A Tax By Any Other Name Is Still A Tax

A couple of things have really interested me about the raging health care reform angst. President Obama made the rounds of all the networks except FOX posturing about what the bill would contain. The problem is there is no bill other than the one the house passed out of committee which bears little resemblance to what Obama touting. Having not been voted on, it's currently in limbo.

I'm wondering why, on all those shows, not one anchor asked Obama of which bill he was speaking. The Wyden-Bennet bill, the Dodd-Kennedy bill, the Baucus bill or that House bill?

Beyond that state of confusion is his insistence that the fine to be levied on those not signing up for insurance would not be a tax. Funny, the Baucus bill states it differently:

Excise Tax. The consequence for not maintaining insurance would be an excise tax.

I am also of the opinion that anyone who is required to pay into a government fund that is mandated in order to share the burden across a wide range, is in fact a tax. George Stephanopolis checked with Merriam Webster; I settled for the dictionary on my Mac:

tax |taks|
noun
a compulsory contribution to state revenue, levied by the government on workers' income and business profits or added to the cost of some goods, services, and transactions.

Fining or penalizing people for not buying into a government program for which they have no need does not mesh with my idea of reform. Nor the American way of doing things. But then, most of Obama's programs, along with his methods,do not mesh with my way view of the American way of doing things. What he's doing with his heavy handed intrusions is no better than waging a war of choice rather than one of need.

As with the situation in Afghanistan where his hand picked General is at odds with him over man power, he's found himself boxed into a corner and is now going to see if we indeed have the right strategy. He's a day late and a dollar short.

So it is with health care. He's out making promises about a bill that as of yet does not exist. He's making points of things that are in direct contradiction of what's in the bills working their way through committees.

This is why people like me, and there are many, have lost confidence in this man who would reshape the country into one beyond recognition. I worry; not about the people, they're beginning to see what others have for some time. I worry because the hope and change we're seeing is so far from what we visualized. I worry because the opposition party remains weak and rudderless; without leadership. I worry because politics is the reason.

For all the talk about changing the way health care is managed for the good of the people, it reality it's for the good of the special interests both inside and outside the government. It's a wolf in sheep's clothing. And the sheep would be?

Race Is Not The Major Factor

Well, here I am. Until I find the pacifist within, I'll continue offering my thoughts regardless of tone - except for a lack of civility. Today I'm thinking about the issue of the President's race. Never, in recent years, has race been waved as the prevalent cause for discontent as it is now. The interesting thing is, it's white politicians doing it.

While racism is alive and well in this country, I don't believe that the recent groundswell against health care reform is caused by it. It's caused by poorly articulated plans and ideas by a one sided Congress trying to capitalize on every moment they have in power whether it's good for the people or not.

Add to that the fact that Obama is not in control of much of anything. No leader in the world is afraid of him. They've seen that he's more of a pacifier than a leader regardless of his vow to "change the world". That in of itself may have a lot to do with it. The rest of the world may not want to be changed. Especially after watching our President trying to change our country into his vision of what it should be rather than what the Constitution, which he swore to uphold, has laid out. Combine that with the people saying "just wait a minute" and even some in his own party getting in sync with the people.

No. It's not race. It's an overly ambitious agenda poorly thought through and being shoved down our throats by Chicago style politics.

Netanyahu has thumbed his nose at us. George Mitchell, Obama's special envoy to the Middle East, came home empty handed from the latest Palestinian Israeli peace talks. Iran is still fomenting hatred of the Israelis and Israel is ramping up it's anti-nuclear rhetoric against Iran. Asian leaders are flexing their muscles. Russia got it's wish for the departure of our missal shields yet they continue to refuse deeper sanctions against Iran.

Our foreign policy is weak. Is it a lack of respect? To be polite. Or is it those with ambitions contrary to ours know they have little to fear from the U.S. because of inexperienced leadership facing turmoil at home?

Nope. It is not predominantly race that have the people ranting against Obama. It's his policies. It's his attempts to destroy what has made America great with intrusive government intervention well beyond where needed. It's blind ambition on the part of some and tone deafness on the part of others. It's inexperience trying to masquerade behind flowery rhetoric.

The only thing black here is my mood and the future of this country if things continue the way they are at the pace they are. Do one thing at a time, do it well, then move on. An unheard of maxim in this administration.

In all that I wrote, whether you agree with it or not, there is no mention of race. Nor should there be. It's just not a factor.

We're B-a-a-c-k!

Well, here's the shaky video I usually return with! Hub kept telling me to put away my "toy". Men get embarrassed over the silliest things. He kept griping, "You look like a tourist!" "I am a tourist," I'd reply.

Oh well, we had a great time anyway. It was surprising how quickly we had gotten out of quick trip form! Things we forgot to do and things we tried to do until we remembered ole Bacchus wasn't with us. We're still getting used to it.

When home we browsed the stack of papers and collectively groaned while wondering just what this country is coming to. It has made me do a bit of soul searching as to whether or not I should take this blog in a different direction. I've been doing what I do so long, five years, I'm not sure I can do anything else!

I do get tired of complaining all the time and it seems I do little else. Maybe it's just my nature and I should stick with it. I do want to make a few minor changes. A new avatar maybe. The name will remain but I thought a picture of Bacchus that reflects what he thought of his treatment and I think of the news these days might be fun.

Vote on that one if you wouldn't mind! On the sidebar.

I'll no doubt be back at it tomorrow. I've a lot on my mind after having read those papers! Sheesh! Next month can't come too soon when we have a real trip planned! I'll probably suffer from withdrawal!

40 And Counting

Every one was commemorating September 11th. We were commemorating September 12th. 1969. 40 years ago yesterday we were married.

We had planned to combine a business trip to London with our anniversary. Visit with some old friends, and sail home on the Queen Mary. Well, Bacchus caused a postponement of those plans. That was okay. London and the Queen Mary will be there, as will our friends; we knew the likelihood of Bacchus being with us was slim. Unfortunately we were right.

That being said, last Wednesday was the last day we caught a mouse! If you've been reading this blog you know we discovered a mouse problem the day after he left us! It was suggested they represented his spirit. We laughed, but one can wonder... Three weeks to the day we caught the last one. We ensconced him in an ammo box, the idea being we'd catch a bunch of them and relocate them, but the little guy in the picture was the last. I took him far, far away and released him in a field.

The anniversary approached. September 11 we took dog stuff to the Humane Society Thrift Store. September 12th we shampooed carpet. All day. "Happy anniversary you old bat." "Happy anniversary you old goat."

So. This week we're going to take a short trip just to get away. Visit a couple of favorite restaurants in Montana in Butte and Big Fork. A drive through Glacier and a stop at a gallery in Columbia Falls. I can hardly wait. We need to get away.

In the meantime, if anyone reading this can tell me why my blog won't load yet I can post I'd appreciate some guidance. It has been slow loading for sometime and has now quit. I don't think upgrading to Snow Leopard on my Mac has anything to to with it. I think it is a Blogger problem.

I may get something up tomorrow - or not. If not I'll see you sometime around the end of next week.

The War Within

If you have doubts as to who's running the country you need look no further than Nancy Pelosi. As third in line, she's sure showing she's got the toughness it takes.

The The Wall Street Journal headlines the fact the Pelosi is seeing reluctance in Congress to send additional troops to Afghanistan.

It interests me to watch this woman. In some instances she seems little more then an obstructionist. I guess it depends whether or not your on her side of the battle. She's as tough as nails and as cold as steel.

General McChrystal, the relatively new commander in Kabul was instructed by Secretary of Defense Gates to not ask for increased troops in his recent assessment of conditions. It was not timely. McChrystal acquiesced. It's coming now. Bear in mind this is the administration's hand picked commander. The President contends this is a "war of necessity" and it is escalating faster than a blink of the eye. A fair chunk of Congress does not agree, including a strong coalition of Democrats.

The problem might be that Congress was burned with the "War of Choice", as Obama portrays it, in Iraq, and are reluctant to get burned again by supporting the escalation of this one. Maybe they recognize we can't afford it. Maybe they recognize the dollar cost isn't worth the end game. Maybe they realize a strategy is a must. We can't afford another open ended conflict.

Many Americans are against it. The Russians failed and the British before them. We're short of resources; how can we possibly do better? We're still fighting an enemy who is besting us with far less than we have. Why is that? Is it because we're fighting in a conventional manner while the enemy is not?

We're seeing another battle of wills between the White House and Congress. This time, rather than butting heads with the Republican minority over health care, plus a few maverick Democrats that are giving them fits, they're facing strong opposition from within their own party! That does not bode well for the administration.

I think the country is just plain war weary. Whether it's domestic "war" against unpopular policies or fighting war in lands we know little about. We're weary of an economy that shows too few signs of improvement. We're weary of looking for jobs comparable to the ones we once held. We're weary of looking for jobs period. There's likely not to be any employers left to participate in Obama's grandiose health care schemes at the rate we're going. We're just plain weary of worrying.

We're most weary, however, of sending our young men and women off to war torn areas of our own making and having them not return. Ms. Pelosi may win this battle. The "war" however, is far from over.