Health Care Freedom and Choice

The furor now is Health Care Reform, Universal Health Care, and National Health Care; but what they ALL add up to is Government Run Health Care. Which, to put it mildly, SCARES ME TO DEATH, so I won’t need health care; because I’ll be ashes blowing in the wind since I want to be cremated when I die.

Why am I so terrified of Government Health Care? Well, let’s see, our government currently runs Medicare, Medicaid, our postal service, the IRS, the DMV’s, and the unemployment centers.

Let’s take a quick look at Medicare and Medicaid. First and foremost, they are almost bankrupt. The money that those of us have paid into the system for years and years will probably be long gone before we even get to retirement age. Why? Because the trusty government has dipped into the coffers for other things and all the corruption. The government has mismanaged the Medi-funds in numerous ways, but Americans are supposed to believe that government run health care, paid for with American tax dollars, is going to be managed properly and that the millions of dollars in corruption is just miraculously going to disappear. Or maybe we’ll just hire a few Health Care Czars to guard the funds! How about Medicare and Medicaid patients? Who do they currently go to when they are mishandled by the government system? NO ONE, that’s who. They are at the mercy of the government. Yep, that’s right. The government runs and controls the Medi-system and all those patients are FORCED to follow the government rules and regulations whether they like them or not and whether they are fair or not. Same goes for the IRS.

American’s most beloved entity is the Internal Revenue Service. They are so fair and all. You get a notice in the mail that says you owe, better pay up or go to jail. You are GUILTY until YOU prove your innocence. You have NO ONE to turn to. The government is the ONLY and FINAL entity in this transaction. Americans FEAR the IRS. The IRS can turn a person bankrupt with the stroke of a pen and there isn’t anything he/she can do about it. This government run system shows no sympathy, empathy or remorse. It takes your money all year long, makes numerous errors, but yet, somehow it’s YOUR job to prove THEIR error! Yet, we’re supposed to believe that another government agency is going flow more efficiently. Yeah, right.

Our postal departments, all over the country, are run by our wonderful government, too. We just experienced another postage stamp increase. Every time the post office needs more money there’s a postage increase. I realize 2 cents isn’t a king’s ransom; however, it’s NOT my fault or yours that the postal workers get every holiday off, 5 weeks paid vacation, sick days, personal days, pensions AND a yearly salary of at least $45K per year. I mean come on, does it take that much SKILL to work at the post office? Am I to trust that once the government gets its hands on my tax dollars for health care it won’t raise my taxes every six months because it needs more money? The the post office raises its postage rates every time it needs money and there is NO difference between the post office and government health care-they will BOTH be run by the GOVERNMENT.


I probably shouldn’t even get started on the Department of Motor Vehicles. Now these departments are Clusters Flusters no matter what state you’re in. Just about everyone has a driver’s license and has stood in line longer than necessary while watching government workers sit around doing nothing. Almost every home has at least one vehicle, some have two or three; but it can take up to 6 weeks for these departments to get a registration mailed out and there are times when they just plain lose the application. Yep, they will cash the check and lose the paperwork. Once that happens, it’s up to YOU to get duplicate paperwork so you can get your title and registration. Having been in the automotive industry for 25 years, I dealt with the DMV on a daily basis. One representative pulls the check off the paperwork and then sends that paperwork to another representative. If the paperwork gets lost, oh well, the check was cashed. Do we want this type of attitude with something as valuable as our HEALTH? Don’t tell me it’ll change, because it won’t. The government will hire people to handle health claims just like they hire people to complete applications at the DMV and the unemployment office or to plug in your income tax return. They hire people to fill positions. As long as they have bodies, the government is happy. It has nothing to do with competence. Just look at Congress.

The unemployment office is my all-time favorite! They KNOW they have YOU right where they want you. YOU need them, they do NOT need you. That attitude is reflective by the way they treat you on the telephone. I had to call the unemployment office. I was talked down to, yelled at and hung up on. I had to call back and was on hold for 30 minutes. These workers know that they aren’t going anywhere. They will NEVER lose their jobs. I spoke with one gentleman at the unemployment office about the woman that treated me poorly and he told me that there were numerous complaints on her but nothing has ever been done to her. Yet, I’m supposed to think government run health care, with government employees, is going to be better? If I have a question or a problem why would I think I’ll get quality service? I won’t, because I’ll be calling the government about their employees who are union employees and we all know they’re NEVER fired.

With government health care there will be no opposition. With no competition there is no incentive to make it more efficient or more innovative. Remember the days when we were forced to go with a utility company? Now we have choices. Look at all the cell phone companies. They are competing for our business. They go out of their way to get new customers which drives the prices DOWN. They even give free months service. If you call and complain they will wipe the charges for the month clean, because they don’t want you to be displeased and leave for one of the other 2 dozen companies out there. If we have only ONE government program, who will we turn to if we are dissatisfied? NO ONE. WE WILL BE STUCK!

Having choices has always driven the cost of goods and services DOWN while driving the quality of those commodities UP. With only one place or point of sale they will have the conglomerate, the monopoly. A person or entity who has the monopoly can DICTATE how something is performed, the price, the quality, anything and everything. Is that what we want? Are we so desperate they we will settle for the devil? And that’s what we’re getting if we allow the government to handle our health care...Satan. That may sound harsh, but it’s the truth.

As Americans we are about truth. We are also about Freedom and Choice. It’s our RIGHT to have both FREEDOM and CHOICE, and with government run anything we have neither.

Perception Speaks Volumes

I’m a little behind. I suppose if I were any slower I’d be going backwards. Even though the Wanda Sykes’ issue has been talked, blogged and ranted about, I didn’t give MY two cents. And I WANT to. So without further ado…

As just about everyone knows, Wanda Sykes was the comedian for the White House Correspondent’s Dinner May 9th. I’ve seen Wanda on the TV show The New Adventures of Old Christine and thought she was funny. Seeing her at the dinner was my first opportunity to evaluate her stand-up routine. I must admit, I thought a lot of it was witty. She took jabs at Nancy Pelosi, Joe Biden, G.W. Bush, the media, Animal Rights activists, Sean Hannity, and even the First Lady, Michelle Obama.

Wanda made fun of how Michelle hugged and patted the Queen of England and Michelle laughed all in good fun.

Wanda made fun of President Obama, too, “This is amazing. You know. The first black president. I know you’re bi-racial, but the first black president. I mean, it’s proud. I’m proud to be able to say that. You know? That’s unless you screw up. And then it’s gonna be, What’s up with the half white guy, huh? Who voted for the Mulatto? What the hell?’”

THAT was funny, and President Obama laughed-AT HIMSELF; which is what is supposed to happen. A person with a good sense of humor laughs when a decent, witty joke is told. However, when the jesting turns ugly, demeaning in nature or attacks a person’s life, that’s when the line is drawn.

Wanda was downright nasty when she ridiculed Sarah Palin. I’m not going to repeat exactly what she said. You can Google the you-tube video. Sarah Palin wasn’t present and Wanda’s attempt at abstinence shouldn’t have been directed at Sarah. It wasn’t Sarah that had a child out of wedlock; it was Palin’s daughter, Bristol. If Wanda felt the need to bring up illegitimate children and birth control, she should’ve directed it at Bristol. The joke didn’t even bring forth a laugh from the audience. Heck, the crickets weren’t even chirping! Now, I’m not saying not to jest about Sarah Palin. I believe any public figure is fair game. I thought the spoofs about Palin on SNL were funny. What Sykes said at the dinner was NOT in the least bit funny. It was downright crude.

Wanda tried to cover up her gaffe by saying, “Aw, shut up. You’re gonna be tellin’ that one tomorrow, shut up.”

Ah, no, Wanda, I don’t think so; unless you have absolutely NO class.

Then Wanda went on an ugly rant about 9/11 and Rush Limbaugh. “Rush Limbaugh, 'I hope the country fails' -- I hope his kidneys fail, how about that? ... He needs a good waterboarding, that's what he needs."

This brought forth laughter from SOME of the crowd and Barack Obama, the President of the United States of America, joined in on the amusement. The President who campaigned on Hope, Change and Unity was unified with the laughing crowd. The President, who signed an Executive Order to close Guantanamo Bay within a year and stop Enhanced Interrogation of Terrorists because it could be PERCEIVED by other countries and Terrorists as inhumane, laughed with the other inconsiderate audience members. The President, who just returned from a world tour where he wanted to transform the PERCEPTION of America to those abroad from hostile to supportive, smiled a wide toothed grin with other insensitive members of the crowd. Yes, the President of the United States wants other countries and their leaders, like Hugo Chavez and the Castro Brothers to PERCEIVE the United States as a Country of humanity, civility and honor and is concerned with how other countries PERCEIVE him and the United States but could care less that AMERICANS see him chuckling when a comedian wishes death to one of his OWN citizens.

I’m quite bewildered. An honorable man would care MORE about his OWN people than that of other countries. A man with integrity would NOT have laughed, chuckled, smiled or grinned when someone made a joke about the death or demise of a fellow American, even if that American didn’t agree with his policies. An honorable man would’ve sat there with NO expression.

Wanda is NOT someone that Obama has to impress. Nor is she someone who will enhance Obama’s political career or agenda. But how Obama responds to her shenanigans reflects on him as a person. And in my opinion, laughing at the demise of a fellow human being shows ME a very weak person indeed. I would NEVER laugh at a joke that wished a person dead. Obama can hide behind his rhetoric of torture is inhumane and health care for everyone because I care so much; but actions speak volumes.

A LEADER would’ve sat there STONED FACED because it’s INSENSITIVE to wish a hellish demise to a fellow human being. A man that stands on a pulpit and preaches that waterboarding is inhumane, which doesn’t do bodily harm as some doctors have attested to, would NOT have cracked a grin at wishing a fellow human being the painful, torturous death of kidney failure. A LEADER would’ve SHOWN by example that that type of callous, disgusting humor won’t be tolerated. The man that ran a campaign on unity could’ve made a stand on May 9th. He could’ve proved to the United States that he was a man of integrity; but instead he ran with the crowd when his laughter filled the room…and that tells me more than any speech on a teleprompter ever could.

Defiance101

I love and revere Mother Nature. When I was a little girl, my grandfather and father took my siblings and me for long walks in the woods and taught us about nature; Her majesty and beauty. We were taught not to litter and to give to nature by planting and nourishing. I save baby birds, bunnies and chipmunks then release them back to Mother Nature when they are ready. When I need to replenish myself, I go into my rock garden and meditate. My dream is to have acreage so that I can indulge whenever the urge strikes.

My father also taught us to conserve in other areas. When you leave a room, you turn the light off. When brushing my teeth, I wet the tooth paste, then turn the water off until I need it to rinse. I recycle, because it’s the right thing to do. I turn my thermostat down when I leave the house. It saves money yes, but that’s not the reason I do it. It’s just common sense; why heat or cool my house if no one is home? My point is, I do what’s right, because it’s the right thing to do, and I can do all this without being told to.

I’ve noticed lately that everything is GREEN. I go into the cleaning aisle and all I see are Green products. Even clothing is Green. The television is infested with commercials about going Green. I’m being bombarded with GREEN! It’s to the point I’m sick of GREEN! They are ramming GOING GREEN down my throat and I feel like I want to revolt.

I’m not a rebel. I love my country. I love nature. I want to do what I can to preserve our planet; but I can’t take being told what, when and how to do everything anymore. I don’t feel like I’m free to make any choices. This going Green feels like a Cult. And one thing I can’t handle are Cults. I’m not a Follower. I’m a Leader. I think for myself. And going Green doesn’t feel like I’m thinking for myself. There is NO proof that using Lysol cleaner is bad for the planet. There is NO proof that Green Works is better at killing germs and is better for the planet. There IS proof that plastic takes longer to bio-degrade, yet all the stores have the flimsy plastic bags. Whatever happened to the choice between paper or plastic? Now they want me to buy canvas bags and drag them to the grocery store every time. Oh that’s just great. I grocery shop once every 4-6 weeks. Do you know how many canvas bags I’d have to purchase and lug to the store! Just give me the brown paper bags that bio-degrade! Besides, I can use them for book covers for my kid’s school books or to wrap gifts or to send something to my sister in California. Yes, I improvise; again, I use my head all on my own. I don’t NEED someone telling me what to do.

Then we had Earth Hour on Saturday, March 28th. Everyone was encouraged to turn off their lights from 8:30 – 9:30. Needless to say, I didn’t participate. Why? Because I could make the CHOICE NOT TO. That may sound very immature to some, but I had to make a stand. I had to decide if I was going to be dictated to AGAIN. I didn’t revolt and turn all my lights ON. I just went about my normal daily life. We also have Earth Day. It’s been celebrated on April 22nd every year since 1970. I don’t celebrate that day, either. I don’t do anything rash like burn paint cans or anything. Again, I just go about my daily life just like I would any other day. I feel like Earth Day is a Cult, too. I am aware of our planet and I do what I can to preserve it, but I won’t become some Cult follower and believe that turning off all my lights for an hour is going to save the planet. We need to find alternative energy methods, but my lights have nothing to do with that and neither do yours. I think the government wants to see how many people will actually turn off their lights so they can see how many will follow their agenda. The next thing we know it’s a law that we have to turn off our lights for an hour every night. Sound extreme? Well, our government is extreme.

I don’t want to be defiant, but if they don’t stop ramming this stuff down my throat, I’m afraid I may become rebellious. Not an Uber! But I may rebel. I may start turning on ALL my lights just because I CAN. I may start throwing my newspaper and cans in the trash bag rather than put them in the recycle bin. That may not sound like major rebellion, but it’s the worst I could possibly do. No one would know, except me. I just don’t know if my conscience could handle it. So, at this point, they’re all just thoughts in my head that relieve a little stress.