The cost of health care refrom

Why do we keep hearing about special interests when the Senate is willing to spend $100 million to buy one vote?

Oh to know so much that we can make everyone happy

The notion that a small group of politicians can know enough to design something so complex and so personal is astounding.

John Stossel

That is to the point. It is wonderful that 219 Democrats and 1 Republican think they have the ability to CREATE a health care system. The audacity is breath taking. A bill of 1990 pages is incredible in its size. On the other hand that is not nearly enough to create a health care system. The regulations for the inpatient portion of Medicare run to more pages than the Internal Revenue Code, that is just the inpatient side. Believe me the outpatient regs are for more complex. But with a vote, and a great amount of hubris, Pelosi and her minions will give us all nirvana in health. Never mind that if you like what you have you will be greatly displeased in the next five years over what you have been "given" by the federal government.

Goddamn nanny state, do gooders. May they all be subjected to their own rules. (Which of course they will not be, because they are privileged by being Congressmen.)

Pelosicare

It's no secret that I think the idea of government directed universal health care is a bad idea, but Pelosi's bill is scary as hell. If you don't buy insurance you are fined (or jailed,) if you don't have a plan that includes all coverage Pelosi thinks you should have you are fined (or jailed.) This is not republican democracy, this is the Marxist socialist crap that I was certain would come with the advent of the Obama-Reid-Pelosi triumvirate. Fortunately, it looks like the rank and file is awakening to the horror that is the Pelosi bill, or at least they are afraid they will be unelected if they support it. Oh, and a tax for not obtaining coverage is no different than a fine.

Why should a healthy young person be forced to pay a large amount of money for health insurance. It makes perfect economic sense to buy a low cost policy, or opt out until you reach an age where you might actually consume some health care.

I do so despise large government. It offends my libertarian sensibilities.

Afghanistan

The default position for those who are opposed to America projecting our power is Vietnam. But the real lesson that should be taken from Vietnam, and Korea, is that if there is no stated goal of what would be a victory then military intervention is fruitless. In Vietnam the goal was ????????, so defeat was the abject withdrawal of our troops and abdication to the North Vietnamese communists. In Korea the goal was containing the North Koreans to the 58th parallel; we're still doing that 50+ years later.

In Afghanistan the goal must be the destruction of the Taliban as a political force. If we can't do that then all that has been ventured is a waste. Afghanistan is difficult both culturally and geographically, but with political commitment to the military, the goal can be obtained.

Can we afford it?

$1,200,000,000,000 is a lot of money. This is the cost of the current House bill for, (I don't even know what we're calling this now,) Healthcare reform. It doesn't really matter where you fall on the issue of should we do this or should we not, the price tag would indicate we cannot afford it.

Our economy is in the tank, deficits are growing into the stratosphere as far as we can see and the biggest policy issue we can debate is how to raise the deficit another $1.2 trillion.

Please stop even talking about this until someone explains how it is to be paid for.

Politely stating he's a pussy

David Brooks of the NY Times pens a column titled "The Tenacity Question". Read the whole thing, but the take away is that President Obama does not have the balls to wage the war against the Taliban. A war that Brooks could not find any expert on the subject to agree was unwinnable.

President Obama looks weaker every day when he is asked to confront any foe more important to our country than Fox News.

If the President is losing the editorial page of the NY Times he has lost everyone who is not on the far left fringe.

Nobel Peace Prize

Words fail me.

lethal cocktail of liberty and capitalism

This is the description of the West according to spokesman for Hizb ut Tahrir a Muslim group that espouses the non-violent destruction of Western democracy.

It warms the heart to know that Islam is such a tolerant religion. They are really the big tent group in the world. Just think about it a lethal cocktail, meaning a blending of deadly materials, and what are these lethal ingredients? Liberty and capitalism. No these people don't hate America. They don't hold any ill will toward us. Gee, they just consider the bedrock of our society as lethal ingredients in a lethal cocktail. We should by all means embrace them and their religion of peace.

I feel better now

I have been afraid that the Democrats would get their act together and actually inflict "healthcare reform" on us. I can't imagine anything worse than the federal government taking over our system, and destroying innovation in our country. But I feel better now because health care is now in Sen. Reid's hands. It is hard to conceive of anyone who is less capable of achieving legislative success then the dour Senator from Nevada.

I don't think he's really listening

Pres. Obama embarrasses me

I have thought since Obama began campaigning that there was a disconnect between running for President of the U.S. and displaying in each word and deed a loathing for America and Americans.

In the world of Obama, America has always been wrong; we do not respect other countries, we act unilaterally, we mistreat our poor and minorities. American tradition and western civilization are not to be regarded as positives that built the greatest democracy in history, but as flaws, errors, that have led America to be a dystopia.

So far the administration has disrespected our natural allies, other democracies, and snuggled up against tyrants and dictators. The President's speech at the U.N. furthered this disrespect for America, apologizing for our past and promising to be more...well, not sure what more. Perhaps more apologetic for being successful, striving more for fairness rather than excellence.

President Obama does not represent, nor even recognize, the country that I grew up in and hope to continue to be a part of.

Wow!

Camile Paglia gets it right. Go read!

She is spot on in her analysis.

Regulators regulate

"Remember that legislation itself is only half the problem with Obamacare. Whatever bill passes, hundreds of bureaucrats in the federal agencies will have years to promulgate scores of regulations to govern the details of the law.

"This is where the real mischief could be done because most regulatory actions are effectuated beneath the public radar. It is thus essential, as just one example, that any end-of-life counseling provision in the final bill be specified to be purely voluntary ... and that the counseling be required by law to be neutral as to outcome. Otherwise, even if the legislation doesn't push in a specific direction - for instance, THE GOVERNMENT REFUSING TREATMENT - the regulations could." (Emphasis added.) Wesley J. Smith

Having worked in health care for 20 years or so, I can assure you this is the absolute truth. Congress passes legislation, the President signs it and then some bureaucrat at CMS, who doesn't answer to us, writes a regulation that bears no resemblance to what the legislation intended.

We should be interested (concerned) about health care reform legislation, because it will certainly effect how each and every one of us accesses care, and the care we receive. BUT, remember no matter what legislation is passed, at the end of the day bureaucrats who are really only interested in statistical models will decide how the plan is implemented.

As some wag in the past said; "be careful what you wish for, you may get it."

The Democrats have lost

People are trying to speak. There is shouting and rude behavior on both sides. But violence comes from weakness. When you have to bring in thugs in order to silence the opposition you have lost.

This August is reminiscent of the summer of 1968, and that was ugly.

Classic one liner

This is classic Bob Hope. The man was a genius at delivering a joke straight.

Midgets v Lion

How many midgets does it take to defeat a lion? Apparently more the 42.

Palin bugs out

So Sarah Palin resigns as governor of Alaska, and we don't know why. It's good to know that the NY Times columnist Maureen Dowd does. A woman who has never done anything but spit on people who actually do things for a living is more than happy to call Gov. Palin names and call her one "nutty puppy".

I'm not sure what I think of Gov. Palin, though I do think she is more accomplished than MoDo or Pres. Obama, but she certainly doesn't deserve to be made fun of by a bunch of Manhattan elites who would starve to death in middle America because they couldn't find a good latte' or fine restaurant to eat and be seen in.

Bitch!

It only smells like insider trading

If you or I did this we would get the Martha Stewart treatment.

Senator Durbin cashed out his investments after closed door hearings revealing how risky the banking industry had become. This seems to fit part of the definition under SEC Rule 10b5-1: "any individual who trades shares based on material non-public information in violation of some duty of trust." But I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that nobody ever says boo to this POS.

Iran, the home of the free

There seems to be some people who think the elections in Iran were not totally on the up and up. I can only say that I am shocked to even think that such religiously honest people would even consider such a dishonest thing as rigging an election. It is totally beyond belief!

Remember Islam is a religion of peace, and additionally, honesty!

San Jacinto Day

Today, April 21, is San Jacinto Day. It is a day to remember the victory by the Texians over Santa Ana at San Jacinto. The battle ensured that Texas could become an independent nation. It is also one of the most important battles in history.

The Republic of Texas existed from 1836-1845. Finally, as Sam Houston desired, Texas was annexed into the United States. The annexation of Texas led quickly to war between the U.S. and Mexico. The result of the Mexican-American War was a full surrender by Mexico. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ceded an area of land that constitutes approximately one-third of the continental U.S. The area added included New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, California and parts of Utah, Idaho, Wyoming and Colorado.

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was the fulfillment of manifest destiny. The United States stretched from the Atlantic to the Pacific and filled the entire central area of the continent.

What Sam Houston and his small rag tag army did in avenging Goliad and the Alamo yielded the America we know today.