Showing posts with label america. Show all posts
Showing posts with label america. Show all posts

Regulate this…

Smaller government. That seems to be one of the political mantras of the day. I wonder what that really means to those that are doing that chant? Have they thought it through…do they have specific things in mind....and if so…what are they, and are they practical? What programs and regulations do these people want the government to cut? Social Security? Medicaid? Medicare? Wall Street regulations? Banking regulations? Would they like the government to remove the regulations that require businesses to invest in Unemployment Insurance or Workman’s Compensation Insurance? If the government didn’t force employers to provide this coverage, what do you think would happen? Do you think businesses would voluntarily continue to pay your wages and cover all your medical expenses? Let’s face it, without government regulations in place to protect us, we’d be in a world of hurt. It appears to me that the government grows as needs are revealed. In like manner, laws are created when it becomes obvious that a law is needed to govern some behavior. Would it be better if the government just ignored the needs?

This is where we are with health care. The need for health care reform has become obvious. Extremely high health care costs, and thirty million Americans that can’t afford coverage. On top of that you have the baby boomers entering retirement age. Unless there is some reform, the whole system will collapse. President Obama is being honest about this. He isn’t covering it up, he isn’t ignoring it, he isn’t going along with the status quo. He’s taking a lot of heat, too, but he’s acting responsibly. Bottom line, something has to give….and it might be all of us. We all may have to give a bit more so that we can support a humane system. I shudder to think of a time in the United States of America when seniors will be homeless and scattered all over the streets in large numbers because they have lost everything due to health issues and the associated costs of treatment.

And for those of you who say…they can just go to the ER. First off, that cost is laid on the government as well and it’s at a premium. And what about this scenario…you go to the ER and discover that you have cancer or some other issue that requires ongoing treatments. Does the hospital then schedule you for these treatments knowing that you are not able to pay? In my experience, hospitals will refer you to the appropriate specialist for follow up. Just try getting into a doctor’s office or a specialist's office without paying. What about any prescriptions that you may need…maybe for years? Does the hospital give those out for free, too? No, I don’t think that the ER is a good alternative to real health care coverage. I think it’s very likely that there are a lot of people quietly dying because they know they can’t afford to go to a doctor. They may end up in the ER, but by the time they do, it may well be too late.

What kind of America are we going to be? Forgive me for saying so, but I’m thinking of these scriptures…

1 Timothy 6:10…For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Hebrews 13:5…Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."

Mismanaged to the nth degree...

Is it just me, or is the USA (mostly) run by a bunch of morons and populated (mostly) by the same?  The country is over 9 trillion dollars in debt!  The governments' answer for a slow down in the economy:  give everyone that filed a tax return a rebate check for 300-600 dollars?  What kind of answer is that?  Let's go deeper in debt?  Let's mismanage to even a greater degree?  Let's show the world what a complete bunch of idiots we are?  Oh my goodness.

Gas prices are too high.  What to do?  Oh, I know, let's do away with the gas tax at least temporarily?  Well, what are those taxes for?  Where does that money go...what does that money accomplish?  Where is that money going to come from if it doesn't come from those taxes?  Oh, I see, let's go further in debt...or rob Peter to pay Paul.  We'll pay back Peter later.  Good planning.

What plagues America that it has been reduced to a laughing stock?  Could it be that the whole political system is based on a popularity contest?  Could it be that anyone actually trying to deal with the real issues that the country faces has no real chance of ever being elected because changes of the magnitude necessary would require a complete restructuring of America and would likely impact just about everyone's current life style?  Is the problem now too big to address responsibly?  Must a new beginning be birthed from catastrophe?

My Christian Interpretation would be that countries rise to power and countries fall from grace.  What precedes the fall?  A distancing from God, and all things called holy.  A man reaps what he sows, and so does a country.

Was Jesus GOD?

  Here is what scripture says:   1Co 8:6 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord...