Discussing politics and religion

[zannej]

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Floorist, my state has already been affected by Medicaid cuts. They booted my brother off Medicaid already. Sent him 2 different letters with 2 different BS excuses for the cut-off as well as 2 different cutoff dates (one was June 20 and the other was June 30).

I am still frustrated that none of the politicians seem to be willing to address the main problem with our healthcare system: Arbitrary hyper-inflation of prices. The amount they charge for things is just criminal. $1k to sit in a waiting room with no treatment. $800 to $8,000 for an MRI or x-ray depending on where you get it. I mentioned before that some places will charge literally $100k more for the exact same treatment using the exact same type of equipment for no good reason. Something can cost less than $100 but they will charge over $1k for it. They charge more than 10x the actual cost.

For profit hospitals are just detrimental to our healthcare system. And that is not even touching on the cost for transportation-- $26k for a ride in a rescue helicopter (which can be done without the patient's knowledge or consent). Ambulance rides can cost several thousand even for very short distances. And then there's the medicine. Pharmaceutical companies are absolutely insane and they charge more for meds in the US than other places but the legislators get so much in bribes from them (I refuse to call it donations bc it's straight up bribes) that they won't do anything about it. That is a bipartisan issue. People from both parties won't stand up to "big pharma". And I get it can be expensive to do medical trials and studies and so forth, but they have dirty practices like changing a formula very slightly without actually changing the function/effectiveness just to justify price hikes for a "new" medicine. And they continue to charge way more than it costs for production so there are massive profits while people suffer & die from not being able to afford stuff.

Highup, I know it may sound crazy, but IIRC, Manafort and Trump have known each other and worked with one another since 1987. They have a loooong history together. And it's not just Manafort-- there are multiple other people from Trump's campaign with ties to Russia. There is an interactive timeline of Trump's ties with Russia-- I'll have to find the link.

The investigation in to Trump & Russian connections came with FISA warrants requested BEFORE the steele dossier came in to the mix. It was based partially on some of the people in the campaign admitting to working for Russia while not registered as being foreign agents. Trump & his campaign people were warned by the FBI more than once about some of the people & that Russians would try to infiltrate them. Five people have already taken plea deals to take lesser charges to avoid being tried for treason.

I will say, I have heard that the "pee tape" thing is not true. Steele dossier never said it was true, just reported that some Russians were overheard gossiping about it. People who claim to have seen the "real" tape say that it is "much worse" and that it allegedly involves Trump raping a child in a Moscow hotel. There is also allegedly some security footage of Trump beating the crap out of Melania in an elevator. I don't know if it's true or not, but if it is, it's not good at all.

But, we can't ignore that Trump has trash-talked our allies & been more hostile to them than to Putin. He's praised & defended Putin & Kim Jong Un while insulting our allies. He fired people for criticizing Putin. IMO, it's pretty obvious that he is working in Putin's interests. Removing or not enforcing sanctions against Russia was part of the deal of getting help to become president.

And I have to run to the store to pick up mom's prescriptions now so To Be Continued.

Edit:
Interactive list https://investigaterussia.org/timelines/everything-we-know-about-russia-and-president-trump

 

[Ernesto]

The proposed Republican budget would cut Medicare, Medicaid and education to finance the Trump tax cut that was passed and has increased the deficit by over a trillion dollars.

Our national debt just surpassed 21 trillion for the first time ever.

 

[highup]

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Thanks. I just did copy/paste with the one Nick sent me.

Floorist, my state has already been affected by Medicaid cuts. They booted my brother off Medicaid already. Sent him 2 different letters with 2 different BS excuses for the cut-off as well as 2 different cutoff dates (one was June 20 and the other was June 30).

I am still frustrated that none of the politicians seem to be willing to address the main problem with our healthcare system: Arbitrary hyper-inflation of prices. The amount they charge for things is just criminal. $1k to sit in a waiting room with no treatment. $800 to $8,000 for an MRI or x-ray depending on where you get it. I mentioned before that some places will charge literally $100k more for the exact same treatment using the exact same type of equipment for no good reason. Something can cost less than $100 but they will charge over $1k for it. They charge more than 10x the actual cost.

For profit hospitals are just detrimental to our healthcare system. And that is not even touching on the cost for transportation-- $26k for a ride in a rescue helicopter (which can be done without the patient's knowledge or consent). Ambulance rides can cost several thousand even for very short distances. And then there's the medicine. Pharmaceutical companies are absolutely insane and they charge more for meds in the US than other places but the legislators get so much in bribes from them (I refuse to call it donations bc it's straight up bribes) that they won't do anything about it. That is a bipartisan issue. People from both parties won't stand up to "big pharma". And I get it can be expensive to do medical trials and studies and so forth, but they have dirty practices like changing a formula very slightly without actually changing the function/effectiveness just to justify price hikes for a "new" medicine. And they continue to charge way more than it costs for production so there are massive profits while people suffer & die from not being able to afford stuff.
For the helicopter rides, as compared to a taxi ride, remember the cost of the helicopter , it's maintenance and crew are out of this world expensive.
Spend 4 to 8 million dollars on a fully equipped medical helicopter. Base your income on 1.6 hours per day of actual usage annually and figure out how you plan to make a profit.
I'm not saying they don't get excessive on their charges...... but there's more to the story. It can't be thought of as a simple 30 minute ride to the hospital. Those things are expensive to maintain.
When someone gets a helicopter ride under situations when a taxi ride would have sufficed...... that's why there are courts.
I now for the coast guard helicopters, they spend more hours in maintenance time than flight time by far. That's what it takes to keep them safe.

Highup, I know it may sound crazy, but IIRC, Manafort and Trump have known each other and worked with one another since 1987. They have a loooong history together. And it's not just Manafort-- there are multiple other people from Trump's campaign with ties to Russia. There is an interactive timeline of Trump's ties with Russia-- I'll have to find the link.

The investigation in to Trump & Russian connections came with FISA warrants requested BEFORE the steele dossier came in to the mix. It was based partially on some of the people in the campaign admitting to working for Russia while not registered as being foreign agents. Trump & his campaign people were warned by the FBI more than once about some of the people & that Russians would try to infiltrate them. Five people have already taken plea deals to take lesser charges to avoid being tried for treason.

I will say, I have heard that the "pee tape" thing is not true. Steele dossier never said it was true, just reported that some Russians were overheard gossiping about it. People who claim to have seen the "real" tape say that it is "much worse" and that it allegedly involves Trump raping a child in a Moscow hotel. There is also allegedly some security footage of Trump beating the crap out of Melania in an elevator. I don't know if it's true or not, but if it is, it's not good at all.
That's the sort a stuff that the Post writers would dream up...... he's pure evil.

But, we can't ignore that Trump has trash-talked our allies & been more hostile to them than to Putin. He's praised & defended Putin & Kim Jong Un while insulting our allies.

Trump isn't stupid. If you want to make a deal, you kiss up and play nice and pretend to get along to make the deal. Not that it's a perfect thing to do, not the perfect deal, but it must be done to get the deal made. If you want to make a deal, both sides need to come out looking like winners to their own constituents. If you put them down and treat them like asses, you are not going to make a deal. I can't believe that anyone thinks Trump likes Kim in any way slightly imaginable. Same with Putin. He's gotta allow Putin to be respected to some degree to get the deal he wants.

He fired people for criticizing Putin. IMO, it's pretty obvious that he is working in Putin's interests. Removing or not enforcing sanctions against Russia was part of the deal of getting help to become president.

And I have to run to the store to pick up mom's prescriptions now so To Be Continued.

Edit:
Interactive list https://investigaterussia.org/timelines/everything-we-know-about-russia-and-president-trump

I'll read that but anyone that created a site called "investigating Russia" has bias written all over it. No other reason to form the website. People don't start website like that to praise people. Just the opposite.
That said, I'll do a little reading to prove myself right. .............. not far right. I'm a border liner politically.

 

[havasu]

Still 5 Trillion less than King Obama. Just saying!

President Barack Obama
President Obama had the largest deficits. By the end of his final budget, FY 2017, his deficits were $6.690 trillion. Obama took office during the Great Recession. He immediately needed to spend billions to stop it. He convinced Congress to add the $787 billion economic stimulus package to Bush’s FY 2009 budget. This added $253 billion to the FY 2009 budget. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act added another $534 billion over the rest of Obama’s terms.

In 2010, the Obama tax cut added $858 billion to the debt in its first two years. Obama increased defense spending, adding as much as $800 billion a year. Federal income decreased due to lower tax receipts from the 2008 financial crisis.

Both Presidents Bush and Obama suffered from higher mandatory spending than their predecessors did. Social Security and Medicare benefits were eating up more of the budget. Health care costs were rising as the American population aged. In 2010, Obama launched the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. It sought to reduce health care spending. This reduction would lower the debt by $143 billion by 2020. In total, $983 billion was added to the national debt under Obama.

 

[highup]

For got to include this link. No, it ain't all pretty. But includes the "other side" of the story on operation costs.
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/06/...bulance-but-stunned-at-the-sky-high-bill.html
If a space shuttle trip to save your life cost 45 million dollars and it worked, ......was it worth the cost? Same mindset needs to be applied to helicopters from my viewpoint.
Helicopter rides on a fully equipped medical helicopter are not a constitutional right in my point of view to be covered by medicare or should be expected to be covered by basic insurance. There are limits.
If you are super rich and can afford it............ well, that's a really nice perk. ......but that doesn't mean everyone on earth has to be included. It can't be afforded by everyone no matter how sad that sounds........ like that space shuttle example. If some could afford that space shuttle ride, should medicare or basic insurance make it mandatory that everyone can get that ride?
Just need to get realistic and admit life's circumstances really suck sometimes.

 

[highup]

President Barack Obama
President Obama had the largest deficits. By the end of his final budget, FY 2017, his deficits were $6.690 trillion. Obama took office during the Great Recession. He immediately needed to spend billions to stop it. He convinced Congress to add the $787 billion economic stimulus package to Bush’s FY 2009 budget. This added $253 billion to the FY 2009 budget. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act added another $534 billion over the rest of Obama’s terms.

hav, Trump is still riding on the shirt tails that Obama created. Public opinion of the economy is at an all time high thanks to Obama. Trump has nothing to do with this economy or anything good that has occurred in the past 1 1/2 years.
If he gets money for the wall, maybe the so called "imigrants" with children will actually have to enter the US at legal point of entry instead of sneaking across the desert. Shame on THEM for putting their own children in the situations that they are currently enduring. Shame on them for showing their children how to sneak in and dodge the border guards.
Isn't it horrible that people from every country want to live in this country so badly, yet people legally here hate it, despise it and yet won't leave......... yes, I'm talking loud mouth self professed know it all Hollywood scum.

 

[highup]

I was on a self serving roll hav, what was your question again?

 

[havasu]

I forgot, but I agree. If we jump the border into Mexico, what do you think would happen to us? And our kids?

As I've said, "don't do the crime if you don't have the time!"

 

[highup]

I would love to see the total costs of building the border "wall" or "fence" plus the additional border patrol costs............. then after the wall is constructed, subtract the costs of those increased border patrols, and the 'free' housing, food, education, healthcare, criminal activity, drug related impacts, crime related and jail related costs to our economy from this illegal border crossing. It's impossible to address the emotional and financial costs to people directly affected by those crimes.
.........maybe the actual cost per US citizen annually. It would be interesting............ tho it wouldn't change my viewpoint. Legal is legal.
Trump is touted as a racist for his wall promise. Total BS. Saying that makes 1/2 the populous racist also. His border protection is a large reason for him being elected.
Build that wall, build that wall............. that chant was not racist, it's just another lame excuse to hate Trump. Repeat it enough and it becomes true. White Supremacist, Hitler? My God, Dems bent on those tag-lines are going to get defeated in droves. It's already showing. (thank goodness)
It's illegal immigration.......... and not going through the proper US entry channels to get here that's the problem. My next door neighbor came here legally.......... super nice guy. How come others can't /won't do the same? Hint" They can but they won't......... it's too hard.
I'm a Democrat, always have been.............. where did the party go?

 

[highup]

News is on now. President just rescinded the child border separation issue............... and criticism, not praise or thanks from everyone so far. Said it before, if he caught a baby falling from a burning building he'd be criticized. NeverTrumpers are lost souls full of uncontrollable hate. Bet they don't even know why.

 

[highup]

I forgot, but I agree. If we jump the border into Mexico, what do you think would happen to us? And our kids?

As I've said, "don't do the crime if you don't have the time!"

............mmmmmmmmmmmm, Death to America?
...........no, wait, than was somebody else. You'd probably be arrested for being stupid.

 

[Nick]

Why should trump be praised ? He started it .. Him and Sessions who claims the Bible made him do it ..
These people are running for their lives from gangs .. I would to to protect my children ..
I hope they build the wall ..To keep him out !!

 

[havasu]

Gangs? In Mexico? Hell Nick, it is called the Cartel. They have been running Mexico since the early 1990's. If the government wasn't so corrupt, these "gangs" or Cartel members would be in a graveyard with no headstones. So, their government is on the take, for the last 30 years, but now, in 2018, the folks are running across the border to be protected from the gangs? I call BS on that one. I'm guessing for every 10 innocent victims that come to America for asylum from corrupt Mexico, we are also allowing in at least 2-3 Mexican Cartel members who want to continue their pillaging and criminal activity in the good ol' US of A.

 

[highup]

Why should trump be praised ? He started it .. Him and Sessions who claims the Bible made him do it ..
These people are running for their lives from gangs .. I would to to protect my children ..
I hope they build the wall ..To keep him out !!

I see a difference between sneaking across the desert to find a job and fleeing violent gangs in fear of your families well being. They have legal ways to address this and not be arrested.
How about build the wall but then also increase the capacity of the port of entry places so we can at least have people apply to enter legally and with documentation. Make them legal US citizens.
I can't imagine going through the entry process and succeeding, .......only to see 10's of thousands of other people sneak in and get away with it. Might as well have no border and build highways to let anyone that want's to come in.

On a lighter note.
http://www.foxnews.com/science/2018...r-caught-off-maine-coast-its-rarest-rare.html

 

[Nick]

MS13 Started in LA ..

 

[havasu]

Yep, more immigrants and border jumpers.

The Mara Salvatrucha gang originated in Los Angeles, set up in the 1980s by Salvadoran immigrants in the city's Pico-Union neighborhood who immigrated to the United States after the Central American civil wars of the 1980s

 

[Floorist]

Have you seen the TV ads pushing the shingles vaccine? $400 and not covered by Medicare.

 

[Nick]

I just put on a new roof ..

 

[havasu]

It's covered under part 2 medicare

 

[Ernesto]

Root of the problem is cartels and no less than 114 political assassinations in mexico, one week ago a mayor running for reelection was shot point blank in the back of the head doing a selfie with a reporter in public.
If any country deserved invasion its MEXICO . The drugs, murders and corruption is out of control.
We could invade cheaper than a stupid wall. Then Guatemala and Columbia is next.