According to Speaker of the House Pelosi, the House Health Care Bill should pass anytime. Then its off to the Senate to see what they'll do. If the Senate follows suit it will get the President's signature.
Tomorrow I plan to write my senators and try to get some clarification. According to what I've read Medicare is going to be cut by $400 billion over the next ten years, and the new Health Care Bill is still going to cost around $1.2 trillion during the same period.
How is cutting benefits to senior citizens good? We know that there is rampant fraud committed against Medicare now. Does Congress really think the agency in charge of Medicare is suddenly going to regain control of the situation?
Of course the big questions is where this $1.2 trillion is going to come from? Taxes are going to need to be increased on categories other than those earning over $500,000.00 a year. (I imagine members of Congress who fall in that category will be exempt.)
I need some more specifics. All of us need to see what is really covered, who is covered and who is going to pay what.
I plan to try and read the House bill and write my senators. You all need to do the same.
An informed public is an enlightened public.
Its Common Sense!
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Fort Hood Tragedy
No commentary, no accusations, no questions.
Let's just take some time to pray and remember the dead, the wounded and their families.
May God grant the dead eternal rest, and may He give the rest of us the power to examine what happened calmly and rationally and then seek out responsible solutions so that it never happens again.
Amen!
Let's just take some time to pray and remember the dead, the wounded and their families.
May God grant the dead eternal rest, and may He give the rest of us the power to examine what happened calmly and rationally and then seek out responsible solutions so that it never happens again.
Amen!
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Election 2009 - Who Cares?
Yesterday New Jersey and Virginia elected Republican Governors and the TV pundits are trying to explain what it means now and what it could foretell about the 2010 Congressional election.
I can tell them what its all about, the American people are pissed off at all of their leaders and are looking for fresh options.
Congress made us bailout the banks and financial markets with our tax dollars and are now allowing those same banks to pay exorbitant bonuses to the same jerks who put us in the crisis. In addition, these same banks are now upping credit card interest rates every two weeks, with some rates reaching the 40% range. Congress has a bill that would curb interest rate increases. Problem is, they were waiting for February 2010 to take effect. By then interest rates could be at 80%. (I heard this evening on the news that Congress is going to move that bill up, but established interest rates will not be touched.)
The USA is still fighting, after eight years, two wars, neither of which is promising to be resolved as a clear victory for the USA or the world over terrorism.
The government wants to take over even more of health care in this country. Its not enough that they are totally mismanaging MEDICARE and MEDICAID (there was a special recently about a special FBI unit in southern Florida combating MEDICARE fraud. According to their spokesperson, MEDICARE fraud is generating millions more dollars than the drug trade in what used to be the cocaine capital of the USA.)
Where are all the jobs Obama promised? Congress has extended unemployment benefits once again, although I am unclear where the money is coming from to pay for these benefits.
The swine flu pandemic is sweeping the nation and there isn't enough vaccination for the children, much less adults.
When you take all of this into account, its a wonder the reaction of the American public has been as calm and controlled as it has been.
That said, if the current Presidential Administration and Congressional majority don't get their act together and show some real concrete progress, then the independents who brought them to power are going to go seeking someone else who offers better hope.
Politicians in this country need to wake up to the fact that the independents are on the rise and they have no loyalty to either of the primary political parties. Independents are looking for truth, honestly and a square deal. They'll listen, they'll vote and if they feel they were mislead or lied to, they'll do it all again next time for somebody else.
Wake up Congress - its time to start doing your job and representing your constituents, not the power boys and lobbyists.
Its Common Sense!
I can tell them what its all about, the American people are pissed off at all of their leaders and are looking for fresh options.
Congress made us bailout the banks and financial markets with our tax dollars and are now allowing those same banks to pay exorbitant bonuses to the same jerks who put us in the crisis. In addition, these same banks are now upping credit card interest rates every two weeks, with some rates reaching the 40% range. Congress has a bill that would curb interest rate increases. Problem is, they were waiting for February 2010 to take effect. By then interest rates could be at 80%. (I heard this evening on the news that Congress is going to move that bill up, but established interest rates will not be touched.)
The USA is still fighting, after eight years, two wars, neither of which is promising to be resolved as a clear victory for the USA or the world over terrorism.
The government wants to take over even more of health care in this country. Its not enough that they are totally mismanaging MEDICARE and MEDICAID (there was a special recently about a special FBI unit in southern Florida combating MEDICARE fraud. According to their spokesperson, MEDICARE fraud is generating millions more dollars than the drug trade in what used to be the cocaine capital of the USA.)
Where are all the jobs Obama promised? Congress has extended unemployment benefits once again, although I am unclear where the money is coming from to pay for these benefits.
The swine flu pandemic is sweeping the nation and there isn't enough vaccination for the children, much less adults.
When you take all of this into account, its a wonder the reaction of the American public has been as calm and controlled as it has been.
That said, if the current Presidential Administration and Congressional majority don't get their act together and show some real concrete progress, then the independents who brought them to power are going to go seeking someone else who offers better hope.
Politicians in this country need to wake up to the fact that the independents are on the rise and they have no loyalty to either of the primary political parties. Independents are looking for truth, honestly and a square deal. They'll listen, they'll vote and if they feel they were mislead or lied to, they'll do it all again next time for somebody else.
Wake up Congress - its time to start doing your job and representing your constituents, not the power boys and lobbyists.
Its Common Sense!
Monday, November 2, 2009
Karzai - Second Term
Abdullah Abdullah evidently decided that even with UN inspectors monitoring the polling stations, that he would not get a fair vote count, and bowed out of Afghanistan's presidential race. His departure allowed the Election Committee to give President Karzai his second term.
USA President Obama congratulated Karzai but said that Karzai's actions would speak louder than words and would be very influential in what actions the USA takes over the next several months.
Why did Abdullah bow out? Okay, we know the first election was corrupt and rigged, but this time the hope was UN inspectors would make some kind of difference. If nothing else, a close contest would have put pressure on Karzai to focus on the Afghan people and his country, rather than himself and immediate family.
My fear is that Karzai will now consider himself invincible, becoming arrogant, aloof and a dangerous ally.
Hopefully I am wrong. Time will tell. In the meantime tens of thousands of American military service personnel are putting their lives on line to free Afghanistan of the Taliban and al Qaeda. If they do not receive the support they need - foremost from the Afghan people and government - then their mission will fail and the deaths of thousands (American and Afghan) will have been for nothing.
President Obama needs to watch President Karzai closely and insure the security of our military personnel. If Karzai betrays us, the the USA and NATO need to withdraw from Afghanistan and join with hunting down the Taliban and al Qaeda in Pakistan. Karzai will be left to his own devices, and maybe that desperate act will allow the Afghan people to have a true chance for freedom.
Its Common Sense!
USA President Obama congratulated Karzai but said that Karzai's actions would speak louder than words and would be very influential in what actions the USA takes over the next several months.
Why did Abdullah bow out? Okay, we know the first election was corrupt and rigged, but this time the hope was UN inspectors would make some kind of difference. If nothing else, a close contest would have put pressure on Karzai to focus on the Afghan people and his country, rather than himself and immediate family.
My fear is that Karzai will now consider himself invincible, becoming arrogant, aloof and a dangerous ally.
Hopefully I am wrong. Time will tell. In the meantime tens of thousands of American military service personnel are putting their lives on line to free Afghanistan of the Taliban and al Qaeda. If they do not receive the support they need - foremost from the Afghan people and government - then their mission will fail and the deaths of thousands (American and Afghan) will have been for nothing.
President Obama needs to watch President Karzai closely and insure the security of our military personnel. If Karzai betrays us, the the USA and NATO need to withdraw from Afghanistan and join with hunting down the Taliban and al Qaeda in Pakistan. Karzai will be left to his own devices, and maybe that desperate act will allow the Afghan people to have a true chance for freedom.
Its Common Sense!
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Congress and Ethics
Congress leaks that several members are under ethics investigations. WOW!!
Is that a surprise? I think the surprise will be if anything happens to the members currently under investigation.
We have seen some of those names many times in the past, like my favorite, John Murtha of Pennsylvania. Why do the people keep reelecting him? Who has he paid off? Who does he have dirt on?
As for the others I'm sure we will find it is someone else's fault and that they are totally innocent.
The big question is why the investigations are such a big secret. And why was Congress so upset about the leak? Hell, we all know Congress leaks anything they want to, which makes any real investigation a true challenge.
Maybe what Congress needs is an outside, impartial, non-political watchdog group to handle their ethics violations. A group independently financed, owing nothing to no one. If Congress had that kind of ethic committee we just might see justice served.
Its Common Sense!
Is that a surprise? I think the surprise will be if anything happens to the members currently under investigation.
We have seen some of those names many times in the past, like my favorite, John Murtha of Pennsylvania. Why do the people keep reelecting him? Who has he paid off? Who does he have dirt on?
As for the others I'm sure we will find it is someone else's fault and that they are totally innocent.
The big question is why the investigations are such a big secret. And why was Congress so upset about the leak? Hell, we all know Congress leaks anything they want to, which makes any real investigation a true challenge.
Maybe what Congress needs is an outside, impartial, non-political watchdog group to handle their ethics violations. A group independently financed, owing nothing to no one. If Congress had that kind of ethic committee we just might see justice served.
Its Common Sense!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
