Senate Finance Committee healthcare proposals:Tax! Tax! Tax!

"Government's view...could be summed up in a few short phrases:If it moves, tax it.If it keeps moving, regulate it.And if it stops moving, subsidize it." Ronald Reagan

And it seems they're at it again. I'm talking about a report issued by the senate finance committee earlier this year dealing with proposed changes to America's health care system.
The name of the report is Financing Comprehensive Healthcare Reform:Proposed Health System Savings And Revenue Options. This is the senate finance committees blue print for proposals to change our present system.

This is a fairly extensive document-although no match for the House bill- and runs to 41 pages,and is loaded,and I mean Loaded with proposed new taxes. And here are just a few of the proposals that we may see included in the S.F.C. draft bill.

" A number of options could be considered that would limit the value of employer-provided health coverage that is exclude able from gross income. The limit could be based on the value of the plan or the income of the insured, or the limit could be a combination of both. Alternatively, the limit could be tied to a percentage of the value of the employer-provided health coverage."

Here's a big one. this is found in SECTION II: Options to Modify the Exclusion for Employer-
Provided Health Coverage. There it is the liberals in the senate want to tax your health benefits and make them a part of your gross income.

All this will do is cause some workers to drop their employer provided health care, and since they don't have a public option, force these people to go without insurance.

This is just the tip of the Iceberg and oh what an iceberg it is. Some other proposals would alter or eliminate H.S.A.'s and Flex Spending accounts.

These folks want to take one of the better reform of recent years-a reform that actually encourages people to take more responsibility for their health care-and destroy it-or at the very least-tax it to death. It gets even better in SECTION IV: Lifestyle Related Revenue Raisers we find proposals for new taxes on soft drinks,distilled alchohol,wine and beer. They're going to drive you to drink with all their new taxes and tax the hell out of you again if you do.

If that wasn't bad enough they also propose eliminating credits for domestic oil and gas exploration, as well as ,domestic refining. They have also set their sights on alternative fuels. What ever happened to energy Independence?

The final section deals with proposed revenue enhancements put forth by the Obama administration. Once again oodles and oodles of new taxes.

Dear reader if you think things are bad now it looks we may be going to worse very soon. I have only managed to scratch the surface of this turkey, and if even half of this comes out in the final draft, then everyone who cares about the health, well being, fitness not only of individuals, but also this nation and it's economy, needs to send a loud no thank you to congress.

Once again more change we can darn sure live without

An open letter to Nancy Pelosi

Today I wrote an e-mail to Nancy Pelosi taking her to task for referring to right wing protesters as "Violent,angry out of control, carrying swastikas etc, etc. I posted it at mailto:AmericanVoices@mail.house.gov.

I urge any one who reads this post, and is sick and tired of out of control politicians labeling any one who disagrees with them as Nazis,angry blah, blah, blah to do the same. What follows is my letter to Ms. Pelosi. ,

Dear Ms. Pelosi. I am one of the so called angry, violent extremist wild eyed anti health care protesters. I have never been unruly, violent or tried to attack anyone while protesting. No on in any group I have been with has . However we have been sometimes loud and vocal. That is our right as Americans.


When it was your side organizing anti-Bush protest ,that was “patriotic”. When your side likened Bush and Cheney to Nazis and war criminals they were held up as hero's. But when concerned citizens many from all parties get mad at what you and your fellow extremist left wing crack jobs are doing you describe us Like I just described you!.
You only want “civil debate” when it benefits you.

Ms. Pelosi You Are a Tyrant!.

Stimulus We Can believe In!

The liberty bell. What a symbol of American freedom. That's what this blog is all about,freedom. The democrats in congress have billed themselves as the guardian's of freedom, Barack said he would bring us economic freedom and social justice, together they forced through a so called stimulus that has done absolutely nothing to advance the cause of freedom or economic stimulus!



Enter "American Solutions,for winning the future". the democrats keep accusing conservatives of criticizing but not having solutions. Well here is a site , connected with Newt Gingrich, that offers real solutions to the problems we currently face.



Chief among these solutions-there's twelve by the way-is a proposal for "Payroll Stimulus". What would this do? Well according to the American Solutions "Take Action"Page this "Payroll Stimulus" would...

"Reduce the Payroll Tax by 50% for Two Years. Whereas many people don't pay the income tax, but do pay the payroll tax, we believe this would immediately boost take home pay for every employee, and free up available cash for every employer."



Although I prefer the Fair Tax- which totally eliminates payroll, income, and corporate taxes-any tax break is better than no tax break. Especially one that puts more cash into the pockets of the people who drive this economy. The American worker.



If I had a fifty percent reduction in what I pay in payroll taxes-and this should include medicare and,social security as well as federal taxes- who knows I might be able to by a new car, or refrigerator, or whatever. Multiply this by millions of workers and shazamm you have real stimulus and the beginning of recovery.



America It's time to wake up and demand that those who supposedly represent us in Washington act on proposals like this. And in a special note to the Republican Party if you don't adopt a platform similar to the American Solutions platform you will probably not retake control of Congress and America will have lost again.

A nationwide Castle Protection Law. We need this now!

From time to time I like to go the Library of Congress web site http://thomas.loc.gov/home/thomas.html and check out some of the proposed legislation in Congress. The other day I found this little bill on their spot. It's called H.R.17 and it deals with self protection in one's own home.

Here in Missouri we have a law referred to as the Castle law. What this law does is allow a homeowner to use deadly force against anyone who breaks into their house and is threatening their family.

I see H.R 17 as a National version of Missouri's Castle Law. If enacted this law would "protect the right to obtain firearms for security, and to use firearms in defense of self, family, or home, and to provide for the enforcement of such right".

When a similar law was passed in Missouri I was taken by supprise. I thought I already had the right to use a gun to protect my home and family. But in truth if the situation had arose I might well have been charged with a crime.

This is a problem nationwide. Honest citizens trying to protect what is theirs are routinely subjected to criminal prosecution. Just take a look at this quote from H.R 17

"Ronald Biggs, a resident of Goldsboro, North Carolina, was arrested for shooting an intruder in 1990. Four men broke into Biggs' residence one night, ransacked the home and then assaulted him with a baseball bat. When Biggs attempted to escape through the back door, the group chased him and Biggs turned and shot one of the assailants in the stomach. Biggs was arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon--a felony. His assailants were charged with misdemeanors."

This sort of thing is outrageous, but wait, it doesn't stop there...

"Don Campbell of Port Huron, Michigan, was arrested, jailed, and criminally charged after he shot a criminal assailant in 1991. The thief had broken into Campbell's store and attacked him. The prosecutor plea-bargained with the assailant and planned to use him to testify against Campbell for felonious use of a firearm. Only after intense community pressure did the prosecutor finally drop the charges".

The prosecutor was actually going to use the CRIMINAL to testify against the VICTIM!
I practically choked when I first read that one. Folks this is the state of our country. Victims are charged with crimes while the perpetrators go free, get reduced sentences, or even win awards in law suits.

This is America today folks. As they say you can't make this stuff up. 60, 75 ,100 years ago this wouldn't have even been needed but not today. All I can do is shake my head when I think about it. Here is some real. practical , legislation, that is badly needed in an age when not an hour goes by that there is not a home invasion, burglary, or rape in a citizens home.

In the meantime all the Democrats in Congress can think of is TAX TAX TAX and GUN CONTROL. Time for people to demand legislation like this be moved forward and passed into law.

A gun toting Freedomlover.

Claire McCaskills true colors shining through or just a case of a stupid staffer?

http://mccaskill.senate.gov

While checking out one of my favorite blogs-The Patriot Room-This article caught my eye "Sen McCaskill staff give HC protesters the finger!"

On the page from the articles website there was a link to blog called "The Gatewaypundit". i stills was in a state of shock and disbelief just from reading the headline. At a time when congressional approval is at an all time low how could McCaskill approve of this kind of behavior?

Then I asked my self could this be an indication of Claire's attitude toward constituents that don't agree with her? I don't know. What I do know is that a few weeks ago I e-mailed Ms. McCaskill's office to urge her not to support cap and trade and never got a responding e-mail from her. About that same time I e-mailed some other congress people and did receive the automatic computer generated response.

Could this incident be McCaskills true colors shining through? Is this a reflection of the culture and atmosphere she has cultivated in the staff that work For her? For my part I want to believe that it was just a thoughtless act by a stupid staffer.

However it does call attention to what seems to be a disturbing trend by Democratic office holders toward holding anyone who disagrees with them in contempt! Don't they read the newspaper or keep an eye on the blogosphere? Seems not or else they might begin to figure out that Obamacare stinks to high heaven with the American people.

As a constituent of Ms. McCaskill I would like to remind her that the "People"-as in "We the People"- are her boss! We hired her-well I didn't I voted against her-we can fire her.

Their is something terribly wrong in Washington that seems to breed contempt in our elected officials for the people that they are there to serve us.

Well come 2010 I feel sure many of them will be packing their carpet bags for other diggs.

As for me I fully intend to vote against anyone with a D behind their last name!

People it's time to shout FREEDOM NOW!

Is this the time to consider cutting missile defense?

'In 33 minutes or less, life as we know it in America could end. That's how long it would take for an enemy ballistic missile launched from the other side of the world to hit the United States."

According to the Heritage Foundation -that's the frighteningly short time-it would take an I.C.B.M launched from the other side of the world to reach the United states. and if that's not enough of a mind blower they go on to state... "within just one year of such an attack, 70 percent to 90 percent of Americans would be dead from starvation and disease." This would be the effect of the electro-magnetic pulse of a nuclear weapon.

That's according to the article" "What Americans need to know about missile defense:We're not there yet. At heritage .org.

Considering this information, along with the facts that Tehran and Pyongyang are both trying to develop missiles capable of reaching this country, it is a dereliction of duty for the President and Congress to be thinking about cutting missile defense. But that's exactly what our President as well as the liberals in congress are trying to do.

According to Heritage the Obama administration is proposing to cut over "1billion dollars".

Now in the grand scheme of things that sounds like a small amount. But what price would you set on the lives of your family and friends or the city or town you live in.

It seems to me that liberals often have a naive view of the world. Ronald Reagan told us that peace is obtained through strength not weakness. Time and again weakness or the perception of it has lead to military and terrorist attacks.

World War II is a shining example of how weakness on the part of Europe and the United States led to war. Or consider Sept. 11 2001 a perception by -Al-Quada- of American weakness or unwillingness to react to terror led to the deaths of thousands, and still reverberates in Afghanistan and Iraq today.

They also fail to realize that we have Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro to our south. Both theses regimes make no bones about their dislike for us. And Chavez seems to be involved in a one nation arms race to be the strongest power in Central America.

And what happens if one of theses rogue regimes were to hand off to or help Al-Quada airburst a nuclear bomb over the U.S. its possible that most of us would die. the pulse would take out all of our sophisticated electronics and effectively push us back hundreds if not thousands of years.

I don't no about you, but i would rather have more anti-missile defense not less.

Freedomlover.

" Extremism In The Defense Of Liberty Is No Vice"

"Those who seek absolute power, even though they seek it to do what they regard as good, are simply demanding the right to enforce their own version of heaven on earth. And let me remind you, they are the very ones who always create the most hellish tyrannies. Absolute power does corrupt, and those who seek it must be suspect and must be opposed. Their mistaken course stems from false notions of equality, ladies and gentlemen. Equality, rightly understood, as our founding fathers understood it, leads to liberty and to the emancipation of creative differences. Wrongly understood, as it has been so tragically in our time, it leads first to conformity and then to despotism. "

Acceptance speech, R.N.C, San Francisco, July 1964

Since the election of 2008 When our President, Barack OBama, was elected. It seems as though he, along with his accomplices in congress have been on a crusade to gather all- and I do mean -all power into Washington D.C. And unto them selves.

They seem to be following the same path as the Russian Communists of the Twentieth Century. Who sought to have everything centrally controlled.

The genius that has made this Nation great-is the notion- that individuals, local governments, and state governments, could come up with better solutions to the problems they face than a centralized government

Things have been happening lately that boggle the imagination, C.E.O.'s being fired by the government, companies being taken over by the government, and health care, being threatened by the government.

Our President and his minions in congress have been accumulating more and more power unto themselves. There's not a day goes by, that a new Department, Czar, or regulatory body, is not created by this president. At the same time the government seems to be less, and ,less responsive to the People. From the President on down this administration, and the Democrats in Congress, seek to bring "equality, and social justice, to the people. Salaries must be regulated, because it just isn't fair, for C.E.O.'s and top executive to be paid so much.

Companies must be regulated, because it's not fair for workers to take cuts, or even, be layed off, in order to save the company. It's not fair for big corporations , such as the oil companies, to make huge profits. Never mind that they also have huge expenses, and on average, only make about four cents, on every dollar they invest. While the Government makes more on a gallon if gas than they do. The financial sector must be regulated to bring "economic justice" to us all.

We've been down this road before. all the way back in the 1700"s, when King George the 3'rd took it upon himself, to usurp the power of local legislatures, replace Colonial Governor, and annul charters that gave certain rights to the Colonies.

Consider these words from our Declaration of Independance... "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal - That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed- That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."

This greatest of political documents- in the history of man- goes on to list the grievances which our forefathers had against the King... "He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them." Given Barack isn't guilty of this specific trespass. But at his direction the Congress did dictate to the states how spending bills relate to the stimulus should be crafted, specifically, demanding that any stimulus spending states make be permanent.

"He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance." Does this sound familiar! especially the eating out their substance part. The harassment has already started, and if not vigorously opposed, will spread its evil tentacles into the lives ,as well as , livelihood of every man,women, and child .in this country

I don't want to be extreme. I have no desire for any kind of violence. Abraham Lincoln said" The Ballot is more powerful than the bullet". I still hold out faith, that the genius, of our Constitution will prevail, and we get rid of the current gang , through the wonder of a bloodless revolution through the ballot box.That said. Our founding Fathers didn't seek violence, they did not want to be extreme, but alas circumstances, history, and the stubbornness, of a King, to listen to His people, forced their hand.

At this point, if it is extreme, to want a return to our original values, and , ideals of Liberty,Freedom ,and Justice, Then count me extreme.

This current crowd would do well, to bone up on their history, and turn away from this headlong rush to socio-facism. And God forbid- they attempt- to make permanent- their grip on power by subverting the political process. then I to will be forced to say...

"Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice!

Gene, A lover of Freedom!

Health Care Reform: Change We Can Believe In?

Well here we go again. Once more -Our Glorious Leader- Barack Hussein OBama has said a current issue must be taken care of now, with seemingly no time for debate. Just as with the so called Stimulus, The Budget, and the Detroit bailout. This time it's Health Care.

He's calling on Congress to do something now, like in right now. I remember an old adage that said "Act in haste, repent at leisure. If only our Politicians in Washington would heed this common sense advice.

Over the past several years we have been told time and time again that "Our health care system is broken'. I'll admit there is considerable room for improvement, but , at the present time an individual will not, and cannot be refused, the urgent health care they need. Basically, if you need urgent care, it is illegal, for hospitals to refuse anyone treatment. Seems to me that's a pretty sweet deal. This is one reason medical care is so expensive. Those of us with insurance, or the money to pay, are subsidising, already, those without the means to pay their bills. Actually American health care appears to be very good.

Case in point. The National Center For Policy Analysis Say's..." Americans have better survival rates than Europeans for common cancers". What's more they say "Americans have better access to treatment for chronic diseases than patients in other developed countries." In fact they report that " "Americans are more satisfied with the health care they receive than Canadians. So much for a broken system.

Consider these facts: Out of the top ten most recent medical developments ,that have revolutionized medicine, seven were developed in the United States and one category ,hip and, knee replacements, were developed jointly-no pun intended- between the United States, United Kingdom, and Japan.

The President, as well as, his fellow Democrats in Congress, wants to foist upon the American People the same kind of medical system that is seen in Canada, Britain, as well as Europe. Why would we want to emulate these countries where patients often wait, as long as a year, to have surgeries, we take for common, such as knee or hip replacement surgery. I have even heard stories of people needing emergency treatment for things such as, blood clots and appendicitis , being misdiagnosed, given pain pills, and sent home where they later died. We don't need health care reform of this sort. We were promised-during the election- "Change we can believe in" In my opinion- this is change we can live without.