How many of you have ever seen the movie Forrest Gump? I have. I can recite most of the movie by heart, it is among my short list of all time greats. Right up there with Gone With the Wind and Clint Eastwood's The Unforgiven.
My favorite line of the movie comes right after Forrest is leaving the television station when being on with John Lennon, "Well, it's easy if you try, Dick". Lieutenant Dan is waiting outside of the back door and he delivers, what will, after Friday's events, become one of the biggest lines in movie history, along with Chief Brody's, "We're gonna need a bigger boat." Rhett Butler's, "Frankly Scarlet, I don't give a damn." and Darth Vader's, "No, I am your father."
The exchange goes like this:
Lt. Dan: They gave you the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Forrest: Now that's Lieutenant Dan. Lieutenant Dan!
Lt. Dan: They gave you the Congressional Medal of Honor!
Forrest: Yes sir, they sure did.
Lt. Dan: They gave you an imbecile, a moron who goes on television and makes a fool out himself in front of the whole damn country, the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Forrest: Yes, sir.
For some reason, Friday I was saying this in my mind over and over... and over. Late last night I became curious about some Things That Make Me Take Pause, and wanted to look at lists of great and really deserving winners.
All Quiet on the Western Front
Mutiny on The Bounty
Gone With The Wind
Ben Hur
The Godfather Part II
Rain Man
Forrest Gump
Katharine Hepburn
Spencer Tracy
Clark Gable
James Stewart
Frank Sinatra
John Wayne
Robert DiNero
Micheal Jackson
Madonna
Paul McCartney
Duke Ellington
Elvis
David Auburn
Jonathan Larson
Tennessee Williams
Leonard Pitts Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr.
Mother Theresa
Barrack Obama
Elie Wiesel
Otto Hahn
William Faulkner
That's some list. Ok enough of that listing thing, I could go on and on, as my regular followers already can testify, I get long winded at times. My goal is not really that devious, and rather obvious. I noticed that one award was given for commentary. I am one hell of a commentator, let me tell ya. If there is ever a comittee that wants to award me an award for blogging, sign me up please?
On my way from work today I had a song stuck in my head... does anyone remember this one? "Three of these things belong together, one of these things just doesn't belong. Three of these things belong together, can you pick which one before I end this song?"
I am really not saying anything, no hidden messages for those who may believe me to be a conspiracy theorist, nothing at all. Oh, I want to, golly how I want to. I am not going to say it.
I have won awards before.. I have even had a story I wrote published when I was 11. I turned the same work into a college professor for a Theme. Talk about an easy 'A'. Don't tell her ok? It made her cry. I mean awards that mean something, awards that make you think, "Wow, someone thought so much of my achievement they gave me an award." I have never won the everyone deserves a prize awards however. In my opinion... I think the no kid left behind, and everyone deserves praise era may be most of what's wrong with America today.
I think recent events have shown that this rule is not limited to America's Schools either. Awards are being passed out to anyone and everyone. This year is not an exception, however, while creating my list I came across other names in categories and deeds that made me take pause. Maybe the larger point is to devalue awards altogther. Like Kanye West did at the VMA's.
A short note today, I hope you enjoyed it as I did creating it. My tongue in cheek approach to awards. Let's leave on the final quote:
Lt. Dan: Well, then, that's just perfect! Yeah, well I just got one thing to say to that. Goddamn bless America.
That's all I have to say about that.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Saturday, September 26, 2009
I just wonder...
I wonder. Everyone knows how deliquent credit works right? What I mean is, like, when you stop paying on a charge account, how that debt is passed along. It goes like this...
You borrow one dollar from company A. You get charged interest on that dollar, let's say 25%. For every dollar borrowed you owe one dollar and twenty five cents back. Let's say you don't pay that back and it runs over one month. Well, just from interest you now owe one dollar and fifty six cents. Let's tack on a late fee of say 10% and you now owe one dollar and seventy two cents. Company A gives up on trying to collect the dollar you borrowed and in steps company B. Company says to company A, I see that your customer owe's you one dollar and seventy two cents. I will pay you one dollar and ten cents for that debt and collect it myself. Company A says ok, deal, because they really only have one dollar worth of debt out there, anything over one dollar is profit.
Company B then tracks you down and says to you that they know you owe one dollar and seventy two cents, but it you act now they will settle this debt for for one dollar and twenty cents. One dollar and twenty cents is less than you owed to begin with so you say what a great deal and pay the one dollar and twenty.
That is the gamble that company B makes anyway. That you will pay the one twenty and be happy for it. In the percentage game there is a constant that every situation has that must be included in the gamble that a prospect is going to respond. There has to be someone, somewhere, that says No. I like to think of myelf as that constant. In sales it works like this....
When you are selling widgets, you have to get so many No responses to get to that Yes. Let's say you go out and you ask ten people if they would like to see your widget. Of that ten people, three are going to say yes, show me your widget. Of the three that check out your widget, one will buy a widget. The object in sales is to get past the No's to get to the Yes'. The way to be successful at this is to show widgets to everyone, each No brings you closer to that Yes. Company B works on the same principle. The more people they can make this offer to, the more money they can make. This is called The Law of Averages. Unfortunately, in order for this law to work, someone has to say No.
I am that No.
Now that we muddled thru the boring part, let me tell you what I wonder.
I have this credit card. It has a pretty low limit for a card, but when I got it I was supposed to use it for emergencies and stuff like that. I have had it for several years and paid on it regularly for most of that time. When the recession hit us, I had to make a choice fo who got paid what and this card came out on the losing end. I am not proud of it, I am just laying down the groundwork for the bigger questions to come later.
Ok, so I maxed this card out to it's limit, and made the tough decision to not pay on it. The company added their late fee and an over-the-limit charge and started running up the debt. Now in today's electronic age, it is near impossible to go over-the-limit on a charge card because when they run the card it will be declined. The card company can run it over in a second. They continued to charge late fees and over-the-limit charges until currently the balance on the card is twice the initial loan and credit limit.
I wonder how high the limit can go. If the card company continues to add to the balance, is this an indication of how much credit is actually available to me? I mean, the way I see it, if the beginning limit was let's say one hundred dollars, and they run it up with their charges to two hundred and fifty dollars, doesn't this indicate that they could have made the limit two hundred fifty to begin with? Given that presumption, and if history proves itself, then in theory I currently have unlimited credit with this card company. Here's where I wonder... In theory, this company has set the precendent that I can borrow as much as I want from any lender. They have given me a blank check, so to speak.
I should be able to walk into any lending institution and use their example as a means to secure any amount I choose. Hey, I didn't make these rules, they are the ones that keep rasing my limit. If it works for me, shouldn't it work for everyone?
I don't mean to sound crass or without sense of responsibility and I know you nay-sayers out there are freaking out that I can let this debt go unsettled. But, in my own defense I do have to say that the card company knew the risks before they gave me the card. Equifax can tell them all they ever wanted to know. Had they done their due dilegence, I would have never gotten the card to begin with, and I would never have been able to acrue this high of a limit.
The lady called me from the card company last week. She wanted to inform me that my payment was past due. I really did not intend to laugh thru this highly professional contact, but I did find humor in it. I asked her if it had been turned over to collections yet, and she told me that if I did not make a payment it would be. We talked about collections for a few minutes and she asked again if I would make a payment of x amount to keep the account 'active'. After doing the math in my head for a moment I deduced that I could get this card paid off for less than the actual charged amount, if I had the time to wait it out.
FICO doesn't lie. I have all the time in the world.
I told her No.
You borrow one dollar from company A. You get charged interest on that dollar, let's say 25%. For every dollar borrowed you owe one dollar and twenty five cents back. Let's say you don't pay that back and it runs over one month. Well, just from interest you now owe one dollar and fifty six cents. Let's tack on a late fee of say 10% and you now owe one dollar and seventy two cents. Company A gives up on trying to collect the dollar you borrowed and in steps company B. Company says to company A, I see that your customer owe's you one dollar and seventy two cents. I will pay you one dollar and ten cents for that debt and collect it myself. Company A says ok, deal, because they really only have one dollar worth of debt out there, anything over one dollar is profit.
Company B then tracks you down and says to you that they know you owe one dollar and seventy two cents, but it you act now they will settle this debt for for one dollar and twenty cents. One dollar and twenty cents is less than you owed to begin with so you say what a great deal and pay the one dollar and twenty.
That is the gamble that company B makes anyway. That you will pay the one twenty and be happy for it. In the percentage game there is a constant that every situation has that must be included in the gamble that a prospect is going to respond. There has to be someone, somewhere, that says No. I like to think of myelf as that constant. In sales it works like this....
When you are selling widgets, you have to get so many No responses to get to that Yes. Let's say you go out and you ask ten people if they would like to see your widget. Of that ten people, three are going to say yes, show me your widget. Of the three that check out your widget, one will buy a widget. The object in sales is to get past the No's to get to the Yes'. The way to be successful at this is to show widgets to everyone, each No brings you closer to that Yes. Company B works on the same principle. The more people they can make this offer to, the more money they can make. This is called The Law of Averages. Unfortunately, in order for this law to work, someone has to say No.
I am that No.
Now that we muddled thru the boring part, let me tell you what I wonder.
I have this credit card. It has a pretty low limit for a card, but when I got it I was supposed to use it for emergencies and stuff like that. I have had it for several years and paid on it regularly for most of that time. When the recession hit us, I had to make a choice fo who got paid what and this card came out on the losing end. I am not proud of it, I am just laying down the groundwork for the bigger questions to come later.
Ok, so I maxed this card out to it's limit, and made the tough decision to not pay on it. The company added their late fee and an over-the-limit charge and started running up the debt. Now in today's electronic age, it is near impossible to go over-the-limit on a charge card because when they run the card it will be declined. The card company can run it over in a second. They continued to charge late fees and over-the-limit charges until currently the balance on the card is twice the initial loan and credit limit.
I wonder how high the limit can go. If the card company continues to add to the balance, is this an indication of how much credit is actually available to me? I mean, the way I see it, if the beginning limit was let's say one hundred dollars, and they run it up with their charges to two hundred and fifty dollars, doesn't this indicate that they could have made the limit two hundred fifty to begin with? Given that presumption, and if history proves itself, then in theory I currently have unlimited credit with this card company. Here's where I wonder... In theory, this company has set the precendent that I can borrow as much as I want from any lender. They have given me a blank check, so to speak.
I should be able to walk into any lending institution and use their example as a means to secure any amount I choose. Hey, I didn't make these rules, they are the ones that keep rasing my limit. If it works for me, shouldn't it work for everyone?
I don't mean to sound crass or without sense of responsibility and I know you nay-sayers out there are freaking out that I can let this debt go unsettled. But, in my own defense I do have to say that the card company knew the risks before they gave me the card. Equifax can tell them all they ever wanted to know. Had they done their due dilegence, I would have never gotten the card to begin with, and I would never have been able to acrue this high of a limit.
The lady called me from the card company last week. She wanted to inform me that my payment was past due. I really did not intend to laugh thru this highly professional contact, but I did find humor in it. I asked her if it had been turned over to collections yet, and she told me that if I did not make a payment it would be. We talked about collections for a few minutes and she asked again if I would make a payment of x amount to keep the account 'active'. After doing the math in my head for a moment I deduced that I could get this card paid off for less than the actual charged amount, if I had the time to wait it out.
FICO doesn't lie. I have all the time in the world.
I told her No.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Pausing
Today is Labor Day. The day our country has decided to dedicate to the hard working people of our nation. I pondered this as I stood in line at my local convenience store making a purchase. I am off today. Matter of fact, I have been on vacation for the last week. I did very little vacationing actually. I spent all week in my garage. No, I do not have the epitomy of a working man's garage. I have a 30 x 20 storage facility attached to my house. One day it may actually be a garage, but I do not know if I will be alive to see it. Perhaps the grandchildren will enjoy it. Likely, before I pass onto the ether, it will become a game room, with the door sealed closed and then insulated, carpeted and sound proofed. the grandchildren may enjoy that even more than it's use as intended...to park my car inside of.
A gameroom would be much more suited anyway. Then we would have the 'excersise pole' my wife has coveted for years. The money is on the idea of a excersise pole being long washed away with having that extra space as a guest room when our children visit with their babes. For now it is storage. But one day, one day... Hey a man can dream right?
Tomorrow the kids go back to school. It's going to be a a cluster**ck. I return to work as well. Huge scheduling error on my part. I have lived in our commonwealth for 6 years. Every year the children have returned to school on the week before Labor Day. I, having finally caught onto the schedule, arranged my own vacation to occur the week before Labor Day. This year they start school the day after the holiday, so I was blessed with the company of our daughters for the week. It wasn't that bad really, and I really do love spending time with them. But they sleep all day and are up all night, sometimes not appearing before 5pm. That's okay too, really. However, now that I have gotten used to sleeping in until 8-9 am, I realise I am faced with the same problem they will no doubt have all this week. Tomorrow I am to go in at 7am. I have no idea how the three of us will wrestle hot water, breakfast and arrival times. I think I will ask my body to awake around 4:30 - 5:00 am. I really have no idea if this will work or not. Wish me luck.
Tomorrow, our president will address the children, and encourage them to stay in school, live the dream, and believe that one day, they too may become president of the good old U S of A. Locally, our county will not be taking pause to listen to the address. In their judgement, it being the first day, the interuption will cause too many wrinkles in their proven success of opening day activities. I do not have a problem with this decision. I applaud it. I was discussing this speach with my good friend Bubba, and pointed out the hypocrisy in the speach content, and intent.
I have a difficult time placing my belief in an education program that resulted with the dismissal of over 60 teachers in my commonwealth this passed summer. This was after the $180 million stimulus that was recieved by the same. I still have yet to see any jobs created by this input of cash to spend. Bubba pointed out that the federal government could not dictate on how the money was spent to the states. I asked if GM, Ford, and Chrysler read their fine print when they accepted their stimulus monies. We changed the subject to mention that if American car companies lowered their price by $4500 then people would buy new cars.
I wondered aloud if in a Socialist Regime, was there a ligitmate democratic process to determine a president. I am impressed that one day someone says, " I am taking ova, you shall call me 'El Presindente'! " And that is that.
Then we continued our search for plastic chairs.
You folks know plastic chairs right? They stack on top of each other, usually are white, and when it rains they get this little puddle right in the middle of the seat. Backyard plastic chairs. A month ago I saw a ton of them on sale for a great price while I was at Lowe's. We had some guests over the weekend and decided that we needed to make a purchase of these little plastic chairs. Off Bubba and I go to Lowe's. Sold out. No problem, WalMart is next door.. off we go. Sold out. The city I live in is not small. According to census results for last year, more people live in my city than in the entire state of Idaho. We searched 6 different locations for these chairs.. none to be found. I am slowly realising that I am in the wrong business. I should be selling plastic chairs. Bubba and I decided to just grab some beers and head back to the porch.. the stairs are really not that uncomfortable... especially after a few beers.
I do have a part time job, however, it pays really good and I don't have to pay any taxes on the income.. I don't think I do anyway. Likely after I post this a new line will appear on your 1040EZ..... Income from Yard Sale $ ____.__. Now I know mathematically I am losing money over the long run. The items I am selling in a yard sale do not even closley recoup the outpay at purchase. It is however, cash in hand, so I feel good about the results. It may be ultimately that if we did not buy these items that are of no use to us, then we would not need to recoup any costs because we would have the money. We all know that is not going to happen, so a yard sale 'feels' like new money, and I am happy living the facade that we, 'made some money', from our yard sale. Looking back across my storage room after the yard sale I realised we need to do about ten more of these if we ever plan to have a game room. My plan is to keep having them until it gets too cold to go outside or we run out of stuff, or people get tired of seeing my sign and stop coming altogether.
Or me and Bubba can just sit on the porch steps and drink beer. No money in that, I know. But it will give me plenty of time to dream.
A gameroom would be much more suited anyway. Then we would have the 'excersise pole' my wife has coveted for years. The money is on the idea of a excersise pole being long washed away with having that extra space as a guest room when our children visit with their babes. For now it is storage. But one day, one day... Hey a man can dream right?
Tomorrow the kids go back to school. It's going to be a a cluster**ck. I return to work as well. Huge scheduling error on my part. I have lived in our commonwealth for 6 years. Every year the children have returned to school on the week before Labor Day. I, having finally caught onto the schedule, arranged my own vacation to occur the week before Labor Day. This year they start school the day after the holiday, so I was blessed with the company of our daughters for the week. It wasn't that bad really, and I really do love spending time with them. But they sleep all day and are up all night, sometimes not appearing before 5pm. That's okay too, really. However, now that I have gotten used to sleeping in until 8-9 am, I realise I am faced with the same problem they will no doubt have all this week. Tomorrow I am to go in at 7am. I have no idea how the three of us will wrestle hot water, breakfast and arrival times. I think I will ask my body to awake around 4:30 - 5:00 am. I really have no idea if this will work or not. Wish me luck.
Tomorrow, our president will address the children, and encourage them to stay in school, live the dream, and believe that one day, they too may become president of the good old U S of A. Locally, our county will not be taking pause to listen to the address. In their judgement, it being the first day, the interuption will cause too many wrinkles in their proven success of opening day activities. I do not have a problem with this decision. I applaud it. I was discussing this speach with my good friend Bubba, and pointed out the hypocrisy in the speach content, and intent.
I have a difficult time placing my belief in an education program that resulted with the dismissal of over 60 teachers in my commonwealth this passed summer. This was after the $180 million stimulus that was recieved by the same. I still have yet to see any jobs created by this input of cash to spend. Bubba pointed out that the federal government could not dictate on how the money was spent to the states. I asked if GM, Ford, and Chrysler read their fine print when they accepted their stimulus monies. We changed the subject to mention that if American car companies lowered their price by $4500 then people would buy new cars.
I wondered aloud if in a Socialist Regime, was there a ligitmate democratic process to determine a president. I am impressed that one day someone says, " I am taking ova, you shall call me 'El Presindente'! " And that is that.
Then we continued our search for plastic chairs.
You folks know plastic chairs right? They stack on top of each other, usually are white, and when it rains they get this little puddle right in the middle of the seat. Backyard plastic chairs. A month ago I saw a ton of them on sale for a great price while I was at Lowe's. We had some guests over the weekend and decided that we needed to make a purchase of these little plastic chairs. Off Bubba and I go to Lowe's. Sold out. No problem, WalMart is next door.. off we go. Sold out. The city I live in is not small. According to census results for last year, more people live in my city than in the entire state of Idaho. We searched 6 different locations for these chairs.. none to be found. I am slowly realising that I am in the wrong business. I should be selling plastic chairs. Bubba and I decided to just grab some beers and head back to the porch.. the stairs are really not that uncomfortable... especially after a few beers.
I do have a part time job, however, it pays really good and I don't have to pay any taxes on the income.. I don't think I do anyway. Likely after I post this a new line will appear on your 1040EZ..... Income from Yard Sale $ ____.__. Now I know mathematically I am losing money over the long run. The items I am selling in a yard sale do not even closley recoup the outpay at purchase. It is however, cash in hand, so I feel good about the results. It may be ultimately that if we did not buy these items that are of no use to us, then we would not need to recoup any costs because we would have the money. We all know that is not going to happen, so a yard sale 'feels' like new money, and I am happy living the facade that we, 'made some money', from our yard sale. Looking back across my storage room after the yard sale I realised we need to do about ten more of these if we ever plan to have a game room. My plan is to keep having them until it gets too cold to go outside or we run out of stuff, or people get tired of seeing my sign and stop coming altogether.
Or me and Bubba can just sit on the porch steps and drink beer. No money in that, I know. But it will give me plenty of time to dream.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Yet Another... You guessed it.
Damn that sucks.
I am a little upset. I had created for your reading pleasure a timeless classic. As I was previewing this masterpiece, destined to become a National Epic, I moved to correct a typo, and it went away to the ether.
Hmm.. maybe it's a conspiracy. Has the Blog Czar been named yet? Probably not, but I am still upset.
Maybe I will recover enough to write again later. For now I am going to cry in my ice cream.
Maybe.
I am a little upset. I had created for your reading pleasure a timeless classic. As I was previewing this masterpiece, destined to become a National Epic, I moved to correct a typo, and it went away to the ether.
Hmm.. maybe it's a conspiracy. Has the Blog Czar been named yet? Probably not, but I am still upset.
Maybe I will recover enough to write again later. For now I am going to cry in my ice cream.
Maybe.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
This Thing Made Me Take Pause...
There I was standing in line today, like I was taught in Kindergarten. One of the most useful things I was taught by the way. Along with asking permission, saying thank you, and that chewing gum is really hard to get out of your hair. I was standing in line waiting, as being in line may indicate, I was waiting for my turn and watching the monitor that had beein hung there to distract us line people from the fact that we really were having to wait, and it was playing the news highlights from around the world, when something caught my eye.
You guessed it, I had to take pause.
The snippet stated something to the fact that under the proposed new healthcare legislation, there would include the creation of a new branch that would counsel the elderly, and disabled, (read those who recieve social security benefits), on their right to die.
Yes you read it right, their right to die. Being of a curious nature, and not wanting to jump on anyone's wagon before knowing at least a communicative amount of facts. I let my fingers do the walking thru my good friend google and this is what I found...
“I’ve read about a third of HR 3200 and the counseling parts are designed to encourage euthanasia,” claimed Dr. Katherine Schlaerth, an associate professor of family medicine at Loma Linda University School of Medicine. “Seniors will be counseled every five years, and more often if they get sicker.”
“Patients who have a worsening of their chronic condition, but who may not even be pre-terminal, are included in this strong-arm counseling, and their respect for authority figures could pave the way for agreement with cessation of care not in their interest at all,” Schlaerth said. “Health-care providers, meanwhile, may be forced to give counseling directly opposed to their religious or moral beliefs.”
Many people are in agreement with this interpretation. Read on.
“Section 1233 encourages health-care providers to provide their Medicare patients with counseling on ‘the use of artificially administered nutrition and hydration’ and other end-of-life treatments and may place seniors in situations where they feel pressure to sign an end-of-life directive they would not otherwise sign,” said the House Republican leader, John Boehner, R-Ohio, and the Republican Policy Committee chairman, Thaddeus McCotter, R-Mich., in a July 23 statement. “This provision may start us down a treacherous path toward government-encouraged euthanasia.”
Yes you did read that correctly, Euthanasia.
Now previously I had determined that my next blog was going to be about the credit card companies, of which I do still have to say, but this tidbit just made me stop, and well you know, take pause. I mentioned in an earlier posting, my suspicion on how this might turn out, but now that I have been validated, instead of gratification, I am actually scared.
The legislative language of the bill regarding counseling is vague and open to interpretation. “I’m a lawyer, and I find this language incomprehensible,” stated Wesley J. Smith, associate director of the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide. “I believe it is done maliciously. What is clear is that seniors will receive counseling — read ‘re-education’ — every five years or whenever their health status changes. The point is to reduce cost. While the language doesn’t require it, these mandatory sessions will often be directed towards not wanting care, in much the same way that genetic counseling of a mother carrying a Down [syndrome] fetus often is directed toward abortion.”
Section 1233 does state the counselling will be performed by a doctor or other practitioner, however, they are directed to provide a list of national and state specific departments that can provide further information. These departments are specifically instructed to offer choices and options on how to end the life, rather than preserve it.
Yea, I think thats all I have to say about that...
Props to: http://www.ncregister.com/daily/health_care_duty_to_die/
You guessed it, I had to take pause.
The snippet stated something to the fact that under the proposed new healthcare legislation, there would include the creation of a new branch that would counsel the elderly, and disabled, (read those who recieve social security benefits), on their right to die.
Yes you read it right, their right to die. Being of a curious nature, and not wanting to jump on anyone's wagon before knowing at least a communicative amount of facts. I let my fingers do the walking thru my good friend google and this is what I found...
“I’ve read about a third of HR 3200 and the counseling parts are designed to encourage euthanasia,” claimed Dr. Katherine Schlaerth, an associate professor of family medicine at Loma Linda University School of Medicine. “Seniors will be counseled every five years, and more often if they get sicker.”
“Patients who have a worsening of their chronic condition, but who may not even be pre-terminal, are included in this strong-arm counseling, and their respect for authority figures could pave the way for agreement with cessation of care not in their interest at all,” Schlaerth said. “Health-care providers, meanwhile, may be forced to give counseling directly opposed to their religious or moral beliefs.”
Many people are in agreement with this interpretation. Read on.
“Section 1233 encourages health-care providers to provide their Medicare patients with counseling on ‘the use of artificially administered nutrition and hydration’ and other end-of-life treatments and may place seniors in situations where they feel pressure to sign an end-of-life directive they would not otherwise sign,” said the House Republican leader, John Boehner, R-Ohio, and the Republican Policy Committee chairman, Thaddeus McCotter, R-Mich., in a July 23 statement. “This provision may start us down a treacherous path toward government-encouraged euthanasia.”
Yes you did read that correctly, Euthanasia.
Now previously I had determined that my next blog was going to be about the credit card companies, of which I do still have to say, but this tidbit just made me stop, and well you know, take pause. I mentioned in an earlier posting, my suspicion on how this might turn out, but now that I have been validated, instead of gratification, I am actually scared.
The legislative language of the bill regarding counseling is vague and open to interpretation. “I’m a lawyer, and I find this language incomprehensible,” stated Wesley J. Smith, associate director of the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide. “I believe it is done maliciously. What is clear is that seniors will receive counseling — read ‘re-education’ — every five years or whenever their health status changes. The point is to reduce cost. While the language doesn’t require it, these mandatory sessions will often be directed towards not wanting care, in much the same way that genetic counseling of a mother carrying a Down [syndrome] fetus often is directed toward abortion.”
Section 1233 does state the counselling will be performed by a doctor or other practitioner, however, they are directed to provide a list of national and state specific departments that can provide further information. These departments are specifically instructed to offer choices and options on how to end the life, rather than preserve it.
Yea, I think thats all I have to say about that...
Props to: http://www.ncregister.com/daily/health_care_duty_to_die/
Monday, July 27, 2009
Things That Make Me Pause
Cz..Cz..Cz..Czarndite!
Pardon me I had to sneeze. Being of a curious nature, and not wanting to make an opinion without having some semblance of understanding of the topic, I have decided not to take pause on the use of abundant appointments to the position of Czar within our government.
I will, however, of course make some statement, in general terms, or this would not be the blog you thought it might be. No I am not going to talk about smoking today. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe never. It depends on what the No Smoking Czar says.
The use or appointment of czars within our government is not a new thing. Nixon started it with his appointment of a Drug Czar. Then there was an Energy Czar. Now there may one day be a Copyright Czar. No idea here what the heck this person may do, but I bet it pays well. We have a never ending supply of paper and ink, we can print more money if we need to.
I am going to distract you for just a moment and input an observation about Government Healthcare. Revisit if you will, then back on topic... I promise.
When the bailouts began for banks, the money was non-repayable. The government handed trillions of dollars to the banking industry to bail out the now infamous 'every man deserves a house' theology preached by the Clinton administration, with the caveat that the money could not be repayed and the government would mandate loaning practices of the banks which accepted the bailout. After deliberation it was decided that indeed, as the banks recovered they could pay the money back. This is a good thing. Now we presume that the money would be earmarked to repay some of our national debt, but we all know two things. First that the national debt is an arbitrary term, and the money is not ever going to be 'paid back'. Secondly, we know that the bailout money is not real money anyway, its all just numbers on someone's ledger, who is kept prisoner in that top secret hiding hole under the reflecting pool at the Washington Monument. This brings us back to Government Healthcare....
Since the bailout money that is paid back is not real money, and the money is not going to downsize our national debt, why not use those trillions to fund the healthcare proposal? I take pause when I hear that anyone who makes over $175,000.00 a year will have to pay a surcharge of $20,000.00 to fund this project. MOST especially when we already have healthcare available to everyone who wants/needs it. Do not make the mistake of confusing healthcare with health insurance. Alot of people do not have health insurance, but they do have access to healthcare.
I am not happy with the crappy health insurance I have. The insurance company has already decided that the medicines my doctor has prescribed are not really necessary for my well being and quality of life. I get really worried at the thought that the government will decide that I don't need high blood pressure medicine. I should excercise more often. Tricky part is that if I don't take the medicine, and excercise, then I have a stroke or heart attack while doing it. Vicious cycle. This won't come for awhile, but it will come a day when you won't get benefits for lung cancer under the government ran plan, because you should have told your significant other to stop infecting you with second hand smoke 20 years ago. (I am not going to talk about smoking, someone make me stop before this gets out of hand.)
A company the size of mine should have the buying power to dictate to the insurance company the level of service they expect. Which maybe they do, but if they do, then they suck at it. Maybe they need an Insurance Czar. I will put that in the comment box tomorrow.
Czar in U.S. Government, as written by Lauren Meckler in The Wall Street Journal :
I believe, and I can be swayed, that the situation is this.. A czar does not go thru confirmation hearings, like other presidential appointments. The Czar answers to noone, except the President, and is given as much power as the President sees fit to complete their assigned task, or govern their particular zone of interest.
This makes me take pause. In a government which is rapidly becoming a socialist republic, do we really want people in positions of almost absolute power making decisions that will effect us forever? With noone to answer to except the person that appointed them, not the American people.
We can say of course that the government is for the people, and by the people. However, once these people are placed in power there is little that can be done without concensus to remove them. Another little known fact...(CSPAN is pretty cool during primetime, I highly reccomend it).
Winston Churchill said of socialism:
"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy. Its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery."
In or around 1948, The UK instituted Government Healthcare. In Winston Churchill's bid for re-election he stated that the UK had tried Socialism and it did not work. The UK still has government healthcare. Why is that? Because once a government program is in place, once it becomes law, it cannot be undone. This statement might be a little strong, certainly we have measures in place to change or ammend a law, or program. It's just that our wonderful world of democracy allows it to be bogged down in red tape in perpetuity.
Thomas Jefferson called it an experiment of democracy. I think the instructor has left the building.
Czar of Blogs. Thats a title I could get into. Yes Mr. President, I have had my staff (of 25,000, not including Bubba) proof read all of the blogs that were submitted for approval. We have censored them by your guidelines and added those bloggers that may offend to the national blog terror list, and passed the information along to Homeland Security. The Czar of Polls indicates that when these blogs are released your public opinion ratings will soar, in full accordance with your mandate that all polls are to be conducted thru content of blog posts, which represent the true voice of America.
I am not the only one saying it. I am just jumping on the bandwagon, as it were. Someone has to say it, and someone has to say it loud. I need a puppet.... anyone here from Mississippi? I notice a spot on my local school board open....
Props to : The Bizarre Title of Czar in U.S. politics
http://southdakotapolitics.blogs.com/south_dakota_politics/2009/01/the-bizarre-tit.html
Pardon me I had to sneeze. Being of a curious nature, and not wanting to make an opinion without having some semblance of understanding of the topic, I have decided not to take pause on the use of abundant appointments to the position of Czar within our government.
I will, however, of course make some statement, in general terms, or this would not be the blog you thought it might be. No I am not going to talk about smoking today. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe never. It depends on what the No Smoking Czar says.
The use or appointment of czars within our government is not a new thing. Nixon started it with his appointment of a Drug Czar. Then there was an Energy Czar. Now there may one day be a Copyright Czar. No idea here what the heck this person may do, but I bet it pays well. We have a never ending supply of paper and ink, we can print more money if we need to.
I am going to distract you for just a moment and input an observation about Government Healthcare. Revisit if you will, then back on topic... I promise.
When the bailouts began for banks, the money was non-repayable. The government handed trillions of dollars to the banking industry to bail out the now infamous 'every man deserves a house' theology preached by the Clinton administration, with the caveat that the money could not be repayed and the government would mandate loaning practices of the banks which accepted the bailout. After deliberation it was decided that indeed, as the banks recovered they could pay the money back. This is a good thing. Now we presume that the money would be earmarked to repay some of our national debt, but we all know two things. First that the national debt is an arbitrary term, and the money is not ever going to be 'paid back'. Secondly, we know that the bailout money is not real money anyway, its all just numbers on someone's ledger, who is kept prisoner in that top secret hiding hole under the reflecting pool at the Washington Monument. This brings us back to Government Healthcare....
Since the bailout money that is paid back is not real money, and the money is not going to downsize our national debt, why not use those trillions to fund the healthcare proposal? I take pause when I hear that anyone who makes over $175,000.00 a year will have to pay a surcharge of $20,000.00 to fund this project. MOST especially when we already have healthcare available to everyone who wants/needs it. Do not make the mistake of confusing healthcare with health insurance. Alot of people do not have health insurance, but they do have access to healthcare.
I am not happy with the crappy health insurance I have. The insurance company has already decided that the medicines my doctor has prescribed are not really necessary for my well being and quality of life. I get really worried at the thought that the government will decide that I don't need high blood pressure medicine. I should excercise more often. Tricky part is that if I don't take the medicine, and excercise, then I have a stroke or heart attack while doing it. Vicious cycle. This won't come for awhile, but it will come a day when you won't get benefits for lung cancer under the government ran plan, because you should have told your significant other to stop infecting you with second hand smoke 20 years ago. (I am not going to talk about smoking, someone make me stop before this gets out of hand.)
A company the size of mine should have the buying power to dictate to the insurance company the level of service they expect. Which maybe they do, but if they do, then they suck at it. Maybe they need an Insurance Czar. I will put that in the comment box tomorrow.
Czar in U.S. Government, as written by Lauren Meckler in The Wall Street Journal :
The problem is that "czars" are meant to be all-powerful people who can rise above the problems that plague the federal agencies, he said, but in the end, they can't. "We only create them because departments don't work or don't talk to each other," Mr. Light said, adding that creation of a White House post doesn't usually change that. "It's a symbolic gesture of the priority assigned to an issue, and I emphasize the word symbolic. When in doubt, create a czar."
The word czar comes from the Russian tsar which in turn was derived from the Latin Caesar. It means an emperor or autocrat. When used in relation to American government it is used sardonically to suggest that someone is given authority inconsistent with a democracy.
I believe, and I can be swayed, that the situation is this.. A czar does not go thru confirmation hearings, like other presidential appointments. The Czar answers to noone, except the President, and is given as much power as the President sees fit to complete their assigned task, or govern their particular zone of interest.
This makes me take pause. In a government which is rapidly becoming a socialist republic, do we really want people in positions of almost absolute power making decisions that will effect us forever? With noone to answer to except the person that appointed them, not the American people.
We can say of course that the government is for the people, and by the people. However, once these people are placed in power there is little that can be done without concensus to remove them. Another little known fact...(CSPAN is pretty cool during primetime, I highly reccomend it).
Winston Churchill said of socialism:
"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy. Its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery."
In or around 1948, The UK instituted Government Healthcare. In Winston Churchill's bid for re-election he stated that the UK had tried Socialism and it did not work. The UK still has government healthcare. Why is that? Because once a government program is in place, once it becomes law, it cannot be undone. This statement might be a little strong, certainly we have measures in place to change or ammend a law, or program. It's just that our wonderful world of democracy allows it to be bogged down in red tape in perpetuity.
Thomas Jefferson called it an experiment of democracy. I think the instructor has left the building.
Czar of Blogs. Thats a title I could get into. Yes Mr. President, I have had my staff (of 25,000, not including Bubba) proof read all of the blogs that were submitted for approval. We have censored them by your guidelines and added those bloggers that may offend to the national blog terror list, and passed the information along to Homeland Security. The Czar of Polls indicates that when these blogs are released your public opinion ratings will soar, in full accordance with your mandate that all polls are to be conducted thru content of blog posts, which represent the true voice of America.
I am not the only one saying it. I am just jumping on the bandwagon, as it were. Someone has to say it, and someone has to say it loud. I need a puppet.... anyone here from Mississippi? I notice a spot on my local school board open....
Props to : The Bizarre Title of Czar in U.S. politics
http://southdakotapolitics.blogs.com/south_dakota_politics/2009/01/the-bizarre-tit.html
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Things That Make Me Take Pause
What would you do with 895 million dollars? I know what I would do. Any damn thing I wanted to. For as long as I wanted to. I don't think I have seen a lottery reach that high, and the chances of winning are 1 in 176 million? (maybe it's 126 million, anyway its nothing but luck). Back to tonights magic number. 895 million dollars. If you owned a company that showed a profit of 895 million, after all the lights have been paid, your employees have been paid and all your equipment has been paid for, the bottom line, as it were, 895 million dollars in one year. That would make you happy wouldn't it? I think if I could do that I would only work that first year and sell out, then retire to my private island with my assistant, Bubba.
Would you possibly reward your employees with an increase or bonus, for performing their job at such a high level that you exceeded your expectations. Take pause. Let's make it even more interesting. Let's say that your compny posted these numbers as total profit for the quarter of the year. Three months net profit of 895 million dollars. Imagine that, every three months you profit close to a BILLION dollars.
The company I work for did that today. Posted a net profit for the second quarter of 895 million dollars. This is the same company that asked us to turn over uneeded copies and make new copies on the other side of the paper. GLOOM/DOOM! No one in my company was offered an incentive bonus this year, because, "Times are tough." "With this new business unit we will position ourselves to continue to lead our industry." "We appreciate your understanding in these trying economic times."
Take Pause.
Do you know what it costs to be the primary sponsor on a Nascar car? In 1995 it was 15 million a year. Now it runs between 20-22 million. This includes the driver's salary which runs around 1 million a year. Let me get this straight.... You are paying a nascar driver a million dollars a year to do nothign more than use up tires, fuel, and body work.... that has NEVER even won a race. Win, my bad he can't even finish in the top 5. So in other words, here's a company employee who does his job half way, rarely completes his work asignment, and has a terrible habit of destroying company property. Its enough to make me want to call the ethics hotline and tip them off. The guy is obviously slacking off and definately destroying company goods.
In spite of our nascar driver's efforts, the company still made a profit of 895 milion This makes me take pause because all I ever wanted was that huge increase of around 45 cents per hour. I don' think it would break the bank... not by a long shot.
Ask me about smoking in public, I can't wait to get that started.
Would you possibly reward your employees with an increase or bonus, for performing their job at such a high level that you exceeded your expectations. Take pause. Let's make it even more interesting. Let's say that your compny posted these numbers as total profit for the quarter of the year. Three months net profit of 895 million dollars. Imagine that, every three months you profit close to a BILLION dollars.
The company I work for did that today. Posted a net profit for the second quarter of 895 million dollars. This is the same company that asked us to turn over uneeded copies and make new copies on the other side of the paper. GLOOM/DOOM! No one in my company was offered an incentive bonus this year, because, "Times are tough." "With this new business unit we will position ourselves to continue to lead our industry." "We appreciate your understanding in these trying economic times."
Take Pause.
Do you know what it costs to be the primary sponsor on a Nascar car? In 1995 it was 15 million a year. Now it runs between 20-22 million. This includes the driver's salary which runs around 1 million a year. Let me get this straight.... You are paying a nascar driver a million dollars a year to do nothign more than use up tires, fuel, and body work.... that has NEVER even won a race. Win, my bad he can't even finish in the top 5. So in other words, here's a company employee who does his job half way, rarely completes his work asignment, and has a terrible habit of destroying company property. Its enough to make me want to call the ethics hotline and tip them off. The guy is obviously slacking off and definately destroying company goods.
In spite of our nascar driver's efforts, the company still made a profit of 895 milion This makes me take pause because all I ever wanted was that huge increase of around 45 cents per hour. I don' think it would break the bank... not by a long shot.
Ask me about smoking in public, I can't wait to get that started.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Things That Make Me Pause
You know, there are things all around us each day that should make us go Hmmm. As I grow older I begin to realise that not much suprises me anymore, however, many things make me pause. That's the theme of this blog and here you will find the things that make me pause, and think to myself, 'How damn stupid can some people be?'
Point in case... Today on my morning drive, the news came across my radio that my state, pardon, commonwealth, was closing down 18 rest stops on our major highways. The reason given was lack of funding, budgetary cutbacks, cutting expenses. My commonwealth recieved about 18 million in stimulus monies. Since the monies were provided, the state has laid off/fired/eliminated teachers, and other key state employees. I have not seen nor heard of a single job that has been created. This was, I thought, the purpose of the stimulus monies, to create jobs, and improve the economy. This makes me pause.
When I watch the Government take over big business, GM, FORD, CHRYSLER/DODGE, and promote fuel efficient vehicles... a $4500 bonus to those who trade in a gas guzzler (= <18mpg) for a car that gets equal to or better than 28mpg, this makes me pause. This is the same government that decided it was a family's right to own a home, whether they could afford it or not, and in that brainfart placed the housing market in the place it is today. The mismanagement of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac. I am taking pause again.
Listen, do we really want an accountant to determine the level of Healthcare we deserve? Pancreatic Cancer cannot be cured. You ARE going to die if you develop it. Do you want an accountant or a doctor to determine your treatment path? The accountant will look at the bottom line. $500,000.00 to keep you comfortable for another year of life, or free to deny any benefit. Take pause when these decisions are being made.
Is it right for government to tax you a higher percentage because you had the business savy to make a million bucks? If I make X annually, and you make Z, if we are both paying our 33% then what's the problem? Your 33% will always be a higher dollar amount than mine, until I get to your income level. We are not talking about tax brackets, we are talking income level. I take pause whenever someone says to me that I should work my butt off to succeed, then give away my rewards for succeeding. I want to be a millionaire. I want to buy nice things as my reward for making it. I do not want to drive a car that gets 28mpg and can be crushed by a bicyclist on a downhill run. I want to spend on whatever i want to buy. I cannot however, because my company decided they would withold our incentive increase this year to fight a tough economy.
Take pause. If I do not get my increase I do not have any money to spend on the items which have had their prices increased. If I do not buy these items, more new items cannot be produced. If new items are not being produced they cannot be shipped. If they cannot be shipped then my company cannot make money. It's a vicious cycle isn't it? It gets better. If the items are not being produced then Bob at the factory gets laid off. If they are not being bought, then people who work at the stores get laid off. Maybe the store goes out of business altogether. Maybe the factory where these goods are made goes out of business too....
Then to top it off, you are expected to show charity to those with less than you...oh and don't forget to donate blood... if you can get any more blood out of this turnip.
Point in case... Today on my morning drive, the news came across my radio that my state, pardon, commonwealth, was closing down 18 rest stops on our major highways. The reason given was lack of funding, budgetary cutbacks, cutting expenses. My commonwealth recieved about 18 million in stimulus monies. Since the monies were provided, the state has laid off/fired/eliminated teachers, and other key state employees. I have not seen nor heard of a single job that has been created. This was, I thought, the purpose of the stimulus monies, to create jobs, and improve the economy. This makes me pause.
When I watch the Government take over big business, GM, FORD, CHRYSLER/DODGE, and promote fuel efficient vehicles... a $4500 bonus to those who trade in a gas guzzler (= <18mpg) for a car that gets equal to or better than 28mpg, this makes me pause. This is the same government that decided it was a family's right to own a home, whether they could afford it or not, and in that brainfart placed the housing market in the place it is today. The mismanagement of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac. I am taking pause again.
Listen, do we really want an accountant to determine the level of Healthcare we deserve? Pancreatic Cancer cannot be cured. You ARE going to die if you develop it. Do you want an accountant or a doctor to determine your treatment path? The accountant will look at the bottom line. $500,000.00 to keep you comfortable for another year of life, or free to deny any benefit. Take pause when these decisions are being made.
Is it right for government to tax you a higher percentage because you had the business savy to make a million bucks? If I make X annually, and you make Z, if we are both paying our 33% then what's the problem? Your 33% will always be a higher dollar amount than mine, until I get to your income level. We are not talking about tax brackets, we are talking income level. I take pause whenever someone says to me that I should work my butt off to succeed, then give away my rewards for succeeding. I want to be a millionaire. I want to buy nice things as my reward for making it. I do not want to drive a car that gets 28mpg and can be crushed by a bicyclist on a downhill run. I want to spend on whatever i want to buy. I cannot however, because my company decided they would withold our incentive increase this year to fight a tough economy.
Take pause. If I do not get my increase I do not have any money to spend on the items which have had their prices increased. If I do not buy these items, more new items cannot be produced. If new items are not being produced they cannot be shipped. If they cannot be shipped then my company cannot make money. It's a vicious cycle isn't it? It gets better. If the items are not being produced then Bob at the factory gets laid off. If they are not being bought, then people who work at the stores get laid off. Maybe the store goes out of business altogether. Maybe the factory where these goods are made goes out of business too....
Then to top it off, you are expected to show charity to those with less than you...oh and don't forget to donate blood... if you can get any more blood out of this turnip.
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