Mad Cow Mania
Having tucked my almanac safely out of sight, I'd like to take a look at the Mad Cow Scare. For those of you who've been in hibernation, a cow was discovered to have mad cow disease shortly before Christmas. This was followed by the expected bans of US imported beef by some countries. The cow was traced back to Canada and some 10,000 pounds of beef was recalled. It was found that the cow predated a feed ban now in place that forbids feeding cows with brain and other tissues from slaughtered cows.

The outbreak has led to some needed changes to further protect the food supply.

But i believe many Democrats have gone too far in their zeal to find something they can "pin" Bush with. Kerry's five point plan has one good point, the one that the USDA has implemented. Dean calls for more testing a measure which although he has not checked out yet, says if it costs an average of three cents per pound ought to be done.

Let's get a grip. It was ONE cow. It has been traced. Meat has been recalled. Investigations are continuing. Remedies are being implemented. Let's take a deep breath and have a steak!

The Democratic Candidates
At first, I planned to examine all nine Democratic candidates positions. As I started, I found it took too much of my time and was not all that beneficial. Basically, I think any one the Democrats nominate will be able to be pictured as a tax and spend liberal.

As I've listened to the political debate thus far, I remembered the reason for my disappointment with the political process. The race has narrowed before a vote has been cast. Debates are not about issues, but about who has momentum and who has nominated whom. And I blame both sides. Talk shows are filled, not with substance but with analysis.

But then again, as you look through history, most campaigns have been more about personality than about issues. JQ Adams, elected very similarly to GW Bush, met more opposition than Bush has. Jefferson, Jackson, Lincoln, the list could go on.

So I will not stop writing. It has been said of Bloggers that we are self-important. Well, I don't care who reads what I write, if anyone. I write to write. If someone reads this and gets involved in any way, great.

Happy Holidays, belatedly, to all.

The Environment
Two articles crossed my path this week on the environment that I thought was interesting. First, evidently the windmills near Altamont Pass, CA are taking a toll on wildlife in particular birds. So much for renewable energy sources. Maybe the Center for Biological Diversity would prefer global warming (see next)?

Secondly, what would we do without another warning about global warming? Cox News Service's Jeff Nesmith wrote in my local paper (no links) an article longer than the one found here "2003 another global hot one" (Atlanta Journal Constitution).

Now I'm not real sure about the threat of global warming. I tend to see it more as cyclical weather patterns. But more research is needed.

Even though I'm not a "tree hugger," I do appreciate the outdoors. I can see places where I grew up and used to play turned into houses, stores, parking lots and apartments. Maybe it's just nostalgia.

The good news just keeps coming for Dean
Survey: Democratic Leaders Prefer Dean.

And the rest of the candidates seem to be scrambling. Kerry Asks Supporter to Stick With Him. But is Kerry now down to one supporter in Iowa?

One more recent headline: Candidates Try to Fight Howard Dean Surge

The question still remains: Will Dean be a formidable candidate or will his freewheeling, angry style, if he keeps it in the general election, be an easy target for Bush/Cheney. My personal observation is that no one among the top candidates is immune from weaknesses. And anything can happen in the next year that would cause Bush's popularity to fall - continued body bags being the most likely right now.

Gore Endorses Dean for President
News story

Howard Dean is definitely gaining momentum with this endorsement, which, by the way, shows me why I'm glad I didn't vote for Al (Call me moderate, but color me liberal) Gore. The only hope for the other candidates it seems like now is for a major gaffe by Dean, or an endorsement by the Clintons.

The Wall Street Journal blog had an interesting take on this. Especially Al Gore's previous endorsement of Michael Dukakis (from MSNBC.com)

Woman gets 10 years in mayo spat

Cincinnati police beating
Well, it's been awhile since my last post. Holidays, busy at work and the flu have all conspired to keep me away.

Just a comment on the man in Cincinnati dying after being beaten by cops. By now the tape has been seen by anyone wanting to watch it, and it shows the man going after the policeman first and their attempts to subdue him. To say that race had something to do with it seems ludicrous.

We give our policeman the responsibility to keep us safe and then tend to howl when they use force to do it. They are human and make mistakes and should be held accountable. But at the same time, we must not condemn them without cause for doing that.

The Medicare Bill
Well, one thing about politicians; they know how to spend money. Witness the new Medicare Bill. In the first decade costs are estimated at $400 billion. The director of the Congressional Budget Office estimates second decade costs between $1.3 and $2 trillion. And that may be too low as the pressure to expand coverage rises. Aren't Republicans supposed to be the party of small government? If Clinton had advocated something like this, they would have blown a gasket. At stake? The important senior vote. See also OpinionJournal - The GOP's Spending Spree

Finally a tribute to our troops serving in the armed forces.

JFK interesting quotes
"It is increasingly clear that no matter what party is in power, so long as our national security needs keep rising, an economy hampered by restrictive tax rates will never produce enough jobs or enough profits."

"If the economy of today were operating close to capacity levels with little unemployment, or if a sudden change in our military requirements should cause a scramble for men and resources, then I would oppose tax reductions as irresponsible and inflationary; and I would not hesitate to recommend a tax increase if that were necessary."

"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."

Source: John F. Kennedy Library and Museum

John F. Kennedy
Forty years ago JFK was tragically assassinated in Dallas. The few things I write will be lost amid the tons of things said and viewed this weekend.

He is loved today, probably more because he was assassinated. If he had lived, who knows how he would be remembered? It would most likely depend on our ideological viewpoint. He made some foreign policy mistakes, but he did some things right, too. He boldly set a goal for the space program which became cemented when he died.

We will probably never know exactly how he died or why, which frustrates many. Future generations may find out as the government declassifies documents. Why they are classified mystifies us as we seek answers, turning to multiple investigations and theories.

I was in sixth grade at the time and remember vividly hearing about his death, watching Oswald cut down, the funeral. John Jr's salute. I've seen the Zapruder film umpteen times on TV. I'm none the wiser. It's probably too much to hope for that we will just let him rest in peace. But that is my prayer.

Health Care Revisited
Jenny (jenelou(at)hotmail(dot)com also commented on health care as follows:

"The biggest problem with health care in our country, as I see it, is the fact that too many people are working the middle ground and getting rich. I would rather pay more in taxes and guarantee a solid patient to doctor relationship, than pay higher health care costs to pay lobbyists, HMO bureaucrats and ad agencies. I resent the fact that the cost of veterans' prescriptions have gone up, while our TV's are flooded with commercials touting every drug known. It's a sad state when patients tell their physicians what drugs they want to use, based on slick media campaigns. The only purpose served is increased profit for drug company shareholders. We need to de-politicize and de-commercialize health care. Health care should be a fundamental right, not an option. If it takes an increase in taxes, so be it. Most of the democratic hopefuls have the right idea."

How much in new taxes would we be talking about? Most of the Democratic candidates don't explicitly advocate new taxes in any of their health care plans. Most of the electorate thinks they are taxed enough. Many say that the costs would go down as health care is depoliticized, but no one really knows. One place where I differ with the Democrats is how much their plans are ultimately going to cost. Most want to repeal the Bush tax plan and "give" it back to us in other ways.

Canada is most often named when folks talk about a single-payer system. Common Dreams touts the advantages of Canadian health care, but quotes from The New York Times, "few Canadians would recommend their system as a model for export." There are problems with containing costs, wait times for appointments and test results as well as others.

I do agree however that since a profit can not be made without a patent, beneficial medicines may fall through the cracks. This is one place where the government can give grants as they do for other explorations.

Comments received on Health Care
I've received two comments concerning the entry of Nov 5th on Health care. Since comments tend to be buried here, I thought I'd make an entry so their comments could be on the main page.

First is from Axinar (axinar(at)yahoo(dot)com). He wrote:

"It is a bit of an ethical problem ... and one of the nasty side effects of an open market economy.

"So long as people can get just about as much health care as they need without having to write the checks directly, this will mean a disproportiate number of dollars will be chasing health care vs. say, soybeans.

"It almost seems that health care should be an area taken out of the free market because way too much unethical stuff happens so long as it is part of the free market. For instance plain injected HDL might be quite effective in treating heart disease but no one will ever launch the studies because plain HDL cannot be patented."

Annie (surfgal_annie(at)yahoo(dot)com) also responded to that entry and wrote:

"Raising taxes always seem to be the answer for every new idea the US wants to implement; however, I'm sure this program could have been rolled out successfully with the 87.5 billion loan-free buckaroos we handed over to Iraq and eliminating all the perks our wonderful elected officials receive (i.e. cars)... "

Politics and laughter
A famous saying goes "You can talk about anything but politics and religion." That's because of the strong emotions both seem to bring out of people and because most people think both are private subject matter. But I like to talk about both and I believe we can as long as we agree to disagree agreeably.

I love to laugh and so I like political satire and political cartoons. "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" and Jay Leno's monologue are my favorite places. Saturday Night Live's pieces dealing with politics always cracks me up. "Tough Crowd" is another show that looks at the humorous side of issues. Make no mistake, I seldom agree with their politics, but I'm a great believer in showing human foibles so we can learn and grow.

Having said that, here is a political cartoon site that has a good variety. Whether you're liberal, conservative or anything else, you'll find something here.

Daily Updating Political Cartoons

Fascist/Nazi vs. communist (The Political Spectrum)
Wow! Political spectrum classification is not what it once was. It used to be left center and right with various shades, communism on one extreme, fascism/Naziism on the other. Now several people have come up with double and even triple axis classifications or more! Now i've never been comfortable with the old left/right thing because I didn't think it fit with the facts. But reading about this has really been fascinating. So fascinating that I'm posting some links. For some reason libertarians are doing the most here. Hmmm. Maybe they're uncomfortable with the left/right classification because of where they are perceived to fit?

David Nolan Chart (Libertarian Party)

Jerry Pournelle (chart's near the bottom)

A test by PoliticalCompass - choose "Analysis" to see where the candidates fall according to them

World's Smallest Political Quiz Libertarian party

Federalist Journal Chart (the one I felt was right when I started looking into this

Dean and southerners who fly the confederate flag
First of all, thanks to axinar@yahoo.com for commenting on my last post regarding health care. He makes a good point and it is worth reading.

Now to the topic at hand. Isn't everyone making a little too much out of this? Here is what Governor Dean said:

"I intend to talk about race during this election in the South. The Republicans have been talking about it since 1968 in order to divide us, and I'm going to bring us together. Because you know what? White folks in the South who drive pick-up trucks with Confederate flag decals on the back ought to be voting with us because their kids don't have health insurance either, and their kids need better schools too." Howard Dean web site

I think the meaning is very straightforward. Unfortunately what was an economic remark turned into a "racial attack" like Dean was supporting racist attitudes. Now I'm not a supporter of Dean, nor do I intend to vote for him, but fair is fair. He was not supporting flying the Confederate flag. He was reaching out to southern whites who have it on their truck.

But, as is too often typical in the American political scene, comments are taken out of context and instead of calm discussion, candidates go for sound bites that can be seen on the evening news and used in commercials. But that is a topic for another day.

Health care (cont.)
To continue with yesterday's thoughts, i researched the Democratic candidates positions on health care. Basically it falls into two groups. Most say they would repeal the Bush tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans and insure every child in America has health insurance. Two (Moseley-Braun and Kucinich) would go to a single payer system similar to Canada where the Federal government pays for the health care.

While there are some good ideas (or at least seem good to me at the moment) floated, the bill for paying for all of this is what bothers me. A federal program never stays as small as it is when it is begun. Members of Congress have to admend acts with their pet ideas.

The bottom line is all of the ideas would mean higher taxes. Period. If you want health service, you gotta pay for it, one way or the other. The problem is not health care service, among the best in the world, if not the best. The problem is the underlying causes of what drives the price of health care up.

Health care
Is this a no brainer, or what? Everyone wants affordable health care but how do we do it? The Democratic candidates all promise something but i haven't heard too much about how they will pay for it. How do we? Increase taxes? No way. No one is going to advocate that. But that's the only way other than gutting the military. There's no other money available.

11 Nov. 2003
I have no idea where this will go. I consider myself a conservative, but some conservative positions trouble me. Maybe it's just that I'm getting older and not quite as fanatic as I once was.

Anyway, I'm gonna use this space to ruminate about things that happen on the world scene. Maybe you agree, maybe you don't. If you would like to comment, feel free. They will be posted directly to this site.