Saturday, September 12, 2009

 

Ego & Power Play

As I mentioned in my first post on Obamacare, Americans are going to get Obamacare whether they like it or not. The leader has spoken. He said at a rally in Minneapolis "They can't stop us!" There is no reason for debate. No calls for bipartisanship. No "uniter not divider" demands. His office and congressmen are an engine for change that is going to steam roll over any opposition. It's a new day in America. The president dictates policy.


His call for change is not about health care reform. True reform would be open to all ideas which improve health care in America. Obama is not open to all ideas; he only wants his own. And, he insists it has a public option. Obama is done with debate. He has made the choice for America and congress. Government will play a role in health care with a public option. He remains insistent on this point and with good reason. He's making a power play.

Obamacare is about putting government in the driver's seat. The citizens forfeit the power, and the government will take it. Obama wants to be the broker. He wants to be a piece of history like people talk about FDR and social security.


President Obama has turned a national issue into a personal issue. In Minneapolis and elsewhere, he shown a paranoia for his reputation. It's an old campaign trick. "They're out to get me." As the AP puts it, "The speech largely tracked the one days earlier on Capitol Hill, and he tore into opponents who he claimed were spreading rumors designed to scare people as they try to 'bring Obama down.'" Must this always be about you Mr. President? Is the job too much for you? Maybe. Every time it has challenged you, you blame your problems on someone else, like a conspiracy movement or "It's the previous administration's fault." Man up!

Obama, this isn't about what is good for you and your legacy. It's about the good of the nation.

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President Confirms: On Path to Socialism

A news story came out stating what many knew about what Joe Wilson said; he was right. Government issued health care as proposed by Obama and the congressional democrats would allow for illegals to participate in the system.
Today, for the first time as far as we know, the administration is backing a provision that would require proof of citizenship before someone could enroll in a plan selected on the exchange.
Source
Congressman Joe Wilson was right. Congratulations Joe. If you feel like it, drop him a congratulatory gift.

MSNBC tries to white wash the president's error by saying "[Well, any provision barring illegals would not really be enforceable as a practical matter anyway.]" MSNBC, then why have any laws? They are all broken at some point anyway. But the White House's admission is the smaller part of the story.

When this video came out, the White House and its allies denounced it as wrong and taking things out of context. Obama has no intention of moving America off of private health care insurance.



The White House release this today:
Undocumented immigrants would be able to buy insurance in the non-exchange private market, just as they do today. That market will shrink as the exchange takes hold, but it will still exist and will be subject to reforms such as the bans on pre-existing conditions and caps.

The private market is going to shrink because the U.S. government is going to put them out of business. The U.S. government is actively working to put American companies out of business. Something here doesn't pass the smell test. For all his flowerly language and smooth talking isn't changing the fact he is taking a wrecking ball to the health care market. You can put a lipstick on a pig, and it's still a pig.

The president and congressional democrats have said health care coverage will be mandated like car insurance. (We will ignore the fact automobile insurance is not mandatory. Many people do without because they rely on other forms of transportation or family members to get them around.) Mandated? Again, I would like to ask the same questions the anti-pro-lifers use:
  1. How are you going to enforce it?
  2. What if I don't pay the fines?
  3. Is the government going to start locking people up? Are they really criminals?
  4. Will they be denied health care if they don't have their papers and left to die on the streets?
  5. Will "back alley" insurance companies be setup to satisfy federal requirements?
President Obama is not a socialist. He is a statist whose policies have the eventual goal being socialism.

Wednesday, September 09, 2009

 

Obama-care, a different take.

I have been listening to the arguments from both sides. I have not said much on this because

a) I knew this debate would be long.
b) Obama has already stated we're getting his version of health care; public opinion be damned.
c) The American voters wanted what Obama was offering; they get what they deserve.

In any case, here are a few brief points about Obama-care I have been thinking about.

Those on the pro side say the government can offer a better option than the private market. Let's look at how well the government has done when it has entered the market.


Exhibit A) Postal service. The United States Postal Service lost $2.4 Billion last quarter. They believe they will lose $7 Billion for the fiscal year ending in September.


Exhibit B) Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac. "Everyone deserves to own a home." That mantra seems to echo today in the health care debate, "Everyone deserves healthcare." The government decided it was important everyone own a home, even those borrowers deemed too risky to take a home loan. When the government entered the mortgage business, it was politicized and the result is the crash of summer 2008.

Fannie Mae lost $18.8 Billion in one year last quarter and requires more aid. Freddie Mac is doing a little better these days with only a $374 million loss last quarter. They have stated they need the government purse open in case they need to dip their hands in there again.


Exhibit C) Automobiles. It seems unfair to pin this problem on the government because the government did not inherit this problem. That is true. They bought into it, which isn't any better.

The government (That's you and me) owns GM. President/CEO Obama has said the government will not call the shots at GM. (That would be going too far, but calling the shots in the health care industry is okay.) That is too bad because GM is one deck that needs some serious shuffling. So how did the government's decision to leave the group of failed executives running a money losing company go? Even with GM getting the rules bent in their favor not once, not twice, but thrice, the company failed to turn any profit. Not even the politician loved Cash for Clunkers program could help the General.

It seems clear the government operating in the private sector does a pretty dismal job. It is a different story if you are a politician looking for votes back home and don't mind wastefully spending tax payer money. "Your loss, our job security!"

The other curious point about the proponents for Obama-care is that many of them are in the same crowd which protests any pro-life legislation because "The government has no right to tell me what I can do with my body." Inviting the government into the business of health care will grant the government power to dictate all sorts of regulations about what can and can't be done with the body. The government will be the top and maybe sole health care insurer. This gives it tremendous power to dictate its tolerance of unhealthy behaviors. And while Obama has led the public to believe all this is optional, his party is seeing to it that it isn't by levying fines on those exercising their freedom. It seems those preaching "hands off my body" to the government and supporting Obama-care should think about what they're saying.

The picture for government run health care reform is rather bleak. There is very little evidence the government can pull it off effectively. There must be more than one way skin this cat, health care.

There have been some good counter proposals. The CEO of Whole Foods, John Mackey, gave some reasonable suggestions. The Obamacare supporters were not open for dialogue however. Neither is the president. He broke his promise on transparency and has not worked with republicans on a bipartisan solution. (Remember when "bipartisan" was the word of the day every day? "The president must be a uniter, not divider.")

Where does all of this end? Obama says sternly health care reform will pass this year. (Or else?) There is a remote possibility the issue is punted to another time. Not next year, of course; there's a mid-term election to think about! The other possibility is Obama scales back his wrecking ball reform plans and what passes is a watered down version of a leftist's dream. Some democrats, especially the congressional black caucus, insist on a public "option." In the end, it will be a plan to move to the left. It will not be reform that works with the market to improve it. The government wants to be a competitor. No point in playing fair. (See previous exhibits.)

The debate is giving me a headache. Now, where is my government issued aspirin?

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