In a recent discussion online regarding the viability of Ted Cruz as America’s next president I responded to a person who is a bit more right than me and sees Ted as a good candidate. The discussion went to specifics about the current administration. I thought I might share the ideas here after I cleaned them up some and added a few thoughts and sources. So here is some online rambling about current issues as I see them.

ON THE IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL

[1] OK, the Iran deal. The 150 billion we are GIVING Iran is false. It is not real. the money comes to them through relief of sanctions … the money is basically frozen assets they already have that are overseas … many of these assets are already spent …. so basically by lifting sanctions Iran gets its own money back .. we did NOT GIVE THEM 150 billion

The deal postpones for a decade the beginning of the creation of a nuclear weapon. Let us face facts. A high school kid can design a nuclear weapon with a C average and access to the internet — fissionable material is the real issue. [2] The Obama administration hacked the computers in Iran (Stuxnet) and erased critical information setting their program back years. Now we need this deal to do the same. [3] This time we are doing inspections (no the self inspection thing is not accurate – more right wing hot air) and we are giving them a chance to comply, Yes, their inspectors play a role but they are not the sole inspectors on the site.

Think for a moment, please. If you try to hide something from say, your mom, when she checks your room. You do not want her to find the bong you have secreted away. Mom gives you a heads up saying “Billy! I am coming to look in a month or so.” You can secret the bong away or even remove it from the premises. Mom is none the wiser. Now let us pretend the bong is plutonium, and mom has a Geiger counter. 30 days might not be enough time to get rid of the presence of massive amounts of radioactive bong leftovers. I could be wrong. “Why don’t we all drive to Chernobyl and spend a weekend discussing it my GOP friends?” “What? You say you are uncomfortable going to such a private location to discuss such an important topic?” “Why?” “Is it because you do not want to be riddled with radioactive poisoning? I am sorry, that was silly of me to think radiation disappears in such a short time as like decades.”

In the end. If they {Iran} fail to comply then the GOP get to kill them in the war they seems to want. [4] But after Iraq we need some good PR in this world. We ventured ahead against world opinion there and looked like &*(()) {bad people} in the eyes of the world.

Last, even if we reject the deal and decide to follow the GOP into a war in Iran we do not have troops. [5] Our troops are broken after 7, 8 or more tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and now we propose they head into Iran for the same basic mess which is probably a quick war but a messy occupation. This is not reasonable without a draft and I do not wish to see a draft.

The Iran nuclear deal is not about trusting Iran it is about America’s best interests and America’s best interests seem to me to be resting and replenishing our military and choosing options that do not involve dead people when possible.

THE HEALTH CARE SYSTEM ISSUES (ACA)

If we agree the health care system is {dysfunctional} then among the issues I see is a need for [6] tort reform, make lawsuits valid not frivolous. medical personnel need to carry massive amounts of insurance against lawsuits and that is sad.

[7] Insurance companies own the health care industry. I have worked for blue care network and blue cross blue shield of MI. I know how they fail.  But the bottom line is that for profit insurance cannot be for its customers. The business model contradicts itself. To make money for investors they must turn down patients. This contradiction is built into any and all insurance systems. They are all a scam.

However, if we take away their power and make them non profit entities designed to do what they claim then maybe, just maybe, some of the hypocrisy leaves. Insurance is marketed telling me they will be there to rescue me at my worst disaster. It is why we buy it (there is also a  federal mandate). But insurance is only a part of the larger health care issue.

The cost of medical equipment in this country. The markup on a cat scan machine and other medical toys is unbelievable. The markup on pharmaceuticals and hospital beds and a box of tissues is absurd. And yes, I get it, it is not just the materials needed to make a cat scan machine that are being charged for. It is more than the time it takes to assemble it. It must get approval from various entities and it must go through rigorous research and development and a myriad other hands reach out to get their cut as it passes through a dysfunctional system to the final point of sale. Those costs must be adjusted for. But having said all that in no way lessens the problem. In fact, it points out the problem is deeper than we imagine. It points to regulations and entities with little or no desire to help patients but still have their hands in the process for the purpose of a check.

I get it, we live in a nation that wants to make money. But in this instance, in the case of health care, there seems no real “control this, or do that and it will fix the cost problem” answer. There seem to be a whole sh^&pile of entities that need to take a serious look at how much they need to cover costs and make a profit, then behave accordingly. In short, control those costs. No one says you cant make a profit. Just maybe we would appreciate it if you downsize the yacht a smidgen.

PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS

Pre existing conditions are a whole different mess. OK, we suck. We have a disease before we ask for insurance. Do some of us live a lifestyle, or have some of us lived lifestyles, that pre-dispose us to these conditions whatever they are? Sure, I mean, yes.  

[8] Huckabee said: “It sounds so good, and it’s such a warm message to say we’re not gonna deny anyone from a preexisting condition. Look, I think that sounds terrific, but I want to ask you something from a common sense perspective. Suppose we applied that principle [to] our property insurance. And you can call your insurance agent and say, “I’d like to buy some insurance for my house.” He’d say, “Tell me about your house.” “Well sir, it burned down yesterday, but I’d like to insure it today.” And he’ll say “I’m sorry, but we can’t insure it after it’s already burned.” Well, no preexisting conditions.” Apparently Mike Huckabee thinks humans and houses are a valid comparison.

I didn’t ask to be diabetic, it was a side effect of a surgery I had, but to stay relativity healthy and producing tax revenue for the govt I need meds. I need regular check ups. I, and many others out there, are tied to the medical industry for support  for the rest of our existence. We do not feel good about this. I assure you we would all prefer to be healthy and happy. It is not a desire to get care in a disproportional amount compared to normal humans that drove us to get ill. 

Bluntly, as blunt as I can be anyway, I sat in a Dr’s office one day in my mid thirties. It was 3 months after surgery to repair my wrist. He told me how I was going to die. Not when, or where, but how. He said you have diabetes. Explained what it would do to me as the years passed, even with the best of luck and medical care. I could lose eyesight and feet and legs and my organs would eventually begin to fail one by one. Is that overly dramatic? No, it is not. Get over it because we out here who live with these conditions every day have to. And yes, we are all going to die, and we all have to deal. But you have the luxury of living, or trying to live, a healthy life. Of not dealing with the medicines every day. The medicines may keep me alive but they take a toll. For every swallow and every needle there are consequences. I am a drug addict in that I need these medicines to stay alive. They also slowly kill me. I say this not to whine but to place this in some sort of perspective. 

It seems to me the GOP and members of congress do not care about me or mine. When Huckabee says the garbage he spewed about pre-existing conditions he is telling me I am not worthy of life. He has decided to weed us out of the gene pool. This is an odd stance from an idiot that does not believe in evolution. He does not know of, or believe in a gene pool. How do I know you ask? Because he believes a book that populated an entire planet from the loins of 2 boys. Not from the loins of 2 boys and their wives. Just from the loins of 2 boys while the only other woman on the planet was dear old mom, of the apple defiling moms of east Canterbury, you know them, such a lovely family.

So let us touch on the tie between evolution and pre-existing conditions that Captain Compassion AKA, Mr. Huckabee, has inadvertently raised. In a sense he makes a point without knowing he made a point. It would be just like evolution to raise its mutated little head at a moment like this and here we are. The brutal truth. Let pre-exiting condition effected people die. This essentially takes care of the problem. Takes care of a few problems. Sarah Palin finally gets those wonderful death panels she has been on about as now the insurance industry is truly saying, if you have a pre-existing condition, then die. This will eventually cause fewer and fewer of these flawed genes to make it into the next generation, and those subsequent generations, because fewer and fewer people possessing flawed genes will be alive to have sex and make little babies with flawed genes. This means a hardier race of people.

OH MY! we have stumbled upon another right wing fantasy. Their claim of the Obama administration’s [9] eugenics program. The attempt to build a master race. The flaw in the right’s claim here is that it is the likes of the right here wishing to deny care and, inadvertently, manipulating the gene pool. This in turn will cause a hardier race of humans. This is, by definition, genetic manipulation or eugenics. And it is all done by creationists!! The Irony!! This means I must ask, is their stupidity, their hypocrisy, their inability to recognize reality, is this all a pre-existing condition? And if it is, why would I have to pay for it with my life when they won’t allow insurance companies to pay my bills with just a little money. Money I am willing to pay my premiums for.

Anyway, we know we are a burned house asking for help. We get it folks. But when the answer from Captain Religious Freedom Huckabee is that he is not even sorry for his horrific stance, but rather he states it, waits for the rim shot, and pauses for the crowds adulation, before moving on to other enlightened views from the mouth of his God, then this nation is morally bankrupt. When I am the one speaking from the moral high ground you really need to take a peak at your behavior.

There are reasons for the predicaments we find ourselves in health wise, as a nation. I am not here to place blame in any amount more than it is due but the food we eat, is the food we are sold, is the food that is available. We are told organic is good but organic is expensive. If you partake of welfare and food stamps organic is not an option. Many states now want you to have the bare minimum or food available. Nutrition is not an option. Without proper nutrition we get obese. We get diabetes. We get heart attacks and various organ failures. We end up needing health care and, in case you have forgotten, we can’t afford food, so someone needs to help with the health care. We spiral down the hole after the white rabbit of no more assistance. The GOP president denies all pre-existing conditions coverage. Loses Obamacare. Punishes the poor more by saying no real food for you. You live on generic hot dogs and lard.

Some of you may be smart enough to see where that little rant is headed. If you make poor people on food stamps buy crap food they will get obese and they will have health issues. They will need free health care. They will be denied because of pre-existing conditions. They will die. They will not get to procreate and therefore will not have poor kids with bad nutrition and bad genes. All the unacceptable will be weeded out of the system and only wealthy pretty people will survive. But, wait, now the healthy pretty people will need to pick the poorest and ugliest among them as the next lowest rung to sacrifice to the Gods of profit margin and greed. OH MY, this is never going to end it it? SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE!!!!

 

 SYRIA and ISIS

Syria is a mess that we should think very carefully about before we dip our toes in too deep.  It is a sad truth that maybe Assad needs to stay in power. Sometimes horrible people are leaders in an area of the world because they lead horrible people. I know that sucks. I know I am headed to hell or someplace unpleasant like Detroit, for saying it. But removing Saddam from Iraq did no favors for anyone. We have this idea that we can judge leaders and nations by the standards of America or the west in general. This is unrealistic. 

Yes I am sure there are nice humans there being oppressed. But I am pretty certain there are bad humans waiting in line to do the oppressing if we remove the current oppressor. It boils down to the evil you know may be better than the evil you do not yet know. And regardless of the feelings of the faint of heart among us, there is no way America is capable of repairing the world. Look at America right now. Trump is leading GOP Polls. We have not even repaired our own selves.

When you look at ISIS and Syria you have, put simply, a cluster &*$^ of issues. Isis is a strange little cut out of Iran and Syria. Sure they have people distributed worldwide to some degree. Probably less than they claim and more than we are imagine in our fevered nightmares, but the core is in Syria and Iraq.

[10] Iraq wants no help. they want no foreign army in their country. Syria is in civil war where sides are made up of the government of Assad and the rebels. Russia backs Assad and America backs the rebels (sound familiar?). Iran is involved and attacking ISIS. All current participants to greater and lesser degrees are attacking ISIS. The notion that we can “carpet bomb them until the desert glows” is garbage rhetoric. ISIS lives in and among innocents. If we have, as Americans, grown to a point where we have abandoned even the pretense of the shining city on the hill, and the moral high ground, then I surrender. Have at it GOP, kill them all. If we still stand for something decent in this nation than quit the crap and find a humanistic way. OH, wait, maybe that is the administrations view? How odd. 

GAY MARRIAGE

Marriage Equality. Who cares?

If the law said All people now wishing to be married must marry someone of their own gender regardless of preference, I would fight for the rights of heterosexuals. But the law states something like, people you do not know, with lives not in any way impacting yours, are now allowed to do something you will not be invited to, and will never really have to care about ….. end of law …….. This seems OK to me. Gay is not communicable, it is not a part of your existence unless you allow it to be. Just skip the parade.

THE END

Well that was more elaborate than expected. Thought I would save time using some previous comments to make a post here. But I added sources and cleared up some, not all, but some of the issues with my avoidance of grammar and punctuation and it turned long and very ranty. Thank you for taking the time of you got this far. I hope it makes some sense. And to all a good night.

Sources

[1] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/treasury-iran-150-billion-nuclear-deal_55b8dc41e4b0224d88348e1c

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuxnet

[3] http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/19/politics/iran-nuclear-deal-inspections-parchin/

[4] http://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/04/world/after-the-war-opinion-world-s-view-of-us-sours-after-iraq-war-poll-finds.html

[5] http://www.businessinsider.com/soldier-on-syrian-intervention-we-are-stretched-thin-tired-and-broke-2013-9

[6] http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/could-malpractice-reform-save-the-us-health-care-system/

[7] http://www.forbes.com/sites/peterubel/2014/02/12/is-the-profit-motive-ruining-american-healthcare/

[8] http://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2010/09/17/huckabee-says-no-to-insurance-for-people-with-pre-existing-conditions/

[9] http://spectator.org/articles/61239/obamacare-and-eugenics

[10] http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/12/usa-special-forces-iraq-151201160932529.html