Affordable. We've heard this before about health care.

Although President Trump is best in his field as a business man, he's fast becoming a politician. The latest plug about cars being affordable if the government gets involved is a page out of Obama's book on affordable health care. Barack gave us neither affordable nor healthy and left it to others to write the gazillion rules and stab us in the back. With cars, remember what they did the last time to make them "green?" They destroyed the older non-green models so there were no used cars to be "affordable." Only the rich benefitted. What will they do now? Manufacturers are owned by investors, and although it always looks like they go along with whoever is in power, they need to dance with the one who brought them.

https://youtu.be/ZCPId-2CABs?si=nvfIOwpJ-8kAsPAEAsPAE

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Don't be a fickle fool
You came here with a gal, who's always been your pal
Don't leave her for the first unattached girl, it just ain't cool

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Life ain't no forty-yard dash
Be in it for the long run
In the long run you'll have more fun
If you dance with who brung you to the bash

I had a friend in Texas
He really had some style
He sang that good old Western Swing and drove 'em wild
Then a talent scout from Vegas said,
"Boy, play and sing this way"
And in one short year he was broke in L.A

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Life ain't no forty-yard dash
Be in it for the long run
In the long run you'll have more fun
If you dance with who brung you to the bash

You gotta be real careful what you wish for
'Cause you just might get
The whole darn thing
Be sure what you want is really something you can use
Or you might wind up half dead
Just singing the Blues

You got to dance with who brung you
Swing with who swung you
Life ain't no forty-yard dash
Be in it for the long run
In the long run you'll have more fun
If you dance with who brung you to the bash (yeah)

Dance with who brung you to the bash (yeah)

I get offers in my e-mail

I get offers. 

1. Asking for money. 

2. Asking me to write a book review.

3. Asking me to promote a story on my blog. 

4. Asking me to interview someone and promote their ideas, candidacy or book.

Then there's the "loaded potato" tease.

"The first and only reproductive justice organization in Nebraska—a state ranked among the highest for its maternity care deserts—seeks to provide a long-term solution to this health crisis by creating a community of doulas and increasing access to doula care."

I say loaded because of the politically, economically or racially charged phrases: let me translate leftist gibberish.

 
1. "reproductive justice (aka abortion),
2. "maternity care desert" (aka rural, but could mean pockets of poverty)
3. "long-term solution" (aka government)
4. "health crisis" (obligatory political term used by all parties)
5. "create a community" (this is usually a progressive/socialist term, but increasingly used by conservatives just to keep up--may mean no spouse or children, so create a family/community)
6. doulas (feminist term to push men out of labor and delivery, and encourage home birth ala 19th century or birthing huts.

95% of doulas are female, but no one seems to be demanding equity for men in that field.

Anyway, by this point in the e-mail I've hit delete just based on the language, not the meaning.

New federal regulation in HHS concerning conscience rights

"This is an election (2022) about power and control," said Planned Parenthood. I rarely agree with PP, but that's one comment, although they mean the opposite of what I believe, they are right about. Power to kill AND control your religious and speech rights guaranteed by the Constitution.

The Biden administration which is bankrolled by powerful organizations like the teachers' unions, Planned Parenthood, NARAL, Emily's List, wealthy woke corporations and Soros backed entities, is proposing a new HHS rule which would force doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals to perform-participate in abortions, transgender mutilations and other procedures pro-life conservatives (and probably many Democrats who are Christians) consider morally bankrupt, cruel and sinful. By law, even morally stunted bureaucrats must accept comments on rules like this. Make your voice heard. Don't just comment your outrage to your friends on FB, tell Joe how you REALLY feel about being forced to participate in sin. Regulations.gov. 

When you look at "conscience protections" we already have it's hard to believe we'd go through this again, but the pro-death forces are very well organized, financed and backed up with clever lawyers (in the N.T. they are called Pharisees and Sadducees). It will be "found" in the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare). If the rule passes, it could close hospitals and end the careers of many fine doctors and nurses and healthcare staff. Maybe you are undecided on transgender/affirmation thought, but would you assist in removing the healthy breasts of a middle school girl, or castrating a little boy at the request of his parents or social workers? It's the ultimate child abuse.

The only Christians that seem to be well organized enough to fight this and sound an alarm are the Catholics. I could find very little on it, but here's one https://www.americamagazine.org/politics-society/2022/04/05/transgender-abortion-hhs-242759 If your church or denomination has a bioethics department, check with them. If not, take it to your Sunday School class. This is our abolitionist movement. Don't be caught asleep at the switch.

This is the government double speak that describes this: HHS Announces Proposed Rule to Strengthen Nondiscrimination in Health Care | HHS.gov. These days all victim theories are put in the context of the civil rights rulings, a huge smokescreen. This at least assures you it is Joe Biden's doing through an executive order. It twists the meaning of "restores rights" "stands up for" and "affirms"--the bureaucrat who wrote this must have grown up on 1984 Newspeak.

Philosophical Puzzles about Transgenderism — The National Catholic Bioethics Center (ncbcenter.org)

Reparations in the 21st century

How would reparations work?

First, it's imperative that it has to be about more than slavery, which is the mistake most white and black middle class Christians make when supporting that idea. If it were just slavery, that would leave out Barack Obama, Kamala Harris, Megan Markle, the adoptive children of movie stars and the millions like Ilhan Omar who have immigrated from Africa and the Caribbean in the past 3-4 decades. And I do mean millions. Only 350,000 blacks came during slavery days--you can see more need to be added to the roster of the downtrodden and abused.

Second, it will start with something recent that most people will remember. Maybe it will even be "affirmative action" since it failed to set things right and caused blacks undo hardship with debts they couldn't pay off. Maybe it will be "fair housing" initiatives since the concept caused so much "white flight" and pulled middle class blacks out of neighborhoods that needed them.

Third, it will include obviously bad and racist people, and we'll be asked to provide compensation for those hurt by those who consciously worked against blacks, like maybe a (Democrat) senator, former member of the KKK.

Fourth, it will include legal (at the time) business practices, either defined or redefined. Like red-lining of banks to stall mortgages. And if you've invested in that bank, or its parent company, or even if you use its savings and checking account services, you'll be part of the system, and therefore, guilty. You'll need to pay up.

Fifth, it will include local government services, like schools, parks, transportation. Did the schools in your community fail black children at higher rates than whites? Law suits coming right up. Maybe even the families of the board members and teachers will be held responsible. There goes that nice pension teachers get.

Sixth, it will include nutrition and health. We will be asked to overlook lifestyle causes of health problems, at least as far as reparations are concerned. If McDonald's is deemed to have too many stores in black neighborhoods (black because of redlining by banks) and black children have more obesity related health problems, then Mickey D will have to pay up, and if you've invested, sorry. That McDonald's has provided more top level management jobs for blacks since the early 1980s and been more environmentally responsible than most corporations will not balance the ledger.

And there will be more. There are currently national, state and local task forces for each of these. Keep your eyes and ears open. Non-profits are extremely lucrative for those at the top getting donations from foundations and gullible church mission boards. It's sort of a reparation payment all by itself.

Physicians speak out

A physician speaks out about quarantining the healthy. The destruction of the first amendment freedoms while keeping marijuana shops and abortion clinics open. Liquor stores are essential but your business isn't? Dr. Jeff Barke of California:

https://heavy.com/news/2020/05/dr-jeff-barke-video/?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmU6YYGfyUk What is happening to doctors. Learn what's going on. Dr. Yvette Lozano of Texas.

Cancer treatment checklist

I found this at a blog written by a woman who had metastatic breast cancer. Due to HIPAA and Phil's reluctance to ask his family for assistance, we were helpless in helping him battle his disease. He was brave, determined, combative and very angry. He'd already had a stroke (retinal occlusion) and had a number of health problems which he chose to ignore. After his death I found a letter written by a cousin suggesting that he not try going through this alone, to accept help. He disregarded her, too. The mistakes I've seen were compounded by a very small thing yesterday when we received a sympathy card from the doctor he trusted most and told us never to question her advice. His name was wrong in the card! Doctors, too, are helpless if a patient is noncompliant. And he definitely was. But he had amazing faith in her, not withstanding.

Lessons Learned Checklist:

1. Expect mistakes from your health provider;

2. Ask critical questions at every visit. Take a written list of questions in order of priority. If you get home and realize something is not clear, contact your doctor again;

3. Get a friend or family member to serve as your advocate;

4. Communication between doctors is absolutely critical. If a Radiology report indicates possible metastatic disease or something equally alarming make sure you get a definitive diagnosis. Rule out the worst-case scenarios. Make sure the doctors involved have talked;

5. If you aren’t confident about the doctor’s diagnosis, ask your doctor to review your records with colleagues to see what might have been missed;

6. Get a second opinion;

7. Choose doctors who take time and listen. Ask for a copy of the doctor’s notes to ensure your issues are documented properly. This also ensures the doctor heard what you said;

8. Ask specialists to take a “fresh look” at your case;

9. Make use of hospital patient advocate resources without delay.

On being a caregiver

It's been 2 weeks since our son Phil died, and I may write more of my reflections (and advice to others) at my blog when they come to me. Let me first say it is a privilege to be with a loved one when he is dying, although it will be the most difficult thing you'll ever do. Phil was Phil from the beginning to the end, and although that could be very frustrating when we wanted him to go a different direction or not cause self-harm, he was also a testament to God's creative power. From the moment of our conception to the moment of our last breath, we are the same person going through stages. Jesus has ennobled our frail human bodies that get sick and die, and from here on Phil has no bounds.

When we got the call from hospice in February we were totally unprepared--we thought Phil would be continuing his chemo and battling his brain tumor. It was an ugly fight, but he was determined to stick with the treatment. The appointments were on the calendar. But with hospice, treatment stops and palliative care begins. Our weekly visit and daily phone calls turned into 24/7 care. Because of HIPAA and Phil's personality, we knew little about his treatment or glioblastoma, only what we'd been able to learn on our own. We didn't live in the same community and knew nothing about his financial situation. The national situation almost eliminated our familiar support network. And we were so wrong about so many things.

Imagine (if you are about my age) you know how to drive a car--you've been driving so long it's almost second nature. But it's becoming difficult and you no longer do the free ways and stay with the streets you know. You vaguely remember how to drive a stick shift because you learned that as a teen (or in my case, your husband has one). So, these two nice ladies you've never seen before pay you a visit, show you a 1950s era pick up truck, put you behind the wheel, and say, "Don't worry, we'll teach you what you need to know." Meanwhile you're headed for the entrance ramp to drive through the center of Atlanta at rush hour, or Chicago through 50 construction zones at night. In a pick up truck you don't remember how to drive. At every stop light, a different person climbs in the cab and reroutes you--no map, no GPS. Sometimes at night something breaks down and it takes hours to get help. Fortunately, there are some hitch hikers to pick up along the way who really do help and explain things.

If you've been or will be a caregiver, your mileage will vary; spouses have rights and relationships with the medical system, financial institutions and social networks that parents and adult children don't have. The same people who are there to help may also say, by law we can't advise you, or that's not my area of expertise.

If you are healthy now and have no worries, pause and reflect. Two days before Phil was diagnosed we'd had a birthday lunch at the Chef-o-Nette in our old neighborhood and we knew nothing about what would be coming on October 1.

Finding an old letter—metastatic breast cancer

This is probably a re-run—at least I found it on Facebook and I often double post.  I looked for it because I’ve been cleaning out my desk and found a local’ friend’s letter written from Tennessee after her daughter’s death.  Her daughter was 61 and she was 90.  She didn’t expect to bury her daughter or have to move out of state to settle her estate.  The friend died a few months ago, and although I’m not a hoarder, I did tuck her letter back in the drawer. She was so lonely when she wrote it—had read everything in the house, and couldn’t get a library card because she wasn’t a resident.  She did start the first paragraph with advice I need today. . . “If onlys can ruin your sanity.”
So here’s what I wrote September 27, 2017 in part to warn women about metastatic cancer.

Monday night we had a 90 year old friend, a widow, here for dinner. We had such a nice evening, tinged with sadness. I've told this before, and I'm telling it again because it's so important for women. Metastatic breast cancer.

She's a member of my church, had been living out of state while she settled the estate of her deceased daughter--61--nothing a woman her age would expect to be doing. I remember about 5 years ago her daughter came to Columbus to help her mom recover from a stroke. My friend's daughter had had annual mammograms for years, and nothing was found--probably due to very dense breast tissue and the location of the cancer under her arm. But she did have a lot of pain the last 5 years and was being treated for arthritis. By the time she was properly diagnosed the cancer had metastasized to both hips, her spine, liver and lymph system. This cancer is not curable, and no one dies from cancer that stays in the breast, but if she'd been properly diagnosed 5 years ago, she could possibly be alive. That's not a given, however.  

All women have been educated about detecting breast cancer and screening--in fact, the lion's share of that money you donate and raise in walks, runs, and selling pink stuff, goes for education and not research that could actually save your life. I've looked at several websites about this and personal stories, and this one is pretty clear.

Read the comments https://participatorymedicine.org/journal/perspective/narratives/2013/04/10/metastatic-breast-cancer-lessons-learned-from-my-missed-diagnosis.
The author of this article provided a checklist:
Lessons Learned Checklist:

1. Expect mistakes from your health provider;
2. Ask critical questions at every visit. Take a written list of questions in order of priority. If you get home and realize something is not clear, contact your doctor again;
3. Get a friend or family member to serve as your advocate;
4. Communication between doctors is absolutely critical. If a Radiology report indicates possible metastatic disease or something equally alarming make sure you get a definitive diagnosis. Rule out the worst-case scenarios. Make sure the doctors involved have talked;
5. If you aren’t confident about the doctor’s diagnosis, ask your doctor to review your records with colleagues to see what might have been missed;
6. Get a second opinion;
7. Choose doctors who take time and listen. Ask for a copy of the doctor’s notes to ensure your issues are documented properly. This also ensures the doctor heard what you said;
8. Ask specialists to take a “fresh look” at your case;
9. Make use of hospital patient advocate resources without delay.

Homocysteine

I wrote about homocysteine in February at this blog.

Today I noticed this after seeing Dr. Bret Scher on a Prager U video. https://lowcarbcardiologist.com/meat-and-homocysteine-irrelevant-or-dangerous/

This video is on how the government made us fat is good. https://www.prageru.com/video/how-the-government-made-you-fat/

Vast majority like their health-care

Great news, right?

80% of Americans rate their health-care quality as excellent or good. Except it was 76% under Obama in 2015, and 83% under Bush in 2007.

All studies showed before Obama decided to take over health, that nearly 85% of Americans were satisfied with their health insurance (which is not always the same as health care), in fact, some didn't want insurance, others just hadn't signed up for state or federal government plans. Didn't matter. He wanted the power. Jail or fine if you didn't have the level of insurance the government demanded. So what if you're happy with what you have? It wasn't what Yo'mama Obama wanted.

https://news.gallup.com/poll/245195/americans-rate-healthcare-quite-positively.aspx

Five lifestyles which will prolong your life. . . maybe

Have you ever seen this statement--"Americans have a shorter life expectancy compared with residents of almost all other high-income countries." I wish they'd qualify that by race, ethnicity, immigration status and age. Are Swedish Americans less healthy than ethnic Swedes in Sweden? Finnish Americans worse off than those born in Helsinki? German Americans? Drugs, auto accidents, and gun deaths wipe out a big swath of young Americans which unfortunately drastically alters our life expectancy national statistics. Losing weight, eating a healthy diet, and exercising more are good for you as an individual, but probably won't change national statistics as long as those 3 killers are present.

Here's what the journal "Circulation" determined: "Adherence to 5 low-risk lifestyle-related factors (never smoking, a healthy weight, regular physical activity, a healthy diet, and moderate alcohol consumption) could prolong life expectancy at age 50 years by 14.0 and 12.2 years for female and male US adults compared with individuals who adopted zero low-risk lifestyle factors."

Simple, right? Popular health journals and websites (usually sponsored by pharmaceutical companies) have jumped on that one. Buckets of articles and bags of advice have come from that. But. As young adults, people (like me in the 1960s or my parents in the 1930s) observing those five lifestyles were probably not involved in violent gangs, car chases while drunk, stealing to support an opioid habit, or eating wings at the local bar and washing them down with 12 beers several times a week. Those five lifestyles often include a monogamous marriage, higher education levels, stable jobs, church attendance, strong family and friend relationships. It's not that grandma who smoked like a chimney and drank six beers a day didn't live to be 105, or that cousin Ralph dropped dead jogging at age 40, but they are the exception.

I haven't read the whole article, but I know how it will be cited: support take over by the government of our health insurance because look how unhealthy Americans are. Studies in countries with socialized medicine that compare their healthiest and their least healthy show the same spread as the U.S. and that there are income gaps, education disparity and socio-economic differences which government health insurance doesn't change.

This article is free access.  “Circulation” is one of the best peer reviewed journals you can read on cardiovascular issues. https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.117.032047

Feeling the Bern

"Senator Sanders points to the Scandinavian model as an example of what it means to have health care as a right. Senator Sanders has traveled widely in his life — he found much to praise in the Soviet Union while honeymooning there, and said so — but he is, like many American progressives, almost completely parochial. As is the case with the United Kingdom and much of Europe, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark are in the 21st century markedly different from the countries they were in the 1970s, when Senator Sanders’s awareness of the world seems to have congealed into the impenetrable clot of ignorance on such ghastly display in his current political career."

https://www.nationalreview.com/2019/02/bernie-sanders-health-care-rhetoric-rights/?

That's a great turn of phrase, and one I've noticed with some of my friends and acquaintances who seem fascinated, but blind, with socialism of the 70s-- "congealed into the impenetrable clot of ignorance."

I used to translate medical articles from the USSR back in the 1960s when I worked for a professor of sociology--free medical care from feldshers (фельдшер), who'd had 6 weeks of training. Bernie loved the USSR of his youth--maybe that's where he got the idea.

It takes a village to take care of mom

“If you have an aging loved one — grandparent, parent, aunt, uncle, or family friend – living in a senior nursing community or being cared for at home by a home health organization, the people performing the most menial-sounding jobs may be the most important people in their lives. They are the van driver who takes them for a day out to the mall or to the clinic for dialysis; the laundry worker who picks up their dirty clothes every morning and brings them back clean and carefully hung or folded; the activities director who brings music, art and crafts to engage their minds, bodies and hearts; the housekeeper who cleans the floor no matter what mess s/he encounters. They also are the groundskeeper who mows the lawn and manicures the flower beds; the custodian who hangs a new memento on the wall; the hairdresser who keeps them neatly groomed.

My mother spent the final eight years of her life in a nursing facility. That became her permanent home, and almost everyone treated her as if she owned the place. She knew most of the staff by name and would share with me her interactions with them. It became clear after a few months that she only spoke in detail about the employees that I mentioned in the first paragraph. The nurses and aides, of course, were giving her the physical caring she needed to stay healthy, yet the non-clinical staff were the people she told me about. She knew about their marital status and family life, what they did on their non-working time, and their favorite hobbies. Mom didn’t get to know the clinical staff on the same personal level; they had many residents who demanded their expertise, and her interactions with clinical staff were focused on medical needs.

The next time you visit your aging loved one living in a senior community, pay attention to the staff:  not only those who are giving the meds or changing bedpans, but also those working behind the scenes to make life more comfortable for the residents.” by Myra Wilson, u.osu.edu/alber/2018/10/15/elder-care-it-takes-a-village/?

What exactly are the Democrats’ policies?

The Democrat policies you say you care about are:  “Most are in the area of social issues: common-sense gun control, affordable health care for all (can't wrap my head around the fact that gun ownership is a right, but healthcare is a privilege), increase in federal minimum wage so it at least matches the poverty level minimum, pro-choice.”

They all sound rather vague, but that’s not what the Democrat party means with those words.

1.  We all know the issue isn’t “gun control,” because some of the worst disasters have happened in cities that have that.  The goal is confiscation for all except the government and private security guards to protect entertainers and politicians.  It’s never been anything else.  Democrats are almost as patient as terrorists—and it is always incremental.

2.  Healthcare—we already had 5 federal/state medical plans before Obama decided to make NOT having it a crime punishable with a fine or jail time. Native Americans have had cradle to grave health care for many years, and they are the least healthy and poorest of American minorities—at least if they live on the reservation. My brother-in-law was a full blood Indian who grew up in Huntington Beach, CA, and used all the rights and privileges the rest of us have, plus a few from his tribe. He had a public employee pension, but died at 73, not for lack of health care, but lack of agreeing to a colonoscopy.  I think it was the take over of one of the largest industries that Republicans objected to.  If he had begun without the mandate, or not forcing religious groups to buy contraception/abortion, he would have had no problem growing it to single payer. But it was never about healthcare, it was always about power.  Also, the government no matter who is in the White House is eyeing the deductions or credits for medical care by employers and employees—they (it) believe that is rightfully their money.

3.  We already have 123 federal wealth transfer programs, and many started out to help the sick, poor, elderly, etc., (those who tug at our heart strings), but as time goes on more people are added as they expand, until now we’re at the point that 62% of the people who receive entitlements or assistance are well above the poverty line. Nonpoor households received 48% of the $2.4 TRILLION distributed in 2015.  And about 31% were in the upper half. There’s just something about a government entitlement plan that is like our waist sizes (at least mine) and expands as we age.  These programs don’t necessarily reduce poverty, but they certainly employ a lot of middle class bureaucrats in state and federal government.  If poverty were to disappear tomorrow, on Thursday we’d have a new class of poor—all those folks who work upstream from the poor. (figures from “The high cost of good intentions” by John F. Cogan, 2017)

4.  As far as minimum wage goes, that’s another feel-good, guilt trip.  A tiny fraction of wage earners are at minimum—I think  it’s 2.9% of all workers.  And even at the old $7.50/hr figure, if a 2 adult earner household was working 40 hours a week at $7.50, that household has gone beyond the level for qualifying for most important benefits like SNAP, Medicaid, Section 8, WIC, etc. Low income doesn’t mean stupid, so if it were me at that job, I’d cut my hours or refuse a promotion so I could continue qualifying for about $22,000 a year in benefits. It’s quite possible for EITC for a man with a family to have a stay at home wife and 3-4 kids who is better off than the man earning $60,000/year because the government pays him to earn below $50,000 and it’s non-taxable. The average family income of a minimum wage earner is $53,113 and they are more likely to have some college than the average American worker. Why?  They are not the primary earner of the family!

5.  And pro-choice.? Well, there goes your concern for the weakest and most vulnerable in society. Again this is incremental.  All the talk these days from the left is that abortion is OK right through the full 9 months—it’s legal to poke a hole in the skull to make sure the baby’s dead on arrival, and the more radical Democrats have moved that to 2 years out from birth. It will come.  Soon the Democrats’ drive for euthanasia of the elderly and severely ill will meet up in the middle with their desire to end the lives of children who are not perfect or who come at an inconvenient time.  At the age of my readers and family, it might be wise to have your EOL documents stated clearly, because the Democrat party is coming for you.

https://www.cathmed.org/assets/files/LNQ59%20FINAL.pdf 

A response:

Norma;

I really like the point that you are making about the slow incremental loss of freedoms, rights and government intrusion in every facet of our lives.

And I share your concerns that will be happening to the old folks and agree that you need to work on a plan.

There is always this argument about being reasonable and accepting of progress and small changes but when you look at it over time the impact on the American Way of Life is significant.

While not directly germane to the border security discussion, it is relevant to the issue of slowly stripping law abiding citizens of their rights and putting government in control over every aspect of our lives, whether it is healthcare, education, physical movement, gun ownership, property ownership, etc. etc.

I see this with my two youngest kids in elementary school. We live in Maryland.   The school supplies that we buy become community property – property ownership is one of the hallmarks of capitalism and freedom (and communism the opposite).  The result is that the kids go through 100 pencils, 10 erasers, … a head per year and the teachers beg for more before the school year is over because they have run out.   Sounds like the Kolkhoz (State owned Farm) in the Sowjet Union that could never succeed of making a fraction of their crop plan and had to import most their grain from the USA.       

The kids and parents are highly discouraged to pay for lunch with cash out of their wallet – learning the use of money is fundamental to a capitalistic society.  Result, the kids have a lunch account and have no concept of what stuff costs and how to make choices. Sounds like Obamacare for the low income people.

  A month ago, I learned that the children are no longer taught cursive writing. I was told that WE ONLY TEACH PRINTED LETTERS for the last 5 years now.  When I raised the issue that they would never be able to attain a decent speed of writing, I was told, that the direction is that at some point the kids would only be typing.

DOES ANYBODY UNDERSTAND THAT THIS SETS UP A TOTAL SURVEILLANCE STATE?

  The children are undergoing mandatory behavioral testing annually which was part of common core legislation under Obama.   What does this look like. It’s frightening. It reminds of how the Communists identified those who were potential dangers for the dictatorship regime.

The kids read a story about some animal pet that will be put to death UNLESS a child is willing to say some lies. Only with these lies could the pet animal be saved.  The testing involves asking the children various questions about their opinions on this story.

I wrote a letter to the school that I am opting my kids out and they don’t have permission to be testing. They told me there is no ‘opt out’ allowed.  I met with the principal and was redirected to the assistant principal who is in charge of testing.  To my surprise, he confided to me that he as 4 children that will be tested soon and he has been thinking about how he gets around this because knowing what he knows he thinks it’s very dangerous too.  After he explained all of the rules to me we found a loophole around it and it has worked now for the last 3 years. Although I would not be surprised if the authorities will show up at my door step one day.  If you look at the parent group websites in protest of this testing, they have been largely unsuccessful protecting their children.

We had hoped that with a Republican governor this nonsense would stop, but it hasn’t.

So while I don’t own guns, don’t shoot, I have to completely sympathize with the people who want to uphold their constitutional gun rights.

But those rights have been slowly eroding piece by piece and have been converted to hunting rights and gun ownership. The Constitution was not about guns for hunting. It was about safeguards against an oppressive regime.

So it is important to recognize that there are consequences when you allow the forfeiture of citizens rights and you are not paying attention.

The Orientation and Disorientation of Caregivers by Peter Rosenberger, guest blog

By Peter Rosenberger author of 7 Caregiver Landmines and How You Can Avoid Them

 

(Available in Kindle and Paperback from Amazon) Peter Rosenberger hosts a radio program for family caregivers broadcast weekly from Nashville, TN on more than 200 stations. He has served as a caregiver for his wife Gracie, who has lived with severe disabilities for more than 30 years.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zete6PeZozA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKxgyymMy4c

“Walking into Waffle House for breakfast, I held the door for two men. The younger man awkwardly helped his older companion with a walker and oxygen tank. No stranger to these things myself, I waited for several moments while nodding to the younger man. Mustering a sad smile, he expressed his gratitude for my patience.

As they slowly exited, I stepped in—only to be stopped by one of the longtime servers. “Peter, go out there and talk to that young man! His name is Randy, and I ain’t serving you breakfast ‘til you do,” she stated forcefully.

Decades of Waffle House visits with her taught me that disobedience usually involved a tongue-lashing. And, she really wouldn’t serve me until I talked with him.

Dutifully returning to the parking lot, I approached Randy, stuck my hand out and said, “I was told to come out here and talk with you—and Judy won’t serve me breakfast until I do. What’s going on?”

Randy’s eyes instantly filled with tears while sharing that this was their last breakfast out before hospice came that afternoon for his partner. Listening, I understood why Judy sent me back to the parking lot.

I speak fluent caregiver.

Randy added, “We’ve been together for 24 years, and I am just so upset. I don’t know what to do. I’m afraid I’ll go into my room and cry—and won’t be able to stop.”

Chatting for a while, as Randy’s companion quietly sat in the car with the engine running, I offered things learned from a lifetime of caregiving for my wife who lives with severe disabilities. Giving Randy my card and sharing he could call anytime, I prayed with him, hugged him, and watched him breathe a bit easier. Returning to the restaurant, Judy, with brimming eyes, nodded her thanks and served me breakfast.

Strengthening and encouraging my fellow caregivers serves as one of my deepest passions. I understand the brutality of the journey in ways few do. I also understand that the caregiving burden borne in the gay community is all too often compounded by judgment from people of faith. People who share my faith.

Caregiving respects no sexual preference, creed, politics, religion, or race. The harshness of caregiving saves all its assaults…to wage on the bonds of love. In the face of a chronic illness or disability, that love isn’t sexual or about sexual orientation. The love compelling one person to put themselves between a vulnerable loved one and even worse disaster—is something far different and worthy of respect.

Suffering and sorrow tend to put differences into perspective. The ministry of grace vividly displayed from the cross of Christ, can flow from us without this incessant need to fix, change, or dispute those who live differently.

In that parking lot, Randy and I were not gay versus straight. Nor were our doctrines and creeds discussed. While I remain devoutly evangelical with deep convictions, I never asked Randy’s beliefs. I just saw a fellow caregiver grieving as he ministered to a suffering loved one. Randy and I have that in common.

Caregivers struggle. They deserve care—not judgment for their fears, mistakes, or even their lifestyle. No one has ever argued me into a relationship. But there are those who loved me into one.

When the AIDS epidemic crashed upon society, all too many in the gay community were shunned. In the process, a vast number suffered with a horrific disease without the comfort of Christian ministry. That tragedy can’t be undone. Yet, that same community stands in need now, as they grieve while caring for aging and disabled loved ones.

Acceptance is not agreement. In order to care for someone, one is not bound to condone a lifestyle operating in contrast to Scripture. Yet, ministering hands reached into my grief and trauma to help me get to safer ground. I would be a poor steward of that help …that grace …if I didn’t offer it to others as they journey down the heartbreaking path of a caregiver.

While I’ve learned to speak fluent “caregiver,” it’s my Savior’s native tongue.”

What socialized medicine looks like

What you have to look forward to if the socialists like Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders win in 2018: "Native Americans have received federally funded health care for decades. A series of treaties, court cases and acts passed by Congress requires that the government provide low-cost and, in many cases, free care to American Indians. The Indian Health Service (IHS) is charged with delivering that care." [IHS web site quote].

The per person cost is about 1/3 of what the other Americans spend, but is in line with Europe. Also, native Americans have a life expectancy 5.5 years less than all other Americans.

https://www.ihs.gov/newsroom/factsheets/disparities/

The right to try

Democrats don't want to put dying people whose treatments have failed "in danger" so they didn't support the "right to try" bill. Big Whoop. Here are the big reasons.

• They didn't support it because it is a "right to life" issue (which includes fighting euthanasia),
• they didn't support it because it's a win for Trump,
• they didn't support it because some of their biggest donors in the medical and pharmaceutical field don't like it, and
• they didn't support it because it puts more control of health in the hands of the consumer. 

Rich Democrat celebrities can always fly to Asia or Mexico for experimental drugs; no use letting the hoi polloi do that and cheapen the glamor.

Spin and fear equal hysteria

I hate the way Ebola is being politicized, both by the right and the left. There's a Democrat action group that's made a ridiculous ad about the GOP causing this with the budget when the CDC did zip nada zilch about a disease known since 1976 and had it's budget line increased. And on the opposing team paranoid Christian survivalists are claiming Obama is launching germ warfare because he hates us. They are making the loony left look almost normal. Millions are dying of AIDS, TB and malaria in Africa; we have hysterical people in the U.S. who are refusing vaccines for measles, mumps, polio, diphtheria, HPV and seasonal flu. Add to that the biggest killer in the U.S. is not bacteria or viruses, but lifestyle diseases--alcohol, drugs, tobacco, overeating, sexual promiscuity and couch surfing--things we actually DO control. Plus there are those among us who believe we are mini-gods and can control the climate and viruses and bacteria. Really, it's like living in the dark ages. The news media pile on like ants at a picnic spreading fear and misinformation. I’ve been awake about an hour and have heard about the 2nd hospital employee with Ebola at least 10 times.

On the Health Wagon with Scott Pelley

What bias? Last night I watched a heart wrenching program on 60 minutes on the problems in Appalachian Virginia--no recovery from the recession, coal jobs drying up, and too poor (i.e., too rich) for Obamacare (all this on Obama's economic watch), yet at the end, it is all laid at the feet of the GOP who didn't approve the Democrat governor's Medicaid increase plan. So I looked that up--and see there's a whole other story there for CBS to look into, like how the states that take Obama's carrot, finance this expansion when it is withdrawn.

One woman interviewed said she couldn't afford the insurance offered by McDonald's where she worked. But she was a smoker (part of her health problem) which could have paid for her insurance co-pay. Even one pack a day is about $1660 a year.

This story was first covered in 2008--now the health situation is worse.

This is not the complete segment, but contains information about the background. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/on-the-road-with-the-health-wagon/

Stop underestimating the President!

Some conservative bloggers/FB-ers depict Obama as dumb, out of step, sucker for socialism, etc. Really? Who else could claim with a straight face in a news conference that Republicans want to deprive people of insurance when the ONLY politician who has actually done that--and for millions--is President Obama? Many believe him. I don't call that dumb--except for the sillies who swallow it. The Pied Piper theme still appears in 21st century books, TV and movies, and we've got one in the White House.