Placing the Blame Where it Belongs

There is a lot of frustration in this country right now for various reasons. First of all the economy. Everyone knows without a doubt President Obama inherited a mess. We were heading into a depression, possible bank failures, and the loss of thousands and thousands of jobs. We came within weeks of losing the American Auto Industry. We are impatient, we want things to be fixed overnight. We want our jobs back, we want normalcy and we want change to prevent greed from doing this to us again. Yet it seems little is changing fast enough for our tastes

Then there is Health Care. Thousands are continuing to lose their coverage every day. Those of us that have it are constantly hit with sticker shock as our premiums continue to go up. Then we try to readjust our budgets again and again to cover health expenses that are not covered and that we didn't expect. Yet we grow weary of the seemingly endless debate and are losing hope anything of value will be done.

Then there are the wars. 8 years in Afghanistan, still working to get out of Iraq. We may be getting out of Iraq yet we still hear almost daily of another bombing or troop death. In Afghanistan we are aware of a situation so complicated that its hard to see what can be done.

Then there is the deficit something most of us really don't truly understand yet we try to apply common sense to it and get worried. We know it can't be good, but we want everything solved too, so that costs money.

With all this frustration it is not surprising Obama's poll numbers are showing it. Yet lets look at what is actually happening right before our eyes every day. On one side we have a President that clearly sees and is working to find real solutions to the very real problems that are in his inbox. He is bringing in advisers and the smartest people available to him to work toward solutions.

He put in place a stimulus package that is less then 50% spent. Though we would like instant change, real problems take real solutions that take time. The Health Care Bill is nearing completion. Does it have everything anyone wants? No. Does it have things some don't want, Yes. But this is 40 year battle, it was not going to be easy and it hasn't been. Yet improvement is about to happen. Iraq is coming to an end, no ifs ands or butts. Afghanistan is still a mess that is going to take real effort and real soldiers and real hard work to improve. He is working to do that with thought, with reflection, and with all the information available. He is also doing it with a vision and a plan to bring it to an end.

So what has the other side done. What have they done to improve the economy, what have they done to improve health care, what have they done to solve any problem whatsoever that our Country faces? Nothing. They instead have made political games and sour grapes their purpose. They have clearly no desire to solve our nations problems but instead criticize, obstruct and play partisan games. They are putting their desire for Obama to fail over the needs of their country. They have made health care reform almost impossible, they are fighting to protect the greed of the banks over the needs of a stable economy. They are doing everything from screaming theories about Obama's birth place, to distortions about health care proposals to outright lies.

They scream socialisim and that the government is trying to take over the banks and the auto industry yet remain silent when clearly TARP worked, the banks are paying back the government with a profit even GM says it will pay back its loans by June. Will the Republicans ever give Obama credit for all that has worked? What do you think?

Conservative money and media goes into organizing fake grass roots protests, that are simply racist uniformed dog and pony shows. Based on no facts whatsoever. They protest taxes when taxes are actually at the lowest rate in 70 years, they protest the deficit when its their party that took our nation from surplus to deficit. They shout hate and false attacks daily. This solves America's problems how?

Then there is the left. We had high expectations for Obama. After 8 years of utter frustration finally hope. But were those expectations too high perhaps. But on the other hand are we heading in the right direction? Is Obama broken a single campaign promise? No. Everything he campaigned on he is working toward. There have been no flip flops whatsoever. Yes it is taking longer then we would hope, But again, real problems take real solutions. If they were easy to solve they would have been already.

So where should we place the blame? It's quite clear it belongs in the squarely in the hands of the Republican Party.

Thank God we do have a President of strength and vision that is fighting to actually solve the real problems rather then trying to score short term political points. Because of this, for the first time in a long time, I have hope in a better future for our nation, both in the short and even more so in the long term.

OH 18:Space blocking passage of health care

While the Republicans are spewing lies and distortions with only politics in mind. Democrats are working hard to finally pass the legislation that they have worked now for decades. But who is blocking them in the House Energy and Commerce Committee? Zack Space and the Blue Dog democrats.

There is no excuse for Space to be working against the people of his district who have seen their health care costs and prices sky rocket. There is no excuse for Space to delay Health Care reform that will help the rising number of unemployed in his district. Every day thousands are losing their health insurance and Zack Space has decided to block progress rather then get the legislation done that over 70% of the country clearly supports.

So who is Zack Space working for since its clearly not his constituents. Is it the the large hospital corporations that have taken over health care in the 18th district. Is it the Insurance companies that reported record profits this week?

We are watching you Zack Space, we expect you to be a Democrat not a Republican in blue clothing that only is concerned about the profits of the health corporations.

Health Care Rally in Zanesville Times Recorder

An article appeared in the Zanesville Times Recorder reporting on the Health Care Rally at Zack Space's Zanesville office that took place yesterday. I was quoted in that article. Here is what appeared in the newspaper.

A rally of about 10 people with Progress Ohio formed outside Space's office on Main Street.

One of them was Joe Ritchey Jr. of Zanesville.

"I want Space to know that as a self-employed resident with no health problems, I'm still paying 20 percent of my income for health insurance," Ritchey said. "I know people who are going bankrupt because they get sick and then have to pay hospital bills. There are people who have worked all their lives, did everything right, get sick and end up losing everything. We're having to make decisions on our health based on expense and that's wrong."

Ritchey said he knows Space is hearing a lot of opposition and was at the rally to remind him that his supporters were watching.

"We voted him in, and we're going to be the ones who decide whether to re-elect him or not," Ritchey said.

I was slightly misquoted in two places and I would like to correct them. First I said that 20% of my income was for health care expenses including insurance, not just insurance as reported. Secondly I specifically stated that we helped get Zack Space Elected rather than "We voted him in" as I though a supporter and donor to his campaign I am not a resident of the 18th district.

source: Zanesville Times Recorder "Supporters rally for Space, health-care reform"

OH 18:Citizens to Space, "Fix It Now!"

I attended a rally organized by ProgessOhio and Ohio Citizens for Health at the Office of Congressman Zack Space in Zanesville at lunch hour today. In attendance were citizens of various ages and income levels from several counties within and outside Ohio's 15th district.

To reporters from WHIZ and WOUB television and the Zanesville Times Recorder these citizens expressed their own personal stories for being there. The common thread was that health care is broken, that it must be fixed and we expect Congressman Space to support the House Bill on Health Care Reform.

We along with Mayor Butch Zwelling of Zanesville were invited into the Congressman's office to meet with a member of his staff. A packet of letters in support of Health Care Reform compiled by Progress Ohio were submitted to him and several citizens spoke.

It was made clear by the Citizens that Obama and Space were elected to office by people like those in attendance today to take action on Health Care. Our support for the Congressman was expressed as well as was desire to continue such support for him based on his votes on health care reform.

We were presented with a position paper by the Congressman's staffer that in short expresses a desire for health care reform but also aspects of the current bill that the Congressman seeks to improve.

Improvement is fine Congressman, but blocking action is not acceptable to any of us that were in attendance.

Because of the attendance and media coverage it was clearly a worthwhile effective event to promote health care reform.

Obama's "Substance:" Health Care

Hillary’s current desperate attack on Barack Obama is to criticize the fact he is an inspirational speaker who can articulate his visions in a way we haven’t seen in decades. She implies in these attacks that since he has such ability he therefore must have no substance behind his words. To use such logic is to discount leaders such as Franklin Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, John and Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.

She is counting on the fact that voters are too lazy to actually look to see that Obama has carefully detailed plans on all the issues he speaks about. Though I will have to admit due to sign up pages and donation pages his web site is sometimes hard to navigate.

Therefore I’ll provide a link below to get directly to the issue pages as well as discuss particular issues in depth right here on this blog.

Since Hillary’s favorite falsehood lately is on the huge differences between their Health Care plans, using words that Ted Kennedy calls “fear mongering on health care”, I will start there.

Both Hillary’s and Obama’s health care plans are very similar. Both use the Congressional Health Care plan as a model. Neither are single payer systems both use reducing costs in various ways as a central proposal. There are two differences in the plans that I see.

One is Hillary uses Romney’s republican assumption that people don’t have health care because they are irresponsible. Therefore her plan mandates coverage. How she would enforce this she avoids to answer but most likely would involve some form of garnishment or holding back tax refunds. The 15 million people she claims would not be covered under Obama’s plan would be adults who choose not to be covered. No one would be unable to obtain coverage under her or Obama’s plan.

Secondly she requires insurance premiums to be based on income. So that those that make say $30,000 a year would pay less then someone that makes $100,000 a year for the same exact coverage. So in a way this is another tax on some to pay for others. Yet she proposes doing this through private insurance companies. Trust me I have no love for many of the methods and tactics of the health insurance companies, but I also recognize that they are indeed businesses who’s reason for existence is to make a profit. Their rates must be based on costs not based on how much someone can pay. No business could survive that way.

The biggest problem with this is, to get any health care plan implemented it has to be passed by congress. I can already hear the cries of socialism if this income based premium structure of Hillary’s is proposed.

The health care reforms this country needs will not be easy to implement. Hillary’s will be impossible to get in place. Obama’s are realistic, workable and solves many of the problems we face in health care. As one radio commentator said, who’s identity I don’t recall, “there is so much hate for Hillary among republicans she will have trouble getting a postmaster general nomination confirmed let alone a health plan.”


Read the full health care plan of Barack Obama: http://www.barackobama.com/issues/healthcare/

For information on other issues:
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/