Tragic Shootings in Connecticut
Every time I see a school shooting my heart bleeds but none
more so than Friday. For someone to kill 6 year olds is a different kind of
deranged and evil. We will never understand the mind of such a person but can
only be thankful that he took his own life so we did not have to struggle
through the legal and mental health system to get justice. My heart bleeds for the surviving families and for the community that has been forever scared by this tragedy. The only solice that we can derive is that these wonderful children and heroic school staff will be with God forever.
I am pleased at the Presidents response and it was
comforting to see him actually get choked up during the press conference as
some thought he had no heart. I am not sure what he meant when he said that we
as a nation are going to have to take some action to prevent this, regardless
of politics. I suspect that this is his desire for some form of draconian gun
control.
Let me give him and the nation a little real world advice.
In Jamaica, an island democracy, gun violence escalated in the early 1970’s.
Our then Prime Minister Michael Manley in his Oxford socialist thinking thought
if we take all the guns away the violence will go away too. Such an admirable
and misguided philosophy. He implemented the harshest gun control in any free
democracy in the world. He created a “Gun Court” that circumvented normal due
process. In short here is how it worked – all citizens had a period of time to
turn in all their guns and ammunition. These guns were supposed to be
destroyed. After the amnesty period if anyone was found with a gun or
ammunition they would immediately be thrown into a special jail and held
without due process till the “Gun Court” decided to review their case.
Sadly I knew many families that had a loved one thrown in
jail because police found a bullet or shot gun shells in the home even though
the guns had all been turned in. The process was horrible and the citizens were
scared and very dissatisfied. The worst part was that many of the guns turned
into the police were sold to criminals. Further the gun violence in Jamaica
increased as did murder, rape and robbery. A detailed study many years later
showed that this process disarmed the citizens, armed the criminals and shifted
the balance dramatically and beyond the capabilities of the police. A few times
during this process the army was actually called out to protect the citizens.So while we all morn this absolute tragedy in Connecticut let us not over react and think that gun control is the answer. Two things that I know from my Jamaican experience – criminals will always be able to get guns and don’t care what the law is. Second guns don’t kill people – people do. Let’s therefore exert our influence and time to preventing mental problems that cause these deranged events. Let’s protect schools better, train folks how to spot and report people who have signs of these illnesses and let’s pray for the victims’ families during this Holiday Season. God Bless all those who died and their families.
The Fiscal Cliff
We now have 13 days before we go over the “Fiscal Cliff”. As
expected Congress and the President have not been able to reach a compromise
and barring a last minute deal we will drop off the cliff 1/1/13.
Both sides are standing firm and neither wants to give any ground
as their “base” is watching carefully. This is particularly sad since there are
many avenues for compromise that could and should be pursued. I am confused and
shocked that the President is unwilling to accept increased federal revenue
unless it is specifically a tax rate hike on the rich. Why?
The only explanation I have heard is that he wants to send the top 2% earners a
message and he wants the Republicans to take a big political hit. This is
irrational and childish to say the least. The clear majority of the 2% that he
wants to punish are actually registered Democrats not Republicans. As for
beating the Republicans, didn’t he just do that resoundingly in the national
election? It is this partisan crap that makes him a bad leader. He should be
magnanimous in his victory and should reach a compromise if for no other reason
than to show the nation he keeps his campaign promises and that the well being
of the nation comes first.
For the few Democrats that might read this blog this is why
I don’t like him. Not because he is a Democrat or that I am a Republican (which
I am not), but because he is an obnoxious, egotistical person and not a leader.
If you as the leader say you need $1.4 trillion in new Fed revenue over 10
years and the Republican house says they can deliver that and more – why wouldn’t
you accept that? Also we know he is not an idiot and has very bright advisers,
so why aren’t they addressing the spending side of the ledger? A 3rd
grader could tell you that we have a massive spending problem and no matter
what we do with the revenue side we can’t fix this without serious spending
cuts. So why not have a meaningful debate with the republicans about what we
can cut and how we balance the budget and reduce the deficit? The answer is he
does not care about the nation and our economy he only cares about “winning”
and getting his way. Pretty scary when you stop and think about it.
To be fair, as I always try to be, the Republicans too need
to grow up. We have to have increased revenue and not all the spending cuts can
come from non-defense areas. The defense budget has to be on the table too –
after all it is the big kahuna. My advice to republicans, offer him the revenue
increases necessary (but not necessarily tax rate increases), demand a quick
end to the war and agree to decrease defense spending by those savings over
time, propose entitlement cuts over time and force a tax code reform. Tell the
American people the truth and stick to your principals by putting the nation’s
economy first and politics a distant second.
I think Obama is quite comfortable going over the fiscal
cliff because it creates an easier battle to win. He will first blame the
Republicans for us falling over (which will only be partially true – he is at
least equally responsible). He will then campaign for a tax cut for the “middle
class” (or really the voting majority) and gain significant support as those
folks will be hurting. The economy will go into another formal recession and he
will again have the perfect scape goat - the Republicans. (I believe we are
still in a recession although not according to strict economic measurements).
He will pick and choose which spending cuts to alleviate blaming the others on
the Republicans thus not losing any political favor. He will hide many of the
Obamacare evils behind the new fiscal crisis and will ultimately blame any
failings in the program on the Republicans driving us over the fiscal cliff.
This is actually close to the perfect political storm for the President and he
is absolutely shrewd enough to take full advantage of it. God help us all!
Cabinet and Court Appointments
So Ms. Rice has withdrawn without being nominated.
Interesting isn’t it? I am pleased with this outcome as I never thought she was
qualified to do the job of Secretary of State. She is lousy as our UN
ambassador so she certainly was not ready for a bigger role. I know she is a
close pal of the Obama’s and all politicians have their favorites so I don’t
blame the President for trying. Is John Kerry the right guy? I am not sure but
that really does not matter sadly. You see in DC all that matters is can they
get him confirmed by the Senate. The answer is yes. The Republican power
senators like him, he has been in the Senate cult for some time and he does have
some foreign diplomacy experience. I think Obama will accept him as a compromise
but will want other Republican concessions along the way. After all John Kerry
is pretty similar to Mitt Romney – a rich, white, aristocrat with failed
presidential aspirations clearly not an Obama favorite.
The other cabinet posts are not going to be as politically
divisive and for a lame duck President less concerning. What he is looking for are
good messengers that can do as they are told and deliver his message eloquently
and with conviction. He really does not want thinkers as he hates to be
challenged and I believe has a very clear vision of what he wants done in the
next four years. Let’s watch and see if I am right based on who he nominates in
the coming days.
Of greater import is the potential for a Supreme Court
justice or two. If a seat on the Court becomes available during this second
term it will be critical to the Democratic faithful that he gets another
liberal on the bench. Since these are lifetime appointments this more than any
cabinet appointment could shape the future of our country for decades to come.
Since the Court is at best marginally balanced today, the appointment of a
liberal judge or two would swing that balance and allow for some sweeping legal
action that could affect the fiber of our nation for generations. Since many
issues are poised for a run up to the court, these appointments could actually
be a big part of the Obama legacy and he is very aware of that.
The Holidays
As we fast approach Christmas and are at the end of Hanukkah,
I am saddened by the moral decay in our great nation. I am also depressed about
the partisan, social and economic divide that the President has created in our
country. These holidays are time for family, worship and planning for the New
Year. Instead they seem to be more about shopping, anger and hatred.
I am very observant and what I see in our country makes me
sad. Instead of folks having a holiday spirit offering kindness and brotherly
love providing charity for the less fortunate, I see selfish focus, quick
tempers, materialistic motives and fake spirit. Sure there are still those that
get the true meaning of the season and embody all the right values but they a
fast diminishing minority. Actually most of them are faith based and since even
religion is now a separatist issue in our country it is scarred and depleted.
Our Congress is the highest example of this divide that
cripples our nation (the White House is included here as well). Should not our
elected officials be leaders and exemplify the nature of our country? They
should especially at this time of the year, by putting aside partisan goals and
focusing on the good of the nation starting with the President. Instead they
are fighting like school boys and bullies. We see racism is alive and now
expanding to new heights as seen by the recent RGIII scandal. How can a black
sports caster turn on a bright athlete that is fast becoming a success in the
NFL, claiming that he is “a cornball black man”. Is this really where we are? Just because a young black athlete is not a
“player” or “Gangsta” he is ridiculed. He is somehow less because his parents
were highly educated professionals that allowed him to learn and become an intelligent
young man with aspirations perhaps past the NFL? He speaks well, plays hard and
sees a world that maybe past sports so he is now not a “brother”? Is this
really what we are becoming?
I am not a fan of Facebook but right after the election a
young person posted a comedic piece that was a dig at the Democrat party. One
of my sons commented on the string and thus it made its way to my Facebook. The
joke was clearly a reaction to the big Republican loss in the elections and may
have been ill advised had the poster been more socially aware. That said the
string that followed was what alarmed me. In the space of about 12 hours the
string expanded to over 5000 posts. The hatred, anger and political and social
bias were so evident I was literally mortified. I have never in my life seen
such vile anger expressed by individuals with opposing views. After reading
these posts for hours, with tears streaming down my face I quit in disappear
and disgust.
If this is where our young people are we are in trouble. Has
our President created this kind of hatred and anger that divides our nation?
Can we really survive in the coming decades if our future leaders feel this
way? Democrats
and Republicans are political parties they are not who we are as individual
human beings. We are one nation under God not socioeconomic classes
loosely defined by our government nor are we races pitted against one another
or special interest groups fighting for power and money. Where have we gone
wrong in raising our children that we have become this land of division and
contempt? What role has social media played along with palpable biased
mainstream media? What can we do to restore the moral fiber of our nation or
are we doomed to collapse under our greed, partisanism and hatred? Are we just
a modern Roman empire or the pigs that the Muslim world criticizes us of being?
Take the time to explore the social media and experience as
I did the negativity and anger. Then consider how we might fix this – even if it
takes a generation. This is the only time in my life I am glad I am getting old
and will die before all this can play out to its fullest. I pray for my
children and the future of this country that I love so dearly. God Bless us all
during this Holiday Season.
Obamacare
Surprise, surprise – today we learn only 17 states do not want
to implement and manage their own exchanges and one of those Utah just wants to
continue what they already have. So that means that 33 states or 66% do not
want exchanges. Clearly HHS never anticipated this and is now scrambling to
figure out how they will develop, implement and maintain 33 federally run exchanges.
Since they all cannot be “cookie cutter systems” this is going to be a
challenging event for HHS.
So what is going to happen? Will they delay the start date
of 1/1/14? Will they borrow more money from other sources to cover these
mammoth expenses? Will they be able to deliver the features and coverage they
have promised or will they have to “water down” the offerings? Will they look
to farm out some of the work to health insurance and admin companies? No one
knows the answers yet but what I can say with certainty is there will be
changes and lots of adjustments. How will this affect the estimated costs of
Obamacare and will it deliver the coverage it proposed? Again we have to wait
and see but I am pretty confident that it will cause the costs to rise
significantly as my sources tell me HHS only anticipated 6 states to opt out of
the exchanges.
At a higher level it is very telling when a Federal law is
rammed through the Congress, challenged legally in the Supreme court, never
accepted by more than 50% of the citizens, and now has its center piece
rejected by 66% of the states in the union. It seems obvious to me that the
American people do not want this healthcare reform. Sure there are parts of the
law I think we should have implemented years ago but those are mere small
regulatory changes. These state exchanges are huge costly new bureaucracies with
massive price tags that will shift the way insurance is purchased by millions
of people. The taxes, mandates and government oversight will be far reaching
and have a significant impact on the fragile US economy.
So the next 10 months will bring a ton of changes, many
challenges and tremendous costs but real question will be whether it makes our
healthcare system better – cheaper, with higher quality care? Only time will
tell but the early signs are not promising.