What should be done in Afghanistan

What I would like to see happen is for us to switch to the 'Dutch' or NATO method of protecting communities and cities in the most populated areas. This would impact the most number of people with the least amount of casualties. Earn trust, work with the Afghan people and hopefully attract Taliban members to return home to their safer villages and cities. Also attract NGOs to build schools and help the economy. As the area stabilizes, expand the territory.

Meanwhile, some special forces can be used to pursue key Taliban militants.

Also, I would like the U.S. to allow the organizations that have proposed it to set Afghani people up in the industry of making morphine out of the poppies they grow. This would provide income to Afghans, morphine to poor regions in the world where they can't afford the morphine made by big pharma and it would mean the poppies can't be made into heroin and won't provide income to the Taliban. The attempts to stop them from growing opium have not worked.

Also, if marijuana grows so well there, then they can grow hemp as a cash crop. It makes a better fabric than cotton and doesn't require pesticides or as much water, and since we aren't allowed to grow it here in the U.S., there's less competition on world markets. And interest is growing in the eco-friendly fabric.

Applicable quote

Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds. - Albert Einstein

Healthcare Reform rant #6

I certainly understand why Barnie Frank told that women there was no more point in discussing her ridiculous ideas with her than with a table. She was asking a gay Jew why he was supporting a 'nazi' policy????

Where did this Nazi stuff come from? Do you people know anything at all about the Nazis? Or socialism or the difference between a communist or socialist government? Do you know anything about Europe or the rest of the world? Most of the countries in Europe have some form of socialist system, especially compared to ours where socialism is a dirty, scary word. And guess what? They are very nice places to live, work and prosper.

The population of the European Union is roughly the same as the population in the United States. And the GDP of the European Union is roughly the same as in the United States. Which means it works just fine. It's not oppressive. And it doesn't hold back business or innovation.

Oh, and guess what? Several of those socialist countries are already coming out of the recession that the United States caused.

Healthcare Reform rant #5

In response to someone's question:

The only choice employees have is in the case of big companies that provide options for more than one plan. They get to choose between the plans the employer offers. That's all. And most of us don't have that.

And the employers can change plans for any reason they want, and the changes can include lesser coverage. It can include a plan that uses different doctors which means people do have to change doctors. And you can change jobs which means you change insurance which means you may not have a plan that lets you go to the doctor of your choice.

There's no way to fix that and keep the free market for profit insurance system in which insurance has anything to do with your job. Which is just stupid system. Especially with the way Americans change jobs so often.

Healthcare Reform rant #4

To someone else's comment of: 'the easiest remedy to it would be to just offer the same health care plan that Congress has.'

Or expand some other existing program like medicare and medicaid. Just figure out what the premiums would be and let us pay it if we choose.

However, that is only one part of the needed reform and I think it should be separated out from the rest. Just to avoid all the confusion of the ignorant masses, not to mention reduce the number of things that can be criticized by people wanting to stop anything this administration attempts to do.

Since they agree on most of the rest, they can pass it now.

This is what they should have done with the stimulus package as well. It should have been separate bills, some of which could probably have been executive orders. Like extending unemployment benefits. They could have done that quickly, and taken more time on the others.

Healthcare Reform rant #3

The trouble is, they can't really provide a good solution because that would require too much change. Look at the panic at just the suggestion that there be not for profit option be available for people to choose if they want it.

Healthcare Reform rant #2

Half of the criticisms about the proposals, the real criticisms I mean, not the made up stuff, are perfect reasons why relying on for-profit insurance doesn't make any sense.

There's no profit in insuring people that need it. But people in this country can't comprehend this. Look at all the paranoia and panic over the suggestion that there even be a non-profit option that people could choose.

Anyway, I'm healthy. But I still have to buy insurance because I could be bankrupt should something happen due to the outrageous costs in this country. But insurance is so expensive that I choose a limited plan with high deductible. But it's mostly a waste of money because with the deductible it doesn't help with minor costs and if something serious should happen, it's limited and probably won't amount to much considering the ridiculous costs in this country.

A doctor's visit should be perfectly affordable and insurance should be for catastrophes, and should some catastrophe happen, the insurance should cover you. Not have some annual or lifetime limit. And coverage should not be denied for technicalities.

Our system here really makes no sense at all.

Healthcare Reform rant #1

I decided I should post my healthcare comments here rather than just on other publications and blogs. Here's one:

Joe Wilson yelling out "You lie!" showed me that congress is just as full of ignorance as the rest of the country. This really, really worries me.

Especially considering the point he chose to call a lie. What a moron.

When anyone goes to an emergency room, they can't be denied aid. It's been that way for a couple of decades. And has nothing to do with the reform proposals.

And when they can't or don't pay the outrageous cost of that aid, it gets passed on to all of us in the form of even more outrageous and always increasing costs. Imagine how much better it would be for all of us if those people could instead just go to a doctor where it costs something a lot closer to reasonable.

In addition, counties provide clinics and hospitals for low income people. Paid for with taxes.

In addition, the insurance premiums I, who am never sick, pay subsidizes the people who are sick.

So we are all already paying for the healthcare of others. But mostly in ways that are wasteful, expensive and not really very helpful.

Crazed gunman shootings 2009

Is anyone keeping count? I was earlier in the year when it was about 1 incident per week, but I lost count.

My response to Sen Cornyn who sent me some BS about competition lowering Healthcare costs. Ha!

With all due respect, competition and the free market is what caused our ridiculous healthcare costs. Especially when our lawmakers deliberately pass legislation to increase industry profits at the expense of individuals so we pay more and get less.

And if lawsuit reform in Texas has lowered premiums for providers, it's not evident when it comes time to pay a doctor bill. My last dentist and doctors visit cost roughly 2 days salary for someone making $10 per hour. And many people don't make $10 per hour and couldn't spare that much even if they did.

Healthcare does not need to be free. It needs to be affordable. Insurance should be for major issues. Routine healthcare should be affordable. As it was when I was a child. My family of six never once came anywhere near the deductible on my father's insurance. Because a doctor's visit was easily affordable.

And btw, many people are on waiting lists and denied care now, with your beloved for profit insurance system. As a small business owner, I pay quite a lot of money for a limited policy and it's basically a waste of money. I'm never sick, it rarely covers anything I need done and should some catastrophe befall me, the amount they'd pay out is very limited and would probably only make a dent in my bills.

Healthcare and insurance for profit makes little sense. It also should have absolutely nothing to do with your job.

Fighting theTaliban

Why aren't we using our Special Forces to fight the Taliban? Isn't that what they are for? If not, shouldn't it be considering the kind of 'wars' we've been fighting for decades now?

Dropping bombs on homes and towns doesn't cut it. And it's evil.

Sustainable Food - Why can't supermarkets get it local?

So why can't Sysco, Wal-mart and others responsible for these huge industrial farms and the loss of small, local family farms use the technology they developed to supply the entire country with food shipped thousands of miles, now use it to develop a network of small, local, sustainable growers to supply local stores?

Mass transit and the bailout

So I'm reading an article about Seattle's great new streetcar system and the author comments that the cars were made in the Czech Republic and asks why we don't have any manufacturers here in the U.S.. Michael Moore was right. The auto industry bailout and stimulus package should have included requirements and contracts for them to switch some plants over to mass transit projects.

That would be an investment in our infrastructure, not money down the drain.