One of the first things I saw this morning was a new ad in support of the Senate Health Care bill. The entire 30 seconds is done in "darkness" with some profiles and some full face.
The scene at the beginning is of an older man carrying what appear to be the last few boxes from a home or apartment down a long hallway.
The second scene is of him unpacking a box, unwrapping a photo and placing it on a shelf.
The third scene is the back of the man sitting at the bedside of an older woman who turns her head and smiles very gently.
The entire sequence has no dialogue. The tagline is white on black with the message of "You shouldn't have to lose everything just because you have no health care insurance." (That's not exactly a quote, but a close proximity.) Call your Senator and tell him to vote for the bill.
Some seniors depending on their politics may agree, but whoever developed the ad reckoned without the common sense reaction of the vast majority of folks who already have insurance but are looking at a bleak future where care will be rationed, we will be taxed more and premiums will be raised in a combination to be sure that we all pay for the uninsured.
We used to talk about the "sandwich generation" who are helping their parents at the same time that their kids need help with college. We need to expand that to include helping parents with health care costs and at the same time being sure their adult children are covered adequately before they and all of us will be penalized and fined if we are not able to afford the level of coverage that the government says we have to have.
This used to be a nation of optimists but now we are faced with just being able to make ends meet due to increased cost of government programs and trying to figure out what went wrong that we are leaving a real mess for kids and grandkids.
If you don't see the danger in printing money, just look at the price of gasoline. Supplies are up, but because the value of the dollar is down and the cost of crude oil is predicated on the dollar, we are already seeing what is only going to get worse.
Don't forget to vote Tuesday--
God bless............
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Protect the Troops
I thought this was the war Obama said was important--that Iraq was a diversion or some such thing.
All I can say is this is reported as the worst month ever for fatalities, so why doesn't he listen to his hand picked General and let the military do what needs to be done?
He is so busy being a celebrity that he doesn't have time to make a decision that will save American lives so what kind of "change" is that? Except for the lunatic fringe left it's certainly not the American way.
There's no sense in our talking about this. He needs to get down to business.
Prayers, please.
God bless..........
All I can say is this is reported as the worst month ever for fatalities, so why doesn't he listen to his hand picked General and let the military do what needs to be done?
He is so busy being a celebrity that he doesn't have time to make a decision that will save American lives so what kind of "change" is that? Except for the lunatic fringe left it's certainly not the American way.
There's no sense in our talking about this. He needs to get down to business.
Prayers, please.
God bless..........
Friday, October 30, 2009
Not a Dime Added to the Deficit?
Unless you add back in the $249 billion it takes to pay doctors. Really! How can you have a health care bill without including doctors?
But let's go after a couple of basic questions: 1) Being forced to buy insurance but knowing full well that services will be rationed, is there a provision which allows those who can afford it, of course, to go outside the system and pay cash?
2) When are the taxes to pay for all this going to start?
These are the two questions I asked of both Sen. Stabenow's office and Cong. Schauer's office this afternoon. The subjects were predicated when I received the first of my letters of increase ie., the Medicare Part D is being increased by $20 each for the first $40 we need to budget. We know the other part of Medicare is going to rise as well, probably in the neighborhood of $30 to $40 each making our increase $100 at a minimum. Then we add our Medigap private insurance which will no doubt be about 10% bringing us to $140-$150 per month more than this year. (Without a COLA this is a total increase.)
The answer from the Senator's office to question #1 was that yes, we could go anywhere we want and spend as much as we can afford is in the bill as we speak, but not sure it will remain. I asked that Ms. Stabenow be prepared to add an amendment to keep that little bit of freedom available. As to Question #2, she had no clue, but did not deny that a tax increase or increase in costs of health care by the government would occur.
The answer from Schauer's office was much the same. It's also in the House bill so if folks who can't afford to wait for treatment can afford private care are able to get it. I made the same suggestion per an amendment to Cong. Schauer. As to Question #2 I was referred to the website www.schauer.house.gov and again there was no denial of the fact that our costs for health care from the government would go up.
Just an FYI--the House bill costs out at $894 billion which if you factor in $249 billion for doctors is well over the trillion dollars Obama said would not be broached.
As always, have as good a weekend as possible--
God bless............
But let's go after a couple of basic questions: 1) Being forced to buy insurance but knowing full well that services will be rationed, is there a provision which allows those who can afford it, of course, to go outside the system and pay cash?
2) When are the taxes to pay for all this going to start?
These are the two questions I asked of both Sen. Stabenow's office and Cong. Schauer's office this afternoon. The subjects were predicated when I received the first of my letters of increase ie., the Medicare Part D is being increased by $20 each for the first $40 we need to budget. We know the other part of Medicare is going to rise as well, probably in the neighborhood of $30 to $40 each making our increase $100 at a minimum. Then we add our Medigap private insurance which will no doubt be about 10% bringing us to $140-$150 per month more than this year. (Without a COLA this is a total increase.)
The answer from the Senator's office to question #1 was that yes, we could go anywhere we want and spend as much as we can afford is in the bill as we speak, but not sure it will remain. I asked that Ms. Stabenow be prepared to add an amendment to keep that little bit of freedom available. As to Question #2, she had no clue, but did not deny that a tax increase or increase in costs of health care by the government would occur.
The answer from Schauer's office was much the same. It's also in the House bill so if folks who can't afford to wait for treatment can afford private care are able to get it. I made the same suggestion per an amendment to Cong. Schauer. As to Question #2 I was referred to the website www.schauer.house.gov and again there was no denial of the fact that our costs for health care from the government would go up.
Just an FYI--the House bill costs out at $894 billion which if you factor in $249 billion for doctors is well over the trillion dollars Obama said would not be broached.
As always, have as good a weekend as possible--
God bless............
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Trying to Winnow the Governor and SOS Fields
Sometimes it's the little things that can make a difference between Aye or Nay when it comes to choosing candidates even for very important offices. Maybe even petty.
The title tonight only mentions two races since I have long since given my support to Bill Schuette. I've known Bill for quite some time and even if I didn't it would have been easy to recognize the experience garnered by representing districts ranging from local state representation, to State Senate and thence to Congressional numbers. First met Mike Bishop when he was a State Committee member and I think he was a district chair. This means that he has always been issues oriented and dedicated to the Party, but the years of experience are just a bit short. I've never met Bruce Patterson.
When it comes to Secretary of State it is a real problem. I am totally leaning toward Anne Norlander since she is so very qualified to step into the office and not only continue the good things started by Candace and Terri but she sees the big picture and is raring to go. However, as an old party hack I always look at the electability and the electricity in the air when Michelle is around cannot be ignored. She's a qualified candidate and a vote getter. Cam Brown is a really steady guy who is enamored of politics and government in every way from historical knowledge to future dreams. A man to be reckoned with. That single issue, the police building, seems to be taking over for folks who are obsessed with that issue.
I'm just not quite ready to commit.
As for the Governor's race it's a process of elimination. Dr. George is absolutely a fascinating candidate with a slightly different take from some of the others. Only because of the lack of name recognition do I dismiss the candidacy. And whether we like it or not, the guy with the most votes wins.
Mike Cox seems to be so wrapped up in Detroit problems and his connections there that there seems to be something lacking in the overall picture. I know he has a plan, but it tends to be obfuscated by all that other "stuff."
My very first thought as you may recall was that in a field of 5 it could very well be that the four politicians would split fairly evenly 75% of the vote and Rick could take it with 25% give or take. I love the idea of a businessman who really knows economics, but I'm not sure of the people he would choose to be his assistants in different posts. I'm backing off that position.
As far as Hoekstra is concerned, I'm being really petty. Since he decided to blow off the opportunity to take part in our little questionnaire, my nose is out of joint. Not because it's personal, but because he said he would and then didn't follow through. It would have been better had he not responded at all. That I could understand and it wouldn't have bothered me.
So that leaves Mike Bouchard/Terri Lynn Land. Both of these people are impressive alone, but as a team they are formidable. Close to twenty years ago Mike came to my rescue when I needed a speaker for a silent auction event. Terry has done the same for lowly little Jackson County any number of times. I don't really have to lay out any of their accomplishments since they have always been front and center.
So there you have it. It is simply too far out to make the last two commitments--anything can happen, but without going into detail on positions on issues side by side, and being nothing but superficial it is just too early. As I said, sometimes it's the little things, so these are my little things that just may tip the scale when I get serious about this.
Have a fun, sugary Halloween-
God bless............
ps-My information on Bart Stupak was garnered from Catholic publications which had a really heartfelt reason for wanting to believe that he would adhere to the standards he was espousing at the time. They can be forgiven for being naive. As knowing a bit more about the way the game of politics is played, I should have known better. Sorry.
The title tonight only mentions two races since I have long since given my support to Bill Schuette. I've known Bill for quite some time and even if I didn't it would have been easy to recognize the experience garnered by representing districts ranging from local state representation, to State Senate and thence to Congressional numbers. First met Mike Bishop when he was a State Committee member and I think he was a district chair. This means that he has always been issues oriented and dedicated to the Party, but the years of experience are just a bit short. I've never met Bruce Patterson.
When it comes to Secretary of State it is a real problem. I am totally leaning toward Anne Norlander since she is so very qualified to step into the office and not only continue the good things started by Candace and Terri but she sees the big picture and is raring to go. However, as an old party hack I always look at the electability and the electricity in the air when Michelle is around cannot be ignored. She's a qualified candidate and a vote getter. Cam Brown is a really steady guy who is enamored of politics and government in every way from historical knowledge to future dreams. A man to be reckoned with. That single issue, the police building, seems to be taking over for folks who are obsessed with that issue.
I'm just not quite ready to commit.
As for the Governor's race it's a process of elimination. Dr. George is absolutely a fascinating candidate with a slightly different take from some of the others. Only because of the lack of name recognition do I dismiss the candidacy. And whether we like it or not, the guy with the most votes wins.
Mike Cox seems to be so wrapped up in Detroit problems and his connections there that there seems to be something lacking in the overall picture. I know he has a plan, but it tends to be obfuscated by all that other "stuff."
My very first thought as you may recall was that in a field of 5 it could very well be that the four politicians would split fairly evenly 75% of the vote and Rick could take it with 25% give or take. I love the idea of a businessman who really knows economics, but I'm not sure of the people he would choose to be his assistants in different posts. I'm backing off that position.
As far as Hoekstra is concerned, I'm being really petty. Since he decided to blow off the opportunity to take part in our little questionnaire, my nose is out of joint. Not because it's personal, but because he said he would and then didn't follow through. It would have been better had he not responded at all. That I could understand and it wouldn't have bothered me.
So that leaves Mike Bouchard/Terri Lynn Land. Both of these people are impressive alone, but as a team they are formidable. Close to twenty years ago Mike came to my rescue when I needed a speaker for a silent auction event. Terry has done the same for lowly little Jackson County any number of times. I don't really have to lay out any of their accomplishments since they have always been front and center.
So there you have it. It is simply too far out to make the last two commitments--anything can happen, but without going into detail on positions on issues side by side, and being nothing but superficial it is just too early. As I said, sometimes it's the little things, so these are my little things that just may tip the scale when I get serious about this.
Have a fun, sugary Halloween-
God bless............
ps-My information on Bart Stupak was garnered from Catholic publications which had a really heartfelt reason for wanting to believe that he would adhere to the standards he was espousing at the time. They can be forgiven for being naive. As knowing a bit more about the way the game of politics is played, I should have known better. Sorry.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Schauer's Premature Announcement--
Caught between a rock and a hard place. I criticize the Governor for making a trip to Japan when she already knows that the teaser she put out about going after new business is a done deal, but I'm about to do just the opposite with Mark Schauer. Usually he waits until all the Ts are crossed and Is dotted before he makes an announcement. This time, in conjunction with Debbie Stabenow, he makes headlines about a grant of stimulus funds to Consumers Energy that, guess what? Doesn't come through. Do you think he will wiggle around until we blame Debbie? It will be interesting to watch.
Also interesting to watch is what's happening in Detroit with the FBI raid on the Black Muslim cell. Are those guys really so smart that they can fool everyone around them into thinking they are religious teachers who are kind, thoughtful and fine people? One of the guys they interviewed made me want to barf he was so oily and
smo-o-o-th in talking about the one who got killed after he shot the FBI dog.
These home grown terrorists are the scary ones. You have to wonder how many more of them there are.
The other thing bugging me tonight has to do with the attack on Mike Cox with some criticism of how he handled the Kilpatrick "party" and the murder of the dancer. It's one of those stories where it might be easy to believe or not either side of the argument. Or is this being done for political reasons by one of his opponents?
Only time will tell. Looks like we have a lot of time to figure that one out.
Local news seems more interesting than the mess in Washington. It's almost boring.
God bless.........
Also interesting to watch is what's happening in Detroit with the FBI raid on the Black Muslim cell. Are those guys really so smart that they can fool everyone around them into thinking they are religious teachers who are kind, thoughtful and fine people? One of the guys they interviewed made me want to barf he was so oily and
smo-o-o-th in talking about the one who got killed after he shot the FBI dog.
These home grown terrorists are the scary ones. You have to wonder how many more of them there are.
The other thing bugging me tonight has to do with the attack on Mike Cox with some criticism of how he handled the Kilpatrick "party" and the murder of the dancer. It's one of those stories where it might be easy to believe or not either side of the argument. Or is this being done for political reasons by one of his opponents?
Only time will tell. Looks like we have a lot of time to figure that one out.
Local news seems more interesting than the mess in Washington. It's almost boring.
God bless.........
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Do I Need to Eat Crow?
A couple of commentators today indicated that if states opt out of the health care reform they would still have to pay the federal taxes to cover the costs of those who do take advantage of the public option. Well, I would hope that wouldn't be true. I would think that if they think they can force people to buy something that's one thing, but to tell them they have to pay for something they didn't want in the first place but need to pay for others who do want it would be a travesty.
Now I'm looking for a way to formulate the language in a referendum which would take care of the issue. However, this is going to have to wait a few days. We need to find out how smart the people in Virginia, New Jersey and New York are plus the 19th district in Michigan before we take our next step. One thing at a time sometimes works.
Couple of other observations: In the old days the economists told us that 4% unemployment was full employment. Now we are hearing talk that 10% is going to be our new full employment figure. That cannot mean anything but trouble. If that many people are not working how are they expecting to raise the ordinary taxes for day to day expenses? Not only is less money coming in, the unemployed will be a drain on programs set up to help our unemployed and their children. I wonder how many more millions will be added to those who don't have health care coverage if that happens. This is a mess!
Also in today's news we hear that Chrysler is going to jettison Jeep. I see why Roger Penske was unable to get the full backing for Saturn given the manufacturing facilities interaction with other GM models. I'm not sure if this is duplicated at Chrysler, but if it isn't or if it's just a hurdle to be jumped I predict the people who love Jeep will do their best to buy that part of Chrysler. I've know several people who love the Jeep product so much that they don't mind being called a member of a cult. There is definitely a Jeep cult in this country. This might be fun to watch.
One last observation to try to get your head wrapped around--if health care is 1/6 of the economy and government costs 1/6 we're looking at a full third in only two spending areas. The budget numbers just 5 years ago called for 10% to pay interest on the national debt which has nearly doubled in less than one year but since interest rates are down now we'll leave it where it is. Defense was just over 15% and I'm not sure where it is right now, but what I do know is that with all those fixed costs where are we going to get the money for education, all of the other so-called "discretionary" spending that each one of us can make our own lists starting with what is important to us.
Without a graph or chart to demonstrate what these numbers mean is just too much to try to visualize. We'll get on this, but for now let's just try to agree that government is just too darn big on all levels and the Tea party people have it right: Taxed Enough Already!
God bless..........
Now I'm looking for a way to formulate the language in a referendum which would take care of the issue. However, this is going to have to wait a few days. We need to find out how smart the people in Virginia, New Jersey and New York are plus the 19th district in Michigan before we take our next step. One thing at a time sometimes works.
Couple of other observations: In the old days the economists told us that 4% unemployment was full employment. Now we are hearing talk that 10% is going to be our new full employment figure. That cannot mean anything but trouble. If that many people are not working how are they expecting to raise the ordinary taxes for day to day expenses? Not only is less money coming in, the unemployed will be a drain on programs set up to help our unemployed and their children. I wonder how many more millions will be added to those who don't have health care coverage if that happens. This is a mess!
Also in today's news we hear that Chrysler is going to jettison Jeep. I see why Roger Penske was unable to get the full backing for Saturn given the manufacturing facilities interaction with other GM models. I'm not sure if this is duplicated at Chrysler, but if it isn't or if it's just a hurdle to be jumped I predict the people who love Jeep will do their best to buy that part of Chrysler. I've know several people who love the Jeep product so much that they don't mind being called a member of a cult. There is definitely a Jeep cult in this country. This might be fun to watch.
One last observation to try to get your head wrapped around--if health care is 1/6 of the economy and government costs 1/6 we're looking at a full third in only two spending areas. The budget numbers just 5 years ago called for 10% to pay interest on the national debt which has nearly doubled in less than one year but since interest rates are down now we'll leave it where it is. Defense was just over 15% and I'm not sure where it is right now, but what I do know is that with all those fixed costs where are we going to get the money for education, all of the other so-called "discretionary" spending that each one of us can make our own lists starting with what is important to us.
Without a graph or chart to demonstrate what these numbers mean is just too much to try to visualize. We'll get on this, but for now let's just try to agree that government is just too darn big on all levels and the Tea party people have it right: Taxed Enough Already!
God bless..........
Monday, October 26, 2009
OPT OUT! OPT OUT!
Okay, gang-
We've known that they have the numbers to pass whatever kind of "universal health care" they want and that even though they talked about partisan input there was no chance for that to happen;
We know that the senior citizens/Medicare patients will be the first to feel the pain;
We know that there will be rationing of care for everyone;
We know that even though there is either just under or just over a $ trillion price tag and there will still be 15-25 million uninsured depending on whose numbers you use;
We know many businesses will be fined or pushed to the brink necessitating sending their employees into the public option;
We know there will probably be federal dollars in the offing for abortions;
We know that doctors will be getting the short end of the stick and tort lawyers will continue to be protected;
However-
Today we heard that there is the possibility that states may be able to opt out of the plan. Methinks that might be the silver lining in the cloud.
Right this minute I don't know exactly where to start, and we know that there are time constraints involved in the project, but we need to get together with those who know how to write the proper language, get the printing done and the proper approvals for the language for a state referendum whereby the people can force the politicians to do the right thing. We need to get a ballot proposal ready to go.
It will require work, but with the responses to the tea parties and protests at Congressional offices plus the Town Hall meetings or lack of them which upset a lot of people we should have a real head start on getting this off the ground.
Any and all suggestions will be appreciated.
God bless............
We've known that they have the numbers to pass whatever kind of "universal health care" they want and that even though they talked about partisan input there was no chance for that to happen;
We know that the senior citizens/Medicare patients will be the first to feel the pain;
We know that there will be rationing of care for everyone;
We know that even though there is either just under or just over a $ trillion price tag and there will still be 15-25 million uninsured depending on whose numbers you use;
We know many businesses will be fined or pushed to the brink necessitating sending their employees into the public option;
We know there will probably be federal dollars in the offing for abortions;
We know that doctors will be getting the short end of the stick and tort lawyers will continue to be protected;
However-
Today we heard that there is the possibility that states may be able to opt out of the plan. Methinks that might be the silver lining in the cloud.
Right this minute I don't know exactly where to start, and we know that there are time constraints involved in the project, but we need to get together with those who know how to write the proper language, get the printing done and the proper approvals for the language for a state referendum whereby the people can force the politicians to do the right thing. We need to get a ballot proposal ready to go.
It will require work, but with the responses to the tea parties and protests at Congressional offices plus the Town Hall meetings or lack of them which upset a lot of people we should have a real head start on getting this off the ground.
Any and all suggestions will be appreciated.
God bless............
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