"Landmark" Legislation

"I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them." - Jefferson

I really don't have time to write a lot on this like in the old days, but suffice it to say that Congress has just passed a 2,500-page monstrosity that seriously erodes our freedoms, creates an entire generation of new government dependents, explodes an already-busted federal budget, all the while doing absolutely nothing to actually bring down health care costs.  Premiums will continue to soar because more people will have more employer-based insurance (which is the root of the problem to begin with).

But let's look on the bright side:  now more taxpayers will be even more responsible for subsidizing those that can't afford to buy coverage.  Employers will be punished and fined unless they give their workers the very form of insurance that causes health care costs to skyrocket out of control in the first place.  And finally, those cavalier rapscallions that choose not to buy insurance go precisely where they belong:  directly to jail!  Now that's truly the America I know and love!  

This is because the philosophy behind Democratic policy-making over the last 70+ years has been simple: create more Democrats. And the best way to do this is to make people more dependent on government than ever so that, come November, they will have no choice but to pull the lever with the "D" next to it. In that cause they have certainly succeeded: more people, both poor and middle-class, are now dependent on Washington than at any time in history. The portion of workers that actually pay income tax today is the smallest on record, while the portion of wage-earners that pay none has nearly reached a majority.  Meanwhile, the percentage of voters that benefit from social security, Medicare, Medicaid, S-Chip, federal education grants, FHA loans, and a bazillion other needless programs is easily the largest number we've ever seen.  Wonder who all these folks will choose come election time?  The party that pledges to maintain and expand these handouts or the one that wants to take them away? 

The good news is that some people are finally waking up:  according to a CNN poll, 59% of registered voters oppose the bill passed last night.  All I know is that if I'm a Republican running this fall, this would be my 5-point platform:

1.  Repeal of the health care bill
2.  A balanced budget amendment
3.  Term limits
4.  Allow workers under 55 to opt out of Social Security and Medicare
5.  Allow workers to opt out of the tax code and instead pay a 15% or 25% tax rate with no deductions.