Why not expand the Medicaid roles to include all Americans, not just the indigent?
Americans with incomes above the current qualifying levels would "pay in" to a Medicaid option on a pro-rated basis.
This would unlink health insurance from employment, helping businesses regain their competitive status in the world economy, and reduce the incentives for outsourcing of American jobs overseas.
It would ensure competition with private insurers and thereby reduce rates for those who remain in the private plans.
And with Medicaid, there is no such thing as a "pre-existing condition" or being under-insured.
There would also be competition in pharmaceutical pricing, with such a large pool of consumers.
Utilizing Medicaid for the Public Option would eliminate many of the fears of those enrolled in Medicare that the Administration is plotting to take their benefits away from them.
The infrastructure is already in place, which solves problems of accesibility.
So far, the Senate Finance Committee's plan does nothing but bailout the Health Insurance Industry by mandating that young and healthy consumers purchase their faulty product.
Another trillion dollar bailout of billions-of-dollars-in-profits corporations?
No thanks. There has to be accessibility, competition and simplicity, as well as cost reduction.
Congratulations to all who wish our President well. The Stimulus package is ready for his signature. And WE the people are the winners. When is the last time you can remember a President working so hard on your behalf, and getting results so fast? Hard to believe, but once again, President Obama has been true to his word. This honesty and integrity will take some getting used to, but I for one am happy to lay my cynicism down.
Thinking about our last meeting, i've been tying together Holly's request to gather the stories of local residents with the "miracle of Obama" phenomena at the Fort Meyers town hall meeting last Tuesday. Two of the audience members made personal requests -- one to start a career as a radio announcer and one to be able to move her family from residing in their car and move into a home of their own. Both got their wishes fulfilled within 24 hours. It would seem that our President inspires us to do what we should all be doing every day: put a personal face on those in need and help them as best we can. I think this is what Holly was trying to say at our meeting, and I think it is a great idea.
Looking forward to our next meeting, but would like to suggest that we schedule another service project in the meantime. Perhaps another day at Second Harvest? What do you think, Riverside for Changers?
Republicans are united.
They say they are standing up for their principles.
They say they are the Party of small government and fiscal responsibility.
Looking back on the past 8 years,
with the increases in the size of government and the federal deficit,
I would have to say they are the Party of Hypocrisy,
or maybe Amnesia.
And what does 'small government' mean?
As Grover Norquist said: "government small enough to drown in a bathtub"
or in New Orleans, as the case may be.
They mean the only thing for which citizens should be taxed is the cost of Defense.
No Public Schools
No Health Care or medical research
No Social Security
No Environmental Protection Agency
No Interstate Highways
No National Parks or Monuments
They believe all of these should be left up to the States to decide
whether they are necessary and how to fund them
In other words, every State with its own policies,
loosely confederated to maintain a common National Defense.
United only in War
Republicans are united against the United States of America
One way they can stand by their principle to shrink the size of government
would be to resign their positions
Now
Today
We have all by now seen the footage and photos of Barack Obama in the Middle East and Germany. and the smiles and hope in the eyes of all who spent time with him. Yet here at home, John McCain has uttered what sounds like an accusation of sedition against Obama, stating it seems as though Obama 'would rather lose the war in order to win the campaign'. I've been perusing the response to this remark, and found the most telling at the VetVoice website:
http://www.vetvoice.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=1654
If McCain's remark has angered Iraq and Afghanistan Vets, who in the world is he talking to?
Obama has won the hearts and minds of the people in one of the most conflict-ridden areas of the world. John McCain has alienated all but those who are anxiously awaiting the "End of Days", i e The Rapture. HOPE versus fanatic lust for destruction. Which would YOU choose?
For the JAX folks, here's a local action event opportunity: The Times Union would like to hear from you. Here's a chance to make our voices heard :
Parks, libraries, police or something else ‹ what should Jacksonville MayorJohn Peyton make priorities in the city's 2008-09 budget? Peyton will present his version of the city¹s $950 million budget to CityCouncil on Monday. The Times-Union would like to hear your thoughts on howthe city should spend its money. Send comments to reporter David Hunt at david.hunt@jacksonville.com.Thank you.Wayne EzellReader Advocate(904) 359-4217wayne.ezell@jacksonville.com
Rove Democrats
Dems have learned the hard way about the tactics of the Roves of this world. The ones who will distract us from our goals with endless games of gotcha and the perceived need to put out multiple small blazes of interest in false storylines, red herrings all, yet quite time, energy and resource consuming. Some have learned the wrong lessons: Whisper campaigns, turn an opponent’s strengths into their greatest liability, mirror ones own failings as if they were the opponent’s. So very slippery is Rove, sweaty, greasy, slimy, like the old game of catching the greased pig, just as frustratingly elusive. And such a waste of time. Such an awful waste of all that could be channeled into the positive. Wasted energy, Crying foul “We was robbed”. Not fair. Empty Words. False Hope. Adolescent dreamers. Meanwhile….The world is turning, the end of the day is nearing and a new day is dawning. The winds of change are blowing past us all. Some will be left behind in mounds of dust and others will be turning turbines powering the future and some will be wiping the grease off their hands wondering where is that #%*!@ PIG?
A story in the Philly Intelligencer today reports John McCain stating he would still vote yes to the authorization to invade Iraq, if given another chance. To paraphrase Albert Einstein, the definition of insanity is to continue the same actions and expect different results. What is going on in McCain's brain? Is he trying to re-fight the Viet Nam War, only this time we don't withdraw, but continue to offer up our sons (and daughters) for slaughter and maiming of bodies and minds, because "it was the right thing to do"?
http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/113-07012008-1556942.html
Has anyone told Senator McCain that we never were able to force "Democracy" down the VietNamese' throats at the point of a bayonet, and yet today they are one of our partners in global trade? He is out of touch with the American people, way out of the mainstream! Keep talking, John, talking about how you don't know the price of gas, but that's not important; about not being able to say when you'd start withdrawing troops from Iraq, but that's not important, about changing your position on torture, but that's not important, changing your position on tax cuts for the richest 1% of Americans while the middle class keeps falling further behind. What pray tell does John McCain think IS important? A psychological boost to the consumers by saying he supports drilling for oil off our coastlines?
What is important to me, is having a President who thinks about both short and long term solutions, who knows that the Iraq War is destroying our economy, our healthcare system, our national infrastructure and our reputation in the world. John McCain is not that person. For all his years of service to our country, he deserves a nice, peaceful retirement in Arizona.
GO BARACK OBAMA!
Bachelor governor Crist of Florida ran as a RINO, especially on matters of ecology and conservation, but as his VEEP aspirations have been Pricked by POWerhouse John McSame, Charlie Crist has seen the (b)light. He now realizes that the consumers’ pocketbook concerns must take precedent over the illogic of drilling for oil off of Florida’s coastline. Never mind the oil will not affect pricing for another 7-10 years, never mind the pollutants accompanying the oil rigs, never you mind. 'Cuz fear and desperation are the coin of the GOP realm, the only currency they’ve got left. November can’t come soon enough.
It's amazing that McSame would try another such gimmick, after the Gas Tax Holiday fiasco. Anything to keep the citizenry from weaning off of fossil fuels. And now the Saudis have deigned to increase the FLOW of oil, upping the allotment by another 0.9 million barrels per day. Again, anything to slow or distract from the weaning/detox from oil. Like a pusher, they'll front you a little product, "to help you get by", 'cuz they'd hate to lose such a good customer.
Thankfully, Obama is not going to play that game. And his surrogates have gotten the word out about the bait and switch, with no oil price relief likely for almost a decade with the McSame Drill, Drill, Drill Plan.
Senator Obama's essay in RealClearPolitics speaks to the vacuum of Leadership at the root of our disfunctional government. I look forward to the 2008(9) elections, but I do not see how we can wait, as a Nation, for that long. Impeachment must be on the table, on the Floor of the House and Senate. We are hanging on the blue event horizon, being sucked into the Black Hole that is the Bush Administration, and we must rid our nation of this deadly malady.
Think about it: If you were a landlord of a beautiful piece of property, and you had tenants who trashed the place, brought down your property value, and had the neighbors complaining to you day and night, wouldn't you EVICT the dastards?
We have such tenants in THE PEOPLES HOUSE right now. They are ruining our country and the world with their short-sighted, greedy pillaging and plundering of this nation's reputation and resources. THROW THE BUMS OUT!!!
It will be difficult to regain the hopes and aspirations of the American People after 8 long years of "NUKULAR" Winter, but I believe Senator Obama has it right in appealing to our hopes rather than our fears.
Blessings to John Stewart and the House he built at the Daily Show. Blessings for not covering the Virginia Tech shooter, for refusing to join the MSM club in their worship of Death. No way to make it funny, and no need to make it glorious, tempting or tantalizing! Just another sad moment in our culture of destruction. Where is the analysis of the two most horrendous mass murderers on the planet at this time, namely George and Dick? Sorry! Don't want to go there?
How about the Supremes' majority decision that a foetus is more valuable than the woman within whose womb it is developing? When do we start ordering our Burkahs? I'm sure the Supremes will let us know. Read up on the future of American women in Margaret Atwood's The Handmaidens Tale. Preciently frightening.
How about proclaiming Executive Privilege for e-mails sent on RNC servers? What doesn't the pRes think is governed by Executive Privilege?
The good news is that Barack Obama has twice the number of donors as Senator Clinton, and thus far is not beholden to any lobbied special interests. Hurray. I think I see a sunrise on the horizon. Is it 2008 yet?
