What could we do without in Washington?

Would your life be any different or would you suffer a negative change if,

1. We totally got rid of NASA?

2. Totally got rid of the Department of Energy?

3. Shut down the Department of Education?

4. Cut the Department of State by 50%?


If you believe this would impact your life, please tell me how?

Example: Your Government at Work

This is a pop quiz question: What covers 104 acres (42 hectares), has 21 buildings including stores, restaurants, schools, a movie theater, a fire station, and facilities for athletics, electricity, telecommunications, water, and wastewater. And has Fifteen-foot-thick walls to protect the complex, with some 5,500 staff who live there and an annual budget that comes to about $1.5 billion?

Give up? Why it's the new US Embassy in Baghdad!! Largest US Embassy in the world and nearly as big as Vatican City!

Aren't you proud of America? What a monument to the decades of stupidity that has been US Iraq policy. Read more about it here.

Coincidence? Dem Vote Switchers seek Earmark Billions!

Remember Bart Stupak, that "principled" dem from Michigan who was so concerned about "the children" and so "pro-life" that he and 11 other reps took Obama to the mat, demanding legislative language to protect the "unborn" or he would not vote for ObamaCare!!!!

Remember him?????? Remember how he mysteriously gave in for nothing more than an executive order? Something akin to printed money?

Maybe it is just pure coincidence,,,,OR MAYBE NOT, but Stupak and his gang of eleven are all of a sudden ready to hit the lottery for Billions in earmarks as reported here.

Gee, you don't think their votes were sort of bought off by the promise of paybacks do you???? Yeah right, send me an email, I got some prime land to sell you.....

Foreclosures: Feelings vs Facts

Next to healthcare, Foreclosures are probably the next largest issue where "feelings, compassionate" oriented liberals don't allow the facts to get in the way of their preconceived, all important feelings. Through a combination of easy money and phony mortgages fueled in part by Freddie and Fannie, the housing market became vastly overvalued relative to its true value and its value as a function of real people to really own all those houses.

The bubble burst in part because one day someone discovered there was no underlying value commensurate with the prices being demanded. Then the whole house of cards started to unravel and because of some wacky reserve rules imposed on banks after Enron, bank balance sheets disappeared.

In a normal course of events, the overvalued commodities (houses in this case) would sharply decline in value to a point where perceived value was more in line with actual value and at the same time became attractive buys to buyers again.

That some honest people might lose homes is possible. But the people who typically get sheared are speculators, those who bought way too much house for their means, and those who had the phony mortgages and were waiting on divine intervention to save them from themselves.

But no, here comes your liberal, and bankrupt Government to the rescue. What is the Government solution? Why bailout the owners, make sure the houses don't go into foreclosure thus preventing the value reset to take place. And this, then prolongs the problem because the market remains distorted in a high value plateau. And on and on and on.

Read it all here.

ObamaCare: The Analytical Details

Much has been written about portions of the language that appears in the ObamaCare bill passed last week by the house. But little has appeared in the popular press about what Insurance companies are writting from the perspective of those who have to implement the new law.

My friend, and insurance industry analyst, Mike Bertaut has written a piece for a blog that I am attaching here by link. Get your green eyeshades on, get a strong cup of coffee, and dig in. It is a mess and 2700 pages of legislation only makes that worse.

Enjoy it here.

Palm Sunday

Readings from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, Lectionary C,

Isaiah 45:21-25

Ps. 22

Philippians 2:5-11

The Passion of our Lord according to St. Luke 22:39-23:56

The Collect: Almighty and everliving God, in your tender love for the
human race you sent your Son our Savior Jesus Christ to
take upon him our nature, and to suffer death upon the cross,
giving us the example of his great humility: Mercifully grant
that we may walk in the way of his suffering, and also share
in his resurrection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives
and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever
and ever. Amen.

Was the previous post the last of the bad news? Not by a long shot!

Even as Obama contemplates his success to himself, the bad news keeps rolling in. This week, immediately after the signing of the most intrusive and socialist legislation to ever become law, major corporations, as required by accounting standards, began making disclosures of the effect of the law on their bottom lines. And it is not good.............see here in the WSJ.

This wholesale destruction of wealth and capital came with more than ample warning. Turning over every couch cushion to make their new entitlement look affordable under Beltway accounting rules, Democrats decided to raise taxes on companies that do the public service of offering prescription drug benefits to their retirees instead of dumping them into Medicare. We and others warned this would lead to AT&T-like results, but like so many other ObamaCare objections Democrats waved them off as self-serving or "political."

On top of AT&T's $1 billion, the writedown wave so far includes Deere & Co., $150 million; Caterpillar, $100 million; AK Steel, $31 million; 3M, $90 million; and Valero Energy, up to $20 million. Verizon has also warned its employees about its new higher health-care costs, and there will be many more in the coming days and weeks.

Hard to write a script that says that will be good for the economy.

Be sure and tell your favorite democrat about this the next time they moan about the economy.

Is there any additional bad news in ObamaCare? Yep!

Despite protests from the Obama administration, ObamaCare does put us firmly on the path toward a socialist western-European type of economy where equal opportunity is sacrificed on the altar of equal outcomes and expectations.

In this NRO piece, Charles Krauthammer points out that it does not take a rocket scientist to figure out what the next step is: A VAT Tax!

He writes, With the passage of Obamacare, which created a vast new middle-class entitlement, a national sales tax of the kind almost universal in Europe is inevitable.

We are now $8 trillion in debt. The Congressional Budget Office projects that another $12 trillion will be added over the next decade. Obamacare, when stripped of its budgetary gimmicks — the unfunded $200 billion­–plus doctor fix, the double-counting of Medicare cuts, the ten-six sleight-of-hand (counting ten years of revenue and only six years of outflows) — is, at minimum, a $2 trillion new entitlement.

It will vastly increase the debt. But even if it were deficit-neutral, Obamacare would still pre-empt and appropriate for itself the best and easiest means of reducing the existing deficit. Obamacare’s $500 billion of Medicare cuts and $600 billion in tax hikes are no longer available for deficit reduction. They are siphoned off for the new entitlement of insuring the uninsured.

Obama knows that the debt bomb is looming, that Moody’s has warned that the Treasury’s AAA rating is in jeopardy, and that we are headed for a run on the dollar and/or hyperinflation if nothing is done.

Hence his deficit-reduction commission. It will report (surprise!) after the November elections. And it will recommend a VAT. That will be the centerpiece of his agenda for 2011.

So vote to block it and vote to repeal ObamaCare come November

Is there any good news in ObamaCare: Yes there is!

One segment of the healthcare provider industry is absolutely giddy over the business prospects of ObamaCare. They see explosive growth ahead to help the whole industry keep up with the mandates contained within the ObamaCare legislation. Am I talking about the IRS here? Is this going to be good for our economy as in creating jobs the way Nancy Pelosi claimed?

Well, not quite. It seems the bullish outlook is coming from India, according to this article in the Christian Science Monitor.

The bulge in administrative work may look like a nightmare to American insurance firms and government employees. But to outsourcing executives here in India, it’s heaven-sent. A number of Indian companies are already anticipating an increase in workload thanks to Obama's healthcare law.

The addition of 32 million insured Americans is “very significant” for Indian outsourcers, says Ananda Mukerji, chief executive officer of Firstsource Solutions in Mumbai. Companies like his will see “increased opportunities” as US health insurers and hospitals scramble to reorganize to comply with the new law, he wrote in an email to the Monitor.

This extra work will include processing new enrollments, organizing bigger member databases, processing more claims, providing more support services, and managing more revenue, he says.

In particular, outsourcers can expect to benefit from insurers’ need to minimize administrative costs, Mr. Mukerji says, citing a recent Deloitte Center for Health Solutions study showing that up to 41 percent of the cost of a health plan is administrative.

The US healthcare reform offers a "natural extension" of the back-office outsourcing that Indian companies already specialize in, says Tu Packard, a senior economist with Moody's Economy.com.

Remember this the next time some liberal starts screaming about US Companies outsourcing jobs overseas.

Let's be clear: Repeal and Replace!

There have been confusing messages coming out of Washington this week following the passage of ObamaCare. Are conservatives going to repeal and replace or might we just tweak what is in place; keeping the "good stuff" and getting rid of the "bad stuff".

Let's be clear: there is no good stuff because the whole bill, now law, has no good stuff. It is not about health care insurance, it is about growing government and about socialist government control. There is, by definition, nothing good about that. So, as stated in this article, the Conservative Strategy is Repeal and Replace!

Leader gives orders to lenders: Venezuela or USA?

Aha! I fooled you. No, it's not Venezuela. But look at how hard it is to tell the difference based on what government leaders are doing in the two countries. In this WaPa article steps being taken by the Obama administration to order banks to scale back foreclosures and reduce mortgage payments are detailed. All of this we are told, coming from the liberal/progressive position of "compassion" for the jobless in our country.

Hey! How about getting the darn government out of the way so the economy can recover and create the jobs in the PRIVATE sector that would take care of the issue os so many jobless? Are they that clueless? No, they are using the "crisis" to advance their socialist agenda of big government and total government control. Mark my words.

Tea Party Express: Vote them out!

No comment needed.

What Conservatives can do Now!

See this article for .details

1. Keep pointing out the horrible flaws in ObamaCare. Price of $2.5 trillion in 10 years, cuts to Medicare, double-counting savings, new IRS enforcement

2. Get out and vote in November to take back Congress

3. Use a conservative majority in the House to de-fund ObamaCare. Remember, money bills start in the House. Don't fund any appropriations for ObamaCare.

This battle is not over. The War is just beginning. We sent messages in Virginia, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. They didn't listen. Just turn up the voluem and the heat!

Democrats fear they are at risk!

Such a load of BS! But, that is something one has to consider when one seeks to impose his/her will upon the governed when they clearly and consistently tell you not to do it!

But I don't believe this. I think it is "Rules for Radicals 101" where you try to discredit you enemies by making it appear they are the ones doing the violence. Where is the evidence for what is cited here

Conservatives, Patriots, Americans have no time or interest in this type of stuff. We have our work cut out to defeat all the Democrats in the upcoming elections. We are not going to do anything to help them get a sympathy vote.

Where is the evidence? And as one President said, "if you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen".

Reason 1001 that The Episcopal Church must Die!

In Asheville, NC, the diocesan cathedral allows wiccans and other assorted creatures to celebrate the pagan rites of season changes in an Episcopal Church! The ways that this does profane the holy ground of the church are almost beyond counting.

That the Bishop and Dean of the Cathedral (I vow to uphold the faith of the Church) allow this is beyond belief. It also says a lot about why this whole denomination that used to be part of the Christian Church needs to go find its way among all the other pagan sects which have died over the centuries.

"ObamaCare will control the people"...from the horse's mouth

Representative Dingell, who should have been voted out of Congress about 30 years ago sheds some real light on what Obamacare is about; get the details from his mouth to your ears right here.

Of course he did not mean to say that. Just like Obama didn't reaelly want to tell Joe the Plumber about sharing the wealth. But at key moments of weakness the truth really does come out.

Watch for Dingell's office to come with stories about awful "Tea Party" people making the representative fear for his life or someother cover story to get this little video off page one.

Why the fuss over ObamaCare??? Read 20 ways to lose your Freedom

From here at IBD: the 20 ways you lose your freedom under ObamaCare.

1. You are young and don’t want health insurance? You are starting up a small business and need to minimize expenses, and one way to do that is to forego health insurance? Tough. You have to pay $750 annually for the “privilege.” (Section 1501)

2. You are young and healthy and want to pay for insurance that reflects that status? Tough. You’ll have to pay for premiums that cover not only you, but also the guy who smokes three packs a day, drink a gallon of whiskey and eats chicken fat off the floor. That’s because insurance companies will no longer be able to underwrite on the basis of a person’s health status. (Section 2701).

3. You would like to pay less in premiums by buying insurance with lifetime or annual limits on coverage? Tough. Health insurers will no longer be able to offer such policies, even if that is what customers prefer. (Section 2711).

4. Think you’d like a policy that is cheaper because it doesn’t cover preventive care or requires cost-sharing for such care? Tough. Health insurers will no longer be able to offer policies that do not cover preventive services or offer them with cost-sharing, even if that’s what the customer wants. (Section 2712).

5. You are an employer and you would like to offer coverage that doesn’t allow your employers’ slacker children to stay on the policy until age 26? Tough. (Section 2714).

6. You must buy a policy that covers ambulatory patient services, emergency services, hospitalization, maternity and newborn care, mental health and substance use disorder services, including behavioral health treatment; prescription drugs; rehabilitative and habilitative services and devices; laboratory services; preventive and wellness services; chronic disease management; and pediatric services, including oral and vision care.
You’re a single guy without children? Tough, your policy must cover pediatric services. You’re a woman who can’t have children? Tough, your policy must cover maternity services. You’re a teetotaler? Tough, your policy must cover substance abuse treatment. (Add your own violation of personal freedom here.) (Section 1302).

7. Do you want a plan with lots of cost-sharing and low premiums? Well, the best you can do is a “Bronze plan,” which has benefits that provide benefits that are actuarially equivalent to 60% of the full actuarial value of the benefits provided under the plan. Anything lower than that, tough. (Section 1302 (d)(1)(A))

8. You are an employer in the small-group insurance market and you’d like to offer policies with deductibles higher than $2,000 for individuals and $4,000 for families? Tough. (Section 1302 (c) (2) (A).

9. If you are a large employer (defined as at least 101 employees) and you do not want to provide health insurance to your employee, then you will pay a $750 fine per employee (It could be $2,000 to $3,000 under the reconciliation changes). Think you know how to better spend that money? Tough. (Section 1513).
10. You are an employer who offers health flexible spending arrangements and your employees want to deduct more than $2,500 from their salaries for it? Sorry, can’t do that. (Section 9005 (i)).

11. If you are a physician and you don’t want the government looking over your shoulder? Tough. The Secretary of Health and Human Services is authorized to use your claims data to issue you reports that measure the resources you use, provide information on the quality of care you provide, and compare the resources you use to those used by other physicians. Of course, this will all be just for informational purposes. It’s not like the government will ever use it to intervene in your practice and patients’ care. Of course not. (Section 3003 (i))

12. If you are a physician and you want to own your own hospital, you must be an owner and have a “Medicare provider agreement” by Feb. 1, 2010. (Dec. 31, 2010 in the reconciliation changes.) If you didn’t have those by then, you are out of luck. (Section 6001 (i) (1) (A)).

13. If you are a physician owner and you want to expand your hospital? Well, you can’t (Section 6001 (i) (1) (B). Unless, it is located in a country where, over the last five years, population growth has been 150% of what it has been in the state (Section 6601 (i) (3) ( E)). And then you cannot increase your capacity by more than 200% (Section 6001 (i) (3) (C)).

14. You are a health insurer and you want to raise premiums to meet costs? Well, if that increase is deemed “unreasonable” by the Secretary of Health and Human Services it will be subject to review and can be denied. (Section 1003)

15. The government will extract a fee of $2.3 billion annually from the pharmaceutical industry. If you are a pharmaceutical company what you will pay depends on the ratio of the number of brand-name drugs you sell to the total number of brand-name drugs sold in the U.S. So, if you sell 10% of the brand-name drugs in the U.S., what you pay will be 10% multiplied by $2.3 billion, or $230,000,000. (Under reconciliation, it starts at $2.55 billion, jumps to $3 billion in 2012, then to $3.5 billion in 2017 and $4.2 billion in 2018, before settling at $2.8 billion in 2019 (Section 1404)). Think you, as a pharmaceutical executive, know how to better use that money, say for research and development? Tough. (Section 9008 (b)).


16. The government will extract a fee of $2 billion annually from medical device makers. If you are a medical device maker what you will pay depends on your share of medical device sales in the U.S. So, if you sell 10% of the medical devices in the U.S., what you pay will be 10% multiplied by $2 billion, or $200,000,000. Think you, as a medical device maker, know how to better use that money, say for R&D? Tough. (Section 9009 (b)).
The reconciliation package turns that into a 2.9% excise tax for medical device makers. Think you, as a medical device maker, know how to better use that money, say for research and development? Tough. (Section 1405).

17. The government will extract a fee of $6.7 billion annually from insurance companies. If you are an insurer, what you will pay depends on your share of net premiums plus 200% of your administrative costs. So, if your net premiums and administrative costs are equal to 10% of the total, you will pay 10% of $6.7 billion, or $670,000,000. In the reconciliation bill, the fee will start at $8 billion in 2014, $11.3 billion in 2015, $1.9 billion in 2017, and $14.3 billion in 2018 (Section 1406).Think you, as an insurance executive, know how to better spend that money? Tough.(Section 9010 (b) (1) (A and B).)

18. If an insurance company board or its stockholders think the CEO is worth more than $500,000 in deferred compensation? Tough.(Section 9014).

19. You will have to pay an additional 0.5% payroll tax on any dollar you make over $250,000 if you file a joint return and $200,000 if you file an individual return. What? You think you know how to spend the money you earned better than the government? Tough. (Section 9015).
That amount will rise to a 3.8% tax if reconciliation passes. It will also apply to investment income, estates, and trusts. You think you know how to spend the money you earned better than the government? Like you need to ask. (Section 1402).

20. If you go for cosmetic surgery, you will pay an additional 5% tax on the cost of the procedure. Think you know how to spend that money you earned better than the government? Tough. (Section 9017).

That my folks is Change You can Damn Well Believe in!

ObamaCare Kicks In!

If you are one of those who likes to tone up the tan a little as Spring kicks in, bad news! ObamaCare requires SunTan Parlors to start charging a 10% tax immediately.

More to come from this article.

Insurers will be required by September to begin providing health coverage to kids with pre-existing illnesses and allow parents to keep children younger than 26 on their plans as the clock has begun ticking on many of the law’s provisions. Medicare recipients will receive a $250 rebate for prescription drugs when they reach a coverage gap called the donut hole if the Senate passes and the president signs companion legislation approved March 21 by the U.S. House.

What does that mean for you and me? Come next January when most health insurance plans reset their rates, watch for a HUGE increase in rates. Thanks to ObamaCare! Rmember, there are no free lunches. It's called Income Redistribution.

Repeal the Bill

Sen. Jim DeMint has helped set up this website to sign a pledge to Kill the Bill.

See it all HERE

Stunning Fox News Poll...Most Americans think Government too Big!

On the day Obama signs ObamaCare into law, Fox News releases a Poll that shows that 79% of Americans fear and economic collapse and 78% believe Government is too big and restricting freedoms.

Holy Crap! Wait until they see how ObamaCare grows government, grows taxes, grows debt, and diminishes even more of your freedoms! You 78% aint' seen nothing yet.

Given all the liberal, progressive euphoria over the new ObamaCare law, not one liberal or progressive has written me to get the $5,000 I am offering to give them in my $5,000 ObamaCare Challenge.

"Nil desperandum” — never despair.

That is a sentiment that conservatives need to take to heart now that Congress has narrowly passed a bill that simultaneously undermines life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

It takes some ingenuity to add to the costs, inefficiency, and dysfunctions that government has already bequeathed to our health-care system, but the Democrats have proven themselves up to the challenge as reported here.

Almost nothing about this legislation is free of dispute, but we are convinced that it will increase taxes, increase premiums, and increase debt, while decreasing economic growth, job growth, and the quality of health care.

Conservatives need to remember: this law is not and was never about healthcare,,,,,it is about control. It is about Government control of people's lives because those who believe in big Government don't think you are smart enough to run your own lives. That is what our target to defeat is.....BIG GOVERNMENT!

The Face of Evil

See that nice looking church? It used to be an Episcopalian Church. Then it became an Anglican Church when the congregation could no longer live with the heresy of The Episcopal Church.

Then The Episcopal Church took the Anglican Church to court to retain the property for The Episcopal Church. The court sided with The Episcopal Church and then tossed the Anglican Church out of the property and the Rector and his family had to abandon their house.

So what did The Episcopal Church do with their property? Did they start a new Episcopalian congregation? Did they sell it back to the Anglican Church?

Tsk, tsk, heavens mercy no: they sold the former Christian Church to the muslims.

And there is the face of Evil. Read more here and here.

The $5,000 ObamaCare Challenge to Liberals and Progressives

Throughout the debate on ObamaCare, liberals and Progressives explained to us the wonders which ObamaCare would bring to America. Among these are

1. Coverage for 30 million uninsured

2. Lower insurance premiums

3. Would cost less than $1 Trillion in the first 10 years

4. Will lower the deficit over the next 10 years

5. If you like your doctor you get to keep him/her

6. If you like your insurance plan, you get to keep it

So, these were the major promises made and these are what 219 democrats in the House of Representatives voted for.

Now, the question I have for my liberal and progressive friends is this: do you really believe this tripe? I don't. I think it is a pack of lies for a bill that has nothing to do with healthcare and everything to do with tyranny.

But you could be right and I could be wrong. Out of the goodness of my heart I will give you $5,000 if I am wrong. Here is how it works if you want to put your money where your mouth and Obama's mouth has been for the last 14 months.

Call it the ObamaCare Challenge

1. I buy a 10 year CD for $5,000 and you do the same.

2. Ten years from now we check on how ObamaCare has done with the 6 major promises above. If they have been kept you get my money. If they have not, I get yours. It's that simple. Want to play?

Welcome to "Deemocracy"!

Popular commentator Mark Steyn gives his trademarked humorous, yet cutting, commentary on what the ever expanding size of government means for us in this NRO article.

From his article, this observation: On Thursday, the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board voted to set up a committee to examine whether condoms should be required on all pornographic film shoots within the Golden State.

California has run out of money, but it hasn’t yet run out of things to regulate.

His article only gets better from there, but that little clip tells you everything you need to know about the future in America if we don't do something about it. More government worming itself into more areas of life irregardless of the fiscal disastor bearing down on us.

Read it all and ponder if this was the "Hope and Change" you thought you were getting.

The REAL COST of ObamaCare!

In a letter Thursday to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and House Republican Leader John Boehner of Ohio, Caterpillar urged lawmakers to vote against the plan "because of the substantial cost burdens it would place on our shareholders, employees and retirees."

What this means, as reported here, is that companies big and small are going to look at the additional costs imposed on them and figure out which costs can they pass on to their customers and which costs do they eat. One way to eat those costs is to either not hire new employees or to shed some of the employees they have.

In the competitive big equipment world this will be a difficult calculation for Caterpillar. They face stiff competition around the world.

Combine these predictable actions by companies along with reduced consumer spending as taxes begin to reduce take-home pay and you have a prescription for poor economic activity and even poor long-term economic outlook.

Resistance!

You may see more of this as time goes on.......

Hat Tip: Bill R

Eight Ways ObamaCare will grow Government

From here, Eight Ways ObamaCare will grow Government:

1. Obamacare creates a new, government-run assisted-care insurance program to compete with existing private plans. CLASS Act, as it’s called, is essentially a new entitlement, and its proponents promise it won’t cost the Treasury a penny. That’s what Washington used to say about Social Security.

2. Obamacare creates a Medicare panel to cut payments for ineffective procedures and prescriptions. The panel will override the wishes of patients and physicians, just as it has in countries where it’s already been tried, such as Britain.

3. Obamacare expands Medicaid eligibility by as much as one-third, increasing taxpayer liability for entitlements at the exact moment Washington needs to contain entitlements

4. Obamacare gives the federal government the power to specify what every insurance plan must cover, and doesn’t touch the hundreds of state-level benefit mandates that are already in place. And, by the way, it’s a power that Washington will immediately use — both the House and Senate bills contain new mandates.

5. Obamacare creates dozens of new offices, bureaucracies, committees, programs, and authorities — more than 110 in the Senate bill — to implement the law and develop new regulations, including the Interagency Pain Research Coordinating Committee and the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute.

6. Obamacare forces states to set up health-insurance exchanges to foster competition. Massachusetts has already tried this, with no reduction in premiums.

7. Obamacare substitutes more government for patient choice by gutting Medicare Advantage (an option through which seniors can receive their Medicare benefits in the form of private insurance plans) to pay for new entitlements and new services.

8. Obamacare will push the government’s share of national health spending well past the 50 percent level forever.

9. I know I only told you eight, but I "deemed" you needed nine: ObamaCare sets up the medical system to provide "free" healthcare insurance to the 20-30 million illegal imigrants he wants to give amnesty to.

Oh, yes, and we forgot to mention the penalties if you don't comply: fines and potential jail time. And more intrusion from the IRS.

What is an Impeachable Offense?

Impeachment is a formal process in which an elected official is accused of unlawful activity, and which may or may not lead to the removal of that official from office.

Why is that important? Because this weekend, the House of Representatives may take a scaple to the Constitution in order to slither through the odious ObamaCare bill. Instead of an up or down vote, for which Pelosi may not have the votes, they will use a slight of hand to "deem" that the Senate bill was passed, as described here.

That would mean that Pelosi, with the urging of President Obama, has circumvented Article I section 7 of the Constitution. They both took on oath to uphold the Constitution. By knowingly bypassing the Constitution, they have broken their oaths.

Should they be impeached?

Can you make a few more phone calls to defeat ObamaCare?

If your fingers aren't raw yet, you can still help keep the capital phone lines clogged and send a message to undecided representatives to vote NO on ObamaCare.

All the information you need is summarized here!

What do average Americans think about IRS Healthcare powers?

In the previous post, we reported on this article from The Hill.

What do average Americans think of this? Here are some comments from The Hill article:

These are just a few of 484 comments received on the article,

Screw the IRS and all the tentacles of the fed reserve. Don't be sheeple. Rise up. Take it back. They will not give it willing, so do what is necessary. Grow a pair.
BY Roman Bacqwhet on 03/18/2010 at 19:50

What liar poser godwannabe thugs
BY tara metcalfe on 03/18/2010 at 19:55

Our politicians will regret this crap. Here we have a mountain of arrogance, fully charged with incompetence. An ideological tool to force the people to take a medicine they do not wish to take. But it's for our own good, and government sure knows what's good for the people, right? The heavy hand of this government is no longer one that helps the people. This is the back of the hand that punishes the people! Next thing you know we'll be told that we're lucky to have such a caring government! Where other nations have heard this BS before? This is how government creates enemies out of the people. This is how democracy collapses.
BY picomanning on 03/18/2010 at 19:56

I would rather die a free man than to give up my God given right to liberty and self-direction!I will NOT pay the (heathcare) tax!I will NOT pay the fines!I will NOT go to federal prison!If anyone in the federal government cares to test me on this,bring it on baby!
BY Guy Cooper on 03/18/2010 at 19:57

That is just what we need more IRS intrusion into our lives. Why don't they go after the 100,000 government workers that reportedly owe some 300 million dollars in back taxes instead. This bill is crazy and anyone that votes for it will never get my vote!
BY Feed up with this on 03/18/2010 at 19:58

I feel like I am being directly spit on and our American flag is being burned by a bunch of domestic terrorists. The problem is these terrorists make up the majority of the government and they keep trying to reach further and further into the lives of Americans. We need to stop this assault on our country ASAP!
BY NoBaMa1556 on 03/18/2010 at 19:59

This is the biggest point that no one has been scrutinizing all along! This is the one that people should be screaming mad about and demand the failure of this bill for this reason alone. Why in the world should the IRS be in charge of a "Health Care" bill enforcement? This bill is a blatant sham of a vehicle for the government to get deeper into the pockets of every American taxpayer. This is what this whole scam has been about all along. This is why they are pushing so hard to pass this sham. They need more money to keep spending like they are used to and want more of our money. This has to be stopped. It is merely a tax collection bill,, not a Health bill.
BY kdpvegas on 03/18/2010 at 20:00

It is nearly time to refresh the tree of liberty.
BY Alan on 03/18/2010 at 20:01

Soon it will be time for a good old fashioned All-American tax revolt. Let the fascists expose themselves for the thugs they are. We aren't their slaves. The income tax was the worst thing to happen to this country. The politicians view us as their perpetual income source. We need to dramatically reduce the size of government and let the free market provide us with prosperity. Government can't do that, it can only take wealth from some people and give it to others.
BY Eric on 03/18/2010 at 20:04

ObamaCare expands IRS Powers

Want some more good news about ObamaCare?

Reported here in The Hill.

Subcommittee on Oversight ranking member Charles Boustany (R-La.) said the IRS provision in the bill "dangerously expands, in an ominous way the tentacles of the IRS and it's reach into every American family," he said today during a press conference.

"This is a vast expanse of power," he said.

Boustany said the bill would allow the IRS to confiscate refunds if there are penalties for not buying health care.

Lawmakers have questioned whether the IRS can handle the increased workload to oversee, administer and collect penalties for people who don't buy health insurance.

"This is increasing tax liability and tax scrutiny," said Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.).

Ranking member Dave Camp (R-Mich.) said many Americans have already rejected the call for health care reform for other reasons and an expansion of the IRS should only add to call to "kill the bill."


Taxpayers could be required to buy insurance under President Barack Obama’s reform proposal by 2014 or face penalties of roughly $325 per individual that the IRS would collect.

Assuming it becomes law, the Congressional Budget Office expects the IRS will need roughly $10 billion over the next 10 years and nearly 17,000 new employees to meet its new responsibilities under health reform.

Understanding ObamaCare in 90 Seconds

You think Obama's long, single minded, maniacle push toward ObmaCare passage is a long involved process that is impossible to understand?

Not at all!

You can see it right here and it only takes 90 seconds.....better than speed reading!

Hat Tip: Rick L.

The Census: Constitutional and Legal Requirements

Opinions range regarding what is absolutely required due to the phrase in Article I Section 2 of the US Constitution: “The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct.”

Many people believe this means the only question you are Constitutionally obligated to answer is the one which asks how many people live in your dwelling.

However, if one digs a little deeper,

(a) Whoever, being over eighteen years of age, refuses or
willfully neglects, when requested by the Secretary, or by any
other authorized officer or employee of the Department of Commerce
or bureau or agency thereof acting under the instructions of the
Secretary or authorized officer, to answer, to the best of his
knowledge, any of the questions on any schedule submitted to him in
connection with any census or survey provided for by subchapters I,
II, IV, and V of chapter 5 of this title, applying to himself or to
the family to which he belongs or is related, or to the farm or
farms of which he or his family is the occupant, shall be fined not
more than $100.
(b) Whoever, when answering questions described in subsection (a)
of this section, and under the conditions or circumstances
described in such subsection, willfully gives any answer that is
false, shall be fined not more than $500.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, no person
shall be compelled to disclose information relative to his
religious beliefs or to membership in a religious body.

So there you are: if you answer the question about how many folks are in your dwelling but you leave all the other questions blank, it might cost you $100.

This is ObamaCare Reform: The Details

1. Taxes start immediately when the bill becomes law

2. Benefits take up to 4 years to kick in.....We thought this was an "emergency!"

3. This is the path to single-payer, third party nationalized insurance

3. This bill will not reduce the deficit; the tax revenues will never meet projections and the costs will blow over the projections

4. You may be penalized or sent to jail for not buying an insurance policy

5. For the first time you will pay medicare tax on unearned income; interest, dividends, capital gains

6. Nothing in this bill will lower the cost of healthcare

7. Insurance premiums will not go down

8. Government will have the means to control every aspect of your lives in the name of "healthcare cost reduction"

Read more ?here.

What's not to love

We Don't Take Medicaid Here!!!!!!

Walgreens Pharmacies in the State of Washington will stop taking new Medicaid prescription customers effective April 16. And why you ask?

In a news release, Walgreens said its decision to not take new Medicaid patients stemmed from a "continued reduction in reimbursement" under the state's Medicaid program, which reimburses it at less than the break-even point for 95 percent of brand-name medications dispensed to Medicaid patents.

Walgreens follows Bartell Drugs, which stopped taking new Medicaid patients last month at all 57 of its stores in Washington, though it still fills Medicaid prescriptions for existing customers at all but 15 of those stores.

But not to fear; the state is not worried......see below

Doug Porter, the state's director of Medicaid, said Medicaid recipients should be able to readily find another pharmacy because "we have many more pharmacy providers in our network than we need" for the state's 1 million Medicaid clients.

Will those Pharmacy's be conveniently located? Will every town have one? How long will they take a loss on Medicaid?

Welcome to the future of Socialized, Government controlled medicine where costs are not reduced, rather care is rationed to the provider willing to take the lowest profit margin which will lead to lower quality service.

Overload the System: Tear it down

Get confused about what process is going where and why things seem turned around and which Leftist-radical initiative is where?

Perhaps this chart will help to visualize what the initiatives are, the legitimate path they tend to start down, and how the Obama Administration finds a non-legitimate, non-Constitutional path to take when the people and their representatives in Congress object or obstruct the Leftist Agenda.

The Episcopal Church: Cult of the "New Thang"

As reported in Episcopal Life, The Rev. Mary Glasspool, bishop-elect in the Diocese of Los Angeles has received the necessary number of consents from Bishops and Diocesan Standing Committees in order for the Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church to declare that her ordination and consecretion as Bishop will proceed on May 15. Glasspool is the second openly gay partnered priest to be elected a bishop in the Episcopal Church.

The ordination of openly gay partnered persons to clerical orders overthrows two thousand years of tradition and plain biblical teaching in the Christian Church Universal. The move by The Episcopal Church to ordain only gay, partnered bishops has proceeded against the will of most of the Anglican Communion (global churches attached to the Church of England, The Anglican Church) and has caused a deep split among members within the United States of America.

Stop Obamacare now: Call Congress

Here is the link to the Code Red list of congressmen/women to call to urge them to stop the socialized takeover our our healthcare system.

Call These Folks today and clog the system up!

Bret Baier Fox News to Interview President Obama

Bret Bair of Fox News will interview President Obama at 6pm on Wednesday March 17. The network is inviting people to send in questions for the President at special@foxnews.com.

Here is the question I sent in for the President to answer:

Mr. President: your economic policies are destroying the American economy and devasting hard working Americans. Your Executive branch appointees represent every stripe of leftist radicalism bent on destroying this country. Your health reform, Cap & Trade, and Immigration proposals represent the worst of socialsim, redistribution, and destructive transformation of American society. Given that your Presidential campaign gave no clear indication of these directions to the American electorate, tell us why you should not be impreached from office or why you should not subject yourself to an immediate up or down vote by the people to determine whether you should remain in office?

The New Normal: High Unemployment

The Obama administration has predicted here that job creation in the near term will not be enough to lower unemployment from its official 9.7% and in fact in the next few months the rate might go higher as "discouraged" workers come back in from the cold to look for jobs.

If there was no occupant in the White House, the economy would be doing much better than it is. A total idiot could not make the mess that we now see. So there is only one conclusion that can be reached: it is on purpose!

Even Obama's new Vice Chair candidate for the Fed has stated that too many workers increases inflation, as we reported here.

This purposeful destruction of the economy is engineered to make more people dependent on the government and to punish the successful whom Obama views as the causes of all the perceived evils he has come to hate in America.

How is that Hope & Change working for you???

Swing Districts Oppose Health Reform

The President said last week that everything that can be said has been said about healthcare. Nonetheless, he continues to campaign like a candidate who is 10 points down in the polls. This is bad legislation and the American people know it.

To the point, the The Wall Street Journal ran a story which demonstrated that key House representatives are seeing poll numbers even worse than those for the nation as a whole.

The story ends with this line, These are the constituents of the members whose votes will matter most this week. Perhaps, if this republic is still the people's, those members should heed those they claim to represent.

Lies to be made Public: Social Security to cash IOU's

The lie and Ponzi scheme that is Social Security is about to be exposed for all to see. As reported here, for the first time since the early 1980's The SSA is going to start tapping the US Government for money as it is paying out more in benefits than it is squeezing out of you and me. Huh? How is that possible?

Many Americans think their payroll taxes for Social Security go into "their" account for their future use. Sadly, that is not true. The Federal Government for years has taken that money to spend it on social programs and entitlements. The Government then gives SSA an IOU for the money it took.

So, what's wrong with that? Well, have you noticed recently that the Federal Government is $12 Trillion in debt? Oh, so you mean we would have to borrow money to pay back the IOU's? Yep, now you have the picture.

So, much worse than the early 1980's, get ready for screams that we have to "fix Social Security"! Three guesses what that means (and the first two don't count).

Higher taxes!!! See, now you know how it works. And those higher taxes will then go into "your" account for your future? Right? You better not say yes or I will have to come over and slap you!

Fourth Sunday in Lent

Readings from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, Lectionary C,

Joshua 4:19-24, 5:9-12

Psalm 34

2 Cor 5:17-21

Luke 15:11-32

Collect: Gracious Father, whose blessed Son Jesus Christ came down
from heaven to be the true bread which gives life to the world:
Evermore give us this bread, that he may live in us, and we in
him; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one
God, now and for ever. Amen.

Archbishop of Canterbury condemns evangelist 'bullies'

This article provides some interesting insight into why that symbol above, The Episcopal Shield, a sign of The Episcopal Church in North America, will someday just be part of the dustbin of history.

The Archbishop of Canterbury is the spiritual leader of the world-wide Anglican Communion, the confederation if you will of all the churches who fall under the umbrella of the Church of England (which split with the Roman Church in the 1500"s).

The Archbishop stated, The Archbishop of Canterbury has condemned evangelist "bullies" who attempt to convert people of other faiths to Christianity.
Dr Rowan Williams said it was right to be suspicious of proselytism that involves "bullying, insensitive approaches" to other faiths.

But then, to backtrack just a little bit, he offers this very muddled piece of theology, "God save us also from the nervousness about our own conviction that doesn’t allow us to say we speak about Jesus because we believe he matters, we believe he matters, because we believe that in him human beings find their peace, their destinies converge, and their dignities are fully honoured."

Oh, so that's what Jesus is all about huh? Fully honoring our dignity?

Hey Rowen, how about the part that God so loved the world he gave His only Son that all who might believe in Him would be saved?

How about Jesus being God with us? How about the greatest gift mankind could receive from the uncreated Creator of all?

As opposed to your very mushy Jesus, this is a Jesus to be excited about, to be passionate about, to want to share with everyone you know so that they might be saved for all eternity as we have been.

If that is bullying, then count me in!!

And Now: Prius-Gate!

On March 4 we posted that it seemed very strange that all you heard about was "bad" Toyota's and nothing positive about "good" Toyotas despite the number of good ones had to vastly outnumber any bad ones. See it here.

Further to the point, some of the stories that drivers of "bad" Toyotas were telling just didn't make engineering sense to us. So, what do we find out today? Read on.

Remember the "balloon boy" hoax? Well now it appears we have a Toyota Prius hoax. After the dramatic 911 calls and video footage of a Prius out of control, we learn here that Toyota technicians and the NHTSA have not been able to duplicate the "terrifying" experience of James Sikes, the California owner.

In particular, "During two hours of test drives of Sikes' car Thursday, technicians failed to duplicate the same experience that Sikes described, according to the memo prepared for the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform."

"Every time the technician placed the gas pedal to the floor and the brake pedal to the floor the engine shut off and the car immediately started to slow down," the memo said.

Obamacare: You gotta watch this!

Watch this video: it says it all and needs no comments from Me.

Hat Tip: Gloria R.

Off Topic: lighter moment

2 Brazilian Soldiers



The Dept of Defense briefed the president this morning.

They told President Obama that 2 Brazilian soldiers were killed in Iraq.

To everyone's surprise, all the color drained from Obama's face.
Then he collapsed onto his desk, head in his hands, visibly shaken, almost in tears.

Finally, he composed himself and asked, 'Just how many is a brazilian?'

This is not surprising, since he obviously has no understanding of billion or trillion either.

Hat Tip: Granny Nan

New Obama Fed Candidate: Working People Cause Inflation

The other day Nancy Pelosi (Speaker of the House) opined that Obamacare would be good for the nation because artists and writers would not have to have day jobs to earn healthcare and could instead focus their time on their creative pursuits. Oh? What about the rest of us dumb slobs who finance that? No time for us to be creative.

Now we have the new Obama administration candidate for the vice-chair of the Fed, a Ms Janet Yellin. What is controverial about her?

Well, unlike most economists who feel that too much money chasing too few goods leads to inflation, Ms. Yellin believes "inflation is caused by too many people working and too much economic prosperity."

Which means as long as Mr. Obama is in office we are safe from inflation.

Lesbian Parents and Children in Catholic Schools: WWJD?

It was a controversy tailor-made for the TV cameras: A lesbian couple in the liberal bastion of Boulder, Colo., had enrolled their children in a Catholic parish school, only to see those children denied re-enrollment once the parish priest learned of their home situation. When the story leaked last week, Boulder's vociferous gay-rights activists mobilized to protest the priest, the parish and the Archdiocese of Denver, brandishing signs outside the church that plaintively asked: "What would Jesus do?" To answer the WWJD question we have to determine which Jesus we are talking about.

Are we talking about the Jesus who is the fulfillment of the Scriptures, both Old and New Testament? Or, are we talking about the more modern Jesus who basically embraces everything we want to do anyway?

The Roman Catholic Church obviously hews to the path of the Biblical Jesus and should be expected to decide that parents who do not live in a manner keeping with the moral teachings of the Bible cannot enroll their children in Catholic Schools (question: why would they want to? Was there an agenda here?).

Others will say; what about parents who commit adultery? Who abuse drugs? Who commit a crime? Are you throwing their children out of the school?

Good questions! Jesus was into forgiveness and redemption. To parents whose manner of life does not follow the teachings of the Church, the Church could ask--are you willing to confess your sins, turn to a righteous path, and sin no more?

The adulterer could say "yes". The drug abuser could say "yes". The criminal could say "yes". What would the Lesbian parents say?

That is what makes this situation different.

Hat Tip: Stand Firm in Faith

Who is paying taxes? Chances are, not you?

One of the issues that doomed the old Articles of Confederation (precursor to current Constitutional Government) was the lack of taxation power.

Obviously both Federal and State Governments have lots of taxatin power now, but according to this article from The Heritage Foundation fewer and fewer of us are paying Federal Income Taxes.

According to the Tax Foundation, in 2008 we saw that 36% of returns filed owed no taxes. In addition to this statistic, we now find that a family of four can earn up to $51,000 and still owe no taxes.

Even more alarming, "the average recipient of government aid received over $26,000 in assistance in 2008 – a record high."

What can we conclude from these statistics? Well, this from the Heritage Foundation, The growing dependency on government and shrinking number of taxpayers is troubling and will lead to an even faster rise in unsustainable government spending unless the trend is reversed. Congress should start by ceasing the expansion of refundable tax credits. It should then reform entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare before baby-boomers start collecting benefits from them and dependency on government explodes even further. If Congress starts soon perhaps it won’t be too late to stop the impending fiscal implosion.

Poverty in America Part 4: Causes of Poverty-where to focus

In the previous part of this series, we looked at just how poor are the "poor" in this country. In many ways they are no different than any of the middle class if you look at "things" that they have and their ability to put food on the table and to pay their bills.

But, there is no denying that the people we classify as "poor" do not have the financial resources that many middle-class folks have and they seem to have fewer skills to deal with the challenges of modern life.

We try to "fix" their "poverty" with vast Federal and State government programs to address their "needs". But do these programs do anything to really lift them from perpetual poverty? That's hard to answer unless we know what the Causes of Poverty Are!

Causes of Systemic Poverty

In today's wretched economy, a job loss along with an "upside-down mortgage" could lead to a situation of temporary poverty. That is not what we are talking about here. What are the causes of systemic, generational poverty in America?

In a Heritage Foundation Study (Heritage Foundation.com), the chief causes of systemic poverty are;

1. Lack of work: the typical poor family with children only produces 800 hours of work per year. If this were raised to 2,000 hours per year (40 hours per week), it is estimated that 75% of poor children would be lifted out of poverty.

2. Unwed births: as of 2007 nearly 1.5 million out of wedlock births per year were recorded. Nearly all of these will result in children living in poverty.

3. Father absence: nearly two thirds of poor children live in fatherless homes.

So, the causes of poverty and the means to reduce poverty come down to two strong Christian ethics: hard work and marriage!

And yet, if you go back to an earlier part of this series which listed all the "anti-poverty" means-tested programs maintained by Federal and State Governments, NOT ONE OF THOSE PROGRAMS ADDRESSES THE ISSUE OF CONSISTENT WORK HOURS OR STABLE FAMILY ENVIRONMENTS.

So, are we really trying to help people get out of systemic poverty, or are we just trying to perpetuate favored government programs and liberal thinking?

Why count votes? Just declare it done!

There is a very convoluted process taking place outside the glare of camera lights in the House of Representatives. It is a process whereby rules are promulgated only for the purpose of declaring something has taken place that in fact has not taken place. These backroom deals are being put together for Obamacare.

Nancy Pelosi is looking for any way to declare the Senate bill is passed in order to avoid either a real up or down vote, or, to avoid a public surrender of the Democrats Holy Grail legislation.

One thing is for sure: none of this has to do with the will of We The People!

Horror in Nigeria--continued

We posted this article about Islamic slayings of over 500 Christians in Nigeria here.

Sometimes pictures are worth thousands of words: CAUTION THE CONTENT OF THIS LINK IS VERY VERY GRAPHIC: SEE THE STORY here.

So what are Americans, Christians, prepared to do to stop this?

Private Property Rights......in America?

What could be better than beachfront property in California? Well nothing, most people will say. But what happens when your property isn't really,,,,,,,well,,,,your property? Oh, you have a deed and maybe a mortgage, but then you discover that maybe it's not all yours.

George and Sharlee McNamee have a beautiful home, an ocean view and a bounty of children and grandchildren who invade their house every weekend. The breeze is fresh, the view is stunning and retired life in Corona Del Mar, Calif., is good.

But the McNamees wake up every morning fighting for their rights. In this case, the freedom to use a picnic table, shed and shower in their own backyard.

How is that you say?

For the last decade, the McNamees' backyard has been a battlefield. The retired couple has spent $250,000 in legal fees protecting amenities worth little more than $100.

Click here to see photos of the McNamees' backyard battle.


For the last decade, George and Sharlee McNamee have been locked in legal battle with California regulators over the couple's right to build improvements on their own property, which abuts a coastal zone in California.

Those numbers are shocking, but not to those who know the regulatory reach and zeal of the California Coastal Commission, which claims that items in the couple's backyard -- the picnic table, a thatched palapa, a shower and barbecue -- are illegal. Failure to remove them results in a fine -- and that fine is $6,000 per day.

"It doesn't matter if you've built something ugly or if you have built something lovely. If you have built something in the coastal zone without getting a permit either from your local government or the commission, you've broken the law," says Sara Christie, the Coastal Commission's legislative director. Read it all here.

So who is the Coastal Commission? Who gave them such powerful control?

Check around in your own neighborhood, you may have something similar.

Of course the prime argument for all this is "retention of property values". Okay, but how much power are you willing to give to these folks.

This issue is as close as your backyard.