Washington DC - The Capitol at Sunset Posted by Picasa

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It's About Money, Not Compassion

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Why is it always about money? Why can't it be about caring, compassion, and/or need? Why does our society look at the ill and the elderly and say: you're on your own, deal with it? Why are caregivers looked down on and/or avoid as if we had the plague? As if our compassion were somehow contagious and that it would be a bad thing if someone were to catch it? Care facilities charge upwards of $5000 a year (plus add-ons) to care for our loved ones. Loved ones who had been paying maybe a grand total of $500 a month living on their own. When I worked in HR consulting there were care facilities I assisted. I know what they pay their people - let's not kid ourselves many of these places are out to make a profit. Sometimes I think they charge this much so that they can then turn around and bill Medicaid that much in a screw the government kind of way.And the sad thing is the administrators may not even be aware of it having convinced themselves that they are helping people. So ...
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And the Blame Game Continues

And on it goes... In the uproar over the AIG bonuses finger pointing has become an art form. Who knew what and when? Who added what to which bill and why? How dare they (AIG) use bailout money for bonuses (and give some to their partner banks while they were at it)!?!! And yet when the President was out and about this past week traveling hither and yon the folks asking him questions didn't mention AIG, unless they were members of the media. Could it be that the average person is more concerned about the state of their own household "economy" than AIG? Or do we all simply have burn out? I'm thinking it is a bit of both. Heard an interesting story on NPR that cast some of the blame for the mess we're in WAY back to the Commodities Futures Modernization Act of 2000. Hmmm, that wasn't this Administration then was it? Lots of the same people were in Congress then though weren't they? You see, these lovely derivatives (such as credit default swaps) that sent the...
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Here We Go Again... When is Enough Truly Enough?

In February I wrote about gun violence.  It's August. In the last seven days there have been four more mass shootings. Not to mention various outbreaks of gun violence in cities where not enough people were killed/wounded at once to earn the adjective "mass" to the event in question. When will enough truly be... enough? In February the US House passed legislation for background checks ( HB 8 The Bipartisan Background Check Act ). The bill passed 240-190 and had 232 co-sponsors. There are 3 related bills in play. Including the Senate version of HB 8, SR 42.  SR 42 the Background Check Expansion Act has been read twice and placed on the calendar for consideration ... in March. Where it has languished. Mitch McConnell the majority leader has refused to bring the bill to the floor for a vote.  The summary (which is identical to that of HB 8) states that the bill establishes new background check requirements for firearm transfers between private parties (that is u...
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