Thanksgiving

At lunch on Wednesday tradition has always been that we provided a complete Thanksgiving dinner for all employees; we would provide turkey, ham and all the sides and the employees would bring a favorite dish.  Well, this year the employees took a vote and decided that they wanted pizza! 

Pizza?  Its Thanksgiving!  Bunch of communists if I ever saw one!  Thats the trouble with democracy; the people who vote are all idiots!

So, pizza it was!  I realized sitting there eating pizza that my work force had totally changed since when I started this company.  When I started all of my employees were older than me, now all but two or three are younger than I am.  Lots of single moms, and guys who have kids with more than one woman.  Tattoos...whats with this tattoo thing?  Seems like everyone has a tattoo.  I guess you need tattoos so you have something to talk about when you are having sex with perfectly good strangers.

My brother in law and sister arrived in yesterday!  Their daughter is in college majoring in pre med...but she might change her major because she believes healthcare reform will keep her from making any money as a doctor!  Her father has never voted for a democrat in his life and he watches Fox News nightly for hours at a time!  At my house he suffers seriously the effects of Fox News withdrawals!

Tradition at Thanksgiving is that I prepare the turkey, so I have been up since 4 am getting that little puppy all ready to go with my little secret stash of goodies!  The first thing my wife does when she wakes up is informs me that she 'forgot' a few things...

How can you forget things you need for Thanksgiving dinner?  You prepare the same thing year after year for 26 years and now you forget something?  How?

I told her that she was plum out of luck because there were no stores open on Thanksgiving!  Well, having just returned from the grocery store I now realize that stores do in fact open on Thanksgiving.  I mean, come on, THIS IS THANKSGIVING!  Its a holiday!  When did our lives become so important that we had to require stores to open on Thanksgiving?  I bet Barack Obama started this!  Those socialists have absolutely no respect for traditions or holidays! 

So the ladies were discussing whether they should sleep in and hit the stores in Nashville late Friday morning or if they should get up early and hit the stores in Nasvhille bright and early and then come home and take a nap?  They asked me what I thought (truthfully, my only thought was how can I keep myself being dragged into this totally stupid conversation) and I informed them that I thought they drive to Nashsville right now, get a hotel room next to a mall and spend the night there so they would be sure not to miss one exciting moment of being part of one of the dumbest traditions this country has:  Black Friday!

Of course their response was, "...I don't know why we asked him...."

Personally, I think all those store employees who have to work on Thanksgiving need to protest by not showing up for work on Black Friday!  Hey, if the consumer can mess with your Thanksgiving then it is only fair play that you mess with their Black Friday.

I am taking my brother in law golfing; I don't golf but a group of my buddies are going out early and they have invited my brother in law to play and I am going to hang around and crack all the jokes I can think of about how stupid the game of golf is...

Now, the big fight will be over decorating for Christmas...they will want to do that on Saturday and I will have to remind them that Thanksgiving does not officially end until Sunday night at Midnight.  So, the Thanksgiving decorations all remain until Monday. 

I think the turkey is screaming for some attention in the kitchen.....

What Am I Thankful For?

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am thankful for the fact that our two party political system has brought us such wonderful leadership over the last 9 years! It is just truly remarkable!

I am just so overwhelmed with this leadership that I have felt a need to vote only three times in the last 33 years! Only three times in 33 years did I feel that one candidate represented enough of a fundamental difference from the other that it was worth my while to vote!

Of course my choice lost two of the the three times I voted!

I am thankful for all the bloggers who are so sure that they know the correct path that our country should take and that they can share with all of us the doomsday predictions of what will transpire if we do not follow their wisdom! Who would have ever thought that our world would be so blessed with Nostradamus like people!

I am so truly blessed to be surrounded by so many who know so much!

I am also thankful for all the trolls, who everyday make it a point to validate my existence by not only acknowledging that I truly do exist but also what my weak points are and how best to define myself.

It is such a pleasing thought to know that others can take the time out of their busy days, where I am sure they have much more pressing issues to deal with, to let me know that they think of me and most importantly, what they believe I need to do with myself!

Where else but America can you find people who can take the time to share!

I am glad to know that the future of this country is in the fine hands of the bloggers with whom I share the internet!

I cannot help, as my plate runs over with the abundance of knowledge shared by others so freely to remember George Orwell's Animal Farm:

Old Benjamin, the donkey, seemed quite unchanged since the Rebellion. He did his work in the same slow obstinate way as he had done it in Jones's time, never shirking and never volunteering for extra work either. About the Rebellion and its results he would express no opinion. When asked whether he was not happier now that Jones was gone, he would say only "Donkeys live a long time. None of you has ever seen a dead donkey," and the others had to be content with this cryptic answer.

This old jackass knows that regardless of if you see Obama as 'Napoleon' or the leader of a socialistic rebellion the bottom line is that life will go on as it always does: Rather badly with doom and gloom just around the corner!

So, HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

I plan on living my life to the fullest and I will leave the future of this great country to the rest of you!

Get Involved: Share and Learn!

We are debating healthcare reform, over at Truth101's blog; come on over and join in! It is being sponsored by Truth and Law And Order Teacher, so both the liberal and conservative perspective is being represented!

Lets Start All Over With The Healthcare Debate

I think we are going about healthcare reform all the wrong way:  The reality is we are trying to reform something that is wedged between too many special interests.

Currently the government provides healthcare to the poor, the young, the elderly, and our veterans; and no one has raised one issue with this.  Not the communists, not the socialists, not the democrats, not the liberals, not the republicans, and not the conservatives.

Thus, it appears that we all do agree that society has an obligation to provide healthcare to certain members of our society but does that mean we believe that universal healthcare is not a societal obligation?

Since we as a society, through our democratic form of government currently pay over 46% of all medical expenses incurred in a year and as the balance of the expenses are either paid by us as employees, employers, or individuals through our premiums for health insurance and this means we also end up paying for those without insurance who seek medical treatment then the only group left uncovered are those who are recently unemployed, those who elect not to have insurance and have no need for medical treatment, and those who do not have access to health insurance either through their employer or on an individual basis.

The reality is WE pay for all medical treatment provided in this country either directly via our insurance premiums, or indirectly via taxes, via underwriting by insurance carriers, and or via cost pass throughs by healthcare providers. 

Thus by default, we have socialized medicine and universal coverage.

If we accepted this reality then we could devise a more realistic and cost reducing healthcare reform package that would be innovative and futuristic without looking like a hodge podge of 'gifts' to special interests like the current package before Congress.

First we would start with a bare bones preventative care package, that would cover just basic office visits, drugs, and outpatient proceedures.   This would be offered AT COST to all Americans via for profit insurance carriers with a nominal fee of 3% for administration and profit.  If you are young, or living under the poverty level, elderly or disable the government would pay the full costs of this package.

Then private insurance companies could provide a 'step up' or lets call it a 'basics plus' package that would include more services, surgery, and other more expensive services that could be sold as an additional add on package to the basic core plan.  This add on package would be priced at cost plus a 10% fee for administration and profit and this would be something an individual could purchase on their own or the government could subsidize the cost of for those who are young, poor, elderly, or our veterans.

From there, the insurance carriers could devise all sorts of healthcare insurance add ons that they could sell at whatever price and with whatever profit margins the market will bear.  The government would not subsidize the cost of these for anyone.

This would allow us to provide a basic level of care to all citizens and allow for free market capitalism to create opportunities for more and better healthcare products.

Our military turns away quite a few applicants because of health issues and this would improve the quality of applicants entering the military.  By ensuring everyone regular access to healthcare over the course of their whole life we will eventually see a drop in the expenses incurred due to the fact that right now most of our costs go to extreme and emergency care rather than preventative care.

We also need to accept the fact that under the basic or core plan an elderly person would eventually exhaust their insurance coverage, if that is all they had, and treatment would be terminated.  But, the reality is that we spend way to much of our GDP on medical expenses incurred in the last two years of an individuals life and unless that individual has bought additional coverage exaclty what is our obligation, as a society, to the elderly when we have so many working age citizens without adequate healthcare?

Pre existing conditions would no longer matter because everyone would always have insurance but maximum policy benefits, or lifetime benefits would still be an issue for those who do not buy an upgrade from the basic policy.  To deal with people who would naturally seek insurance upgrades when they became aware of a need then you could make everyone have a policy inforce for six months before any services would be covered.

This is the SWISS PLAN in a nutshell!

It guarantees everyone a basic level of healthcare and subsidizes the cost of this plan when an individual cannot afford the premiums or falls into a certain class of citizen (elderly, poor, young, veterans, or disabled).  It takes health insurance decisions away from businesses/employers and makes it a personal/employee decision.  It is not socialism because it works within the framework of private, for profit insurance carriers and it allows these carriers to create and market additional products to supplement the basic or core policy.  You could see abortion riders, plastic surgery riders, I want to live forever riders, experimental treatment riders, only namebrand drug riders, rehab riders, and all sorts of innovative ideas spring forth.

It basically allows for society to provide a basic level of care as a benefit of citizenship and it also allows for capitalism to create opportunities for companies to develop and profit from meeting certain demands of the marketplace.    

It would also limit the existing strain on medicare and medicad that we will see with higher unemployment, greater drug dependency, and the eventual retirement of the baby boomers.  It focuses more on adequate coverage, and basic coverage rather than brow beating providers for discounts.

All the way around it is more logical, more cost effective, and more in line with the values that this country holds dear.  Oh, and yes there would need to be tort reform and the issue about portability across state lines would no longer be an issue due to the fact that this would be a FEDERAL law.

The FIRST Healthcare Bill

Well, of course now that the Senate has agreed to debate the new healthcare reform bill we will be hearing all about how this bill will end our way of life and our country as we know it.

I figure 1994 was just too long ago for anyone to remember so I decided to go back to November 2003 and the first major healthcare reform that this country attempted:  The Medicare Prescription Drug Program!

That was back when George Bush was STILL a conservative, and the Senate was also controlled by Republicans.  This bill passed the senate 54 to 44 with eleven Democrats siding with the Republicans in passing this Republican legislation and nine Republicans going against their own party.

This was a 535 billion dollar expansion of medicare!  I thought this quote was hilarious:

"I was struck by how vacant the galleries were and so few seniors citizens looking down," Daschle, D-South Dakota, said after the vote. "What you saw instead were lobbyists packing the halls. They will do well. Our seniors will not, and that is why the fight will go on."

Yep, no Town Hall Meetings, no Teabaggers, no Fox News pimping....nothing from all of those who claim that they are protecting our freedoms, our way of life, and working on behalf of our Founding Fathers to protect the vision they had for this country.

Heck, even Eric Cantor and John Boehner voted for this bill which Consumer's Union summarized as follows:

Consumers Union (CU) has found that the bill -- H.R. 4954, the Medicare Modernization and Prescription Drug Act - offers skimpy benefits that do not provide adequate help to seniors who are struggling with prescription drug costs. CU says the bill's dependence on voluntary participation in the private insurance market renders it fatally flawed.

So much for principles and values....if it benefits the lobbyists and special interests in this country then by god, the folks on the right will be all over it!

Or as Common Cause saw it "Democracy on Drugs!"

Lets see, 535 billion dollars for prescription drugs for the elderly, supported by the Republicans and that creates a whole new stream of income for drug companies and insurance companies and no one bats an eye!  875 billion dollars for a healthcare program that provides healthcare for all Americans, but is sponsored by Democrats and is NOT supported by health insurance lobbyists and we are marching in the streets!

This group now wants to champion a Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck ticket in 2012!  All I can say is GO FOR IT!  Care to wonder why absolutely no one is taking you seriously?

Another Cart and Pony Show....

Well, now we have THE MILLION MED MARCH coming soon to a town near you!

Here is their introductory salvo:

The current healthcare system in America is on the brink of bankruptcy due to the rising administrative costs of its delivery. This financial burden is unsustainable and is leading to a national reduction in access to affordable care. The proposed legislation in the both the House and Senate are not the solution to this catastrophe. In fact they are guaranteed to be the catalyst for the final destruction of what has been the pillar of medical care in the world.

It is the thousands of physicians who make up the MillionMedMarch and Docs4PatientCare that are sounding the alarm in recognition that the current legislation will significantly raise the costs of healthcare delivery in America. This is a very dangerous proposition for our patients as the politicians in Washington DC are preparing to spend over $1 trillion dollars of our taxes. As these costs rise, access to care will diminish. Eventually thousands of physicians, clinics, and hospitals will be forced out of business leaving millions of patients insured, but without a doctor.

The fundamental objective of healthcare reform must be to lower costs without decreasing its value. If you have a procedure done in a hospital and a scalpel is used, you will be charged in excess of $250 for the scalpel alone. If this legislation is allowed to pass, the taxpayer will continue to buy more $250 scalpels. We MUST lower the cost of the scalpel and all of the other inflated costs that are burdening the system.

So, our current system, which consumes 17% of our GDP is "on the brink of bankruptcy..." which probably goes a long way in explaining why Barack Obama is really focussing on healthcare reform as the major issue facing our country today!

So if "rising administrative costs" for the delivery of healthcare is the reason we are on the verge of bankruptcy then explain how that causes a scalpel to cost $250.00? Maybe a scalpel costs $250.00 because you have to cover the costs of treating people with no insurance? Maybe this cost is so high because you are inefficient and your delivery system does not execute well?

Maybe we could in turn lower the cost of prescription drugs if doctors were not paid an incentive to prescribe certain drugs?

Every clinic and hospital in the United States spends millions of dollars a year on equipment that is under utilized; specialized xrays, MRI's, Cat Scans, and on and on the list goes. Hospital X spends millions on upgrades and the next thing you know all the other hospitals and or clinics in town have to spend millions keeping up and yet none of this equipment will be utilized more than an hour or two in a day. So, maybe the cost of this oversupply and under utilization has to be absorbed in the $250.00 scalpel?

Yes, that pesky paperwork is the cause of everything! Have you ever noticed the amount of paperwork you expect from your patients?

Then they go on to state their FIVE PRINCIPLES:

The following 5 principles are the unwavering points that the physicians of the MillionMedMarch (MMM) must see represented in any legislation that goes before Congress. These 5 principles are the foundation of healthcare in America and by adopting these principles we can ensure that every patient will have access to affordable healthcare.


1.Ultimately, medical decisions need to be made by doctors and their patients. Empower the patient to take control of their own healthcare through free market solutions. By allowing the patient to engage directly with their primary care physician, a large portion of routine and preventative care can be accomplished without the interference of a middleman.
2.No legislation should become law without serious tort reform. We spend $400 billion a year for coverage, representation and settlements as a profession. No serious legislation that aims at lowering healthcare costs can be considered if this principle is overlooked.
3.Insurance can be made more affordable by eliminating state monopolies and allowing the portability of health insurance across state lines. By uncoupling health insurance from employers patients will have the ability to control their own coverage. These methods create competition, which is the only true way to drive down healthcare costs.
4.Transform the reimbursement and billing systems that are strangling our practices. 35% of healthcare costs are spent for administrative purposes only and are erroneously raising the cost that are eventually being passed on to our patients. We need a simplified transparent reimbursement system.
5.End the National Practitioner Data Bank and other entities that are unfairly censuring doctors without due-process. These practices are a financial burden to the healthcare system and result in billions of dollars spent on litigation.

I just love the concept of "free market solutions" just throw it out there and a certain segment of our society will just jump right on it! So, who is the 'middleman' that you complain about in principle #1? Would it be insurance companies? So, basically are you saying that "a large portion of routine and preventative care" can be handled without insurance? So, you are advocating doing away with insurance and going on a cash basis for everything except major treatment? That would be health insurance with a high deductiable.
Last time I visited my doctor I told them I was paying cash; I was billed $116 dollars for a simple doctor visit that my insurance company pays $86 dollars for. Does handling a check cost $30?

Tort Reform? Sure, everyone can agree with that! As soon as you find away to ensure that medicare billing fraud and dubious insurance fraud is stopped! It might also help if you slowed down and figured out what you were doing before going on and performing the wrong operation on the wrong patient. So, we implement tort reform are you going to guarantee a $400 Billion dollars a year reduction in our healthcare costs? Didn't think so....

So, if folks no longer got their insurance through their employer, which is normally subsidized heavily, you really think that that would cure alot of what ills our healthcare system? If all of the sudden people were paying the full cost of health insurance rather than a heavily discounted cost we would see affordable healthcare for everyone?

So, the Million Med March supports single payer insurance! Nothing is more simplified and transparent as a single payer option and that would generate 35% savings in our healthcare expenditures due to simplified administrative proceedures!

Lets see, we have guides that rate restaurants, hotels, products, and just about everything else in our society....yet you do not want the National Practitioner Data Bank? Why Not? We have Consumer Reports and the Better Business Bureau for everything else why not something similar for the healthcare industry?

As they state in Principle #1, "Empower the patient to take control of their own healthcare through free market solutions" then let the patient have control by being able to review the track record and ratings for a physician. If I am going to be paying big bucks for healthcare then I want to know what goes on under the hood....

What a crock of shit....

Just another group being pimped to distort the facts for political advantage!

Its A Crazy World!

When a President says, "...we will hunt them down and bring them to justice..." exactly what did we assume that meant?

Isn't our court system referred to as 'THE JUSTICE SYSTEM?"  If all we planned to do was waterboard these guys and lock them up and throw away the key then why lie to them by saying, "...bring them to justice?"  Why not just say, "...we will catch your ass, and then lock you up and throw away the key...."

Why is it okay for a little white conservative dude, as President, to kiss another dude wearing a dress but we get all worked up when a tall black liberal dude, as President, bends over to say hello to a little Japanese guy?

I saw on CNN last night where over 100 new citizens militia have formed since Obama became President!  One of the leaders of a militia in Michigan is a SOCIAL WORKER by day and models himself as a FREEDOM FIGHTER at night...

Yep, the guy is worried that OUR FREEDOMS are under attack and that GOVERNMENT is getting too big!  Aren't social workers those folks that come and take peoples kids away from them because THEY decide that the parents are unfit?  Aren't they the ones that decide which, if any government programs you are eligible for, whether you are poor enough for them, crazy enough for them?

Gotta admit that he should know about our freedoms being under attack and about the size of government because he spends all day doing his best to limit our freedoms and growing the size of government!  Wonder if it ever dawned on him that HE IS PART OF THE PROBLEM!

Everyone wonders where the jobs are after all this stimulus money was thrown around....

Well, GM is making plans to create ALOT of jobs; but they will be in India, Brazil, and China....

I guess that is what happens when supply side economics meets free markets:  poor people in third world countries prosper!

So now the military is going to investigate the career of a TERRORIST!  Well good!  I would like to know how a terrorist not only got in our military but also got promoted because I didn't realize that the "DON'T ASK DON'T TELL" now applied to terrorists!