Almost Out Of The Woods - Cancer Update

The past four months of chemotherapy has been difficult for me. However, I have made it out of harms way, thus far. It started out as a Stage 2/3 diagnosis of cancer in one breast, and a subsequent discovery of something of interest in the other breast, with a prognosis of worst case scenario of a double mastectomy. The tumor has shrunk such that all outward presentations (i.e., dimpled breast, inverted nipple and a lump) disappeared! The activity in the other breast is a ten year period from doing any harm. So, I will have basically outpatient surgery at Cedars, by Dr. Kristie Funk, early December, to go into the breasts under the nipple, take out the two small masses and remove a couple of lymph nodes, no drastic reconstruction required, fast recovery anticipated. I cannot be any more ecstatic. 

I hope to get back to blogging at the start of the new year.

Taking Time Off

As some of my readers already know, I am battling breast cancer. 

My treatment plan is four months of chemotherapy, surgery to remove either one or both breasts (not determined at this time), followed up by radiation therapy, and then breast reconstruction approximately six months later.

Part of beating cancer is having a positive outlook.  I found that blogging interfered with having that positive outlook because I need to get into an angry space to blog about things that are unjust, unfair, wrong, etc.  I never thought about that "space" or frame of mind before because my outlook on life has always been rather uplifting and cheery (yeah, despite my suicide attempt ...).  Now I find that having to stress over the way things are in today's world brings me to a place that interferes with my ability to stay extremely positive about things.

I don't like not blogging especially since so many things are going on right now.  But I have to consider what my chances are for a future, and blogging about politics right now, for me, is not in the cards.

I hope that by the time I have had surgery the worst is over with the cancer, and I can get back to the bar and grill and do what you all love me for the best ... blog!

You can follow my cancer path on Facebook.

Planned Parenthood's Donations Up Since Susan G. Komen (think "pink") Organization's Decision To Defund PP

UPDATE: 2/7/12:

Karen Handel resigns from Komen for the Cure:

Karen Handel, the former GOP candidate for governor, just announced her resignation as a senior vice president for public policy of Susan G. Komen for the Cure – one week after the breast cancer charity reversed itself on a decision to sever financial ties with Planned Parenthood.

Read her letter of resignation here. The bitch is so full of herself, and you can tell. This story just keeps getting better and better. Not quite full blow red in the face yet, but enough pink to see it coming!

-------------------------------------------------------
UPDATE: 2/3/12

Did SGK just blink? (H/T to Crooks and Liars)

We want to apologize to the American public for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women's lives.

The events of this week have been deeply unsettling for our supporters, partners and friends and all of us at Susan G. Komen. We have been distressed at the presumption that the changes made to our funding criteria were done for political reasons or to specifically penalize Planned Parenthood. They were not.

Our original desire was to fulfill our fiduciary duty to our donors by not funding grant applications made by organizations under investigation. We will amend the criteria to make clear that disqualifying investigations must be criminal and conclusive in nature and not political. That is what is right and fair.

Our only goal for our granting process is to support women and families in the fight against breast cancer. Amending our criteria will ensure that politics has no place in our grant process. We will continue to fund existing grants, including those of Planned Parenthood, and preserve their eligibility to apply for future grants, while maintaining the ability of our affiliates to make funding decisions that meet the needs of their communities.

Well, according to that statement (and a post at AMERICAblog), SGK isn't really backing down, because the grants already approved for PP will still go through, despite their decision not to give any MORE grants. And the statement above does not change that. SGK is STILL reserving the right not to approve any future grants.

So, we have SGK first saying they will no longer fund PP because it is under "investigation." Then last night on their website, they claim it wasn't because they were under investigation, but because PP uses what is termed "pass through" grants, i.e., allegedly PP does not do direct mammograms, but "refers" them out (not sure if that is entirely true of the all of PP locations). And now, today, they change the story again and say that they have revised their internal rules so that any refusal based on any investigations will have to be a "criminal" and credible investigation.

Keep stepping in the doo doo. The smell is going to take a long time to go away, and those pink ribbons are not looking so hot right now.

----------------------------------------------

Unbelievable! All the press action today over the Susan G. Komen's organization's decision to defund Planned Parenthood!

First, in case you do not know what the SGK Organization is famous for, think "pink," as in breast cancer awareness PINK. Didn't we just have to go through a month of watching NFL players wear pink shoes, gloves and towels, etc. in support of SKG? And what about the "Race For The Cure" that SGK sponsor's annually? Guess you won't see too many liberals, dems and independents supporting SGK, wear pink ribbons, eat Yoplait yogurt, or sign up and/or donate to the Race.

And now that there are serious concerns as to whether the Race for the Cure and its founder are simply an arm of the anti-abortion wing of the Republican party, it's hard to imagine any Democrats or Independents wanting to be a part of that fundraiser any more - unless of course it's to protest it.

Let this be a case study in how to destroy an amazing brand in just 24 hours.

On the upside, Planned Parenthood received upwards of $400,000 today since the news of SGK's decision to defund breast cancer screenings.

This is all to say that perhaps the Planned Parenthood decision isn't all that big of a surprise, given the politics of people involved with Komen. The flap might end up benefiting Planned Parenthood in the end, however. The group has raised more than $400,000 since the news broke, a spokesman said Wednesday afternoon.

UPDATE:

It appears that a couple of SGK statewide affiliates are breaking ranks with the main SGK organization and will continue to support Planned Parenthood.

While the national Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation announced its organization will no longer partner with Planned Parenthood, the group’s local affiliate in Denver is breaking from the rest of the Komen organization. The Denver affiliate announced today that the national organization granted it an exception to continue funding Planned Parenthood.

[snip]

The Connecticut affiliate withdrew its support for the national Susan G. Komen organization, and the group wrote on its Facebook page that it enjoys a great partnership with Planned Parenthood of Southern New England. “We understand, and share, in the frustration around this situation,” the group wrote.

Andy Harris Demands To Know Where His Obamacare Is!

Oh, now I get it! Health care managed by the federal government is a good thing, but only for those lucky enough to be in the government!

A conservative Maryland physician elected to Congress on an anti-Obamacare platform surprised fellow freshmen at a Monday orientation session by demanding to know why his government-subsidized health care plan takes a month to kick in.

Republican Andy Harris, an anesthesiologist who defeated freshman Democrat Frank Kratovil on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, reacted incredulously when informed that federal law mandated that his government-subsidized health care policy would take effect on Feb. 1 – 28 days after his Jan. 3rd swearing-in.

[snip]

“Although he voted against Obamacare, Mr. Kratovil refuses to commit to its repeal. Dr. Harris understands that the Obama-Pelosi-Hoyer agenda threatens to pull the plug on America's long-term health," Harris said in an Oct. 30 statement. "In Washington, I will never vote to raise taxes, I will fight to repeal health-care reform, and I will work to balance the budget."

Oh, boo hoo, crybaby Republican. In my book, what's obviously good for you has to be good for your constituents. Of course, you still stand by your commitment to repeal the health care bill. It's just unAmerican that the rest of the country have access to health care. Why, only the rich and protected classes should have these types of "amenities." They certainly weren't meant for average Americans, right?

Read the rest of the piece at Politico. Obviously, he was against it before he was for it, but after he gets it, he'll be against it.

Banging. Head. On. Keyboard.

Time For Me To Go Organic

Growing up and coming of age in the era of hippies and communes and getting back to nature, was the beginning of a certain way of life that I practiced and espoused for nearly 50 years.

I was exposed at an early age as well to organic foods by my aunt, who would eat at offbeat restaurants with her toddlers in tow (I being five years older than her oldest), which I remember had food that tasted like shit, but we ate it, to doing the weekly grocery shopping every other week at the only organic grocery store in the Valley.

Hell, I even did a three year stint as a total vegetarian (not vegan). To this day, however, I still won't eat brown rice (laughing).

I raised my daughter on organic food, and I was a practitioner of homeopathy, so I was big on cell salts and other important nutrients that our bodies needed. I was around 15 when I was administered my last real antibiotic, and never took them from that age on. I had only one childhood illness, the chicken pox, which both my sister and I got at the same time, and my grandmother, who was a registered nurse, took care of us. When I had my first bout of tonsillitis, I did not see a doctor or take any antibiotics -- my grandmother made me stay in bed for a week, she took a small stick, wrapped cotton around it, stuck it in a bottle of Mercurochrome and swab my throat, and picking any of the little (turn away if you are squeamish) puss balls! Oh, and make me drink lots of hot tea with honey and eat crackers, which kind of scraped my sore throat, but then again, that was the purpose.

Gradually, though, with the kid out of the house and having a kid of her own, and getting older and not really wanting to "cook" so much, I ended up back at the old traditional grocery store (Ralphs) even though they do have a large selection of healthy and organic foods.

The past couple of years under the Bush administration, where corporate overseeing was at its lowest, and more and more foods entered the mainstream that were contaminated, I've begun to re-think my current eating style. With the Gulf oil spill, and the threat of contaminated fish and shell fish, not to mention the egg recall, I am officially embarking on an organic eating regime.

Although I am at odds with the CEO of Whole Foods' position on global warming (he's a denier), and I have officially boycotted that store since day one of this discovery, it is, in many ways, the only place to do a full on grocery shopping for the week. Strolling down the aisles had two impacts on me. One, was a reminder of what I used to see on a regular basis, that is, names and brands that you do not see at traditional grocery stores, and the lack thereof of those traditional brands. Only in today's environment, there are more and more of "green" brands to choose from, than I had as a 30 something, and most assuredly more than were there when I was a teenager.

The second thing I noticed was the price, and boy did I encounter "sticker shock!" My daughter keeps telling me to go to Trader Joe's, but I just don't like the one near me, it's so small and it only has a handful of things that I would actually buy on a regular basis, meaning I would still have to do extra shopping somewhere else. Whole Foods is definitely a one stop grocery store, like a Ralphs, just healthy, organic, and expensive!

However, I got some ground beef (for my home made chili) that certified the cows were grass fed, and the same same with some cubed steak (for my beef stew), as well as some free range organic chicken thighs, with skin and bone (I use these in the crock pot, with baked beans, bbq sauce and an onion). And, yes, I bought organic baked beans and organic bbq sauce, and organic onion! Not to mention a few carrots and a few potatoes for my stew, again all certified as grown by organic standards. I also bought two prepared meals that I could re-heat. I got out of there paying just $45, but I could have bought all of that for one-half the price at Ralphs (although none of it would have been organic or without preservatives or additives or other crap in it). However, I feel better just knowing I'm limiting a lot of things that could be introduced into my system by food. Hell, I was one of those that had those eggs that were tainted, and yes, I actually did get sick, but did not know what the source was until I read about the recall and confirmed my eggs. When I cook eggs, yes, I do undercook them, and for a reason. Scrambled eggs will continue to cook and get "harder" even after you've turned off the heat and moved the eggs to a dish. So I tend to cook my scrambled eggs "wet" as the term is applied. I also like soft-boiled eggs, again, something that is not fully cooked like hard-boiled eggs. I got very bad stomach cramps and a little bit of nausea, but experienced nothing more than that. But, that was the last straw, really, having those salmonella eggs in my house, and having eaten them (I almost made french toast with those eggs for my grandson, but for whatever reason, I never did -- and thank goodness for who knows what would have happened to his little stomach).

So, I'm back on the range again, where the food I am eating I can at least identify where it comes from and what is in it, even if I am paying through the nose for it!

So, Who Actually Buys The Government's Statement That 75% Of The Gulf Spill Is Gone?

I'm really having a difficult time understanding the Obama administration's position with regard to the BP oil spill. At each and every step in what should have been a government controlled investigation, the Obama administration sidestepped the issue and allowed BP to call all the shots.

Now, the government is saying that "all is good," that 75% of the oil has been cleaned up, and in proving that the water is safe, Obama even orchestrated a photo op with his daughter and him in the water off the coast of Florida!

What part of all of the above reminds you of Bush, his "good work, Brownie" comment, and his planned photo op with firemen in NOLA after Katrina?

Yep, all of the above, gosh darn it! No one has been allowed to investigate, tabulate, videotape, explore, examine, view, work at, work with, work for, or even fucking view the spill site unless you either "work" for BP (wherein you signed a document that says you'll be fired if you so much as sigh in the direction of media, and probably contains a lot worse, but I can't say for sure right now, except I would not put it past BP to have a "we'll sue you" clause in it as well), or your are controlled by our corporate government, which of course, means again, you work for BP and not the American people.

Just like the Bush administration refused to let reporters into the really bad areas of NOLA, how they controlled the "reports" of the levees being fixed, and withheld pertinent information about the trailers they tried to herd NOLA residents in (especially those from the Ninth Ward), and basically ignored anyone's opinion about the conditions that didn't work for the inner circle of the Bushies. It was all about "the right party" during that era, and making sure that all the public agencies were staffed by those that bought the party agenda, and regurgitated it verbatim.

Now, with our new and viewer friendly president, whom we expected "change" in how government was going to be run, is pulling the same shit as the Bush administration did! No transparency, no cracking down on the parties responsible, no real investigation, and whooooaaaa nellie, the unbelievable cover-up of the depth of the disaster such that Obama was willing to put his own daughter at risk by actually getting into that seriously infested water. That's a mind blower to me.

Is our president really that beholding to major, non-American corporations, and to the bloody oil money, that he'd put the entire American population at risk just so that BP can "save some money?" This doesn't just impact the gulf area, we are talking about saying it is ok to fish and SELL the fucking fish and EAT the fucking fish (and shellfish) that are in these waters, when they don't even have a test to determine the toxicity of the Corexit used to disperse the oil? They are relying on SMELLING THE FISH? You have got to be kidding me.

You put tainted fish into the open markets across America, and you have no clue the level of contamination contained, and that's ok with you as POTUS? Wow ...

I realize that Obama hasn't lived up to his various promises such as comprehensive health care reform, repealing DADT, rejecting DOMA, closing Gitmo, having an open and transparent government, etc. But to literally put the entire American population at risk by falsely claiming that 75% of the oil has been cleaned up from the Gulf is not about not living up to any promise, but is a clear and deliberate act to expose the American people to real danger at the expense of allowing a corporation to skate through. That's pretty darn bad.

When it is factually provable that Alaska has not fully recovered from the Exxon Valdez oil spill many moons ago, it is not believable that a spill that was so much larger and dangerous by the tenfold than Exxon Valdez, magically in a few months, has just cleaned itself up! This is horse pucky as my grandfather would say. I am just amazed that these statements can come from the Obama administration, and that they don't feel any sense of duty to humanity to double down on the safety factor. No, it's business as usual. Drill some more, it's ok, there's no oil here ...

We should start a campaign to send Obama and his family fish caught from the Gulf waters on a daily basis and see just how much of it he eats, or he allows his family to eat. Any takers? Any guesses as to whether or not he'll actually eat anything caught in those still contaminated waters?

Uh huh. I thought so.

For My Friend, Arno - Guinness Could Be Really Good For You!

The old advertising slogan "Guinness is Good for You" may be true after all, according to researchers.

A pint of the black stuff a day may work as well as a low dose aspirin to prevent heart clots that raise the risk of heart attacks.

[snip]

Guinness was told to stop using the slogan decades ago - and the firm still makes no health claims for the drink.

The Wisconsin team tested the health-giving properties of stout against lager by giving it to dogs who had narrowed arteries similar to those in heart disease.

They found that those given the Guinness had reduced clotting activity in their blood, but not those given lager.

Raising my mug and passing one to Arno! Cheers, baby!

"You Know Nothing Of My Work"

Perhaps it takes someone very familiar with liberal health-care reform ideas to say this, but this is not a liberal bill. Liberals believe access to medical care is a public good that should be provided by the public sector. The sop to that approach was the public option, which isn't even in the final law. That's why every time someone terms this socialism, I fantasize about Karl Marx, or maybe William Beveridge, stepping out Marshall McLuhan-style and saying, "You know nothing of my work!"

I saw this quote first over at Daily Kos, and my instant reaction was "Annie Hall!"

Then I went to the source, and what do you know ... a clip of the "Annie Hall" scene with McLuhan telling some guy in line with Woodie Allen at a movie theater "[Y]ou know nothing of my work!"

Regardless, the article is spot on. The alleged health care reform bill is not liberal by any standard of measure. Without a public option, it drops its purported liberalness by 50% (in my estimation). This bill was, and has been, a bend over, kiss my ass, giveaway to the Republicans and right wingers, and despite all of that ass kissing, the Republicans STILL chose to vote NO as an entire group.

Go figure.

"Kill The Bill"

Over at AMERICAblog, they have a video up produced by New Left Media. These two guys have been attending the various Tea Party rallies since they started, and they are very unassuming and simply interview individuals and ask them questions about why they are there.

The videos are hysterical in their showing of the stupidity of the people participating at these rallies. They talk in sound bites they hear from television. In fact, most claim they don't know what's in the health care bill, they just know what they heard on Fox News, and they don't like what they heard!

One young lady when asked about what she didn't like about the bill said "the part about where they give you the little blue pill and send you on your merry way to die rather than pay for your end of like treatment and the like." (I'm paraphrasing from memory). When she was asked where in the bill there was the reference to the little blue pill, she paused, and deadpanned that she was blonde! Ha ha.

Another woman, informing the interviewer she was 67, said she didn't like the socialization of medicine and the death panels. Again, when asked what specific provision of the bill she was against, admitted that she hadn't read the bill and didn't know where the provision was, but she heard it on Fox News and that was good enough for her.

The point of all these videos is that the Tea Party protesters have absolutely no clue what they are screaming and yelling about. They have been lied to consistently by the men and women over at Fox News, and have been told to go to these rallies to protest the socialization of American health care, and so they do. None of them have read the bill, and as some have said, they don't want to read the bill. If Fox News tells them a provision is going to do this or that, then they believe it without question, and hence, are against any reform.



UPDATE 3/20/10: Digby says essentially the same thing:

The modern conservative movement propaganda holds that government is the problem not the solution. The corollary is that is you have a problem, government must be the cause. You are short of money? It must be because of taxes. People don't have health care? It must be because the government is running it. Crime? Big government. Lack of jobs? Government.

This isn't about issues, it's about a delusional worldview formed by people who listen to a bunch of hucksters who have successfully looted the country while persuading about half the people that the government was doing the looting and giving it in the form of "handouts" to people who didn't deserve it. It's a great scam and a lot of people have made a lot of money promoting it.

It's a shame that these same people are getting screwed six ways to Sunday, but I'm getting less and less sympathetic as I see them throwing dollar bills into the faces of disabled citizens and telling them go somewhere else looking for a handout. These aren't just misguided souls. They are cruel jerks.

All The Republicans Can Say Now About Health Care ... The CBO Report Is A Lie

So, the CBO numbers worked fine for the Republicans when Bush was president (he was never accused of taking them out to the woodshed and beating the pulp out of them), even though their numbers showed the bills being advanced would add to the deficit. Fast forward to the Health Care bill, and the CBO numbers come in and show that it will decrease the deficit, and the Republicans are shitting all over themselves on television saying that the CBO "changed" the numbers because "Obama" took them to the woodshed!

Amazing, simply amazing. We go from a budget surplus when Bush takes over, he passes three major legislative reforms that increases the deficit in the trillions, based on CBO calculations, and everyone votes for it, but Obama has put before congress a health care bill that will fucking decrease the deficit, and the Republicans go apeshit.

Banging. Head. On. Keyboard.

Palin Crosses Border For Canadian Health Care

The vocal opponent of health-care reform in the U.S. steered largely clear of the topic except to reveal a tidbit about her life growing up not far from Whitehorse.

“We used to hustle over the border for health care we received in Canada,” she said. “And I think now, isn't that ironic?”

Interesting that she freeloaded off the Canadian health care system that guarantees free health care for all citizens, except, she wasn't a Canadian citizen. Isn't that the same thing as calling for the American government not to give health care to quote illegal aliens unquote?

Pot calling the kettle black, me thinks.

Of course, never mind the fact that it is completely lost on Palin that she's attacked the Canadian health care system and made ridiculous claims that it should steer away from the "public" option type of providing health care and opt more for the "private" and not so free form of health care.

She has no clue what comes out of her mouth.

UPDATE I-3/9/10: Another obnoxious loudmouth saying stupid things. From Rush Limbaugh:

I’ll just tell you this, if this passes and it’s five years from now and all that stuff gets implemented — I am leaving the country. I’ll go to Costa Rica.

A nice review of Costa Rica's health care by AMERICAblog:

But I did a little research. It's no wonder Rush wants to live in Costa Rica. To say the least, Rush isn't the healthiest specimen around. He's overweight, has addiction issues and heart problems. Costa Rica has an excellent health care system called "Caja." Sure, it's socialized medicine. But, it works for the people of Costa Rica and visitors alike:

It's been more than 65 years since this small country of 4.6 million people introduced a public health care system. Spending $6,000 less per capita than the United States on health today, Costa Rica boasts a longer life expectancy and an infant mortality rate nearly equal to that of the U.S.

With a reputation for high quality and low prices, the country has even fashioned an industry out of health care, attracting hundreds of visitors each year who take advantage of medical tourism.

“What we don't understand is how we are able to work with this,” said Rosa Climent, medical director of the Costa Rican Social Security System, pointing to a chart that shows employers pay 9.25 percent and workers pay 5.50 percent of their salaries into the system, which covers “all our health needs. And how the U.S. pays so much more and doesn't cover its citizens.”

Not only do Costa Ricans have an 86.8 percent coverage rate, but the public health system ser ves residents who live miles from cities.

“How does a small country with a medium investment like ours achieve full cover age for all of its citizens?” asked Climent. “It's a big accomplishment.”

Those Republicans are soooooo funny! No health care reform for America, and if we do just perchance get health care changed for the better, i.e., a public option, then these nutjobs are going to get their health care from socialized countries where it is free! It just makes my head spin, and for the life of me, I do not understand how this floats the boat as far as "reality" is concerned with these people.

An Xray Can Be Interesting

In 2001 I was run over by a car (not hit, run over) and my fibula was broken (is that the right name for the big bone in the leg, it was not the tibia the small one). I ended up having surgery and they put in a titanium rod from my knee to my ankle. The rod was anchored by a screw at the top, but it was not anchored at the bottom.

Lately, it had become really hard for me to walk, and I couldn't figure out why. I started to think that something might be wrong with the rod, maybe the screw came out, whatever. It had gotten so painful that I finally went to a doctor.

As I have written before, I am fortunate in that in the Korean community, my office, me, my boss, and our work, is well known. Therefore, I was set up with a chiropractor who took four xrays of my leg (two of my ankle and two of my knee). He said he was truly surprised that my rod was NOT anchored at the ankle, as I told him it wasn't, but it was the first time since my surgery in 2001 that I had even see what the damn rod looked like!

First off, I thought it would be about the size of a pencil. WRONG. It's about one inch thick, and the screw is just a regular screw! Like the ones we all have in our tool kit. That blew me away!

The diagnosis was that the rod was not a problem, but my age, my weight (yeah, I've gained a few from my dancing days -- although the doc was surprised I could move my leg into the positions for the xray that most of his patients can't LOL) were more of the problem.

The doc charged me ZERO dollars for the two hour visit, xrays and consultation. On the plus side, he did say I was the funniest patient he'd ever had, I was cracking him up the whole time. He's offered to work on my knees, told me not to work out without a brace on my knee, gave me the usual list of things to do that I already know how to do to strengthen my knee, and suggested acupuncture as well.

I left there mentally feeling better, and actually didn't limp home!

So What If A Rich Canadian Comes To The U.S. For Heart Surgery?

Here's an interesting piece I ran across today, about some rich Canadian opting to come to the U.S. to have a special type of surgery on his heart. Of course, those that oppose health care reform in the U.S., and who continue to tout the mantra that "we have the best health care in the world" (lie) have jumped on this story as proof that the Canadians can't offer quality health care, and that is why we should not institute anything here remotely like that. Except for two things. One, the man is filthy rich, and can pretty much bypass the public options of the Canadian health industry, which basically, so can anyone here in the U.S. that is filthy rich. Second, though, is that more and more Americans are going OUT of the U.S. to have surgical procedures done, cheaper, quicker and better.

Williams — a former lawyer and wealthy businessman — is “known as Danny Millions.” To Canadians, Williams’ trip suggests that “if you have money, you can forgo the hassles of public health care and pay for quicker service south of the border,” but it also underscores the high cost of American health care. “Every year, thousands of Americans undergo surgery in other countries” where they can receive the same care “at half the price.” “In 2007, an estimated 750,000 Americans traveled abroad for medical care; this number is anticipated to increase to six million by 2010″ — far outpacing the number of Canadians coming into the United States for medical treatment.

Get that? Anticipated increase to six fucking million who will leave the U.S. and seek medical care elsewhere. That says a lot about the crappy health system we have in the U.S.

Best health care in the world, my ass!

Let The C-Span Cameras Roll

I personally do not think we are getting any real "reform" of health care with the proposals that are coming out of the Senate and the House. First off, the things that Obama promised Americans he would push for, and the reason he and others who ran on similar health care reform plans, are not in the "reform" bills currently put forth by the House and Senate. There is, however, the final discussions that will bring out the final bill, and the current debate is whether or not C-Span cameras should be allowed to film it. I believe it should be filmed. Whenever I watch congress in action through the C-Span cameras, I am completely amazed at what passes for congressional actions. Generally, the seats are empty, and the speakers at talking to practically no one, they say such ridiculous things, most of which are never printed in newspapers or aired over television, and they really do expose the American public of just how dysfunctional our way of democracy has become. So, airing the debate over the finalization of the alleged health care reform will most definitely show Americans just how their elected leaders feel about them. And I am quite sure the American public will be disgusted by what they see, which is why congress and the Obama administration are trying NOT to let the cameras in. If this is supposed to be the signature legislation to come out of the Obama administration, and if the elected representatives that hammer this bill out are to be seen live, as they actually work at their job, America will finally get a glimpse of this dysfunction, and perhaps, a call for a new party will finally start to make sense to them.

John Podesta says it well:

Open government and citizen access to information is a first principle of liberty in a democracy that has to be defended — even when it’s unpopular or deemed unhelpful in the short term. It is my experience that corruption in government begins at the moment when officials in power believe no one is paying attention. The scrutiny of traditional journalists, citizen journalists, and other interested Americans serves as a powerful disinfectant for our legislative process and restores confidence in our participatory democracy.

Critics have argued that the presence of cameras is likely to produce political posturing and grandstanding by politicians. And indeed, with the cameras rolling, Republicans have said health care reform is a bigger threat than terrorism, claimed that seniors would be told to “drop dead,” and even called the President a liar. But I’m glad cameras were there to capture those demeaning comments. They have helped all Americans gain a better understanding of the unwillingness of some on the right to engage in a rational debate.

The presence of cameras has also produced some beneficial outcomes. For instance, C-Span cameras exposed House GOP efforts to silence members of the Democratic Women’s Caucus when they tried to speak on the floor. The cameras also shamed Senate Republicans when they tried to filibuster the debate by forcing the reading of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ single-payer amendment.

Democrats have nothing to fear from an open debate. They are working to expand affordable coverage to 31 million uninsured Americans, lowering premiums, ending the insurance industry’s denial of pre-existing conditions, and ensuring women will no longer be charged much more for the same coverage as men. When the House and Senate meet in the coming weeks to discuss this historic legislation, I would humbly urge them to let the cameras roll. We can handle the truth.

Members of Congress should not forget that they are representing actual Americans who stand to be either benefited or harmed by the choices they make. It’s my view that if the American people are allowed to bear witness to the conference negotiations, the most important health care reform in decades will be stronger for it. And the American public will rightly feel that they helped bring it about.

What Is Wrong With Obama? Still Using Blackwater Ops In The Middle East?????

You know, every day, every week, every month, something new comes out about Obama that makes me wonder if he really is a Democrat. Perhaps, like Bush, he thinks God ordained him to be president. I don't know exactly what to make of it, except that what the man said while running for president, and what he's actually done as president, has damaged the Democratic party in ways that will have serious consequences in the 2010 elections. And I, for one, would hate to see all the work we did as netroots in securing the majorities in the House, Senate, and of course, the White House, evaporate becase Obama has turned out to be spineless.

This piece is just disgusting.

The Obama administration is using mercenaries with the firm formerly known as Blackwater to kidnap and assassinate high value targets in Pakistan, according to a published report.

The program, operated out of the US Joint Special Operations Command, "is so 'compartmentalized' that senior figures within the Obama administration and the US military chain of command may not be aware of its existence," an unnamed source with direct knowledge of the program told The Nation reporter Jeremy Scahill.

War, war, war, war, war, war, war ....

Money down the drain, and lives (Americans and others) lost for absolutely no fucking good reason. I know historically, there have been the "good" wars and the "bad" wars, but honestly, since World War II, what fucking war has come up with any "good" attached to it? And I am speaking globally, not just for Americans.

The world economy is crumbling, despite what "media" tries to tell you. The small amount of the very rich in the world dominate, along with the corporations that control the vast majority of the world.

But, just here in America, it does not bode well that politicians are panning true health care reform (mostly because they are taking money from the insurance and big pharma groups -- not because they really and truly feel that Americans would fall into socialism based on reform). As for the financial industry, Obama has let the foxes run the hen house, and as a result, taxpayers have propped up the richest of the rich in that industry, and have shown absolutely no backbone in curbing the disgusting salaries and bonuses of a handful of people and corporations.

And then there are the wars. For one thing, doesn't anyone in the ruling government today have any knowledge of the ass kicking the middle east did to the British the last century when they tried to control and rule there? Ideologically, western modernism is not going to be implemented in the middle east, and the sooner our government gets this, the better off we will be. But knowing that the Obama Administration is still employing the rogue Blackwater group in Afghanistan and Pakistan is especially galling. Americans are not going to make any progress or difference in Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, India or whatever. I guess the guys (and gals) on the Hill just like masturbating (well, who doesn't, except, of course, the religious right wing ... well, they do, they just won't admit it). WE started two wars without any idea why, and without any real plans for how to run it or finance it. Hell, we might as well just have our government play a game of Risk and let that run our foreign policy ... I'm serious!

At least this story proves the point that money and the fucking health insurance industry aren't the be all and end all in medicine.

Dr. Shetty, who entered the limelight in the early 1990s as Mother Teresa's cardiac surgeon, offers cutting-edge medical care in India at a fraction of what it costs elsewhere in the world. His flagship heart hospital charges $2,000, on average, for open-heart surgery, compared with hospitals in the U.S. that are paid between $20,000 and $100,000, depending on the complexity of the surgery.

The approach has transformed health care in India through a simple premise that works in other industries: economies of scale. By driving huge volumes, even of procedures as sophisticated, delicate and dangerous as heart surgery, Dr. Shetty has managed to drive down the cost of health care in his nation of one billion.

His model offers insights for countries worldwide that are struggling with soaring medical costs, including the U.S. as it debates major health-care overhaul.

"Japanese companies reinvented the process of making cars. That's what we're doing in health care," Dr. Shetty says. "What health care needs is process innovation, not product innovation."

At his flagship, 1,000-bed Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospital, surgeons operate at a capacity virtually unheard of in the U.S., where the average hospital has 160 beds, according to the American Hospital Association.

The future of health care in the United States will be leaving the United States for affordable treatment. The meme that millions come here for expert medical treatment has lost its luster and its truth, as the reality is clear that Americans are leaving the U.S. and seeking affordable medical treatment elsewhere.

The last bastion ... the line drawn in the sand, as it were, has been and is the health care reform bill. As it stands, neither version (House or Senate) offers true reform, and since it appears that whatever actually gets passed will only benefit the insurance industry and big pharma at the expense of Americans, I simply don't see the Democrats keeping the majority they got. Their base will simply not donate any more money to a dying party with no principles, and will stay away from the voting booth. The unfortunate outcome of that will be an open door for the nutjobs to take over government.

God help us when that happens.

Another Pathetic Insurance Denial Story

The United States is the only developed country without a universal, cradle-to-the-grave health care system. In no other developed country would a girl be on “the verge of never hearing again” because a for-profit insurance company decided that its bottom line was more important than keeping a child from going deaf.

Disgusting. Truly, disgusting.

And, for the record, let me say that if any of the thus far floated "reforms" for health care actually see the light of day, I am not holding my breath, but my nose, because, as those that have been following this debacle already know, nothing being presented by the House or the Senate put so much as a dent into "reforming" health care as it currently exists in this country.

One of the truly sad, sad, things about this apparently free country we live in.

H/T to Think Progress.

Where Is Our Humanity?

And speaking of equities:

After watching for hours as the patients moved through the clinic, it was hard to believe that I was in America.

Eighty-three percent of the patients they see are employed, they are not accepting other government help on a large scale, not "welfare queens" as some would like to have us believe. They are tax-paying, good, upstanding citizens who are trying to make it and give their kids a better life just like you and me.

Ninety percent of the patients who came through Saturday's clinic had two or more diagnoses.Eighty-two percent had a life-threatening condition such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or hypertension. They are victims of a system built with corporate profits at its center, which long ago forgot the moral imperative that should drive us to show compassion to our fellow men and women.

Health reform is not about Democrats or Republicans or who can score political points for the next election, it's about people. It's about fairness and justice in a system that knows none. I'd defy even the most hardened capitalist-loving-conservative to do what I did on Saturday and continue to pretend that the system in place right now is working.

H/T to C&L for this piece about Countdown and its experience when visiting a free clinic.

Humanity has lost its way somewhere along the line, and I am hard pressed to figure out how we, as humans, are going to survive. It's a kill or be killed mentality out there, and I am not so sure the kill aspect of humans is not going to wipe out the rest of us.

Markos, 1, Tancredo, Big Fat Zero!

From Daily Kos -- great takedown of Republican lies.

Forget The Dwindling Supply Of Swine Flu Vaccine, If You Are On Wall Street Or Play Professional Sports, You Step To The Front Of The Line

WTF? There is already an uproar over the shortage of H1N1 vaccine, but now those most in need have to take a back seat to Wall Street and professional athletes??????????????

5 Nov 2009 // Washington, D.C. – Today, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) asked Health and Human Service (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to investigate why the Center for Disease Control (CDC) approved the distribution of the H1NI vaccine to Wall Street firms at a time when the vaccine is unavailable to most Americans. Recent news reports indicate 13 companies, including Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase and Time Warner, have been cleared to receive the vaccine.

TORONTO - Ontario health minister Deb Matthews vowed Thursday to investigate whether Toronto’s NBA and NHL players jumped the line for the swine flu shot while other groups are being forced to wait as the province’s supply dwindles.

What is wrong with the world?

We are truly in the time of the rich for the rich, and fuck the rest of the people. This is just too unbelievable. First off, I don't give a rat's ass if anyone on Wall Street comes down with the swine flu. And that goes for any professional athlete. Who the fuck do these people think they are, GOD?

Get in line, you mother fuckers.

Now I don't feel so bad about NOT renewing Center Ice. Screw hockey and the players. Not a dime going to them again, ever. And as for basketball, hey, I never really gave a shit about that sport either.

As for Wall Street, do I look like I am dumb? I never invested, never will, and I did not lose MY shirt when things came crashing down.

Yeah, you all laughed at my mattress for a bank theory ... who's laughing at me now?

H/T to AMERICAblog for this revelation.

Can someone just make these Republicans just shut the fuck up and stop lying to Americans?

I am having a hard time trying to find the Republican adults in congress. When I read things like Orrin Hatch saying that health care reform threatens the two party system (which, by the way, to me, is not a bad idea - not in having a one party system, but in not having any party at all, fuck the platforms and partisan ruling), and Jim Inhofe's decision to have his "gang" just not show up for the hearings on the clean energy bill so nothing can be passed, or Virgina Foxx's statement that health care reform is a greater threat to Americans than terrorism, I just don't get it. What is wrong with these people?

John Boehner puts out a document that quotes FactCheck.org as stating that the health care plan will include massive cuts to medicare benefits to seniors, and when representatives at FactCheck.org call and tell him they never said that and to take it out of his document, he refuses?

And these people actually believe that if they fuck up Americans, that Americans will vote for them in droves in the next election!?!?

I am completely at a loss to understand this new culture of "no," especially when you consider that Republicans of the 80's and 90's actually supported certain things that they now claim are going to push America into either a communist country, a socialist state, a Nazi run government, etc. Of course, the battle among the Republicans as to who can be the nuttiest is taking a toll on true conservative Republicans that actually could spark a decent debate over the future of this country, because the right wing fringe nut jobs are forcing issues that have absolutely no bearing on the needs of this country. They are, in essence, eating their own (think NY's Dede Scozzafava, the Republican who dropped out of the race because of the likes of Limbaugh, Palin, Beck, et al [hmmm, none of these people are really politicians] who want to "purge" the Republican party of its moderates, and stock it with bat shit crazy nut jobs), and they think this will actually get them more votes? Have these people not done the math? They lost by huge numbers in 2006 and 2008, and they believe that by being even nuttier and more obstructionist, that more (not less) people will identify with them?

As a point of irony, I read today that Doug Holtz-Eakin, who was a top McCain presidential adviser during his campaign, will soon lose his insurance! And because he had an operation on one of his kidneys, he falls into that category of "pre-existing conditions" that today's insurance companies are denying coverage for! But, of course, McCain opposes the current health care overhaul because he believes the current private coverage available to Americans is just dandy!

Then, of course, there's Michelle Bachmann with her rallying cry of "don't take away my healthcare," as if overhauling our current system will somehow result in taking health care away from Americans. She's such a twit, it's hardly worth the time it takes to type these words. It's an "overhaul" of the system, you know, that private one that gouges Americans, charges them up the wazoo, denies basic needs and coverages, but it is in no way taking away any one's healthcare, bitch.

Then there is the blatant irony of Republicans saying they oppose health care reform because it will add to the budget deficit, while with a straight face, they add to the budget deficit with war financing! And to add insult to injury, Americans are supposed to finance reform in the Middle East, but Republicans are opposed to Americans financing reform in America.

I don't see how you can be an American citizen and root for people in government whose sole contribution on behalf of their constituents is to refuse to play ball. At some point you have to stop, scratch your head, and say, "what the fuck?"

And the most bizarro part of all of this is the fact that the Republicans have no plans to offer the American people except to keep on saying that the past eight years were fabulous, and nothing went wrong until Obama was elected president! (Of course, there is still that buzz that everything went to hell during the Clinton years [ummm, can you say budget surplus?] while Bush put this country on the right path).

While I am in bitch mode, how about the new trend recently with the insurance companies raising their premiums before 2010, some as high as 32%?

Wages are stagnant (my salary hasn't changed in nearly 20 years), millions are unemployed, many more millions have no insurance, people are homeless and starving in this country, but our Republican lawmakers are putting on a full court press that the Bush years were the best we've had, and changing anything is just simply going to ruin America.

Can someone just make these Republicans just shut the fuck up and stop lying to Americans?

Anyone???????

UPDATE: From the mouth of Gov. Tim Pawlenty, regarding the line drawn in the sand as to who can be a Republican:

Well, you can’t be for card check, you can’t get endorsed by ACORN, you can’t support the stimulus bill, you can’t be for bank bailouts, that would be a starting point, Chuck. But if you’re for all those things, you’re probably not a Republican.

H/T to Think Progress.