Posted by Frankly Francis on September 4, 2010 under Personal, Social Issues/Politics | 
As my friend Kent says, “Life is not a dress rehearsal.”
As Frankly Francis says, “Enjoy the moments as they come because there is no rewind button.”
As Marv Levy says, “Where would you rather be than right here, right now?”
We are in a very unique position geographically, economically, historically and politically. Perhaps never before in recorded history has a nation had at its disposal what we have today.
For the most part, it has been handed to us.
Seriously, as far as life as we know it on this planet goes, we have hit the big lottery.
So through apathy and sloth, will we waste what we have been given? Or will we further multiply it?
Social evolution is a non-linear pathway – we tend to get distracted along the way. What can safely be said is that humanity has yet to achieve its full potential.
I have an idea that in the long run, our Founding Fathers will be thought of more as practical philosophers rather than as revolutionaries. How they embraced the potential of mankind is really remarkable, especially in the context of the time that they lived in.
Indulge me and re-read these words:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Now over 230 years old, what powerful and well chosen words these are.
How symbiotic…first, amongst each other, we are all equal. Because of that, I have the absolute right to my own life. And given that, I have the liberty to live and pursue my own pathway.
Or in regressive terms, I cannot pursue my own happiness if I do not have liberty… and I cannot have liberty if I do not have the right to my life…and I cannot have the right to my own life unless we are all equal.
It all fits.
And it remains revolutionary to this very day.
But that’s not the intriguing part for me. The intriguing part is the glossed over, subtle and almost hidden words “among these.”
“Among These” expands our individual rights beyond the enumerated “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
What else does this include? Have you ever speculated?
Could it really, actually play out like this?
I may choose to do whatever I want, so long as I am not infringing on anyone else’s right to do what they want. Simply put, my right to throw a punch ends at your nose. However, if you stick your nose into my business, well then you face the consequences.
I believe that it is our unique individuality that needs to be maximized during the brief time allotted to us. Fight the Power Brothers and Sisters. And teach your children too.
Frankly,
Francis
Posted by Frankly Francis on August 21, 2010 under Social Issues/Politics |
Chances are good that soon you will be hearing that we have gone into a “double-dip” recession. I will beg to differ – we have never risen from the recession in spite of super massive bailouts and stimulus.
From where I stand, this has more of the feel of a depression rather than a recession.
The government’s specious argument is that we can spend our way into prosperity.
We’ve been waltzing in chains.
And the Republicans are equally complicit with the Democrats in this sad dance. Ironically, if you think about it, when each blames the other it turns out that they both are right…
I must admit to having a certain fascination with the intrigues of the study of economics, but I don’t want to take you down the pathways of formulas and advanced theory. That stuff does have its purpose and place, but as I see it, economics is pretty simple and straight forward.
For example, if you want something, you have to pay for it. Perhaps you can borrow the money to pay for that something, but then you have to pay that money back (plus interest) while meeting your regular obligations. It works the same for you as an individual as it does for every business and every government. So you can jazz economic theory all you want, but it actually is always relatively simple. I’m going to do my best to keep it that way.
Food Stamps
40 million out of approximately 309 million Americans are receiving food stamp benefits. Do the math – that’s about one in 7.67 people relying on the government to eat. In the land of the most prosperous nation it has come to this…
Unemployment
We’ve lost 8.4 million jobs during the last few years. We certainly are not robustly adding jobs presently and all factors indicate that job growth will be at best stagnant for the foreseeable future.
The government calculates the percentage of unemployment without including the unemployed workers who have run out of unemployment benefits. The true unemployment rate is in the range of 17% and rising.
Foreclosures
Nobody knows what their home is worth. And nobody is really going to know until the foreclosure mill shuts down. Based on the number of existing and projected foreclosures, the actual process could easily take six plus years.
Real estate is most likely not as valuable as we would like to think.
Stock Values
Stock prices are like beauty – it’s an eye of the beholder thing. One key factor in stock value is the ratio of the earnings of the company per share to the cost of a share. This is the Price-Earnings ratio (PE). So if a share of stock costs five dollars and the company earns a dollar per share in a year, the PE ratio is 5:1. In that scenario one could expect to recoup one’s investment in five years through earnings alone. Today, PE ratios routinely amount to at least a 15 year payback period. That’s not investing in business; it’s pretty much holding a mortgage.
I expect the stock market value to decline, perhaps considerably in the near future.
Government Ethics
The government, through its incessant and growing meddling with the economy, is substantially the reason for the housing bubble burst, which cascaded into the failures in the investment and banking sectors. Of course, We the People “bailed out” the business friends of the politicians. The complicity between government and business in this matter is at the least criminal to me.
Government Presence in the Economy
Back in 1900 government spent less than 5% of the gross domestic product (GDP). OMB projects that the government will take 24.6% of the economy this year.
USA Today recently reported that federal employees earn twice as much in pay and benefits as employees in the private sector. Government employees at the state and local levels earn substantially more than private sector employees as well.
The federal government is the largest employer in America.
Studies indicate that at least 40% of our income goes to pay direct and indirect taxes (income, property, sales, excise, etc.).
Budget Deficits
The government will roll some mega deficits in the foreseeable future. There’s no end in sight.
National Debt
Dividing the national debt by the number of Americans, each of us is presently responsible for $43,000.
But when you factor present unfunded liabilities for social benefits (Social Security, Medicare, etc.), it turns out that the real liability that we each face is about $355,000. For a family of four that is $1.4 million.
Sidebar: The mandated health care law will substantially add to this number while most likely reducing the availability and quality of care.
The Worst Good News
We, as a nation, have a lot of national treasure and assets. Greece is selling its islands in order to pay down its debt. How much would the Statue of Liberty be worth?
Seriously, it is a means (as horrible as it would be) of honoring our debts and the obligations we have committed to. Of course future generations may legitimately feel robbed by us.
The Good News
We are still a very talented and innovative people. New advancements in technology in all fields of study are becoming exponential. Never, ever count the American people out.
Summary
- Number of people on food stamps increasing
- Percentage of true unemployment is rising towards the Great Depression levels
- Foreclosures will continue to be significant for years ahead. Home values will likely fall
- The stock market remains too pricy and will likely lose value. The bond market will follow
- Government will spend (a lot) more than it receives in the foreseeable future
- The national debt is massive and will continue to grow
- The government threw We the People under the bus in bailing out their good time business buddies
- Government intrusiveness into the economy (and every facet of our lives) will continue to grow
Likely Outcome
I anticipate that the government, caught in the web of its own making, will stay the course.
My Bet
Somewhere down the road, rather than change the entitlement system, government will hyper inflate the money supply, which will devalue the purchasing power of the dollar. Everybody will get the amount they were told they would get, but it will buy a lot less.
Frankly,
Francis
Reference:
Food Stamp Program:
http://www.fns.usda.gov/pd/34SNAPmonthly.htm
The national debt clock:
http://www.usdebtclock.org/
The Economy in Pictures:
http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=1052
Comparative earnings of the government and private sector:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/income/2010-08-10-1Afedpay10_ST_N.htm
Analysis of the American economy from Germany’s leading news magazine, Der Spiegel:
http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,712496,00.html
Historically, the end of great cultures and civilizations is marked by a large government imposing taxes and regulations in abundance. For an excellent and informative reference:
“For Good and Evil: The Impact of Taxes on the Course of Civilization” by Charles Adams
For an alternative view:
“Why Government Doesn’t Work” by Harry Browne
Posted by Frankly Francis on June 20, 2010 under In The News, Social Issues/Politics |
Some musings, some random thoughts to be further explored, and probably some rambling too:
BP & The Feds
Watching BP dance like a puppet on a string makes me more concerned about the relationship of government and big business. It’s all a little too choreographed…
Judge Andrew Napolitano reported on Fox News (FYI, I’m no fan of Fox or any other blatantly biased news agency) that Louisiana approved BP to drill at a depth of 500 feet, but the federal government insisted that drilling be done at 5,000 feet. Oh yeah, that and the deal the feds made (after the Exxon Valdez spill) limiting future legal liability to $75 million for environmental accidents.
If true, that’s a bit of an oil slick for all concerned. Of course, we, the people, are screwed either way.
Libertarianism Going Mainstream?
Fox (did I mention that I’m no fan of Fox News?) is now airing a libertarian based show hosted by the aforementioned Napolitano. I never, ever thought I would live to see this day.
Back in the early 80’s when I would mention that I felt an affinity for libertarian philosophy, those that knew what I was talking about would pretty much just laugh at me. When I gave the explanation of libertarian philosophy to those who didn’t know about it, they would pretty much laugh at me too.
Thus, I have been a big maker of mirth during the last three decades.
Pro Politicians & Political Parties
I am so done with professional politicians and the political parties that they associate with. Same Old, Same Old, ad nauseum. Government of the politicians, for the politicians, and by the politicians.
I’d like to vote for the politician who refused to take corporate/special interest (better phrased selfish interest) money, a politician that had no interest in a career in politics, a politician not for sale.
Why do I feel like Diogenes with his lamp looking for an honest man?
Can We Talk?
And furthermore, while Americans have always been a rather contentious and cantankerous lot, I believe that we are in a time when unity may be more important than ever.
We sure could use some open dialogue in this country.
The Economy
I think that there is a very strong possibility that the economy is in a lot worse shape than we are being led to believe. I’ve been looking at the numbers a little more closely and I don’t like what I see. I do hope I am wrong.
Additionally, the stock market, as a whole, still seems pricy to me. I am not comfortable with the typical price-earnings (PE) ratio these days. This is business risk, not mortgage holding.
Can We Be Done With The Bailout?
I guess I haven’t gotten over the Bailout…seems to me that the systemic risk was a manufactured hysteria (not dissimilar from the terrorist threat routine) to cover government’s basic failure to properly regulate and enforce its own rules.
The idea of giving money to loser parasites so that they can keep their cushy jobs, and do this to us all over again in the future is repugnant to me.
And they did this in plain sight. Right in front of us. I have to admit that they are pretty, pretty slick.
War, What Is It Good For?
Were we not in Afghanistan to hunt down Bin Laden and serve him up some American justice? I believe that our presence there is the longest military engagement in our history. Yikes! Seriously, Yikes!
I lived through, opposed and protested against the Vietnam War. In a relatively meaningless gesture, I even burned my draft card. I reckon I’m going to have to find my peace signs, beads, incense, and bell-bottom jeans to get out on the front lines once again…if I could only remember where I hid the hookah.
Don’t even get me started on Iraq.
Imperialism
Why do we devote so much of our resources to imperialism when we have more serious human need problems here at home? If we know so much that we are compelled to police and rule the world, why are we not doing a better job within our own country? Sentient non- Americans must wonder at our hypocrisy, unless it serves them as well.
Terrorism
Just as the “War on Drugs” fuels the very problem it fights against, the “War on Terrorism” actually produces terrorism. As in my thoughts above, by removing our overwhelming presence from foreign lands, we will also reduce the threat of terrorism. That’d be some good blowback for a change.
Give Me That Old Time Religion
My biggest fear for our longevity on this planet is the combination of government & organized religion. That’s some toxic stew.
In Conclusion
This is how I see things: We live in a wonderful time and I am blessed to have the life I do. I must confess that the foregoing is completely rooted in my idealistic hopes for things to be. Because as good as it is, it really could and should be better.
As I age, I am more cognizant of what I don’t know. I am more aware that there is no utopian solution to anything. And I would very much like to think that I am more open to understanding differing points of view. I welcome all discussion.
Frankly,
Francis
Tags: Bailout, BP, Business, Economy, Government, Imperialism, Libertarian, Military, Organized Religion, Politics, Terrorism, War
Posted by Frankly Francis on June 8, 2010 under Social Issues/Politics |
“There are those who would say that the liberation of humanity,
the freedom of man and mind, is nothing but a dream.
They are right. It is the American dream”
– Archibald McLeish
I whole heartedly buy into that, but this is not a political dialogue. I am so weary of the professional politicians and their political parties. Weary to the bone.
This is me, as an individual talking to you, as an individual, about the direction that our lives could and should take as we revolve around the sun together.
Our Founding Fathers were not just revolutionaries in their fight for independence from England – they were more revolutionary in their view of people and the possibilities of what human life could be under the inalienable natural laws of the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
They thought that we could personally and socially become something better through individual freedom, coupled with personal responsibility. The Declaration of Independence is a remarkable document in this regard. And the philosophy extolled to maximize society by maximizing the individual is truly radical in its historical context.
The world watched (with motives on both sides of the coin) as “The Noble Experiment” of the American Republic unfolded.
As America prospered, history is replete with the failures of governments built around the collective good. Fascism, communism, totalitarianism, and socialism have all either outright failed or have not been able to match what we have done in the good old US of A. Centralized governments have not made an impressive case for themselves in terms of results.
That is because we are not an ant colony. We are humans. Pardon the Star Trek reference, but we are not yet Borg. And resistance is not necessarily futile. Frankly Francis says, “Fight the Power!”
We are each endowed with our own unique character and abilities. I celebrate that.
I believe that society should be based around individual freedom. In fact, I would go so far as to assert that the primary purpose of society is to ensure the rights and liberty of the individual.
From my point of view, we have gone astray in two different ways:
The first is that we, the people, have allowed government to exceed its authority. Enough said on that.
The second is that we continue to make efforts to legislate morality, or at the very least, attempt to impose our own personal beliefs on the life style choices that others live by.
Tyranny of the Majority oppresses people. Oppression always produces less, never more.
This results in some pretty serious blowback, as in how alcohol prohibition gave us the lasting gift of major organized crime or how the manipulated fear of Commies in our midst, placed upon us through McCarthyism, resulted in untold loss of art, creativity and productivity.
And if we go further back, do you remember the murders perpetrated by the good citizens of Salem?
H.L. Mencken said that Puritanism is “The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy.”
Amen, Brother Mencken.
Health Nazis continue in their vigilant quest to eliminate cigarettes, while they work on weight standards, which will soon be followed by their fitness standards, because they somehow know better than the rest of us how we should each live our lives.
Of course, this could inevitably lead to the right amount of time spent watching TV or on the Internet…all to be appropriately taxed, of course. And never mind that those taxes will never be used to help curb the supposed infraction of proper living – those taxes paid for by the sinners actually reduce the taxes that the moral busybodies would otherwise pay.
If we can’t legislate morality in others, we try to do it through taxation, through so called “Sin Taxes.” We should immediately stop trying to socially manipulate others through taxation. That is tyranny in its worst form.
And here, I would remind you of the words of C.S. Lewis, “Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their consciences.”
For myself, I believe that humankind will socially evolve (if we don’t kill each other first) along the ideas that this nation was founded upon…eventually. America is on the opposite course right now and it may well be too late to do anything about it.
But if not our America, it will be another culture in the future, this I know in my heart.
In closing, the words of John Lennon, “You may say that I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope some day you’ll join me, and the world will live as one.”
And what a world that will be.
Frankly,
Francis
Posted by Frankly Francis on May 31, 2010 under In The News, Social Issues/Politics |
It being Memorial Day, with the recent activity in Congress to finally do the right thing in this regard, and MOST importantly for the gay soldiers who have served in our military and died for our freedom, I submit the following, which I originally published in January 2009.
I abhor discrimination in any form. It is insidious – the social and economic costs are enormous. The lives that are diminished because of it reflect the real loss that our society endures. It is just plain common sense that we all lose out when we deny opportunity to those willing to take it.
Gay people cannot serve in America’s military. I’ve never understood the argument that someone’s sexual orientation affects their ability to do a job. I do understand that homophobic attitudes certainly impair the ability of gays to function in any capacity.
Under President Clinton, in order to compromise the rules regarding gays, the policy for all sides of the issue became, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” This is patently unfair. A person’s sexual orientation should not be a matter that needs to be revealed or hidden.
Yet, somehow this is still an issue. We need to get past it.
As a veteran of the US Air Force, I can say this… I was always proud to serve beside anyone else (gay or straight, black or white, believer or non-believer, etc.) who took the oath of serving in the military as seriously as I did. Can’t think of anyone I served with who didn’t feel the same general way.
And for those of you still clinging to the foolish concept that being gay is a choice, then I pose the following: If you believe being gay is choice, then you, yourself, should have the ability to choose to feel the same way emotionally and sexually to members of your own gender as you do about the other gender. If you cannot honestly do this, then you are on the road of awareness headed towards reality. On the other hand, if you can honestly do this, you probably have a suspicion that you may have been programmed bi-sexual.
However, the foregoing test is irrelevant when it comes to anyone’s rights as an American. It is important for all of us that gay people have the same rights as straight people because, ponder this, when anyone’s rights are infringed, everyone’s rights are infringed.
To the Gay Community, my apologies as you continue to face this discrimination, along with the other needless indignities you still endure. May it end soon.
Frankly,
Francis
Posted by Frankly Francis on May 1, 2010 under In The News, Social Issues/Politics |
Recently a death row inmate requested the firing squad as a final parting gift from the State of Utah.
I find it odd how odd America can be. In terms of a massive, centrally organized national government, we are gaga to emulate the experience of the far older Europeans, but unlike them we continue to have some serious interest in executing criminals…perhaps we just cannot let go of our puritanical past…
…and Frankly Francis, as usual, against the grain, is right where he is accustomed to finding himself: in favor of very limited national government and opposed to the death penalty. (Note to Self: if all else fails establish the single resident country of FranLand, name myself Ambassador to the U.S. and get full diplomatic immunity – yeah, that should work just fine.)
But if I am murdered, God forbid, please do not execute my killer. Mind you, I am not saying that I’d be in favor of letting that person walk the streets again. In that circumstance, I’d like to figure a way for that person to work for the benefit of my heirs…but I digress.
From Webster’s:
Murder – To kill (a person) unlawfully and with malice
Capital Punishment – Penalty of death for a crime
History
Throughout recorded history, governments and religions have freely dispensed the death penalty. Things, in their often circuitous way, move forward. In recent times, most of the generally considered civilized world has abolished capital punishment.
Old Testament Religion: The Principle of “An Eye For An Eye”
Pretty simple. You kill someone; the state kills you in return. Fair is Fair. You get what you give. There is ample religious support for this practice and it is very literally still used in parts of the world.
It should be noted that this also requires “stoning” to death your neighbor for adultery or homosexuality, amongst other things.
New Testament Religion: The Principle of “Turn the Other Cheek”
In spite of its idealism, we haven’t gotten there yet. I’m not thinking that we will be incorporating this into our jurisprudence any time soon.
But considering that in America, we have gotten the church out of the execution business, it leaves the job to the government.
My Principle of “If Something Is Wrong, Then It Is Wrong”
One thing I do really try to stick by though is the idea that if something is wrong, then it cannot be right.
No one should kill. If murder by the individual is wrong, it is likewise wrong for “we, the people” (the state) to take someone’s life too.
You may find my logic too simple, but it works for me.
If murder is wrong, then it is wrong. Period.
Some Other Factors Against Capital Punishment
The government does, unwittingly or intentionally on occasion wrongfully accuse a citizen of something that they did not do. No one should die because of that.
When someone is executed, if it turns out that the individual was innocent, there is no redress – the wrong cannot be made right.
The death penalty has been shown to be used disproportionately against the poor and minorities in its application. If we are to keep it, then it needs to be applied equally.
It can be argued that life in prison, without parole, is a worse fate.
Killing someone is still (perhaps fortunately) not a “neat” process. Many executions are messy and are seen as cruel and unusual punishment by a significant number of Americans.
There are conflicting studies on whether capital punishment reduces serious crime, but the conflicting results should cause us to further study the issue.
In Conclusion
There really does not appear to be a definitive answer regarding the use of or the abolishment of the death penalty. Both sides make compelling arguments.
While always open to better understanding the opposing point of view, I remain against capital punishment and hope that Americans will join the many other people on this planet that have come to the same conclusion.
Frankly,
Francis
Posted by Frankly Francis on April 23, 2010 under Books/Authors, Social Issues/Politics |
I had a real good idea what this book would say – I figured it would be preachin’ to the choir. Mostly because of that, I really took my time getting around to reading it. Published in 1979, I let it languish in my library for almost 30 years. Well, as it turns out, it was indeed preachin’ to the choir. And this choir really enjoyed the preachin’ it got.
Not to exclude Rose Friedman, but…
Here’s my take: Milton Friedman valued our individuality. He felt that the collective acts of individuals pursuing their own interests would provide much more, in terms personal satisfaction and economic resources than the results of individuals acting in a collective. It follows then, his basic tenet that without economic freedom, there cannot be political freedom.
The fusion of economic and political freedom becomes the optimum result. Note, Friedman was much too realistic to advocate utopia – he certainly knew that there was no perfection in any approach, but held firmly to the value of recognizing each individual life as having a value that exceeded that of the state. Frankly Francis says: True That!
A few thoughts directly from Friedman:
Milton Friedman
“A society that puts equality before freedom will get neither. A society that puts freedom before equality will get a high degree of both”
“One of the great mistakes is to judge policies and programs by their intentions rather than their results”
“I think the government solution to a problem is usually as bad as the problem and very often makes the problem worse”
“I say thank God for government waste. If government is doing bad things, it’s only the waste that prevents the harm from being greater”
Amen Brother.
Here’s a quote about Friedman by George Schultz that I think is worth aspiring to – “Everyone loves to argue with Milton, particularly when he isn’t there.”
Milton was philosophically a libertarian. Politically, he was a Republican, but that, he explained was for expediency, perhaps much the same as Congressman Ron Paul.
During his lifetime he was recognized with the John Bates Clark Medal (1951), the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics (1976), and in 1988, both the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the National Medal of Science. Big Stuff!
I must say that as reading Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged” strengthened my existing perceptions, reading Freidman solidified my existing beliefs.
It is distinctly your own unique and wonderful life – Do yourself a real favor and read this book.
Frankly,
Francis
Posted by Frankly Francis on April 9, 2010 under In The News, Social Issues/Politics |
A couple of weeks ago, I took my daughter to a general practitioner for an 8:30AM appointment. At 10AM she was still waiting in the big (first) waiting room. I approached the office staff at about 10:10AM and it went like this:
FranklyFrancis: My daughter has been waiting for over an hour and a half to be seen. Why would you schedule an appointment if you were not going to see her then?
Office Staff: Were you on time? Did you take too long to fill out the paperwork? Were you a double-booked appointment?
FranklyFrancis: We were here early. Your staff said that the paperwork was filled out faster than usual. I don’t know anything about a double booking, but I do know that the appointment was made well over a month ago.
FranklyFrancis: Would you wait over an hour and a half in a checkout line to purchase something in a store?
Office Staff: Well, this is not a store.
YIKES!
It was another hour before we were out of there. I wonder how many productive hours are lost each day in medical offices across America. The economic impact of waiting for service is another matter for another day. But time is valuable – not a commodity to be wasted.
I have been thinking about this appointment, particularly the comment “well, this is not a store.”
Obviously, the typical medical office is not a store, for if it were, it would be out of business. The office staff would be seeking other employment; the doctors and nurses would be somewhere else.
Stores operate in a competitive environment. If they do not service their customers, the customers go elsewhere. Competition for the consumer market makes them efficient and cost effective.
As health care customers, we are missing essential elements to service and pricing, but as patients we have no other place to go.
Doctors through their monopoly restrict the number entering into medical schools. The various licensing boards further regulate the number of doctors allowed to practice. Competition is minimized amongst doctors – more money and prestige for doctors, more cost and less service for us.
The insurance companies are a legalized monopoly. They are exempt from competition courtesy of the government. This enables them to fight with the doctors for our money.
The government is its own monopoly that has no competition. That’s why our Founding Fathers wisely were so insistent that government be as limited as possible.
So there’s our prescription of doctors controlling the amount of services offered, insurance companies that face no real competition and government doing stuff it is not capable of doing even if it had a constitutional basis in the first place. This complicity right in front of our faces is not only most indecent, but should be punishable for the lives that suffer as a result.
There is really no need to wonder why health care is so sick…
Open up the medical schools to more doctors. Let doctors compete for us as patients rather than us competing for their services.
Remove the legalized monopoly – insurance companies need to compete with each other for our insurance premiums.
Get government out of important business that is best left to business.
Instead, we get the complete take over of the health care system by the government.
Health care is already twice the price of comparable societies with less quality service provided overall. The federal government is going to make this better? Government has been the key culprit in how bad health care has gotten. Yet it portends to be our savior.
The doctors aren’t complaining about national health care – their racket continues to be protected.
The insurance companies aren’t complaining about national health care – their racket continues to be protected.
The federal government sure is happy that it can finally fully socialize the last key ingredient to empower its position over the people. Its racket is even more protected.
So, have you ever seen an efficient government program that worked or achieved its objectives?
- Let me remind you about the War on Poverty and The War on Drugs.
- Let me remind you of the insolvency of Social Security and the disaster that is looming there.
- Let me remind you of our little never ending adventure in Iraq and the hunt for Bin Laden.
- Let me remind you about the efficiency and cost effectiveness of Medicare/Medicaid.
- Let me remind you of the staggering (and radically growing) federal debt.
How can anyone rationally trust his or her health to the government?
When you remove the free market from any service transaction, distortions in quantity, quality, price and availability will inevitably occur. We have clear history of the inequities that centralized economic planning in socialized governments produce. Make no mistake about it – America is so far along that road that we should all be scared silly. But we are comfortably numb, as the government wishes us to be.
Hello: Is there anybody out there?
The health care solution is simple: Open up medical schools to students who want to treat people, remove the barriers to competition in the insurance industry and keep government out of our business.
Frankly,
Francis
Posted by Frankly Francis on March 21, 2010 under Social Issues/Politics |
I submit for your consideration the notion that our federal government’s actions (unwittingly or intentionally) make us less safe and further make us less free.
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety” – Benjamin Franklin, American Founding Father and Statesman
Dr. Franklin said this in 1775. Before the Declaration of Independence – not after the successful revolution. He was about to put his life and possessions on the line when he wrote those words. Putting your life on the line is not a light weight action…and I do not think those words should be taken lightly.
Is there even a connection between safety and liberty? Let’s take a look: On a national basis, I see the act of invasion/aggression by another country and acts of terrorism as the most dangerous things to our way of life.
Terrorism
If history is any teacher, nations/countries are perilous to our human health as individuals on Planet Earth – not that we can’t be terrible to each other in anarchy or that organized religion can’t cause tremendous death and suffering.
America, over the course of the last 100 years, has been intimately involved in all levels of world affairs. American foreign policy is pervasive throughout the world. And for both good and bad, it affects and causes real reactions.
I’m reminded of the 2008 Republican presidential primary debate where Ron Paul was laughed off the stage by the audience and the other candidates (especially by Rudy Giuliani, the guy who put NYC’s Disaster Preparedness Center in the World Trade Center…very smart) when he asked if anyone had bothered to figure out “why” the terrorists attack America.
To me this kind of question seems logical, but has it really been asked?
It can be safely said that terrorist acts are a reaction to American actions. I am not absolutely saying that, however. And I deplore acts of terrorism. I do not believe in initiating violence.
So we could ask, if America was not taking actions in foreign countries, would America be threatened with foreign terrorism?
I think it relatively safe to conclude that if our government upsets people in other countries, we will face inevitable blowback, which may come in many different forms.
I’m not suggesting complete isolationism, but I would rather take care of our own people before we take care of the world. Nor am I suggesting not providing aid to other countries in a time of need.
What I am suggesting is that our government’s actions (again, unwittingly or intentionally) have threatened our safety and exposed us to terrorism that we would not otherwise be exposed to.
So, the next part of the equation involves our liberties. Since the passage of The Patriot Act, the federal government is at an all time high in restricting our freedom, has wrongly inconvenienced us in all of our travel, and not really made us safer.
Do you feel safer today than before 9/11? I sure don’t.
SCORE: Government 1 – Safety & Liberty 0
War
In WWII, the US military spent years planning for the occupation and administration of post-war Japan. The Japanese bureaucracy and much of the infrastructure were kept as intact as possible. Note that the atomic bombs were not dropped on Tokyo. The idea being that the Japanese people would submit to their existing officials and bureaucracies, which we would control. It worked pretty, pretty good.
However, most recently, the Iraq invasion and regime overthrow was another matter. America took out infrastructure, bureaucracy, military and government completely. Chaos that will never end.
Wouldn’t a foreign country, contemplating aggression against America, be more inclined towards it, if it could take over an existing centralized national bureaucracy that had the ability to control the people?
That country would just have to conquer the federal government to control America.
They would be able to use the existing American government against the American People, just as America used the Japanese government to control the Japanese people at the end of WWII.
Fortunately for the Japanese, we were pretty good occupiers. Would any foreign country occupying America be as good to you?
Conversely, if the federal government were not all pervasive, then that aggressor nation would have to conquer the American people individually to achieve control. Even as apathetic as I know the American people to be these days, let another country try to conquer my neighborhood – they’ll wish they had never left home.
So once again, when we look at our liberties, a strong federal government is a liability to our freedom.
SCORE: Government 2, Safety & Liberty 0
Who’s Your Daddy?
The President of the United States of America is the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and he is the leader of the federal government, but he is not my leader, nor is he your leader. He’s the guy we hired to do a job for us as our servant.
We should remember that we are each a resident of a state and that America is a Union of States. We are not a nation of individuals – we are a nation of governing states. This is a fact that does not seem to be realized by many Americans today.
Conclusion
Logically, limited national government is both safer to us both internationally and domestically. I’ll sleep better when this is the case.
Frankly,
Francis
Posted by Frankly Francis on February 21, 2010 under Social Issues/Politics |
Recently, a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll found that 84% of Americans do not think that Congress has done enough to create jobs.
I’m reminded of:
“There’s no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole government working for you” – Will Rogers
But this is no laughing matter.
I would submit that if Congress had anything to do with jobs, it took them away from the working people in order to bail out their rich friends. That’s right, I said it.
Here’s how I see it: The relationship of business and government is like that of a sports game. Business is represented by the players on the field. The referee of the game is government. The problem is that government is not content to just play the role of referee – it also plays in the game itself. Sometimes it plays for one team, sometimes it plays for the other team, and often times it plays for both teams. And no matter how well intentioned, if you play in the game, you cannot be truly unbiased as a referee.
The President (as the Executive Branch) has a duty to regulate national commerce and the Congress (as the Legislative Branch) has an oversight duty to see that the Executive Branch is doing its job.
Had the government done its job of enforcing its own regulations, this economic mess that we are in may not even have happened, or at the least, been substantially minimized. Government officials should be sued for gross negligence.
Do you see the sick spin in all of this? Government didn’t do its job in the first place and then it is acting like it is coming to the rescue. And Americans are obviously buying into it. Yeah Government!
For me, it’s like being stuck inside of a Woody Allen movie…
Time to bring out the ”those that don’t learn the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them” line.
Nobel Prize winning economist Milton Friedman detailed how the American government was complicit in the Great Depression and further went on to show how through its actions and inactions, the American government worsened and prolonged the Great Depression.
But again with the spin, who got blamed? Evil Unbridled Capitalism, of course.
However, there is nothing wrong with American business – there never has been. In reality, American business is the most powerful economic engine in recorded history. Our lifestyle and standing in the world prove that.
Business creates wealth. Government cannot create wealth – all it can do is take away wealth from one and transfer it to another.
“A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul” – George Bernard Shaw
And it is taking a lot away from a lot of folks.
As citizens, we are forced to buy from the government store. Expensive prices and poor product are what we get in return for our hard earned money. On the other hand, we do make some pretty, pretty good bombs and weapons…
How about we stop giving in to the temptation of all pervasive government? We must instead require government to be a good, responsible servant, within its defined role.
So I would suggest that government get out of business and return to its Constitutional duties before the American Dream becomes something that our kids learn about in history class.
And if you vote for the same old, same old politicians who promise you the same old, same old things, you will continue to get the same old, same old.
I want real change – you can depend on that.
Frankly,
Francis
