There is no such thing as non-partisan in DC, so you have to take the 15-year budget projection from the CBO with a grain of salt. One only has to study the governments’ projected costs for medicare/caid, social security, the war in Iraq, predictions on how the bailouts would effect employment etc at their point of inception to see how innaccurate government forecasters can be in terms of predicting cost/duration. Furthermore, there is no way that the 500 Billion dollar drawback on Medicaid will be sustainable because we are not going to just let old people suffer and die in America. This is an enormous hidden cost in the rosy CBO numbers along with many others.

Most doctors will tell you that the current bill will not lower costs or provide coverage to more people than the current system. In fact most health care professionals will tell you that health care will get more expensive. The primary beneficiaries of the current proposal are the health insurance companies and pharma companies (surprise surprise). The bill will increase their market share and protect their inflated prices they impose. It’s shame because there are many ways that real reform could take place, but they have been virtually ignored by Congress and the mass media. The real reason the government is passing this bill is to bail their spendaholic asses out, secure their jobs for a couple more years, and protect the health care cartels.

Here are some simple ways the costs associated with health care could immediately be lowered:

1. Tort Reform—limit the amount of money that patients can sue doctors for malpractice
2. Allow purchasing policies across state lines
3. No insurance needed for basic care ie free market clionics (give tax incentives)
4. GEMs http://www.twincities.com/alllistings/ci_14044396?source=rss

I for one, do not believe in the need for insurance except for catastrphic emergency reasons. The artificial and inflated costs of medical care result from HMOs and the way clinics bill to insurance companies rather than directly to the patient. Have you ever wondered why a clinic will charge $200 for a test that costs them $5? It is because they can. Over the last 20 years, the American patient has lost all touch with the cost of medical care.

Health Insurance should use the same model as homeowners insurance. If I paint my house, change the carpet, add a garage etc, I pay for it out of my pocket. I will maintain my house based on my own budget and wants, whereas if a catastrophe hits such as a damaging storm or fire, I have the insurance to step in to take care of the costs above and beyond the premium. This is how health insurance should be, but rather under the current economic inflationary practice of HMOs, families literally need insurance for the most basic services such as to obtain a prescription, get stitches, a physical, etc because HMOs set prices artificially high and clinics charge HMOs the max allotted price b/c they have to.

The health industry is a 2.5 Trillion dollar industry. It reaps enormous profits for insurance companies, hospitals, doctors and others. You better be realistic and believe that these profits are being protected and in many cases redirected through the proposed legislation rather than what it should be doing which is lowering costs, but unfortunately for us, lowering cost would mean lowering profits and this is simply not acceptable to the corporatacy of America.

Sorry for writing so much, but I am passionate about freedom of choice and the Constitution in America. Yesterday, I called Senator Franken and Klobuchar to ask them to justify the Constitutionality of the mandate to purchase health insurance. Both offices said, “Well, the government mandates you to buy auto insurance…”

I explained to them patiently that I have a choice whether I purcahse an automobile, therefore I can avoid auto insurance by walking, public transporation, or biking, therefore it is not the same. I am concerned b/c the Feds are going to tell me that I have to purchase insurance simply because I am a human being and American citizen. This mandate to purchase a product is completely unprecedented and unconstitutional. Whats next? The government is going to tell me that I have to purchase life insurance?

Come on! This is America. The land of the free. Just because a minority of super smart liberals want to impose their will on little old me doesn’t mean that I have to go along with it.

Sadly, if this passes, there will be a tax revolt in this country. The legislators cannot ignore the will of over 60% of Americans who are against this bill without consequnces. Even if we are not as educated and smart as you and the sportsbroadcaster turned political hack Keith Olbermann. Ironically, we are the same people who were against the bailouts as well and now have to painfully witness the corruption, fraud, and outright theft of our money to pay off people like Hilary Clinton’s pollster (did they really need $6 million dollars to save 3 jobs?).

The ultimate solution may be to split the country. Those that want to live in the corporate/welfare state go east of the Mississippi and those that want to live free go to the west. I would easily sacrafice some of the bourgie comforts of life to have my independence and free will.

Have a Harry Harry Christams!

As you know I have much to say on this. I’ll try and be brief.

As to the post above. Any sober and objective analyisis has concluded that, in fact, Medicare and Medicaid will, as the system currently exists, engulf our entire budget over time if not properly dealt with. Any economist worth his salt, not some “fear-mongering” President, has come to the same conclusion.

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, who scored this legislation, concluded that over ten years time this bill will be a defecit reducer, the largest of its kind, to the tune of $300 billion. And over the next decade, it will reduce the deficit by more than $1.3 Trillion (Trillion with a T). This will be a boon to small businesses struggling to do the right thing and provide insurance for their employees as the bill provides subsidies and tax incentives to the businesses that do. And yes, people should be responsible for their health care so that we the insured don’t have to be. They should be mandated to buy health insurance so that the rest of us don’t have to pay for their insurance when they go to the ER. It’s easy to call it unconstitutional but a little more difficult to come up with a solution to a problem that increases everyone’s premiums (might as well be a tax on middle-class Americans). Anyone deemed unable to afford it will be given a hardship exemption.

Matt, I’m not sure whether or not you support the Senate Bill as is. To those on the left who don’t, I have become increasingly annoyed. I think they need to step back and gain some perspective about the opportunity we have in front of us. While the left can debate the merits of the bill, one thing I’m sure of: that we’ll have another chance at real, substantial reform again under this President or any other. And if we don’t get this now – with a supermjority in the Senate, a Democratic majority in the house and a liberal President (yes, I’m using liberal) – we’ll never get anything close to this in the coming years. Political reality say the 2010 midterms will, at best, leave us with a few less Dem Sens and Dems in the house. Obama will be re-elected in 3 years (I’ll guarantee that) and then maybe, in 4 years, we could write another health care bill. The chances we’ll have enough enlightened Senators to write as good a bill as we have now will be slim. We might not get anything. After Obama (that scares me) the chance that we’ll get a more liberal candidate elected, in a country of way too many uneducated loons, is ludicrous. I just hope Dems will be able to hold onto the Presidency. The point is, this really is our best opportunity to make significant reform a reality.

Carps, remember in October of 2003, the Cubs were on the cusp of going to the World Series only to blow it. Remember those assholes who were talking about next year, unaware of just how hard it was to get to the point where had a 3-0 lead with 5 outs to go untill we reached the World Series. Well Carps, it’s the eighth inning and health care reform is 5 outs away. (I just realized how overused baseball analogies are but fuck it, this is relevant)The chance we’ll be at this point – to make health care reform a reality; to do the right thing and care for those who aren’t fortunate enough to be able to take care of themselves; to reduce the deficit; to provide affordable insurance to 31 million Americans; to make it illegal for health insurance companies to deny coverage to their insured who get sick and illegal to deny someone based on pre-existing conditions; to start to reduce health care costs thru hundreds of smart pilot programs; to ensure the hundreds of thousands of families who go bankrupt every year from their health care bill don’t anymore; to start to make REAL change – the chance we’ll be at this point any time in the near future is between slim and none. Don’t gloss over those real changes I just listed just because the public option isn’t in there. I’m disappointed too.

But this is a Bill I firmly support. You can attack me from the left or the right, I know I’m right. And Ill gladly use an overused metaphor that is dead on – we simply can’t afford to kick the can on down the road thinking next time it will be different and better. It won’t.

This is a good bill and a good start.

Wow, I wasn’t even close to brief.

President Obama is either using “end of times” fear mongering or he is being truthful. If the latter is true, health care reform will only delay the inevitable.

Obama is referring to the fact that Medicare/Medicaid is the largest item on the national budget surpassing defense spending. Check it out here:

http://www.usdebtclock.org

And perhaps you dad does know a thing or two about life and politics. He has been alive longer than you and I combined!

I can’t get into this one now, but I was thinking about your blog on the way home from work today. Even though I agree the law to exclude Atheists from taking part in government is Unconstitutional, I would never vote for an atheist. Not only is atheism a philosophically flawed illogical belief system, it is dangerous to the liberties of men and women to have a godless government.

Thanks for posting your blogs. I look forward to reading them daily!

Happy Fucking New Year

http://www.factcheck.org/2009/10/holiday-tree-hooey/
http://www.snopes.com/politics/christmas/ornaments.asp

…And Merry Fucking Christmas to you and your family as well!

Good debatin. Hey – anyone who needs customized video solutions for equipment, istallation, and service, check out ZSystem!

The released emails from the scientists spanning the last 15 years demonstrate conclusively enormous confounding factors, unscientific practices, outright fraud, and perhaps even criminal behavior. I am surprised in light of this overwhelming evidence to find oober liberals completely ignoring the facts and continuing their cheer for everyone and everything to be taxed.

“You say Global, I say Government! Yea Dear global leaders! They know more than me. I trust them to keep me safe and healthy. And to protect my environment for me and my kids and their kids! Forget individual responsibility. I have my government.”

Al Gore is a con man. He hates America. He will never let the 2000 elections leave his heart and he is on a mission to destroy American sovereignty through “climate change.” If he is so concerened with the environment, how come he eats steak, uses 20 times more elcectricy in one month than I do in a year, flies solo in chartered 747, etc etc. Oh yea, he is carbon neutral cause he buys his carbon credits. A scam contrived by Al Gore and who else, Ken Lay from Enron!

Once I see people like Al Gore and the other environmental hypocrites practicing what they preach rather than proposing taxes to secure their power and wealth, I will take them and their arguments seriously.

Otherwise, enpowering the individual is the answer. Not some unsanctioned global government operating under false flags and pretenses.

You make a lot of judgments as well, but without sourcing any of them. Like I wrote, nothing is certain, but I have the international scientific community to support my viewpoint. You have New World Order (or whatever) conspiracy theories and the villainization of Al Gore. Show me unbiased scientists that think those e-mails mean anything. Also, the “monied interests” are clearly on your side , fighting against the truth to reveal itself. You think Greenpeace (or WISPIRG) can spend .001% of what Exxon can spend to influence policy and politicians? Those meaningless fucking e-mails got more attention from the national Media than any of the countless studies supporting the theory of global warming over the last 2 decades.

It’s fitting that you say “science is dead.” No wonder this country lags behind in math and science education. No wonder China and Europe are way ahead in developing green technology and the industry that comes with it. After 8 years of disregarding science, it seems these values have worn off. I consider that pathetic.

And the fact that we don’t sign certain treaties shouldn’t be a point of pride. The conspiracy theorists have made us hypocrites who say “do as I say, not as I do” when it comes to issues such as chemical weapons and genocide. Not that it really would matter considering the American practice of merely disregarding their international agreements, such as the Geneva Conventions.

And not that this necessarily means anything, but the UN and NASA says this is the hottest decade on record. I don’t know where you get your data. (Is Dick Armey whoring for the fossil fuel companies now?) However, I’m sure this data can’t be trusted because the UN is part of your “supra national world entity,” and this is part of their diabolical scheme: “Be Pretty Much Ineffectual For 5 Decades Before Wielding Our Enormous Power To Lower Carbon Emissions…And Then Take Over The World!…..Bwahaha”

I have some other beefs with your let’s join the rest of the “smart world” and bash the “stupid Americans” argument.

First, a consensus does not imply the soundness of a theory. Pre-Gaileo, there was a strong consensus amongst the elite European scientists that the earth was the center of the universe. One could face execution to teach/say otherwise.

You did touch on this, but anyone who takes the time to research and observe the actual data on earth’s temperatures over the last 500 years will find there is no conclusive evidence showing warming or cooling. For example, the decades of the 1880s and 1890s were the hottest on record with average temps 2 degrees hotter than what they are today.

To say that humans are causing global warming is an even bigger leap of faith to the global scientist cause. Correlation does not imply causation. The fact of the matter is that humans have egos. We tend to overemphasize our impact in the universe. Vocanos, celestial bodies, solar flares, orbits, tilt, polarity, etc can all do much more to effect the earth’s climates than 2 billion volvos.

If the powers that be in our world wanted to stop carbon emissions, why wouldn’t we all immediately change over to a purely electtric car. We have had the technology and the market for a long time now. We will not because the politicians don’t care about carbon emissions. They want the gloabl tax on carbon emissions to fund their plans for global government.

Furthermore, you can not downplay the significance of the emails that were hacked and released. This particular British university is the nerve center for the global theories and Al Gore’s doom and gloom prestheltyzing. They demonstrate a long-term massive, corrosive, and corruptive conspiracy to only show one side of a climate change theory with a poltical and financial motivation.

If anything, I would say that science is dead. The only scientists that get money to conduct science get it from either the government or mega-corps. They do not serve the art and objectivity of science but rather the monied interests. Climate-gate and Al Gore are cases in point.

The problem with liberal viewpoints and beliefs is that they are so emotionally charged, it is hard to argue because in their minds, the emotions outweigh the facts.
The followers of liberal beliefs are dangerous because they are either people who think they are intellectuals because they went to or are in college and have not really thought politics all the way through; or they are sinister (like Al Gore) in that they have thought political theory through and are using emotionally charged falsehoods to mobilize their psuedo-intellectual followers.

That’s what she said.

Marriage has been a vehicle for managing wealth and politics until about 80 years ago- and remains so in many countries today. I think the government should get out of our relationships entirely.

Steroid use damaging the game of baseball for years and years to come vs. conjecturing about domestic abuse between a husband and wife – which one deserves for investigative journalism from our premier spots network? Now that journalism is a business for most MSM networks, the answer will become painfully obvious over the coming days, weeks, months….who knows.

I will say I am embarrassingly curious about the episode. And Wood’s sole statement only added to the mystery.