Health Care Madness!

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Forget college basketball; the real March Madness is taking place down in Washington. (BTW, I love your picks O man) Poor republicans, they are acting downright apocalyptic these days. If you hear them tell it, A-merry-ca, as we know it, will be over in a few days. Come Sunday night, Socialism will have taken over A-merry-ca, and darkness will fall over our republic. Why? Well it's all because of that beige man with the African daddy and the mother from Kansas. He decided to upset the apple cart.

It's so bad that Michelle Bachmann, an elected Representative from the land of the great lakes(I think all that cold up there might have chilled the brains of some of the voters in the land of Prince), is calling for the impeachment of Nancy Pelosi. Glenn Beck is calling this the most traumatic event in A-merry-ca since the civil war, and he has all but told his O ness to watch his back. I just watched Mitch McConnell, John Boehner, (real nice guy that John Boehner) and a bunch of angry white men declare war on this health care bill, and you could just tell from the looks on their faces that if this thing passes they will all have to be put on suicide watch. Over at Radio Rwanda they are taking calls from republican operatives live on the air and telling their viewers that the bill could still die. The wingnut web sites are beside themselves with rage. They are accusing the dumbocrats of lying and cheating to get their way. Oh what a difference a few years make.

Still, the votes are going to be close. I am hearing that this bill might pass by just one vote. Imagine that? One vote! I am still seeing images of all those people in Grant Park and I am hearing those chants of "Yes We Can" in my ears, and I can't believe that if his O ness passes his signature legislation- one that he has damn near staked his entire presidency on- it will only pass by one stinking vote.

I see Dennis Kucininich switched. Good for him. ( Now there is a guy who married up. Literally.) Hey, I am not crazy about this watered down version of a bill, either. But hell, I guess it's better than nothing. In a way, I might have switched my thinking as well. I didn't know how much passing this bad boy meant to his O ness. He canceled his trip to Australia and Indonesia, he went on Radio Rwanda, and he has been literally begging fence sitters for votes. Damn it O man, all you had to do was ask. I would have gotten your back a lot sooner.

I want to know what the wingnuts will do if the bill does pass. They have been threatening all kinds of shit. It should be interesting. Will they storm the people's house and pull the beige man and his family out? Will there be rioting and looting in the streets? Will the teabaggers have a sit down in the middle of Washington D.C and shut down the city? Man they have a lot of options. And, they might have to use them. I see the CBO report just came out and it should give some of those cowardly dumbocratic politicians some cover. As a result, look for a couple of more yes votes flipping for his O ness.

Hang on folks, this should be more fun than a buzzer beater.

*Pic courtesy of Ehow.com

I want it too, but......

I see his O ness was doing his best James Brown imitation today as he said "please, please, please" to dumbocratic members of congress while asking them to vote for this historic health care reform bill. Now, I must admit, I am no wonk when it comes to these things. I hate reading voluminous documents, -I am a trial lawyer, not a corporate one- and I sure as hell hate the byzantine way in which folks in Washington legislate. What I do know is that I want this health care reform bill to pass, because I have a fundamental belief in every citizen having the right to have affordable health care. And I really do believe that insurance companies care more about profit margins than they do people. And, unlike what conservatives and their minions would have you believe, I believe that more government is actually a good thing. I elected them, they use my money to do things, and they provide services that I would rather not do without.

Now, having said all of that, someone sent me an e-mail today that has me a little troubled. I am blogging about it because I am hoping that some of you folks -who might have actually read all of the bill- who are smart enough to have the goods on how things really work in Washington, can help me to understand the following:

"Today, Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Committee Dave Camp (R-MI) released a letter from the non-partisan Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) confirming that the failure to comply with the individual mandate to buy health insurance contained in the Pelosi health care bill (H.R. 3962, as amended) could land people in jail. The JCT letter makes clear that Americans who do not maintain “acceptable health insurance coverage” and who choose not to pay the bill’s new individual mandate tax (generally 2.5% of income), are subject to numerous civil and criminal penalties, including criminal fines of up to $250,000 and imprisonment of up to five years.

In response to the JCT letter, Camp said: “This is the ultimate example of the Democrats’ command-and-control style of governing – buy what we tell you or go to jail. It is outrageous and it should be stopped immediately.”

Key excerpts from the JCT letter appear below:
“H.R. 3962 provides that an individual (or a husband and wife in the case of a joint return) who does not, at any time during the taxable year, maintain acceptable health insurance coverage for himself or herself and each of his or her qualifying children is subject to an additional tax.” [page 1] - - - - - - - - - -
“If the government determines that the taxpayer’s unpaid tax liability results from willful behavior, the following penalties could apply…” [page 2] - - - - - - - - - -
“Criminal penalties Prosecution is authorized under the Code for a variety of offenses. Depending on the level of the noncompliance, the following penalties could apply to an individual: • Section 7203 – misdemeanor willful failure to pay is punishable by a fine of up to $25,000 and/or imprisonment of up to one year.
• Section 7201 – felony willful evasion is punishable by a fine of up to $250,000 and/or imprisonment of up to five years.” [page 3]

When confronted with this same issue during its consideration of a similar individual mandate tax, the Senate Finance Committee worked on a bipartisan basis to include language in its bill that shielded Americans from civil and criminal penalties. The Pelosi bill, however, contains no similar language protecting American citizens from civil and criminal tax penalties that could include a $250,000 fine and five years in jail.

“The Senate Finance Committee had the good sense to eliminate the extreme penalty of incarceration. Speaker Pelosi’s decision to leave in the jail time provision is a threat to every family who cannot afford the $15,000 premium her plan creates"

Now I know that the rethugs are getting desperate, and that they are going to spin this thing in a way most unfavorable to Pelosi and company. But if it is a fact that this provision is in Pelosi's bill, and this portion of the bill is not amended in the Senate, it would be very troubling for the kid. "$250,000 in fines and five years in prison is a bit much. I love the government except when they are being draconian on everyday people. Fines? Maybe. Prison? No.

Get at me folks and let me know what you think of this.

I know what I think, but then again I am not as smart as some of you when it comes to this stuff.

*h/t Hugh O.

Tough talk?

Let me go ahead and give my thoughts about the O man's health insurance reform speech.

I caught most of it tonight in between watching the U.S.A T&T soccer match on the Spanish channel.

First, how ignorant and disrespectful are republicans? If anyone saw a democratic congressman texting during one of the frat boy's speeches or saw anyone in the opposition yelling "liar" in the middle of a previous presidential address, please provide a link. I don't think one will be forthcoming, but I could be wrong. I did see Eric Cantor texting someone during the O man's speech-must have been calling his hair dresser for more hair spray-, and yep, there was a republican yelling "liar" in the middle of the speech. What a classy bunch.

Oh, and I loved the good doctor from Louisiana giving the republican response. (He has been sued for malpractice twice, so I am not sure he should be throwing any stones from his glass house.) The idiot actually brought up tort reform when his O ness already promised in his speech that it would be a part of his plan. That's what you get for writing your response before hand. But hey, it sure beats the governor from Louisiana giving the response, because as bad as bayou doc was he was better than the gov.

But back to the speech: First, let me say that it was a mistake for his O ness to give this health reform package to congress to work on. He should have crafted it himself and then handed to them to work out the details. I know he didn't want to do a repeat of what the Clintons did back in 1994, but that is exactly what he should have done. Different time, different mandate, and it would have worked. Now, unfortunately, our boy is playing defense. Having said that, let me holla at his O ness for a minute: I loved the tough talk O man. You aren't the first president to take up health care but you will be the last? Bringing up the ghost of John Dingell, Sr. was also a nice touch. You were all over the profit over people insurance companies, and rightfully so. If A-merry-cans weren't moved by some of those stories you told about real people, they don't deserve health insurance reform.

I loved the fact that you hit back at the right wing/FOX News smear machine. ( I see they bumped your speech for some dancing show. Just what A-merry-ca needs, more silly reality shows.) Who needs to hear about one of the most important legislation from our government in decades? I am still not sure about the public option part, but I think you were being intentionally fuzzy. I felt like you were talking to us progressives and telling us to chill while you try to get something done with health care. I am not a political pragmatist, but I know you are, and if most A-merry-cans can have access to proper and affordable health care I guess I am all for it. It sure as hell beats the insurance lobby driven system we have now.

I also loved the fact that you placed the blame for this mess that we are in where it belongs: at the foot of the frat boy and his crew. And, I loved the idea of putting actual facts into the speech. Facts should always get in the way of partisan bullshit.

"We are the only advanced democracy on Earth — the only wealthy nation — that allows such hardships for millions of its people. There are now more than 30 million American citizens who cannot get coverage. In just a two year period, one in every three Americans goes without health care coverage at some point. And every day, 14,000 Americans lose their coverage. In other words, it can happen to anyone. "

Not "anyone" O man, republicans don't believe it can happen to them. Only poor people immigrants and minorities can't afford health care.

"Then there's the problem of rising costs. We spend one-and-a-half times more per person on health care than any other country, but we aren't any healthier for it. This is one of the reasons that insurance premiums have gone up three times faster than wages. It's why so many employers — especially small businesses — are forcing their employees to pay more for insurance, or are dropping their coverage entirely. It's why so many aspiring entrepreneurs cannot afford to open a business in the first place, and why American businesses that compete internationally — like our automakers — are at a huge disadvantage. And it's why those of us with health insurance are also paying a hidden and growing tax for those without it — about $1000 per year that pays for somebody else's emergency room and charitable care."

More facts. Come on O man, you are letting it get in the way of a great political debate.

"But that's not what the moment calls for. That's not what we came here to do. We did not come to fear the future. We came here to shape it. I still believe we can act even when it's hard. I still believe we can replace acrimony with civility, and gridlock with progress. I still believe we can do great things, and that here and now we will meet history's test.
Because that is who we are. That is our calling. That is our character. Thank you, God bless you, and may God bless the United States of America.'

That damn Obama, I wonder if Mrs. Field have any of her O-Aid left?

Lark and the protesters.

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"There are lots of people who mistake their imagination for their memory" ~ Josh Billings~

Not me. Nope, Lark Voorhies was freaking hot! And those of you who know me and the real reason I got into blogging (To attract enough attention and to maybe, one day, get popular enough to get Lark's people to call my people.) probably know that I am one of the most disappointed men on earth right about now. (I got your e-mails and all the links) Age --not to mention her makeup person-- has not been very kind to Lark. Although, in spite of all that bad makeup, I still see something. At least I am hoping there is something. I refuse to let all these years of yearning for Ms. Voorhies go to waste. There has to be more than this.

Lark, I still want you to call me. The hunt is not over; this was a bad sighting, that's all.

Hopefully, the next time you step out, the field will be right there with you. *looking over shoulder. *

I was only going to post about Lark tonight until I read an article and saw a video of some of the artificial turf people interrupting another town hall meeting. This one wasn't about health care, but about a high speed rail thanks to the stimulus package. These clowns were all over Steny Hoyer (D-MD), ( I love that name)and kept shouting him down the entire time. What a bunch of losers. The leader of the pack was some guy named Don Jeror and he leads a group called the Fort Stanwix Patriots. (They can't be serious! They actually have different patriot groups? ) But poor Steny wasn't alone. Apparently Claire McCaskill got shouted down as well, and she joins a group of politicians who felt the wrath of the tea baggers, like Arlen Specter and Lloyd Doggett. One poor Senator who has been diagnosed with cancer was even told to "kill himself." If these people seem somewhat organized and well funded, it's because they are. There is nothing grass roots about these people. They are funded by health care lobbyist and wingnuts with deep pockets.

I know Glen Beck compared what is happening in A-merry-ca now to the "civil rights" struggle, but the only civil right these clowns are fighting for is the right to make a damn fool of themselves. There is no struggle here folks, and all these idiots are doing is working against their own self interest. It's the A-merry-can way. "Cut off your nose to spite your face." I guarantee you that a lot of these idiots don't have proper health coverage themselves, but they think that big health care cares about them, because, well, they are A-merry-cans like they are. Dopes!

Which finally brings me to what made me mad enough to post about this in the first place: The house Negro sitting right next to Mr. Jeror, (*see pic) as he went into his rant and FOX NEWS talking points. Please folks, you have to watch the video of this. The "Drop Squad" can't come fast enough for this good negro. ( I can't even capitalize Negro for her)


If anybody reading this has the name of this woman, please give it to me so that I can properly recognize her.


If you do that for me you will be number one in my book.....well, next to the people who send me the Lark sightings. :)