From the Left to the Right: October 2013

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Obamacare – It Covers Everyone: So, What’s Wrong With it? (I’ll Tell You) – Part II

Written : Oct. 2, 6, 9, 13, 16, 2013

Regardless of your political affiliation, please ‘like’ From the Left to the Right’s Facebook Page

For those who didn’t read last week’s post, I began by saying that one of my friends honestly asked what was so bad about Obamacare. After all, no pre-existing conditions will be denied and everyone will be ensured. What a wonderful deal, right? I expressed my beliefs about why the bill hurts Americans now and why it will fail when implemented, but he objected to most of my statements, and demanded proof and accurate statistical analysis. I told him that neither of us could prove an opinion, but he seemed insistent. He postulated that Obamacare is way better than nothing (the system we have). I admitted that I didn’t like the current health care system either, but not all somethings are better than all nothings. The Democrats certainly didn’t like President Bush’s something (Social Security Savings Account - for only the very young), over nothing. Here’s a few more things that I don’t like about the Obamacare tax… (Remember, these are my opinions, and I do not have to prove any of them to anyone):

Most web sites in development for three years don’t have this much trouble.

13. As predicted, the tax is not ready for implementation. Delays are the rule, rather than the exception. The websites, federal and state, crashed on day one, on live TV. Two weeks later millions still could not purchase insurance, and few had. (Daily Kos, a left-wing site, and The Daily Mail - in England - both reported approx. 55,000 in the first week, which would be, if accurate, about 5.5 million short of the 7 million goal set by the Obama administration by Mar. 30, 2014.) It’s interesting to note that my friend wildly pronounced on day one that the sites crashed because the high demand caused millions to try to get insurance immediately. It turns out that I was right and that the site was architected incorrectly. Instead of being able to see prices on page 1, each user must create an account first. This is opposite of the way things are usually done, and discourages enrollment (unless they are scared of chasing the users away). The site crashed because it was not ready for users. Many TV shows had reporters try to create an account (even on MSNBC), and couldn’t. Two weeks later we are still there. Demand is low and prices high. As usual, the federal government doesn’t know how to do business.

In addition, the Obamacare websites won’t protect you against cyber security attacks (it’s not safe to place your sensitive, personal information on the websites). The most transparent administration in history would not release figures on how many purchased insurance in the first (or second) week. If the numbers had been good, you can bet the administration would have touted the figures, front and center! In that case, the mainstream media also would have carried Obamacare’s water, highlighting its popularity.

14. Some on the left argue that all insurance will be sold by insurance companies, so, despite the bill’s immense number of rules and regulations, they maintain that there’s no governmental control whatsoever. If the federal government rules over the insurance industry, as Obamacare will, its public plan will squeeze the insurance companies out of business. That’s the goal here, socialized medicine and centralized control, and that’s socialism, folks! Remember, every country that ever tried to implement socialism has failed. There's no need to test it anymore, we know that system of governing doesn’t work.

Repeal. Replace. Defund.

15. The bill, at more than 2,000 pages at creation time, and over 20,000 pages now, was so immense that no one could read it prior to passage. The Senate rushed it through over a weekend as I recall, giving no staff a chance to digest it. I don’t trust Congress anyway, but when a prime proponent of Obamacare said that ‘you have to pass it to see what’s in it,’ that left a bad taste. They passed it, to paraphrase Secretary John Kerry, “in the dead of night,” without giving anyone a chance to read it! How can anyone respect those tactics?

16. Obamacare skips over the fact that older folks generally have higher costs than the young. The unfair burden will be laid upon the youth of America, they would be overcharged for insurance, because they don’t usually get deathly ill. However, many of them will choose the penalty, so that logic pretty much goes out the window. “Fair for everyone” sure is complicated! Isn’t that right, folks on the left?

We never want to repeal or amend any law, including the Bush tax cuts – oh, wait...!

17. Several businesses have gone from full to part-time employees to avoid the additional cost of offering insurance to them. Some adjusted to the rule that those under 50 employees will get a break from the tax. They fired employees, or won’t hire some in order to remain compliant. I thought people on the left were for forcing companies to hire – not for forcing them to fire!

18. This is important, painful, and difficult for many on the left to grasp: The ability to purchase health care insurance (having a health care plan) is NOT the same as receiving health care. When those who are covered eventually go to a specialist or end up in the emergency room, they’ll dislike their high out-of-pocket costs. (This will feel the same as not having insurance at all.) Thanks a lot, Obamacare!

Take two and call me in 2019.

19. This year, for the first time ever (15 years) my wife will not be able to stay on the insurance I purchase at my current company (29 if we take into account my previous employer). President Obama promised we would be able to keep our insurance if we liked it... but that turned out to be a false promise. Now, for the first time, the only insurance available to us are two policies, both with very high deductibles. (This means our out-of-pocket expenses for all of our future health care will increase.) We don't like that lack of choice. Democrats always say they are always for choice, but not in this case. Some would argue that my employer’s plan is not Obamacare, and technically they may be right, but I say that Obamacare affected my company’s decision-making process about health insurance. It’s not working out for us so far. (Sad face.)

Very funny.

20. Government, like large corporations, never does anything right – due to massive restrictions and regulations. Their sheer size cripples them. Just look at the Post Office… and the IRS. We always find governing failures in the large, extremist (fascist, socialist, and Communist) countries. Their systems never work out for their people in the long run because forcing equality upon a populous always means making everyone equally poor. (People on the left point to Scandinavian countries as the models of socialism, but they are much less populous than America and they enjoy many more economic freedoms than we do.)

21. It’s especially painful when friends say that I don’t care about the poor, that I like being denied for pre-existing conditions, that I love the insurance companies. None of that is true. I simply disagree with them that Obamacare fixes the health care system. As more companies gear up for next year’s insurance offerings, more people will become dissatisfied with this expensive, inefficient, and highly unaffordable governmental intrusion into our lives. Can I prove it? No. Can they prove that Obamacare is the best way to handle health care? No, they can’t.

When it comes to abortions, Democrats say, ‘leave my body alone!’ For Obamacare, though, it’s quite all right.

22. The left likes to say that America had one of the worst health care systems in the world prior to Obamacare. I saw reports from 2011-12, placing the formula for the doctor to patients ratio in America at approx. 370-416 patients to 1 doctor. (True disclosure: I heard from 508 to 2,000 to 1 doctor in late 2013, but I can’t verify those claims.) In developing countries the ratio is about 250,000-300,000 people for each doctor. Yes, this is Google-able, for all you proof-seekers. So we had one of the better systems. (They will argue that it’s silly comparing America to Malawi, for example, and they’ll say they never said anything about third world countries. I agree, they shouldn’t have brought it up in the first place...)

23. From the previous argument: Over half of the doctors we have in this country are over 50, and will retire. If healthcare providers turn away those who purchase insurance in the exchanges, this could make the system even more painful. If health care is distributed to millions more with fewer doctors, what happens to the care we enjoyed prior to Obamacare? I thought so.

Most oppose Obamacare.

My friend asked what’s so bad about Obamacare, and what harm could it possibly do? I have done my best to answer, but I’ll bet he’ll continue to defend this offensive and painful tax. Many on the left will claim it's doing great, even when it's not. If it ever does poorly, and hurts people, guess who they'll blame? Who bears the brunt of Obamacare not working? My crystal ball says that in their eyes: The blame shall never fall upon former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Harry Reid, or President Obama, but, of course... the Republicans!

ANTI-AGENDA 21 WEB SITES

Democrats Against Agenda 21

Stopping the UN in the Southwest

Please enjoy my previous posts related to U.N. Agenda 21:

From the Left to the Right - Agenda 21 Post #1, 2/28/12

From the Left to the Right - Agenda 21 Post #2, 3/27/12

From the Left to the Right - Agenda 21 Post #3, 4/17/12

From the Left to the Right - Agenda 21 Post #4, 7/10/12

From the Left to the Right - Agenda 21 Post #5, 10/30/12

From the Left to the Right - Agenda 21 Post #6, 12/04/12

From the Left to the Right - Agenda 21 Post #7, 01/08/12

From the Left to the Right - Agenda 21 Post #8, 06/12/13

From the Left to the Right - Agenda 21 Post #9, 06/18/13

From the Left to the Right - Agenda 21 Post #10, 06/26/13

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Obamacare – It Covers Everyone: So, What’s Wrong With it? (I’ll Tell You) – Part I

Written : Oct. 2, 6, 9, 2013

Regardless of your political affiliation, please ‘like’ From the Left to the Right’s Facebook Page

Amazing.

One of my friends recently (and honestly) asked what was so bad about Obamacare. After all, everyone can be insured and no pre-existing conditions will be denied. Sounds great, right? I told him what I thought, but he didn’t like my answer, and said that all of my points could be refuted. I agreed, but so could his supportive arguments. My friend also said that hey, it’s better than nothing (the system we have). I admitted that I didn’t like the current system either, but not all somethings are better than all nothings. The Democrats certainly didn’t like President Bush’s something (Social Security Savings Account - for only the very young), over nothing. Here are the first dozen things I don’t like about the Obamacare tax:

1. Despite the claims of Democrats, Republicans were NOT consulted on crafting the Obamacare bill. I actually remember what happened. The law was written by only Democrats, so it’s one-sided. No Republican ideas were included, and that’s bad. (Romneycare was NOT a nationalized health plan and does NOT qualify as a Republican idea.) Democrats would never let us forget: Let’s say a Republican president took a controversial conservative idea from a single moderate Democrat governor. This president (Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Mia Love, Nikki Haley, or Bobby Jindal?) said you had to pass it to see what was in it, and implemented it nationally - after passing it with no votes from any Democrats. Would their party say our Republican president passed a Democratic idea? No.

Let’s craft a bill without the Republicans, and pass it all by our lonesome... okay!

2. The tax was passed by a bare 60 vote majority, after Sen. Arlen Specter switched parties from (R) to (D)… It was passed after many back-room deals, and several Senators were promised special deals to benefit their states. For those who say Obamacare is the ‘law of the land,’ please recall the “cornhusker kickback.” In exchange for his “yes” vote, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) was promised that the federal government would fund Nebraska’s expanded Medicaid system, the only state to get permanent federal assistance – yes, forever, predicted to be about $45 million per decade. Every other state (all 49) would pay for this going forward. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA), was promised an additional $300 million for her state’s Medicaid program if she voted for the bill. Nice, huh? Fair? The “law of the land?” Maybe, but unfairly passed – barely under the wire - for sure.

You can’t cover more people w/o increasing prices.

3. I don’t like the federal (or any) government telling me I have to purchase anything, including health insurance. They never forced us before, and what’s to stop them from telling me which car to purchase, or which company’s oil to buy? This is a freedom, and a slippery slope issue. It borders on tyranny when the authorities put a gun to our head (back atcha) and force us to spend our money. Hey, Dems, where’s that “screw them!” attitude, and just when we need it?< p>

4. Obamacare imposes a penalty on those who don’t buy insurance, and the penalty will stiffen as the years go on. That’s unfair, and back-breaking for the poor. I thought that only Democrats support the rights of the poor. Guess not.

5. If Obamacare were such a great law, why did President Obama delay the penalty for corporations, but not for individuals (we, the people)?

6. If Obamacare were such a great law, why are lawmakers and most public employees exempt, and why did thousands of the president’s buddies (CEO’s, and corporate donors) get exemptions? The left rails against such behavior when a Republican is the target, but supports such cronyism when it benefits the left’s agenda. Many on the left don’t seem to care if the little people can’t get exemptions if they want to opt out.

Star Trek II, Khan: You can't get away!

7. Obamacare doesn’t fix one of its main goals, to insure everyone. Millions (perhaps as many as now) will still be uninsured, even years after it takes effect.

8. Obamacare doesn’t fix one of its main goals, to lower the cost of health care. Some will enjoy its benefits, yes, but a majority will still pay for the others. You can’t get something for nothing. How can more be insured for less cost? That can’t happen. That’s not possible!

9. President Obama said, over and over again, “If you like your insurance, you can keep it.” While that statement stands for some, many (who received insurance through their employers) have already lost their insurance, and must now buy it on the exchanges. Millions will lose out.

I am one of those millions who lost coverage.

10. Middle America will probably bear the burden of the cost of Obamacare. I’ll agree with liberals here: The rich (and businesses) never pay more, even when intimidated, forced, or threatened. As we suspect, they will pass the costs on to us. (The difference here is that I accept this as the way things are, but people on the other side don’t, they resist the nature of businesses every day.)

11. The IRS will enforce this tax. The HHS Secretary will have the final say (Hey, Democrats – that could be a Republican, several years from now!). Many more employees will be added to the IRS to collect the new tax revenue. Yes, I like police, firemen, and teachers, but I don’t like when government grows (in this way) because it’s highly inefficient. Check out the Post Office, and the IRS (remember the IRS scandal?) for two examples. Bureaucracies, like many large corporations (right, Democrats?), don’t generally function well.

12. The increased number of patients will force IRS officials to decide who deserves treatment over others. Do you really want some guy in the IRS deciding over your son or daughter’s care? Just ask Sarah Murnaghan, the 11-year-old, who required a lung transplant to live. HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius denied poor Sarah’s request several times, but under public pressure, finally caved in. Sad story, but this tax will hurt young people, too.

To be continued next week…