March 9, 2017

GOP Wants CHOICE in health care. It's seductive... but what are the best agruments against "Choice"?

The GOP sells "choice" in health care as if it's "freedom" and no one can dare object to "freedom".. can they?

Of course the GOP sweeps under the carpet all that administrative overhead for all these "choices"

So how should we counter this seductive argument?

This might not be not the best argument... but here goes. States often have a simple gas tax collected at the pump which covers road maintenance... but an alternative is to have privately owned road with toll booths. You're free to pay or find the free roads. This offers plenty of CHOICE... but included in all those tolls is immense overhead... all the salaries/admin costs/profits etc needed to administer a system(s) of private roads.

Sometimes CHOICE is nothing but a needlessly expensive alternative to a simple plan that covers everything.

March 7, 2017

Why isn't HTTPS used when log in or when we post?

I'm rather surprised at this since it means our log-in user names and PWs are not encrypted...

March 7, 2017

Anyone remember Cheney's 1% doctrine?

Anyone remember Cheney's 1% doctrine?

"If there's a 1% chance that Pakistani scientists are helping al-Qaeda build or develop a nuclear weapon, we have to treat it as a certainty in terms of our response."

This also is essentially Trump's view on Muslims from nations with dysfunctional governments.

The difference here is Trump deluded himself there currently is no vetting, the borders were wide open and would-be terrorists were pouring in.

But the warning signs Trump is a Manchurian Candidate, subject to blackmail by a hostile power... or has illegal dealings with criminal regimes is red lining... so I APPROVE if the intelligence community feels some legitimate need to investigate. The stakes are pretty high. The problem with our right wing friends is they place Party over national security.

March 6, 2017

I APPROVE Of Wiretapping Trump!

A Manchurian Candidate or a president vulnerable to blackmail by a hostile nation WOULD BE A SECURITY THREAT to the US.

It would be negligent of the US intelligence agencies if they did NOT try to investigate.

March 5, 2017

Is This A Defense Against Big Pharma Gouging....

There are only a couple places in the Constitution that STATE INTENT... the Second Amendment and the Patent clause...

The Congress shall have Power....

To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;


This means drug patents exist ONLY to the extent they promote science and the useful arts... it's NOT for what the market will bear allowing the public to be gouged.

So can patents be withdrawn if a company then charges outrageous prices for pharmaceuticals? Have patents ever been challenged on these grounds?

March 5, 2017

For The Good Of The Nation: 25th OR BUST!!!

4. Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President
shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.

Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office.

March 5, 2017

URGENT NEED TO REFRAME 2016 ELECTION

This is a repost because Chuck Todd on Meet The Press REFUSED to correct Rubio who claimed the People voted for Trump...

How many times have you seen news reports on the 2016 election that make claims similar to "Trump was elected to be a disruptor", or "Trump was elected by angry white blue collar workers"? Worst, Trump's win is seen by some as a continuation of BREXIT when BREXIT was a vote by real voters, and the EC vote was not. These are both false narratives... yet once out there can take on a life of their own.

Leaving aside that no one group alone ever makes a difference in a normal election any more than the last run in a ballgame wins the game... everything is cumulative, these reports are making the logical error that what the antidemocratic EC did, reflects what real voters did. But those real voters REJECTED Trump by nearly 3 million votes.

The EC has no "motives". The EC is a mindless, antidemocratic, winner take all, voting scheme that has little to do with the REAL motivations REAL voters had. So say otherwise gives false moral legitimacy to the Trump Junta.

I suggest that whenever we come across such reporting we write the news source to complain and correctly reframe the 2016 election.

March 5, 2017

Phone Tapping? The PERFECT distraction and BAIT to drag his base further from reality!

Remember when the Bush Junta accused Clinton staffers of vandalizing the Whitehouse? Man that got the attention off Bush's being installed as president even after being rejected by the People... AND get his base so pissed off at Clinton, they'd be happy to see him go.

I suspect Trump's latest Twitter Tantrum is designed to serve the same purposes... only to get the attention off his Russia troubles. His base will believe anything he says... and the more the MSM uncovers the Russian connection and discredits his latest tweent, he'll use that to drag his base further and further away from reality into his dementia.

March 4, 2017

Did Barry Goldwater Smoke Pot?

A friend of mine went to University of Arizona back in the early 70s. Somehow he met Barry Goldwater and confronted him about pot. Goldwater, as the story goes, said he took a boat out beyond the 3 mile limit to try it. I don't remember what the rest of the story was.

Has anyone ever heard this story?

March 3, 2017

The GOP's Amusing Fixation On Health Care "Choice"

The obvious problem with the GOP's claim about wanting more "choice" in health care is

1: Having numerous options to be under insured or to have access to plans with outrageous deductibles is NOT a choice worth having

and..

2: CHOICE IS EXPENSIVE. It's expensive to administer all those health care plans each with its own pool of cash, different coverage and exclusion rules, different networks, and billing procedures.

Sometimes it's cheaper just to have one plan that covers everything for everyone.

But then the GOP would rather see ALL that money pissed away on needless administration costs, high CEO pay, advertising, profits to shareholders, etc than to see that same money be used to provide real care to the American People.

Of course "choice" is also the only way the GOP can sell a disastrous and inefficient health care model as desirable!