This blog will focus on political images I have found all around the Internet, though I will intersperse some commentary and quotes that I find interesting.
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Speaking of the cost of health care...
From Time Magazine
Bitter Pill: Why Medical Bills Are Killing Us
The first of the 344 lines printed out across eight pages of his hospital bill - filled with indecipherable numerical codes and acronyms - seemed innocuous. But it set the tone for all that followed. It read, "1 ACETAMINOPHE TABS 325 MG." The charge was only $1.50, but it was for a generic version of a Tylenol pill. You can buy 100 of them on Amazon for $1.49 even without a hospital's purchasing power.
Dozens of midpriced items were embedded with similarly aggressive markups, like $283.00 for a "CHEST, PA AND LAT 71020." That's a simple chest X-ray, for which MD Anderson is routinely paid $20.44 when it treats a patient on Medicare, the government health care program for the elderly.
Bitter Pill: Why Medical Bills Are Killing Us
The first of the 344 lines printed out across eight pages of his hospital bill - filled with indecipherable numerical codes and acronyms - seemed innocuous. But it set the tone for all that followed. It read, "1 ACETAMINOPHE TABS 325 MG." The charge was only $1.50, but it was for a generic version of a Tylenol pill. You can buy 100 of them on Amazon for $1.49 even without a hospital's purchasing power.
Dozens of midpriced items were embedded with similarly aggressive markups, like $283.00 for a "CHEST, PA AND LAT 71020." That's a simple chest X-ray, for which MD Anderson is routinely paid $20.44 when it treats a patient on Medicare, the government health care program for the elderly.
When Christians get their panties in a twist
I saw the skit and thought it was funny.
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| You can view this larger by clicking on it or by enlarging your view in your browser. |
Gun safety
You would think, wouldn't you, that with all of the discussion about guns and gun safety in the news lately, that people would be more cautious? But then again - you think and the gun nuts - well, not so much.
Republicans are honest sometimes
Once in a while a Republican says something in public that is intellectually honest and actually reflects how things work in their brains.
Still, sort of makes you wonder, what part of "liberty and justice for all" don't they understand?
Still, sort of makes you wonder, what part of "liberty and justice for all" don't they understand?
Congress is dying.
We have a House of Representatives that is divided and run by a blithering idiot who is so frustrated at his own inability to get the job done that he keeps swearing at and insulting his colleagues in Washington, and a Senate that can't move because it is frozen in place by the filibuster. And they yell and scream at Obama for not leading. Ha ha ha.
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
It's really not the debt
For several years I followed the writings of a conservative economist, but recently I've had to give up reading his articles. He is so stridently in favor of cutting spending and government oversight of business that he no longer gives even a modicum of lip service to the inequity in the incomes of Americans.
Listen, I'll buy into the fact that the nation's debt is a problem, but I won't buy into the fact that income inequality is not a big factor in that problem. If you're going to deal with any of it, you've got to deal with all of it.
Source: The Washington Post
Listen, I'll buy into the fact that the nation's debt is a problem, but I won't buy into the fact that income inequality is not a big factor in that problem. If you're going to deal with any of it, you've got to deal with all of it.
Source: The Washington Post
In a rational world, a new study that came out today on income equality would constitute a major blow to the GOP argument on the sequester.
The new study was performed by Thomas Hungerford of the non-partisan Congressional Research Service. Though the study is not a CRS product, Hungerford's data is widely cited on both sides; he's an impeccably objective analyst.
Here's what Hungerford found: The single greatest driver of income inequality over a recent 15 year period was runaway income from capital gains and dividends.[emphasis mine]
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Sequester close
I still say that one of the best things that can happen for Democrats is that Republicans get their own way for a while. I think that more Americans will wake up to the nonsensical policy that is Republican policy.
BTW, the following is from The Onion...
BTW, the following is from The Onion...
Chris Matthews - Republicans are trying to destroy America
From Crooks and Liars...
Chris Matthews: GOP Using Cold War Era Tactics to Destabilize Their Own Government-----------
"Let me finish tonight with this.
I think the difference between the Democrats and Republicans is getting as wide as the Grand Canyon.
Watch how they do it:
President Obama wants to keep the government running. Republicans threaten to stop it. It's relentless. The fiscal "abyss," the "debt ceiling," the "sequester," the end of the "continuing resolution." Different words, different deadlines, all detonate the same explosion. Threaten to crash the government if you don't like the way it's doing something if you don't like who the American voter has elected.
Isn't this what the Republicans did back in the old days? If you don't like government-Guatemala, Iran, the Dominican Republic, Chile-just bring it down.
Guess what? The Republicans are now using that tactic here at home. If they don't like who's been elected, they find some way to undermine it, discredit its leaders, whatever it takes to destroy it. We're using the ways of the old Cold War CIA to destabilize our own country.
Look at the impact these constant threats to shutdown the government are having on public confidence. It's undermining it, making people forever nervous about the basic ability of America to even have a government.
Is that patriotic? I don't think so."
Chris Matthews: GOP Using Cold War Era Tactics to Destabilize Their Own Government-----------
"Let me finish tonight with this.
I think the difference between the Democrats and Republicans is getting as wide as the Grand Canyon.
Watch how they do it:
President Obama wants to keep the government running. Republicans threaten to stop it. It's relentless. The fiscal "abyss," the "debt ceiling," the "sequester," the end of the "continuing resolution." Different words, different deadlines, all detonate the same explosion. Threaten to crash the government if you don't like the way it's doing something if you don't like who the American voter has elected.
Isn't this what the Republicans did back in the old days? If you don't like government-Guatemala, Iran, the Dominican Republic, Chile-just bring it down.
Guess what? The Republicans are now using that tactic here at home. If they don't like who's been elected, they find some way to undermine it, discredit its leaders, whatever it takes to destroy it. We're using the ways of the old Cold War CIA to destabilize our own country.
Look at the impact these constant threats to shutdown the government are having on public confidence. It's undermining it, making people forever nervous about the basic ability of America to even have a government.
Is that patriotic? I don't think so."
John McCain - an American treasure
John McCain is an American treasure - he is the quintessential image of the cranky old man, sitting on his porch, throwing stones at kids who dare to step on his lawn. A real American joke.
And he's a master of the Republican ability to argue by attacking instead of discussing facts. I will post this quote from Chris Hughes over and over again because it is so fitting...""Those who retreat into fantasy cannot be engaged in rational discussion, for fantasy is all that is left of their tattered self-esteem. When their myths are attacked as untrue it triggers not a discussion of facts and evidence but a ferocious emotional backlash." ---Chris Hedges, Truthdig
And he's a master of the Republican ability to argue by attacking instead of discussing facts. I will post this quote from Chris Hughes over and over again because it is so fitting...""Those who retreat into fantasy cannot be engaged in rational discussion, for fantasy is all that is left of their tattered self-esteem. When their myths are attacked as untrue it triggers not a discussion of facts and evidence but a ferocious emotional backlash." ---Chris Hedges, Truthdig
Inventing religion
When mankind first created religion, they incorporated a lot of the common sense morality that all ready made sense - things like "don't kill other people" and "don't steal." You don't need to be religious to be moral and, in fact, atheists sometimes seem more moral that the religious.
Is God a conservative
Sounds sort of like the same type of reasoning conservatives apply to the world - circular and nonsensical.
Scapegoating
Maybe we should require that people who want to own a gun have to demonstrate and IQ of at least 75? Something? Anything? Please - keep guns away from stupid people.
Ayn Rand
I speak often about the Christians who love to pick and choose the parts of the Bible they want to believe in. Some believe in Christ, but not the virgin birth, others believe only the New Testament and not the Old.
But it seems that this tendency on the part of conservatives reaches out to their political heroes as well. How many of the Ayn Rand lovers, she of the "every man for himself" political philosophy, reject some important parts of her philosophy, yet worship other parts? Seems to me you either buy the package, or move on to some other hero.
But it seems that this tendency on the part of conservatives reaches out to their political heroes as well. How many of the Ayn Rand lovers, she of the "every man for himself" political philosophy, reject some important parts of her philosophy, yet worship other parts? Seems to me you either buy the package, or move on to some other hero.
Republicans don't want to hear it.
It would almost be fun to give the Presidency and control of both houses of Congress back to the Republicans. Do you think that, for even one little minute, that they would trash our current economy? Wouldn't happen - they wouldn't cut HALF the shit they are screaming about right now - they'd never get re-elected, and they know it. It was under George W Bush (R), they a whole new aspect of Medicare - Part D - was passed and rolled out to provide coverage for medicines - without a single thought being given to how it would be paid for.
The only reason the Republicans are screaming about the debt and the deficit is that a black Democrat is in the President's office and that is what is driving them to levels of insanity.
The only reason the Republicans are screaming about the debt and the deficit is that a black Democrat is in the President's office and that is what is driving them to levels of insanity.
Cutting the deficit
Periodically I run across these posts that declare that Congress should take cuts in pay - or that Congress should have to live on the same health insurance plan as everyone else - and these posts are tempting to buy into. I don't see that Congressional salaries are too high, or that their benefits are too good - they are running the largest economy in the world - but it does irk that once elected, even if they only serve for a few months, they continue to get that salary and those benefits for the rest of their lives. I know that my pension is nowhere near as generous as the salary I once earned, nor is my health insurance still provided.
But the bigger point is that the amount of money involved is just a pittance when we compare it to the cuts that really need to be made to bring our budgets back to a balanced state. To be blunt, this is really just something to divert our attention away from the real problems we have.
But the bigger point is that the amount of money involved is just a pittance when we compare it to the cuts that really need to be made to bring our budgets back to a balanced state. To be blunt, this is really just something to divert our attention away from the real problems we have.
Monday, February 25, 2013
A dying civilization
The conservatives are destroying this nation child by child as they attack our intellect. How is it that the stupid people are actually making progress in our modern world?
From Mother Jones...
In biology class, public school students can't generally argue that dinosaurs and people ran around Earth at the same time, at least not without risking a big fat F. But that could soon change for kids in Oklahoma: On Tuesday, the Oklahoma Common Education committee is expected to consider a House bill that would forbid teachers from penalizing students who turn in papers attempting to debunk almost universally accepted scientific theories such as biological evolution and anthropogenic (human-driven) climate change.
From Mother Jones...
In biology class, public school students can't generally argue that dinosaurs and people ran around Earth at the same time, at least not without risking a big fat F. But that could soon change for kids in Oklahoma: On Tuesday, the Oklahoma Common Education committee is expected to consider a House bill that would forbid teachers from penalizing students who turn in papers attempting to debunk almost universally accepted scientific theories such as biological evolution and anthropogenic (human-driven) climate change.
Speaking of conservatives
Conservative ignorance is not just a quirky little thing for liberals to chuckle over - they are killing us. Fight back - vote for enlightened politicians both locally and nationally. Please.
Christians - Better know the origins of your Bible
You can click the image to view larger, but text reads, "Because desert goat-herders living in tents 3,000 years ago knew more about the cosmos and biology than modern day scientists."
Still shooting each other - one new gun law
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| And here you go - a new gun law - the cops aren't allowed to mow us down from helicopters in Texas anymore. Headline should read, "One more person moved into Texas and total IQ increased by 1 point! Now up to 12" |
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| More guns! More Guns! Think of how this child's death, and many others, could have been prevented if we just had more guns! |
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