By Guest Blogger: SANDRA GLUSCHANKOFF — Argentinian (read bio)

One, two, five… ten. One.

That was the number of homeless men I counted while I strolled two blocks down a very quaint little town in the Central Coast of California.

Ten men and one woman.

The ages? Very hard to guess.

Under the many layers of clothing they wore, and behind the deep creases in their skin left by the incessant beating of the sun, these men could’ve been anywhere between their twenties and forties.

This is not the first time I have encountered homeless people in my life.

I come from a country where hobos are an institution. It is a tough pill to swallow because down there, a huge number of these beggars are children. Unlike the adults we are used to seeing begging on the streets wearing everything they own, these children are barely dressed. Their feet are blistered from their constant barefoot walking on the rough pavement and their faces smeared with dirt from their precarious living conditions. (more…)

By SANDRA LORD – Caribbean

When I attended performing arts school in New York, each semester I found myself one of few black students in the classroom. The rest of the students were primarily Caucasian, many from Europe and Canada.

I thought nothing much of it until one day a fellow classmate from Holland asked me if I knew how she could get her Green Card. I was taken off guard. The fact is, until that moment, it had never dawned on me that any of my fellow classmates was in the U.S. illegally – after all, they were um…white.

It turned out that several of them were here illegally, including those from CANADA.

I’ve never stopped thinking about that for like many Americans, I had (more…)

By Sandra & Allison Lord

THE MOST ANNOYING MEDIA PERSONALITIES:

(©) 2010 Lord Sisters. All Rights Reserved

SARAH PALIN

How has Sarah Palin managed to seduce so many people into thinking she could conceivably be the President of the United States and Leader of the Free World?

There are a few things in her favor: her feistiness – she gives as good as she gets; her sense of humor – she knows how to laugh at herself and minimize the effect of a multitude of humiliating faux pas; her marketing skills – she has perfected the art of playing the media like a hooker practiced in the art of seduction and has them eating out of her hand; her brazenness – she has a unique ability to look you squarely in the face, with unwavering eyes and that beaming, shameless smile while she gives uninformed, meaningless, answers to pointed questions; oh, yeah, and she’s sexier than McCain, Newt, Giuliani or any of the Republicans to boot!

But none of these things is presidential. (more…)

By ALLISON LORD – Caribbean

From the time I was able to vote in America, everyone who knows me knows that I have always longed for a young, intelligent, energetic and vibrant President. I would take good looks too.

Bill Clinton came close. He was my sweetheart for years! Oh, how I fantasized about that sexy man holding his cigar. Anyway, sidetracked!…I really didn’t care about race or gender, but I was certainly tired of the stream of old men making out-of-touch decisions that affected everyday Americans.

When Barack Obama threw his hat into the ring for Elections 2008 my prayers were finally answered. I was ecstatic. But, with just one year into office, I can’t believe there are already some grumblings about his performance. People are blaming him for the lack of change, unfulfilled promises, unemployment, recession and starvation, yes, even starvation – in India! (more…)

By Guest Blogger: JASMINE RAFATI – Iran

When I was in France couple of years ago, I got very sick and had to spend some time in the hospital. The French healthcare system, a complex mix of private and public financing is reputed to be one of the most effective systems in the world. (In the last global rankings by the World Health Organization [WHO] on healthcare, France was ranked #1, Iran #93, and the U.S., #37.)

However, my experience wasn’t great to say the least…although I went to two of the biggest hospitals in Paris. Beds and pillows were covered in plastic. A cotton sheet was laid over the plastic, but it wasn’t enough to stop me from sweating and as a result, I felt sicker and even more nauseous. They couldn’t figure out what was wrong with me and so many doctors and residents examined me, I felt like a lab object.  When I flew back to the U.S., I was still sick and went to the hospital immediately. I (more…)

By Guest Blogger: Dr. MELODY JACKSON – American

Let me start by saying that this foray into a public expression of my not-so-P.C. ideas and ideals is different for me.  I was hesitant to write this blog because I very much dislike arguing, and I don’t care what most people think anyway, so why bother?  However, when someone starts talking trash about America or messing with my rights and my money, then I do get a bit riled up.

As I listened to the rhetoric of this year’s State Of The Union address filled with great ideas and catch phrases that could very appropriately be painted on a bouquet of Mylar helium balloons at a Tony Robbins seminar, I figured it was a good time for me to exercise my First Amendment right in this public venue. (more…)