Tag: healthcare

Zing!

Posted on

This is about Frum:

I’ve shared op-ed space with David in at least three countries. He's a much smarter guy than I, and he’ll be around a lot longer. But there’s a strong sense of diminishing returns about these Frum flaps. David is becoming famous only for attacking fellow conservatives – Novak and Buchanan back in his end-to-evil days; then, Rush, Glenn, Sean and Sarah Palin; last weekend, it was Michelle Malkin for not mentioning his website by its name; and now AEI. At this rate, he’ll be picking fights with Barbara Bush by late spring.

via Re: Frum and Frummer – Mark Steyn – The Corner on National Review Online.

Zing!

….and the hits just keep coming! šŸ˜€

For the record, No, I do not think this is acceptable

Posted on1 Comment

In light of my posting yesterday, that not only succeeded in pissing off some liberals; but also my Mom. I thought I would clear the air on something.

It appears that some people who are not happy with the passage of this Healthcare reform bill, took it upon themselves to conduct some terrorism on the brother of one of the members of the house. It also appears that Bart Supack, received some threatening phone calls.

Here is the video on that story:


Watch CBS News Videos Online

Okay gang, here’s the deal. I do not like this healthcare bill no more than the next “Right of center” blogger. But I want to be perfectly clear. I do not support the idea of conducting terrorism on anyone. The proper definition of terrorism is:

The root word for terrorism is terror and that is defined as: (Source)

Main Entry: terĀ·ror
Pronunciation: \?ter-?r, ?te-r?r\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French terrour, from Latin terror, from terr?re to frighten; akin to Greek trein to be afraid, flee, tremein to tremble ā€” more at tremble
Date: 14th century

1 : a state of intense fear
2 a : one that inspires fear : scourge b : a frightening aspect <the terrors of invasion> c : a cause of anxiety : worry d : an appalling person or thing; especially : brat
3 : reign of terror
4 : violent or destructive acts (as bombing) committed by groups in order to intimidate a population or government into granting their demands <insurrection and revolutionary terror>

I mean, it is one thing to get on a Blog, such as mine here, and hurl insults and verbal flourishes at those that I disagree with on politics. It is another entirely to show up at someone’s house and do something destructive. That my friends is not promoting freedom, Democracy or anything else like that. Committing acts like that, makes you a two-bit thug; and basically no better than those who want to undermine our capitalistic society.

I said this before, and I will say it again; this sort of nonsense right here is why Conservatives, Republicans and Tea Party folks are losing the battle, when it comes to the political conversation in America. It is simply because the American people simply reject extremism in any form. We have a system in this wonderful Country of ours that allows the American people to choose whom they wish to lead their Country, and that is the inalienable right to vote. So, to my follow Americans, Conservatives and Tea Party folks; please, in the name of America —- stop the stupidity already! Committing acts like this makes you no better than those who slammed those planes in the World Trade Center in New York.

My good friends, anarchy never did a thing to promote freedom and peace or birth a Nation. Remember this, we are a civilized society, we are not Palestine, we are not a terrorist nation, We are Americans and we are much more better than that. Please, lets try acting like it.

If we are to win the battle come the 2010 and 2012 elections, we have to stop with this sort of nonsense and get back to the intellectual debate. We have to demonstrate to the American people that we as those who reject socialism are better than the average liberal and not some sort of knuckle-dragging terrorist from the backwoods. Until we can overcome that hurdle and get our own ranks in order, purge ourselves of the extremists. Until this happens, our cause will be a lost one.

Update: On the other hand…


18 Myths about Obamacare Debunked by Jane Hamsher

Posted on2 Comments

A great round of lies, myths and outright bullshit; which are being touted by the Obama Administration and it’s fan boys.

Via Jane at HuffPo:

Myth 1: This is a universal health care bill.

Fact: The bill is neither universal health care nor universal health insurance. According to the Congressional Budget Office:

  • Total uninsured in 2019 with no bill: 54 million
  • Total uninsured in 2019 with Senate bill: 24 million

Myth 2: Insurance companies hate this bill.

Fact: This bill is almost identical to the plan written by AHIP, the insurance company trade association, in 2009.
The original Senate Finance Committee bill was authored by a former Wellpoint vice president. Since Congress released the first of its health care bills on October 30, 2009, health care stocks have risen 28.35%.

Myth 3: The bill will significantly bring down insurance premiums for most Americans.

Fact: The bill will not bring down premiums significantly, and certainly not the $2,500/year that President Obama promised during his campaign.

Annual premiums in 2016: status quo / with bill:
Small group market, single: $7,800 / $7,800
Small group market, family: $19,3oo / $19,200
Large Group market, single: $7,400 / $7,300
Large group market, family: $21,100 / $21,300
Individual market, single: $5,500 / $5,800
Individual market, family: $13,100 / $15,200

(The cost of premiums in the individual market goes up somewhat due to subsidies and mandates of better coverage. The CBO assumes that cost of individual policies goes down 7-10%, and that people will buy more generous policies.)

Myth 4: The bill will make health care affordable for middle class Americans.

Fact: The bill will impose a financial hardship on middle class Americans who will be forced to buy a product that they can’t afford to use.

A family of four making $66,370 will be forced to pay $5,243 per year for insurance. After basic necessities, this leaves them with $8,307 in discretionary income — out of which they would have to cover clothing, credit card and other debt, child care and education costs, in addition to $5,882 in annual out-of-pocket medical expenses for which families will be responsible.

Myth 5: This plan is similar to the Massachusetts plan, which makes health care affordable.

Fact: Many Massachusetts residents forgo health care because they can’t afford it. A 2009 study by the state of Massachusetts found that:

  • 21% of residents forgo medical treatment because they can’t afford it, including 12% of children
  • 18% have health insurance but can’t afford to use it

Myth 6: This bill provides health care to 31 million people who are currently uninsured.

Fact: This bill will mandate that millions of people who are currently uninsured purchase insurance from private companies, or the IRS will collect up to 2% of their annual income in penalties. Some will be assisted with government subsidies.

Myth 7: You can keep the insurance you have if you like it.

Fact: The excise tax will result in employers switching to plans with higher co-pays and fewer covered services.
Older, less healthy employees with employer-based health care will be forced to pay much more in out-of-pocket expenses than they do now.

Myth 8: The “excise tax” will encourage employers to reduce the scope of health care benefits, and they will pass the savings on to employees in the form of higher wages.

Fact: There is insufficient evidence that employers pass savings from reduced benefits on to employees.

Myth 9: This bill employs nearly every cost control idea available to bring down costs.

Fact: This bill does not bring down costs and leaves out nearly every key cost control measure, including:

  • Public Option ($25-$110 billion)
  • Medicare buy-in
  • Drug re-importation ($19 billion)
  • Medicare drug price negotiation ($300 billion)
  • Shorter pathway to generic biologics ($71 billion)

Myth 10: The bill will require big companies like Wal-Mart to provide insurance for their employees.

Fact: The bill was written so that most Wal-Mart employees will qualify for subsidies, and taxpayers will pick up a large portion of the cost of their coverage.

Myth 11: The bill “bends the cost curve” on health care.

Fact: “Bends the cost curve” is a misleading and trivial claim, as the U.S. would still spend far more for care than other advanced countries.

  • In 2009, health care costs were 17.3% of GDP.
  • Annual cost of health care in 2019, status quo: $4,670.6 billion (20.8% of GDP)
  • Annual cost of health care in 2019, Senate bill: $4,693.5 billion (20.9% of GDP)

Myth 12: The bill will provide immediate access to insurance for Americans who are uninsured because of a pre-existing condition.

Fact: Access to the “high risk pool” is limited and the pool is underfunded. Only those who have been uninsured for more than six months will qualify for the high-risk pool. Only 0.7% of those without insurance now will get coverage, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services report estimates it will run out of funding by 2011 or 2012.

Myth 13: The bill prohibits dropping people in individual plans from coverage when they get sick.

Fact: The bill does not empower a regulatory body to keep people from being dropped when they’re sick. There are already many states that have laws on the books prohibiting people from being dropped when they’re sick, but without an enforcement mechanism, there is little to hold the insurance companies in check.

Myth 14: The bill ensures consumers have access to an effective internal and external appeals process to challenge new insurance plan decisions.

Fact: The “internal appeals process” is in the hands of the insurance companies themselves, and the “external” one is up to each state.

Ensuring that consumers have access to “internal appeals” simply means the insurance companies have to review their own decisions. And it is the responsibility of each state to provide an “external appeals process,” as there is neither funding nor a regulatory mechanism for enforcement at the federal level.

Myth 15: This bill will stop insurance companies from hiking rates 30%-40% per year.

Fact: This bill does not limit insurance company rate hikes. Private insurers continue to be exempt from anti-trust laws, and are free to raise rates without fear of competition in many areas of the country.

Myth 16: When the bill passes, people will begin receiving benefits under this bill immediately

Fact: Most provisions in this bill, such as an end to the ban on pre-existing conditions for adults, do not take effect until 2014.

Six months from the date of passage, children could not be excluded from coverage due to pre-existing conditions, though insurance companies could charge more to cover them. Children would also be allowed to stay on their parents’ plans until age 26. There will be an elimination of lifetime coverage limits, a high risk pool for those who have been uninsured for more than 6 months, and community health centers will start receiving money.

Myth 17: The bill creates a pathway for single payer.

Fact: Bernie Sanders’ provision in the Senate bill does not start until 2017, and does not cover the Department of Labor, so no, it doesn’t create a pathway for single payer.

Obama told Dennis Kucinich that the Ohio Representative’s amendment is similar to Bernie Sanders’ provision in the Senate bill, and creates a pathway to single payer. Since the waiver does not start until 2017, and does not cover the Department of Labor, it is nearly impossible to see how it gets around the ERISA laws that stand in the way of any practical state single payer system.

Myth 18: The bill will end medical bankruptcy and provide all Americans with peace of mind.

Fact: Most people with medical bankruptcies already have insurance, and out-of-pocket expenses will continue to be a burden on the middle class.

  • In 2009, 1.5 million Americans declared bankruptcy
  • Of those, 62% were medically related
  • Three-quarters of those had health insurance
  • The Obama bill leaves 24 million without insurance
  • The maximum yearly out-of-pocket limit for a family will be $11,900 (PDF) on top of premiums
  • A family with serious medical problems that last for a few years could easily be financially crushed by medical costs

    • I have to hand it to Jane; she is not afraid to stand up to her own party and call them out on their lies.I do not agree with Jane’s politics, nor her desire to get a public option or single payer healthcare, but there is something to be said about gal, who dares to take on the liberal establishment and call them out on their deception. Hats off to ya Jane and keep up the good work on your end of the aisle.

    I just wish Jane would wake up and realize that the Democratic Party is not the Party of the people that it once was; but is now a party of big Government socialism. in other words, the Party of Roosevelt and World War 2 is gone for good and is now an outright Marxist Party. I pray one day that she see’s that. I figured that out, when I began blogging. I hope one day, that she too does someday see that.

    Needless to say, this healthcare bill is NOT going to be like Christmas….for anybody.

    Obama Signs his Healthcare plan into law

    Posted on

    Yeah, I know; most of you most likely do not care to watch ol’ Bambi here pat himself on the back. But, it is a historic moment. So, here it is….

    The very odd part comes at the end.

    The Video:

    Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

    The Story via MSNBC:

    President Barack Obama on Tuesday signed into law a landmark health care reform bill, presiding over the biggest shift in U.S. domestic policy since the 1960s and capping a divisive, yearlong debate that could define the November congressional elections.

    The law will bring near-universal coverage to a wealthy country in which tens of millions of people are uninsured. The plan’s provisions will be phased in over four years, and it is expected to expand coverage to about 94 percent of eligible non-elderly Americans would have coverage, compared with 83 percent today.

    “We have now just enshrined the core principle that everybody should have some basic security when it comes to their health,” Obama said at a signing ceremony at the White House, where he was joined by House and Senate Democrats who backed the bill as well as ordinary Americans whose health care struggles have touched the president.

    Again, I present this, because it is a historic event. Although, I just wonder what will come in 2010 and 2012.

    Should be interesting to watch.

    Depressing Article of the Day

    Posted on

    Political Byline pissing in your coffee since 2007. šŸ˜‰

    But Seriously, here’s the real downer of the day:

    Already Republicans plan on introducing a bill this week to repeal last night’s historic healthcare vote.

    Obviously that’s going nowhere.

    But looking out, Republicans will probably try to run on repeal in the runup until November. It’s possible that will play okay at the ballot (we don’t know) but anyone who thinks this is a realistic prospect is smoking something illegal.

    First of all, to repeal the vote would be just as difficult legislatively as passing healthcare was, so just think of how hard that was. Republicans would need 60 pro-repeal votes in the Senate to defeat a Democratic filibuster. And remember, they’d need a President who wouldn’t veto the bill (i.e. not Obama or any Democrat).

    But even that’s putting too fine a point on it. Here’s the real story, and it gets down to the fact that this new bureaucratic superstructure is now permanently ossified into our federal government.

    via One Thing That’s 100% Guaranteed: The Healthcare Bill Will NEVER Be Repealed.

    Sad fact, but very true. Thank the Progressive Republicans for it.

    Two very valid points about what happened last night

    Posted on

    First up Philip Klein over at the AmSpec Blog:

    The question conservatives should be asking though, is how did we get in this position in the first place? How come, over the course of two elections, Democrats were able to take back the White House and amass substantial majorities in both chambers of Congress, allowing them to enact this sweeping legislation with no Republican votes ā€“ and huge defections in their own party? How could a generally right-of-center nation be taken over by liberals from Chicago and San Francisco?

    The answer, of course, is that none of this would have been possible without George W. Bush ā€” or more broadly speaking, Bush era Republicanism. While they were in power, Republicans squandered an opportunity to push free market health care solutions. When they did use their power to pass major legislation, it was for policies like the big government Medicare prescription drug plan, which was (until today) the largest expansion of entitlements since the Great Society.

    They took earmarks and doled out farm and energy subsidies. They earned a reputation for fiscal recklessness and corruption and incompetent governance. President Obama ultimately forced through the health care bill in spite of the political consequences to his party because heā€™s ultimately a true believing liberal. But it was only because of the failures of Bush-era Republicanism that an ideological liberal with little experience was able to capture the presidency on the abstract notion of change.

    Today will be largely remembered as the biggest legislative victory for liberals since Medicare in 1965. But it should also be remembered as the day that Bush cemented his legacy as one of the most destructive presidents for advocates of limited government.

    and… Robert Stacy McCain:

    Which is to say that what happened Sunday night was not the birth of a new era of liberalism. Rather, it was the death of a kind of ā€œconservatismā€ that was never really conservative at all. It was the ā€œconservatismā€ of No Child Left Behind and ethanol subsidies, ofĀ unprincipled compromise and cynical self-dealing, of ā€œshamnestyā€ andĀ kowtowing toĀ CAIR.

    If the Republican Party can offer America nothing better than thatĀ in the future, the GOPĀ will go the way of the Whigs,Ā passing unlamented into politicalĀ oblivion.

    All I can say to add to this is, when you call yourself a Republican and you basically are a Progressive; what do people honestly expect? George W. Bush was, and still is, and will be to his dying breath; a Wilsonian President. That is a Progressive view on foreign policy. Which is why I do not quite understand why the folks over at HotAir are crying the blues.

    Look, the point I am trying to make is this. It is the 900 pound gorilla in the room, that nobody on our side wants to discuss. It is a fact, that George W. Bush drove the United States of America into a war; that we all know now, had zero to do with 9/11. There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.Ā  There were parts; but no weapons. The Bush Administration decided to stay anyhow, and move the goalposts to keep us there.Ā  For this little foolhardy move, the American people decided that Republicans did not have the ability to govern a nation and as a result of that; the Democrats won. Elections matter, it is just that simple. Because of this, were are all staring — bleary-eyed as we may be — at a socialist nightmare.

    I hate to say it, but David Frum is absolutely correct.Ā  We have no one other to blame, than ourselves for this one. Yeah, I know, I do not much care from Frum either; I know what he said about the Paleo-Conservatives, and yeah, I know he is a chameleon. But once and a while, that idiot kanook does get it right. ( šŸ˜Æ )

    Rep. Devin Nunes makes a very important point

    Posted on2 Comments

    A very important point is made:

    Another Republican lawmaker also brushed off the racial epithets and suggested they were prompted by the parliamentary maneuvers being used by Democrats to pass a health care bill.

    ā€œWhen you use a totalitarian tactics, people, you know, begin to act crazy,ā€ Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) said Sunday on C-SPAN. ā€œI think that people have every right to say what they want. If they want to smear someone, they can do it.ā€

    Nunes added that the slurs were ā€œnot appropriateā€ but that he would ā€œstop short of characterizing the 20,000 people protesting, that all of them were doing that

    via King Downplays Protestersā€™ Racial Slurs Against Congressmen – Roll Call.

    Which is a very valid point; that I made earlier, which is, what do they expect? Which, of course, the liberals took as a threat. Which is basically a classic example of their inane stupidity.

    But, then again, we are talking about brain-dead liberal idiots. Michael Savage is right; Liberalism is a mental disorder. Which is why I no longer vote for them. I wised up.

    Let me also say this; I have zero health insurance. I have absolutely zero pity for those who whine about their insurance bills being too high. Further more, I believe that reform is needed badly. But I do not support the reform that is being voted upon here. It is not reform, it is a Government mandated program, which is communist in nature. The Government actually making someone take insurance, that is against every principle that America was founded upon.

    However, because I am fair. I will acknowledge the following. I was over at the Wall Street Journal and I happen to notice that in all versions of this health-care reform bill; there is a exemption clause for those under economic hardship. Which does answer one of my questions. I simply do not have a job, and if this passes as it states here. I will not be forced to buy healthcare, if I cannot afford it. So, that makes me feel much better.

    So, while I think that this is all a huge mistake. I will give the Democrats credit for having some sort of common sense.

    Dana Loesch lays the smack down on the idiotic accusations on racism and gay slurs

    Posted on

    Remember what I Blogged about Yesterday? Well, looks like someone was full of crap.

    When faced with intellectual argument, and a litany of polls which prove beyond the shadow of a doubt that Americans do not want this fake reform, this health control bill, socialists fall on the only tactics they know: identity politics.

    A plethora of shrieking socialists around the webernetz (again) defamed an entire movement today by insisting that these peaceful (even when being beaten by SEIU folks) protesters are RACISTS! and HOMOPHOBES! (theyā€™ve obviously never listened to my weekday show) for ā€“ well, if someone calls someone a RACIST! or HOMOPHONE! then surely, they wouldnā€™t just casually throw the term out due to spite out of respect for those minorities who truly do deal with discrimination, right?

    WRONG.

    No, the word on the webernetz is that you are a RACIST! or HOMOPHOBE! for opposing big government.

    Ahem.

    No, Iā€™m completely serious. What those who are actual bigots and prejudiced against minorities are called now, I dunno, because that term has been co-opted for application against those who stand against a bloated federal government.

    via Video Debunks Lib Accusations That Slurs were Shouted (and Thoughts on Identity Politics) Ā«.

    I highly suggest that you go over and read this; looks like the Democrats are using the most used and usually last stand that they usually run to, when nothing else works —- Race Baiting. šŸ™„

    Good job on Dana for pointing this out.

    Now if I could just get Dana to smile on her blog picture. šŸ˜‰

    Honestly, What do they expect?

    Posted on2 Comments

    Boy, I tell ya. The liberal crowd is some seriously stupid people anymore. šŸ™„

    I guess most of you know that now the liberal crowd is all in a tizzy, because some protesters let their true feelings be known about this healthcare bill.

    My question to them is; seriously guys, what the fuck do you expect? I mean, nobody wants this stupid bill passed and yet, this liberal Congress is hell-bent on passing this moronic bill anyhow; all to appease this President. Is it not any wonder the American people and yes, those protesters are a little bit pissed off?

    I mean, and I how to do I put this? Ah, I know! The liberal media and I mean the one’s who are reporting this; You should be glad it was just words. I mean, it could have very well been worse. Luckily and thankfully, it was not. But it could have very well have been. So, to the Race hustlers and Gay Blades; be glad it was just words, signs and insults. Because the alternative could have been much worse.

    But again, to the more important point —– What the hell do you people expect? I mean, you want to destroy this Country’s health-care system, all to fulfill a stupid, idiotic socialist agenda; and you wonder why some people are pissed off about it?

    It’s time to get real boys and girls. Not everyone is on the same page with you. This should not be a surprise. šŸ™„

    Here’s the roundup of the stupid cry babies and so forth…

    Video: America’s Comeback

    Posted on

    This Comes via The Other McCain:

    RGA 2009 Chairman’s Report

    Republican Governor’sĀ AssociationĀ HQ

    The revolution starts today. What are you doing?

    Healthcare, But at what cost to Americans?

    Posted on2 Comments

    The question also is; do Democrats actually care?

    Caterpillar Inc. said the health-care overhaul legislation being considered by the U.S. House of Representatives would increase the company’s health-care costs by more than $100 million in the first year alone.

    In a letter Thursday to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and House Republican Leader John Boehner of Ohio, Caterpillar urged lawmakers to vote against the plan “because of the substantial cost burdens it would place on our shareholders, employees and retirees.”

    Caterpillar, the world’s largest construction machinery manufacturer by sales, said it’s particularly opposed to provisions in the bill that would expand Medicare taxes and mandate insurance coverage. The legislation would require nearly all companies to provide health insurance for their employees or face large fines.

    The Peoria-based company said these provisions would increase its insurance costs by at least 20 percent, or more than $100 million, just in the first year of the health-care overhaul program.

    “We can ill-afford cost increases that place us at a disadvantage versus our global competitors,” said the letter signed by Gregory Folley, vice president and chief human resources officer of Caterpillar. “We are disappointed that efforts at reform have not addressed the cost concerns we’ve raised throughout the year.”

    Business executives have long complained that the options offered for covering 32 million uninsured Americans would result in higher insurance costs for those employers that already provide coverage. Opponents have stepped up their attacks in recent days as the House moves closer toward a vote on the Senate version of the health-care legislation.

    via Caterpillar: Health care bill would cost it $100M – Chicago Breaking Business.

    The answer I am afraid, is no. The Democrats have backed themselves into a corner and have overreached. Now they have to deliver. But at what cost? My friends over at the Confederate Yankee have summed it up:

    If Obama passes:

    • Companies that already pay health insurance will have to pay higher rates, meaning less profitability, higher costs, and fewer jobs
    • Companies that don’t currently pay health insurance will have to pay high health insurance rates, meaning less profitability, higher costs, and fewer jobs.
    • Companies that cannot withstand the high costs of forced health care will simply shut down.

    In all three situations, job lossā€”or at least the absence of job creationā€”is a certainty.

    The Democrat’s attitude is this; “what do we care? It is not our jobs that will be lost.” Their whole, “For the greater good,” is what is wrong with the whole idea of social engineering and progressive politics. “If a few people lose their jobs, so what? We are doing for those who have not; even if we are stealing it for those who do have.” That I am afraid, is what Progressive Politics and Progressive thought is all about. Take from the rich and giving it to the poor. Economic redistribution; and you know something folks? Every time it is done, somebody, somewhere gets the short end of the stick. Which is what will happen, if this travesty of a bill is passed.

    By the way, that whole “For the greater good”, has root in historic Democratic Party politics. As some of you might know, that is the same mentality that the Democrats used to promote the idea of slavery. The idea that, “the Negro man must be contained, for the greater good of society,” was and still is, straight out of the Progressive school of thought.Ā  For those who are uninformed, Stephen A. Douglas, who debated President Lincoln in 1858, was, in fact, a Democrat. It was no matter that it was inhuman, morally wrong and quite insane; it was for the greater good and besides, them slaves liked being beaten and forced to work! šŸ™„Ā  Again, more Progressive insanity.Ā  “Let’s kill the job market, so everyone can have healthcare!” šŸ™„

    It is quite sad to see, that since 1858, not much has actually changed in the Democratic Party. Oh, sure, they are not longer persecuting blacks; that is because someone finally figured out, that the Democrats could use their votes. So, they give them a little lip service, make promises of more hand outs and proceed to snicker at them behind their backs. All the while ignoring their concerns. That is what Plantation politics is all about. Herd everyone into groups and make them promises, all for their votes.

    I think it is about time that the American people woke up and realized that the idea of “for the greater good” is basically for the greater death of America.

    Others: Hot Air, GOP Leader Blog, GINA COBB,Ā  Maggie’s Notebook and Althouse

    What I HATE about this new Healthcare Bill

    Posted on6 Comments

    This is the part that I HATE:

    If Congress passes the Senate health-care plan, according to an analysis by the Congressional Budget Office, American families will be required by federal law to buy a federally approved health insurance plan that will cost a minimum of $12,000 per year–and, on average, will cost $15,000 per year — whether their employer or the government helps them with the premium or not.

    Beginning in 2014, the Senate plan would require all individuals to buy health insurance. Anyone who does not obtain insurance through an employer would be forced to buy it out of their own pocket. Families of four that make up to 400 percent of poverty level–currently $88,200 per year–would receive a subsidy from the government to help pay for their premiums. That subsidy would attenuate as their income increased and would disappear when their income reached the 400 percent of poverty level.

    Families earning more than $88,200 a year (or whatever 400 percent of the poverty level equals in any given year) would be entirely on their own. Under the Senate bill, employers would not be required to purchase health insurance for their workers, and if they decided not to do so, the maximum penalty they would have to pay would be $750 per year for each worker they did not insure who subsequently received a federal subsidy to buy insurance. The $750 penalty on employers who decided not to insure their workers would be far less than they would pay in premiums for the $12,000 minimum required plan.

    via CNSNews.com – CBO: Health Bill Would Force Families to Buy Insurance Costing a Minimum of $12,000 Per Year–Whether Government or Employer Helps Them or Not.

    I highly suggest that you go read the rest of that; because it is very important to read. I do smell a supreme court challenge to the law requiring people to buy insurance. This is one of the reasons why I believe this bill might actually fail; because the idea of the Government forcing the American people to buy insurance goes against the whole idea of freedom and liberty.

    I do notice that there will subsidies for those who are in the low-income bracket. I just wonder, what are all the qualifiers for those of us, who are unemployed and cannot afford to get insurance? Are they going to come after me and toss me in jail, if I cannot afford to get insurance? I mean, would I have to put out the money, which I do not have, to get insurance and hope that I get a subsidy at a later day or would I get it up front?

    You see, it is all these questions and the Congress’s unwillingness to explain all of this; is what has me a bit upset. But our side is not helping with all of the stupidity. I just want straight answers, and not stupid talking points from robotic partisan parrots.

    I want answers and I am not seeing them. This is not good. Not good at all. šŸ˜”

    President Barack Obama and Fox News’s Bret Baier politely spar over Healthcare and Foreign Policy

    Posted on

    Here’s Part 1 and 2 of that:

    You can go read the entire transcript of this interview by going here and reading it.

    I have to give President Obama credit, after bashing Fox News and calling it “nothing more than a propaganda outlet”; he did show some guts by going into the lion’s den and going head to head with Bret Baier. That took some serious guts. It could help his image too; not with those on the hard right, but the independents, who voted for the guy with the “spine of steel”, as Vice President Joe Biden called it. Truthfully, the President has not been showing that so-called “Spine of Steel” here as of late. Maybe the White House is trying to improve the President’s image a bit, seeing that his poll numbers are down. Hence the interview.

    I saw the interview on T.V. myself; I would not call it “combative” as I have seen it called on other blogs. I would call it politely testy, at times. I mean, there was no swearing and no calling the President an out liar, when he was obviously lying. I mean, If I would been running that interview, and he would have started in on the talking points; I would have stopped him and told him he was flat out lying and full of shit and would have demanded short and straight answers out of him. I would have also demanded that he answered the question of just who the hell does he think he is, to just swagger into the White House and start changing the established Heathcare system in this Country. I would have said, “You can do this, why? because you are black and entitled to it?” Which is probably why the interview was not giving by me. It would have lasted all of about five minutes. The next thing I would have asked him, was why he will not produce his original birth certificate and I would have brought up the fact that EVERY last damned President since the United States started keeping birth records has produced a birth certificate; and I would have asked him why the hell he feels exempted from this practice. Again, I would have asked him if he felt it was because he was black that he could bypass such things. I would have also brought up the fact that the so-called document that his campaign produced was, in fact, a forgery, which was pointed out by several well-known bloggers and was proven to be by three different forensic experts. None of whom would publicly identify themselves, for fear of reprisal from Obama’s campaign and from the Government itself.

    So, in closing, it was a decent interview, not nearly as tough as it should have been. But it was and still is worth watching.

    Another reason why we are losing the Healthcare Battle

    Posted on2 Comments

    As I said yesterday, I have basically washed my hands of the Healthcare debate. We lost the battle. I cited an example.

    Here’s another:

    Go Here and here follow all the links.

    This is why we are losing folks; we are turning into the evil alternative to socialism. We are also being seen by those who are not politically inclined, as the heartless ones. I will not be a part of that, at all.Ā  This is not sarcasm or a joke, I am very serious. šŸ˜”

    I am not a fan of Government-run healthcare at all; but I will not engage in the sort of nonsense that some of the Bloggers on the right are partaking in. I was just raised better than that.

    Like I said before, we lost the battle; because of our own damned stupidity.

    God help this Country. šŸ™

    If anyone cares about the Healthcare-Gate crap

    Posted on1 Comment

    Michelle Malkin is live-blogging that. I, myself, could give two flips about it anymore.

    Why? Because it’s quite obvious that we have lost that battle. Stupidity like this doesn’t help either. yet, he calls me a racist; but yet posts “Osama-Obama” on his blog and associates with those outed as supposed “racists” himself.

    So, I’m washing my hands of it. I’m done with it. We lost the battle and it is our own damned fault.

    (H/T to R.S. McCain)

    The Democrats are scamming the American People with Obamacare, So says, Gary Greenwald?!?!?!

    Posted on

    I could not believe this one… but hey, I give him props for standing up and speaking the truth:

    A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about what seemed to be a glaring (and quite typical) scam perpetrated by Congressional Democrats: all year long, they insisted that the White House and a majority of Democratic Senators vigorously supported a public option, but the only thing oh-so-unfortunately preventing its enactment was the filibuster: sadly, we have 50 but not 60 votes for it, they insisted. Democratic pundits used that claim to push for “filibuster reform,” arguing that if only majority rule were required in the Senate, then the noble Democrats would be able to deliver all sorts of wonderful progressive reforms that they were truly eager to enact but which the evil filibuster now prevents. In response, advocates of the public option kept arguing that the public option could be accomplished by reconciliation — where only 50 votes, not 60, would be required — but Obama loyalists scorned that reconciliation proposal, insisting (at least before the Senate passed a bill with 60 votes) that using reconciliation was Unserious, naive, procedurally impossible, and politically disastrous.Ā  — Via Glenn Greenwald – Salon.com

    Head on over and read that. It is a very interesting read. If this is any indication what might just happen, if Obamacare passes. The poop stinky is about hit the turbine. (So to speak….)

    Wow. šŸ˜® šŸ˜Æ

    The Political Reality of Obamacare sets in for the Democrats

    Posted on

    It is not everyday that you see this sort of candor and honesty in the Washington Post, mark this day on your calendar:

    Bluntly put, this is the political reality:

    First, the battle for public opinion has been lost. Comprehensive health care has been lost. If it fails, as appears possible, Democrats will face the brunt of the electorate’s reaction. If it passes, however, Democrats will face a far greater calamitous reaction at the polls. Wishing, praying or pretending will not change these outcomes.

    Nothing has been more disconcerting than to watch Democratic politicians and their media supporters deceive themselves into believing that the public favors the Democrats current health-care plan. Yes, most Americans believe, as we do, that real health-care reform is needed. And yes, certain proposals in the plan are supported by the public.

    However, a solid majority of Americans opposes the massive health-reform plan. Four-fifths of those who oppose the plan strongly oppose it, according to Rasmussen polling this week, while only half of those who support the plan do so strongly. Many more Americans believe the legislation will worsen their health care, cost them more personally and add significantly to the national deficit. Never in our experience as pollsters can we recall such self-deluding misconstruction of survey data.

    via Patrick H. Caddell and Douglas E. Schoen – If Democrats ignore health-care polls, midterms will be costly – washingtonpost.com.

    This was a the fetal flaw in the Democrats little plan; they just assumed that the American people would be accepting of the healthcare reform bill. They did not plan on opposition. Well, guess what? There are people in this Country; Conservatives and yes, even some Democrats, that do care about what happens to the medicare and their Healthcare. So, this was a fool hearty plan. It was, as always, a classic overreach by the left. Something that they are most infamous for.

    Democrats hit a snag, right?

    Posted on

    Well, Yes and No….

    The Good News:

    The Senate Parliamentarian has ruled that President Barack Obama must sign Congressā€™ original health care reform bill before the Senate can act on a companion reconciliation package, senior GOP sources said Thursday.

    The Senate Parliamentarianā€™s Office was responding to questions posed by the Republican leadership. The answers were provided verbally, sources said.

    House Democratic leaders have been searching for a way to ensure that any move they make to approve the Senate-passed $871 billion health care reform bill is followed by Senate action on a reconciliation package of adjustments to the original bill. One idea is to have the House and Senate act on reconciliation prior to House action on the Senateā€™s original health care bill.

    Information Republicans say they have received from the Senate Parliamentarianā€™s Office eliminates that option. House Democratic leaders last week began looking at crafting a legislative rule that would allow the House to approve the Senate health care bill, but not forward it to Obama for his signature until the Senate clears the reconciliation package.

    Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) moved Thursday to put Senate Republicans on the defensive over health care, sending a letter to Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) in which he dared the GOP to vote against reform.

    Reid also defended the Democratsā€™ use of reconciliation to get a final health care reform bill to the presidentā€™s desk, noting that the bulk of health care reform was approved under regular order via the package that cleared the Senate on Christmas Eve. Reid also emphasized that Republicans have used the procedure several times over the years.

    via RollCall.com.

    The Bad News:

    Rep. Paul Ryan says that Democrats are ready to ram a “shell” health care bill through the Budget Committee, on which he serves as ranking Republican member, to use as a vehicle to impose national health care.

    In a phone interview with TAS Thursday afternoon, Ryan said that he expects Democrats to begin the complex process on Monday, under which they would have the Budget Committee approve a phantom bill by midnight, which they will then send over to the Rules Committee. At that point, the Rules Committee will strip out all of the language in the phantom bill, and insert the changes to the Senate bill that Democrats have negotiated.

    “They don’t have the votes right now, but they’re creating the vehicle so that they can airdrop in whatever changes they want,” Ryan said.

    He said that Republicans are outnumbered 2-to-1 on his committee and don’t have the votes to stop the bill there. Democrats will also be able to prevent Republicans from offering any amendments, but GOP members will be able to offer “motions to instruct” the Rules Committee, that Ryan said will be used highlight problems with the “unprecedented” step that Democrats are taking.Ā  – Source: AmSpec Blog

    You see why I have not been writing about this? Because it is an exercise in abject stupidity. The way Fox News is hyping it, you would think that there was going to by a nuclear attack. But, it is much ado about nothing. They not going to try and vote until Monday and something tells me, that it will die there. I could be wrong, but, I believe that will happen.

    Keith Olbermann ‘An American Cry for Help’

    Posted on

    (H/T Mediaite)

    Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

    While some might construe this as an attack on conservatives, I submit that the villains in the effort to reform health care are numerous, and multi-partisan. While Sarah Palin initiated the ā€œDeath Panelā€ hysteria, it was the mainstream media that abetted her, and a handful of Democrats who lacked the sac to leave the provision in the bill. The same dynamic holds true of the larger picture of health care reform.

    No matter your point of view on health care, you would have to at least agree that Keithā€™s story is effective at conveying the idea that we have to do something, that the status quo is unacceptable. When the bravado and the posturing are set aside, we agree more than we disagree.

    There may be some who will accuse Keith of manipulation here, or worse, exploitation. This has become a popular way of dismissing powerful stories that challenge our worldview, and itā€™s cheap. Keith Olbermann, whether you agree with him or not, is obviously exposing something deeply personal, in a sincere effort to make this ordeal have some meaning. How you take it in is your business, not his.

    I think this also demonstrates why Keith Olbermann should make an effort not to lower himself, not to be petty or cheap. In this case, many people who could have benefited from hearing the story of Keithā€™s father now will not. The idea isnā€™t to be neutered, witless, and inoffensive, as much as it is to use the passion and the biting wit on worthy targets, in a worthy fashion.

    Finally, itā€™s my hope that everyone who reads this will keep Keithā€™s dad in their thoughts and prayers, just as you would hope for the same were it your loved one who was suffering.

    Amen.