Decisions Decisions...

I do not envy President Obama right now. There is no way that one year ago, Mr. Obama could have had any idea what he would be facing as he nears the end of his first year. The Senate cannot agree on a healthcare package to put forward, so they have actually introduced two pieces of legislation; both of which are lackluster. The House of Representative has put forth a Healthcare Bill longer than anyone would care to read. He is facing a difficult decision in Afghanistan with regard to the recommendation by General McChyrstal to send additional troops to fight off insurgency. We are facing potential nuclear threats from Iran and North Korea. And most importantly we are still in the midst of an Economic downturn, the likes of which nobody has seen since the Great Depression. To say the least, President Obama has his work cut out for him.
On the healthcare front, there is nothing but complete disappointment. The main bill introduced through the Senate Finance Committee chaired by Sen. Max Baucus lacks “chutzpah.” Sure; the bill reforms the healthcare industry, but how comprehensive is that reform? It definitely stops short of Universal healthcare coverage for all of our citizens. It puts more guidelines in place for the insurance companies; but fails to create a public health option which would effectively force the private industries to compete, resulting in lower premiums for our citizens. Max Baucus’ bill lacks any type of force, but then again, how much force does Baucus want to put on the healthcare industry? Considering, he has taken a substantial chunk of change from them in the past.
The House of Representatives just put out their version of the healthcare bill, which is being touted Speaker Nancy Pelosi. I have suggested many times before that Pelosi step down, and I will suggest the same here again. The House bill is nearly 2000 pages long. Who in the hell has time to sit and read 2000 pages to hold them accountable for what they are doing? I did read through the outline, skimmed the overview, and read a few select sections. The bill offers Scholarship programs for Indians to serve as healthcare professionals in Indian communities. I don’t have a problem with American Indian Tribal Hospitals applying for grants like all of the other hospitals. I do wonder why one racial group gets a particular amount of funds to recruit new healthcare professionals. If we are offering scholarship grants, they should be made available to any ethnic group working through any hospital. Marriage and family counseling is covered, but what definition of “marriage” are we using; or, is this going to be up to the individual States also? The House bill does include a public option; however, there are 4 different benefits packages. There is a Basic Plan, Enhanced Plan, Premium Plan, and Premium-Plus plan. With differing plans, how can you ensure that everyone is getting the same quality of care? This guideline perpetuates the problem of the wealthiest citizen’s being able to get the best healthcare. If you would like to read the bill and have the time to do so, the link is here:
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgibin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=111_cong_bills&docid=f:h3962ih.txt.pdf
Be patient. It takes a few minutes to load; after all, 1990 pages is a lot of information.
This brings me to the war in Afghanistan. General McChrystal wants additional troops. Additional troops means additional potential American casualties, additional spending, and additional resources. We have been through enough with this war. Afghanistan cannot even hold a proper election to decide on a leader; things took a turn for the worse when Abdullah Abdullah, announced he will boycott a run-off election with President Hamid Karzai. The original election was disputed amidst allegations of fraud. We need to stop putting our brave men and women in harms way. Bring our troops back home. People make the argument that we need a presence in Afghanistan to protect ourselves from enemies. We could station our troops on our borders here at home to protect ourselves from terrorists and enemies. We could use the money we are spending in Afghanistan to beef up our security here at home. We could improve our missile defense systems, put money into defense industries here at home, and most importantly save the lives of our dedicated troops who we keep losing every day that this conflict continues.
Here at home, we need to concentrate on growing business, increasing jobs, and boosting consumer confidence that the market is turning around. Our country is in a desperate state. We have too many people out of work, too many families struggling to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads. The stimulus is working too slowly. The government needs to release those funds more rapidly, so we can begin to see more relief in the lives of everyday Americans. Where did all of these “shovel ready” projects go? There are plenty of issues for President Obama to attack, and I am confident that he will make the decisions. I just hope that the decisions are the right ones. Good Luck Mr. President.
As a side note on events here in California: I am sad to learn that Gavin Newsom has withdrawn from the Governor’s race to succeed Gov. Schwarzenegger next year. I had a lot of faith in Mr. Newsom, but wish him and his family the best of luck in San Francisco. I also heard today that there has been a rash of suicides among high school students from a particular school in Palo Alto. I hope the administrators and officials can figure our how to prevent these tragedies soon. Lastly, the perpetrators of the horrendous gang-rape at Richmond High School this past weekend should all be tried as adults and convicted. It is disgusting to think that not only did so many young men actively participate, but there were also many bystanders who did nothing. In my personal opinion, all of the participants in this heinous act should have their balls nailed to a table in house set on fire where they are only given a knife and a choice. After they make that choice, by the way, they should spend years in prison getting raped themselves so they comprehend the magnitude of their actions and the severity of their crime. That is just my personal opinion though.