Hello again
Bensblurb #564 Aug. 6, 2010
HELLO AGAIN
Still waiting around for the start of our promised “Recovery Summer?” You know, the uptick that would result from Obama’s costly “stimulus.” Surely it will arrive before folks go into the voting booth in November. But with July’s unemployment still stuck on 9.5 percent, White House terror is almost palpable.
Meanwhile, here in Virginia we’re happy with another administration trying to make things right. Richmond’s Obamacare law challenge is grounded in the fact that Virginia had the good sense to enact its own legislation permitting our citizens to opt out of any mandatory payments for health care insurance before Obamacare became law . So now the courts must act on his challenge, and may throw out the health care edict before it even takes effect.
As Time magazine recently noted: “Can the government require that citizens buy health insurance? Mandatory insurance is a key element of the health care reforms...Adding healthy people to the insurance pool spreads the cost of policies for people with health problems. Missouri's referendum rejects that mandate by asking voters whether state laws should be amended to forbid penalties for failing to have health insurance.
Missouri, by the way, did vote overwhelmingly for that very thing. Welcome aboard.
WHY NOT CRACK DOWN? I saw a short video feature on my PC that showed Russians on a gunship taking over a pirate boat, tying up its pirates on board, and then blasting the boat and everyone in it to smithereens. Then I read somewhere that those Somali (?) pirates who attacked a U.S. ship a good while ago were getting ready to go on trial here.
That reminds me of friend Walt Kreutzer’s comments on border security in my last piece in our neighborhood’s newsletter.
“[Obama’s] press secretary was asked, since the government is suing Arizona for trying to enforce the federal laws against illegal immigration, will the federal government also sue the cities that refuse to enforce the immigration laws? No response.
“A number of years ago I was assigned to escort a delegation of foreign border police. We went to Arizona, and finished up on the border in San Diego [where] one of the officers...approached me and asked is it all right if the delegation made some recommendations? I said, of course. That is when they pointed out where we should emplace our machine guns...
“Now the Secretary of Homeland Security says we cannot secure our border. With that attitude she is correct. What we need are those foreign border police from far away to bring several companies of their police force to show us how to do it.”
--But we here must be more legitimate, respond our unaccountable civil rights lawyers.
Thus, Gitmo remains open and, surprise:
Frank Wuterich, Marine, is charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, obstruction of justice and dereliction of duty arising out of his role in the November 2005 incident during which Marines killed 24 civilians in Haditha, Iraq. All his buddies have been freed, but not him. On 60 Minutes a year or so ago, he was badgered unmercifully by handsome, oily Scott Pelley. I wanted to smash Pelley’s face in.
BUT WE MUST ENFORCE THE LAW...
“This entrepreneur was a 7-year-old named Julie Murphy. Her business was a lemonade stand at the Last Thursday monthly art fair in Northeast Portland. The government regulation she violated? Failing to get a $120 temporary restaurant license.
Turns out that kids' lemonade stands--those constants of summertime--are supposed to get a permit in Oregon, particularly at big events that happen to be patrolled regularly by county health inspectors.
"I understand the reason behind what they're doing and it's a neighborhood event, and they're trying to generate revenue," said Jon Kawaguchi, environmental health supervisor for the Multnomah County Health Department. "But we still need to put the public's health first." --Oregonian
Yes, I’ve become cynical: As H.L Mencken once remarked, “A cynic is a man who, when he smells flowers, looks around for a coffin.”
--Ben Blankenship
###########
HELLO AGAIN
Still waiting around for the start of our promised “Recovery Summer?” You know, the uptick that would result from Obama’s costly “stimulus.” Surely it will arrive before folks go into the voting booth in November. But with July’s unemployment still stuck on 9.5 percent, White House terror is almost palpable.
Meanwhile, here in Virginia we’re happy with another administration trying to make things right. Richmond’s Obamacare law challenge is grounded in the fact that Virginia had the good sense to enact its own legislation permitting our citizens to opt out of any mandatory payments for health care insurance before Obamacare became law . So now the courts must act on his challenge, and may throw out the health care edict before it even takes effect.
As Time magazine recently noted: “Can the government require that citizens buy health insurance? Mandatory insurance is a key element of the health care reforms...Adding healthy people to the insurance pool spreads the cost of policies for people with health problems. Missouri's referendum rejects that mandate by asking voters whether state laws should be amended to forbid penalties for failing to have health insurance.
Missouri, by the way, did vote overwhelmingly for that very thing. Welcome aboard.
WHY NOT CRACK DOWN? I saw a short video feature on my PC that showed Russians on a gunship taking over a pirate boat, tying up its pirates on board, and then blasting the boat and everyone in it to smithereens. Then I read somewhere that those Somali (?) pirates who attacked a U.S. ship a good while ago were getting ready to go on trial here.
That reminds me of friend Walt Kreutzer’s comments on border security in my last piece in our neighborhood’s newsletter.
“[Obama’s] press secretary was asked, since the government is suing Arizona for trying to enforce the federal laws against illegal immigration, will the federal government also sue the cities that refuse to enforce the immigration laws? No response.
“A number of years ago I was assigned to escort a delegation of foreign border police. We went to Arizona, and finished up on the border in San Diego [where] one of the officers...approached me and asked is it all right if the delegation made some recommendations? I said, of course. That is when they pointed out where we should emplace our machine guns...
“Now the Secretary of Homeland Security says we cannot secure our border. With that attitude she is correct. What we need are those foreign border police from far away to bring several companies of their police force to show us how to do it.”
--But we here must be more legitimate, respond our unaccountable civil rights lawyers.
Thus, Gitmo remains open and, surprise:
Frank Wuterich, Marine, is charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, obstruction of justice and dereliction of duty arising out of his role in the November 2005 incident during which Marines killed 24 civilians in Haditha, Iraq. All his buddies have been freed, but not him. On 60 Minutes a year or so ago, he was badgered unmercifully by handsome, oily Scott Pelley. I wanted to smash Pelley’s face in.
BUT WE MUST ENFORCE THE LAW...
“This entrepreneur was a 7-year-old named Julie Murphy. Her business was a lemonade stand at the Last Thursday monthly art fair in Northeast Portland. The government regulation she violated? Failing to get a $120 temporary restaurant license.
Turns out that kids' lemonade stands--those constants of summertime--are supposed to get a permit in Oregon, particularly at big events that happen to be patrolled regularly by county health inspectors.
"I understand the reason behind what they're doing and it's a neighborhood event, and they're trying to generate revenue," said Jon Kawaguchi, environmental health supervisor for the Multnomah County Health Department. "But we still need to put the public's health first." --Oregonian
Yes, I’ve become cynical: As H.L Mencken once remarked, “A cynic is a man who, when he smells flowers, looks around for a coffin.”
--Ben Blankenship
###########
posted by Ben Blankenship at
3:13 PM
