Monday, September 28, 2009

Health Care Change - It's Already in Process

Check out this Big Government post - I promise that it's worth your time.

Could there be anything less democratic than this "Czar" thing? It didn't work so well for the Russian people; why should we expect a better outcome?

Sunday, September 27, 2009

When is Debate Not Truly Debate?

Intellectual Conservative is a blog I'm getting really quite fond of. I don't always agree with the posts; that's true of many blogs. Non-liberals, like myself, do NOT always walk in lockstep with other non-liberals. The notion that we are all Dittoheads (mindlessly agreeing followers of Rush Limbaugh) is a fallacious one. I've only heard his show one time, when traveling a long distance. DH turned to that station in an effort to find some non-country music. I listened for a few minutes, until he turned to another channel.

So, where do I get my "strange" ideas? Well, I don't usually get them from TV. Anyone knowing me knows that I don't watch all that much TV. I don't subscribe to a daily paper anymore; unreliable delivery times have caused me to break a lifelong habit. So, it's fair to say that the Internet is my main source of news.

Aha! my critics will say - you must get all your information from gossip and rumor, which the web is so well know to be filled with! (Sometimes, it's really hard to avoid ending with a preposition)

Well, no. I subscribe to an RSS newsreader (the Google Reader), but I mostly use that as a way to grab interesting stories. I always check on the original sources for those stories - in most cases, the online version of newspapers and broadcast news (sometimes, official government sources, like Thomas).

But, sometimes I enjoy reading extended analysis of current issues - for that, I do often turn to the blogs, particularly Intellectual Conservative, which has some thought-provoking words about the nature of debate in modern times. Here Phillip Jackson explains why the lack of specific language in the Health Care bill doesn't ease his mind:
My take is somewhat less complicated. I'm old, but not stupid. If it's charged that a proposed piece of legislation will, say, allow illegal aliens to be covered the same way U.S. citizens are covered, I first look for that language in the bill. When I find that precisely the opposite exists — that illegals are expressly excluded —I'm heartened. Heartened, but not satisfied, if other language exists that forbids anyone from checking on the legal status of an individual receiving these services.

Like I said, I'm old, not stupid. A non-enforceable restriction is not a real restriction. My spidey-sense is further heightened when several amendments aimed at clarifying this issue are defeated (whether it's illegals, abortion, end of life care, etc.). Assurances that the provision does/doesn't really exist mean little when attempts to clarify the matter are expressly rejected.

Saturday, September 26, 2009

COLAs and Their Effect on The Budget

Since 1975, Cost of Living increases in Social Security checks have insulated seniors from the effects of free-spending government policies. When the government decides to "balance" the budget by printing more money, seniors automatically get a raise in their checks.

Not so the average citizen. We have to beg hard of our employers to get a raise, and, when we do, it seldom covers the entire amount that we are now short.

So, the average senior has no reason to fear deficits - in fact, many eagerly vote for those who promise them (either directly, or indirectly, by making promises they can't pay without essentially "kiting a check").

I never liked the balanced budget people - they always seemed to be one-note nuts. But, maybe it's time to re-visit that increasingly rare practice of not writing a check your bank can't cash - that day.

Let's make the government follow that practice. To do otherwise is to follow the practice that alcoholics do - when suffering the effects of drinking too much, they start drinking again (which WILL kill the pain), and begin the cycle anew. I did that once - I drank too much, so had a few the next day, which turned into more, so I woke up the next day even worse.

I'm a slow learner - it took me a week of boozy haze before I decided to suffer on Saturday, and finally get off the merry-go-round.

[NOTE: in times of EXTREME emergency - war or other major disaster - I'm not against borrowing against future expectations. I do so myself on occasion - when a family member becomes gravely ill or even dies, when the house suffers major damage, when your car is totaled - that's not the time to say "I can't afford it". You take care of the emergency, by loans or credit cards, then tighten your belts after.)

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Long Time, No Blog

I've been busy with LIFE. We're still semi-nomadic, living 3-5 days a week in motels. We've made an offer on a trailer; we've reserved the site with a deposit. The financing is still in the air.

We're maintaining our sense of humor and well-being. We're ramping up the anti-stress vitamins, drinking herbal tea (well, I am - the DH is still a cola addict), and generally trying not to let the uncertainty get to us.

I'm still involved with politics (it is, in my case, an unstoppable compulsion), particularly with immigration. The health care issue has taken a front seat, as has cap & trade. But fighting the encroaching throngs of illegal immigrants from overtaking our country remains a perennial - unfortunately. It's even more important to resist the flood of aliens, given that our president, and his party, think our country should welcome them with open - and cash-laden - arms.

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Why the Near-Total Message Unity?

It turns out that Obama's people may be using funding (and some of that is government funding) to control the amount of "free speech" that non-profits engage in.

So much for democracy.

How to Talk Like Obama

This is terrific!

I've seen lots of good posts this week, but haven't had the time to post about them. I've been working to catch up on grades, lesson planning, and the like.

Saturday, my husband and I attended an RV show in Greensboro, NC (about 2 hours away). Surprisingly, the RVs seemed relatively affordable. We were looking in the 20K range. i've decided several things:
  • Money counts - the inexpensive RVs looked like it. We stopped in a few upper-end units, and, boy, they looked like it. Leather instead of inexpensive upholstery fabric, a "home-like" atmosphere, space (it costs to add the slide-out sections), and little touches that say "no expcnse spared).
  • Prices on RVs don't seem to have risen as much as other homes. We found good quality units in the 20K+ range - about 23K-28K seemed to be a major jump in quality.
  • They seem small compared to your regular home, but compared to motels - which I've spent more time than I would like to in the past months - they're terrific. And, a whole lot cheaper, since the payments add to your equity.
  • We have two major needs - space for storage, and room to do office-type work. That narrowed down the short list by quite a few. Most units assumed that we would want to sit around and watch TV or have a crowd in for drinks/meal.

Lies of the Left

This COULD be a lengthy post. But, I'll try to winnow it down to a reasonable length. The CA Parent Bribery 'Scandal' - the 1...