Poor General Motors. Despite a whole of decent products, decent sales, and blunting rival Toyota’s relentless drive to world’s top automaker, Wall Street continues to give the domestic giant a thumb’s down. Moody Investors Service, pointing to a lackluster U.S. market and GM financial statements which include a $39 billion allowance, has lowered GM’s rating from positive to stable.
Jokhang Temple is the spiritual center of Tibet. Everyday pilgrims from every corner of Tibet trek a long distance to the temple. Some of them even progress prostrate by body length to the threshold of the temple. Pilgrims fuel myriad of flickering butter lamps with yak butter, or honor their deities with white scarves (Kha-btags or Hada) while murmuring sacred mantras to show their pieties to the Buddha.
It lies at the center of the old Lhasa. Built in 647 by Songtsen Gampo and his two foreign wives, it has a history of more than 1,300. It was said that Nepal Princess Tritsun decided to build a temple to house the Jowo Sakyamuni aged 12 brought by Chinese Princess Wencheng. Princess Wencheng reckoned according to Chinese astrology that the temple should be built on the pool where the Jokhang now locates. She contended that the pool was a witch’s heart, so the temple should be built on the pool to get rid of evils. The pool still exists under the temple. Then goats were used as the main pack animals, as is the reason the city is called Lhasa. The construction took 12 months. However it was originally small and had been expanded to today’s scale in later dynasties. When the Fifth Dalai Lama took reign, large-scale reconstruction and renovation had been done. The temple is a combination of Han, Tibetan and Nepalese architectural techniques. Visitors will see sphinx and other weird and sacred sculptures.
The temple keeps many invaluable cultural relics. The most famous and valuable one is the Jowo Sakyamuni aged 12, which is circumambulated by thousands of pilgrims day and night. On his sides, there are altars of Songtsen Gampo and his two wives who introduced Buddhism into Tibet. The murals in the main hall are also worth seeing, depicting the procession of Princess Wencheng arriving in Tibet and the building of the Jokhang Temple while other murals tell Jataka stories. Two thangkas imaging Yamantaka and Chakrasamvara from the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) still remain in perfect condition. The gold bumpa (a vase) upon which the reincarnations of Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama are decided, musical instruments brought into Tibet by Wencheng and other important stuffs are also kept here.
Every year, the Great Prayer Festival will be held in the Temple. The rites of Dalai Lamas and Panchen Lamas’ initiation into lamahood are also held in the monastery.
As the new American election approaches, there are many candidates that will potentially make American History. One of these candidates is Barack Obama. If elected as the next present, he will be the first ever African American president in history. For those who do not know about Obama, here is a brief yet insightful biography.
Obama was born in August 4, 1961. His first experience in politics was when he was the junior United States Senator for his state under a Democratic Party. While receiving such role, he already contributed to history by being labeled the fifth African American Senator in a whole history of the United States.
In 2008, Obama will be running for Presidency. His Democratic Party’s mission is to end the Iraq War, which is quite turn around for the country. It will be quite interesting to see how the election plays out, which may ultimately show the nation’s current stand on the war. Of course each candidate has their own view on the war and it will not be the sole reason why the American citizens will be voting in favor of a specific candidate.
Barack Obama also wants to implement a universal health care system which allows the right to all citizens (and some permanent residents) to health care, regardless of the fact that they can afford to pay for the services or not. This is essential for the United States since they are the only industrialized country that does not grant all of their citizens the right to health care.
If Barack Obama were to be elected as president, it will show how much the United States has gone through pass their decades of discrimination against the African American. Of course racism has already decreased since the 70’s and 80’s but it still lingers within the country if we admit it or not. The sole purpose of voting for a certain senator is not to chose whether he or she is in a specific group (such as race, class or gender) but rather look through such things into their values as a person and goals for the country. This election will be one of the most important elections as there is lots of potential for history to be made and of course, a major impact in the country’s direction.
The results of Barack Obama’s campaign for presidency is not as predictable since the vote is going to be determined by generations of people who have new mindsets. As opposed to decades ago, if a similar election would be held (with a female and black senator running) the results would be quite obvious because of the discrimination between the two. However, the United States are in a new state, but of course those with the discriminating generation are still alive and voting.
As each candidate tour the country hoping to convince voters to vote for them through their campaign, Obama New York as a win would greatly benefit is campaign along with California Obama majority. Tune into the 2008 election as history will surely be made.
Are you one of the 47 million without health insurance? Do you realize that over half of all the bankruptcies in the USA occur as a result of an emergency medical cost? Many medical insurance plans are too costly for people on a modest income. COBRA monthly premiums are shocking to people who are between jobs. Graduating students do not have extra cash to spend on expensive health insurance plans before they get benefits from their jobs.
Short term health insurance plans are designed to give you the coverage of health insurance at a fraction of the cost. These medical insurance plans do not have co payments for doctors’ visits. They also do not generally have prescription drug benefits, nor do they cover pre-existing conditions.
The temporary medical insurance plans do offer major medical coverage for catastrophic situations for a fraction of the cost of co pay plans or COBRA plans. They have a deductible which you choose and an out of pocket maximum. Once the maximum is met, the insurance covers medical expenses at 100%. This coverage could be all you need to keep you out of bankruptcy in the event that you need medical care. While these plans are considered ‘temporary insurance’, they are designed to cover the individual or family for as long as the client pays the premium.
If you don’t know how long you will need the coverage, you can opt for a month-to-month payment plan. But if you know you will have coverage at a certain date, you can save money by selecting the single payment option for the insurance. This is a good idea if you are in a waiting period for a new job before the health benefits begin.
You can get coverage in as little as 5 minutes effective as early as midnight tonight, and apply directly online at several websites. Compare several different options and you will be surprised at how little it costs to insure you in the event of a medical emergency. There is no need to be one of the 47 million Americans in danger of bankruptcy in the event of a medical emergency. These plans are affordable for everyone.