of the wall space being filled with glass and windows. i tell you this in hopes that maybe you could relate similar projects to mine and give some sort of cost that i might expect. there is no room either in reality or in my mind to spread the house outward into the yard since yard space is almost more precious then a homes sq footage. also, for any other projects, what sort of questions and research should i do before going into a deal? and to finish off this topic, is there any way i could make up a legitimate contract for the contractors stipulating certain terms and agreements? id like to be in complete control of this situation seeing as how this is our house and not some guy washing my car. just a few little facts about my situation to help you help me; i live in texas in the dallas area and in our price range and certain select housing features, i found near 400 homes for sale. if i would have set the threshold to a bare minimum, the number goes up to nearly 650. and our maximum price would still be about 80k lower then the average. that home count isnt taking into account the foreclosed homes or new builds. when i look for houses up to a million with almost any square footage and other aspects, that number jumps to a staggering 1300. thats also not counting multi family or any attached home of sorts. also, a (simple) majority of homes have been on the market for more then 3 months, with new listings pushing other homes into the previously mentioned category daily. is there anyway i could use this housing economy to my advantage in regards to the remodeling projects? also, we have some of the lowest costs of living in the nation and home prices are extremely appropriate(low) when compared to other states. so if all this helps you give me me any advice, great. if not im sorry i wasted your time. thank you for any help and have a great week folks.

What kind of threat do you think this is? Last night my boyfriend left with his parents to go out to eat. They were gone for about 45 Min's to an hour, and when they got back home they found something very disturbing sitting on their front porch. It was one orange road cone with a red light reflector on the top of it, and beside that was a old sink with a dead bird in it. The bird was a seagull with its wings completely stretched out. My boyfriends family took this as a threat. They do not have any problems with anyone they know, but my boyfriends dad owns his own renovation Business and they have been having problems with getting the money from the contractors they have been doing jobs for, therefore my boyfriends dad is having problems paying his employees. Do you think this is a threat? If so is it very serious, and do you think it may be one of his employees?

Odd Story. Found Keys? My father is a contractor and so the other day I was helping him rip the kitchen out of an old trailer home that had been converted to more of a rabch home with two additions previous to this new renovation we are doing. Anyway, we were ripping everything out; cabinets, counters, appliense, etc. Then we started ripping off this cheesy wood panneling that had been painted and wallpapered over. So I had a hammer and a flat bar and I started to rip off a piece of panneling and I found a two identical heys on a ring kind of shoved inbetween that piece and the piece on top of it that couldn't have been seen until a cabinet was ripped down and the panneling was partialy taken off. I showed them to my father and one of his men. and they kind of jokeingly said "Oh, better keep those! Thats prolly to the safe!" Despite their mocking, I kept the small, almost new looking keys. I showed them to mom and she said they looked like filing cabinet keys. Does anyone know why someone would stash filing cabinet or similar keys in a '70s trailer home? Any other thoughts on this?

Does Anyone Question G W Bush's Greatness!!!!? THE GREAT THINGS ABOUT GEORGE W BUSH -the most socially conservative president of recent decades -the defeat of the Democrats’ Senate leader Tom Daschle in 2004 -the nominations of Justices Roberts and Alito to the Supreme Court in 2005 -Banned Partial Birth Abortion -Reversed Clinton's move to strike Reagan's anti-abortion Mexico Policy -By Executive Order (EO), reversed Clinton's policy of not requiring parental consent for abortions under the Medical Privacy Act. -By EO, prohibited federal funds for international family planning groups that provide abortions and related services -Upheld the ban on abortions at military hospitals. -Made $33 million available for abstinence education programs in 2004. -Supports the Defense of Marriage Act — and a Constitutional amendment saying marriage is between one man and one woman -Requires districts to let students transfer out of dangerous schools -Requires schools to have a zero-tolerance policy for classroom disruption (reintroducing discipline into classrooms) -Signed the Teacher Protection Act, which protects teachers from lawsuits related to student discipline -Expanded the role of faith-based and community organizations in after-school programs -Signed two income tax cuts, one of which was the largest dollar-value tax cut in world history. Supports permanent elimination of the death tax. Turned around an inherited economy that was in recession, and deeply shocked as a result of the 9/11 attacks. Is seeking legislation to amend the Constitution to give the president line-item veto authority. In process of permanently eliminating IRS marriage penalty. Increased small business incentives to expand and to hire new people. Initiated discussion on privatizing Social Security and individual investment accounts. Killed Clinton's "ergonomic" rules that OSHA was about to implement; rules would have shut down every home business in America. Passed tough new laws to hold corporate criminals to account as a result of corporate scandals. Reduced taxes on dividends and capital gains. Signed trade promotion authority. Reduced and is working to ultimately eliminate the estate tax for family farms and ranches. Fight Europe's ban on importing biotech crops from the United States. Exempt food from unilateral trade sanctions and embargoes. Provided $20 million to states to help people with disabilities work from home. Created a fund to encourage technologies that help the disabled. Increased the annual contribution limit on Education IRA's from $500 to $2,000 per child. Make permanent the $5,000 adoption tax credit and provide $1 billion over five years to increase the credit to $10,000. Grant a complete tax exemption for prepaid or college tuition savings plans. Reduced H1B visas from a high of 195,000 per year to 66,000 per year Changed the tone in the White House, restoring HONOR and DIGNITY to the presidency Has reintroduced the mention of God and faith into public discourse. Handled himself with enormous courage, dignity, grace, determination, and leadership in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 hijackings and anthrax attacks. He almost single-handedly held this country together during those searing days Just three days after the attacks, in his address at the National Cathedral, the President reassured the nation when he said: "War has been waged against us by stealth and deceit and murder. This nation is peaceful, but fierce when stirred to anger. This conflict was begun on the timing and terms of others. It will end in a way, and at an hour, of our choosing." On Friday, September 14, 2001, President Bush visited Ground Zero. Standing on a crushed and burned fire engine atop the smoldering pile at Ground Zero, he put his arm around a retired firefighter who had volunteered to help, and began speaking to the crowd. Rescue workers shouted that they could not hear him. Someone handed him a small American flag and bullhorn. The President spontaneously shouted: "I can hear you. The rest of the world hears you. And the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon." The crowd roared with cheers and chants of "USA! USA! USA!" Then he raised that American flag and rallied a nation Signed the No Child Left Behind Act, delivering the most dramatic education reforms in a generation (challenging the soft bigotry of low expectations). The very liberal California Teachers union is currently running radio ads against the accountability provisions of this Act. Announced "Jobs for the 21st Century," a comprehensive plan to better prepare workers for jobs in the new millennium by strengthening post-secondary education and job training, and by improving high school education. Is working to provide vouchers to low-income students in persistently failing schools to help with costs of attending private schools. (Blocked in the Senate.) Requires annual reading and math tests in grades three through eight. Requires states to participate in the National Assessment of Education Progress, or an equivalent program, to establish a national benchmark for academic performance. Requires school-by-school accountability report cards. Established a $2.4 billion fund to help states implement teacher accountability systems. Increased funding for the Troops-to-Teachers program, which recruits former military personnel to to become teachers. Successfully executed two wars in the aftermath of 9/11/01: Afghanistan and Iraq. 50 million people who had lived under tyrannical regimes now live in freedom. Saddam Hussein is now in prison. His two murderous sons are dead. All but a handful of the regime's senior members were killed or captured. Leader by leader and member by member, al Qaida is being hunted down in dozens of countries around the world. Of the senior al Qaida leaders, operational managers, and key facilitators the U.S. Government has been tracking, nearly two-thirds have been taken into custody or killed. The detentions or deaths of senior al Qaida leaders, including Khalid Shaykh Muhammad, the mastermind of 9/11, and Muhammad Atef, Osama bin Laden's second-in-command until his death in late 2001, have been important in the War on Terror. Disarmed Libya of its chemical, nuclear and biological WMD's without bribes or bloodshed. Continues to execute the War On Terror, getting worldwide cooperation to track funds/terrorists. Has cut off much of the terrorists' funding, and captured or killed many key leaders of the al Qaeda network. Initiated a comprehensive review of our military, which was completed just prior to 9/11/01, and which accurately reported that ASYMMETRICAL WARFARE capabilities were critical in the 21st Century. Killed the old US/Soviet Union ABM Treaty that was preventing the U.S. from deploying our ABM defenses. Has been one of the strongest, if not THE strongest friend Israel has ever hand in the U.S. presidency. Part of the coalition for an Israeli/Palestinian "Roadmap to Peace," along with Great Britain, Russia and the EU. Pushed through THREE raises for our military. Increased military pay by more than $1 billion a year. Signed the LARGEST nuclear arms reduction in world history with Russia. Started withdrawing our troops from Bosnia, and has announced withdrawal of our troops from Germany and the Korean DMZ. Prohibited putting U.S. troops under U.N. command. Paid back UN dues only in return for reforms and reduction of U.S. share of the costs. Earmarked at least 20 percent of the Defense procurement budget for next-generation weaponry. Increased defense research and development spending by at least $20 billion from fiscal 2002 to 2006. Ordered a comprehensive review of military weapons and strategy. Ordered a review of overseas deployments. Ordered renovation of military housing. The military has already upgraded about 10 percent of its inventory and expects to modernize 76,000 additional homes this year. Is working to tighten restrictions on military-technology exports. Brought back our EP-3 intel plane and crew from China without any bribes or bloodshed. Challenged the United Nations to live up to their responsibilities and not become another League of Nations (in other words, showed the UN to be completely irrelevant). Killed U.S. involvement in the International Criminal Court. Told the United Nations we weren't interested in their plans for gun control (i.e., the International Ban on Small Arms Trafficking Treaty).* The only President since the founding of the UN to essentially tell that organization it is irrelevant. He said: "The conduct of the Iraqi regime is a threat to the authority of the United Nations, and a threat to peace. Iraq has answered a decade of UN demands with a decade of defiance. All the world now faces a test, and the United Nations a difficult and defining moment. Are Security Council resolutions to be honored and enforced, or cast aside without consequence? Will the United Nations serve the purpose of its founding, or will it be irrelevant?" We all know the outcome and the answer. Told the Congress and the world, "America will never seek a permission slip to defend the security of our country." Improved government efficiency by putting hundreds of thousands of jobs put up for bid. This weakens public-sector unions and cuts undeserved pay raises. Initiated review of all federal agencies with the goal of eliminating federal jobs (completed September 2003) in an effort to reduce the size of the federal government while increasing private sector jobs. Led the most extensive reorganization the Federal bureaucracy in over 50 years After 9/11, condensed 20+ overlapping agencies and their intelligence sectors into one agency, the Department of Homeland Security.* Ordered each agency to draft a five-year plan to restructure itself, with fewer managers. Converted federal service contracts to performance-based contracts wherever possible so that the contractor has measurable performance goals His leadership resulted in Republican gains in the House and Senate, solidifying Republican control of both houses of Congress and the presidency. Signed an EO enforcing the Supreme Court's Beck decision regarding union dues being used for political campaigns against individual's wishes Ordered Attorney General Ashcroft to formally notify the Supreme Court that the OFFICIAL U.S. government position on the 2nd Amendment is that it supports INDIVIDUAL rights to own firearms, and is NOT a Leftist-imagined "collective" right. Signed TWO bills into law that arm our pilots with handguns in the cockpit. Currently pushing for full immunity from lawsuits for our national gun manufacturers. Equal Justice Freedom of Speech Limited Government Power Private Property Rights Religious Tolerance Respect for Women Rule of Law and the list goes on and on...... but need i say more??

Tough times, I had some tough times recently and I put the blame squarely on my mom, should I say sorry? Okay, a little background. And it is long... it is about me being the let down child and me being forced to marry within my race and where I am now with my relationship with my parents (mom in particular) My mom is a traditional mom with very traditional values, she is also the lady with the pants in the house, so to speak. My dad was the breadwinner but he thought my mom walked on water. Sure they had their disagreements but at the end of the day, my mom was always in the right. So, my entire life, I had to live in the shadow of my overachieving brothers -- my older brother is one of the youngest ever for his profession and is a prolific writer, lecturer and someone everyone in his profession at least knows or respects. My younger brother, is the golden child who has had it easy in life, he's tall, athletic, good looking and a surgeon to boot. He is also well respected in his profession and is paving great paths for his career. Me, the sister -- who is the middle child -- who basically has been told hey you can do whatever you want but I don't think you will succeed. Oh, your brothers are going to ivy league schools -- doctor, lawyer, etc...but you can do something, you are smart, we just know you are not as bright as your brothers. I went to a good university -- very well respected -- and graduating from this school, people will assume you are smart. And I am told I am smart, etc. But I don't care, you aren't smart until you apply it. So here's my gripe.. you can date but it must be within your own race. I dated my college sweetheart for my entire junior and senior year and afterwards he is to go to a major university for his Masters on a full ride, I tell my parents this guy is a keeper. He is smart, he has great ambition and he is very dedicated to me. My mom won't even let me bring him home or even try to meet this boyfriend of mine. Long story short, I decide to break it off because I chose family over my bf. Well, later on, I finally date someone in my race and I end up marrying him ... he ends up cheating and leaving me with a baby and a toddler. He leaves the country and I can't find him, he doesn't do a thing for the kids and basically tries to hide his earnings so he doesn't have to pay much at all. I lost it with my mom today because I am going through a major renovation in my house and this was something my parents did help me with because I do need help with my kids so I can try to do well at my job. (but now the economy isn't so good and me being laid off is actuallly a big, big possibility) But the truth is, boss of the last year, is not a huge fan of me since I am a clear threat to her. So, I am on her short list I am positive. So, I have the stress of a new and bigger house, renovations that have gone over budgeted and long pass the original dates of completion (yes, dates... plural) and I am currently living with my 2 kids at the parents house. The granite company has been a complete nightmare and the contractor is a friend of the parents and they are calling the shots and I am calling the shots, too. It is crazy. I lost it today because all I hear is what I can and cannot do to my backsplash, to my curtains, to my walls, to my landscaping, etc.... I have bought and sold a few houses prior to this so, I am not a newbie to all this. In addition, my last house, I was perfectly fine in and could afford quite well. I sold the house By Owner (with listings on MLS, FMLS), painted, upgraded and staged the house on my own.. it sold in 30 days in this market. But my parents think I am a complete idiot. Now, this house is 1/3 larger and in a prestigious area. So, the house is more than the other one by a long shot and also not one I chose. It was this neighborhood or none, if I was to get them to help me with the kids. I am worried about the house, about the economy, about my job, about my kids and about my well being. But mostly, I am tired of living with my naysayers in my life and need to just get away. I lost it because I still blame my mom for "forcing me to pick between my bf and my family". And my ex-bf .. he is now president and CEO of a major company. (I don't love him anymore but I did, and I think we are at 2 different places in our lives anyway, so, I am not contacting him -- I just read an announcement about his a few months back) My ex-husband, ... he is the no-show dad who is hiding because he doesn't want to pay for his kids. Great isn't it?!! My forced second choice was a complete winner! (My mom says that she warned me about his "player ways" -- but she met him, had his family over for dinner, etc... never even allowed me to have my ex-bf over to meet her once -- it was embarassing really. I broke it off because I wanted both my parents to get along with my choice in life -- that was stupid, I guess) So, instead of me not working and not being able to volunteer or play tennis on the weekday team or workout (si Cool beans ... that was uncalled for, I married my husband because he said he wanted kids and I did, too. I don't care that he left me, i only care about it for my kids. But honestly, I was the single parent even when we were technically married. I structured my entire life around my children. There isn't one day I not without them. So your comments are uncalled for and unnecessary. Additionally, I had a question about my relationship with my parents not with my ex. He is an idiot and if he doesn't want to have anything to do with them, that is his loss not ours. We have a great life. I get paid well enough, I live in large house and in one of the best areas in America, I am generally the glass half full type of gal So, for you to say, I don't want my kids ... that is a complete and utter rubbish. I am actually insulted, my kids are the best thing and the only reason why I strive to out do my brothers and my parents. Afterall they are also overachievers. The fact is I love my life without my parents in it. And I have conflicts with my feelings because of it. I have a great life without them butting into it. My children are 2 of the best and well adjusted kids out there -- as told to me by many other parents and teachers. So, I know I am living right.

How to gather business for your painting business??? My friend and I have opened up a small painting and handyman business. I am trying to get some work lined up so I can quite me job and do this full time. I have a ad in the yellowpages, 2 newspapers, I am a member of renovation experts which get me leads, I am being advertised on a local TV show every Sunday. I am getting phone calls, but they are only for small jobs around $250 each. I am doing a lot of estimates for bigger projects like painting exterior homes which I have done many times so I know what I am doing. I am coming in much lower on my bids than other contractors by like $1500, but I don't seem to be getting the jobs. I am very nice and talk to the customer, it seems like I got the job, but than I never here from them again! What am I doing wrong and is there any other way for me to bring in more business for my company?? I really want to leave my current job working as a contractor for Comcast, running and installing cable tv and phone.

Ok, So What Is Your Worst Renovation Experience With A Contractor? I run a Contractor Referral Service in Colorado Springs, CO. Our goal is to keep homeowners from making a mistake in hiring a contractor to work on their home. Often, homeoweners are so concerned with getting a "cheap price", they set themselves up to be ripped-off. I would just like to hear stories from others who have been taken-in by unscrupulous or unqualified contractors across America!