Lots going on. Some positive, much negative. Each has a
story. Not everyone shares the facts, beliefs or moral of the story. Some examples:
“Obamacare Myth, or
Lie #6,428:
The IRS will put a lien on your
house if you don’t pay the fine for not having health insurance. You could even
go to jail!
FACT: The language of the law
specifically forbids such penalties or punishments. If you choose not to get
health insurance and if you refuse to pay the $95 fine, that amount will simply
be added to the next year’s tax bill (with interest, of course). ~fb.com/ConScare
To that President Obama states:
“I recognize that the Republican
Party has made blocking the Affordable Care Act its signature policy idea.”
Think about that – a policy idea! That’s not policy. That is
obstruction. A non-willingness to concede the program has merit and needs
cooperation to make it work. But then they don’t agree, or say they don’t.
Which is it? How would they fix the problem of inadequate access to medical
care in our nation. Do they really want people to die from lack of medical
treatment? Do they want a large portion of our population to wither away from
ill health? How would that help their philosophy? An impoverished and sick population
does not make for a healthy market for either a talented labor pool or dynamic
buying public. Healthy people make for a healthy nation. And economy. Duh!
Liberal Bill Maher makes a similar point with this
statement:
“This is the question the Right has
to answer. Do you want smaller government with less handouts or do you want a
low minimum wage? Because you cannot have both. If Colonel Sanders isn't going
to pay the lady behind the counter enough to live on, then Uncle Sam has to.
And I for one am getting a little tired of helping highly profitable companies
pay their workers.”
Amen. This is just another ‘infrastructure’ item
corporations assume for themselves.
While we are at it, here’s an anonymous quote found on the
internet the other day:
“No More Lies: jobs are not sent
overseas because America
Jobs are sent overseas so
corporations, banks and stockholders can make huge profits off the backs of
non-unionized, uninsured, desperate people living in third world poverty.”
And then they earn generous tax benefits by making profits
overseas. On top of their preferred tax rates already granted by Congress, or
is that bought from Congress?
Patrick Duval, Governor of Massachusetts had this to say recently:
“I’d like to think that the most
prosperous nation in human history can have both freedom and security. I think
we have reached a point where my personal success is not threatened by a
program to help our parents retire with dignity. Voters are smart enough to see
that taxes are one of the ways we get those things. They are the price we pay
for civilization.”
Taxes are the price of our civilization. I like that idea.
Paying taxes is not always pleasant but it is necessary. If some citizens are
not financially blessed to pay more, than the system ought to help them. They
have more than paid their fair share at other times in their lives. And it is
helpful to remind ourselves that federal income taxes are not the only taxes we
all pay. Sales, excise, license fees and more are all taxes. We pay them on TV
services, phones, gasoline, and much more. The more you consume the more taxes
you pay. For some these amounts accumulate to much more than income taxes. Imagine!
On another note Jon Stewart had this to say about
ideological differences:
“They always throw around this
term ‘the liberal elite”. I keep thinking to myself about the Christian Right,
‘What’s more elitist than believing ONLY YOU will go to heaven?”
Because only they have the right answers? Probably not! But
then they will believe what they will believe! Heaven is a concept with huge
dimension. Surely others will arrive in that realm regardless of their
political beliefs and religious convictions? What about Muslims, Jews, Hindi
and Buddhists? And what does this have to do with government and politics?
Indeed!!
Back to public concerns of common purpose and use. Malala
Yousafzai is the young Afghani girl who was shot in the head by the Taliban in
an assassination attempt. All because she dared to demand her education. For
girls. Something the Taliban does not believe in. But Malala survived the horrible crime and is
traveling the world championing universal education access for all people, boys
and girls, women and men. She says:
“One child, one teacher, one
book, and one pen can change the world. Education is the only solution.
Education first.”
She recognizes the key to her nation pulling itself out of
the morass of poor economics and politics. Education. Helping each person think
for themselves, do for themselves, and in combination, building a society that
is strong enough to build a long term future.
Malala has maturity of thought and purpose. A maturity that
we all should strive to gain.
In all of the above, I am reminded that maturity is a recurrent
need. As PowerPlug! exhorts:
“Maturity comes when you stop making excuses
and start making changes.”
A serious thought to end this blog on today. Maturity.
Making changes, not excuses. When will politicians get that message?
I think when we make them.
November 8, 2013
PS: A shout out to my daughter Elizabeth on her Birthday!!!! We won't mention which one.....
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