The Future of America is at Stake

Yes, I realize how long it has been since I have shared my thoughts with the interwebs. It's hard to believe that it has been SEVEN years. I can stay silent no longer. We are on the cusp of a political crisis of astronomical proportions. Tomorrow all Americans will be asked to make a choice between two very unequal alternatives. The Republican party has made no secret of their plans should regain control of the US Senate. They want to cut Social Security and Medicare, force a nationwide ban on abortion for ANY reason, and end marriage equality. They scream about inflation being at record highs without telling you that corporate profits are also setting records. Coincidence? I think not. That, by the way, is from the so-called “moderate” Republicans. The MAGA wing of the party wants to move straight to full-on Christian Nationalism. You too can become a second-class (dare I say 3/5 of a?) citizen if you are anything other than a Christian white male. An entire generation of Americans went to war to stop this kind of madness. How is it that we are even having this discussion in the America of 2022?

Speaking of veterans, Republicans want to cut their benefits as well. They also voted against capping the price of insulin, price gouging, a ban on military-grade weapons in the hands of civilians, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. 147 Republican members of Congress voted to overturn the results of the 2020 election! The Boston Globe Editorial staff stated the following, “This iteration of the Republican Party — with its open disdain for American elections, allegiance with far-right autocratic movements, and cavalier attitude toward political violence — is one of the most dangerous political movements in the world today. That, of course, does not mean that its members hold the most abhorrent views or that they would establish the most repressive government by any means. But it’s to say that the Republican Party is actively fanning the flames of the global war on democracy, and that will only get worse if it does so while controlling the levers of the most powerful government in the world.”

I believe, without hyperbole, that this is probably the most important mid-term election in this nation's history. There are so many more freedoms that could go away if the Republicans get control of Congress. That's only on a national level. Every state has candidates or ballot initiatives that could set America back decades. Governor's offices and state legislatures are just as much at risk. If you want to protect Americans from the depredations of the Republican party, there is one easy way to do it. Get off your asses and vote! If seniors vote for candidates that support Social Security and Medicare, the LGBTQ+ community votes for candidates that support their right to marry, women vote for candidates that support their right to bodily autonomy, and all the other GOP targets vote for candidates that would rather build than destroy, we can guarantee our rights from this day forward.

If It Was Up To ME...

This is another of those entries that started as a political discussion between family members. My family runs the political gamut from progressives like The Amazing and Talented Cathy and I to staunch conservatives with libertarians and everything else in the mix. My wife's uncle Dave asked several of us a VERY juicy question: "If you were going to be president what would be your 4 goals on your agenda platform?" I just LOVE questions like this!  My first four planks on "The Amused Geek For President" platform are...

1. Flat tax. Everyone in America pays the same percentage of their entire income in income tax. No deductions, except possibly mortgage interest. No mile-long tax forms. No special rates for capital gains, estates or anything else. Nobody's rate changes unless EVERYBODY'S rate changes. There is absolutely NO reason why I should have to pay 30% in taxes while some rich boy only pays 14% (and over-paid, at that!).

2. Secularize government. This country was founded on the ability of every citizen to follow a god or not without interference from government. That appears to have been forgotten. Freedom of religion should also include freedom FROM religion. Any law that favors one set of religious beliefs over another has no business on the books. This is especially true of personal conduct laws. If no one is being harmed, people should be free to do their own thing.

3. National Service. Require every American to perform two years of government service. Military, Americorps, Peace Corps or something tailored for a specific disability. If you don't perform your 2 years, you don't ever qualify for welfare and cannot be hired by the government, even to elected positions. If you want to get extreme, even restrict the right to vote until your 2 years are completed satisfactorily. This has the added benefit of instilling a sense of ownership in this country.

4. Guest Worker Program. While the debate rages about illegal immigration, the jobs that these folks people fill are going undone because they don't pay enough or require harder work than most Americans are willing to do. Allow for some sort of program that will let Mexican citizens cross legally, but as guest workers to pick the produce, bus the tables and so on. Quit criminalizing the same sort of "make a better life" spirit that formed this country in the first place.

These are just a start, but I think they're a good start. What would be on YOUR platform?

The Dragon is Winning

I had occasion to visit my local Emergency Department last night. Everyone is recovering, thanks. While there, I saw a large percentage of the patients treated were there due to conditions that were better suited to an office visit to the family Doctor. Too many of our people are unable to acquire health insurance and are relying on already overloaded Emergency Departments. Part of why President Obama got elected was his willingness to be our knight to fight the dragon that is the American Health Insurance Industry. Unfortunately for us, the Legislative Branch is outfitting our knight with tissue-paper armor and a foam rubber lance.

The news over the last few days has been full of the "compromise" on health care reform. The idea of a true "public option", already mortally wounded, was euthanized for a relative mess of pottage. At least the House passed a bill that had a "sorta kinda" public option and increased competition. The Senate, under the gutless and spineless leadership of Harry Reid, sacrificed American health care reform on the altar of the pimps that are the health insurance companies that have been turning our health care system into a series of exorbitantly priced whores and the American people into the "johns" that are overpaying to be serviced or being forced to do without. The problem is that nobody ever died from not getting laid. People are dying every day from insufficient health care.

Senator Reid has been so preoccupied with placating the conservative members of his own party, the so-called "Blue Dogs", that he has squandered the hard-won mandate of the people. The solution is simple, Senator. You need to grow a set, sit these dipsticks down in your office and explain certain facts to them.

FACT: Most of the American people, according to multiple polls, want a robust public option and the competition that will result.

FACT: The only people that will actually benefit from the current bastard child that is the "compromise" will be the health insurance companies. Not only will people be mandated to buy their overpriced products under penalty of law, but the highest-risk segment of the population (those 55-65 that will eventually be covered by the limited Medicare expansion) will no longer be their responsibility.

FACT: You are now part of the Senate majority. If you want to continue to get your prestigious committee assignments, the nice offices and all the other trappings of being in that majority, you have to do one thing occasionally. That thing is to sit down, shut up and support the party that got you elected when it needs you.

In a perfect world, that would have happened already. Senator Reid's spine, having the consistency of a soggy graham cracker, precludes this scenario. Why is America the only industrialized nation that doesn't guarantee health care to ALL of its' citizens? Until and unless our elected officials start listening to the voters instead of their corporate contributor$ we will never get the government of the people, by the people and for the people that we have been promised for so long. Write, call or e-mail your Senators and Representatives and demand the health care you deserve. Tell 'em The Amused Geek sent ya.

The Lion Sleeps

America lost perhaps its' greatest liberal champion last night. Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy lost his battle with brain cancer. This man, born to wealth and privilege, never ceased to battle for the rights of those less fortunate. Kennedy spent more that 47 years in the U.S. Senate and left his stamp on every major civil rights and anti-poverty legislation presented to that body. He will be missed.

It seems ironic to me that the darkest day of his career may have done more than anything else to extend Senator Kennedy's life. His brothers, John and Robert, came to early ends in possesion or pursuit of the nation's highest office. Ted could have easily become President had it not been for the tragic "Chappaquiddick" incident. He remained in the Senate and probably did more good for the disabled, poor and under-privleged over his long Senatorial career than he ever could have in a four to eight year Presidency.

Your labors are done, old lion. Rest well.

VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! VOTE!

Did I mention you should go out and vote? I have voiced some pretty strong opinions in this blog since I started it, and while I hope you will support Barack Obama and defeat Proposition 8, let your voice be heard, no matter your point of view. Democracy only works when citizens exercise their franchise. So go vote already!!!