Thursday, September 29, 2011

Obama's Lowlights (9/29/11)

Islam – A new poll found that 63% of Americans are in favor of Representative Peter King’s hearings on the radicalization of Islam in America. Fast and Furious – The DOJ, FBI, and ATF have failed to issue a criminal report on the killing of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry (almost a year). Meanwhile, CBS has uncovered a recording suggesting that 3 guns from the Fast and Furious program were used in the killing, not two. All testimony to date from the DOJ, FBI, and ATF assert only two Fast and Furious guns were used in Terry’s death. In a second recording obtained by CBS, Terry’s death was described as collateral damage. And if this conflicting information about Terry’s death is not bad enough, the Mexican Attorney General is on record indicating that more than 200 deaths can be linked to operation Fast and Furious. Work Environment – A new book, by Ron Suskind, which interviewed over 200 White House staffers, claims that the Obama White House work environment has been hostile towards women. The book also called the White House west wing dysfunctional. Planned Parenthood – An internal document revealed Planned Parenthood affiliates performed 332,278 abortions in 2009. Crime – Violent crime was down 12% in 2010. This data refutes liberal claims that there is more violent right wing extremist activity. Liberals continually argue that extremists are angry because the U.S. now has an African-American president. Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) - "Unhappy members of the Congressional Black Caucus probably would be marching on the White House” if Obama were not president, according to CBC Chairman Rep. Emanuel Cleaver. Libya – Obama was touting the international effort in Libya as a success at the UN last week. Can the president actually assert Libya is a success without knowing how the opposition government is going to rule? If Libya fails to create a stable democracy, then the effort has to be ruled a failure. Time will tell. Taxes – Obama has been campaigning for the passage of his American Jobs Act. Time after time he has made a statement proclaiming that middle class folks pay more in taxes than millionaires because of loopholes. This is completely untrue and anyone can attest to this fact by reviewing IRS records. According to the IRS, in 2010, the top 10% of income earners pay nearly 90% of all income taxes in the U.S. Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT) – The controversial military policy, DADT (military policy on how to handle gay personal), has officially ended this past week. Stimulus 2.0 – Moderate Democrats (both House and Senate) are on record of being against the proposed tax hikes in the plan; recent polls show that independents are against the proposed plan by a 20% margin; and liberal media outlets such as ABC and MSM disagree with Obama’s fiscal assessment of the Buffet Rule in his proposed legislation. DOJ – An audit of the Department of Justice (DOJ) concluded that the office spent 121 million dollars in 2008 and 2009 on internal conferences (far over budget). What’s worse is that the audit specified the spending was extravagant and wasteful - including spending 16 dollars apiece for a muffin, cookie, or soft drink. Ground Zero Mosque – The new Islamic Center opened the first floor of its complex this past week. My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Food Wars (Part I)

To be perfectly honest, the topics of physical fitness and health are subjects I am passionate about. For this reason, I am not against all corporate or government intrusion to make us healthier, but they are going about it all wrong. I believe in personal responsibility and therefore, do not agree with liberal policies to force food manufacturers and restaurants to post nutritional facts about their meals and products. This merely drives up costs and will do nothing to combat unhealthy eating habits. I also believe any lawsuits against food manufacturers and restaurants are frivolous and have no merit. If we have become obese it is our fault, not the fault of McDonalds. But this does not mean I am against all intrusion into our lives. For starters, I am in favor of sin taxes, as long as they are levied equally, on groups of unhealthy foods. Just as high taxes on tobacco has worked to lower cigarette consumption, higher costs for junk food may be incentive to kick the habit (although I would only consider taxing unhealthy products at a very low rate – 1 to 2 percent at most). But the argument to tax food is not as strong as cigarettes after all, second hand food is not unhealthy like second hand smoke. Still, sin taxes are a better way to pay for healthcare reform than taxing healthcare providers and driving up costs. It is a fact that obesity is the leading reason that healthcare costs are going up. Diabetes, cancer, heart disease are all side effects of obesity and it drives up the demand (cost) for healthcare services. I would incentivize health insurance premiums – giving lower premiums to healthier people and provide rebates to people that become healthier. I would charge more for healthcare ailments and conditions that are self-inflicted (I understand this would be hard to define). But the bottom line when it comes to taxes, I prefer fair, flat, and sales taxes over income taxes any day of the week. This provides each American better control over their tax rates. And incentivized healthcare premiums places Americans in charge of their healthcare costs. Safeway CEO, Steve Burd has successfully implemented an incentivized healthcare system that is lowering costs. The only thing the Obama administration has done that makes a minute amount of sense, on healthcare reform, is Michelle’s “Move” program. The government has been way off base with its reforms to tackle obesity. First, it rewards bad behavior by providing tax write offs for weight loss dietary programs. Personally, I do not believe in diets, especially diets that do not include vigorous exercise. Moderation, healthy foods, and exercise are the best ways to combat obesity – diets are not needed. Where is my tax credit for being healthy? Secondly, the government has worked to increase the costs of the healthcare industry by setting ludicrous definitions for obesity. The standard obesity measurement is the Body Mass Index (BMI). Anyone with a BMI above 25 is overweight and above 30 is obese. In the past decade, these standards were lowered from 27 and 32 respectively, which classified millions more as overweight and obese. The government also changed the classification of obesity to be equivalent to a disease or sickness, similar to cancer or the flu. The result is that this has added billions of dollars to healthcare costs because doctors and insurance companies must cover procedures, surgeries, and measures to combat obesity. And what’s worse, BMI is a flawed measurement system. BMI equals a person’s weight (W) divided by a person’s height (H) squared times 703 (BMI = W [lbs.] / H² [in] x 703). Using this standard, healthy people are not only classified as overweight, but obese because muscle weighs more than fat. BMI also does not take into account age, sex, or conditions that may make someone obese, which is just absurd. And what’s even more troubling, BMI does not measure physical fitness! Let’s evaluate a simple example that illustrates some flaws with the BMI standard and how simple changes can improve the metric. For instance, the BMI metric could be enhanced simply by taking into account each person’s midsection measurement. A person that is 6 foot and weighs 185 lbs. has a BMI of 25. Let’s assume this person has a midsection (MS) measurement of 35 inches. I can normalize their BMI to 25 by modifying the BMI formula to: BMI = W / (H - MS)² x 185. Thus, if a 6 foot, 185 pound person had a waist size of 32, their BMI would drop to 21.4! The second person is obviously more fit, but the current BMI metric would classify them both with a BMI of 25. The revised BMI equation, that I proposed, would eliminate millions of fit people from being wrongly categorized as overweight and or obese. Thirdly, Obamacare does nothing to correct obesity or unhealthy eating habits. It does not reward good behavior, nor does it penalize bad behavior. If you are irresponsible and drive up the cost of healthcare – that is okay. There is nothing that holds the American people to be responsible and accountable for the health of their families in ObamaCare. My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

The Relationship Between Healthcare Costs and Good Health (Part VI)

To summarize the results of the running a linear regression analysis on the model shown in Part I of this series of blogs are as follows:


Variable 2009 Result ObamaCare Projection
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Healthcare Insurance Premium $13,375 $14900
Doctors Per Capita (per 1000 people) 2.4 2
Nurses Per Capita (per 1000 people) 9.7 8.1
Life Expectancy 78 76.2
Obesity 28% 32.7%
Healthcare % of GDP 16.2% 16.8%
Healthcare Costs Per Capita $7700 $9000

These results are the consequence of moving 30 million uninsured Americans into government run insurance plans such as Medicaid. The results indicate that there will be a 17% rationing of doctors; a 17% rationing of nurses; an 12% increase in insurance premiums; a 1.8 year reduction in the life expectancy rate; a 4.2% increase in the national obesity rate; a 0.6% or 80 billion dollar annual increase in the size of the healthcare industry compared to our gross domestic product (This may not sound like much, but the United States annual GDP grows about 3% per year or 400 billion dollars annually. Thus, the annual United States medical industry is growing by nearly 500 billion dollars!); and finally there will be a 17% increase in the annual healthcare expenditures per person.

The bottom line; any government attempt to take over a large portion of the healthcare industry will result in much higher expenses for every American while at the same time risking the wellbeing of every American. This is a lose – lose scenario. Some may argue the claims in this model are false, but it does accurately follow what happened when the state of Massachusetts implemented a similar law a few years back. It also tracks the trends of other socialized healthcare systems around the globe (i.e. Great Britain and Canada). Thus, the fears of many Americans that ObamaCare will lead to higher costs, shoddier care, and rationing are all well founded.

Since the ObamaCare law is so complex, it is very difficult to predict how these variables will actually trend. However, there is nothing wrong with looking at present healthcare trends to forecast the potential risks of creating a massive government run healthcare program. I seriously doubt anyone took the time to evaluate these important trends prior to developing and implementing the ObamaCare legislation.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Monday, September 26, 2011

Obama's Lowlights (9/26/11)

National Security - The Pentagon has been raising concerns about a new wireless project by a satellite broadband company in Virginia called LightSquared, whose majority owner is an investment fund run by Democratic donor Philip Falcone. Gen. Shelton was originally scheduled to testify Aug. 3 to a House committee that the project would interfere with the military’s sensitive Global Positioning Satellite capabilities, which control automated driving directions and missile targeting, among other things. Sheldon’s testimony was delayed because the White House was urging Shelton to alter his testimony.

Border Security - U. S. Border Patrol agents seized six assault rifles, one rocket launcher, a grenade launcher, and three packages of what appeared to be C-4 explosives last week near the Rio Grande.

Green Companies – Several green companies, other than Solyndra, which received government stimulus money also went bankrupt including Evergreen Solar and SpectraWatt. Despite this, the Department of Energy (DOE) is handing out loans to clean energy companies at a rate of more than 1 per week. The DOE still has 9.3 billion in taxpayer funds in its treasure chest to loan out this fiscal year.

Immigration - President Obama told a Hispanic group in Washington last week that when it comes to the issue of immigration, "I'd like to work my way around Congress." "As I mentioned when I was at La Raza a few weeks back, I wish I had a magic wand and could make this all happen on my own," Obama told a meeting of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. "There are times where -- until Nancy Pelosi is speaker again -- I'd like to work my way around Congress."

Ford – A new commercial by Ford criticizes its U.S. automaker competitors, GM and Chrysler, for accepting government bailouts.

Pentagon – Leon Panetta warns Congress that 400 billion dollars in cuts (over a decade) of Pentagon spending would increase the national unemployment rate by 1%.

Frivolous Lawsuit – Two young adults are suing their mother for being a “bad parent” and blaming her for all their problems. They are being represented by their vindictive father, who just so happens to be a lawyer. One complaint charges irreparable harm over having a different last name than their mom.

Tax Reform – Thirty-Six Senators, from both parties, want the Deficit Super Commission to propose tax reform, which will lower taxes for ALL Americans.

Polls – Obama has hit a new personal approval low, in a NY Times / CBS poll, which generally gives him higher ratings than other polls (50% disapprove / 43% approve). While many may not approve of Obama’s handling of the economy or his job in general, it should be even more alarming that his personal approval numbers are also underwater. Until recently, most Americans had a favorable view of President (it terms of personality).

Wall Street – Protestors were out in large numbers this past week displaying their anger over the “greed” of Wall Street companies. Meanwhile, these same protestors have absolutely no issue with Obama lying in bed with GE (paid no taxes), Whirlpool (paid no taxes), and green companies that are wasting billions of dollars in taxpayer money. Shouldn’t liberals take exception to all these corporations equally?

NY Times – Maureen Dowd’s column last week was entitled “The Right Wing is the Stupid Party”. I see the Left is once again displaying its tolerance and civility.

American Jobs Act – Obama revealed his plans to pay for the bill by raising taxes on individuals making more than 250 thousand dollars (the Buffet Rule) and by increasing taxes on oil and gas companies. This will certainly have a trickledown effect on our economy - these increased corporate taxes will be passed onto the middle class. And let’s not forget that Warren Buffet has sheltered his income from the IRS better than most billionaires.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Saturday, September 24, 2011

The Relationship Between Healthcare Costs and Good Health

Below are the results of running a linear regression analysis on the model posted in Part I of this series of blogs solving for No Ins (the number Americans without insurance), Gov Total (the number of Americans with government health insurance plans), and Priv Total (the number of Americans with private health insurance plans). The units for all three categories (No Ins, Priv Total, and Gov Total) are in thousands of people.


No Insurance

R2 1
SE 225.4

Coefficient Value 2009 No Insurance Projection No Insurance
Intercept 143447.00000 1 143447 1 143447
Priv Total -0.60350 194545 -117407.9075 194545 -117407.9075
Gov Total -0.86580 93167 -80663.9886 124000 -107359.2
Costs GDP 7867.00000 16.2 127445.4 17 133739
Expense Per Capita -37.06000 7700 -285362 9000 -333540
Doctors Per Capita 24614.00000 2.4 59073.6 2 49228
Health Ins Rate 18.21000 13375 243558.75 15000 273150
Obesity 63.97000 28 1791.16 33 2111.01
Nurses Per Capita -13362.00000 9.7 -129611.4 8 -106896
Life Expectancy 1134.00000 78 88452 76 86184

Result 50722.6139 22655.9025


Government Insured

R2 1
SE 258.3

Coefficient Value 2009 Government Insured Projection Government Insured
Intercept 159489.0000 1 159489 1 159489
Priv Total -0.6906 194545 -134352.777 194545 -134352.777
No Ins -1.1370 50674 -57616.338 20000 -22740
Costs GDP 9095.0000 16.2 147339 17 154615
Expense Per Capita -42.7800 7700 -329406 9000 -385020
Doctors Per Capita 28303.0000 2.4 67927.2 2 56606
Health Ins Rate 20.9900 13375 280741.25 15000 314850
Obesity 70.6200 28 1977.36 31 2189.22
Nurses Per Capita -15426.0000 9.7 -149632.2 8 -123408
Life Expectancy 1368.0000 78 106704 76 103968

Result 93170.495 126196.443





Private Insured

R2 1
SE 258.3

Coefficient Value 2009 Private Insured Projection Private Insured
Intercept 125153.0000 1 125153 1 125153
Gov Total -1.2930 93167 -120464.931 124000 -160332
No Ins -1.4890 50674 -75453.586 20000 -29780
Costs GDP 10651.0000 16.2 172546.2 17 181067
Expense Per Capita -48.9800 7700 -377146 9000 -440820
Doctors Per Capita 26540.0000 2.4 63696 2 53080
Health Ins Rate 23.8200 13375 318592.5 15000 357300
Obesity 547.4000 28 15327.2 33 18064.2
Nurses Per Capita -16762.0000 9.7 -162591.4 8 -134096
Life Expectancy 3008.0000 78 234624 76 228608

Result 194282.983 198244.2

The results from all three linear regression analyses above illustrate very good correlation because the R² variable is equal to 1. These results were computed to check the validity of the prior analyses done in Parts II, III, and IV of this series of blogs since the expected number of people with no insurance is to decline from 50 million to 20 million; the number of people with government insurance plans is expected to increase from 94 million to 124 million; and the number of people with private insurance plans is expected to stay the same at 194 million. For the most part these results correlate since No Ins dropped to 22 million, Gov Total increased to 126 million, and Priv Total increased to 198 million. These results are within 4% of what was expected and the difference can be easily explained by the upward population growth trend in the model. All of the results in Part I through Part V of this blog series on healthcare will be summarized in Part VI.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Obama's Lowlights (9/22/11)

Civility – Union workers have been protesting outside GOP debates with some outrageous signs claiming conservatives and Tea Partiers hate workers and homosexuals.

David Axelrod – This is his stance on the Obama jobs plan: “Hell no, we will not compromise with Republicans on the jobs plan”. The White House has since clarified these remarks. Maybe someone should report Axelrod to AttackWatch.com.

Andrew Sullivan – In his latest article he states the U.S. will go into a Civil War if Obama is defeated in 2012.

Fast and Furious – FBI leaders and Janet Napolitano sidestepped questions and were uncooperative when they addressed the Congressional Ethics Committee.

Economy – The number of people living in poverty grew to 15.1% (up from 14.3% last year). Nearly 90 million Americans did not work at all last year and the median U.S. income fell to 1997 levels.

9/11 Ceremonies – Northern Arizona University administrators thwarted a student sponsored 9/11 10 year anniversary ceremony.

Frivolous Lawsuits – A first year lawyer filed a 77 million dollar suit against the firm that fired him for burning bridges. Lawyers, what would we do without them?

Big Brother – The White House wants citizens to report any smear attacks against the President. The social media czar, Jesse Lee, is leading the charge and created the website AttackWatch.com. This website will provide the White House a fast way to respond to any attacks – true or false.

Jobs Bill – Obama is desperate for support for his second stimulus he is directing African-American Journalists to “pump up” his plan. In one speech our narcissistic Commander-in-Chief proclaimed “If you love me, you gotta help me pass this bill”.

Solyndra – Solyndra is the now defunct solar company that was the Obama poster child for up and coming green energy corporations. Solyndra burned 535 million dollars in stimulus and the FBI uncovered emails that detail how the White House political team supported Solyndra even though both Bush and Obama economic advisors were adamantly against funding the poorly run company. The Inspector General is also looking into the government loan, particularly the low interest rate Solyndra received (1 to 2%) even though their corporate rating was only B+. Solyndra executives plan on “pleading the 5th Amendment” when they are called to testify in front of Congress.

Pennsylvania – The state legislator is trying to pass a law changing how their electoral votes are counted, similar to Maine and Nebraska, where the winner does not earn all the electoral votes. In other words, a candidate can earn electoral votes for districts they won, even if they lost the state popular vote.

Campaigns – In August, the RNC raised 3 million more dollars than the DNC. Historically, the DNC usually raises much more money than the RNC. This can be another troubling trend for Democrats.

ObamaCare – Some damning internal emails have surfaced about the Class Act (a federally funded long-term care program) provision in ObamaCare. Richard Foster, head of the forecast team for Medicare, repeatedly explained to the White House that the program will go “belly up” and the proposal “does not look workable”. Still, the administration included the program in the legislation and when Class Act, the latest government Ponzi scheme, fails, the taxpayers will face the burden of yet another bankrupt entitlement.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

The Relationship Between Healthcare Costs and Good Health (Part IV)

Below are the results of running a linear regression analysis on the model posted in Part I of this series of blogs solving for Obesity (percentage of Americans with a body mass index over 30), Costs GDP (the annual health industry market size as a percentage of GDP), and Exp Per Capita (the average annual healthcare expenditure per person):


Obesity

R2 1
SE 0.22

Coefficient Value 2009 Obesity Percent Projection Obesity Percent
Intercept 174.000000000 1 174 1 174
Priv Total 0.000217900 194545 42.3913555 194545 42.3913555
Gov Total 0.000052627 93167 4.903099709 124000 6.525748
No Ins 0.000062590 50674 3.17168566 20000 1.2518
Costs GDP 1.504000000 16.2 24.3648 17 25.568
Exp Per Capita -0.009257000 7700 -71.2789 9000 -83.313
Health Ins Rate 0.005210000 13375 69.68375 15000 78.15
Life Expectancy -2.741000000 78 -213.798 76 -208.316
Doctors Per Capita 19.380000000 2.4 46.512 2 38.76
Nurses Per Capita -5.351000000 9.7 -51.9047 8 -42.808

Result 28.04509087 32.2099035


Cost Per GDP

R2 1
SE 0.03

Coefficient Value 2009 Costs Per GDP Projection Costs Per GDP
Intercept -21.490000 1 -21.49 1 -21.49
Priv Total 0.000064 194545 12.36605838 194545 12.36605838
Gov Total 0.000102 93167 9.4564505 124000 12.586
No Ins 0.000115 50674 5.8477796 20000 2.308
Expense Per Capita 0.004766 7700 36.6982 9000 42.894
Doctors Per Capita -3.524000 2.4 -8.4576 2 -7.048
Health Ins Rate -0.002351 13375 -31.444625 15000 -35.265
Obesity 0.022540 28 0.63112 33 0.74382
Nurses Per Capita 1.778000 9.7 17.2466 8 14.224
Life Expectancy -0.059710 78 -4.65738 76 -4.53796

Result 16.19660348 16.78091838


Expense Per Capita

R2 1
SE 0.007

Coefficient Value 2009 Expense Per Capita Projection Expense Per Capita
Intercept 4672.0000 1 4672 1 4672
Priv Total -0.0128 194545 -2484.33965 194545 -2484.33965
Gov Total -0.0209 93167 -1944.39529 124000 -2587.88
No Ins -0.0237 50674 -1203.00076 20000 -474.8
Costs GDP 208.1000 16.2 3371.22 17 3537.7
Doctors Per Capita 762.7000 2.4 1830.48 2 1525.4
Health Ins Rate 0.4942 13375 6609.925 15000 7413
Obesity -6.0600 28 -169.68 33 -199.98
Nurses Per Capita -375.0000 9.7 -3637.5 8 -3000
Life Expectancy 8.3980 78 655.044 76 638.248

Result 7699.7533 9039.34835


The above model results have excellent correlation as illustrated by the R² variable equal to 1. The Obesity rate will increase from 28% to 32.2%, the healthcare industry will grow from 16.2% to 16.8% of GDP, and the average annual healthcare expense per person will increase from 7700 to 9000 dollars by moving 30 million Americans with no healthcare insurance to a government run healthcare insurance plan. It has already been determined that Exp Per Capita (the average annual healthcare expenditures per capita), Costs GDP (the healthcare industry market size as a percent of GDP), Health Ins Rate (the annual family health insurance premium), and the Obesity rate will all increase using this model. On the other hand, it was determined that the Life Expectancy, the Doctors Per Capita, and Nurses Per Capita will all go down. Those numbers are updated in the projection column in the above table.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Obama's Plan to Pay for His Blunders (With Your Money)

Obama finally released his plan to reduce the deficit and to pay for his latest spending proposal: The 447 billion dollar American Jobs Act (incidentally, I am glad Obama points out that his latest jobs plan is for the benefit of Americans and not for say Germans – Although the Chinese may be the true benefactor from the latest Obama jobs plan - if they continue to buy up more of our debt). By the end of the year, the Obama White House will have increased the federal deficit by 30% (in just 3 years on the job) mostly by passing ObamaCare and the Recovery Act (the 862 billion dollar stimulus). First, let’s consider the fact that Obama’s original budget proposal this year raised the deficit – it did nothing to reduce our national debt. Now, Obama, and Democrats want to reduce the deficit. What happened to the progressive belief that deficit spending is okay – aka the Paul Krugman economic model. Do not be fooled, this sudden change in progressive ideology is merely to give the impression of fiscal responsibility - it is a political hoax because the 2012 elections are around the corner. At the same time, Democrats posturing as fiscal hawks not only validates the concerns of a vast majority of Americans, but conservatives especially Tea Partiers. Secondly, this plan has no prayer of being passed. Democrats will not support cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, and other entitlements; and Republicans will not support any tax hikes – especially in a recession. In fact, tax hikes on the wealthy will not pass the Senate (Even though Democrats outnumber Republicans 53 to 47). Blue Dog Senators such as Wyden, Lieberman, Conrad, Baucus and others will not go along with an Obama plan which includes tax hikes on any individual or corporation. Here’s a brief synopsis of the latest nightmarish proposal by Obama.

Entitlement Cuts – Let’s start with the good news: Obama has proposed cuts to Medicare and Medicaid as well as discretionary spending. However, this vindicates the Paul Ryan budget plan. Remember, Democrats were demonizing Paul Ryan and conservatives as “wanting to push grandma over a cliff” because Ryan proposed changes to Medicare. And let’s not forget that ObamaCare already cut 500 billion dollars in Medicare spending to pay for the healthcare legislation. Finally, Obama’s deficit reduction plan has one glaring omission by refusing to tackle social security, which is scheduled to run out of money in the next decade.

Corporate Tax Increases – Obama plans to cut tax loopholes for oil and gas energy companies. Since oil companies profit fewer than 5 cents per gallon, they will pass these tax increases onto the consumer. Yes, that is right; this will be a tax on all Americans. The government already receives 50 cents in tax revenue per gallon of gas. They may as well increase that tax to 60 or 70 cents per gallon because that is exactly what is going to happen. Gas prices will spike an additional 10 to 20 cents per gallon to pay for the Obama tax increases on oil and gas companies. Why doesn’t the President cut tax loopholes for ALL corporations including GE and Whirlpool who paid no income taxes this past year? And while the President is at it, why doesn’t he stop providing taxpayer funded loans to “green” companies with bad credit ratings such as Solyndra? Can we at least apply tax laws fairly and consistently for ALL corporations?

The Buffet Rule – The Buffet Rule is a proposed tax hike on wealthy Americans making over 250 thousand dollars per year. First, Warren Buffet is a hypocrite. If Buffet wants to pay higher taxes he does not have itemize all his deductions, and he certainly does not have to take advantage of all the tax loopholes which enabled him to shelter his fortune from the IRS. Secondly, if the government applied a 100% tax rate to every family earning over 250 thousand dollars per year, it would not account for 33% of the federal deficit this year. This means the only true way to reduce the deficit is by reining in out of control government spending. Thirdly, we must consider the Laffer Effect. The Laffer Effect states there is an ideal tax rate and any tax above this ideal rate would yield less government revenue, not more. What is the ideal tax rate – most studies indicate it is about 33%. Today, many Americans already pay more than 33% in taxes – including local, state, and federal taxes. After all, when tax rates are too high, it reduces the incentive for people to earn more money. I ran models to understand the effects of raising the tax rate on wealthy Americans from 35% to 39.6%. The results indicated that the federal government could collect additional revenues, around 100 to 200 billion dollars per year. But the models also indicated consumer spending would decrease by 700 to 800 billion dollars annually – equating to a 5% decline in GDP. These results are catastrophic and could lead to the reduction of 1 to 2 million jobs nationally.

Afghanistan War – It sounds like Obama is waiving the white flag and is going to surrender in Afghanistan. If intelligence suggests the terror threat from Afghanistan is a national threat to the U.S., then Obama should finish what he started. Why support a troop surge and increase drone attacks only to admit defeat? This simply does not make any sense. Besides, this year the U.S. has cut military spending dramatically in Iraq, but our nation still faces massive budget shortfalls.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Monday, September 19, 2011

Obama's Lowlights (9/19/11)

New Online Game – Try your luck at a new online game to see how many Tea Party Zombies you can kill.

Mexican Drug Cartels – According to the Wall Street Journal, the DOJ released an Arizona man who confessed to supplying Mexican drug cartels with grenades and other weaponry.

Oil Industry – The American Petroleum Institute issued a report saying the industry can create one million new jobs if a Canada to Texas pipeline is constructed; if natural gas exploration is expanded in New York and other states; and if proposals to expand offshore drilling are allowed.

Michigan – Michigan enacted a law that will place a 4 year limit on welfare. It was only a matter of time before this type of reform was put in place. States and the federal government simply cannot afford to issue individuals a lifetime of welfare benefits.

Unions – Hundreds of unionized longshoremen stormed a Washington State port – they destroyed goods and took hostages over a labor dispute. Miraculously, no one was hurt or arrested. I wonder what the media coverage would have looked like had Tea Party members done something similar.

Patents – Congress passed Patent reform legislation for the first time in 60 years. I do not know enough about the new law to know if it will work or if it will fail to stop U.S. corporate ideas from being infringed upon by global competitors.

Civility – Several liberals were arrested at a Paul Ryan town hall meeting.

Richard Trumka – Richard Trumka was one of Obama’s honored guests at his Jobs Speech. He authored an editorial on the 10th anniversary of 9/11 by honoring AFL-CIO union members. You have to read it to believe it – the article was nothing more than repulsive hate speech.

MSNBC – The network got a boost to its ratings when it covered the GOP debate held at the Reagan Library in California.

Paul Krugman – The classy NY Times columnist is calling Giuliani and Bush “Fake Heroes” who cashed in on 9-11. There is no question that Krugman is a divisive and polarizing figure, but he should try to put politics aside and attempt to unite citizens when our country faces such turbulent times.

Europe – The Euro crisis has flared up again over continued concerns about the Greece default situation. As a result, the Euro hit a 10 year low versus the Yen. Italy has also passed austerity measures to correct massive government shortfalls.

Campaign – The DNC has begun running TV ads in swing states to support the Presidents 477 billion dollar jobs plan. Good luck with that.

Obama’s Economic Plan – The plan sets aside 25 billion to fix “run-down” schools. This sounds noble, but nicer classrooms does not necessarily equate to a better education.

Afghanistan – The U.S. embassy in Kabul was attacked killing 10 people and wounding dozens more. This tragedy is a stark reminder that the situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate despite the troop surge.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Preventing Another Solyndra

Solyndra is the now bankrupt solar company, which was the Obama administration’s poster company for green energy. What’s troubling is that Solyndra not only squandered 535 million dollars in taxpayer stimulus, but it was also learned that White House economic advisors urged Obama that Solyndra was a very risky company, analogous to a private investor buying a penny stock. Not only did the White House ignore its economic advisors and move forward with the Solyndra loan, they offered the loan at a 1% interest rate – this is unheard of especially for a company that only had a B+ rating. To make matters worse, when the administration learned that Solyndra would go belly up they rewrote the loan to guarantee the first 75 million dollars recovered in bankruptcy would go to their investors, not the taxpayers. And what was equally troubling was learning about the 50,000 dollar campaign contribution Obama received from Solyndra’s CEO in 2008. Solyndra is one of many troubling stories when the government gets involved in the private sector – the end result is a lot of fraud, waste, and corruption.

Liberals argue that Obama’s intervention into the auto industry saved a total collapse of that market. First, Bush started this program, which incidentally was a very bad decision. Secondly, the nearly 100 billion dollars in loans to both GM and Chrysler did not stop the inevitable – bankruptcy. Yes, it was ultimately bankruptcy that led to the restructuring of the failed business models that helped GM and Chrysler to rebound. The 100 billion dollars in loans merely delayed the inevitable. Hence, it was not government interference that saved the auto industry; it was a private sector tool - bankruptcy.

The same argument can be made about the Wall Street bailouts. Sure, the Toxic Asset Relief Program (TARP) may have saved a few banks, but many would have survived without government loans. And those companies that did fail would have faced any one of number of private sector options including declaring bankruptcy or being acquired by a more solvent competitor. The bottom line is that the financial market would have recovered without government interference. What was criminal were the government failures that led directly to the financial collapse and received no scrutiny or reform – Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the SEC, and the Federal Reserve.

But the real question is how can we prevent another Solyndra fiasco? Sure we can dwell on blame and fault, but at some point we must correct the mistakes that were made. The bottom line is that the government has no business meddling in the private sector. The end result of government interference leads to lawyers, lobbyists, and campaign finance based on quid pro quo transactions. And all of this ultimately leads to fraud, corruption, and waste.

Liberals are a big fan of Separation of Church and State. I am too (even though it is NOT part of our Constitution). The reason I support this is simple, if the government or even the private sector give or receive favors from one religion than other religions would rightfully expect the same cooperation. The same can be said of government interference into private industry or organizations. Why do some companies and organizations receive stimulus funding, bailouts, government contracts, and favorable regulations while others do not? It is politics – the corporations and organizations that are represented by expensive lawyers or lobbyists and or give the biggest campaign contributions reap the benefits of favorable legislation. If we want to reform Washington politics than federal government policy towards companies and organizations must be one of laissez faire.

I too am a fan of laissez faire towards global policy unless it is a matter of national security and there is an eminent threat against the people of the United States. Global policy towards nations and global organizations, such as the U.N., can also lead to waste, corruption, and fraud. Some say I am a hypocrite because they believe I favor Jews over Arabs in the Middle East and this violates my belief of laissez faire and separation of church and state. This is not true; I favor Israel (democracy) over Palestine (dictatorship), but believe we have no place to interfere in their affairs unless it is a threat to our national security.

One reason that GE and Whirlpool do not pay any U.S. corporate taxes is because they have been able to lobby for favorable legislation that provides them tax credits for making energy efficient products. Is this fair? Of course not since the same regulations do not even apply to other green companies. Why are some companies and organizations receiving waivers to certain provisions within Obamacare legislation and other are not? It is simple; those that are represented by expensive lawyers in DC do not have to follow the same set of laws that other, less wealthy, businesses or organizations have to.

The same concept is true for organizations as well as companies. As long as ACORN and the AFL-CIO continue to receive government funding, they will continue to use any means possible to get the candidates who support their causes elected into office. ACORN and AFL-CIO leaders have stooped to fraud and corruption to get the politicians of their choice elected into office and they too, employ expensive DC lawyers to lobby for favorable legislation – card check, the fairness doctrine, or lenient voter registration requirements.

As long as the federal government continues to interfere into the business of private sector organizations and companies, there will be a vicious cycle of fraud, corruption, and waste that is part of the process. Decisions on legislation, policy, and regulation will be made based solely on which company or organization has the biggest pockets. Who are the losers from these actions? The common American citizen and small businesses are the big losers. This goes a long way to explain why there is a growing gap between rich and poor (the poor do not have lobbyists). Yes, class warfare is due to the greed of not only corporations, but the greed of government and private organizations.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Obama's Lowlights (9/16/11)

Elections – The GOP sweep special elections in NY-9 and NV-2. In NY-9 a Republican won for the first time since 1922!

UN – According to a Wikileaks document, UN peacekeepers withheld food from under aged starving girls in the Ivory Coast unless they performed sexual acts.

Fast and Furious – According to testimony it was revealed three White House officials were briefed on Operation Fast and Furious: Kevin M. O'Reilly, director of North American Affairs for the White House national security staff; Dan Restrepo, the president's senior Latin American advisor; and Greg Gatjanis, a White House national security official. The White House still denies these claims.

Regulation – Obama had this to say when he nixed one of his EPA regulations: "I have continued to underscore the importance of reducing regulatory burdens and regulatory uncertainty, particularly as our economy continues to recover." Does this mean that Obama really does understand the economic implications of passing hundreds of regulations and laws? But he still enacted these regulations at the expense of the economy!

Libya – Abdel Hakim Belhaj is a founding member and former leader of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), which is listed by both the U.S. State Department and the British Home Office as an international terrorist organization. Unfortunately, Belhaj is also the leader of the Libya opposition movement.

Illegal Aliens – The Washington Post reports the Internal Revenue Service allowed undocumented workers to collect $4.2 billion in refundable tax credits last year, a new audit says, almost quadruple the sum five years ago.

MyPlate.gov – Yes, the Department of Agriculture has a new website and will soon enforce more expensive labels to be placed on food products. I really do not have a problem with the government having an official list of health guidelines, but the government has no business forcing their guidelines on the public.

Climate Change – The latest from leftist greenies – “climate change causes mental illness.” Once again, they failed to back this up with data or facts.

Labor Day – I missed this one last week, but someone told me that Obama celebrated Labor Day in Detroit (the city with the highest unemployment rate in the country).

Teemsters – Union leader, Jim Hoffa, claims that the companies which employ his union workers are “unpatriotic”. I suppose being unemployed is more patriotic these days.

Homosexuals – A USA Today article states that homosexual men are 600% more likely to cheat on their partner than heterosexual men.

California – According to the LA Times over 75% of Californians do not like the direction of the country or their state, but do not expect anything to change – “California voters are increasingly downcast about the direction of the country, but — like their leaders in Washington — many would rather adhere to party orthodoxy than compromise to address the current economic problems, a new USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times poll shows. ...”

Post Office – Postmaster General, Patrick Donahoe, testified before Congress that they can no longer meet healthcare obligations for its employees.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Promises

This is an easy topic to cover. Never make a promise you cannot keep. It is as simple as that. I have been promised many things throughout my life (mostly in my work career) that were never fulfilled. That is wrong, and it is a good way to lose trust and credibility with employees, friends, or family. I too fell into this trap when others perceived I was making a promise on a couple of occasions. This happened when employees that worked for me interpreted subtle suggestions that I made as a promise. Most of these failures in communications occurred with individuals that were from other nations, and they translated the English language differently. I have learned my lesson. That is why I am always clear when making statements or discussing hypothetical future possibilities with others. I always clarify whether it is a promise or not regardless of whom I am talking with.

Breaking a promise is a common mistake that corporate and national leaders do much too often. Worse yet, they break promises they never intended to keep. For example, how many promises do politicians actually keep when they get in office? A politician that keeps half of their campaign promises is actually doing pretty well. That is why the American public does not have a high opinion of politicians. When politicians do not keep campaign promises the public no longer trusts them. Unfortunately, playing politics is not limited to politicians. Corporate leaders and employees use politics to get ahead in the work place. Hence, they too make promises they cannot keep. People use politics and failed promises in almost every aspect of human life. Any time a person uses a promise that they have no intention of keeping to manipulate a situation or another person, is nothing more than a liar and is playing politics at its best. This type of conniving, manipulative, and malicious behavior is becoming the norm in our society. In fact, most business classes I took through my employer such as Dale Carnegie taught us how to use this repulsive behavior. They teach you how to manipulate others to get your way at any cost. They also taught me that I should never disagree with my supervisor for any reason. Our growing intolerance to work with people that have different opinions forces many to make false promises. This way they can manipulate or trick others into agreeing with their point of view.

In most cases politicians break promises because opposing political parties will not let them enact their points of view. This can be good, but it could also be bad. We should not dismiss another person’s promise or point of view without at least hearing them out. I moved to a small town in Colorado to get away from the hustle and tussle of big city politics. However, small towns are not immune to fights over politics. The city counsel and Mayor have had a few disagreements and now the counsel is trying to remove her from office. Regardless of where we live there is little tolerance for people with alternative view points. This is sad, especially when people use any type of deceitful and manipulative behavior, such as breaking promises to get their way. When we fail to listen to others with different view points or fail to speak our mind, it benefits no one. This is how we learn and educate ourselves to make good sound decisions. We should be encouraging different points of view instead of trying to cover them up and destroying the people who have them. Does this behavior sound familiar? Carrie Prejean and Sarah Palin are excellent examples of people that had different opinions so the media tried to destroy their image. America was not made great by adhering to the status quo. Our intolerance towards other view points is not only dividing this nation, but our plight to mediocrity is becoming apparent. The once mighty United States now falters as our auto and airline industries fail. We also continue to fail to gain energy independence. The United States lead others nations into the industrial revolution, now we are a follower behind other world powers. Not only are our inner cities and national infrastructure systems for energy and transportation decaying and crumbling, so too is our ability to think and innovate. All of this because we are intolerant and closed minded to different view points. What is even more concerning is the orders of magnitude we will go to stifle different view points instead of being open minded about different ideas, issues, or solutions to a problem. For example, the Democrats tackled health care reform and did not include Republicans in the debate.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Barnes and Noble, Amazon.com)

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

The Relationship Between Healthcare Costs and Good Health (Part III)

Below are the results of running a linear regression analysis on the model posted in Part I of this series of blogs solving for Doctors Per Capita (the average number of doctors per 1000 people), Nurses Per Capita (the average number of nurses per 1000 people), and Life Expectancy (the average life span for Americans):


Doctors Per Capita

R2 1
SE 0.007

Coefficient Value 2009 Doctors Per Capita Projection Doctors Per Capita
Intercept -6.69700000 1 -6.697 1 -6.697
Priv Total 0.00000987 194545 1.919633879 194545 1.919633879
Gov Total 0.00001970 93167 1.8353899 124000 2.4428
No Ins 0.00002249 50674 1.139708934 20000 0.44982
Costs GDP -0.21950000 16.2 -3.5559 17 -3.7315
Exp Per Capita 0.00108800 7700 8.3776 9000 9.792
Health Ins Rate -0.00054610 13375 -7.3040875 15000 -8.1915
Obesity 0.01810000 28 0.5068 33 0.5973
Nurses Per Capita 0.43080000 9.7 4.17876 8 3.4464
Life Expectancy 0.02561000 78 1.99758 76 1.94636

Result 2.398485213 1.974313879


Nurses Per Capita

R2 1
SE 0.02

Coefficient Value 2009 Nurses Per Capita Projection Nurses Per Capita
Intercept 13.630000 1 13.63 1 13.63
Priv Total -0.000030 194545 -5.928369785 194545 -5.928369785
Gov Total -0.000052 93167 -4.890708498 124000 -6.509256
No Ins -0.000060 50674 -3.0252378 20000 -1.194
Costs GDP 0.541500 16.2 8.7723 17 9.2055
Exp Per Capita -0.002616 7700 -20.1432 9000 -23.544
Health Ins Rate 0.001300 13375 17.3875 15000 19.5
Obesity -0.024430 28 -0.68404 33 -0.80619
Doctors Per Capita 2.107000 2.4 5.0568 2 4.214
Life Expectancy -0.005975 78 -0.46605 76 -0.4541

Result 9.708993917 8.113584215


Life Expectancy

R2 1
SE 0.07

Coefficient Value 2009 Life Expectancy Projection Life Expectancy
Intercept 45.6900000 1 45.69 1 45.69
Priv Total 0.0001132 194545 22.022494 194545 22.022494
Gov Total 0.0000964 93167 8.982789472 124000 11.955584
No Ins 0.0001049 50674 5.3157026 20000 2.098
Costs GDP -0.3766000 16.2 -6.10092 17 -6.4022
Exp Per Capita 0.0012130 7700 9.3401 9000 10.917
Health Ins Rate -0.0003751 13375 -5.0169625 15000 -5.6265
Obesity -0.2591000 28 -7.2548 33 -8.5503
Doctors Per Capita 2.5920000 2.4 6.2208 2 5.184
Nurses Per Capita -0.1237000 9.7 -1.19989 8 -0.9896

Result 77.99931357 76.298478


The above model results have excellent correlation as illustrated by the R² variable equal to 1. The doctors per capita will decrease from 2.4 to 2, the nurses per capita will decrease from 9.7 to 8.1, and the life expectancy will decrease from 78 to 76.2 years old by moving 30 million Americans with no healthcare insurance to government run healthcare insurance plans. It has already been determined that Exp Per Capita (the annual average healthcare expenditures per capita), Costs GDP (the healthcare industry size as a percent of GDP), Health Ins Rate (the annual family healthcare insurance premium rate), and the Obesity rate will increase in this model. On the other hand, it was determined that the Life Expectancy, the Doctors Per Capita, and Nurses Per Capita will all go down. Those numbers are updated in the projection column in the above table.


My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Social Security

The main issue with social security is that it may be bankrupt in the next twenty years or possibly sooner if we do not get out of this recession. As the baby boomers retire, they will begin to deplete social security at a fast rate. After 2025, Americans are not guaranteed social security once they reach sixty-two if the program is not fixed. When I planned for my own retirement, social security never entered into the equation. It simply is not a reliable source of income. The amount received from social security will be fairly finite when compared to an individual’s current salary. Social security is more at risk when the government is operating at a deficit as opposed to a surplus. When the government is operating at a deficit, social security funds may be used to curtail the deficit or pay for other programs. The bottom line is that the government does not have the money to pay social security benefits past 2025.

Privatization is not necessarily a bad idea. With privatization, the government will still tax Americans for social security. But, instead of monies being controlled by the government, Americans will have control over their taxed money. The money will go into an account, and each American will be able to invest the money the same way as with a 401K plan. The government would decide on what the investment options would be, but the bottom line is that the money will be there when an individual retires. The same general rules would apply; the money could not be withdrawn until a person reaches at least sixty-two years of age. The government cannot go into your account and withdraw any money to pay for a war or to decrease the deficit. It is safe. Better yet, American’s can grow their account at a much faster rate than if it were under the government’s control. Hence, the amount in our social security accounts could be higher when we retire under a privatized plan as opposed to the current socialized plan. This is because Americans can invest their social security funds in riskier stock market investments. The government does not invest monies in the social security account into the stock market. Growth is dependent only on the national GNP growth. Even by investing in relatively safe mutual funds, these accounts should outperform the national GNP growth over the long haul. Besides, government bureaucracy and red tape to maintain the program neutralizes and even diminishes gains and growth. There is just way too much waste in government, and it costs Americans in the long run, especially for social security. For young people that are a long way to retirement, riskier investments over the long haul generally pay off. However, high-risk investments for those close to retirement would not be recommended because there is a better chance to lose money. That is one of the issues that Democrats have with the privatization of social security: they are afraid that Americans would make bad investment choices and lose money. That is ironic because the government has be negligent and mismanaged social security. Investment risk can be alleviated by allowing only a few of the top performing mutual funds for citizens to choose from.

The reason privatization is not a viable option is because Social Security is run like a Ponzi scheme. In other words, my social security taxes are being used to fund current retirees. When I reach 62 the government will pay for my social security from the taxes collected from younger citizens. Hence, the money is currently not available for the government to place social security in private accounts. This is a travesty and why the government has mismanaged social security and other social programs.

Instead, to keep social security alive the government will be forced to raise taxes. The social security cap can be raised from its current level of $97,500. Currently, if a person makes over $97,500, social security only taxes them up to the $97,500 cap. Thus, raising the cap to $120,000 may be a viable solution. This sounds reasonable, but remember businesses match social security taxes and by raising the cap, it will raise the taxes on corporations and small businesses. And higher taxes on corporations are not the way to keep the economy thriving.

Everything the government tries to manage, even with good intentions, turns into a fiscal fiasco. Social Security is a mess and it is not going to be easy to fix.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Monday, September 12, 2011

Obama's Lowlights (9/12/11)

VFW – The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) is livid over the snub by the White House when Obama declined to speak at their annual convention.

Abortion – A Texas Judge ruled against the state law requiring that sonograms be done before an abortion surgery is performed.

Muslims – A Pew Research poll indicated that 7% of American-Muslims feel that suicide bombings are sometimes justified. This number is much higher than I expected – this equates to nearly 200 thousand people living in this country that condone suicide bombings. Meanwhile, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has been offended by a 9/11 coloring book for children.

New Regulations – The White House is considering 7 new environmental regulations (by the EPA) that by its own estimates will cost the economy 1 billion dollars per year. Conservatives estimate the number to be much larger and want these regulations to be approved by Congress before they are enacted into law.

Allan West – The conservative congressman from Florida is contemplating quitting the Congressional Black Caucus (He is the only conservative on the caucus and is tired of hearing demeaning remarks about the Tea Party).

Kyle Wible – The 20 year old is the latest victim to be killed by an illegal alien drunk driver (Roberto Salamanca), who incidentally was deported twice before the accident.

Solyndra – Obama’s favorite solar company is filing for bankruptcy, but not before they squandered millions in taxpayer stimulus funding. This is a good example as to why government intervention into the private sector does not work. And what’s worse, the FBI is involved investigating the business.

Obama’s Jobs Speech – The self-proclaimed bipartisan Obama wanted to hold his jobs speech during the same time spot as the GOP debate. How’s that for gamesmanship? Obama was forced to reschedule after this obvious attempt at partisanship turned into a national storyline.

Hilda Solis – Obama’s Labor Secretary, when addressing the Christian Science Monitor, was bragging about her new fuel efficient American made car. Unfortunately, it was later revealed that her Chevy SUV was actually built in Canada.

Andre Carson – The Indiana Democratic Congressman suggested Tea Party followers would “love to see me hanging on a tree” (Carson is African-American). This is utterly disgusting; does this man have no shame? Apparently not since Carson issued no apology for these repulsive remarks.

Wisconsin – The Milwaukee Sentinel Journal and a reporter for Good Day Wisconsin have admitted the Scott Walker budget is working. The new law is not only saving school districts thousands of dollars, but the policy has also saved hundreds of teaching jobs.

Hollywood – Finally, an AP news report is calling out green Hollywood stars for being hypocritical. The report states that the making of any Hollywood movie can emit the same amount of CO2 as a town of 2500 people can emit in a year.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Friday, September 9, 2011

Temporary

Two and a half years after the failed Recovery Act (the nearly 900 billion dollar stimulus), Obama addressed the nation and is now seeking an additional 447 billion dollars in government stimulus funding (and Obama proposed this stimulus with a straight face). This is once again another futile attempt to resurrect our sick economy. And to make matters worse, Obama plans on paying for the proposed stimulus partly by increasing government revenues (which generally means higher taxes for the wealthy, which Obama alluded to in his speech). In fact, Obama laid out no plan as to how he will pay for the massive stimulus. Hence, it cannot be scored by the CBO. Obama hinted at reforming social security, but Democrats will not let that happen.

I have outlined, in numerous blogs, as to why stimulus spending (especially deficit spending) does not work. Keynesian economics has failed time and time again during the 20th century. Government spending failed to turn around the U.S. economy when FDR and Jimmy Carter implemented spending programs during the 1930s and 1970s respectively. FDR’s socialized spending programs never returned unemployment to conventional levels – it was World War II that corrected the economy (although the war added billions in federal deficits). Keynesian economic theory states inflation and unemployment are inversely related. However, during the Carter years both unemployment and inflation were high. And the same thing is happening under Obama, not only have unemployment numbers remained at high levels for an inordinate amount of time, but inflation is also on the rise (food, energy, and healthcare costs have combined to go up over 20% this year). Still, Democrats and Obama want to make the same mistake over and over again.

There is a very simple explanation as to why the first stimulus and this second proposed stimulus will fail – the money is temporary. Stimulus spending is analogous to using a band aide to stop the bleeding of a severed artery or using duct tape to fix a leaking radiator. It ain’t going to work! Over 90% of stimulus money goes to funding something that is temporary. Stimulus funding to prevent home foreclosures works until the money runs out. Once the money runs out people are still forced to foreclose on homes they cannot afford. The same can be said to stimulus funding to build a bridge, extend unemployment, support green companies, or to save a teaching job – it works temporary until the money runs out. There is nothing innovative or strategic about this type of approach or policy. In fact, this is the solution of many liberal policies – throw money at the problem. This simply does not work because there are potentially thousands of variables which need to be addressed to fix any complex problem and money is just one variable. For instance, throwing money at a failing school district rarely works if the bad curriculum, administration, and teachers remain the same.

If you are in debt and cannot pay your bills what do you do? The last thing you should do is to spend more money and get further into debt. Individuals, corporations, and the federal government cannot spend their way out of debt and into prosperity. It simply does not work, but this is exactly the philosophy used by our federal government for the past century. Now our national debt is so high we are teetering on financial oblivion. Still, Obama is insisting on spending more money and raising taxes – these are both recipes for disaster during a recession.

Why are tax breaks a better solution to solve a recession? First, tax breaks are strategic (can last as long as needed) and secondly, the money goes directly to the consumer and corporations. The money does not have to be funneled through several government and union bureaucracies where less than 50% of the money goes to its intended cause – therefore, tax breaks eliminate waste, fraud, and bureaucracies. It is that simple.

Below are few Obamaisms from his speech that are just not true or certainly cannot be guaranteed:

• "Everything in this bill will be paid for. Everything." And "It will not add to the deficit." – Never in our history has a nearly half trillion dollar bill been paid for and did not add to the deficit. Besides, there is NO “Bill” – it is a fictitious document that only exists in the Obama imagination – there is nothing on paper.
• "Everything in here is the kind of proposal that's been supported by both Democrats and Republicans, including many who sit here tonight." – There is very little both Democrats and Republicans agree on, especially issues Obama raised such as entitlement reform and tax increases.
• "The American Jobs Act answers the urgent need to create jobs right away." – Not a chance, there is no such thing as shovel ready jobs nor does the government bureaucracy move quickly. It will not happen.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Obama's Lowlights (9/8/11)

Iraq – Obama wants to reduce troop levels to 3000 starting next year. Time will tell if this is a good move.

Al Gore – He is comparing global warming critics to segregationists from the 1960s. First, it was mostly Democrats that were the segregationists in the 1960s and secondly, this statement clearly illustrates that Gore understands very little about the science and math behind global warming models (if he did, he would use that argument instead of insane analogies).

Virginia Earthquake – Liberal radio and television personality, Thom Hartmann, is blaming the cause of the magnitude 5.8 quake on fracking. Fracking is the process by which natural gas is released from the earth. Unfortunately, Hartmann has absolutely no evidence or data to back his claims. And most importantly, Hartmann is not a seismologist.

Alan Krueger – Obama has tabbed Krueger, a University of Princeton Economic Professor, to be the new Chief Economist in his administration. Krueger believes that cap and trade creates jobs – enough said.

TSA – A former TSA employee, Minetta Walker, pleaded guilty to allowing a convicted drug dealer circumvent the screening process at Buffalo’s international airport.

Gibson Guitars – The DOJ raided Gibson Guitars for the second time to see if they are using illegal woods / ivory in the manufacturing of their guitars. It has been nearly two years since the first raid and no charges have been filed. I am glad to see the DOJ has its priorities set properly.

Onyango Obama – Obama’s illegal alien uncle, Onyango Obama, was arrested in Massachusetts for driving under the influence.

S&P 500 – The current levels of the index are around the same levels as in 1982.

Economy – Home sales in July fell 1.3% as the housing market continues to remain sluggish.

FEMA – The disaster aid department is short on money to confront damages made by Hurricane Irene. This is what happens when one, the government spends money it does not have and two, the government fails to prioritize for disasters. FEMA estimates they may have a 5 billion dollar short fall in required funding.

Kenneth Melson – The former head of the ATF was moved to the Office of Legal Policy and did not lose his job over his role in operation Fast and Furious. On the other hand, the former U.S. Attorney for Arizona, Dennis Burke, did resign because of his role in operation Fast and Furious.

Gay Education - The American Civil Liberties Union and the Alliance Defense Fund are going head to head over internet filters used by school administrators to block students’ access to gay educational and advocacy websites. According to the Washington Times, the ACLU has sent warning letters to school districts advising them that these filters are unconstitutional and must be removed to “avoid any potential litigation.” But David Cortman from ADF counters that “school districts shouldn’t be bullied into exposing students to sexually explicit materials.”

Afghanistan – A record 66 American soldiers lost their lives during the conflict in the month of August.

9/11 – The Obama administration is so afraid that 9/11 ten year anniversary memorial services might offend other people; they have outlined memorial service guidelines.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

The Relationship Between Healthcare Costs and Good Health (Part II)

Below is the result of running a linear regression analysis on the model posted in Part I of this series of blogs solving for Health Ins Rate (the average annual health insurance rate for American families):


n 11

R2 1.00
Adjusted R2 1.00
SE 11.5

Term Coefficient 95% CI SE t statistic DF p
Intercept -9818 -121313 to 101678 8774.9 -1.12 1 0.4643
Priv Total 0.02536 -0.23553 to 0.28625 0.020532 1.24 1 0.4333
Gov Total 0.04183 -0.15634 to 0.24000 0.015596 2.68 1 0.2272
No Ins 0.04766 -0.18862 to 0.28393 0.018595 2.56 1 0.2368
Costs GDP -419.5 -1044.8 to 205.7 49.21 -8.53 1 0.0743
Exp Per Capita 2.019 0.853 to 3.185 0.0918 22.01 1 0.0289
Doctors Per Capita -1564 -9780 to 6652 646.6 -2.42 1 0.2496
Nurses Per Capita 761.2 -247.6 to 1769.9 79.39 9.59 1 0.0662
Life Expectancy -10.61 -2143.47 to 2122.25 167.860 -0.06 1 0.9598
Obesity 13.93 -618.89 to 646.75 49.804 0.28 1 0.8263


Source of variation Sum squares DF Mean square F statistic p
Model 67361655.0 9 7484628.3 56285.47 0.0033
Residual 133.0 1 133.0
Total 67361788.0 10

Coefficient Value 2009 Health Insurance Rate Projection Health Insurance Rate
Intercept -9818 1 -9818 1 -9818
Priv Total 0.02536 194545 4933.6612 194545 4933.6612
Gov Total 0.04183 93167 3897.17561 124000 5186.92
No Ins 0.04766 50674 2415.12284 20000 953.2
Costs GDP -419.5 16.2 -6795.9 17 -7131.5
Exp Per Capita 2.019 7700 15546.3 9000 18171
Obesity 13.93 28 390.04 33 459.69
Life Expectancy -10.61 78 -827.58 76 -806.36
Doctors Per Capita -1564 2.4 -3753.6 2 -3128
Nurses Per Capita 761.2 9.7 7383.64 8 6089.6

Result 13370.85965 14910.2112


The above model has excellent correlation as illustrated by the R² variable equal to 1. The results indicate the annual health insurance rate will go up by over 1500 dollars annually by moving 30 million people with no health insurance to a government run health insurance plan. It has already been determined that the Exp Per Capita (annual average healthcare expenditure per capita), Costs GDP (healthcare costs as a percent of GDP), and the Obesity rate will all go up in this model. On the other hand, it was determined that the Life Expectancy, the Doctors Per Capita, and Nurses Per Capita will all go down. Those numbers are updated in the projection column in the above table.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Political Suicide

Political Suicide is the crux of the problem as to why the government will never use motivational, commonsense or incentive based policies to resolve our issues. A good example of political suicide is this blog. If my intentions were to get elected to a public office, I would probably not win an election if potential voters read this blog. The over sensitive public would view this text as being discriminatory against the poor, minorities, obese people, ignorant people, and so on. That is why our government cannot stop social programs that benefit the economically disadvantaged because it is political suicide. They would lose the vote of any economically disadvantaged people if the government forced them to work for their welfare checks. They would also lose the vote of potentially one-third of the obese public if they penalized them with higher insurance premiums or taxed the food they desire. Political suicide is the dilemma that sits between our country and resolving our sensitive political issues.

One reason I failed to receive any managerial positions later in my career was because I committed political suicide. I was unconventional and went against conformity. I stated my beliefs and opinions that conflicted with organizational and corporate policies. I spoke out against concepts when I did not agree with them. Hence, I did not have many friends in high places in the company. However, I would not change my attitude or personality for any managerial job. I would not brown nose and conform for a job, nor would I lower my standards or scruples for corporate advancement. I could not live with myself for becoming a liar and an individual whom I despise. Unfortunately, these are the personalities and characteristics of many corporate and political leaders. That is the problem today. In order to prevent political suicide, politicians lie, cheat, sit on the fence, brown nose, and do whatever it takes to win an election. They do whatever it takes to avoid upsetting or offending anyone that could cost them votes. As long as we have politicians who lack the “balls” to say exactly what they believe, nothing is going to be resolved. This is another reason why term limits may be a good thing. During a politician’s final term, they may actually grow the “balls” to do the right thing. After all, it does not matter if they offend anyone because they are not going to be up for reelection.
There is one example that may give us a glimmer of hope to overcome political suicide and fix our national problems. The United States over the years has discriminated against tobacco use and smokers. Obama continues to meddle in this industry. We have been able to overcome the smoking stigma and drastically reduced the number of users by over fifty percent the past two decades. If our local, state, and national government can eliminate smoking in our restaurants, work places, and in most public areas, then why can’t we do the same thing to reform entitlements? Governments fought large tobacco firms such as Phillip Morris to reduce the number of smokers. The government used incentives such as taxing tobacco heavily to influence people not buy or use cigarettes. What makes the “cigarette example” so unique that our government will not follow suit to use a similar approach to reform entitlements? First, the demographics of those people that smoked cigarettes were fairly diverse, unlike many entitlements where minority groups and the elderly dominate the demographics of people using these programs. Secondly, smoking in public areas was proved to not only affect the health of those smoking, but second hand smoke was affecting the health of other non-smokers. The same cannot be said about people accepting handouts, but there is no question accepting handouts is contagious and growing out of control – like smoking cigarettes decades ago. For these reasons, today, most people are okay with the government sticking it to the cigarette companies. In other words, it is popular policy. In order to make changes to the entitlement programs we must overcome the stigma that corporations are evil and the government is good. I am not a fan of government interference in the private sector, but my point is if the government can take on tobacco companies they can take on Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. Republican representative Paul Ryan is the first politician in years to propose changes to these entitlement programs to make them solvent. But I am not holding my breath that Democrats will offer any solutions to the problem.
My Book: Is America Dying? (Barnes and Noble, Amazon.com)

Monday, September 5, 2011

The Relationship Between Healthcare Costs and Good Health

What is the relationship between healthcare costs and good health? They are not only closely related, they correlate perfectly. Data was broken down into 10 classifications and was evaluated over the past 11 years (1999 – 2009 – there was not much data on the subject earlier than 1999). This data was obtained from multiple sites including the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Census Bureau, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development . A linear error model was created to evaluate the data to see the impact of moving millions of uninsured persons into government run healthcare (this is an attempt to model the potential outcome of the recently passed ObamaCare legislation). To understand how to create and evaluate a linear error model please refer to my blogs: Creating an Election Model Part I, Part II, and Part III on Oct 4, 5, and 6 2010. Below is the data used in the linear error model:


Year Priv Total Gov Total No Ins Costs GDP Exp Per Capita Doctors Per Capita Nurses Per Capita Life Expectancy Obesity Health Ins Rate
2009 194,545 93,167 50,674 16.2 7,700 2.40 9.7 78 28 13375
2008 200,992 87,411 46,340 16.0 7,538 2.40 9.5 78 27.5 12680
2007 201,991 83,031 45,657 15.7 7,285 2.40 9.5 77.9 26.6 12106
2006 201,690 80,270 46,995 15.5 6,931 2.40 9.6 77.7 26.2 11480
2005 201,167 80,213 44,815 15.4 6,563 2.40 9.9 77.4 25.3 10880
2004 200,924 79,486 43,498 15.4 6,196 2.40 9.8 77.4 24.3 9950
2003 199,871 76,755 43,404 15.3 5,852 2.40 9.7 77.1 23.5 9068
2002 200,891 73,624 42,019 14.8 5,453 2.40 9.3 76.9 23.8 8003
2001 201,695 71,295 39,760 14.1 5,052 2.40 9.0 76.9 22.9 7061
2000 202,794 69,037 38,426 13.4 4,703 2.30 8.7 76.8 21.8 6438
1999 200,721 67,683 38,767 13.2 4,500 2.30 8.7 76.7 21 6000

Where Priv Total equals the number of Americans who own private healthcare insurance plans (in thousands of people); Gov Total equals the number of Americans who own government healthcare insurance plans (in thousands of people); No Ins equals the number of Americans who do not have any healthcare insurance (in thousands of people); Costs GDP equals the overall costs of running the healthcare industry as a percentage of the United States Gross Domestic Product (GDP); Exp Per Capita equals the annual expenditures for Americans on healthcare (in dollars); Doctors Per Capita equals the number of doctors per 1000 people; Nurses per Capita equals the number of nurses per 1000 people; Life Expectancy is average age of the American life span; Obesity is the percent of Americans who have a body mass index greater than 30; and Health Ins Rate is the average annual expense American families spends on health insurance premiums.

In Part II of this post we will begin to run various linear regression analyses on the above model to see the potential trends of implementing the ObamaCare legislation.

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Obama's Lowlights (9/4/11)

Obama – On the campaign stump, in 2008, Obama proclaimed adding 4 trillion dollars to the federal debt was unpatriotic. Well, Obama has already surpassed that level in a mere 2.5 years.

Camden, New Jersey – The city plans to pay a select group of troubled students 100 dollars to go to school for the first month of the year.

China – New national security reports point out the alarming rate of which China is modernizing its Army, Navy, and Air Force with state of the art weaponry.

Economy – Weekly jobless claims have been on the rise again, above 400,000. Meanwhile, the second quarter GDP number was adjusted downward to 1% from an already anemic 1.3%. The economy added no new jobs in August. The unemployment rate remained at 9.1% despite revised lower payrolls in June and July.

NY Times – The newspaper has published a piece by Bill Keller who investigated the churches attended by Republican presidential hopefuls. Keller wrote zero articles critiquing Obama’s religious beliefs or the churches he attended during his life or even as president – Remember Reverend Jeremiah Wright – the conspiracy theorist and race antagonist that the Obama family listened to for 20 years? So why is religion all the sudden an issue now?

Politicians – A new survey has found that only 1 in 5 politicians have a background in business or economics. Over 55% of politicians majored in a government related field or humanities. It is no wonder why we are in debt and have had unemployment over 9% for over 2 straight years.

Michelle Obama – A lot has been said about our President spending too much time on vacation, but Michelle is the much worse than her husband. This year alone she has spent 42 additional days on vacation than the President. Normally no one would care, but she is using taxpayer money to fund her trips and lavish expenses. In fact, even when Michelle vacations with the President, she often does not travel with him (i.e. the recent Martha’s Vineyard excursion). In essence, this doubles the expense of the trip and that tab is added to our debt. This is not only unacceptable behavior, but it is irresponsible. Her behavior has led Judicial Watch to file a lawsuit against Michelle’s trip to South Africa. They are demanding to see a detailed expense report.

ESPN – ESPN Magazine did a story on Michael Vick hypothesizing “What if he where White”. They even had a picture of a “White” Michael Vick.
The FED - With an economy in limbo, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke proposed no new steps last week to boost the economy. Instead Bernanke signaled that Congress must do more to promote growth, or risk delaying the economy's return to full health. Immediately after his speech, stocks plunged 200 points.

MSNBC – Who was their expert commentator for hurricane preparedness? Former New Orleans Mayor, Ray Nagin. Yes, Nagin did such a great job protecting the citizens of New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina hit the city – he must be an expert.

Illegal Immigration – Texas Governor, Rick Perry, billed the federal government 350 million dollars – the annual cost to imprison illegal immigrants in Texas. This seems very reasonable since the administration (DOJ) contends that states like Arizona have no right to enforce federal immigration laws. Therefore, this implies that the cost burden of enforcing and supporting illegal immigrants must fall on the federal government. Right?

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)

Thursday, September 1, 2011

Compassionate Conservatism

Until conservatives practice a “compassionate” form of their ideology, they will continue to be painted as racists that hate gays, immigrants, and the poor. This is far from the truth, but the media will not stop its attack on conservatives until we show more compassion. I personally have been labeled as a racist for my views on entitlements and diversity policies. This is not fair, but it is a reality. For instance, Rand Paul’s civil rights comments are a prime example of information being misconstrued by the media to paint conservatives, libertarians, and tea party members as evil racists.

Social issues include gay rights, immigration reform, abortion, and capital punishment to name a few. These social issues are, in my opinion, the easiest to compromise on and to show more compassion for opposing viewpoints. The only way to handle social issues, based on the Constitutions’ tenth amendment, is to have each individual state decide on the laws for abortion, gay rights, immigration reform, capital punishment, and so forth. Sure, I have an opinion on social issues, but this does not mean they should be solved at the federal level. Most conservatives claim to be constitutionalists, but at the same time most would love to have the Supreme Court rule against abortion and gay marriage even though they have absolutely no standing to do so. This is hypocrisy because most conservatives acknowledge the Supreme Court overstepped its authority when it ruled on Roe v Wade. The best way to compromise on these polarizing issues is to have each state designate their own set of laws. Some states will adapt conservative views on social issues while others will adapt liberal views. This gives American citizens the option to live in states that adapt laws that fit their ideology. Thus, conservatives should focus more on fiscal responsibility issues and smaller government than social issues. This is the easiest way to give others the impression that conservatives have some compassion over issues such as gay marriage. This would also help to lure independent voters and even minorities towards the GOP.

Most social issues should be private. I personally do not know the circumstances of women who are having an abortion. So who am I to say that a woman should not have an abortion if she was raped or may die giving birth? Rape and medical reasons may occur in less than 3% of all abortions, but the possibility exists. Yes, I think abortions are wrong, but it is easy to have some empathy and compassion for a woman that has been rapped.

Personally, there are many social issues I could support if individuals would only protest for their cause in a respectful manner. Proponents of gay marriage, for instance, would make more headway if they did not demonize adversaries as being evil (remember Carrie Prejean) and protest in a disrespectful way such as disrupting church services. The Constitution says that everyone is equal, thus I see no reason why two men or two women cannot be married. We should follow the golden rule to treat others the way we expect to be treated. I simply wish they would defend their cause in a respectful manner. I see the gay rights movement as being analogous to the women’s suffrage movement.

Compassionate conservatism does not ask people to change their social or moral views. It only asks that they pursue them as a state issue instead of as a national issue. It also asks that people try to empathize with the opposing viewpoint. What if for example, one of your children was gay or daughter was impregnated by a rapist? Would you still push for bans on abortion and gay marriage? Maybe your views would not change, but under these circumstances it is easier to have more compassion towards these views. That is by definition what compassion is: It is to put yourself in shoes of your adversaries.

Yes, in my opinion 97% of all abortions should be outlawed, but I am willing to compromise and let the individual states decide these issues. I do not understand homosexual behavior, but this is a private issue and since all Americans are equal everyone deserves the same freedoms including marriage. I have a conservative viewpoint when it comes to most social issues, but would like to think I have compassion for others that may be on the other side of the fence. Besides, fiscal issues such as entitlement budgets, health care, unemployment, and cap and trade should take priority over social views. After all, if America is in debt and going bankrupt, what good are gay marriage and abortion benefits if American citizens are struggling to survive?

My Book: Is America Dying? (Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble)