Thursday, November 10, 2011

What U Don’t Know That U Need 2 No

 

Ads are hitting the airwaves stating that Congress wants to cut Medicare payments to hospitals.  Medicare was a gift.  There was nothing in the original SS legislation that applied any of your earnings to medical care.  That was a gift from another Congress in another time.  Why do I call it a gift?  Because those who passed it at the time knew it wasn’t and couldn’t be supported by earnings contributions that were already overextended.  They did it for electability. 

I understand that and retirees should too.  What you also need to understand is that Medicare could be manageable.  It could be feasible for us to support Medicare IF (and that’s a big if) we did not have to support every whiner in the world with Medicaid.  That’s where the little ditty of an ad veers off course.  At the end of the ad Medicaid rears it’s ugly head. 

In America we support non earners (those who don’t or can’t work) with an income.  Then we give them food stamps so they can eat.   Then we give them subsidized housing so they don’t have to live in boxes.  Then we not only meet their basic medical needs we provide them with medical care that many wage earning taxpayers cannot afford.

If that’s not enough we also give these benefits to anyone who comes into this nation  legally or illegally until they get on their feet.  Unfortunately the system is too big and no one can actually keep track of who truly deserves help and who doesn’t.  It is a common practice for illegals to work off the books or for low wages and still be supplemented with all these gifts.  Where does the money come from?  IT CAME FROM THE FUNDS YOU PAID INTO SS UNTIL THAT WAS ALL GONE THEN IT WAS BORROWED.

Those who support taking care of our elderly as I do get disgusted when Medicaid is lumped in with Medicare.  But remember Medicare is a gift.  You never paid for it.  All you paid for was a Social Security check every month when you reached retirement.

BUT (and this is a big but) that’s not the only thing that is bleeding dry the funds we could be funneling into Medicare to care for the twilight years of our elderly.  Get on the SSI bandwagon.  Do you think anything was paid into any fund to support anyone with a disability?  No.  Do you think anything was paid into any fund to support survivor benefits? No.  Please do the math.  There is no way that a man who dies at thirty years old has paid enough into his social security account to provide  $400 a month for  his 2 and 4 year old until they turn 18.  It’s a gift from some distant congress who wanted to get re-elected. 

What is going unspoken in these ads is that Medicaid doesn’t stand a snowballs chance in hell of getting any support so they lump it in with Medicare because it’s a big lobby.

We can support our seniors.  We can’t support every Tom, Dick and Harry who wants a free ride.  Hospitals and Doctors and insurance companies cannot tote the load.  The Republic is broke and has about reached it’s borrowing limit.  Stop Medicaid.  Stop disability payments and Seniors stop allowing advertisers to lump you in with a corrupt system.

Lift the maximum earnings limit and get rid of the Medicaid freeloaders and seniors won’t have to worry about benefits being cut. 

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

The Slippery Situation that is Greece

 

Eurozone On the Edge of Disaster | TheBlaze.com

For those of you who have investments in the stock market (no one I know) this is the top story for several days that is actually eclipsing OWS in the MS media.  Interestingly enough this sparks my interest not because I am a Euro groupie (those Americans who think everything in Europe is better, smarter, more urbane or just generally uber-cool) but because I find myself actually applauding the Prime Minister George Papandreou for choosing to offer a referendum on the EU bailout for the citizens of Greece to vote on.  What a novel idea…Actually allowing citizens to vote on an issue and then for government to actually abide by that vote.

It used to work that way in America.  When you voted for a Representative you knew that person would actually go to the seat of government and reflect the opinion of the majority (those who elected him) in his vote.  Not anymore. Now we speak clearly through our votes, our chosen representatives go to DC where they drink the water, get brainwashed or for whatever reason ignore the wishes of their constituency and vote with the herd.

Everyone assumes such a referendum would lead to Greece thumbing their nose at the EU by refusing the austerity measures attached to a bailout of their country.  Those who believe themselves to be in the know could be surprised  there might actually be a majority of Greeks who would want the EU interference.  It’s not likely, but it has become apparent in this country that the one squeaky wheel that is getting all the grease does not necessarily reflect the sentiments of the other three smooth rolling wheels.

Personally I think it would be a great idea for Greece to vote against the austerity measures.  They would then 1) Choose to default on their debts and probably bring about the eventual demise of the European Union and it’s price fixed monetary unit the Euro, 2) Choose to sell their Geek souls to some wealthy nation such as China whose strings would (in time) prove to be many times worse than austerity, or 3) Choose the Icelandic Effect which says if you knuckle under, cut back and pay your bills you can actually come out a stronger; better nation.

Whatever happened it would be the choice of the voting citizens of Greece that made the decision.  That is a basic principal of Democracy a word according to Wikipedia (…which was coined from δῆμος (dêmos) "people" and κράτος (Kratos) "power"…)  means rule of the people.

The rule of the people is being largely ignored in our Republic.  Our elected representatives are sitting idly by allowing the Executive branch of our government to operate totally unchecked thereby placing us under the rule not '”Of the People” but by the Executive pen of one man.

How simple it would be to pass a law revoking the use of Executive Order.  I wonder why they aren’t doing that?