Going to the Doctor? Wear your Seatbelt!

Posted on November 26, 2012 by museman

Visiting your doctor to get your annual physical exam “Wellness Check” (that, by the way, is now “free” under ObamaCare)? Be sure to wear your seatbelt if you drive over!

Oh, not because state laws require their use*, or that Isaac Newton’s Laws of Motion (especially number 1 and 3) make it a very good idea in case of an accident. Nope, it’s because now it’s part of your annual “Wellness Check”, according to a recent article in PJ Media:

“I am now mandated by the government to talk to you about your weight, exercise, family life, smoking, sexual abuse(!), and even to ask if you wear seat belts. And I am mandated to record your answers.” – Dr. Peter Weiss, M.D., F.A.C.O.G (bio)

Having read this (and, it isn’t even the most alarming part of the article, which I encourage you to read), I considered commenting on why “preventive” care not only doesn’t work, it doesn’t guarantee “restorative” care, or how ObamaCare inserts Uncle Sam into the patient-doctor relationship, or how ObamaCare may “punish” large segments of the population, or even that patient privacy is now in the hands of the IRS. But, as I’ve already included a link to a well-considered article on each of these points, there’s really no need for me to opine.

Instead, consider the following:

It took about a generation (say, 20 years) to change the population’s collective mindset about seat belt use, speed limits, drunk driving, cigarette smoking, alcohol use, aerosol propellants, littering, saturated fats, Red Dye #2, sodium saccharin, hand washing, and a host of other behaviors I can’t recall of the top of my head. At first, there might have been an article or two in the local media talking about the dangers of each one, which sparks concern among a small portion of the public about that one person/creature/environment/Earth who might have a slight increase in risk of potential total catastrophe. Next, the Federal Government puts out a nationwide awareness campaign to introduce the public to a new way of thinking… followed by the introduction of laws restricting or prohibiting the use or behavior – with a suitable “easing in” period where penalties are waived to make sure everyone understands the consequences of non-compliance. And, finally, the laws are enforced, added to when unintended consequences are found, and expanded when more tax revenues are needed.

Seatbelts? 20 years? Seems to me that under ObamaCare, we’ve now got an infrastructure where the population’s “collective mindset” or behavior on almost anything can be modified at the government’s whim within a few years instead of decades. And, you’ll know when that’s happening, because beginning now your Doctors will ask you: After all, they’re “mandated”!

Thanks for reading!

* in order to receive Federal monies (like this, or this)? But I digress…

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The New “Elexicon”!

Posted on November 24, 2012 by museman

With both the conservative and mainstream press trying to out-report each other with  instances of “voter irregularities” during the recent 2012 Presidential Election, I thought now might be the time for a new lexicon that takes typical and every-growing examples of “voter irregularities” and conveniently expresses each using a single word.

Presenting, the new Election Lexicon… or, as I call it:

The New “Elexicon”
Word State Definition
Bridgeported CT Ballots are photocopied when there aren’t enough.
Cuyahogtied OH Voting machines fail, causing long lines at polls.
Denverted CO Diverting voters to less crowded polling places during periods of heavy voter turnout.
Doralater FL Telling early voters to come back later after they overwhelm a polling location.
Fairfaxified VA Keeping polls open hours after they’re supposed to close.
Hamiltwoed OH Multiple voters cast multiple votes.
Lawrenced MA Passing out absentee ballots and instructing people how to fill it out for your candidate.
Pewaukounted WI Voting machine fails to count a voter’s ballot.
Philadelphiarized PA 100% of the votes in a group of precincts “unexpectedly” go to one candidate
Pueblopposited CO Voting machine switches your vote to the opposite candidate.

Here’s an example of the New Elexicon in use, to show just how convenient it is:

“When our polling place was Cuyahogtied, we Denverted, but began to Bridgeport as soon as we determined Lawrencing was taking place outside. In fact, the waiting line was so long and Pewaukounting so rampant that the Mayor authorized Fairfaxing. Remarkably, almost all of the polling places were Philadelphiarized: We really didn’t even need to Hamiltwo or Pueblopposite! ”

Have you got another word that would be right at home on this list? If so, let me know!

Thanks for reading!

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John to Democrats: “You Own it.”

Posted on November 23, 2012 by museman

I was going to comment on why a 14-year old boy is even out shopping at 2 AM on Black Friday ( “Boy Robbed During Black Friday Shopping At Arundel Mills” (AP) CBS 13 WJZ, Baltimore, November 23, 2012 10:36 AM), when I noticed this comment on the story by a man named “John”. I’ve taken the liberty of cleaning it up a bit, and adding the bullets and links:

Congratulations to the Democrats and Young People!

You now own it and you can’t blame Bush.

President George Bush is out of it now, and there’s not another good man for you to vilify and lie about. In a way I am relieved that another good man will not be blamed when it was impossible to clean up this mess you voted for.

Have a good day. God bless the United States! God is our hope now.

If you agree, be sure to repost this ;-)

Thanks for reading!

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The Union vs. Hostess, Circa 1939

Posted on November 18, 2012 by museman

Upon hearing the news that Hostess Brands, Inc. (home to Hostess Cakes, Wonder Bread, and tasty snacks such as Twinkies®, Ho Hos®, Snoballs®, and Ding-Dongs®) was forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after the BCTGM International Union* refused to accept contract terms, this photograph immediately came to mind:

Wonder Bakery Pavilion, 1939 Worlds Fair, NY
(click to enlarge; see photo credit below)

It’s Continental Baking Company’s “Wonder Bakery Pavilion” at the 1939 Worlds Fair in New York, NY.

The building’s exterior, painted to resemble a Wonder Bread wrapper, included animated bakers in it’s front window. Inside, visitors could experience an actual working bakery producing Wonder Bread and Hostess cakes (and, I suspect, receive free samples or buy products), and then proceed behind the building to view New York city’s only operational wheat farm since 1871.

What struck me is the irony of the photograph: In 1939, the Continental Baking Company was less than ten years old, and wanted to announce their success to the world. And behind it, in the distance just left of the flag poles and looming over Wonder Bakery, was another entity wanting to announce their “success”: A large, stainless steel statue of a Union worker nicknamed “Big Joe”, crowning the nearly-completed pavilion of the Union of Soviet Socialists Republic – the 2nd highest construction (after the United States’ 700 foot-high Trylon), and the highest symbol of State at the fair (higher than the US Flag or the Statue of George Washington).

The USSR Pavillion at the 1939 World's Fair in NY
(click to enlarge)		 "Big Joe", USSR Pavillion, 1939 World's Fair in NY
(click to enlarge)

“Big Joe” represented an imposing, solitary figure of Soviet Socialist power within 1,216-acres of unbridled United States invention, hard work, and free markets.

Seventy-three years later, a Union group of “Joes” (and, “Janes”) have demonstrated the power of Unions by forcing Hostess Brands – the current name of Continental Baking Company – into Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, and with it the loss of 18,000 Union and non-Union jobs.

Sure, I’m betting there was plenty of finger-pointing, name-calling, posturing, stubbornness, and mistakes by both Hostess Management and Union Management, and it’ll continue as Hostess is broken up like a decommissioned ship and fades into nostalgia.

But now those Union workers are going to learn the real – and in this case, fitting – lesson of Socialism: Once the means of production is eliminated, the workers don’t eat. It’s a lesson the Poles, Soviet-bloc countries, and finally the USSR learned decades ago.

(Added irony? The leader of the BCTGM International Union is named “Frank Hurt” – I’m sure hot dogs everywhere are lamenting the impending lack of hot dog buns!)

* that’s the “Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International” Union

Photo Source: “The New York World’s Fair 1939/1940″, by Richard Wurthers and Others, pg. 70, Image 71, Dover Publications, Inc., 1977, ISBN 0-486-23494-0. The image shown has been scanned, cropped, contrast-adjusted, and watermarked, and is used for editorial comment only.

Thanks for reading!

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Why Work? Play “Stash-O-Cash!

Posted on November 14, 2012 by museman

Poster: Play "Stash-O-Cash!", the Obama slot machine!Obama “won“… and now, you can too! In celebration of Barack Hussein Obama’s re-selection as President of the United States, let’s play “Stash-”O”-Cash!”, the Obama slot machine!

If you’ve had your work hours cut, lost your job, been forced into early retirement, or become house-bound because of rising living expenses, why not take a break and watch some “accomplishments” of Obama’s first presidential term fly by as you try to match symbols on the pay line?

Play long enough and you may even see the elusive “Stash-O-Cash Jackpot!” or even the equally-elusive “SUPER ‘Blame Bush’ MEGA-JACKPOT!”. And, don’t worry about getting a free payoff or keeping track of your winnings: The Government will take care of that for you!

(Oh, if you do hit an elusive jackpot, be sure to let me know!)

Updates:

Thanks for reading! (and, have fun!)

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ObamaCare’s Future Foretold? (Part II)

Posted on November 7, 2012 by museman

Awhile back (actually, WordPress® reports “September 13, 2012″), I wrote about how Britain’s National Health System hospitals being on the “brink of collapse” might foretell America’s future under ObamaCare. Now, not only does Great Britain’s healthcare system have overworked doctors (presumably due to a lack of new doctors), but now Britain’s General Medical Council reports that doctor complaints by patients have hit a new record, and also that 98% of 1,394 doctors examined over the last five years were silently suffering from mental health, substance abuse, or alcoholism issues. To top it off, according to Dr. Max Henderson of King’s College London’s Institute of Psychiatry, there’s a possibility of “several thousand more” doctors who may be hiding psychiatric problems out of fear or castigation by colleagues.

(Personally, I’ve never had a doctor who appeared to be drunk, stoned, mentally disturbed, or “burned out”. However, doctors who jumped to a diagnosis after 30 seconds, misdiagnosed, overcharged, or double-billed? That’s another story entirely…but, I digress.)

Now, before we self-medicate by taking a few “medicinal shots“, consider that there are about 237,000 licensed doctors in the UK – so, “several thousand” is only about 3% of the total: Not too big – unless you happen to get one of them, then it’s about 100% of the total.

Let’s see: Nationalized healtcare –> fewer doctors –> overworked doctors –> more patients complaining about their doctors –> doctors burning out –> doctors having mental, drug, or alcohol problems. Hmmm… that would never happen now that America has ObamaCare, right? And even if it did, it’s probably only going to be about 3%… right?

Thanks for reading!

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