Who Would Have Thought?
On MSNBC a report on an upcoming study: Teen birth rates highest in most religious states
… Mississippi topped the list for conservative religious beliefs and teen birth rates, according to the study results, which will be detailed in a forthcoming issue of the journal Reproductive Health.
It is an amazing coincidence how many of the states that are at the top of this list are also at the top of my Welfare States post.
Gee, you would have thought that all of the Federally funded “Abstinence Only” education in these states would have been more successful than it apparently was. 😈
September 16, 2009 4 Comments
Of Course You Knew This
Moi at Bloggg is a little annoyed because President Obama has endorsed Arlen Specter in the race to be the Democratic candidate for the Pennsylvania Senate race.
Everyone had to see this coming, given that Obama backed LIEberman in Connecticut. They are his kind of politicians – in it for themselves.
September 16, 2009 Comments Off on Of Course You Knew This
HR-676 v. HR-3200
Physicians for a National Health Program Comparison [PDF]:
| HR-676 Single-Payer | HR 3200 As Written | |
|---|---|---|
| Universal Coverage | Yes. Everyone is covered automatically at birth. | No. More than 20 million remain uninsured and tens of millions remain underinsured. |
| Full Range of Benefits | Yes. Coverage for all medically necessary services. | No. Insurers continue to strip-down policies and increase patients’ co-payments and deductibles. |
| Savings | Yes. Redirect $400 billion in administrative waste to care; no net increase in health spending. | No. Increase health spending more than $1 trillion over 10 years. Add further layers of administrative bloat to our health system through the introduction of a regulator / broker “exchange.” |
| Cost Control / Sustainablity | Yes. Large scale cost controls (negotiated fee schedule with physicians, bulk purchasing of drugs, hospital budgeting, capital planning, etc.) ensure that benefits are sustainable over the long term. | No. Uncontrolled costs ensure that any gains in coverage are quickly erased as government is forced to hike spending or slash benefits. |
| Choice of Doctor and Hospital | Yes. Patients would be allowed free choice of their doctor and hospital. | No. Insurance companies continue to deny and limit care and to maintain restrictive networks. |
| Progressive Financing | Yes. Premiums and out-of-pocket costs are replaced with a progressive income contribution. 95 percent of Americans pay less. | No. Continues the unfair financing of health care whereby costs are disproportionately paid by middle and lower income Americans and those families facing acute or chronic illness. |
Another comparison: HR 676 is about 30 pages in the standard House format, while HR 3200 requires an additional 1,000 pages to accomplish less.
This is a reminder of what we could be discussing instead of Max Baucus’s sellout to the corporate leech cartel.
September 16, 2009 4 Comments
Welfare States
New Mexico , Mississippi, Alaska, Louisiana , West Virginia, North Dakota, Alabama, South Dakota, Kentucky, Virginia, Montana, Hawaii, Maine, Arkansas, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Missouri, Maryland, Tennessee, and Idaho – these twenty states all receive from 20 to 100% more in Federal money than they pay in Federal taxes.
When their members of Congress complain about people not paying their way, or the deficits being too high, these states are the slackers. The blue states are paying for these lazy, shiftless lay-a-beds.
September 16, 2009 4 Comments
Happy Birthday
to Mustang Bobby at Bark Bark Woof Woof who has made it two years past the double nickel.
September 16, 2009 Comments Off on Happy Birthday
Happy Independence Day
Día de la Independencia
Estados Unidos Mexicanos
¡Viva México!
Some background on 16 de Septiembre and El Grito de Dolores.
September 16, 2009 Comments Off on Happy Independence Day
