Thoughts on the US Government/ Culture/ Citizens
I found this old post in my drafts from April 2010. I read it and decided to finally post it. I made a few grammatically adjustments but overall this as it was written 15 months ago and sadly is still very applicable.
FIRST:
I don’t feel that the United States Constitution is being acknowledged by the present US Administration at all. Respect for this document has been lacking in our country by every Administration for at least the last 20 years or so and it just seems to keep getting worse and worse by adding more and more “entitlement” and “socialist”-like programs.
Every Administration has tried to validate their anti-American/ anti-US Constitution bills, laws, and programs by sugar coating them with empty promises or incomplete information that sound really good but seem to be lacking in long-term follow through or foresight.
Personally, I am not interested in paying for everyone elses lack of personal responsibility (i.e. Bailouts, social security, healthcare etc). All of it comes down to personal responsibility. Health care costs are high not because of the insurance companies. They [insurance companies] only exist because the cost of providing health care services became too expensive when people started suing doctors for millions of dollars when accidents happened or the results were not what someone thought they should be.
If we, as a culture, could take personal responsibility for our actions and not try to profit from someone elses mistake (whether honest or negligent) health care costs would be reasonable, social security wouldn’t need to exist, the welfare system wouldn’t be so overloaded with “lifers”, and we wouldn’t be so far in debt (individually, or collectively).
The recent health care reform law does not address these outrageous costs at their root. It is merely smoke and mirrors, shifting the money around so it doesn’t seem like individuals pay as much for individual services out of pocket. But don’t be naive, every single person legally working in America will be paying for healthcare (for all residents of the United States not just legal citizens) one way or another.
SECOND:
Social Security is not a retirement plan nor was it ever intended to be. It was a program put into place after the Great Depression to help Americans get back on their feet and to provide financial assistance to Seniors when they could no longer work. Well, guess what? People are living longer, which is great. (3 cheers for modern medicine and science) However, because of this success, the system [Social Security] has more people withdrawing from it’s coffers at a higher rate than they paid in and not enough people are currently paying in to cover it. (SIDENOTE: I get really sick of hearing people groan about how small their Social Security benefits checks are or how hard it was to qualify to get a disability check. At least you’re getting something. My generation and after will never see a lousy dime of what we have paid in thanks to the poor management of a program that should have been shut down decades ago.)
THIRD:
To be fair I am not against this Administration. I am against the policies that are being passed and proposed on both “sides” of the aisle and because a political party is in power, period. I just don’t think our current (2 party) political system works. I would like to see all party affiliations dropped and for individuals to campaign and vote on their own personal merits and beliefs. [SIDENOTE: they also need to stop trying to tell me why I shouldn’t vote for their opponent. I dont care about the “bad” things you’re saying they have done, I want to know why I should vote for you instead]
For the record, I no longer consider myself part of any political party because they have managed to disappoint and they fail to realize what has made this country great.
For what it’s worth … That’s my $.02 [so what does that come considering inflation and the current value of the dollar?]
Scott D Irwin's Blog 