Why Amy Fears Obamacare
by Veronica DiPippoMost liberals claim to be more “compassionate” than the rest of us. Currently, the “health-care crisis” has topped the left’s “Top 10 Moral Outrages” list. Suddenly, cries to free the latest victim class du jour (”the 47 million”) from their uninsured bondage can be heard from lib lips coast to coast. Whipped to a frenzy by Barry “the sky is falling” Obama, the MSM, ACORN and Nancy Pelosi are pushing hard to change the face of American medicine before their political capital evaporates. Why more people aren’t wary of a President who, with every (daily) speech, reveals himself to possess a disturbing tendency towards exaggeration, distortion, and outright lie, is beyond me. Bush may have practiced lying as a science, but this man does it as an art. This is the guy, after all, who – with enough hoden to make even a Stasiland apparatchik blush – dubbed 2010’s bloated, pork-laden, crony ass-kissing, $3.55 trillion budget as “a new era of responsibility.”
Yes, I know. Our current system IS unquestionably in need of reform and there are several excellent ideas out there for accomplishing this. But reform is not what this administration has in mind. While our transparency-reneging officials regroup for the next assault on our individual liberties, Americans need to ask themselves one, simple question: WHAT THE HELL IS THE RUSH? We are, after all, dealing with something that will eventually impact the lives of every single man, woman and child in America. And yet, Congress is being pressured to pass legislation – a kind of ‘gateway drug’ to socialized medicine – in the form of an unread bill roughly the size of Atlas Shrugged minus any of that distinguished novel’s wisdom.
But, where the agenda-driven are concerned, what’s reason got to do with it? As we careen towards socializing private health care, let’s all just ignore the fact that the fastest growing sector of nationalized health care systems (e.g. Canada, UK) is privatization. Why? Ask Canadians. In a recent poll, 59% of Canadians believed their health care system required “fundamental change,” a theme that is echoed throughout all nationalized health care countries. France, voted nombre un by the U.S.-bashing World Health Organization, offers a “universal plan” that is so wanting, 92% of French citizens purchase additional private insurance. The French pay about 13% out-of-pocket costs for health care each year (roughly what we spend) with most services requiring a 10-40% co-pay. So, basically, the French have a structure similar to ours, but lacking our level of care, our choices, timely access to a doctor and the latest technological advancements. But, of course, they’re superior because…well, they’re French.
And where did America rank on this infamous, widely debunked W.H.O. survey? Thirty-seventh; just below Costa Rica and above Slovenia. The last time I checked, I didn’t notice tens of thousands of people flying to Costa Rica for surgery. But, when severely biased organizations use such subjective concepts as “fairness” to rank a country’s health care, one shouldn’t be surprised. Oddly, the W.H.O. didn’t seem bothered by “fairness” for little things like – oh, let’s say – survival rates from cancer. In the U.S., roughly 66.3% of women diagnosed with cancer survive at least five years. And in far-superior Europe? 60.3% in Sweden, 49.8% in Italy, and 44.8% in Great Britain. What exactly the W.H.O. believes is “fair” about relegating cancer patients to sub-standard treatment and shorter life spans is unclear.
One of history’s oft-repeated patterns is that politicians who seek to obtain unlimited power concoct emotional frenzies that will appeal to people who are easily misled. In this case, the misled are those whose path to moral superiority is forged by ‘compassionately’ dispensing the federal largess (i.e., someone else’s money) to the latest victim class. It is then – through the manipulation of these misled folks – that the politicians’ ultimate goals can be achieved. We have all seen this tactic used by both sides of the aisle. We are seeing it being used right now to sell a big-ticket, big-gov health care “cure” that will eventually kill. Yes, kill. But more on that later.
Currently, the selective moral outrage of the left focuses largely on the so-called “47 million” Americans I mentioned earlier. Never mind the fact that “47″ represents a fluid number consisting largely of: (1) people who are between jobs and will regain their insurance once re-employed, (2) people who are already availing themselves of a variety of public options, and (3) people who earn over $50,000 per year and can well afford insurance but choose not to purchase it because they’d rather blow their dough on sushi dinners and a swanky new, fully loaded iPhone. In other words, this number, constantly trumpeted by the media to appeal to the emotion-over-reason crowd, is like saying “OMG! 100,000 people go to bed hungry each night in Hollywood!” and not bothering to mention that 99,999 of them are size one starlets starving themselves down to a size zero on purpose. The actual number of the “chronically” uninsured falls closer to 10 million. So, in the name of ‘compassion’ for 3.33% of our population, we must now turn the entire medical profession on its head, negatively impact those who are currently insured, eliminate individual choice, and turn all our life and death decisions over to a government appointed panel whose primary goal will be to limit care and cut costs.
Oddly, these same ‘compassionate’ ones who get their undies in a bunch over “the 47″ appear unmoved by the tens of thousands of patients who flock to our shores from around the world each year because their socialized systems have failed to provide them with comparable medical care. Where’s the empathy for cancer-diagnosed Canadians who flee to America because they know their annual cancer death rate is 70% higher than ours? Or for people waiting months for “non-urgent” surgeries such as cardiac catheterization? And, as for the all-important “fairness” that socialized medicine supposedly brings, according to a comprehensive 2005 report on nationalized health care by the Cato Institute “…access to health care in a single-payer system is far from equitable; in fact, it often correlates with income – with rich and well-connected citizens jumping the queue for treatment….In particular, the elderly, racial minorities and those in rural areas are discriminated against.”If Ted Kennedy’s brain cancer takes a turn for the worse, does anyone honestly believe he’ll cue up at the back of the ever-growing Massachusetts’ health care lines?
Sadly, I’ve never sensed even a glint of awareness from the left that, should America be converted to a system of socialized medicine, an entirely new, and highly legitimate, aggrieved class will emerge within our borders. I am speaking of those with chronic, life-threatening illnesses.
If you don’t believe me, just ask my friend Amy.
Amy was born with Cystic Fibrosis (”CF”), which is “a life-threatening, genetic disease that causes mucus to build up and clog some of the organs in the body, particularly the lungs and pancreas. The thick mucus also causes bacteria to get stuck in the airways which causes inflammation and infections that lead to lung damage.” Amy just received her MBA from a top-tier university. She has suffered from this illness throughout her entire 27 years of life. She is a vibrant, funny, attractive, dynamic, disciplined, hard-working person. She also volunteers as a spokesperson for the CF Foundation to help educate younger patients about the importance of staying on track with their meds, and getting enough rest and exercise to maintain lung capacity.
I recently sat down and asked her what it was like growing up with CF.
Amy: “Growing up in L.A., it’s very easy to get caught up in materialism. CF has helped to keep me grounded and close to my family. My parents didn’t have college educations. They worked enormously hard to make sure there was enough money to pay my medical bills. They had insurance, but it wasn’t cheap. We didn’t go on the vacations that other families did or drive the fancy cars. When I got older I realized it was a very calculated decision. To work hard, save, and spend as little as possible to make sure I got the best medical care available.”
And the U.S. doeshave the best medical care available in the world. Which is why, when Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi, needed heart surgery in 2007, he opted for an out-of-network hospital…in Cleveland, Ohio. In fact, the world-famous Cleveland Clinic receives thousand of patients from 80 countries each year who, like Silvio, don’t feel their homeland’s heart surgery practices are quite up to snuff. Nor, for that matter, are their diagnostic procedures. For example, the U.S. has 8.1 MRI machines per one million citizens, while countries like the U.K. only have 3.9 machines per million, hence the Brits wait months to discover what ails them. As any truly ‘compassionate’ person knows, early detection of a disease is critical for treating it. This is one of the reasons why survival rates from life-threatening illnesses are so much higher here than anywhere else.
Amy: “Average life expectancy in the U.S. today for a CF patient is about 37. It’s also around that number in Canada, much of which can be attributed to our advancements here. Our companies do the research, spend the billions, create the innovations, and then Canada gets them…for less! As for CF life expectancy in other countries: Germany is 35, the U.K. is 31. And, in Ireland, it’s even lower.”
Can anyone possibly doubt that these reduced life expectancy numbers are directly related to the quality of care received? There’s no doubt in Amy’s mind.
Amy: “Most advancements for CF have taken place here in the U.S. And these advancements go on to help the rest of the world. Pulmozyme, the first CF-specific medication, was developed by Genentech in San Francisco. Many of the devices I have, they don’t have overseas. For example, I have a special vest that shakes me to help break up the mucus in my lungs so I can cough it up. When, as an undergrad doing an internship in Switzerland for three months, my vest broke, I went to a doctor. I was shocked to discover they didn’t have it over there. The doctor told me their “research” said that it wasn’t useful. Well, I not only have the clinical trials that say it is, I have the personal experience to prove it. Without this device, I’m dependant on someone else patting me on the back several times over the course of a day in a specific way. Which means there goes my independence. Without this vest, if I wake up in the middle of the night and I’m having trouble breathing, I have to wake someone else up. And what if I’m alone?”
Question to ‘compassionate’ liberals: If you had Amy’s disease, which country would you rather live in? If you answered “Canada,” you’re probably one of the people out there who “knows someone who lives in Canada and loves their health care.” Well, if it’s so ab-fab north of the border then why do 7 out of 10 Canadian provinces send a portion of their breast and prostate cancer patients to the U.S. for treatment ? Due to the lack of capacity, Canadians spend $1 billion on health care here in the U.S. each year. And how does socialized medicine affect research and development?
Amy: “Here in the U.S. we have some medications in the pipeline that - if they’re allowed to come to fruition – may have the ability to halt my disease from damaging my lungs any further and significantly extend my life.Unless, of course, under a nationalized health care system, these meds end up being scrapped.”
Whoa. Did she just defend “Big Pharma” – the left’s favorite whipping boy, second only to Walmart? It is hypocritical in the extreme that Big Pharma-bashing libs expect to be compensated fairly for the services they provide – just ask any teacher if they think they deserve a raise. Why is it then that, when it comes to prescription drugs, fair compensation is somehow amoral? Hollywood looks for maximum profits on their investments, and does anyone criticize them for it? After all, the $100 million they invest in a movie could buy a lot of mosquito nets in Africa. But do we expect Hollywood to cap their ticket prices, hand out massive freebies and – when their films yield record profits – demand that they give those profits away? Of course not! Then why do so many Americans vilify drug companies for actually wanting to make a profit for the pension funds, municipalities and citizens who own their stock?
Amy: “If you’re investing, on average, one billion dollars to come up with a product, you need to make sure you’re going to get that money back. If companies don’t see a return on their investment they will either put their efforts elsewhere or cease innovating. One of the best examples of this has been in AIDS drugs. The country of Brazil went to Abbott laboratories. They had an AIDS drug, and Brazil said either sell this to us more cheaply or we will break your patent, reverse engineer your drug, and sell it ourselves.And, since this happened, the amount of dollars going into AIDS research has plummeted. Companies are afraid of governments that will bully them into lowering their prices so much that they won’t be able to get a return on their investment. If this keeps up, we’ll end up seeing more drugs like Viagra or Botox on the market because consumers are willing to pay cash for them. More companies may end up going down that line instead of focusing on drugs that can prolong human life. I think the pharmaceutical industry is bracing itself. They see what’s on the horizon.”
Perhaps, by now, you’re getting the feeling that Amy isn’t exactly a fan of Obamacare?
Amy: “I am violently opposed to government run health care. I would be very concerned under Obamacare for those with chronic illnesses as well as the general population as a whole. The quality of care will decrease, period. It really scares me – people’s lack of general understanding of what really happens from a broader economic view when the government gets involved. We have many examples of the government controlling various aspects of our lives and how it hasn’t worked. My friends in Europe and Canada – I don’t know if it’s because they don’t seek out the information, or because their governments withhold the info, so as not to make them upset – but they just don’t realize the difference in care. Socialized medicine will either lower a CF patient’s life expectancy, or, at the very least, keep it stagnant. Stagnation would be a best-case scenario, if we didn’t actually end up taking steps backwards.”
And, as for the cost of “free” health care? Ever heard the old cliché that “nothin’s free?” Taxpayers will end up doling out billions and still end up with massive liabilities like the ones we already have for Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security. Obamacare would impose a host of big, new stealth and direct taxes that will affect everyone regardless of income level. In essence, we’ll all be paying more and getting less…and less…and less. Which is one reason why insurance, though imperfect and in need of free-market reform, is still a “no-brainer” for Amy.
Amy: “My total out-of-pocket costs per year are about $12,000. I take 18 prescription meds per day. Plus I co-pay on all doctor and hospital visits. A lot of people would say that’s too expensive, but my attitude is: “I don’t HAVE to do my meds, I GET to do my meds.” There are so many around the world with CF that don’t have access to these treatments and don’t have the quality of life or life expectancy that I do. And, as for State Medicaid, the care just isn’t as good as mine. They can only see one doctor, so they can’t explore options or get a second opinion. They also have a much more limited prescription drug plan. I had rather live in a shack and walk everywhere and not have a car and eat Ramen every day than not have my health insurance.”
Absurdly, Obama claims that “if you like your current health care plan, you can keep it.” At face value that seems a pretty darned direct statement to me. But, in Obama-speak, it requires a White House spokesman to interpret its “subtleties.” In reality, millions of Americans like Amy will eventually be forced to abandon their plans and hop on the government health care bandwagon. Their way or the highway. Like Amy, I pay for my health insurance out-of-pocket and have done so for much of my adult life. Is it ‘compassionate’ to make me pay Medicaid and Medicare for others while not allowing me tax deductions to help pay my own medical expenses?
Amy: “If I could say anything to supporters of national health care, it would be: Do the research with your head instead of your heart. I know it feels good to think you’re morally superior by believing that the government should give everyone health insurance for “free.” But it’s not free. Not at all. It’s very, very costly in more ways than just tax dollars. It means stifling innovation, reducing everyone’s care, and, ultimately, hurting the very people you’re intending to help.”
If anyone would like to make a donation to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, go to: http://www.cff.org/GetInvolved/ManyWaysToGive/MakeADonation. Among other things, this wonderful charity’s unique business model incentivizes smaller biotech companies to develop innovative treatments for people with CF. Ninety cents out of every dollar goes directly towards helping people like Amy live better lives.
Cochrane, John H. “Health-Status Insurance: How Markets Can Provide Health Security.” The Cato Institute. February 18, 2009. 20 Jul 2009<http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=9986>
Tanner, Michael D. “The Grass Is Not Always Greener: A Look at National Health Care Systems Around the World.” The Cato Institute. March 18, 2008. 20 Jul 2009<http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=9272>
http://www.businessandmedia.org/printer/2007/20070718153509.aspx
Tanner, Michael D. “How Not to Reform Health Care.” The Cato Institute. June 9, 2009. 20 Jul 2009<http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=10279>
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/news/2009/2009_us_news_rankings.aspx
<http://www.cfmicrobiology.org.uk/introduction/>Great Britain CF Life Expectancy
http://www.mayonews.ie/index.php?Itemid=52&id=927&option=com_content&task=view
http://www.thevest.com/research/outcomes.asp
http://www.cff.org/research/DrugDevelopmentPipeline/
http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news/83/i27/8327earlybusc.html
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77 Comments
Just remember – it's for the children!
Of course, so is the bill.
[...] Amy just earned an MBA. She was born with Cystic Fibrosis. Amy is opposed to ObamaCare. Posted at July 25, 2009 The Health Care overhaul – it’s all about the “O” [...]
Like the Canadian model, Obamacare appeals to the large numbers of relatively healthy people who like the idea of a "free" healthcare system, but who never have had to face a serious or chronic illness. You don't really understand the real price until you really need it.
Your friend Amy is in my prayers.
Doing things with urgency is in every con artist's playbook. The last thing he can bear is scrutiny and deliberation of his schemes.
[...] Excerpt from: Why Amy Fears Obamacare [...]
It's also worth mentioning that with two years creditable military service and an honorable discharge, anybody can sign up for medical care at the V.A.
Is this the Mayo Clinic? No. But I work at one of our V.A. hospitals and we provide decent care for thousands of uninsured patients without any service connection, on an income based co-pay schedule, just like they would pay if they carried a Blue Cross card.
I think these people would also show up on Obama's roster of the "uninsured".
[...] Read the original: Why Amy Fears Obamacare [...]
Ah, Atlas – with Obamacare and Cap-n-Trade, we have Directive 10-289. I wonder when the Anti-Dog-Eat-Dog rule will come into play? If only the story of The Twentieth Century Motor Company were as well known as the story of Robin Hood, things might be different.
[...] post: Why Amy Fears Obamacare Share and [...]
"Bush may have practiced lying as a science, but this man does it as an art."
Why does everyone insist that Bush was a Liar? Left or Right, they seem compelled to continue this meme. Bush, was, in fact, one of the more honest Presidents we've had in the last several decades….You want to characterize someone as a serial liar? Try the current sociopath or Clinton or Pappy Bush or LBJ. THOSE were real liars. W didn't lie to start the Iraq war. He did not lie about 9/11. He did not lie about wiretaps or interrogations. Just stop it already.
That always seems to go back to the "WMD" thing and our rationale for invading Iraq. Here are a few things that people in general, including conservatives, don't seem to know.
The United States Air Force recently completed shipping over 500 tons of yellow cake uranium from Iraq to Canada. A primary source of yellow cake uranium is sub-saharan Africa. So where's the lie? Do the lovely and enchanting Wilsons have any comment on that? The mainstream media barely covered it, although I did see a tiny (one paragraph) confirmation on the ABC News website.
(contd)
I've often pointed out that the Bush Adminsitration was the most scandal-free of my lifetime.
The Plame-Wilson scandal was a phony Democratic attempt to discredit the administration, but the facts are plane….Libby and Rove did not release her name to the Press, Armitrage did and Novak confirmed so to Fitzgerald in the first week of his investigation.
The "Lying about WMD's" is simply discredited by listing the quotes of every Major Democrat of the period.
The scandal of the 2000 election was the Gore Campaign's (led by Richard Daley) to steal the election.
George Bush, although not conservative enough was an honest man.
The following link relates the story about Davy Crockett on the issue of Congress and charity: http://www.theadvocates.org/library/christian-cro...
In parallel to today, if our representatives were so certain that Obamacare is the best solution, they should be willing to put aside their current coverage and be the first card-holders for government-sponsored health care.
I applaud this kind of gigantic information dump to discredit the left-wing stance on American health care.
The problem is, they don't read it. Because they're shallow idealogues.
I don't know how to fight that. I've been spending the last few weeks doing what everyone here is probably doing – fighting the good fight on the Interwebs, trying to spread fact. And in response I get those same canned replies: Bush lied, people died; Bush spent us into deficit; why are the Republicans trying to stop health reform; and on and on and on.
This is the psychological trait I find so humorous about left-wingers: projection. They projected this image of stupidity onto America when we voted for Bush, twice. Then they reveal their stupidity by not wanting to read anything or learn anything or understand anything. They projected the idea of 'fascism' onto the Bush administration, then close their eyes to true fascism (government control of industry, suppression of free speech, socializing services, etc) in Obama's. They pretended to care about deficit spending under Bush because they were told to – he's bankrupting the country! Then their guy spends 4x as much in 6 months and it's okay, because he "means well". The list could go on and on.
The country is in the grip of irrational people. I assume all we can do is keep being rational, and keep pointing up how irrational they are.
I agree that the 'WMD lie' is a Democratic talking point intended to mislead the easily misled which Ms. DiPippo so eloquently refers to. However, do any of you remember that Bush ran on 'smaller government' rhetoric? Do you remember he vetoed no Republican spending bills for the first couple of years? Do you remember he gave the steel makers a sweetheart tariff to keep out competition, added SCHIP and a new prescription plan for seniors? Those campaign 'lies' helped take the Republicans down and ushered in the left.
Not even Fox News is reporting on the uranium, nor for that matter did anyone in DC regardless of their party! I've mentioned that fact to several people before, and just gotten a "Hmph…but still…" Why is everyone determined not to mention this and just forget the whole thing like a bad dream! Why, I ask you, why? (Not you personally, just rhetorical…)
Wow, what a powerful story. And kudos to Amy for not letting herself be defined by her disease.
As to what the rush is, just ask Mr. Rahm We-never-want-to-let-a-good-crisis-go-to-waste Emmanuel. When you talk about health care like it's on the brink of total collapse, you can get people talking, get institutions moving faster, make politicians swallow their doubts…perfect way to force your agenda through. As Winston Churchill said, socialism is the translation of war crises to economics. (Which would be a pretty good way to describe fascism, too??!!)
I fear Obama ONEcare. I am on SSI and Medicade. Also being a Republican, I get it from liberals all over. "how dare you take SSI and Medicade while you say you are a republican"! They don't know my situation that one day I will return to the job market. But I have to wait for tests, weeks at a time. And those delays cost me half of one foot. When I was to get it amputated, on the day of the operation, the hospital said I couldn't get it done. The doctor had to fight the State to get me the operation. During it, something went wrong and I almost bled out.
I also have kidney disease, soon I will be on Dialysis. I'm scared to death that there will either be no machines for me or they'll tell me "NO TREATMENT".
Our system isn't great and it could be better. But Obama's ONE Care will kill me! And when that happens, there is no appeal.
Oh, by the way. Start asking VA recipients how good VA hospitals are. My dad died in one. I swear, it looked like it was out of the 50s.
If Government is so good at running health care how come Medicare costs have gone up 35% more than the private sector per patient basis over the last 10 years?
Fix what you got and then show us a plan that works Mr. Obama and friends!
I have to agree with you on this. I think W was a very honest president, I think his intentions were genuine and I think he did a fantastic job given the Clinton leftovers he had to deal with. I am very thankful that we weren't Gored to death. W was the best in many years.
My daughter works at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona. She told me that there are huge blocks of appointments that are set aside just for patients who come from other countries (Canada is one of the biggest users of our health care) to get better health care than they can get in their own countries. I asked why the Mayo clinic does that and she said "because they pay cash and then Mayo doesn't have to deal with insurance." She said she has heard horror stories from some of those patients about the bad government run healthcare in Canada.
About the WMD Discussion…
yes, a litte off topic, but the media is not doing its job (big surprise)
Don't forget that Terror Attack Jordan thwarted at the last minute. The attack was to go off against the Britsh and US embassies. Some evil-doers (Muslim Extremests, big surprise there again) tried to detonate some semi trucks loaded with Nerve Agent. Estimates on casualties range in excess of 30,000!
The authorities convicted and recently executed the Terrorists.
BUT: Where did all that Nerve Agent come from, I wonder?
Hmmm… could it be that they came from …er…IRAQ?????
yes, where is the discussion of all this?
I guess that it is not newsworthy, as it means engaging one's brain, a luxury in places like the People's Republic of Mass. or Californiastan.
FLAPJMAN
Prior to our invasion of Iraq, we (the Air Force again) watched convoys of trucks rolling across Western Iraq into Syria. We weren't allowed to stop them, so nobody will ever know what was on board. After the invasion, we found mobile field laboratories where biological and nerve agents had been produced, we just didn't recover the material.
My educated guess is, it's stockpiled somewhere: either in Syria or inside a crate on the docks of the Miami Port Authority. Again, where's the lie?
Prior to our invasion of Iraq, 14 year old schoolgirls were being abducted off of the streets and raped for sport by the Iraqi ruling family. Those boys are now twisting on a spit in Hell because of the United States Military. I personally feel good about that.
And I'm tired of seeing the President I served under called a "liar".
I've often pointed out that the Bush Adminsitration was the most scandal-free of my lifetime.
The Plame-Wilson scandal was a phony Democratic attempt to discredit the administration, but the facts are plain….Libby and Rove did not release her name to the Press, Armitrage did and Novak confirmed so to Fitzgerald in the first week of his investigation.
The "Lying about WMD's" is simply discredited by listing the quotes of every Major Democrat of the period.
The scandal of the 2000 election was the Gore Campaign's (led by Richard Daley) attempt to steal the election. Republican's only part was to try to have the laws followed.
George Bush, although not conservative enough was an honest man.
Indulging craziness
"Humans have a hard time facing reality. Power-hungry people drift into their own fantasy world by cutting off the truth-tellers. This is the most fantasy-driven administration in US history. That will be their downfall, as we are already beginning to see right in front of our eyes."
http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/07/indulging_...
This is a great place to post this link
"George Bush, although not conservative enough, was an honest man."
I have been saying that for years
BO spent 6 months selecting a White House puppy.
Bu cram this health care debacle down our throats, without putting it all in WRITING. Then the Congress braggs that they will not READ what is in finally put in writing.
Leave my health care alone!
I'm afraid I quit reading the article when I came that extremely stupid and mendacious statement.
Oh, by the way, it's worth mentioning that the stockpiled uranium did pre-date the U.N. sanctions. It wasn't "fresh".
But I seem to recall from my high school science class that Nigerian yellow cake has a longer shelf life than the Betty Crocker variety.
So the dems argument seems to be that Hussein wasn't negotiating with the Nigerian government for the purchase of more uranium, because he already had enough stockpiled to build 100 nuclear weapons. Therefore, Bush lied.
Really? THAT'S the argument they want to go with?
Of course not. So it's much better to pretend there was no uranium, regardless of the expiration date.
As to Valerie Plame, she'd been riding a desk at Langley for six years. Any foreign agents who were the least bit curious as to what she did for a living could have simply followed her car when she left the house.
Well, I'll concede your points. However, when people chant the "Bush Lied" mantra, they aren't referring to deficit spending.
I'm sure you didn't mean this as a personal attack, but the V.A. hospital I work in is clean, well staffed and well equipped.
Even so, patients die there.
Two things: was your dad's illness service connected? If not, he was there by choice. Are you saying that he died because of sub-standard care, or are you just upset because he died?
I'm sorry to appaer contentious about this, but I find your insinuations insulting.
I'm sure you didn't mean this as a personal attack, but the V.A. hospital I work in is clean, well staffed and well equipped.
Even so, patients die there.
Two things: was your dad's illness service connected? If not, he was there by choice. Are you saying that he died because of sub-standard care, or are you just upset because he died?
I'm sorry to appear contentious about this, but I find your insinuations insulting.
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Old_Tom, from what I've heard from friends and family receiving VA care, it seems the quality is highly area dependent. I have a few friends who love their VA, a few that are okay with their VA, and a few that think it's the dirtiest most disgusting pigsty they've ever set foot into. Then I have another friend who backs up my perception; he travels between two totally different parts of the country due to school; He likes the VA near his school, just complains about wait times being 'long' (he's had to wait an hour a couple of times he visited…I lmao given some of my experiences with base hospitals); but he's scared to death of getting treatment at the VA back where his folks live.
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I think that's probably a fair assessment. The quality is also very subjective to individuals' experiences.
Here's what I see every day: people drink, smoke, eat and sit around watching T.V. until they're barely ambulatory, then show up and expect the doctor to "fix" them. And they don't want to have to pay for the care.
Unless a veteran has a service connected disability, V.A. medical care is a choice. If they don't like the care they receive, or if they think the facility is outdated or overcrowded, or if they don't like my attitude, they can choose to go someplace else. Again, this is an aspect of the modern entitlement mentality. A large number of our patients choose the V.A. because it's cheaper than buying private insurance. Fine.
But you really do get what you pay for.
And by the way, I spent 24 years in uniform. I get my prescriptions at Walgreens. I don't want to hear from someone who spent two years in the Army fourty years ago and thinks the nation owes him something.
Take care of yourselves, people. It's not the government's job.
Well, to be fair I'd guess that's because the majority of insured patients in the private sector are younger and on average healthier, whereas the Medicare system is overburdened with aging, self-indulgent baby-boomers (ref. my above post).
[...] prescription for disaster. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers. Watch.And why Amy Fears Obamacare. Veronica DiPippo, Big [...]
Well done article.
Do you have a link for this information in your article?
France, voted nombre un by the U.S.-bashing World Health Organization, offers a “universal plan” that is so wanting, 92% of French citizens purchase additional private insurance. The French pay about 13% out-of-pocket costs for health care each year (roughly what we spend) with most services requiring a 10-40% co-pay.
I'd appreciate it.
Granted, my father died at the VA in Louisville. One of the oldest in the system. And that was 9 years ago. But dealing with them back then was a nightmare. For months my father was on a waiting list to recive hospice care for ALS. In his last days he had respatory failure. Maybe they weren't connected. But while there, I felt that everybody, doctors and nurses would rather be anywhere else than there.
Maybe things has changed in the years since. I hope they have. I apologize for my comments, but the entrie system is not up to snuff.
I feel for you…. but not all VA hospitals are as you described. I have friends whose father was put in one in his last days (he was a Navy vet). It was a very nice, private room. With a little room off to the side where his wife could sleep.
The Army hospital my dad (24 yrs US Army) died in was not the greatest. Open air and not much privacy. People knock things if they aren't 5-star. I believe my dad 'deserved' better. But, her earned free medical care for life.
I feel for you…. but not all VA hospitals are as you described. I have friends whose father was put in one in his last days (he was a Navy vet). It was a very nice, private room. With a little room off to the side where his wife could sleep.
The Army hospital my dad (24 yrs US Army) died in was not the greatest. Open air and not much privacy. People knock things if they aren't 5-star. I believe my dad 'deserved' better. But, he earned free medical care for life.
obama and his criminal buddies are trying to stick the Real Americans with something that they wont have to endure
obama and the democrats are the height of all hypocrisy to go with their apparent hate for Real Americans
the furiners dont want this obamadeathcare
I am trapped at a nationally renown cancer institute in the US and the mass amounts of foreign folks that come here for medical services are scared that the obama fiasco will run their care in the future
these people, including French, Spanish, English and Canadians do not want to have to be reliant on their systems for their cancer care
kind of says it all to the liberals
I've been telling people for years that Bush II was the only president I can remember (granted I was born in the Reagan administration) that went on tv and said "This is what we're going to do…" and then DID IT!! Agree with him or disagree, but he was straight with us.
It seems like everyday the dem's are coming out with a new plan on how to pay for the health care bill. This morning's new one is to have the INSURANCE COMPANIES pay for it with there taxs… so, lets see where moving towards socialism and NOW the dems will put our insurance companies out of business with there TAX LADEN bills….Plus, Pelosi is pushing this as HER WAY of doing this… So, lets recap…. RAISING OUR TAXS, giving us HORRIBLE healthcare which will put the health care industry UNDERWATER… and OUR GRANDKIDS WILL BE IN THE POOR HOUSE after it is all said and done….
AGAIN A GREAT BIG THANKS TO THE PEOPLE THAT VOTED THESE FOOLS INTO OFFICE!!!!!!!!!
Initially Bush ran as a "compassionatie conservative" and highlighted a record of working with Democrats in Texas to achieve a number of initiatives regardiing the poor, minority education, and public welfare that were centrist in nature. His appeal as a Christian and "social conservative" were central, but less any indication that he was an economic conservative. Additionally, anyone knowing his father's background understood that the Bush's were part of the Rockerfeller/Ford/Colin Powell centrists.
Obama, the part time lawyer and law maker is going to find the magic dust to cure health care inflation AND guarantee quality improves.
Yeah, right!
The Cato Institute's 2005 Policy Analysis
"The Grass Is Not Always Greener — A Look at National Healthcare Systems Around the World"
http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-613.pdf
I think that's probably a fair assessment. The quality is also very subjective to individuals' experiences.
Here's what I see every day: people drink, smoke, eat and sit around watching T.V. until they're barely ambulatory, then show up and expect the doctor to "fix" them. And they don't want to have to pay for the care.
Unless a veteran has a service connected disability, V.A. medical care is a choice. If they don't like the care they receive, or if they think the facility is outdated or overcrowded, or if they don't like my attitude, they can choose to go someplace else. Again, this is an aspect of the modern entitlement mentality. A large number of our patients choose the V.A. because it's cheaper than buying private insurance. Fine.
But you really do get what you pay for.
And by the way, I spent 24 years in uniform. I get my prescriptions at Walgreens. I don't want to hear from someone who spent two years in the Army forty years ago and thinks the nation owes him something.
Take care of yourselves, people. It's not the government's job.
stephen who?
Nice article replete with facts. Except for one lie: "Bush may have practiced lying as a science…"
Where on earth did THAT come from? And, why is it necessary? Were you trying to reel in the liberals who may be trolling this website? Trick them into reading the whole thing? Convince them you are/used to be one of them?
Was it supposed to be an attempt at irony? It failed.
As the Air Force vet stated to earlier, I'm also proud to be apart of the military that took down the regime of one of the worst mass murderers in history. And, I'm proud to have served on the President who was in charge at the time.
Nice article replete with facts. Except for one lie: "Bush may have practiced lying as a science…"
Where on earth did THAT come from? And, why is it necessary? Were you trying to reel in the liberals who may be trolling this website? Trick them into reading the whole thing? Convince them you are/used to be one of them?
Was it supposed to be an attempt at irony? It failed.
As the Air Force vet stated to earlier, I'm also proud to be apart of the military that took down the regime of one of the worst mass murderers in history. And, I'm proud to have served under the President who was in charge at the time.
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I can understand your feelings and respect them. However, I was not referring to Iraq. If you recall, by 2008, that was no longer the most important issue on voter's plates, nor was it the anti-Bush mantra the left was chanting loudest. I was referring to the larger issue that, ultimately, devastated the Republican party, caused fiscal conservatives to loose faith in their leadership, and, in the last two elections, handed the White House, House and Senate over to the far, far left. I am speaking of (to quote G.W. Bush himself) "restraining federal spending." This was a direct promise he made to the American people — after angering fiscal conservatives over his massive government expansion and validation of pork spending in 2001 – 2004 — and he broke it. Yes, I know, the current admin is spending 10x more, but it was this untruth that paved the way to their success — a success that is now (thankfully!) evaporating for the exact same reason. Thank you for your service to our country. God bless!
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I meant that I believed the "restrain" comment was a calculated comment tailored specifically ("scientifically" — i.e. measured through polling, etc.) to appeal to a demographic; the demographic that he needed to reach out to in 2004 in order to regain the White House. The demographic he had alienated in his first term. I'm speaking of fiscal conservatives. He needed to reach out to them and assure them and calm their fears. I know many conservatives who were willing to give him a shot and voted for him again based on this promise (a promise which was not casually, but specifically made). Before any politician makes such a major statement in any speech (and I know this because my father was a political speech writer for a time) it is all planned and calculated to appeal to very specific demographics. So that's what I mean by "science." I have no way of knowing for certain that he knew he was being untrue, just an opinion based on the pattern he had demonstrated for his first 4 years in office — that of massively expanding government, spending and not rejecting pork. Hope that makes it a bit clearer and eases your heart. I know it is painful to have someone you admire attacked in any way and, after what you've sacrificed for me and mine, I wanted to be clear. In any case, whoever you are, you are an amazing person because you have been willing to lay down your own life if necessary so people like me can continue expressing ourselves and our opinions freely. And I thank God for it. Best to you & yours.
Thanks for the response. So…. by stating he wanted to "restrain federal spending" he raised lying to a science?
I'm afraid you will have to point out more than that to convince me that President Bush practiced lying as a science.
Perhaps you could have expanded on what you meant in the article… It is still a good piece, I think, though.
The worsening economy did in McCain. And, the rockstar popularity of Obama. No matter what he was done for: pick a woman (as he did) and he was just trying to get women voters. Pick a black man and he was a copycat. Pick a white male and he was up against the 'same old thing' mantra.
You are welcome. I love my job; and, I love America.
I wasn't going to comment but… I know you didn't intend to sound condescending. And, I don't mean to be rude; but I understood your point the first time. My feelings aren't hurt that you wrote what you wrote… I just felt it was unwarranted. It sounded like you were calling President Bush a liar. Or, a habitual one at that.
Absolutely fed govt exploded. I was against the first stimulus. He shouldn't have pushed it and McCain should have been against it. We'll agree to disagree about the wording.
Thanks for the words. I'm not amazing. I put my pants on the same as everyone else. But, I do thank you for the words. Me and mine would include my wonderful wife of almost 22 years, a son in the Navy and a daughter just starting college – again, I appreciate the sentiment.
I'm amazed at police officers. They are in danger every day. Me? Only when I deploy for 6 months at a time (or 12… or 4… or….).
T-Rav…I used to think FOX news was a great source for information, but then my husband reminded me that FOX is owned by a Democrat. I do think FOX is much more impartial than the other major channels, but after the Michael Jackson-athon that FOX had running just like all the other channels, it occured to me that they too are in it for the ratings more than anything. I think that is why they don't hit on much of anything that is too controversial. Only Glenn Beck gets near to the real truth of what's going on.
I, personally, believe that both sides are pushing us towards the same goal: Complete government control. I gave up on the GOP when McCain played such pussy softball with Barack Hussein Obama on every issue that came down the pike. I still can't figure out how McCain even got the nomination in the first place. I'm one of many who split from the GOP for this very reason. Unless the GOP puts up a hardline conservative I will be voting Liberterian or Independent…because, honestly, unless we get another Reagan on board, we are doomed one way or the other.
"The country is in the grip of irrational people." Or maybe a bit easier said: "The lunatics are running the asylum."
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I am with you. I want McCain, McConnell, Bonner, Graham gone as badly as I want any Democrat out of office. If the republicans regain control of Congress, and the same people that were controlling things during the Bush years are back in power, we gain nothing.
I think conservatives need to focus on amending the Constitution. The core problem we are facing is that our Congress is now a cess-pool of powerbrokering and dishonesty. We need Term Limits for every Congressman and their staff. We need to remove the General Welfare clause from the Pre-amble,
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Ah Veronica – what a treasure you are! Keep up the good fight for the right to choose!
Love to you and yours and much Thanks!
Dean & Fran Johnson
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