Common Sense Measures To Cut Health Care Cost

By Ron Spangler

With the Democrat Health Care Bill lying int its coffin maybe it is time for Congress to take a simple approach to lowering the cost of health health care in the United States. Some simple measures that could be acted upon and immediately passed come from ordinary people regardless of party affiliation. These are basic common sense measures that will not allow the government take over of health care or add to the cost of health insurance premiums.

Here are some simple measures that come to mind. Passing these in incremental bipartisan steps would allow Congress to take action now and move on to more important issues like reducing government spending, creating tax incentives so business can expand and start hiring again, helping small business entrepreneurs hire or expand, reducing taxes on consumers so they have more to invest or spend, reducing the debt and deficit, and reducing our dependence on foreign oil by allowing more drilling of our own domestic oil.

Reducing Health Care Cost Measures:

Encourage younger people to carry health insurance that is similar to a annuity life insurance policy. A percentage of the premium payed by the insured or the insured person's employer would be set aside and invested into a separate account to draw interest. After a set accumulation period not to exceed five years, the policy holder could have access to a percentage, not to exceed 50%, of the amount accumulated to help pay for out of pocket medical expenses or to cover the cost of any future premium increases. After the accumulation period has been reached the insurance would follow the policy holder throughout life regardless of a change to their employment. After reaching their full retirement age the policy holder would have full access to his account and have the opportunity to use this account to pay the monthly premiums of their policy. This type of policy could not be restricted to one particular age group and must be offered as a single or family option plan. The cost of this type of policy could not exceed the fair market value of other plans made available by insurance companies offering this plan.

Allow insurance companies to compete across state lines.

Ban preexisting condition exclusions in insurance policies.

Ban insurance companies from canceling policy due to catastrophic illness or injury.

Ban hospitals and medical practitioners from charging people with insurance more than they would charge people without insurance.

Reform Anti-Trust Law for insurance companies.

Pass Medical Tort Reform.

Restrict hospitals and medical practitioners from charging patients with insurance more than they have agreed to pay the insurance company. If hospitals or practitioners have entered into an agreement with insurance companies to accept x amount of dollars for services rendered then they should not be allowed to bill the patient for any additional amount the insurance company refuses to pay.

Restrict insurance companies from arbitrarily deciding what the going rate for a particular procedure for a given area should be.

Restrict hospitals and practitioners from charging none medical fees to patients, i. e. administrative fees, professional fees, etc. All non medical charges should be considered as the cost of doing business and should be tax deductible instead of fees passed on to the patient. Processing paperwork, maintenance of a facility, cost for new construction, or additional cost to cover the uninsured should have nothing to do with the actual treatment received by a patient.

These are simple things that can be passed with bi-partisan support and would immediately reduce the cost of medical care and insurance premiums. Hospitals charging $25-$50 for an aspirin or insurance companies arbitrarily deciding the acceptable rate for a particular procedure and then paying only 80% of that rate is ridiculous. Allowing the medical field to charge administrative and professional fees to patients is unethical. Allowing the medical field to overcharge patients and then ruin the patient's credit for not paying anything the insurance company refuses to pay is extortion. Not holding lawyers responsible for frivolous lawsuits and fraudulent claims is criminal.

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After Boston Tea Party, What Now For Health Care

by Ron Spangler

After the Boston Tea Party 2nd revolution what will the Democrats do about Health Care? It is clear the White House didn't get the message. According to David Axelrod on MSNBC: "Mass vote was more about jobs (Fault of Bush) than it was about Health Care" REALLY?

Again on MSNBC Axelrod and Gibbs would not agree Brown victory was meant to be a "Wake-Up Call" to Obama and the Democrats:



According to Axelrod and Gibbs halting health reform 'not an option'.

Evidently they just don't get it. The message from Massachusetts voters was the same as the message from the majority of voters around the country, 'Stop the Health Care Bill, Stop Expanding Government, Stop the Spending, Stop What You Are Doing'.

Some Democrats did hear the people and they are listening. Some in the House are suggesting they go back to the basics. They are taking the Republican view of reforming Health Care incrementally. What does this mean, breaking it down and fix Health Care issues one step at a time.

Where could they start?

Cut the cost:

Open up insurance across state lines.

Ban precondition exclusions in insurance policies.

Ban insurance companies from canceling policy due to catastrophic illness or injury.

Ban hospitals and medical practitioners from charging people with insurance more than they would charge people without insurance.

Reform Anti-Trust Law for insurance companies.

Pass Medical Tort Reform.

Restrict hospitals and medical practitioners from charging patients with insurance more than they have agreed to pay the insurance company.

Restrict insurance companies from arbitrarily deciding what the going rate for a particular procedure for a given area should be.

Restrict hospitals and practitioners from charging none medical fees to patients, i. e. administrative fees, professional fees, etc.

These are simple things that can be passed with bi-partisan support and would immediately reduce the cost of medical care and insurance premiums. Hospitals charging $25-$50 for an aspirin or insurance companies arbitrarily deciding the acceptable rate for a particular procedure and then paying only 80% of that rate is ridiculous. Allowing the medical field to charge administrative and professional fees to patients is unethical. Allowing the medical field to overcharge patients and then ruin the patient's credit for not paying anything the insurance company refuses to pay is extortion. Not holding lawyers responsible for frivolous lawsuits and fraudulent claims is criminal.

Massachusetts and the American people have spoken. Obama and every Washington politician better listen. Neither party is safe come November 2010. As for Keith Olbermann on MSNBC: Race Has Nothing To Do With It!!

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Haiti Turning Into Obama Katrina

by Ron Spangler

I wrote the this post seven days after the Haitian earthquake. The following video is a recent video that only validates my concern. This is in Port-au-Prince Haiti virtually the only area the media has covered for the first seven days of the crisis. Watch the video and read the following post.



Could Haiti turn into Obama's Katrina? If the situation is not brought under control very soon, things will become extremely dangerous and ugly for the United States. The answer to the question is a definite yes.

Seven days into the crisis and few desperately needed supplies are reaching are being distributed outside of the capital of Haiti. The Obama administration warned the media not to venture too far away from the airport and asked the media to limit news of violence and unrest in the areas outside of the capital.

Some would argue that it would be counter productive to broadcast too much of what is really going on in areas that cannot be reached for security reasons. This is probably true but it leaves the impression that things are going better than they really are and the situation is improving daily. This is not the case for areas 15 or more miles away from the capital. There are areas both large and small from Cap-Haitien to Les Cayes that have been devastated the same as the capital with hundreds of people dieing daily. Seven days later very little food or medical supplies have reached these areas. Our military has started setting up areas to drop supplies but they cannot police the areas to prevent it from becoming chaotic. Secretary of Defense Gates announced our military would have no police action authority in Haiti. They have the right of self defense but if the situation becomes chaotic or violent their only alternative action would be to leave the area.

President Obama and the State Department insist they are working with the Haitian government but in reality the Haitian government has totally collapsed. Most of the government officials have been killed or simply disappeared. Except for the Haitian President very little is left of Haiti's government. The Haitian police have no control of the cities and 90% of the police force have simply walked away. Areas that have been taken over by roaming gangs are not challenged by the U.N. Security Force. Like all U. N. Security detachments they are not authorized the use of deadly force if confronted by a opposition force. Now the U N has called for more international forces. They say they need more forces in order to police the country and stabilize the the upsurge in violence.

It is only a matter of time before the really bad news starts to come out in the mainstream media. As more and more people die and the violence escalates the media will have no choice but report it. When this happens people around the world will be horrified and the comparison of the response to the Katrina Hurricane and the Haiti earthquake will begin. The President will deny any attempt to censure the news coming out of Haiti and the media will simply say they couldn't get to these areas to report the true devastation and slow response of the rescue and humanitarian efforts. Seven days into this effort there is still a lack of coordination in getting much needed help to the areas outside of the capital and the airport is running out of room to stock these supplies.

Until this effort is completely turned over to the United States Military the lack of coordination will continue to cost lives. When it is finally turned over to the military and they begin to deliver the much needed help, chaos will break out all over Haiti. In some areas the military may have to use deadly force to protect themselves and deliver aid, if this happens some in the media will turn against the military and accuse them of being too heavy handed. Unfortunately some in our military may find themselves in a situation where they could face prosecution for simply doing their job.

While I commend the administration for its quick action I am afraid they have taken too long to plan a course of action. This should have been turned over to the U S Military in the very beginning, after all Haiti is in our own backyard. The Pentagon has contingency plans for just about every crisis imaginable. As soon as the news came out in Haiti our military personnel should have been put on standby. The U.N and the President of Haiti should have been told the United States was willing and ready to take control of the situation. Instead government agencies and civilian organizations started rushing in civilian personnel to assess the damage, this created chaos at the airport and slowed the American response. It wasn't until the U S Air Force took control of the airport and started limiting commercial aircraft that the situation at the airport became manageable.

The American people will continue to give the same as they did during Katrina. After Katrina the American will not stand for another bureaucratic debacle that cost innocent lives when they could have been prevented. When a crisis develops this close to home, speed and immediate action is of the utmost importance. Americans expect that deliberating a plan of action and acting on this plan should be accomplished within the first 24 hrs. Watching from the outside I am afraid we have learned nothing from Katrina. It looks like we are still tied up by bureaucracy and infighting between government officials.

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Wall Street 2010 Bubble Ready To Burst

by Ron Spangler

Looking at the year ahead it is not hard to see another economic disaster looming in the near future. Like every Socialist program put forward in 2009 by the Socialist Democrat Party led by President Obama, the Health Care and Energy Bill of 2010 will be the proverbial nail in the coffin for the United States economy. President Obama and his Socialist colleagues in his own secret government of Czars and media cohorts like MSNBC and CNN are doing everything possible to spin the true state of America's economy. By using temporary employment numbers to decrease the real unemployment numbers they are misleading the American people. The reasoning for reporting an increase in temporary jobs is pure politics and a attempt to gloss over the reality that the economic situation of the average American has reached the point of desperation.

The media supporting President Obama and the Socialist Democrats that have taken over the Democrat Party must stem the tide of the Tea Party activist. The media fully understands that the Tea Party movement threatens to bring down this government and their Socialist programs in the Nov 2010 elections. Early on the media hitched their wagon to the Obama Socialist agenda and are so heavily invested that they cannot afford to abandon the agenda regardless of the consequences.

Al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations have been watching and taking advantage of the turmoil going on within the Democrat political party and economic recession facing the American people. After studying the reasons for the fall of the Soviet Union, the present day terrorist leaders understand that the best way to destroy America is to bankrupt our economy. With the election of Barack Obama they consider this to be the most opportune time to bring America to her knees and achieve their goal of destroying our economy. In their view a weak America cannot afford a strong defense and cannot afford to fight a global war on terror.

The attacks in Little Rock Arkansas, Fort Hood Texas and Detroit Michigan were designed to do two things. One was create fear in the market place and airline industry, the other was to disrupt the normal everyday flow of business in America. So the American people would not be alarmed, the government and media played down the Little Rock and Fort Hood attacks as everyday criminal acts perpetrated by deranged American citizens. The President, his administration officials and some in the media tried to play down the Christmas day bomber in Detroit but it was impossible. To every American except the President we knew we were under another terrorist attack. Since the connections of the Christmas day bomber and the other Muslim attackers have come out the media and the President find themselves in a difficult position. It has become impossible to defend their previous position but they still try.

After the dismal and utterly failed attempts to con the American people on what really happened in Detroit, the President came out trying to act tough and promising to take the appropriate action to ensure this never happens again. Sounded nice to some but the Islamic Jihad terrorist hell bent on destroying America are laughing all the way to their terrorist camps. They consider this president as strong in rhetoric but weak in spine. They have watched time after time as this president gave out ultimatums and deadlines to enemies of America. They have watched to see the ultimatums and deadlines turn out to be nothing more than empty rhetoric that no one fears. Now they are watching as the President turns his attention back to the economy and his promise to fundamentally transform America. They know that in the mind of this President the situation is under control and due to his strong speech the problem of terrorist attacks by Al Qaeda have been dealt with. The problem for America is the Islamic Imams that are organizing and funding the terrorist will never stop because the President offers a feel good tough sounding speech. Because of their distorted view of Islam these Imams will never stop trying to destroy America, Israel, England and the rest of the western world. By calling the people attacking us extremist, President Obama is doing nothing but playing right into the hands of the Imams.

Very soon the Health Care Bill will be passed and signed into law by the President. As soon as the final Bill is passed in the Senate and House, the Senate will take up the Energy Bill that was previously passed through the House. As the Senate works on a compromise Energy Bill the House will take up their Immigration Bill. Just as the Health Care Bill was forced down the American citizen's throats, so will the next two Bills to come out of Congress. Unfortunately for our country by the Summer of 2010 everything will most likely come to a disastrous climax. The unintended or maybe intended consequences of the new regulations, taxes and pending Bills before Congress will cause the already escalating oil prices to reach a point that cause the artificial prices in the market to collapse. Any successful attack on the United States by a terrorist group will hasten the dramatic increase in prices and accelerate the collapse of Wall Street.

Nothing we as Americans can say or do will change the ideology of this President or his Socialist Democrat Party. He and his followers are living in their own ideological world of illusions. They honestly believe that through a Lansky Marxist style world economy they can persuade the Muslim extremist to put down their weapons and partake in the new world Utopia they are designing. The only thing that angers President Obama is the temporary distraction these terror attacks cause. He cannot afford the Congress' attention be taken away from the tasks at hand, Health Care, Energy, Immigration Reform and transforming America. With Americans becoming angrier every day the President can ill afford distractions. If his Socialist Democrat Party's agenda is not fulfilled by the next election he may not have enough votes in the Congress to complete his Socialist transformation. If the government spending and artificial prices controlling the market collapse, the bubble will burst again. When this happens President Obama will be remembered as the worst President in the history of the United States.

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DHS Budget Cuts Endangers Security

by Ron Spangler

Before the Christmas Day terror attack on flight #253 into Detroit the new FY 2010 budget went into effect for Department of Homeland Security. While there was an increase in the overall budget, due to reallocation of funds within the Department some agencies actually experienced a budget cut in security measures.

One of the areas experiencing the biggest cut was in the Border Patrol. In Secretary Napolitano's FY 2010 Budget Request released May 7, 2009 she bragged about the Department's efforts in "preventing the smuggling of people, drugs, cash and weapons across our nation’s borders while facilitating international trade and travel."

The news release went on to say they had created a new initiative to disrupt the flow of drugs, cash and weapons that are fueling the drug cartels in Mexico. When it comes to our Southern borders it is clear Secretary Napolitano doesn't consider our Border Patrol Agents as an essential part of the effort to control attempts of would be terrorist from entering our country. In her list of priorities she recognizes the primary function of DHS is to protect the American people from terrorist attacks. Evidently when it comes to the Border Patrol she does not consider protecting the American public from terrorist and the threat of terrorist weapons entering the United States as part of their mission.

Since the attack on 9/11 the structure and mission of CBP and our Border Patrol Agents have taken a drastic turn. They are no longer simply looking for illegals or fruits and vegetables that could damage our well being. They are a large part of our first line of defense against terrorist looking for any opportunity to attack and kill Americans. While the public and media focuses most of their attention on the illegal immigration aspect of the agent's job, they fail to recognize the job agents are doing everyday and night along our Southern borders. Since their primary mission has been changed and they have been designated as the primary federal law enforcement agency designed to protect Americans from terrorist attacks they have been extremely successful. Until the Christmas 2009 attack on flight #253 no terrorist had been able to penetrate our border security and carry out a successful attack on the homefront. With the attack of 2009 and reallocation of funds this is about to change in 2010.

Secretary Napolitano believes the best way to fight terrorism is to add more desk jobs and technology by additional funds for resourcing the expansion of information-sharing partnerships with local and state law enforcement. What she doesn't say is she is taking funding away from the everyday operations of the Border Patrol to pay for this expansion. In her budget request she brags about the additional manpower she has planned for different agencies within DHS. Included in this number is a paltry 44 additional Border Patrol agents for FY 2010. This will not cover the loss of agents along our Southern borders due to natural attrition, transfers and increased violence coming from Mexico.

Agents in most of the sectors along our Southern borders have been experiencing long hours requiring overtime for the majority of 2009. It is not uncommon for agents in the field to work 12 or more hours a day, everyday, 5 days a week. Using a weird formula for determining overtime pay they are restricted from receiving overtime pay equal to their counterparts in the private sector. Agents normally earn from 10% to 25% extra pay for overtime based on the number of hours worked. The number of hours a agent can claim has always been limited but with the new FY 2010 budget the amount of overtime hours has been drastically reduced in certain sectors. Due to operational budget cuts, agents in these sectors have been told when their shift ends they must stop what they are doing and return to their official duty stations. What this means is some areas along the border will not be patrolled during certain hours of the day. This will undoubtedly create holes in our first line of defense against would be terrorist, smugglers, criminals, or illegals. Creating unmanned corridors along our borders that allows the free flow of illegal entry into the interior is a unintended consequence of decisions being made by this administration.

A lot is expected from agents in the field and we seldom hear anything in the media in support of what they do. For the most part they are either ridiculed by the open borders section of America or just forgotten by the national media. In less than 2 years 2 agents were murdered by illegals. One was killed by a smuggler and the other was executed supposedly by a lone teenager that confessed to doing it while trying to rob the agent. He struck a deal receiving a 20 year sentence. Very little for executing a father, husband and federal law enforcement agent performing his duty of protecting Americans from would be terrorist and criminals targeting our country.

It is clear this administration and for the most part the American people will continue to misunderstand or simply ignore the vital role these agents play in protecting our country. Maybe after the next successful terrorist attack, and it is determined that the terrorist crossed through our Southern border, this administration will wake up. Reallocating funds and manpower but still expecting a understaffed agency to fulfill their mission is naive and dangerous. It shows a distinct misunderstanding of the threats facing the United States and the American people. Agents along our borders are men and women no different than other American men and women serving in our military and other areas that have taken the oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. We cannot expect people that risk their lives everyday and night to continue to perform their duties at the highest possible level without support from the people they are trying to protect.

President Obama earlier in 2009 announced he would reduce the number of agents deployed along our Southern borders and transfer hundreds to our Northern borders. Now with the reallocation of funding creating budget cuts in some of our Southern border sectors he is basically telling our agents we expect more for less. This is a recipe for disaster. After the 2009 Christmas Day attack I hope but don't expect that President Obama and Secretary Napolitano will rethink their strategy on the terror threat facing America.

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Obama, Delusional and Mentally Incompetent

by Ron Spangler

After the Christmas day attack on board flight 253 some serious questions are beginning to surface about the United States President. Before the attack people praised Barack Obama as highly intelligent, articulate and a constitutional scholar. The biggest question his critics could muster was if he had Socialist intentions for the United States. With his actions and statements since Christmas more serious questions must be raised.

Does Barack Obama have a mental disorder that will not allow him to face reality?

Is he in a delusional state of mind that restricts his ability to separate facts from fantasies?

Is he mentally incompetent and unable to distinguish the difference between our friends and enemies?

These are questions I never thought I would ask about any President of the United States but these are desperate and scary times. If we look at the world the way it really is and look at the world the way Barack Obama sees it, something is clearly wrong. The United States economy is still on the edge of destruction and unemployment is still at a record high but Barack sees it coming back strong and the worst being behind us. With the high unemployment and consumer spending down, government tax revenue is dwindling. Normal people would stop borrowing and spending but Barack Obama believes we should borrow and spend more. He goes to China, our biggest debtor, with hat in hand asking for more loans. They scold him on excessive spending and the falling value of the dollar. He returns home speaking about reaching a mutual understanding and economic agreement between the two nations. In the meantime China publicly ridicules him and warns they may agree to drop the dollar as the world reserve currency. Obama refuses to hear the warnings and criticism and decides to force through a health care plan that may cripple the United States for generations to come.

He believes in Global Warming and sees the world being destroyed if the nations of the world do not follow his lead and advice. Scientist disagree on the cause and even if mankind can make a difference but he doesn't hear the opposition and refuses to listen to dissenters of the Global Warming theory. He goes to Copenhagen promising to come back with an agreement that will change the way mankind deals with the effects of global warming. Again China refuses to discuss the matter by sending a low level minister that has no authority to broker any agreements with anyone. Obama representing the United States at the highest level did not see this as an insult but returned home with a fantasy story about agreeing to have future talks to agree on something. It made no sense but some in the media bent over backwards to clean it up.

After taking office the first thing he did was order the closure of the Guantanamo Bay Military Prison. He had no plan but in his mind it was simple, if I say it will be done then it will be done. He told America and the world it would be closed within a year and then he walked away from it. In March he decided the War On Terror was over and using Homeland Security Director Janet Napolitano started calling terrorist, extremist instead. Terrorist attacks became man made disasters. He went to South America and met Venezuela President Chavez during the Summit of the Americas where Chavez clapped him on the back and gave him a book. Obama never understood it to be an insult but rather an opportunity to settle past disagreements between the United States and Chavez. At the first opportunity Chavez blasted the United States and ridiculed Obama calling him another Bush.

After the Fort Hood terror attack by Maj Hasan, Obama went to a previously scheduled event hosted by the Department of Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs. After being introduced he jubilantly recognized the staffers and laughingly gave a "shout out" to "Dr Joe Medicine Crow, that Congressional Medal of Honor Winner." It took three minutes into his speech for him to say anything about the Fort Hood shootings. When he did he called it a "horrible incident". In the days and weeks that followed he still would not call it a terrorist act, even though the rest of the country recognized it as an act of terror.

After the terror attack on flight 253 it took over two hours for the President to be notified. Three days after the attack and only after Janet Napolitano made a fool out of herself on the weekend news shows, Obama finally broke his silence. In his speech he never recognized it as an Al Qaeda directed act of terror, instead he called it an "extremist act" and "incident of one lone extremist". It was perfectly clear to everyone including most of the media it was a terrorist attack directed by Al Qaeda in Yemen.

It was after Obama's speech that Al Qaeda in Yemen posted a statement claiming responsibility and warning of more attacks to follow. Obama gave a second speech partially defending Napolitano by saying after the attack the system worked to stop anymore potential attacks from occurring. He did say the system failed and ordered a review on his desk within two days. He still never referred to it as an act of terror and called the Al Qaeda connected terrorist an extremist. In both speeches it was clear from the expression on his face, President Obama didn't understand what was going on and didn't really believe what he was saying.

President Obama is still considering returning some of the GITMO prisoners to Yemen even though two of the previous detainees were returned to Yemen and now are leaders of Al Qaeda in Yemen. His determination to treat both acts of terror as criminal acts has most of the country bewildered.

Whether President Obama is suffering from some form of a delusional break down from reality or is just in a state of denial is something a qualified psychologist will have to determine. The question some Americans are beginning to ask:

Does President Obama have the mental stability or is he competent enough to remain as Commander In Chief during a time of war?

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President Obama Terrorist Not A Threat

by Ron Spangler

If it wasn't clear to President Obama supporters in the past it is clear today, when it comes to terrorist attacks President Obama is a weak leader.

Unlike President Bush this president has decided to take a low key leadership role when America is under attack. Since the Christmas day attack President Obama has made zero public appearances. Rather than appearing on camera to reassure the public that everything is under control the president has decided to work out in the gym and play golf while vacationing in Hawaii.

This is to be expected of President Obama. After all, after the Fort Hood killings this administration refused to classify and prosecute the attack as a terrorist attack. In the most recent attack that was thwarted only by the fact that the explosive device failed to explode and the passengers taking swift action President Obama and some in the media have been reluctant to make the connection of the suspect to Al Qaeda. It is perfectly clear to most people that this was carried out by Al Qaeda out of Yemen.

The president may think his nonappearance will be more reassuring but it will most likely have the opposite effect. It also will send the message to other terrorist that President Obama is not President Bush and will not take these terrorist attempts seriously. This is reminiscent of the Clinton Administration of the 90s'. Attack after attack was treated as a criminal act and never given the full benefit of a terrorist threat or act of war. To most Americans this is the wrong direction for this president to be taking and is nothing less than a sign of weak leadership skills.

It is Sunday the second day since the Christmas terrorist failed attempt to bring down a U S plane and kill innocent civilians over a U S city. The president has decided to send his cabinet people to all of the talk show circuits instead of addressing the situation himself. Evidently resident Obama is worried that without his teleprompter he might say the wrong thing, thereby opening himself up to public ridicule. With his performance rating dropping like a large rock the president must be more concerned about his political standings than the security of the country.

If this sounds like a harsh critical review of the president's handling of the recent terrorist attack, then I have done my job. Since President Obama has taken office this is clearly the second terrorist attack whether the president believes it or not. We all know the president has worked really hard on his domestic agenda and needs to recharge before the next fight over health care but nothing including health care is more important than our country coming under attack by agents of Al Qaeda. It is bad enough we have murderers of Federal Agents and Marines sitting in Mexico while this Administration does nothing, it is absolutely intolerable and inexcusable for the country to come under attack and the president say nothing for two or three days.

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And Obama Said Unto Them

by Ron Spangler

The great and wondrous leader Barack Obama called upon his followers to gather in front of their televisions and said unto them, "Follow me for we are on the brink of a great disaster the like of which we have not seen since the Great Depression. Open your wallets and your children' wallets and I will save you from walking off the precipice that is before you." His followers without question opened their wallets and bankrupt their children for decades to come because the magnificent one said, "Do not fear for I am in charge and I will lead you to the land of prosperity." This was the great disaster known as the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).

As unemployment began to rise the all knowing leader Barack Obama called upon his followers and said unto them, "Follow me for I am the all knowing and wise leader that shall smite the wicked ways of the bankers and Wall Street Fat Cats that have destroyed our economy. I will force them to take your money and thereby gain control of all of the decisions they make, for only I am wise enough to make those decisions." Again his followers fell to their knees and praised the wise and all knowing Obama, feeling blessed that they finally had a leader worth following.

Next the glorious leader called upon his gathering of followers and said unto them, "Follow me for I am the glorious all knowing leader that must take over the automotive industry in America. I will use your money to buy up stock and bail out the failing companies and I will be able to control all of their future decisions for I am the all wise and glorious Barack Obama." Again the gathering bowed and praised the all knowing savior Barack Obama.

Again the glorious savior of the west called upon his followers to gather before him and said unto them, "I am the great all knowing wise man that you have chosen to lead you into the prosperous land of the future. Now I find doubters amongst my people. Now I tell you we are at a time of great crisis and something must be done. As I have led you out of the great recession our future is now threatened by the great Health Care debate. I am the wise one and I have the answer. I have given great bribes to and even committed extortion against my Democrat Disciples in Congress. They will pass a Health Care Bill giving me more power and taxing you more. This must be done now for we are standing on the edge of a great cliff but I shall lead us away and back into the land of prosperity."

As his followers looked up the great majority saw the all knowing and glorious leader looking more like the Emperor with no clothes. The words coming from the great one seemed hollow and similar to the failed promises they had heard before.

Sensing his followers had fallen in numbers the great one decided to take his message to the world, for they must surely still believe him to be the great savior from the west.

With arrogance and pride at his side he soared forth on the mighty wings of Air Force One. He landed with great expectations and promises of good tidings to all nations that would listen to his glorious words of wisdom.

As he stood upon his mound and looked down upon the Nations of the World that had gathered at the Mount Of Copenhagen, he said unto them, "Listen and follow me for I am the Savior From The West, the One and Only Barack Obama. All of you Nations of great wealth and prosperity give up your monies and treasures, bankrupt your countries so that you can give your wealth to the less fortunate countries in Africa and the Middle East. Follow my lead for I have already suckered my country into doing this very thing I ask of you. The earth is warming and the climate is changing and if you do not do as I ask we are all doomed. We must stop the carbon emissions and reverse global warming before the Poles melt and the Oceans rise. I am the great Obama, listen and follow or you all shall perish."

And the great multitudes of Nations arose and said unto the Great One, "Uh not so fast bub. This ain't America and you ain't so great."

"What's in this for us", said the smaller Nations?

"What's in it for me", said China?

And Obama said unto the smaller Nations, "I'll give you money."

The smaller Nations said, "Ok, how about $30 Billion."

Obama said unto China, "Please, pretty please I'll give you money."

And China said, "Don't be stupid. You're going to borrow money from us just to give it back to us with interest, boy is this guy stupid or what. Look Barack we own you and therefore we have to save you from yourself. No deal the meeting is over."

With this the great one returned to his bankrupt nation of fewer and fewer followers and said unto those few that would listen, "I have returned and bring you great promises from the rest of the world. I have achieved unprecedented promises from world leaders to think about cutting their carbon emissions and all it will cost you is another $30 Billion to begin with. We may give up some more jobs, but I have saved the world from global warming and climate change for I am the great all knowing Barack Obama. So it has been written, let it be done."

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A World of Changing Science

by Ron Spangler

We live in a world of ever changing science. By its very nature and definition science must continue to change as new generations evolve. This is why our schools are constantly ordering new text books and requiring our children to embrace new theories put forth by scientist more advanced in technology than their predecessors. Unfortunately for mankind this really means that science can never be completely settled. Theories will always remain theories and proven facts by one generation will be rebuked by the next.

There are some facts in life that cannot be rebuked and will always be a constant truth. When man reaches the point that he believes he is as smart or smarter than our creator then that man is doomed to fail. When a Nation becomes so arrogant that they choose science and a few scientific theories as the answer to all of the world's problems, then that Nation is doomed to fail. No Nation that believes it is more knowledgeable or powerful than our creator can withstand the wrath of our creator.

The people of Babylon decided they were as smart or smarter than the creator and decided to build the Tower of Babel reaching into Heaven. They soon learned they were not as smart as they thought they were. They became confused and could not complete their goal because like it or not there are some things in life that mankind will never be able to accomplish. Entering the gates of Heaven without permission in our earthly bodies is one thing science will never accomplish. Challenging our creator without suffering the consequence of our actions is another.

Arrogance and having the sense that we are always smarter than the previous generation has been a fault that has plagued mankind since the very beginning of time itself. Scientific scholars and teachers once believed time had no beginning and therefore could have no end. Now they teach with absolute certainty the age of the earth and the universe. They also claim the Big Bang Theory along with Global Warming or Climate Change are both settled science.


I can't help but wonder what the next 1 or 2 generations will have to say about these settled sciences. One hundred years from now I can say with somewhat certainty that I will not be around to find out the answer but I can't help but wonder.

What does any of this have to do with the United States economy or the challenges facing the world today ? Being led by Leaders that are the most arrogant Leaders in modern history, we are becoming that arrogant Nation and World that is destined to fail. This President, Congress and Leaders around the world that believe they can solve all of our problems by throwing more money at the problem will destroy their economies. Leaders like President Obama and this Democrat controlled Congress that put all of their faith in science and technology will find themselves in the same position as the people of Babylon, dazed and confused when their faith in science and technology fails to become a reality. Leaders that believe they will survive the final battle as the most righteous are the most arrogant and dangerous leaders in the world. No man can forecast the end of time and no man can know the true destiny of mankind.

What can we as simple people do to stop the madness of the world? We must ask questions of our leaders. We must challenge our leaders when we believe they are wrong. And most importantly, we must replace our leaders when they do not listen to the people they represent.

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Holiday Shopping

by Ron Spangler

Holiday shopping this year will in all likelihood remain low for most retailers. With the real unemployment rate hitting a record high of 18% most Americans will be looking for value and less high end consumer products. The major retailers will be concentrating on kids low cost plastic products from China as their number one source for the holiday spending spree. With consumers having very little confidence in the jobs market or the long term future of their particular financial situation they are saving more and spending less.

There will be those that will be buying higher ticket price electronics like big screen televisions and some in the media will highlight these sales as a sign the economy is back and consumer confidence is up. This will be a mistake. Retailers have already reduced the price of items like this and will without a doubt reduce them further. Retailers know the average family will be reluctant to buy one item for $600.00 when they can spend $100.00 on each member of a family of 4 and have more Christmas presents under the tree. With this in mind retailers have increased their inventories of items that are less than $20.00 in an effort to boost sales over the holidays.

The one area the media is overlooking during this period is online sales of crafts made in America and sold directly from the person making the item to the consumer. Long time online stores like Etsy.com usually see a increase in sales every holiday season. This may be the year they exceed normal seasonal sales records. This site is well known for high quality low cost American made items with a vast category to choose from. Americans are demanding more for their money and are looking for things that will last long after Christmas day. With all of the recalls that have been announced lately American consumers are becoming leery of cheep imports and turning away from the throw away disposable products that flooded the American markets for the last 10 to 15 years.

If you look at this period of time you will notice that everything from electronics to construction products have made with a built in life expectancy. When the product reaches the end of its life expectancy it became far cheaper to throw it away than the cost of having it repaired. In the case of electronics like televisions, stereos, cell phones, computer game systems and more, the consumer will be lucky to find anyone capable of repairing the item simply because the parts are obsolete shortly after the item leaves the manufacturer.

In today's atmosphere people are turning away from this mindset and are looking to the past. They are beginning to look for American products that will last from generation to generation and can be passed down from one family to the next. At one time in our not so distant past we called these products family heirlooms. Craft sites like Etsy pride themselves in this type of consumer products. As sites like this receive more market and media attention I believe more Americans will be buying more products online than they ever purchased in the past. If you are a consumer looking for quality, value and products made in America by individual American craftsmen and women (including artists) I would encourage you to shop online at craft sites like Etsy.

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