affordable health care | Rockin' On The Right Side

foodstamp For years the media has claimed that the mean old Conservatives (especially the Tea Party) only care about the rich, and don’t give a damn about anybody else. Only progressive Democrats care about the poor, the average Joe, the “working class family.”

Huh?

Wasn’t it the Democrats who rammed ObamaCare through against the wishes of the majority of Americans? This is the program that cuts the work hours of millions of “working class” employees, forces them to buy insurance that they don’t want or can’t afford, raises the cost of their existing insurance, or causes their employers to drop coverage. Here’s a dirty little secret – most of the working poor who are not already on Medicaid are not going to buy their own insurance whether you threaten to punish them at tax time or not. They don’t know how, won’t learn how, don’t pay taxes, and frankly aren’t interested. They will still be getting their medical care at the nearest hospital emergency room – after all, the hospitals have not been relieved of the legal responsibility to care for everybody regardless of ability to pay. Remind me again now, how does ObamaCare help the poor?

Wasn’t it the Democrats who fought like crazy to stop drilling and fracking and pipelines for oil and gas, and mining for coal – resources that would create millions of jobs, lower the cost of energy for all Americans, and get the economy back on track? Instead they continue to print fiat money, devaluing the currency so the average Joe can’t even afford to put gas in the family wagon.

Wasn’t it the Democrats who refused to allow working-class families to choose the school that will best meet the needs of their children, and instead herds them into chronically under-performing, high-cost schools, wasting students’ time with ideological nonsense instead of teaching them how to make a living? Don’t even get me started on Common Core.

Wasn’t it the Democrats who destroyed the manufacturing job base in our country by taxing our corporations at the highest rate in the world, making them move production facilities overseas? We could straighten out our negative balance of trade and bring those jobs back in a few years with some intelligent management of tax rates and tariffs to level the playing field with China, who continues to eat our lunch and demand dessert.

Wasn’t it the Democrats who demanded amnesty for illegal aliens, and called for open borders so that the few available low-tech jobs open to Americans are even harder to get, and pay third-world wages?

Wasn’t it these same Democrats who destroyed the American family, the traditional work ethic, and the economy by replacing the role of working fathers with a huge and growing “entitlement” culture? Fewer than half of our citizens pay income tax, and one in five families is on food stamps. Illegitimacy is normal now as single mothers no longer need to worry about feeding and housing their children.

The news media has been little more than a propaganda wing of the progressives for a long time. All of their so-called “compassion” since the onset of LBJ’s Great Society has only resulted in more misery for the poor, the average Joe, the “working class.” And they didn’t do it alone – some corrupt and self-serving liberal Republicans along the way did not exactly help the situation.

Conservatives do care about the poor, the average Joe, the “working class.” We know that a functional free-market economy offers the best opportunity for everyone to succeed, and is healthy enough to care for those who deserve help. History proves that heavy-handed, top-down, corrupt big-government enriches those few in control, and steals freedom, opportunity, and wealth from everyone else.

Next time some phony Beltway progressive politician or MSNBC lacky feigns outrage because “Conservatives don’t care about the poor”, you might hear a loud bang – that would be my head exploding.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

With you by my side
They can’t keep us down
Together we can make it baby
From the poor side of town

The Poor Side of Town – Johnny Rivers

On a visit to North Carolina last week, I took my wife’s car to our favorite local shop for some work. It is owned and operated by two brothers from Amman, Jordan. They emigrated to the US in the turbulent 1980s when the Jordanian government confiscated their successful business under martial law. At the shop I always enjoy animated conversation with the brothers about families, world politics, current events, and automotive stuff.

While Jordan is still not exactly paradise, life there has improved dramatically in recent years under King Abdullah. But that’s not the subject of my post this morning.

I asked Sam, the older brother, why he was out of the country the last time I had visited his shop – did he have a medical problem? No, he said, he just needed some dental work. That piqued my curiosity.

Sam said he went to two local dentists, and each one quoted him about $8000 for the job. They prescribed somewhat different procedures, including removing some teeth that were actually healthy. Uncomfortable with their approaches, and the cost, Sam had the x-rays sent to his family’s dentist in Jordan for a “third” opinion. “They’re crazy,” was the opinion of the Jordanian dentist.

So Sam flew to Jordan (the trip cost $1500) and had four crowns, two fillings, two root canals, and deep cleaning done there. For $500. And they left his good teeth alone. When he returned, he had the work checked out by one of his local dentists. “Nice job,” the dentist reported. Sam had saved six grand.

This points out what is wrong with our American medical system – fee for service. The more services that are provided, the more money the doctor makes. And since most of us don’t pay for medical procedures out of our pockets, we don’t check – or care – how much our medical care costs. The other side of the dilemma – cost shifting. Doctors provide free or under-compensated services via government programs or charity, financed by overcharging those who do pay.

Is ObamaCare the answer? Oh, hell no! Government takeover of the medical industry will result in gross inefficiency, incompetence, and rationing – the normal standard of performance for any government work.

But those who say our current health care system is the best in the world are naive. Our nation has the wealth to do some things medically that other nations can’t. But the cost is out of control and the quality is not what it should be.

Our next president will have to address the health care issue – it can’t be kicked down the road any longer, or soon many of us will be “medical tourists”.

Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side

Here’s an alternate health care plan:
(bet you haven’t heard this one in a while!)

Put the lime in the coconut,
And call me in the morning!

Coconut Song – Harry Nilsson