A COUPLE OF THINGS YOU PROBABLY DIDN’T KNOW

Posted on June 5, 2012 | Leave a comment

Let the New York Times increase your knowledge, at least on these 3 things.  Ignore my comments.  I never even went to college.

1. Republicans must be as pleased as Punch with Obama’s economic program.  The President is following economic policies Republicans consider ideal and have always dreamed they could put in place.

What should be done about the economy? Republicans claim to have the answer: slash spending and cut taxes. What they hope voters won’t notice is that that’s precisely the policy we’ve been following the past couple of years. Never mind the Democrat in the White House; for all practical purposes, this is already the economic policy of Republican dreams. ~ Paul Krugman

And all the time I thought the Republicans were saying cut the strangling over-regulation, stop stifling oil and coal production, stop passing vague laws for your czars to enforce as they see fit, stop threatening to increase the tax burden when things are already slow and stop attacking success.  In other words, just get out of the way.

2. Obama is slashing spending at a rate not seen since the end of the Korean War.

Look first at total government spending — federal, state and local. Adjusted for population growth and inflation, such spending has recently been falling at a rate not seen since the demobilization that followed the Korean War. ~ Paul Krugman

Mr. Krugman provides this link, Mr. Obama a big spender to a couple of charts that he portends prove his point.  The charts do show a sharp decline in the last 12 months, but the charts are not a picture of spending at all.  They are a convoluted measure of growth rates.  To illustrate – If you spend 100% more this year than last, and then 50% more next year than this, and 30% more on top of that in the third year, then the lines on Krugman’s charts would show a dramatic decline while you were actually spending more and more each year.

3. With Barack Obama as President, U.S. borrowing costs are lower than they ever were before in the history of the country.

Well, U.S. borrowing costs have just hit a record low. ~ Paul Krugman

Wags have often said “You can’t make this stuff up”.  Paul Krugman can.  Perhaps that’s why he won a Nobel Prize.

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Posted in Opinion, Political philosophy, Political polemics

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MEDICARE AND OUR OUTRAGEOUS MEDICAL CARE PRICING PROGRAM

Posted on June 4, 2012 | Leave a comment

This is a true story.  A family member had an accident in the home.  She took a nasty backward fall and her head slammed against a piece of sharp edged furniture.  The result was a bloody mess and a call to 911 for assistance.  Ambulance, police and fire department vehicles were promptly on the scene.  The patient was transported to the hospital about 4 miles distant.

Three stitches were required to close the wound.  Some tests were made to be sure there were no hidden injuries.  Twelve hours later the patient was released and walked out of the hospital.  It was as simple as that; there were no extenuating circumstances.  The medical care was good; the healing was complete.  That’s not the story.

When the bill came, it was $27,607.92.  That’s the story.  One item was $13,541.54.  It was called Trauma Response Level II.  That’s the price for the house call.  The other items were all various hospital charges.  One does not expect good medical care to be cheap but having to pay these prices is bizarre!  But wait.

There were two more items on the bill.  One item was Insurance Paid $1,610.51.  The other was Insurance Adjustment $25,947.41.  Translation – A) the prices were highly inflated, and B) nobody paid the artificially inflated prices.  Nobody was ever expected to.  The injured was a Medicare patient.  Medicare only pays a certain percentage of the “price” for each service, so the price is set high because the percentage paid is low.  There is something seriously wrong with a system that requires healthcare providers to bill at horrendous rates in order to receive modest remuneration for their services.  That’s the story.

Oh yes, there was one more item.  There was a box at the top of the bill that read Your Portion $50.00.  And so in round numbers, the patient paid $50, the healthcare providers got $1,600 but they had to bill for $27,000 to get it.

What about the uninsured, perhaps a mid-life family provider currently out of work, a foreign tourist or a member of the perpetually unemployed?  Is there a separate billing rate for them?  In some cases there is not.  Full rate billings happen every day.  In these cases it is up to the patient to negotiate a better rate.  It’s similar in the doctor’s office.  There is a list price, the price an insurance company pays and there is the price Medicare pays, all different prices for exactly the same service.  What you pay if you are uninsured may be different from all the other three and it will be the highest.  Health care in America is superb.  The financial administration of it stinks.

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JUSTAPHOTO – IN THE PEOPLES OFFICE

Posted on June 2, 2012 | Leave a comment

The President in the oval office without his feet up on the desk.

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OUTLOOK – 2012 ELECTION

Posted on June 2, 2012 | Leave a comment

Just one month ago I wrote there is The Potential for a Landslide.  Since then the following events have occurred.

Artur Davis dropped his support for Obama and took the additional step of leaving the National Democratic Party.  Davis was an early and ardent supporter of Obama and gave a resounding speech in his behalf at the 2008 National Democratic Convention.  His defection is a highly significant one.

Another prominent black Democrat, Massachusetts Gov Deval Patrick came out in support of the work Romney did at Bain Capital.  Gov. Davis publicly criticized Obama for attacking Romney over his record at Bain.

Move On.org revealed that donations are not coming in as expected.  The financial aid going to Democratic candidates will be far less than in prior elections.

The National Coalition of Black Churches announced on May 21st that they are withdrawing their support for Obama’s re-election.

On May 30th Power Line blog reported that donations for Republican candidates are pouring in in record numbers.  Campaign spending may even exceed for Democrats which would be the first time in modern election history that that occurred.

Rasmussen announced the results of a poll showing that, for the first time in first time in five-and-a-half years, 50% of all likely voters now trust Republicans more than Democrats on the economy.  And the economy is the number one issue in this election.

On June 1st.Bill Clinton registered disagreement with Obama’s campaign to convince the voters Romney’s business record at Bain Capital is reprehensible.  Clinton called Romney’s performance there “sterling”.

New unemployment figures were released.  The number rose significantly, back up to 8.2% and the stock market plunged – down 274.88 on the news.

Still, the Rasmussen favorability index hasn’t changed much.  It shows the two contenders in a very close race with no discernable recent trend.  Why is that?  Rasmussen polls the general public.  The disenchantment is among political insiders.  The average citizen who answers the phone when the pollster calls is not as up to date and well informed.  It’s the donors and politicians who are paying attention to the details who are backing away.  They sense a loser.

Nonetheless, 5 months is a lifetime in politics, anything can happen.  And that includes a Republican landslide.

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LET’S TAKE A BREAK AND LISTEN TO SOME LONE RANGER MUSIC

Posted on June 1, 2012 | Leave a comment

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JUSTAPHOTO

Posted on June 1, 2012 | Leave a comment

AL FRANKEN & BARACK OBAMA. Key players in today’s Democratic Party.

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CITIZENS UNITED, THE ISSUE IN A NUTSHELL

Posted on June 1, 2012 | Leave a comment

The liberal faction of the main stream media raises a lot of hoopla over the Supreme Court’s 2010 decision commonly known as Citizens United.  The complaints center on the fear that money plays too big a role in the election process, particularly big corporate money.  George Will has written an excellent piece on the subject for the Washington Post.  Here are the highlights, slightly edited.

The Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision held, unremarkably, that Americans do not forfeit their First Amendment rights when they come together in corporate entities or labor unions to speak collectively.  What do liberals consider the constitutional basis for saying otherwise?

The ruling’s primary effect has been to give unions and incorporated nonprofit advocacy group’s freedom to spend what they choose on political speech as long as they do not coordinate with candidates or campaigns.

Through March 31, the eight leading super PACs supporting Republican presidential candidates received contributions totaling $96,410,614.  Of this, $83,220,167 (86.32 percent) came from individuals, only $13,190,447 (13.68 percent) from corporations, and only 0.81 percent from public companies

These facts refute such prophesied nightmares as The Post’s fear that corporate money “may now overwhelm” individuals’ contributions

While much of the media and most liberals urge Americans to be scandalized about “too much money” in politics, the media’s real concern is that there is more political speech by others yet media advocacy remains unrestricted.

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A LIST OF BARACK OBAMA’S ACCOMPLISHMENTS AS PRESIDENT

Posted on May 31, 2012 | 1 comment

There is a list going around the Internet outlining an extensive number of things the President has accomplished since coming into office.  The author seems to be addressing Obama supporters who are disappointed in the President’s performance.  It’s an impressive list, well documented and straight forward in it’s presentation.  I thought I would check it out.

Here is an example from the middle of the list.

He signed an order banning anyone from working in an agency they had lobbied in previous years. He also put strict limits on lobbyists’ access to the White House.   http://nyti.ms/gOrznV

REBUTTAL. He did sign the ban, but continued to hire former lobbyists to serve the White House. Mega lobbyists Steve Ricchetti, Broderick Johnson, James Heimbach just to mention three.

Not to cherry pick, I started from the top.  Here are the first seven.  They are enough to tell the storey.  Here’s a link to the full list.

Legislative Prowess
Despite the characterizations of some, Obama’s success rate in winning congressional votes on issues was an unprecedented 96.7% for his first year in office.  Though he is often cited as superior to Obama, President Lyndon Johnson’s success rate in 1965 was only 93%.   http://n.pr/i3d7cY

REBUTTAL. True. With Democratic control of the House and the Senate, Pelosi, Reid and Obama had a radical’s field day.

Fiscal Responsibility
Within days after taking office, he signed an Executive Order ordering an audit of government contracts, and combating waste and abuse.   http://1.usa.gov/dUvbu5

REBUTTAL. True. The Order added the requirement for contractors to disclose their political party affiliations when applying for government contracts making it easier to reward those who had done political favors for the President and his party. 

Created the post of Chief Performance Officer, whose job it is to make operations more efficient to save the federal government money.   http://n.pr/hcgBn1

REBUTTAL. True. But his appointee to initiate the post never served due to her personal income tax problems.

On his first full day, he froze White House salaries.  http://on.msnbc.com/ewJUIx

REBUTTAL. Not really. On his first full day it was a proposal and not a freeze.  And it didn’t stop federal employees from getting increases in their income.  It only stopped raises within grade. Increases could still be given as bonuses or the raising of pay grades without the need for promotions.  The proposal was more fanfare than substance.

He appointed the first Federal Chief Information Officer to oversee federal IT spending. http://www.cio.gov

REBUTTAL. True. Each government agency already had a Chief Investment Officer. The creation of this new layer of oversight provided the means to control all of the agency career CIOs by one czar appointed by and beholden to the President.  It also added and an unnecessary expense

He committed to phasing out unnecessary and outdated weapons systems, and also signed the Weapons Systems Acquisition Reform Act to stop waste, fraud and abuse in the defense procurement and contracting system.  http://bit.
ly/hOw1t1     http://bit.ly/fz8GAd

REBUTTAL. Defense Secretary Gates called this a controversial move.  I am not qualified to judge the advisability of it. However one thing is clear; it dismissed one third of private contractors, replacing them with civilian government workers.

Through an executive order, he created the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.  http://bit.ly/hwKhKa

REBUTTAL. This is better known as the Erskine-Bowles commission.  The Commission made many recommendations for the President and the Senate to include in the Federal Budget.  None were adopted.  Harry Reid’s Democratically controlled Senate hasn’t presented a budget in 3 years, contrary to law.

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EX BLACK CAUCUS MEMBER LEAVES THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY

Posted on May 30, 2012 | Leave a comment

Artur Davis was an early and very strong supporter of Barack Obama in his run for the presidency.  He held the position of co-chairman of the campaign and served as a Congressman representing Alabama’s 7th District from 2003 to 2011.

LA Times reports:

Renouncing the party “is no light decision on my part,” he wrote. “Cutting ties with an Alabama Democratic Party that has weakened and lost faith with more and more Alabamians every year is one thing; leaving a national party that has been the home for my political values for two decades is quite another.”

But “wearing a Democratic label no longer matches what I know about my country and its possibilities,” he said.

Although he may not have articulated it, Mr. Davis has recognized what other Democrats have not.  This is not the party of Roosevelt, Truman or Kennedy; it’s something else.  Mr. Davis has not left the Party, the Party left him.  In his youth, the former Congressman believed wholeheartedly in the principles upheld by the Democratic Party.  He has held fast to those principles and that is why he sees the need to leave.

Barack Obama is head of the Democratic Party and his platform is indistinguishable from Soviet style Socialism.

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OBAMA REFERS TO NAZI HOLOCAUST COMPOUNDS AS POLISH DEATH CAMPS

Posted on May 30, 2012 | Leave a comment

photo courtesy of The Drudge Report

The World War II death camps that were built in Poland were built by the Nazi’s not by the Poles.  The amateur in the White House spoke as if he didn’t realize that.  Polish officials are furious and demanding an apology.  In fact they have cast the usual diplomacy aside and said “America will apologize”.

It could have been an embarrassing but simple matter.  The President could have responded quickly saying the implications were unintended and apologized for using a thoughtless turn of phrase.  But that is not Barack Obama.  He just keeps his chin in the air and acts as though his remarks are Poland’s problem.

Of course it is possible he didn’t know the camps were built by Germany after they occupied Poland.  When it comes to history Obama has taken a greater interest in European colonialism and black history in the United States than he has in Central Europe and the events of WW II.  There is a lot he doesn’t know.

Here are some of the other things Obama apparently doesn’t know.  The links are mostly to short videos of the President speaking.

There are only 50 states in the U.S., not 57.

The borders of his home state.

Whether he is a Muslim or a Christain

Where he was born.

Dead heroes don’t come to hear his speeches.

Members of the US Navy are not corpse men.

How to deal with a teleprompter failure.

How to run a government.  No link required; this one is self evident.

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