tkhayes

only if they take out the 'under God' part. Otherwise it violates the church and state separations.

no i did not read any of your posts - my reply was a response to the first item in this thread. I did not (and probably will not) read the entire thread. I already 'read' the entire thread through regular news (and the speech too).

the more the right wing stands up and whines about everything that Obama says or does, the better it is for all of us. They will fully demonstrate themselves to be IDIOTS. How the fuck can ANYONE find something wrong with a speech encouraging people to be educated? The 'right' shows its true colors. morons......

I did a nice time lapse last night from my front yard.

if you live longer, then you are overall healthier. If you are healthier, then your 'health care costs' are probably lower. Not to mention that healthy, long-living people often still contribute to society, like working, paying taxes, volunteering, etc. I find it amazing that you could find an issue with 'libving longer'.

yes, things in Canada are soooooo bad..... http://uprisingradio.org/home/?p=9489

Flexvision goggles are the easiest, clearest and best we use. Over the glasses models especially. The only issue with them is if you jump in cold weather, the plastic gets quite stiff, and the plastic edge can 'cut' into your nose, especially if you get smacked in the face. But is warm weather, the goggles are very flexible and soft, extremely comfortable to wear and they are easy to tighten - no knots needed in the straps.

you mean the individual ratings like infant mortality (lower in Canada and many other countries) or life expectancy (higher in Canada and many other countries) I could go on, but why bother - I am trying to teach a pig to sing - wastes my time and probably annoys the pig......

read my posts prior - I actually DO ADVOCATE SOME PRIVATIZATION IN CANADA. I also advocate UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE FOR ALL WHO WANT IT IN THE USA. Keep your friggin' health insurance and go broke when you get sick - if that's really what you want. But the majority of us want universal health coverage for everyone. I am not interested in losing my house and everything I worked for in life just because an uninsured driver hits me and I am left with life threatening injuries or I fall sick to some disease......And the majority of this country actually agrees with that example. I never once said Canada was perfect, I never once said Canada's system could not use some improvement. I have said repeatedly, that the US system is BROKEN, and it needs work. I have said that people regularly go bankrupt in the USA due to an accident or sickness. I have said regularly that low wage earners in the USA have NO CHANCE WHATSOEVER of affording reasonable health insurance under ANY circumstances. So here is what I am going to do. I am signing off the argument, because the fact is 1. Nothing ever changed USA policy based on what was discussed on DZ.com 2. no war ever came to an end or was prevented due to a discussion on dz.com 3. actually, I think nothing significant came out of a discussion on dz.com it is kind of like trying to teach a pig to sing. First, it wastes your time, and second, it really annoys the pig. But I will be at the town hall meeting in Minneola FL and I will be voicing my opinion weekly to the President and my members of congress. And I will work hard to achieve the goals I feel are necessary for the country. And when all that happens, I will look back at all this stuff on dz.com and say - wow, what a waste of my time that was. now what are YOU going to do? (not just Ron, but everyone....) Here's my latest letter to everyone in Gov. a reply to the retarded letter I got from my Congresswoman recently. -------------------------------------- Senator Bill Nelson & Mel Martinez Florida Dear sirs; I am attaching a letter I wrote to Congresswoman Ginny Brown-Waite here in Florida regarding the recent debate over Health Care. It expresses many of my views, which I can reiterate here as well for you, the debate appears to have shifted from Health Care reform to Health INSURANCE reform. I feel that this is a serious problem and the results will likely fail in practice. Insurance companies as they stand today, cannot and obviously will not be able to offer insurance to every American, UNLESS they are forced to. Adding the US government as another insurance player means that the government will be faced with the same competing issues for the most part. We do not need more insurance, we need universal health care for all. We need to eliminate insurance. Medicare, as it stands today, works pretty good. The easiest solution is to change the age of eligibility of Medicare and then adjust the income tax base to pay for it. Private medicine and insurance for that matter can still exist for those that have the money to pay for it. The insurance companies can sell supplemental insurance like they do today and people with wealth can still afford to pay for their own procedures if they wish. Several countries around the world share and public and a private health care system (Finland for example) I fear that we are going down the worng road. Instead of coming up with a solution, we are coming up with a half-assed plan that everyone can “live with” but it will nto actually fix any of the problems. As I state in the letter below, the guy who works at Wal-Mart cannot, will not, and will never be able to pay for health coverage or insurance, no matter what insurance might be available. But he is an American citizen, just like you and me, and he has the same rights. Health care is not a right you say? Well it is if you are 65. It is if you are too poor. It is if you are in the military and it is if you are a retired veteran. For that matter, Health Care is a right if you are INCARCERATED in this country. It is only a small step to make it a right for everyone. Now please do it. It is why I voted liberal in my government. Shame on America for not providing for their own people. David Hayes Zephyrhills, FL 33541 Attached in the recent email I received from Congresswoman Brown-Waite’s Office and I would like to rebut some of the things stated here. My comments are in italics. David Hayes, Zephyrhills, FL Dear David: Thank you for bringing your concerns to my attention. I appreciate the time you took to contact my office on this important issue and welcome the opportunity to respond. President Obama has made it clear to Democrat leaders in Congress that any bill proposing reform of the health care system must include a new insurance plan run by the federal government, akin to Medicare or Medicaid. If this option is available to all, it will likely underpay physicians and hospitals the same way Medicare and Medicaid does. “Most physicians are happy with the pay they get from Medicare/Medicaid - and I expect they would be willing to work for less if they did not have the overhead of trying to get paid by the private insurance companies, as they do today.” Therefore, it will be much less expensive than private insurance, and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) says Americans will rush to join this new system. This will cause employer-based insurers to lose business and many will be forced out of business altogether. While President Obama has called these claims "scare tactics," a recent report by the CBO confirmed that a government run plan will move people off private insurance and into the government's plan. “Government insurance is not the solution, at least we agree on that. The solution is a single payer based healthcare system that delivers HEALTH CARE to all people of America, not another INSURANCE COMPANY. But I completely disagree with the statement that government insurance would drive private insurance companies out of business. We have Medicaid and Medicare and the companies still exist. At least a government plan might not exclude every possible thing that people need to get done, and there would be far less overhead associated with running the plan. We already have the process in place, - it is called Medicare. All we need to do is to change the age limit and adjust the tax base to pay for it - it could be done practically overnight.” There is no country in the world with government-controlled health care that does not ration care. “There is no insurance company in America that does not ration health care.” We constantly hear from President Obama that the quality of care in these countries is so much better than our own, yet he conveniently neglects to share with you any of the horror stories. “America is full of horror stories too, but the fact of the matter is that the USA ranks between 32-37th place in the world for delivering health care - BEHIND dozens of other countries with nationalized programs.” Trust me, they are not to difficult to find and serve as an excellent reminder that the grass is not always greener on the other side of the street. Furthermore, Americans have become accustomed to a health care system that spares no expense even in the face of grim odds. This fact leads me to believe that Americans would have a difficult time adjusting to the inevitable rationing of health care services. “My insurance company spares PLENTY of expense, pretty much every time I go to the doctor. And what Americans are accustomed to is being overrun by greedy profiteering health insurance companies that continually raise rates and are not interested in delivering HEALTH CARE, they are only interested in MAKING PROFIT. Those that currently have NO health care, NO insurance, and NO hope, would have no trouble adjusting to the ‘rationing of healthcare’ as you put it. And even the majority of us (Me) who pay ridiculously high insurance rates, despite being in good health, would also have no trouble adjusting to the ‘rationing of health care’ ” While I disagree with many of the proposals I have seen thus far, I am committed to trying to influence the final product with provisions I think are absolutely necessary. First and foremost, I believe that everyone should have access to a physician, and also have a choice in which physician to see. In England, physicians are assigned by zip code, which is just absurd. It is imperative to protect the doctor-patient relationship and not allow the government to intervene. “No one is suggesting that we take away private doctors or the choice of doctors. The decision needs to be who will pay for it. The insurance companies have proven that they cannot offer products that can service all the people. The guy who works at Wal-Mart, no matter how hard he works, or how long he works, will NEVER be able to afford the health care he needs (or the insurance) if he were to develop cancer, or simply fall down the stairs in an accident. These people are already a burden to society when they go to the doctor or the ER. If society actually paid to get them back into good health, then they can and would actually go back to work again, paying taxes into the system that helped them get better. In today’s society, they end up broke, bankrupt, unable to work perhaps, AND a complete burden on society.” As your Representative, I will continue to advocate for proposals that place the choice of health care in the hands of citizens and keep the government out of your doctor's office. “I would prefer if you keep my INSURANCE company out of my doctor’s office. I actually trust the government more than I trust the Insurance industry.” One plan I greatly favor is allowing the purchase of insurance across state lines. State legislatures are responsible for determining which services insurance companies must cover, and some states have more mandates than others. For example, individual insurance plans in New Jersey cost six times as much as if the same person were to buy insurance in Kentucky. If the federal government could allow everyone to buy insurance from a different state than they reside in, the choice of plans would increase and price would decrease dramatically. Unfortunately, I am not aware of any Democrat proposal that has adopted this outlook. “Again, INSURANCE is not the issue. No one is talking about delivering HEALTH CARE TO ALL. Stop talking about INSURANCE. Start talking about how to deliver HEALTH CARE to ALL Americans. The insurance companies are already not doing it. Getting the government involved in insurance only adds another player to an already failing market.” The most glaring part about the proposals I have seen is that they do nothing to reduce the cost of the health care system. Even if the government is able to insure more people, providing coverage is not providing access. “Glad we agree on something - providing coverage will NOT provide access. So provide the access and skip the coverage. Income taxes can easily pay for health care. Everyone pays, everyone participates.” If Congress does not attempt to rein in the increasing cost of health care, our country's problems will become far larger than we ever imagined. I believe that a reduction in costs can be achieved through medical malpractice reform, increasing pooling options for preexisting conditions and small businesses, and the use of prevention and wellness programs. “Reign in medical malpractice by stopping lawyers from gaining percentages of the purse. They should be paid as attorneys, by the hour, not by the commission of what is at stake. Remove ALL conditions for pre-existing conditions, but of course, if all your are trying to do is sell insurance, then you cannot ever do that. A single payer system does not care about pre-existing conditions, because a single payer system actually cares about the treatment of it citizens, not about ‘the insurance policy’ needed to pay for it.” You have my assurance that I will continue to oppose any government takeover of your healthcare, ...... “And you have my assurance that I will vote you out of office if you continue to hold this position” and advocate for policies that promote choice and protect the benefits you have now. As always, I appreciate hearing your thoughts about the proposals moving through Congress. The House and Senate are going into the August recess without either chamber voting on a health care bill, so the urgency of the situation has been delayed. However, I encourage you to stay engaged on this issue as the health reform debate continues this fall. Throughout my tenure in public service, I have always kept an open door and an open dialogue with my constituents. As Congress addresses the many challenges facing our nation, I hope you will continue to share your thoughts and views with me. Accordingly, I encourage you to visit my Web site at http://brown-waite.house.gov to email me and find useful information about our 5th Congressional District. It is my honor and privilege to serve the people of Florida's 5th Congressional District and my offices and staff are here to provide you with any assistance you may need. Sincerely, Ginny Brown-Waite
Member of Congress

I remember that now, and I did some reading and yes, folks do go to the US for treatment, but also noted that it is 'rare' and unique. Certainly not the 'doomsday scenario' it is played out to be by the right wing here in the USA. The article I read was largely about some women with high-risk pregnancies that went to the USA for delivery, again in rare cases. I was sitting here on Saturday with Chromey from Deland, and he was telling me the story of how he had to go to Spain to get shoulder surgery, even though he has insurance here in the USA. why? His insurance company reneged and would not cover it. He could not possibly afford the costs involved. A few years ago, Cameron here from Z-Hills went to India for back surgery, and I know several skydivers that went to spain for the same shoulder surgery (I think the doc is a skydiver) Makes you wonder that if the system is so great here, why are these AMERICANS leaving the country to get health care. yes both systems work, and both systems have issues. My basic premise is hat NO ONE in Canada ever went bankrupt from going to the hospital after an accident.

show me the 'laws' that allow prejudice and racism in this country - yet they still exist. show me the laws that allow hunger and people to die without healthcare - but these things also exist. your arguement that something does not exist, simply because there is no 'law' to allow it, is deeply flawed. you are not actually fooling me with 'your rant'

I was not actually talking about church attendance - I was talking about the DANGERS of religion. one example (actually several dozen articles, even ABC news). http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=war+in+iraq+christian+crusade&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8 I could rant more, but I would be wasting my time with you.

absolutely. After 8 years of Bush, I have sen what religion and politics can turn into. God has NO PLACE in my government. Any religion for that matter. keep it at home where it belongs. I always believed that, but until i saw the Bush era, I never considered it to be dangerous. I now consider it to be dangerous to society, humankind, and the planet in general

primarily, health care reform. I do not agree with the plan for 'insurance'. voicing my opinion almost daily to my representatives. ending the war in Iraq - will obviously take longer than I thought at first. and may not happen at all it seems, I disagree with all the bailouts, but I knew that neither Bush, Obama, republicans or democrats were actually going to stop any of that. trying to keep God out of government, getting harder all the time, but I believe that he actually believes that - but has to 'appease' within the ranks to keep peace in the family.

he IS trying to take the country left - ABSOLUTELY. and good for him. I for one am stick to fucking death of right ring policy. Good for Obama, may he succeed. He gets my vote. You are welcome to your opinion, but he is the President largely because a good chunk of this country believes the same things I do.

absolutely correct, I mean, I just foudn this picture of Obama hanging out with THIS radical extremist - he is not to be trusted.....

nothing 'dishonest' about it if the rules allow it. I do not necessarily agree with it but the rules are the rules and both sides play that game equally well - If you do not like the rules, then lobby to change them. I am lobbying to change health care - you can lobby to change the rules. but the original post of this thread was not about 3am changes to the legislation. I like bills that are bills, I hate adding 'provisions for wooden arrow companies' added to health care bills, it is pork barreling and such - and I constantly remind my representatives that I am tired of that kind of bill. A bill should be a bill. narrow and focused on the topic at hand. If a bill has both gun control and environmental provision for offshore drilling or something like that - these things are obviously exclusive and should be in separate bills. it is a fundamental problem with the basic system of legislation that exists in this country. But it appears to never be changing - what are you doing about it?

I did not know that being a Christian had anything to do with murdering people, but in the case of Dr. Tiller, it certainly appears to. So whether or not Christianity has any to do DIRECTLY with arms smuggling, then maybe 'no'. But in the case of this nutbar, it might have, given that he is CHRISTIAN, and he is implicated in ARMS SMUGGLING. you might have to ask him about the connection. I just read, study and absorb evidence, facts and study the cases before me. with or without the arms smuggling, he is still a right-wing fundamentalist Christian fucking nutbar.

Nothing wrong with a president that is at least honest. I said it too in several posts - Stand Aside, we have some changes to make. We put up with 8 years of bullshit lying crap, wars, cheating, torture and economic policies that spelled disaster with GWB so yes, stand aside, while we fix a few things.

we have had 1 or 2 times in 15 years where 3 out of our 4 Twin Otters were down - sometimes shit happens. We get it fixed and fly. Not too many pilots out there willing to fly unsafe airplanes. Few of us are interesting in testing real-live emergency procedures solo, OR with people on board. If you think safety is expensive - try having an accident.....

I took Dave the Dwarf on a tandem years ago, the radio station decided not to support the event (he was a contractor for them), so we did the jump anyway and he called into the morning show from under canopy, it was a hoot. Even the DJ's called in sick that morning so they could come out and watch it. Instead of a radio-station-supported event, they had the fill-in DJ's do the actual show and everyone who normally worked the morning show called in from outside.

you already have to pay for their bills, socialist or not, every country has fat people. you cannot legislate personal responsibility. It is a cultural decision that spans all of society. Japanese people are healthier because their diet is radically different from ours. No piece of legislation in either country actually spells that out. Even if you burden 'people' with the 'cost of their actions', in the end if they cannot actually pay for it, YOU, and I end up footing the bill. we will always have fat people, lazy people, sick people, poor people, unemployed people, and everyone else that you can find to blame societies problems on. we might 'tweak' the numbers over time, but you will never eliminate it. we have fat people with health insurance (personal responsibility) and we have fat people without health insurance. We have smokers with health insurance (personal responsibility) and we have smokers without health insurance And we have white collared working class, decent wage earners with health insurance, and we have many without it. So if I am in good physical condition and I do all the right things, and I work out and I have a job, and I don't smoke and I eat right and I still get sick? Where do I fall into your giant synopsis? Does a smoker who is willing to play his cost of insurance not have the right to smoke?

he's a right-wing fundamentalist Christian fucking nutbar, who found a niche with a government that basically held the same beliefs, sold them on billions of dollars in contracts to do whatever the hell they want, including war, crusades, and yes, he is and was capable of just about anything. power has a way of corrupting people, and if he was getting backed into a corner somehow withe DoJ, then one of the ways out of that was doing exactly what his company is very good at - killing people. Smuggling arms? Why not - lots of money in that too, especially if it was furthering his 'crusade'. Sad part is that our current government has expanded their role, especially in Afghanistan, and still uses their security for people like Hillary and other Gov't officials...... fire them all and terminate the contracts. There are a lot of people out there that could use the work, government security should be a government job.

there is nothing in the legislation that excludes ANYTHING. part of the premise is that insurance companies must stop excluding people for what they do and the existing conditions they may have. The government program would also be like that. sadly, insurance is not really the issue, but they are pretending that this will fix the problem. The problem is delivery of healthcare to everyone. and you do that be delivering healthcare to everyone. not by providing insurance.....

Hannibal Lecter of course,