ARGH! It's the POLITICAL season!

I HATE THE POLITICAL SEASON!

Between the crap that comes in the mail and the Robocalls...I'm done.

I'm ashamed to admit I'm a Republican, any more.

Every Robocall I get begins with "Conservative Republican....." BULL!

What in the world makes the GOP think EVERY Republican is a conservative? And why do they want to paint themselves that way? And whatever happened to "The Separation of Church and State"?

Romney is a Morman. And he brandishes it about, as if saying, "Look who I am"
Santorum is a Christian. And acts like an evangelical one at that. Evangelicals are the most dangerous because they look and act so pious then sneak around the back. Not that he's been known to do that, but his "brothers" have definitely not helped him.
Gingerich is Catholic.....but a "convenient" one. He is who he is, and everybody know it. It's just that he's from a PAST GOP, and the present GOP is not that GOP.
Paul is.......I don't even know. And I don't even care, either.
And then there's that other guy, Obama. He's Christian (or at least goes to a Christian Church) even if there are still people that say he's Muslim.

SO WHO CARES?

It's not that important. Good Christians on paper can be bad Christians in practice. And those who don't look all that hot can be the nicest people you could ask for.

But look around you, guys.

THE WORLD IS NOT MADE UP OF CONSERVATIVES. Conservatives are the biggest boondoggle of the Western World. Conservatives do NOT compromise, or even make any kind of attempt at it. It's "my way or the highway" because "I'm standing by my principles" not because I'm trying to make things better for the majority. Hey, totally new concept. Circa 1776.

So here's what I'm thinking:
I've already given up answering my own house phone because of all the robocalls; especially around dinner time (hey, conservatives, isn't that FAMILY time? Why are you calling then?)
So now I have a proposition for everyone:
Every time I get a robocall, or a expensive flyer espousing "Conservative...whoever" they are immediately crossed off my list.
Sadly, my list is now very small for people I might even consider! In fact.....I think I'm going to have vote DEMOCRAT.

Speaking of which........

BREAKING NEWS, GOP.......YOU ARE NOT GOING TO WIN THIS FALL.
All this crap is makes Obama look better than ANY of YOU guys!

New 2012 Health Care Tax you need to know about!

Beginning today, Jan 1, 2012, you have added $1 per pay to your health care costs, so that the US Government can fund a study that will tell it which medications are "best" for what ails you. Sounds great. But there are drawbacks.

First, it is the HEALTH INSURANCE INDUSTRY that will create the study. Oh, gee, do you think that the CHEAPEST medication is going to be "best"? That's right up there with Congress trying to limit Congress' spending and special interests.

And what is "the best"? Does it mean that taking an aspirin for migraines (which is cheaper and occasionally works) is "the best"? I can guarantee that it is NOT the best for someone who eats aspirins like candy because they already cannot afford Imitrex or Zomig or some of the other non-formulary drugs.

Verapamil works for blood pressure......as long as you live a sedentary lifestyle. As a firefighter/paramedic and horse enthusiast, if doesn't work for me because it keeps my heart rate too slow when it needs to get up there from exercise. I NEED that heart rate increase in order to stay alive in my job. But Verapamil is cheap and works very well.....so is it "the best"?

HTCZ (hydrochorthiazide) is a great diuretic, and helps blood pressure, too. It's cheap, it's common. Unfortunately, most drug companies need to use sulfites as a "filler" to help bind it into its pill form......and I'm allergic to sulfites. So while it's great for some people, it will, ultimately, kill me.

Tylenol and Codeine (Tylenol 3) puts my husband to sleep for 2-4 hours. I might as well take candy. Norgesic Forte (no longer available) puts most people out for at least 6 hours, but I can take 1 and be able to function, while 2 allows me to get some sleep.

Sodium Pentathol makes some people loopy.....I get violent. It's in my chart.....don't use it.

The point is, they call it "practicing medicine" because it's not a exact science. What works for me may not work for you....in fact, it might kill you or cause you great harm. In my years of working in the medical field, and with physicians as well, the one thing you learn real quick is that everyone responds to things differently. Whether it's food or medicine or exercise or disease.

Why do some people become diabetics? Why are some people allergic to dog/cat/animal dander? Why do some people get cancer(s) while the pack-a-day smoker doesn't? Why can't some people eat peanuts/lactose/gluten?

THOSE are the answers we need to find.

There are many similar medications out there because there are as many reactions to those medication as there are people taking them. That's why Celebrex works for one and Relafen works for another. It's why Enbrell and Remecaid and methotrexate are available.....where one doesn't work, the other might. And the Doctors "practice medicine" until they find the right combination.

So let's quit with the showboating.....giving money to the very people who will try to prevent you from getting the necessary medication you need.....and don't think the drug companies aren't going to be right there, ready to kick back something if theirs is the "chosen one".

Let's just cut to the chase. Get the right medication to the person who needs it. Whether it's considered "formulary" or not. And get it to them for the price of the pill, not the 1,000x mark-up or better. This is just another "bail-out" for the health insurance industry looking for a way to maximize profit while minimizing true health care.

Republican Politics

Soon the caucus' start, and the Republican Party has a boat-load of people who want to, theoretically, be President of the United States.

But, let's be real. The main battle cry is "Beat Obama" or it's corollary, "Beat Obamacare".

Not "Jobs"; not "Economy" (remember "It's the Economy, Stupid!"?); not Security or any of the other things everybody seems for but just can't get to from here.

As a Republican, I'm embarrassed. I can't say I'd vote for any of them.

Mitt Romney: To me, he comes off as a doo-fus. Sorry Mitt, I liked your Dad, but you just did NOT get his genes. Oh, yeah, you LOOK like him, but your thought processes are.....well, I don't know WHERE they are. Other than looking like the epitome of a Republican Running for President, I just don't get much else from him. Some say he has vacillated and compromised. Well, he HAS been presented with information and that MAY have caused him to changed his mind of some things (which is not necessarily bad) to give him that label. But, sorry, he just seems too shifty to me (like John Kasich).

Newt Gingerich: Really. A name like NEWT? A Lizard? Well, a well-fed one at least. To me, he has the best chance (but then so does an iceball vs snowball in Hell). You may not like him, but you tend to know where you stand with him and where he stands. Personally, I don't like him because it's all about him.....he does everything that will help him and photo-ops the rest. But I KNOW he's going to be like that. At least he's consistent.

Bachmann: Who? She came out of nowhere. You would think that being female I would jump on her side, but she reminds me of a ship without a rudder. She seems to wander all over the place.....and her facts, well, I don't know where she gets some of them. Too much like Palin for me.....only maybe less likable.

Ron Paul: Now this was a guy who really had some good ideas. He just doesn't know how to implement them and doesn't seem to have a plan. Oh he says he does, but its just all words and no substance. I agree with your ideas, Mr Paul, but that's just not enough. I don't go for Obama's "Jobs Bill" for the same reason.

Herman Cain: OMG what can you say about THIS dude? Here is a man who has drunk the Kool-Aid from the Power Can. From the time he hit the scene, I shivered from the slime, although I couldn't figure out why. Here is a man obsessed with power and not afraid to use it. And if that means getting the ladies, well, God wants him to have them. Just like Bakker and Jim Jones and David Koresh and....and.... OK, that's too far.....let's just say Bakker and the other more legitimate evangelists who got caught. He really does seem to think that it's all okay, since he's a pastor and does so many wonderful things for people (what those things are, I haven't a clue). He's flamboyant and entertaining (so is Carson Kressley) and I definitely feel he'll ramrod through anything he wants to.

The rest: I don't even remember their names (you'd think I would after all the debates). But they just seem like filler. Nice guys, but filler. Nothing special to offer. They play the straight men to the comedians.

Hey, but then again, maybe that's JUST what we need! Someone not so OBVIOUSLY bought by lobbyists, businesses or other countries.
After all, the Republicans just want to beat Obama. If he's doing such a poor job, then maybe that's EXACTLY what we need.....a dark horse. We can use the sympathy or underdog principal to grab the Presidency back!!!

Supercommittee Failed

Oh my!

The best of the best of the best, Sir! has failed to come up with any kind of compromise on the National Deficit. Half Democrats; half Republicans; people considered to at least have a clue....and neither would give in from their Party's line. (Sounds scary to me, if you think about all the Party Lines that have been made throughout history.....most of them creating more problems than solutions)

Well, DUH.

As long as those in Congress are going to be the so-called "fixers" of the things Congress has messed up, it's not going to get fixed. They all are (and rightfully so) going to keep their perks; keep their pet projects and push for what they feel is right.

So, what to do?

DON'T USE THEM!

All Congresspeople, all Administration people and all the so-called "experts" have their own agenda. It's what got them to where they are in the first place. Whether it's Lobbyist pressure, constituent pressure (though not many seem to be too concerned about THAT, even though the voters are what keep them there); or their own moral/ethical viewpoint, they have an agenda to keep what THEY have and slice what THE OTHER GUYS have.

So here's my suggestion Mr. Obama.

Find some not-big-city CPA's and let them go to it. Give them all the information they need/want (including the invoices for the $10,000 hammers and $100,000 desks) and let them roll to a balanced budget. See, they won't care if you want to remodel your office for the 3rd time this year...they'll see it as a an extraneous expense that isn't necessary. They'll look for LEGAL expenses and tell you to pay up when you over-extended them. They won't let you go on a Bahama's junket on Big Drug Company tickets, then use the receipts as "proof" that you need to be reimbursed (also called "double dipping").

They are going to question some things that just don't make sense (like, why does it cost an American Senior 100X or more to get the same meds they sell in Canada for $20, or Mexico for $4?).

They are not likely to be real big on slashing social programs to allow big business to get bigger. Nor are they likely to severely penalize big business for being able to make big bucks. Then, again, they ARE likely to spot the loopholes that need to be closed up so that big business DOES pay what it should.

Heck, you can even let Suzie Orman do it. She'll tell you..."no you can't do that boyfriend; YOU HAVE NO MONEY!"

The Federal Budget is huge.....and complicated. But there are a ton of things that can at least be looked at.

Take farms for example. Not all of them, but a number of them. They get stipends for NOT farming certain amounts of acreage. At one time, it was a necessarity, because it artificially kept grain prices up. But now, EVERYTHING is going up because NOT ENOUGH grain is being produced...in an attempt to "go green" and use corn for fuels, there is a shortage (read price increase) of corn for feeding cows, chickens, horses, deer and using in basic food products (HELLO, where do you think "high fructose CORN syrup" comes from?). So we subsidize farmers to NOT grow what we need. Now that worked back when....when too many people produced grain that was basically used for feeding animals (including us). But it's not a part of the equation any more. So it needs to be looked at.

Welfare. One of those necessary evils. If you need it, it can be a safety net. But if you're just a lazy slob, it's an "entitlement". There are no jobs; people are STILL losing jobs (despite what the "experts" say) so trying to teach someone a trade that STILL can't be used because nobody can pay for it, isn't working. So, we need to take a real strong look at what CAN be done.

Big Corporations. They have Lots and Lots of loopholes they can sneak into. And they have lots and lots of CPA's who are willing to find and exploit those loopholes. And they can always find some statistics to back themselves up. Well, maybe that needs to be explored a lot more. These guys seem to be able to use these so much better than the Small Businesses.....and that makes it suspect.

Small Business. Needs to be left alone. They are either doing things right, or they are folding. They are NOT getting bailouts, handouts or perks. THEY are true backbone of our economy.

And what's wrong with Trump's idea of the billionaires helping out? Heck, Gates, Buffet and others are on that page. Why can't this be explored.

So c'mon President Obama. Look at what make this country great to begin with and go back to it. Use the "little guy" to reinvent this country. Because all the 'Big Honchos" in Congress are just going to destroy it. And when it DOES fall apart (and we WILL have a crash at some point, we've only delayed the inevitable) it will be, once again, the "little guys" who pick it back up and trudge on.

Politics

Another November political season has ended.

Yea! Ohio defeated SB5. This was a really bad bill in many ways. Of course they picked on the one thing that would get people riled up....and lost.

Once again they went after the people they should not be going after....fire, police, nurses and teachers. I mean, come on. Why would you go after the same people who have your life, property and kids in their hands? Can you spell S-T-U-P-I-D?

These are NOT the people raking in the big bucks!!!

In fact, the people who ARE raking in the big bucks had already made sure that THEY would not have to worry about it. Yeah, those whose salaries are that 43% higher that was talked about....those who do NOT pay into pension funds or health care had ALREADY made their loopholes.....right in the same bill that went after the ones who do. Yeah, I'm a Firefighter/Paramedic. I pay 10% into my pension (though Mr. Kasich doesn't seem to think so, although he also WANTS my pension money for his Ponzi schemes); my co-workers pay at least 15% into health insurance (some even more). However, Mr. Kasich, his staff, most administrators both State and Municipal do NOT pay into anything, but get nice fat pensions anyway.

But the experts say.....

Who are these guys? How did they become experts? And why did they forget the algorithms in Economics 101?

Capitalism = supply vs. demand.
You can build a ton of cars but if no one buys them, throwing money at a corporation to continue making products no one buys just does not make economic sense.

But the experts say.....

Stockholders/shareholders need to be reimbursed for their investment. OK, I agree.
BUT....if the guy who builds the product cannot buy the product because all the money is going to shareholders, then HELLO...supply vs demand strikes again!

Let's try something simple. Pay the guy who produces. That's why Unions were created (but we've already gone there). The guy who produces is the guy who will buy something to continue to cycle. Take out the actual producer, there's less people to buy the product. This is NOT rocket science!

I'm thinking that maybe, just maybe, it's time that we put in a bunch of people who are NOT incumbents; have no history of "you can't do that"; are not beholden to the lobbyists (anybody see 60 Minutes last week? AWESOME interview with a lobbyist); and are willing to just get it done.

Because, OBVIOUSLY, the ones already in Congress or State Houses are NOT willing to get it done.

Bullying....now more than ever

Is it just me? or does it seem that bullying has gotten everywhere?
I'm not talking about the normal school bullying that goes on (I don't think there will ever really be a way to totally curb it). I'm talking about the way adults act, even when they know better. And some of the biggest abusers have been to so-called "Sensitivity Training" (which tends to offend me more than help).
I've been watching it grow....both in the amount of places I see it, and the meanness of it. I can be in many different "worlds", if you will, as I spend a lot of time in public places as well as private. I don't remember it being this bad, even five years ago.
I watch bosses bully their employees; employees bully other employees; groups bullying others; even groups bullying among themselves!
What happened to us? When did we get so insecure about ourselves that we stoop to this behavior. Because all it really is, is our own insecurity...so we put on the bravado and tear every one else down so we look better than they are. The meanness of it only relates to our own cowardice. Yeah, that's right.....bullies are basically cowards. They rarely "fight" one on one. And they are just sooooo proud that they have swung that bat as hard as they can on someone else.
I've seen bosses/supervisors that harangue employees and literally threaten to fire emplyees that don't go along with whatever it is the supervisor wants. I've watched people who have been passed over strike out at someone who had nothing to do with their situation.....except one thing......that victim is what the bully fears that he really is. I hear people make snide comments about some poor soul (OK, we ALL do that to some extent, me included)but then blind-side the victim because they feel comfortable with the group they are with to do so. Or maybe they talk big when their victims aren't around, then try to back-peddle when confronted (or, even funnier is when they make statements around their victim that just prove what they've been saying behind their backs).
I'm used to seeing/hearing a lot of verbal abuse.....you can't do what I do for a living and not see/hear it. Lots of smack-talking and big talk. But now it seems that it's gotten much more mean. Mean to the point of being right on that edge of reaching out and physically hitting someone. And that's scary.
I know I've felt the same about them. There have been times when I see what is happening and wanting to go beyond confrontation and just clock them upside the head....of being so angry with what I see that I want to strike them. It would be easy for me.....I'm not a little person. What stops me is knowing that such an action would make me the same as them....that I would be the bully; even though I might consider myself more like an avenging angel. Avenging Angel.....what an oxymoron. Angels aren't supposed to be like that.....except maybe Michael.
It just seems that the bullies are everywhere you turn, where before there were not as many of them. Or maybe they just weren't so bold.
I wonder if all our technology hasn't, in many ways, made us so socially isolated that we are insecure in our dealings with others....even if those dealings are limited....that we are so worried that we will not measure up. So we knock them down so we look better. The sad thing is, we really don't look better. We just look stupid. And we're too stupid to see it.

Unions, Collective Bargaining, Wisconsin, Ohio, etc.

I'm not a Union person, as such.
And, I've been all over the board as to whether I'm for 'em or against 'em.
My Uncle was a Union Painter.....although when I was living with them, I really had no idea what that meant. Mom was a single parent who worked as a secretary and she was not in a union. She met and married a man who was a Boss at GM. So the only Union I ever really heard of in my young days was the UAW.....and they were, well, not so nice; in fact, they were overbearing and demanding. Some of them scared me as a young teen, so perhaps that skewed my ideas further.
Then I went to College and learned WHY the unions came into being....and I became sorta pro-union. Yet, I always had reservations.

I guess I never "got it". Unions happened because owners/bosses were so busy creating their little "kingdoms" that they forgot that those guys down at the bottom were the productive ones....the ones that created the things that made the owners rich. And the bosses treated them more like servants ("you'll do it and like it") than the real foundations of the companies.
Unions came into being to stop that. Good for them.
Then....THEY became the usurpers and high-muckety-mucks and got all righteous and mighty and, well, might makes right, doesn't it? They demanded....and demanded...and demanded. Until the the people who BUY the products couldn't afford it and the companies began to fail. Even though they really didn't fail as MUCH as they whined, the union bosses refused to give in and got all high and mighty. Eventually, it became obvious that the UNIONS BOSSES were just as "bad" as the owner/bosses....and THEY were creating their OWN little fiefdoms, surrounded by their henchmen and good-ol-boys. In other words.....they became EXACTLY what they had fought against.

And THAT'S where I don't get it. No one looks at the big picture any more. Not the "bosses" or the Union. They need each other, but each looks at the other as a parasite...something to push against.....something to "win" over losing.

But then, we have Wisconsin (and Ohio and a few other states), who are going after some unions...."public" unions....meaning these are people who have particular jobs that the state has contracted for that has their own pensions systems (and pretty good ones at that). Both Wisconsin and Ohio have chosen to go after teachers, firefighters and police unions. Dollar for dollar, these are the "cheapest" unions to go after. I would like to see them go after the UAW, for example, or really, ANY of the AFL-CIO unions. Nope.....they go after the little ones, figuring they won't be able to do as much pot-stirring. And, they can't. Except that NOW, they have bonded together.

Once again, I don't get it....this time from the legislature standpoint.
These people provide a service. A service everyone seems to need/want. We WANT the best for our kids. We WANT to be helped out of a jam. Teachers are at the point where they should get combat pay. People call for Fire/Rescue for just about everything (including things other departments are responsible for). And we all know that cops are moving targets out there. So why pick on these people? If Police and Fire live long enough (they tend not to), why shouldn't they have decent pensions. In fact, why doesn't EVERYBODY have decent pensions. After what some people give (and give up) it only seems fair.

Of course, there are the bad parts. It does seem that the unions will stand up for the lazy butt, ne'er do well, pain in the arse person, but the newer person who is trying and maybe just not quite able to lick the butt of the guy above enough is left to hang. If anything, THAT's where Unions get the bad rap. They pick and choose....and their choices are usually in favor or somebody's buddy, not for the right thing.

But, I still don't get it. Why, if you are whining that there are not enough teachers; and/or not enough GOOD teachers; would you go after those same people? Why do you mandate that they continue their education and get Master's Degrees in Education and then not compensate them for their time, effort and now their expertise? And then, try to take their chance for betterment away from them by getting rid of collective bargaining? Who wins? NOBODY!!!! And it's time the "guys in charge" figure it out.

Our society is a team society....like it or not. The Haves and Have-nots need to work together to get the best for both. This doesn't mean that the Have-nots are "entitled" to more....it just means that the Haves need to work with them better. Yeah, that's kind of a Utopian Society.....but not quite. But if we COULD all work together, everyone would have a stake in the answer.....not just be "lording it over" someone else.