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Good Morning, All: As Election Day, November 5, draws closer, two important decisions need to be made: who will represent you and your interests during the 105th Congressional session and how can you best bring about change? I guess in the simplest terms, you need to be informed in order to vote for those candidates who represent your interests. Allow me to interject a few words about myself & that great unknown, disliked and distrusted subject, 'politics'. Actually, I think the previous sentence says it all! So, the reason I am posting on this subject is NOT because I love it, but because it is IMPORTANT. I hope you have noticed postings listing Senators and Representatives who are running for office and they have been set apart with the notations: CS=Co-sponsors, or * = Co-sponsors. You would have also seen, "co-sponsored Chris Smith's version (HR 3514). These notations are important because they are a signal of the past performace of the legislator in question. Important life saving legislation has been pending in Congress since April 6, 1995 when Senator Hatfield and Representative Waxman introduced the Morris K. Udall Parkinson's Research Bill, aka the Udall bill (HR 1462). The main purpose of the bill was to increase the inadequate funding level to which PD research has been relegated. Through a great deal of grassroot advocacy, the number of cosponsors in the Senate were increased to 62, and 248 Representatives cosigned in the House. A version of the Udall bill was included in the NIH Revitalization Act and was passed unanimously by the Senate on September 5, 1996. The House did nothing! The Udall bill will be reintroduced in the 105th session, and our job is to reward those politicians who recognize our plight. The 28 legislators who cosigned Rep. Chris Smith's version of Parkinson's Research Bill (has language limiting the funding to disclude fetal tissue transplant) are important to our cause, because they are dissipating our strength based on uninformed reasoning. H.R.3514 -SPONSOR: Rep Smith, C. , (introduced 05/22/96) 28 COSPONSORS: Rep Volkmer D-MO-09) - 05/22/96 - withdrew from HR 1462 Rep Flanagan (R-IL05) - 05/22/96 Rep Hayes (R-LA07) - 06/12/96 Rep Hall, R (D-TX04) - 06/13/96 - also co-sponsor HR 1462 Rep Barton (R-TX06) - 06/13/96 Rep Seastrand (R-CA22) - 06/13/96 - also Rep LaFalce (D-NY29) - 06/26/96 - also Rep Callahan (R-AL01) - 06/26/96 - withdrew from HR 1462 Rep Hansen (R-UT01) - 06/26/96 Rep Wolf (R-VA10) - 06/26/96 - also Rep Lewis, R. (R-KY02) - 06/26/96 - also Rep Ehlers (R-MI03)- 06/26/96 - also Rep Holden (D-PA06) - 07/10/96 - also Rep Poshard (D-IL19) - 07/10/96 - withdrew from 1462 Rep Cunningham (R-CA51) - 07/10/96- also Rep Packard (R-CA48) - 07/24/96 Rep Calvert (R-CA43) - 07/24/96 - also Rep Stearns (R-FL06) - 07/24/96 - withdrew Rep Hayworth (R-AZ06) - 07/24/96 - also Rep Bunning (R-KY04) - 07/24/96 - also Rep Thornberry (R-TX13) - 07/24/96 Rep. Barrett, B.(R-NE03) - 09/12/96 Rep. Bachus (R-AL06) - 09/12/96 Rep. Dickey (R-AR04) - 09/12/996 Rep. Weldon, D. (R-FL15) - 09/17/96 - also Rep. Salmon (R-AZ01) - 09/17/96 Rep. Norwood (R-GA10) - 09/18/96 - also Rep. Weldon, C. (R-PA07) - 09/26/96 - also Margaret Tuchman(54yrs,dx1980) [log in to unmask] *******************************************************************