Madeline Crabb
Tell us again: Why do we need Obamacare? (Part One)
By Madeline Crabb
Warning! Warning! Lawmakers are back in DC this week, and Spender-in-Chief Obama will be addressing them in a joint session on Tuesday. Probably, like the Godfather, he is going to make an offer to Congress that neither they nor the American public can refuse. I just can't wait, can you?
Thinking Americas are wondering what all the rush is about. If indeed there is a health care crisis, it certainly didn't happen overnight. One would think it couldn't be solved overnight either. But of course the administration solved our economic woes almost overnight, right?
The "health-care crisis" Obama is so hell-bent on fixing, isn't really a crisis. The Heritage Foundation reports that only fifteen percent of Americans are without insurance coverage. Out of this group, 45 percent are uninsured for less than four months, while 16 percent are uninsured for more than 18 months. Heritage states the main cause of this group's problems is outdated government policies. So to fix a problem involving 15 percent of the population, the government thinks it should change the entire system that will affect 100 percent of the population. Only in "governmentthink" can this make sense.
Our federal government, whose main duty is to protect its citizens against all enemies, both foreign and domestic, now believes it should remake the entire health care system. Exactly how does this protect us from our enemies? Well, while this does fit with Obama's plan to "fundamentally change America," it should concern us that government's first priority isn't being done that well. Can anyone say porous borders?
Could it be that a very real domestic threat against the United States is our government's bankruptcy? For decades, the mindset of federal government has been to spend, spend, and spend. Because of the inability or unwillingness of Congress to use restraint, America is now in debt to the tune of 11.8 trillion dollars, and counting. And what is the answer? While I don't remember learning this concept in Economics 101, it is called "spend our way out of debt." Government simply spends more money on things like bailing-out huge corporations, auto companies, banks, and mortgage companies. Does anyone see a problem here? If we are 11.8 trillion dollars in debt, doesn't that mean we should stop spending? Hello!
I'm just sayin...If my checkbook gets to zero, it means there is no more money. If it gets into negative numbers, it starts costing a lot of money for overdrafts. (Money I obviously don't have.) And if the money isn't quickly replaced, this situation can lead to legal trouble. After all, writing checks while having no funds to cover them is considered illegal in the banking community.
But unlike American citizens, the government can always print more money so it can continue spending, which is exactly what's been happening. Banana Republics do this; First World nations shouldn't.
To continue its extravagant spending practices, government can borrow money from other nations, which it has been doing for a long time. We are now about three trillion dollars in debt to foreign nations, 24 percent of which is to the People's Republic of China. Wow, what a comforting thought. But just what will happen when these nations ask to be paid back? What if it is China, who is our biggest lender? After all, we aren't exactly BFF's (Best Friends Forever). I mean, seriously.
Currently, the US Bureau of Public Debt estimates that every American's share of the national debt is $38, 425.00. But, the debt increases about four billion dollars a day. The Government Accountability Office, Congressional Budget Office, and Office of Management and Budget all say between the years of 2030 and 2040, the entitlement programs of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, plus the interest on the national debt will exceed tax revenues. They contend that our government's current borrowing and deficit spending (i.e. spending what we don't have) are "unsustainable" and will amount to a future "train wreck."
Of course, the only other alternative left for government spend-aholics is to tax the American public. But according to the above-mentioned government offices, there aren't enough American tax dollars to go around. So then, just HOW does Obama plan on funding Health Care for Everyone, affectionately known as Obamacare?
America, it's time for us to closely watch our wallets. Remember the slogan, Uncle Sam wants you? Well, Uncle Barack wants you and every red cent he can take from your already half-empty wallet, or pry from your tired, calloused, and work-worn hands. But even after he gets your last penny and last ounce of blood, it will still not be enough for his voracious appetite, or that of his cronies and partners in crime. Yes, crime. Government repeatedly taxes the "makers" to give to the "takers." Walter Williams calls this "government-sanctioned theft." I'll share more about these things and the president's upcoming address in part two of this message. To anyone willing to hear....
© Madeline Crabb
September 6, 2009
Warning! Warning! Lawmakers are back in DC this week, and Spender-in-Chief Obama will be addressing them in a joint session on Tuesday. Probably, like the Godfather, he is going to make an offer to Congress that neither they nor the American public can refuse. I just can't wait, can you?
Thinking Americas are wondering what all the rush is about. If indeed there is a health care crisis, it certainly didn't happen overnight. One would think it couldn't be solved overnight either. But of course the administration solved our economic woes almost overnight, right?
The "health-care crisis" Obama is so hell-bent on fixing, isn't really a crisis. The Heritage Foundation reports that only fifteen percent of Americans are without insurance coverage. Out of this group, 45 percent are uninsured for less than four months, while 16 percent are uninsured for more than 18 months. Heritage states the main cause of this group's problems is outdated government policies. So to fix a problem involving 15 percent of the population, the government thinks it should change the entire system that will affect 100 percent of the population. Only in "governmentthink" can this make sense.
Our federal government, whose main duty is to protect its citizens against all enemies, both foreign and domestic, now believes it should remake the entire health care system. Exactly how does this protect us from our enemies? Well, while this does fit with Obama's plan to "fundamentally change America," it should concern us that government's first priority isn't being done that well. Can anyone say porous borders?
Could it be that a very real domestic threat against the United States is our government's bankruptcy? For decades, the mindset of federal government has been to spend, spend, and spend. Because of the inability or unwillingness of Congress to use restraint, America is now in debt to the tune of 11.8 trillion dollars, and counting. And what is the answer? While I don't remember learning this concept in Economics 101, it is called "spend our way out of debt." Government simply spends more money on things like bailing-out huge corporations, auto companies, banks, and mortgage companies. Does anyone see a problem here? If we are 11.8 trillion dollars in debt, doesn't that mean we should stop spending? Hello!
I'm just sayin...If my checkbook gets to zero, it means there is no more money. If it gets into negative numbers, it starts costing a lot of money for overdrafts. (Money I obviously don't have.) And if the money isn't quickly replaced, this situation can lead to legal trouble. After all, writing checks while having no funds to cover them is considered illegal in the banking community.
But unlike American citizens, the government can always print more money so it can continue spending, which is exactly what's been happening. Banana Republics do this; First World nations shouldn't.
To continue its extravagant spending practices, government can borrow money from other nations, which it has been doing for a long time. We are now about three trillion dollars in debt to foreign nations, 24 percent of which is to the People's Republic of China. Wow, what a comforting thought. But just what will happen when these nations ask to be paid back? What if it is China, who is our biggest lender? After all, we aren't exactly BFF's (Best Friends Forever). I mean, seriously.
Currently, the US Bureau of Public Debt estimates that every American's share of the national debt is $38, 425.00. But, the debt increases about four billion dollars a day. The Government Accountability Office, Congressional Budget Office, and Office of Management and Budget all say between the years of 2030 and 2040, the entitlement programs of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, plus the interest on the national debt will exceed tax revenues. They contend that our government's current borrowing and deficit spending (i.e. spending what we don't have) are "unsustainable" and will amount to a future "train wreck."
Of course, the only other alternative left for government spend-aholics is to tax the American public. But according to the above-mentioned government offices, there aren't enough American tax dollars to go around. So then, just HOW does Obama plan on funding Health Care for Everyone, affectionately known as Obamacare?
America, it's time for us to closely watch our wallets. Remember the slogan, Uncle Sam wants you? Well, Uncle Barack wants you and every red cent he can take from your already half-empty wallet, or pry from your tired, calloused, and work-worn hands. But even after he gets your last penny and last ounce of blood, it will still not be enough for his voracious appetite, or that of his cronies and partners in crime. Yes, crime. Government repeatedly taxes the "makers" to give to the "takers." Walter Williams calls this "government-sanctioned theft." I'll share more about these things and the president's upcoming address in part two of this message. To anyone willing to hear....
© Madeline Crabb
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