Please get your swine flu vaccination as soon as possible
I have had a change of heart. I have not been a believer in the swine flu hysteria that has swept across the world. I believed that it was nothing more than a contrived crisis by the media and a faux crisis that the president and the politicians have glommed on to in order to continue a crisis mentality that would culminate in the signing of the healthcare reform bill.
But now with this report from the United Nations that millions of people could die and anarchy will spread across the world if people do not get vaccinated I have had a change of heart. I am asking everybody to please, please, please get vaccinated and please get your children vaccinated. It is the right thing to do.
So why this change of heart that certainly seems out of character? I am sure that is the question that regular readers here might have and so I will attempt to explain.
I work for a company that builds control cabinets for process systems. We build the automated electrical control systems for a local company that then incorporates our electrical systems into their mechanical systems to perform certain automated functions. This company is not the final destination of these systems, once the systems are complete they are shipped off to the ultimate customer.
Once our control cabinets are complete and shipped out to the local company that is our customer I am in charge of a small field group that installs our cabinets into the system. It is my responsibility to “layout” the systems and incorporate them to customer specifications and completely wire the systems in time for final test and shipment.
Recently we have been under enormous pressure to meet a rigorous schedule and the customer is unwilling to change the schedule at all. I have been working twelve hour days during the week and ten hours on Saturday to meet this schedule.
What does this have to do with the swine flu? Well, you see, the systems that we build are for pharmaceutical products. Once the systems leave our local customer they head to companies like Genzyme, Merck, Amgen, Genentech, PDL, and GSK. These systems eventually are used to create drugs.
It is this last company, GSK, that has held us to an almost unattainable schedule. But the question is, why are they so unwilling to change their schedule by even a few days in order to give us enough time to complete the job on a more reasonable schedule?
It wasn’t until last Wednesday that I learned why the schedule was so rigid. The systems that I am working on are going to be used to create the swine flu vaccine.
Because of the swine flu hysteria I have been working extra hours and making extra money that I can use to better provide for my family. So while I still believe that this whole pandemic talk is a product of an overzelious media I have been a direct beneficiary of the hysteria.
This provides us with what the president likes to call a “teachable moment” because while the government is trying to paint large companies, such as big pharmaceutical, as greedy, money grabbing companies who make a profit off of the misery of others and punish them for it there is more to the story. And this applies to other big corporations as well.
The government likes to claim that big drug companies, (and all big companies in general) make a large profit and are run by greedy executives. And while it is true that the drug companies make billions of dollars a year the government seems to overlook the fact that the drug companies themselves employ hundreds of thousands of Americans in order to make that profit. The government also seems to overlook the fact that the drug companies provide thousands of manufacturing jobs, such as mine, to the people who build the systems that will be used to make their product.
Big companies provide jobs for Americans that might not otherwise be there. So while the president is vilifying big companies for the profits they make he would be well served to remember that these companies not only provide a service to the American people, they also provide jobs to the American people. Jobs for average Americans like myself. Everyone wins under this scenario.
So remember to get your swine flu vaccination, do it for my children.
Obama administration urges court to dismiss a DOMA lawsuit
The Obama administration has urged the courts to drop a lawsuit filed by gay couples because while they were legally married in Massachusetts they were not eligible for federal benefits.
While this is sure to spark outrage in the gay community and with gay activists the truth is that President Obama is 100% correct on this issue. The “Defense of Marriage Act” signed by President Clinton strictly forbids the federal government from recognizing gay marriage. President Obama and his administration are simply following precedent with this decision.
No court has found such a right to federal benefits to be fundamental — and the federal courts that have considered the question in the context of DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act) itself have rejected such a claim
The law has been challenged before and has been found to be constitutional so the real question here is why hasn’t Barack Obama made good on his promise to repeal DOMA? This would be the correct procedure if Obama really wanted to grant gay couples equal rights. I give him credit for not collapsing to the politically correct opinion here and for adhering to precedent but one has to wonder why he has not pressed to the legislature to repeal DOMA and give gay couples the equal rights that he promised them.
During the campaign he promised to repeal DOMA but as president he has seemed unwilling to commit fully to gay rights, this has angered gay activists. Perhaps he has weighed the political ramifications and has decided that it is better to anger the gay lobby than to repeal DOMA and risk losing the moderate vote (a much larger voting block).
If this is the case he is putting politics ahead of doing what he claimed he believes in; equal rights for gays and the repeal of DOMA. While I applaud him for following precedent gay couples must feel like they were taken for a ride. They were, join the club with the anti-war protesters who have watched in horror as Obama has continued President Bush’s policies.
Campaigning is one thing, governing is another.
Obama to give illegals amnesty first and then healthcare
The president has claimed that illegal immigrants will not be eligible for free healthcare under his healthcare reform bill. While it was true that there was no language in the bill that allowed illegals to get healthcare insurance there was also no language that prevented illegals from getting free healthcare.
President Obama rectified the loophole that would have allowed illegal immigrants to receive healthcare when he recommended language to be added to the bill that would strictly prohibit illegal immigrants from getting healthcare. He asked that citizen verification be added to the healthcare reform bill. He added this language to appease conservatives, this is an attempt to win support for the bill.
But now he has to appease another group, this one at odds with the conservatives. In order to assuage the fear that Obama will not support healthcare for illegals he has let his true plan out of the bag. Now he is advocating a position that would subvert the citizen verification amendment to the healthcare reform bill and allow all of those who are currently in the United States gain access to free healthcare.
One of the next domestic agenda items that Barack Obama will be pushing for is comprehensive immigration reform. In other words legalizing illegal immigrants. Amnesty. The legalizing of these illegal immigrants will then make them eligible for healthcare.
Here is what the president said to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute earlier this week:
I want to be clear: If someone is here illegally, they won’t be covered under this plan. That’s a commitment I’ve made.
Bravo! That sounds very good to me but the president was not done, he continued:
But I also want to make this clear: Even though I do not believe we can extend coverage to those who are here illegally, I also don’t simply believe we can ignore the fact that our immigration system is broken, that’s why I strongly support making sure folks who are here legally have access to affordable, quality health insurance under this plan, just like everybody else,
He is laying the foundation for combining the healthcare reform debate with the immigration reform debate making them a single issue. And then he brings it full circle:
If anything, this debate underscores the necessity of passing comprehensive immigration reform and resolving the issue of 12 million undocumented people living and working in this country once and for all
The president is trying once again to have it both ways. He is placating conservatives with the addition of language to the healthcare reform bill that would deny illegals healthcare coverage while at the same time laying the foundation that would legalize those very same illegals so that they would become eligible for healthcare coverage.
Under Obama’s plan for a pathway to citizenship, the same horrible plan that President Bush proposed, there would no longer be any illegal aliens. While this would be a great idea if his plan “resolving the issue of 12 million undocumented people” was to deport those that are here illegally I am sorry to say that that is not the plan. The plan is to legalize the illegal aliens and then give them the healthcare coverage that they currently would not be entitled to.
Once the president was exposed on the issue of illegal immigrants being eligible for healthcare coverage he had to change his position and write language to prevent illegals from being eligible for coverage. Because of this he had to switch to plan “B”; legalizing everyone so that they would be eligible for coverage. That is, if that wasn’t the plan all along.
Latest New Hampshire poll (09/18/09)
In the New Hampshire race to fill the senate seat that will be vacated by incumbant Republican Judd Gregg we have the latest poll numbers.
The polls show that Republican candidate Kelly Ayotte leads Democrat Paul Hodes (who is currently the second district representative) by a margin of 46-38%. Both candidate enjoy over 80% support of voters in their party but where this poll gets interesting is with the undeclared and independent voters. They support Ayotte by a 14% margin. If this margin holds up it could mean a resurgence by Republicans in New Hampshire in 2010. There are more undeclared and independent voters in New Hampshire than there are registered Republicans or Democrats; they represent the largest voting block. If these voters continue to support the Republican candidate by such a large margin there is no way that Paul Hodes can win this senate seat.
The polls show that Democrat Governor John Lynch is still enjoying a 66% approval rating but there is still no big name Republican who has announced an intention to run against him in the 2010 election. The New Hampshire GOP just doesn’t seem to have a high profile candidate that will pose a legitimate challenge to him.
However if the state supreme court upholds a lower court ruling that John Lynch unconstitutionally tried to grab $110 million from a private entity to balance his irresponsible budget leaving the state budget in shambles this could have a disastrous effect on his re-election bid. It will be up to Republicans to field a legitimate candidate.
It is still early in the process but there are some signs that a Republican rebound may be in the works in New Hampshire.
President Obama says that the healthcare reform protests are not racist
While the healthcare reform protesters have been called racists by the media, some celebrities, and some politicians, including Jimmy Carter, the question that was left unanswered was where does Barack Obama stand on these accusations? By remaining silent on the issue it would appear that he was in agreement with the sentiment. His silence on the accusations certainly helped to embolden those who would call the protests racist events.
If he were to come out and condemn, or at least rebuff, those who throw around such incendiary, irresponsible comments than the issue could be laid to rest. But he refused to do that making, it seem as though he probably agreed with the critics.
But today he answered the question. Today he said that he did in fact believe that the healthcare reform protesters were true opponents of healthcare reform and that they are not simply protesting the fact that a black man is in the White House. He was late in addressing the issue and that probably contributed to the continued attacks on the protesters but at least he finally addressed the issue.
Are there people out there who don’t like me because of race? I’m sure there are,” Obama told CNN. “That’s not the overriding issue here
He continued:
There’s been a long-standing debate in this country that is usually that much more fierce during times of transition, or when presidents are trying to bring about big changes,” Obama told CNN.To NBC News, Obama put it this way: “It’s an argument that’s gone on for the history of this republic, and that is, What’s the right role of government? How do we balance freedom with our need to look out for one another? … This is not a new argument, and it always evokes passions
Now there are some who are, setting aside the issue of race, actually I think are more passionate about the idea of whether government can do anything right,” Obama said told ABC News. “And I think that that’s probably the biggest driver of some of the vitriol
There is probably no bigger critic of the president than I. I disagree with almost all of his policies, these differences have nothing to do with his race but rather his politics and I am glad that the president finally came out and told everyone that he also believes most of his detractors disagree with his policies and are not simply opposing him because of his race.
He is absolutely right here. He said “It’s an argument that’s gone on for the history of this republic, and that is, what’s the right role of government?” He and I have contrasting views of what the “right role of government” is. He believes in big government and he believes that the government is the answer to all of our problems. I hold the exact opposite view. So do many other Americans. So do most of the healthcare reform protesters. That does not make us racists.
Perhaps now that President Obama has gone on record as claiming that the healthcare reform protesters are legitimate we can shift the argument away from the name calling of the leftists and focus it on where it belongs; on the role of the government and the issue of healthcare reform.
Russ Feingold may hold hearings on President Obama’s czars
In light of the recent resignation of President Obama’s green czar Republicans have begun a war on czars. It now seems like Democrat senators may be willing to jump into this war.
Democrats are beginning to question Barack Obama’s use of czars instead of cabinet appointees who must be confirmed by the senate. Russ Feingold has said that he may consider holding hearings into the president’s czar use.
To the extent that this undercuts that role and people are put in the place of Cabinet people and really are the key authorities and you can’t question them, that’s something worth talking about,” Feingold said. “I think it’s a fair point.”
Feingold says he doesn’t know if there are any constitutional violations, but he suggested that he may hold an oversight hearing on the matter
Russ Feingold isn’t the only Democrat now questioning the president on this issue, Dianne Feinstein is also .concerned. She claims that there needs to be more senate oversight. And Robert Byrd, former grand wizard of the KKK, was the first to question the legality of Obama’s czars. (Although based on his background he is just probably having a hard time dealing with a black man in the White House.)
There seems to be some discontent growing within the Democrat party on a couple of issues; healthcare reform, and now czargate. As I have said before politicians love their power more than anything else. It appears as though Democrats are becoming miffed about these czars because President Obama is bypassing them and the senate hearings. They are having a difficult time with the czars because they feel that power has been taken away from them; their power of confirmation and oversight. That is unacceptable to them and now we may just see a jilted congress begin to try to reassert their power. Even if that means investigating Barack Obama.
Harry Reid says that the healthcare reform bill is bad for Nevada
Despite President Obama’s plea to the joint session of congress support for his healthcare reform bill appears to be floundering. The president has already lost the votes of two RINOs, Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, and with the release of Max Baucus’s version of the bill Harry Reid voiced his displeasure with the proposed legislation. Harry Reid claims that this bill is not “good for Nevada” and he cannot support it.
While this draft bill is a good starting point, it needs improvement before it will work for Nevada
Let me be very clear, I will not bring a health insurance reform bill to the Senate floor that is not good for Nevada
There appears to be a rift growing between members of the Democrat party and now the leader of the senate is on record as saying that this bill will not be sent to the floor for a vote without revisions being made.
Harry Reid could be in trouble in his bid for re-election, his favorability rating with Nevada voters is not good. He faces the very real possibility that he will not win re-election. Reid knows that supporting this unpopular piece of legislation could be the final nail in his coffin and he is not willing to gamble his political future on this version of healthcare reform.
If there is one thing that politicians crave more than anything else it is the power that comes with their positions. That is what ultimately will decide the outcome of this bill. With the defections of Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe the GOP has united unanimously against this bill. This leaves vulnerable Democrats deciding the fate of this legislation.
Once Massachusetts finalizes the change in state law and gives the power to the governor to appoint Ted Kennedy’s replacement, (currently the voters are supposed to select his replacement in a special election due to a law change that Ted Kennedy engineered to stop Mitt Romney from appointing a Republican to replace John Kerry if he had won the presidency in 2004), the Democrats will have their 60 vote majority. They will not need one Republican vote.
But with one third of the senate facing re-election the president may not be able to count on unanimous support. If the rumors are true the Democrats will resort to reconciliation to pass the bill with only 51 votes. If this is the case than it will be interesting to watch how those Democrats who face re-election vote.
If Harry Reid can be used as a barometer this bill could already be doomed.
House votes to defund ACORN
ACORN appears to be in serious trouble; a few days ago the senate voted to discontinue additional funding to the corrupt organization and today the house followed suit voting 345-75 to defund the groups as well.
This, along with the arrest of eleven employees and the resignation of two others, is a good start but it is only a start. It is time to demand that ACORN return all monies that were used for their illegal operations and it is time to widen the investigation. This organization has been getting away with too much for too long and it is time to drop the hammer on them.
It is telling that both the senate and the house, controlled by Democrats, voted to defund ACORN by a total vote of 80% in favor of the defunding. This shows us how volatile ACORN has become to the party that once was so loyal to them. ACORN has been exposed, they are political dynamite to any politician who dares to defend them.
ACORN is finally getting what they so richly deserved for many years, and it comes none to soon.
Jay Rockefeller admits healthcare reform bill could mean a big tax increase on middle class families
Today Democrat Senator Jay Rockefeller admitted the the healthcare reform bill may amount to a “big, big tax increase” on the middle class. This is something that I have been writing about for quite some time so you can imagine my pleasant surprise when I read these comments by the Democrat senator.
Jay Rockefeller speaking of his constituents:
Referring to Baucus, Rockefeller said, “He should understand that (his proposal) means that virtually every single coal miner is going to have a big, big tax put on them because the tax will be put on the company and the company will immediately pass it down and lower benefits because they are self insured, most of them, because they are larger. They will pass it down, lower benefits, and probably this will mean higher premiums for coal miners who are getting very good health care benefits for a very good reason. That is, like steelworkers and others, they are doing about the most dangerous job that can be done in America.”
Finally a Democrat admits that while it may sound good to the leftists to punish insurance companies by imposing taxes on them that those same companies will just pass the tax on down to the consumers. This is the part of the equation that many of the supporters of this healthcare reform bill miss; the fact that insurance companies are not going to pay for the tax increase, we are.
He continues:
So that’s not really a smart idea, in fact, it’s a very dangerous idea, and I’m not even sure the coal miners in West Virginia are aware that this is what is waiting if this bill passes
It sounds like this is one Democrat whose vote for healthcare reform cannot be counted on by fellow Democrats. And I think this point is right on; I believe that many people who support this legislation because of the tax increases that will be levied against the big insurance companies do not realize that the costs will be passed down to them.
It is not very often that we hear a Democrat speak in terms like this; this is a welcome change. I hope that more Democrats see the light and realize they cannot back a healthcare reform bill that will increase the cost of healthcare.
Many Americans receive healthcare benefits from their employers tax free, that will change if the healthcare reform bill passes. Jay Rockefeller woke up and now realize this, now we just need more Americans to wake up also.
Congressman claims that Joe Wilson’s comment will lead to a resurgence in the Ku Klux Klan
We have now seen a ramp up of racist accusations made against people who oppose President Obama’s policies. If you oppose the president you are now being called a racist from prominent leftist politicians, including former president Jimmy Carter who claimed that a majority of the opposition to the president is racist. He is claiming that most people who oppose the president do so because he is black not because they oppose his policies.
But Jimmy Carter’s comments pale in comparison to the comment made by a representative from Georgia, Hank Johnson, who said the following:
We will probably have folks putting on white hoods and white uniforms again, riding through the countryside intimidating people,” Johnson said. “That’s the logical conclusion if this kind of attitude is not rebuked.
He made this comment in defense of the house’s rebuke of Joe Wilson for his outburst against the president during his speech in front of a joint session of congress. He is claiming that if the house did not rebuke Joe Wilson for his “you lie” outburst that we would see people wearing white hoods terrorizing the countryside.
Hank Johnson has now shown us that racism is alive and well in this country after all. Hank Johnson is a racist and a bigot. He obviously believes that white people are going to start burning crosses because there is a black man in the White House and therefor any non-racist comment made against a policy by this president must be rebuked in order to save America from the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan.
I cannot even begin to adequately describe how offensive I find this man and his comment. For him to sit there and tell America that the Ku Klux Klan would have terrorized the countryside because Joe Wilson made a comment during a joint session of the congress is ridiculous, ludicrous, and extremely offensive.
If there is any congressman who deserves to be rebuked it is Hank Johnson. He just equated one, while inappropriate, non-racist comment with a condemnation of a majority of white Americans and I find this distasteful and disgustingly bigoted. But this is typical of the argument that the left is now implementing against anyone who opposes and is daring enough to protest this president. The left is trying to delegitimize all opposition to the president by claiming that it is all racially motivated. It is now no longer acceptable to oppose the president’s policies, if you do you are soon going to don the white hood and burn crosses.
The left is right, racism is alive in America and Hank Johnson is living proof.
