Just Kill It....

After what seems like an eternity of political debate, fear tactics, and appeasement...the healthcare reform debate seems to be at a standstill....Republicans are united in their opposition of this reform and now Democrats have splintered into factions each wanting their own piece of this massively expensive overhaul of our healthcare system...and we are left with what remains after all the townhall meetings, tea parties, and political compromise...a rotting corpse that serves no one by the health insurance industries and the politicans who act in their favor..

So what has been lost in this great debate?
-Public Option dropped
-Medicare buy-in dropped
-individual mandated ADDED

So what reform is left if any at all? Insurance companies won't be able to drop you for having a pre-existing condition or when you get sick but without any choice except private health insurance there isn't any real help for those who can't afford insurance and now they will HAVE to buy private insurance or pay a fine...this a big Christmas present for the health insurance companies and their Senators..and yet this is still called "Reform"....

This lack of true reform has even driven some of its strongest supporters to do the unthinkable..kill the bill. These include former Vermont Gov. and Presidential hopeful Howard Dean and MSNBC commentator Keith Olbermann (who just gave a passionate call for the President to kill this bill on his show tonite)..and instead of blaming Republicans or Lieberman for stalling and the gutting of this bill, the White House and Dem. Senate leadership has targeted Mr. Dean saying he has gone too far in his call for this bill to be killed and Democrats to get what reform they can through Reconciliation (a process of passing measures by a simple majority with would allow some reform but not all). Why would they do this? It's not because Mr. Dean isn't wrong about his opinion, it's because he's RIGHT and they fear that his vocal call for the death of this 'reform' bill will be a catalyst for the liberal left to challenge the Senates Democratic leaders. But they are too late because from political polls and by listening to the Liberal media (such as MSNBC) it is clear Liberals are angry and are seemingly willing to make the Senates Democratic leaders pay for it next election cycle and they aren't afraid to say so..Keith Olbermann, who admits he is a Liberal, at least has the guts to stand up for his political views and not throw them under the bus just to get something passed no matter how terrible as Mr. Reid and his allies have done...
Because this bill as it stands doesn't really need to be killed...it's already dead and just needs buried and there is only one person who can do the digging...Mr. Obama. Olbermann went as far as saying that should this bill pass with its Individual Mandate (whose constitutionality is shaky) he will get rid of his private insurance and therefore be breaking the law and dares the government to do something about it because such a mandate (which Obama denounced during his Presidential campaign) is the final insult to all those who hoped for real reform...

And what has our President said about the politically COMPROMISED bill as of late? He has told Democrats that they have to pass something by the end of the year or else...well he didn't really say but you get his drift...to this Mr. Olbermann called of Mr. Obama to veto any bill that retains that Individual mandate but I fear he won't because he seems to believe that any reform is better than none but he is wrong...this whole healthcare reform movement was botched from the start and should just be ended so Mr. Obama can focus on the economy which is more important right now (not to mention if he does that people will like him more and his chances for reelection would be much greater)...

I am a stronge believer in healthcare reform because I have seen the facts and figures and it's disgusting to think we are the only industrialized nation with no universal healthcare system but with our economy as weak as it is and with the Federal decifit growing incredibly fast, this reform could/should wait for another day..So please Mr. President, veto this bill and focus on what really matters to the American people right now..

Mr. Lieberman...your pants are on fire!

After a bit of research tonite...I've discovered the Joe Lieberman is either the biggest liar in recent political history is one of the greatest Flip/Flopper in recent history (or both)...

In the current political armwrestling over healthcare reform there has been a general "broad" agreement in dropping the so called public option in favor of a expansion of Medicare from those 55-65, meaning they could "buy-in" and therefore allow tens of million of uninsured to get much need healthcare insurance. Many were hopeful that such a mechanism would even attract Mr. Disagreeable Lieberman to support it. Why would they think that? Well...because Joe has advocated such an expansion for nearly a decade, from his run at VP in 2000 to just 3 months ago...so I found it rather surprising (not really but humor me) the Joe Lieberman not only says he won't support such a compromise, he'll help block its passage altogether!

Don't believe me? Read it for yourself: http://www.connpost.com/news/ci_13995773?source=rss

So what changed in 3 months Mr. Lieberman? Did the Health insurance companies who bankroll your political campaigns pull your lease too hard?....or did you look in the mirror and discover that you were acting like a..dare I say...a principled Senator??? Can't have that now can we Mr. Lieberman? Of course not, because as most American citizens know, there is no such thing as a prinicipled Senator. Some claim they are and get on their soapbox but when you look at their true motives for such behavior you quickly realize they are either looking to their re-election or looking to line their pockets.....and Joe is a fine example of such a Senator...how these people sleep at night is lost to me...and Senators wonder why everyone seems to think they need term limits? Because God forbid they actually WORK for the money we pay them to actually accomplish something or they will be out of office for good....

Such behavior from our supposed "Representatives" doesn't surprise me or most Americans much but what does surprise me is that so many people just shrug it off as how things are supposed to work and don't give it another thought. People need to wake up to how corrupt Congress and hold these people accountable or else they are sent packing...but that's a rant for another day...

So in the end I have just one question for Mr. Lieberman...how do you sleep at night you little Prick?

Happy Holidays vs. Merry Christmas...

As we get closer to Christmas, we are bombarded with Holiday sales and posters and TV commercials...and with these seasonal signs there is debate that happens every year...a debate of Political correctness...to whether stores should say "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays"....to the point I woke up to the radio that other morning and heard a conservative comentator saying that because we are Christian nation the businesses should say Merry Christmas instead of giving into Political Correctness....and to be honest...I'm sick of hearing this stupid and pointless argument EVERY FREAKING YEAR....I could care less what the stores put in their windows greeting-wise....

First of all...any time should be throws the whole "We are a Christian Nation and therefore Christianity trumps all" is ridiculus and arrogant....We are a majority Christian nation with an incredibly diverse cultural/religious roots...and while this season is largely dominated by the Christian Holiday of Christmas, the holidays of Hanukkah and Kwanzaa are also observed by millions of Americans...over the years some have complained that Merry Christmas was too exclusive and this need for political correctness and businesses realising they could make more money that way, they changed to Happy Holidays or Seasons Greetings as we see today.
So is there a fairly valid argument for "Merry Christmas" only advertisements? Kinda...but there is another side to this point..

Some make the observation that the use of religously neutral phrases like Seasons Greetings or Happy Holidays are perfect examples of the seemingly Secular takeover of Christian holidays/events and that the holiday has been hijacked by corporate interests out for making money and caring very little for the religous significance of the season...this is a much stronger argument and I do agree with it mostly...but I find one major flaw in this argument...We are a Secular Nation...from a Governmental standpoint (and these in theory) and for the most part many Americans are quite secular in their everyday lives...so whether we like it or not, most Americans just don't care enough to get concerned about trivial debates over political correctness or secularism...and for this disregard of the religiousness significance of this holiday many Americans do get rather annoyed this time of year and I do agree with them...Christmas, much like other holidays (such as Valentine's Day) have been exploited by Corporate America and the religious content is largely marginalized to our Churchs and local festivities...

So what should we as Americans do about this constant and yet seemingly important argument...should we demand businesses change their signs and advertisements to Merry Christmas and to hell with political correctness? Or should we just go about our business as if nothing is amiss? To be honest, a bit of both is best. Business have legal right to make advertisements of their choice and no one has the right to tell them to change it just because they don't like it...there's nothing I hate more than people who attempt to force change via the Mob...it is best for everyone to just remember the true meaning of Christmas (or whatever holiday you celebrate) and just leave it at that...because if I remember correctly this is supposed to be a season of good will towards our fellow man isn't it?

A December to Remember....

As the year comes to a close, I find that very little exciting political news is circulating...Most of the news today is about debates that have been going on seemingly all year which makes me wonder, what have we as a nation accomplished in the year 2009? The sad truth is...not a whole lot...

The ongoing healthcare reform debate is still very much in the air. In the last few days there has been talk of a compromise among Senate Democrats over their version of healthcare reform which would expand Medicare and Medicaid to seniors as young as 55 and low-income families with a gross income of $33,000 est. and would ineffect allow million more Americans get affordable health insurance. In exchange for this expansion in federal programs, Senate Democrats appear ready to drop the public option so they can at least get all 60 Democrats to vote together and perhaps even a few Republicans...all this sometime before Christmas supposedly...but the debate won't be over of course. We must remember that IF the Senate passes a bill, it has to somehow reconcile it with the much more expansive and liberal House bill and that seems very unlikely considering how much more liberal the House is compared to the Senate (though Democrats are notorious for sacrificing their principles for political support/survival)...so we could still be months away from any kind of reform if any at all..

The Economy is still a bit shaky with small growth being seen in the GDP and it seems (for the time being) the unemployment numbers are slowly falling but consumer spending and bank lending is still very shaky and unemployment is still at 10% and the people are very angry of the continuing wastefull spending of Washington and this has emboldened the President's critics. The only true bit of good news as of late is the realization that some $200billion of the bank bailout money won't be spent so the government is now tryin got decide what to do with this big chunk of change....Obama has talked about a "stimulus lite" aimed at job growth and support for small businesses but some Republicans (and some Whigs and Independents) are calling for Obama to use the money to lower the Federal Deficit. So is the economy better because of the Obama administration? The jury is still out on that though I do believe if McCain were President the economy would be worse for wear.

And now the President has renewed our efforts in the war in Afghanistan with a troop surge of sorts with a fuzzy deadline..or sorts. For the most part I have avoided discussing the war here on my blog because though I do consider myself a history/military buff and I understand the challenges in Afghanistan more than most I don't believe I have to right to second guess our President. I do believe he made the right choice both by sending more troops though the vagueness on the exist strategy does both me a bit...but politicizing a war just isn't right and I just remember that he is more qualified than I to make such decisions and leave it at that...

So where does this leave us? The seemingly uselessness of Congress this year has even amazed me...though Healthcare reform is needed..it isn't needed right now...what Congress should be focused on is stabilizing the economy and trying to get people back to work and cutting wasteful spending so our deficit doesn't continue to spiral out of control...and sadly it seems like that will never change no matter who wins next November...because Republicans can talk all about fiscal conservatism but I doubt they'll really embark on any such behavior if they gain power next year...nothing ever seems to change in Washington D.C. these days no matter who's in charge and until Americans realize that and do something about it it's never going change....a December to remember indeed....

Quote of the Week

"The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, peace at any price, safety first instead of duty first, the love of soft living and the get rich quick theory of life." - Theodore Roosevelt

Long Live Teddy!-The real Progressive

For once I would like to take a moment away from the daily noise of politics and partisan attacks and reflect on one of our greatest Presidents (and my personal favorite when I was a political science major), Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt. Now many of you may be thinking, how does old Teddy have to do with anything we see in the news today? Plenty. Teddy was the politicians who largely invented the term "Progressive" that we hear so many Democrats claim to be and Republicans rail against. Those who claim to be progressive today should look towards Teddy and they will learn a few things. While in school I wrote several very long essays and term papers on Mr. Roosevelt and found him to be a most fascinating and incredible man who was able to save our nation from corrupt government, environmental disaster, and global obscurity. Under Teddy's tenure, we cracked down on the political reward system that ravaged our government on the national level and forced individuals up for government jobs to prove they are qualified and not just because they know somebody...something we have seen a resurgence in recent years sadly....

Also under Teddy's tenure as President he saved literally millions of acres of national parks by executive order to save it from ambitious and destructive developers of the day (it took an act of Congress to finally stop him lol). He was the first "Environmentalist" President and without his actions we wouldn't have the many national parks we all know and love.

And possibly Teddy's biggest accomplishment was his actions in the area of foreign policy. When most people hear foreign policy and Teddy in the same sentence they think mainly of the Panama Canal. While that may have been his most famous achievement it isn't necessarily his best action. Two events during Teddy's presidency are key in my mind: the Treaty of Portsmouth and the so-called Great White Fleet.

The Treaty of Portsmouth was the agreement that ended the bloody Russo-Japanese War in 1905. The conference for this treaty was hosted by Teddy Roosevelt himself and while he wasn't deeply involved in the negoatiations, his role in organizing it and volunteering our nation for the talks earned him the Nobel Peace Prize. This was the first time an American President had overtly helped to end a foreign war we as a nation were not part of. And for what reason did Teddy do this? The idea that he did it out of the kindness of his heart or a love of peace sounds nice but is highly unlikely. To me, Teddy saw an opportunity to boost the United States' image and clout around the world and he did just that.

The second great foreign policy achievement of Mr. Roosevelt was the so-called Great White Fleet. This was the massive naval buildup that started before Teddy entered office for which he capitalized and helped boost American military power around the world. This buildup was capped off shortly before Teddy left office with a world-wide tour of this great fleet that was meant to show off and flex our military muscle. This tour is cited by many military histories as one of the reasons the Japanese choose to build up there navy during the first few decades of the 20th century that eventually led the clash between the Japanese empire and Pax Americana on the fateful day in December 1941.

Teddy's presidency was also noted for an economic scare the could have crippled the nation 22 years before the Great Depression. During this scare in which people scrambled to withdraw their money from banks which inturn caused banks to begin failing. Where was Teddy while all this was going on? Out hunting of course lol. Today such indifference to the economy would be and has proven to be political suicide (see John McCain September 2008). But this was a different time when the President wasn't necessarily expected to be able to fix the economy or manage it during a crisis because there just wasn't any precedent for it like there is today and I don't think that is such a bad thing. In Teddy's day the government just left the markets alone (with expection to crushing unfair monopolies) but the Scare of 1907 proved that some governmental control or supervision is vital to stable and fair economy (though this lesson wasn't learned til the 1930's). Funny enough, the man who saved Wall street and the banks from a major crisis in 1907 was none other than US Steel founder J.P. Morgan who infused million of his own dollars into the banking system to bring confidence to the market. Can anyone image Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, or Donald Trump giving millions of their own money to help the failing banks back in 2008? I didn't think so.

But for me, it was Teddy's attitudes towards Politics as usual that really impresses me. Even today his thoughts on the government still ring very true and could have easily been made by a political pundit yesterday and not a hundred years ago. Today I read a quote of Teddy's that really hit me and it's inspired me to put up a few quotes of his this month in hopes of inspiring others to really think bout "Politics as Usual" so cheers all to all those who call themselves Progressives should look towards Teddy's words and heed them...Long Live Teddy!