THE CONTINUING DRAMA OF OBAMACARE

So now the insurance companies will have another year before they have to cancel existing, what have been identified as “substandard,” health care policies. Isn’t it interesting how all of this coincides with the midterm elections? In other words the Democrats seem to believe they will get away with hiding behind yet another delay in rolling out this disaster called Obamacare.

Democrat Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Shultz has declared that Democrats will be able to run successfully on Obamacare and is encouraging them to do so. I heard a Democrat talking head today saying that all will be forgotten in January 2014 when people who have never before been to a doctor will be able to. This is my hope. I hope the Democrats do run as supporters of Obamacare. I hope they face potential voters bragging about the fact that they voted for this disaster. I hope they try to explain why premiums for their new policies have doubled and tripled. When voters see that their co-pays and deductibles have gone out of sight, I am rather confident that they will want to thank the Democrats for this new opportunity to pay much higher premiums in order to support their fellow man by subsidizing his medical care costs. In short any Democrat who thinks this is going to be a winning issue should probably reconsider. This will be a total disaster for the Democrat party.

All you are hearing in the media is the problems with the roll out web site. I believe that is the least of the problems with Obamacare. The real problem is going to show itself when they get the web site fixed, assuming they ever do, and people start understanding what has happened to them. At that point the messed up web site will seem like a Sunday School picnic. Doctors are bailing out of the system in droves. Hospitals are refusing to accept government insurance patients. People are getting their “sub-standard” health insurance policies cancelled by the millions. The replacement policies are far more expensive with higher co-pays and higher deductibles.

Obama has seen the plight and decided to delay some of aspects of Obamacare for one year. That will take it through mid-term elections and all will be forgotten. At least that is what they hope.

Well I have some bad news for Wasserman-Shultz and the others. What we are seeing is the tip of an iceberg which will doubtless melt all over the Democrat Party. Even the most liberal media outlets, all except MSNBC that is, but never mind, nobody watches that network, are lamenting the ongoing problems and are dreading the ultimate implementation of Obamacare. If you are a Democrat and the New York Times gets after you, you know you have a problem. If you are a Democrat facing re-election in 2014 and you are looking at the polls showing Obama in total freefall, you know you had better look for a different platform.

The drama will continue for a time. This nightmare will end though. It won’t be pretty but end it will. Hopefully we will have learned that our government has limitations, created by our founders, for a reason. And hopefully our government will learn as well.

Ron Scarbro

LET'S TALK RACISM

For the past several years liberals have been screaming that America is a racist country as a way of explaining Obama’s difficulties. Oprah Winfrey, on a recent trip to Great Britain, criticized our country claiming that we just aren’t giving Obama a fair chance because he is black. In other words the liberals, both black and white, are indicting our country as racist because their hero, Barack Obama, is a failure as president. They seem to believe that if we would just accept him and all of his liberal policies, Obamacare for example, everything would be better.

Well I’ve got some news for the liberals of this country. America is not a racist country. For Obama to have been elected, millions of white Americans had to vote for him. After all, the total black population of America is 12%.  If they all voted for any single individual, they couldn’t elect him.  If this were a racist country would millions of white Americans have voted for a black man?

Now let’s get real. Obama’s signature legislation, Obamacare, is a bonafide disaster and it has nothing to do with Obama’s race. Obama himself was ill prepared for the job of president from the outset. No amount of changing the subject is going to fix that. Secondly, Obamacare is a Democrat program, period. It has never garnered a single Republican vote and in fact the Republicans have tried on many occasions to defund it. Unless and until the Democrats get rid of it, it will be a yoke around their necks. If they think for one moment that they can go into the next election as champions of Obamacare and think that will be a winning strategy, I say go for it. The sooner the Democrats are found out the sooner sane politics can return to America.

Obama’s policies and programs are not unpopular because he is black, they are unpopular because they are just bad policies. Obamacare is not unpopular because Obama is black. Obamacare is unpopular because it is bad law. And speaking of Obama’s blackness, as I recall he had a black father and a white mother. So then he is half white and half black. In other words he is as white as he is black. Speaking for myself, I don’t like either half.

Liberals need to understand a few things. Making excuses for Obama’s failed presidency by accusing caucasian people of racism is racism. Liberals blaming one race of people for a failed presidency is the true meaning of racism. Refusing to hold him responsible for his failures is unfair to all minorities who might try to follow in his footsteps in politics.

I understand the liberal’s dilemma. America’s first black president has been, to say the least, a big disappointment. His legacy will be tough for them to get over. His sloppiness and general lack of preparedness for the office will continue to be apparent to all.

I take no pleasure from Obama’s lack of success. After all it is America who will suffer from his time in office. Personally I look forward to the opportunity at some point of electing another black person to this highest office. The people I would consider however would be much better prepared for the job, people like Condoleezza Rice, or Thomas Sowell. In fact there are many black people who would bring America back to her greatness.

Going forward, let’s pledge to leave racism in the past. Let’s judge people by the content of their character, not by the color of their skin.

Ron Scarbro

LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT LARRY

Let me tell you about Larry. I met Larry in 2009 when I was researching a column about WWII veterans. He looked for all the world like the eight-plus decades of life he had experienced. But, there was a twinkle in his eyes. Even though his body bent under the pressure of his years and his toils, he was a man with a mission. I will share with you as he shared with me.

As a youngster Larry served in the Army as a clerk typist. That would be the military’s definition of a stenographer. His assignment was to go to Germany and record the Nuremberg trials of the Nazi killers and thugs which were captured by the allies at the close of WWII. Larry was a witness to history. He sat in the courthouse and looked into the eyes of these monsters as they attempted to explain away their crimes. He listened as they tried to justify their murderous acts. He told me he still sees them in his sleep.

Larry’s mission today is to make certain the world never forgets these monsters and the holocaust they caused. When Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Allied Commander, first saw the death camps and the gas chambers used by the Nazis, he ordered that cameramen and photographers record the scene in detail. He believed that for sure down the road some SOB, his words, will deny that any of this ever happened. Eisenhower wanted to be sure that there was sufficient photographic evidence of the horrors he was witnessing. He was concerned that history might someday try to be re-written. Today we know that there are already morons proclaiming the holocaust was a hoax. It is rarely taught in schools anymore. To some, it is ancient history. How sad.

Larry traveled as his health permitted, spreading the word about the holocaust, the death camps, and the perpetrators of it all. He had prepared a pamphlet with graphic photographs of the camps and of General Eisenhower. I was pleased to have heard and seen his presentation.

I just recently learned that Larry now resides in a senior assisted living facility since his wife of many years died and he doesn’t get to go out so much anymore. I can assure you that he is not wasting his time though. No, he is spending his time teaching and entertaining the other residents of that home with tales of the horrors and of the victories he witnessed. He is begging the residents to never forget and to never let their children forget. Larry still is on his mission.

Larry, you see, is one of the few remaining WWII heroes still among us. He is one of the last of the “Greatest Generation.” He truly witnessed and participated in history and in this season of the celebration of veterans, I hope you will take a moment to remember not only people like Larry, but all of those who have served. I especially hope you will think of those WWII veterans whose sacrifices made our country the free home we love. Everyday their numbers shrink. If you ever get the opportunity to hear the stories from one of these esteemed veterans, I encourage you to do so. Sadly their time with us is growing short.

God bless you Larry and all veterans who have served us so well.

Ron Scarbro

SOMEBODY STILL LYING

If you like your current health insurance policy, you can keep it. Turns out that was a lie. Not a mistake, a lie. If you like the doctor you now have, you can keep him. Again, not a mistake, just another lie. Why would it be necessary for Obama to lie to us in order to get Obamacare on the books? Well I remember a time when I went in to the doctor for a procedure. He told me that it wouldn’t hurt a bit. Well it did. I asked him why he would tell me that it wouldn’t hurt? He said if I told you the truth I would have had to chase you down the hall to do the procedure. That, of course, is why Obama has lied to America. Had he told the truth it would never have gotten off the ground. So, he lied to us. He lied to Congress. Now we are left with the aftermath of his lies.

Insurance companies are canceling existing policies because they do not qualify under the requirements of Obamacare. It now seems even though you might be sixty years old, your health insurance policy must offer birth control protection. It must also include treatment for alcoholism, maternity benefits, and drug rehabilitation. If your policy doesn’t have those coverages, they are deemed to be substandard. In other words, you must buy and pay for coverage you will never use in order that those who might need that coverage will be covered.

And don’t worry about that little statement in the application for Obamacare about your expectation of privacy. Why should you expect privacy anyway? Your government needs all the information they can get on you so they can keep track of your movements and your thoughts. They need to be sure that you don’t say anything your President might not like. Besides everybody knows that whatever you tell your government is secure. They won’t tell anybody, right? Just ask the IRS. As a side note I am aware of a lady whose job it was to enter doctor’s files into a computer. She worked for a private firm who did that sort of thing. One day she ran across an acquaintance who was being treated for a very private condition. She shared that information with me. We thought it was funny but in looking back, that individual’s expectation of privacy was a joke. Just like yours is on a government website.

What we now have is a mess of lies. President Obama has lied. Kathleen Sebelius has lied. There are more whoppers coming out of Washington than from Burger King. Some have said they’re not lying, they just don’t know any better. Okay, which is worse, liars or incompetents?  And if Obamacare is so bad that the authors of it have to lie to make it happen, should it be the law?

Some are saying that Obama and his handlers knew all along that Obamacare wouldn’t work but pursued it anyway in order to bring about a single payer system. I disagree. I don’t think either Obama or his handlers are that smart. To me they are all just clueless stumblebums.

The simple answer is to change the makeup of the lawmakers. Let’s get rid of these career politicians and start with fresh blood. I care less about their political party affiliation and more about their character. And character is what has been missing. We need some adults in Congress. We especially need adults in the White House. What we have now is what we have chosen by our votes. It is obvious to even the most liberal that ours have been bad choices. We desperately need a change.

Ron Scarbro November 6, 2013 

I'M JUST NOT MADE FOR THESE TIMES

In St. Paul, Minnesota there is a radio program called “Garage Logic.” Its host, Joe Soucheray, often says that he believes he just isn’t made for these times. I feel much the same way.

I clearly remember as a youngster hearing the older generation railing against rock music and our style of dancing. They didn’t like the way we dressed and they said they didn’t like our cars. I, of course, dismissed their old fashioned thinking. Well, while I still believe they were just old fashioned, I now have a better understanding of their feelings.

Today I look out on the world around me and I am completely astounded at what we have become. Have I become old fashioned? I see pretty young girls defiling their faces with tattoos, piercings and hideous dress that leaves absolutely nothing to the imagination. I caught a glimpse of Miley Cyrus “twerking”, if that is what you call it, on TV.  It wasn’t dancing folks, it was sex with clothes on and very little clothing at that. She and her father should be ashamed. But, of course, they are not. Babies born without fathers are so common the mothers are now known as baby mama. Young sperm donors disappear when the responsibility of fatherhood appears.

I am amazed by the number of people who believe the government owes them a living. I see young men running around with their pants down below their butts and their caps either on backwards or sideways. They look like what we called in my day dufuses.

And the movies today. What is the deal about vampires and zombies? I understand movies are supposed to be fantasy but what they call movies today is  ridiculous. The last thing on earth I would want to see as entertainment is a film about zombies or vampires starring one of these modern day wussie leading men. There is no John Wayne or Jimmy Stewart. There is no Elizabeth Taylor or Grace Kelly. No thanks, I think I will just stay home. It is more entertaining to watch leaves fall or paint dry.

Also, every time I turn on the TV set I am treated to a preview of the latest video  game for your game show console. They all seem to be blood and guts and robots and space aliens. What I think is funny is that they are rated “M” for mature. Wouldn’t “I” for immature make more sense?

Young people of today never seem to actually have face to face friends. They seem to prefer virtual friends who live only in cyberspace. That relieves them of the personal responsibility of being an actual companion. Their conversations occur online or in “tweets.” That allows them to develop phony selves with unknown personas. It is hard for me to believe the future of such relationships can be anything but disasters.

One answer is simple, the military draft. As youngsters we all knew the draft was there and all able bodied men were going to be called on to serve their country. It wasn’t if, it was only when. That knowledge permeated our thoughts and directed our actions. Today a draft for both men and women would serve both our military needs and also the needs of young, undirected or misdirected people. I know that wouldn’t be popular, but it is one answer.

I suspect many of you who read this are also not made for these times. I suspect you would also like to see us return to a time when life was simpler. The future for today’s kids is going to be rough and I don’t think they are ready for it. With all of the advancements we have made, much of our character has been abandoned. Much of what has made us who we are has disappeared. I think we need to change these times.

Ron Scarbro

WAS THERE A WINNER?

The Congress has voted and the President has signed it. Obamacare goes forward.  The Republicans tried to stop it but failed. They waited until the last possible moment to make the whole scene look dramatic because, let’s face it, deadlines make headlines and in that they were successful. But in the end, they failed to defund the health care act. Now we all are left with the result of that failure.

So, what do we have? We have a website that cost the taxpayers 630-plus million dollars that doesn’t work to enroll us in a program that cannot work. And this is all being run by the same people who run the post office, the IRS, Amtrak, and several thousand other over priced programs that are equally ridiculous and unnecessary. Why should I be worried?

I have heard a lot of talk that this failure by the Republicans is a pronouncement of their doom. What do you think? What if I told you that Obamacare might just have the opposite effect? What if it turns out that Obamacare will be such a disaster that it will be the Democrats who will be the ones to suffer? After all they own it. Obamacare is not a bipartisan law. It has never had any Republican support. Before the next election all of the politicians will have to deal with the after effects of this new fiasco. It will be interesting to see how they deal with it.

Some have counseled us to be patient and wait and see what this new law produces. Okay. I can wait. Some have even said that the left wing has never believed that Obamacare would work which would then cause us to go to a single payer healthcare system similar to Canada’s or Great Britain. Apparently they think that the thousands of new doctors and healthcare workers as well as the new facilities will just suddenly appear. Again, I’ll just wait and see.

I definitely think the medical industry is too expensive. I have written about this before. There is no doubt that something has to be done. Medical costs cannot continue the way they are going. It is unsustainable. I believe medical insurance just subsidizes the ongoing high costs of care. If the insurance disappeared, the costs would necessarily come down. All Obamacare does is add more money, taxpayer money, to an already bloated industry.

I certainly am not smart enough to know what the best answer is but neither, apparently, is the combined population of Washington, DC. When, and I do believe it is when not if, Obamacare fails, what then? When doctors and hospitals refuse patients with “government insurance” where will they go for treatment? When they show up at emergency rooms and there is a two week wait to see a doctor, what then? If anybody thinks this is just magically going to fix itself, they are the ones who will have to re-examine the situation.

The time is at hand for reasonable people of good character and honor and from all walks of life, including the medical industry, to sit down together and resolve what is not a political problem but a people problem. I personally don’t care whether Republicans or Democrats win. I only hope the American people win and the only way they win is if medical care becomes affordable to everyone. It is going to take imagination. It is probably going to take sacrifice. But whatever it takes, a better answer must be found.

Ron Scarbro

THE CONSENT OF THE GOVERNED

Have you ever heard this, “Governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed?” That is, of course, from the Declaration of Independence. What that truly means is that if the governed do not consent, the government has no power.

I thought of this powerful phrase as I witnessed veterans with bolt cutters cutting the chains and locks around monuments and parks in Washington, DC during the “Million Veteran March.” Chains and locks surrounding property owned by all of us. Chains put in place by arrogant bureaucrats who have somehow decided that they are in charge of our government. It’s clear the government doesn’t have the veterans’ consent. These bureaucrats and politicians are employees of the people and the people include, among others, the veterans whose monuments they had chosen to desecrate with their chains and locks, and I do mean desecrate.

Now I recognize that this locking up of our monuments is nothing more than a presidential temper tantrum, but I really don’t care. Obama also serves at the consent of the governed and from the looks of the polls, that consent is rapidly fading. His approval ratings are now lower than President Bush’s lowest numbers. But I digress. I don’t know about you but I have just about had a belly full of childish behavior from politicians. I feel confident that the veterans with the bolt cutters feel much  the same way. The Founders would be rolling over in their graves if they could see what we have become.

Politicians of both parties have come to the decision that allegiance to their party is more important than allegiance to their country. In addition we have all watched as the lap dog liberal media has come to the aid of those who would attempt to destroy our way of life.

Well listen up media, politicians, and bureaucrats. We, the people, are fed up. I have seen recent polls and if they prove to be true, all of the elected representatives in Washington will be looking for new jobs after the 2014 election and that includes most of the Senate. Smug politicians who have given up their citizenship to the district that elected them in favor of citizenship to Washington, DC are going to be facing serious challengers for their jobs. They may want to consider looking at what they have caused. They may want to get busy and do those jobs they have been hired to do. Get this government back in business. If the debt ceiling needs to be raised, do it. You have already spent the money, finish the job.

Here we sit with no answer to all the scandals caused by the Obama Administration. The perpetrators of Benghazi are sipping coffee in Libya, the IRS continues to function as a criminal organization, the NSA continues to spy on Americans and our borders are as porous as a sieve and the people we have hired to get the answers are in hiding. Their arrogance will be rewarded in 2014.

Now this  note to any politician who may read these words. You govern by our consent. You are hired by our votes and today your job is less secure than ever.  Carefully consider your upcoming few days. They may be the most important days of your career. The people you regard so lightly, the governed,  may soon withdraw their consent and you may be looking for a real job. Oh, and with the mess you have caused to our economy, good luck with that.

Ron Scarbro