Stage four cancer

And she’s lost her insurance that was working very well for her.  Thank you, President Obama.

Next on the chopping block—employee health insurance

“Right now, most people getting cancellations bought plans in the individual market. Wait until the other shoe drops in 2014 and millions more people who had coverage through their job lose it. The truth about Obamacare will become so painfully obvious that even the White House lie machine won’t be able to cover it up.” Betsy McCaughey is a former Lt. governor of New York

The Jimmy Kimmel dust-up

Just a follow up on Jimmy Kimmel's China comment. Last night Glenn Beck interviewed Pastor Bob Fu, a former Communist and atheist from China, and now a Christian. He and his wife left China to save the life of their unborn child. We've all heard of the one child policy, but he said Chinese women have to carry a "birth permit" which records their periods, insertion of birth control device, etc., because they need government permission to conceive, even for the first child. The document he showed to the camera sort of looked like a passport with the woman’s photo, and stamps, and notes. Pastor Fu and his wife hadn't obtained the proper permit and could not get medical assistance. So even 8 and 9 month old babies can be aborted against their parents' wishes. So if ABC or Jimmy Kimmel want a come back to the racism charges, let them do some investigative reporting and tell the truth about the Chinese government continuing to kill its own citizens.

The Omnibus Final Rule

It’s just not good to read “conundrum,” “new regulations,” “administrative and technical challenges,” “impede innovation,” and “contentious issue” all in the same article about HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.  Not after the sloppy, struggling, and insecure roll out of Obamacare.  The Omnibus Final Rule.

There are a few hot button words for me in the JAMA September 18, 2013 article, “The HIPAA Conundrum in the Era of Mobile Health and Communications.”

• mandates
• redefined
• expanded
• now considered
• now required
• can be held criminally liable
• pose technical challenges
• estimated cost $114-225 million for start up
• underestimates compliance costs
• may impose unfunded mandates
• may impede innovation
• in theory. . .
• in practice. . .
• actual security will rely on user’s behavior
• important hurdles
• employing consultants has become the norm
• can be costly
• down stream contractors
• poor guidance
• impose
• shift
• refuse
• trapped
• impassable requirements
• penalized
• landscape is rapidly evolving

Evolution explained cold

1984 all over again

"Heavy physical work, the care of home and children, petty quarrels with neighbors, films, football, beer, and above all, gambling filled up the horizon of their minds. To keep them in control was not difficult…. All that was required of them was a primitive patriotism which could be appealed to whenever it was necessary to make them accept longer working hours or shorter rations. And when they become discontented, as they sometimes did, their discontentment led nowhere, because being without general ideas, they could only focus it on petty specific grievances.”

“Substandard” insurance

Obama loves to call your current health insurance "substandard." But insurance, like banks, is very highly regulated--by the government, and especially the state governments. And those regulations benefit the big guys who spend millions on lobbying the most. That's the same for all industries whether insurance, banking, agriculture, entertainment, toys, snack food or academia. The regulations are specifically written (many drafted by the industry itself) to keep the little guy from being competition. So the next time he tells you that, throw something at the TV and don't forget to vote in the next election.

Insurance agents are required to have extensive training, and continuing education. They have to have back ground checks and finger printing. Obama's navigators? Nothing.

Undercover video of navigator guiding a citizen to sign up with Obamacare. Not only have so-called “Obamacare navigators” not been properly vetted by Enroll America, but they are actively encouraging consumers to lie to the IRS in order to get more money in Obamacare subsidies and in fact themselves are admitting to defrauding the government. And what makes this even worse is that Enroll America, ostensibly a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, seems to be sharing information with Battleground Texas, which is described by its regional field director as “a grassroots organization dedicated to turning Texas blue.”

Jimmy Kimmel and the kids

I was sitting in the doctor's office and CNN was on, so I watched the story of comedian Jimmy Kimmel allowing a kid to say that the solution to the debt problem with China was to kill the Chinese. So then came the "I'm sorry if anyone was offended" apology from Kimmel and ABC, but that's not enough. There are calls for his firing. Really? "Comedians" call for the death of Tea Party members and Republicans, and no one is fired and they label anyone who doesn't like Obama's policies a racist, a homophobe and a misogynist.

Then the news show brought on a Chinese American who felt compelled to review America's record with minorities, like how Asians were treated in the 19th and 20th century. From her accent, I guessed she was born in China, but was probably forced to give up her native language of Cantonese or one of the Wu language groups and flee for her life when Mao was killing 70 million or so of his own citizens. If China is upset, tough.

With Obama’s help, abortion will be legal in Kenya

We know our President routinely ignores our laws, or works around them, parses his words carefully, or just blatantly lies, like he did about "you can keep your doctor, period."  However, it was also illegal for the U.S. to interfere in Kenya's constitution to promote abortion.  An investigation by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), into the Obama Administration’s use of $18 million in taxpayer funds to provide funding for a group pushing legalized abortion in Kenya finds the administration broke the law. Guttmacher Institute (Planned Parenthood) did a happy dance and reports the same kind of “unsafe, illegal” abortion statistics that they did in the United States to get our 1973 law passed.  (That was later proved to be a complete fabrication.)  The administration stonewalled the investigation. This was in 2010, but worthy of remembering when making your list. Democrats like to say about Obamacare, "It's the law," well, so was DOMA, and he ignored it. So is sending guns to Mexico. So is spying on American citizens without a warrant.  So is interfering with our “free” press.  So is killing American citizens suspected of terrorism without a trial. So is lobbying for abortion in other countries.

http://www.lifenews.com/2011/12/16/obamas-push-to-legalize-abortion-in-kenya-broke-u-s-law/

http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/FB_Abortion-in-Kenya.pdf

http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/09/11/kenyan_catholic_bishops:_legalizing_abortion_is_legalizing_murder!_/en3-727577

On being green

I’ve seen this a few times on the internet and thought it was worth another look. I have no attribution.

Checking out at the store, the young cashier suggested to the much older woman, that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment.

The woman apologized and explained, "We didn't have this 'green thing' back in my earlier days."

The young clerk responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations."

She was right -- our generation didn't have the 'green thing' in its day.

Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over.

So they really were recycled.

But we didn't have the "green thing" back in our day.

Grocery stores bagged our groceries in brown paper bags, that we reused for numerous things, most memorable besides household garbage bags, was the use of brown paper bags as book covers for our schoolbooks. This was to ensure that public property, (the books provided for our use by the school) was not defaced by our scribblings.

Then we were able to personalize our books on the brown paper bags.

But too bad we didn't do the "green thing" back then.

We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks.

But she was right. We didn't have the "green thing" in our day.

Back then, we washed the baby's diapers because we didn't have the throwaway kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy-gobbling machine burning up 220 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry our clothes back in our early days. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.

But that young lady is right; we didn't have the "green thing" back in our day.

Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana . In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap. Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.

But she's right; we didn't have the "green thing" back then.

We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.

But we didn't have the "green thing" back then.

Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service in the family's $45,000 SUV or van, which cost what a whole house did before the "green thing." We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 23,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest burger joint.

But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn't have the "green thing" back then?

Please forward this on to another old person who needs a lesson in conservation from a smartass young person...

We don't like being old in the first place, so it doesn't take much to piss us off...especially from a tattooed, multiple pierced smartass who can't make change without the cash register telling them how much.

Aren’t you glad Obamacare is saving health care dollars

According to data released by Senators Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA), the three major carriers in the D.C. exchange only signed up a few each; a fourth signed up no one.

Care First, Blue Cross Blue Shield: two enrollees from Oct. 1, 2013, through Oct. 30, 2013.

Kaiser Permanente: three enrollees from Oct. 1, 2013, through Oct. 31, 2013.

United Healthcare: no enrollment data from the exchange as of Nov. 4, 2013.

Aetna: No enrollment data as of Oct. 24, 2013.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services have posted the amount of grant money given to the D.C. exchange. The total from these publicly-released figures are $133,573,928: $72,985,333 for an "Establishment Grant Level Two Application Summary," with an "Administrative Supplement Award Amount" of $16,969,089; $8,200,716 and $34,418,790 awarded separately for an "Establishment Grant Level One Application Summary;" and $1 million for s "State Planning Grant."

This means that the cost to the American taxpayers per enrollee in D.C. has been $26,714,785.60 each.

Information link here.

There is nothing government can do cheaper than private industry, but there are a few things it must do according to the Constitution.  Health care isn’t one of them.

Monday Memories—the Founding and Growth of Upper Arlington Lutheran Church

http://www.advent2.com/Projects/Touchstones

Entire video takes 21.5 minutes

The November jobs report

Sept. 15, 2009: "But I want you all to know, I will not rest until anybody who's looking for a job can find one -- and I'm not talking about just any job, but good jobs that give every American decent wages and decent benefits and a fair shot at the American Dream. (Applause.) That's what I'm fighting for every single day. (Applause.)" President Obama, talking to auto workers in Lordstown, OH, campaigning on all his "successes" in just a few months (ARRA, cash for clunkers, green energy, health insurance pending legislation), none of which have panned out.

November 9,  2013: The President plays his 150th round of golf and the U.S. labor force participation rate fell from 63.2 percent to 62.8 percent, the lowest that it has been since 1978, 11 million more than when he took office. Almost 5 years after the recession officially ended, nearly 50 million Americans are living in poverty, based on a line set by the government. Huge numbers have been added to the SNAP program which is riddled with fraud. The WH is swirling in scandal as more rights are stolen from the American people, and the President has been proven to be a pathological liar in his promotion of his signature legislation for which not one Republican voted and only squeaked through the Senate by one vote.

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/october-jobs-report-shows-unemployment-rate-increased-73/story?id=20822924

http://money.cnn.com/2013/09/06/news/economy/labor-force-participation/index.html

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-gm-lordstown-assembly-plant-employees-ohio-9152009

Dear liberal, mainline, Democrat Christian,

Your heart may be in the right place, but your hand is in my purse.  Studies show that marriage of the parents is the #1 way to reduce childhood poverty in the U.S.A. With married parents, a child has only about 8% chance of being raised in poverty. A better house, or a better education doesn't do it. Lunch programs from USDA distributed by church volunteers doesn't make a dent. Social justice workshops and summits don't either, except maybe to tamp down a little liberal guilt if the Bible falls open to Matthew 25.  You address guns, cuts in food stamps for illegals, hunger, obesity, education.  Where is your concern about marriage, the number one solution?

Nobody tells a dying guy to shut up by Dave Chilcoat

"Nobody tells a dying guy to shut up" is the personal testimony of Dave Chilcoat, who battled ALS the last 3 years of his life but continued to witness the love of Jesus to the end. When he learned he had this terrible disease, he started an on line journal recording both his physical struggles and his spiritual victories, writing the final entry in Aug. 2006. His wife, Beth, edited the journal and published it in 2009.  It is in the church library at Upper Arlington Lutheran Church (Columbus, OH), and I read it in one sitting Friday--his description of the disease, his pain, and his tears is crushing, but his joy in the Lord is inspiring and faith building. His selection of appropriate scripture is outstanding. Dave and Beth came to Columbus, OH, to establish Young Life when they were a young married couple with a baby in 1970. After 10 years he went to law school and was a lawyer for 23 years. See  her web site for ordering information. http://bethchilcoat.com/

Until I read this book about Dave's three years battling ALS, I had forgotten I had three "A taste of Columbus" recipe books by Dave and Beth. I have III (1987),IV, (1991) and V (2000), received after Marylyn Doncevic, the original owner and wife of Paul Doncevic, died. These are wonderful recipes from Columbus area restaurants, and the books are illustrated by David's mother, whom you also get to know in his book.

Not many realize it yet . . . someone pays for free health care

Principles of Health Care Reform—Heritage Foundation

Principles for Reform

To allow Americans to reclaim control of their own health care and benefit from competition in a free market for insurance and health care, Congress should repeal the Obamacare statute and enact patient-centered, market-based reforms based on five principles:

Choose, control, and carry your own health insurance;

Let free markets provide the insurance and health care services that people want;

Encourage employers to provide a portable health insurance benefit to employees;

Assist those who need help through civil society, the free market, and the states; and

Protect the right of conscience and unborn children.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) moves health care in the wrong direction. It puts government, not patients, in charge of individual health care decisions. Moreover, it fails to meet the promises laid out by President Barack Obama. With each passing day, it becomes clearer that Obamacare will not reduce premiums for average American families, bend the cost curve in health care spending, or bring down the deficit. For these reasons, among others, Obamacare must be repealed.

However, a return to the status quo before Obamacare is not the final step. Policymakers should pursue reforms based on five basic principles. Adopting such reforms would move American health care in the right direction: toward a patient-centered, market-based health care system.

Full article

Democrats when it’s their wealth being transferred

I don't think Democrats should reject Obama just because their insurance costs have sky rocketed. If they'd been listening to Republicans they would have known that, because they tried to fix it in 2010, and were run out of town. Mike Enzi (R-Wy)  predicted in September 2010 that between 39 and 69% of Americans would lose their health care in this fiasco. This is one of the so-called roadblocks Republicans are accused of.  Well, he was right. He read the bill! And apparently the 36,000 pages of regulations where this was embedded.

Public humiliation for Obama supporters, maybe. Examine their core beliefs of transferring wealth, yes. Look closely at his overall view of life, including abortion, absolutely.

“No deal is better than a bad deal”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TMN4bXFoMY

I met Secretary Kerry right before he leaves to Geneva. I reminded him that he said that no deal is better than a bad deal. And the deal that is being discussed in Geneva right now is a bad deal. It’s a very bad deal. Iran is not required to take apart even one centrifuge.

But the international community is relieving sanctions on Iran for the first time after many years. Iran gets everything that it wanted at this stage and pays nothing. And this is when Iran is under severe pressure. I urge Secretary Kerry not to rush to sign, to wait, to reconsider, to get a good deal. But this is a bad deal, a very, very, bad deal.

It’s the deal of a century for Iran; it’s a very dangerous and bad deal for peace and the international community." Benjamin Netanyahu

Which country, Iran or Israel, has been a friend to the United States?

Guest Blogger, Janice Shaw Crouse, won’t stand by silently

I know some of my friends are uncomfortable with my "piling on" criticism of our president. But we have to speak out. We cannot stand by silently while our freedoms are trampled, our faith is attacked (even though the president claims to be Christian), and life, marriage and family are being destroyed, and the fiscal well-being of our nation as well as the constitutional foundations of our nation are being decimated.

It is disappointing that the first Black president is not someone we can admire, but the cold, hard facts were evident to me when he was campaigning. President Obama was troubling from the outset: his lack of record, his troubling associations and friends, his lack of experience, his empty rhetoric that could mean whatever anyone wanted it to mean, his deliberate class warfare and racially-charged rhetoric, his barely concealed "spread the wealth around" ideology, his "community organizer" approach to leadership (us against them and pushing victimhood mentality), his sealed records, lack of experience with living in America, his lack of discipline and work ethic in college, his questionable means of getting in the ivy league and travels while supposedly a grad student, and on and on -- so many red flags!!!

Since being in office, the problems have mounted precipitously and the evidence is piling up disastrously that we cannot survive under the policies that President Obama is forcing on the nation -- all the while speaking vague rhetoric and seeming to be above responsibility or accountability for outcomes that our children's children will have to suffer.

Dr. Crouse is the daughter of two Methodist ministers; she’s an author and speaker, and lives in Washington, DC. She is Senior Fellow at the Beverly LaHaye Institute, the think tank for Concerned Women for America, is a recognized authority on national and international cultural, children’s and women’s concerns, including sex trafficking, the United Nations, and U.S. domestic issues. Her opinion editorials and columns appear in major newspapers across the nation as well as in journals and magazines – including the Washington Post and the Washington Times. She appears on all the major television networks –– ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX News, C-SPAN, MSNBC, and CNN.  If you follow this blog, you know this is extremely close to my own concerns about our President. This opinion appeared on her FaceBook page, and she gave me permission to share.

http://www.janiceshawcrouse.com/