The end of a year

I am back. Let this final post of....whatever the year is on the Hebrew calendar be done in Italics. It is classing this shit up. How y'all doing out there in reader land? I am peachy keen.

I could go into the deaths of Patrick Swayze or Henry Gibson, but will not. Enjoyed their work, sometimes, they are dead. Pretty much end of story.

Jimmy Carter is coming off like a jerk. He was a shitty, weak president. He seemed to be able to garner greater respect as an ex-president and then he opens his mouth again. I am sure there may be many in the US that does not like the notion of a black president (fuck 'em, so what) and I still think that Joe Wilson's "You lie!" outburst, though rather childish, was not racially motivated. It was motivated by politics and disagreement for disagreements sake. There really is little actual debate going on there, or here for that matter, about health care.

I do like many Republicans citing Canada's health care problems as a reason to avoid a government pay/administered health care system. Let us look at those who use Canada as an example of poor health care. Let's look at the facts in the US, more money is spent per capita on health care, 40 million Americans are uninsured and have little to no access to medical care, and the mortality rate in the US is higher than in Canada.

Where is the bang for the buck there? How is it superior to Canada? Yes, innovation is greater there. Is there greater efficacy in the new, innovative treatments? Only time will bear that out, but given the mortality rate, which could be skewed by the untimely deaths of the uninsured. So the statements and assertions of Republican congressmen are somewhat assinine.

I won't get into their ignorance of all things that are not American, hell their ignorance of all this American, too. Sound bites are great but uninformative. Partisanship is great but does not help the debate and construction of where America wants to go and be in the future. It is much ado about nothing. A show of partisanship that tries to maintain a status quo that cannot be contained. You cannot stop change.

That is not to say that I am all for the Democrats solution. It is that they have put forth a proposal, at least, that challenges the status quo. Where are the Republicans on that one?

Further, the Democrats are not innocent in this game of misinformation. The Republicans are trying to play on the fears of Americans (Death squads, get fucking real!!) and Democrats have not been honest either as they underplay the costs, cost savings and their love of bloated administrative costs. Where it lands, I do not know.

Well, Shana Tova to those celebrating Rosh Hashanah and a great weekend to one and all. Ciao!