Another Union Fight With Government Looming?

The financially strapped U.S. Postal Service is considering cutting as many as 120,000 jobs.

Facing a second year of losses totaling $8 billion or more, the agency also wants to pull its workers out of the retirement and health benefits plans covering federal workers and set up its own benefit systems.

Congressional approval would be needed for either step, and both could be expected to face severe opposition from postal unions which have contracts that ban layoffs.

The post office has cut 110,000 jobs over the last four years and is currently engaged in eliminating 7,500 administrative staff. In its 2010 annual report, the agency said it had 583,908 career employees.

Postal officials have said they will be unable to make a $5.5 billion payment to cover future employee health care costs due Sept. 30. It is the only federal agency required to make such a payment but, because of the complex way government finances are counted, eliminating it would make the federal budget deficit appear $5.5 billion larger.
More Here

Question:  Is this an example of the future of Obamacare?  Why don't they just raise the cost of mail to raise revenues like Obama wants to raise taxes to raise revenues instead of cutting expenses? If it works for Obama then it should work for the Postal Service, no? At least Keynesian Economics says so.

Psychology Doesn't Know as Much as It Thought It Did

Therapy sometimes did more harm than good and people were more resilient than expected, experts say.

Does make a person wonder just how many persons have been harmed by those so-called experts over the years that Psychologists thought they knew enough to apply their theories, doesn't it?

And what does this imply about the discipline of Sociology?

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Your Tax Dollar Hard at Work (Part II)

We speak of that new millionaire who is still using food stamps but we can't blame him for it. He is using them in accordance to the laws in regards to food stamps. We also cannot blame the State of Michigan either for the State is only following the guidelines of the federal government out of whose treasury the money comes for food stamps.

You and I may consider what he is doing as being unethical and the man is without scruples for abusing the system outside of its intent and purpose. But if we acknowledge that laws can influence the way a man thinks and feels then we must ask ourselves one question. Is it just man who is at fault or is it the law itself that can be blamed for his feelings?

One more thought that people should consider. This man was using food stamps prior to winning the lottery. That means he must have had enough money to buy lottery tickets with. If the man was so needy and was getting welfare to provide for his needs then where did he get the extra money necessary to buy those tickets?  The only answer that I can come up with is that he used your tax dollars to buy the tickets.

I have to admit I still remember a time when people felt shame for taking a government handout of any kind. But then again there was a time when a poor person was not looked upon as being someone deserving of pity either nor did that person appreciate being shown pity. Those were the times when a man knew that if he was to make it in this world he had only himself to depend upon. Those were the times when self-respect was more important than having a dollar in your pocket.

We are a nation of laws or at least we promote ourselves as this kind of nation to the world. It is by laws that allow our government to serve the people or at least we promote that principle of government. Laws are enacted so as to benefit the people or at least we are taught that in our schools. There is one thing about laws that isn't mentioned though.

Laws can also be taken advantaged of for the intent and purpose of self-gain. And it doesn't matter what type of laws we speak of whether they be criminal laws or civil laws. In criminal law this is recognized by the axiom of “Tis better that one hundred guilty men go free than to convict one innocent man.”  Do we wish to use that same form of axiom in regards to those laws dealing with the financial welfare of individuals? Is it better to allow one hundred persons to take advantage of these programs for self-gain than to deny it to one person of need?

On top of people undeservedly taking advantage of these programs we must also consider one more factor. That factor being the actual fraudulent claims that by the very nature of the programs will result within a program like this. Is it better to allow one hundred fraudulent claims than to deny it of one person in need? Here is more of an example of fraud or people taking advantage of the genorosity of the tax payer. 200 ineligible dependents

As those who have been following me on this blog probably already know my answer is no. and in my opinion there is only two ways that the government can deal with the financial welfare of individuals that cannot be taken advantage of, legally or illegally. The government can expand the program so as to allow everyone to participate in that program without any bias or prejudice. The other way is for the government to eliminate the program all together. You have two guesses as to which one I’d prefer.

Now, there will be some who will call me hard-hearted because of this. They will tell you I have no compassion. If that be their feelings about me then so be it. But if I am to be accused of this it will be only at the expense of those towards whom I am soft-hearted. If I am to be accused of this then it will only be at the expense of those who I feel deserve greater respect then what is being shown to them.

Where do my thoughts lie? They lie in the idea of the 48% who display their ethics by working 1/3 of every day or more away from their families so that some may spend the whole day with their families, the taxpayer. My feelings lie in the knowledge that the government demands that the taxpayer has to place the needs of strangers above the needs of his own family. My feelings and thoughts lie in the fact that these men must provide the means to other so that they can fulfill their dreams before he is allowed to fulfill his own and those of his own family.  Is that what the American Dream is all about?

What say you? Are my thoughts and feelings misplaced?

The Value of Thoughts, The Value of Life Itself and the Price We Must Pay in Exchange

 Grandpa was heard mumbling while sitting at the computer.  Grandma just chuckled at me as she said,

"Ahhh, he said something  that got one of his friends angry with him again."

As we slipped closer behind him we could hear him say;

"Tell me, is there anything in the world that man has not given a value to? Is there anything of this world that man will not exchange for something else? And when man does exchange one thing for another isn't it because he has placed a greater value on the thing he seeks to possess than the thing he already possesses and is willing to give up in exchange?


When we explicitly increase the value of an object do we not implicitly decrease the value of its opposite? And if the answer is yes then what is the price that must be paid?

As we give greater value to safety do we not decrease the value of taking risks? As we give greater value to equality is not the value of dominance and subordination decreased? If greater value is given to the food that feeds the body does that not decrease the value of the food that feeds the spirit of man? And if this is so then what is the price to be paid?

As we give greater value to the collective does this not decrease the value of the individual? As we give greater value to the possessions of a man do we not decrease the value of the means we used to obtain those possessions? If true then what is the price that we must pay?

As we look at issues strictly from a neutral point of view do we not devalue the positives of that issue and increase the value of its negatives by default so as to declare that one neutralizes the other thus eliminating any value it has? What must be given up that has value in order to achieve a goal in life? Can we, as a people, afford to devalue anything that has value to an individual and do it without degrading the individual himself?

We talk about the quality of life yet we seek to extend the quantity of life with medical advances. What are we giving greater value? And once we have answered this question doesn't that answer implicitly declare that the other is devalued at the same rate?

Isn't the value of life the real issue when we speak of abortion, one side giving value to one life and the other declaring the other has greater value? Isn't it the value of life the real issue when speaking of medical care? Isn't it the value of life that is the real issue when we speak of welfare? We speak of wars, is the real issue the value of a man's life or is it the value of the quality of life that we seek that allows us to willingly and consensually pay the price of a man's life that is the real issue?

When we speak of the value of an education do we not implicitly declare that the possession of an education gives greater value to a person as a member of society? If an issue is defined does not that definition of the issue determine its value? And if we redefine that issue are we not redetermining the value of that issue also? If the answer is yes then are we giving it greater or less value? And what is the price that must be paid when that re-determination is made?

When we seek to change a way of life in a society aren't we implicitly declaring that the new way of life has greater value than the one we want to give up for it? And if so, have we taken into consideration what the price will be? Most important is the question how do we determine the value of that change without knowing if it will be a better way of life? What is the means by which we can determine its value? Was that change worth the price we must pay for it? Is it worth the sacrifice of all of the good that can be seen in the old ways because that will be part of the cost of the change?

There will be those who will promote the change and declare that there is no need to give up the good of the old way but that is like saying that it is possible to have your cake and eat it too. There will be those who will promote the change and only present the old ways in terms of negative value but all that does is hide the truth and can justifiably called misrepresentation of the facts or to use a term commonly heard today, false advertising. And when that is revealed I get skeptical of what is being promoted because then I wonder what is the actual value that is being hidden."

When grandpa stopped mumbling grandma looked at me and asked,

"What say you?"

The Smartest of All is not Necessarily the Wisest of All

"Boy", as grandpa began speaking to me while we were walking out to the back forty,  "there is a big difference in the process of learning and the process of being taught something. If you want to be taught something it doesn't matter who you go to to be taught. There are plenty of people who are willing to teach you what he thinks he knows. And they will feel honored that you came to them. And it will require very little work and time on your part to understand everything he has to teach you. He is a man who wants you to know just how smart he is and you will find many people listening to him.

Learning something though is another matter. It requires that you find someone far wiser than your self. It will require a lot of work and time on your part to be able to learn everything a wise man has to offer you for a wise man knows how little he has to offer and will be very reluctant to speak out and reveal his ignorance to you and you will find that he be a man alone in his thoughts.

A smart man will ask questions so that getting the answer to his question he will know how to lead you down the path to the conclusions that he wishes you to come to. A wise man will remain silent and in his silence influence you to ask him the questions that you need answers to so that you may evaluate your own ideas.

A smart man thinks he knows the answers. A wise man realizes that he knows there is much to learn. A smart man thinks he can help everybody if he could only get the cooperation he needs. A wise man seeks to help only those that he personally can help. One needs to force others to help. The other needs only to be asked for help.

A smart man believes that power should come with authority. A wise man realizes that with power comes responsibility. One will seek to hold power and find corruption to be his companion. The other will seek to limit his power and find virtue to be his companion.

It is the smart man who seeks to learn from his own experiences. It is the wise man who will seek to learn from the experiences of others. Both will make mistakes. One will repeat the mistakes of the past. The other will be an example for the future.

It is the smart man who judges from the conclusions he comes to. It is the wise man who judges by the premises he possesses. From the one the body will seek the food of life without thought of the poverty of the soul. From the other the soul will seek the food of life so that the body may thrive in its poverty. For all men are poor and poverty is the essence of imperfection.

It is the smart man who will demand that others need to walk in his path of life. It is the wise man that realizes that each man must find his own path to walk. One will find out that his mistakes are the mistakes of all that follow him and that all must suffer the consequences of his mistakes. The other will know that only he must accept the consequences of his mistakes as must others know the consequences of theirs.

It is the smart man who sees the inequalities of life and find pity for those who possess less than others and envy those with more. It is the wise man who sees the inequalities of life and respects those who possesses less and honors those who possess more. One will label others in terms of his possessions in this life. The other will label others in terms of their endeavors in this life.

So, boy, as you grow up to be a man you will need to make choices. It will be your choices that will determine whether you will be seen as a smart man or perceived to be a fool. Don't be fooled into being the one and don't be so ignorant as to think you are the other."

With these words spoken he quietly began to work and I followed his example.

200 Years of World Health

In my humble opinion, the key words he uses in this is the word "independency" rather than "dependency." Give a man his independency and he will thrive, body and soul. Keep a man dependent and his soul will die and his body will become useless.  The same goes for a nation of people.



a h/t to Dan over at Gay Patriot

Why Do I Feel Less Secure About My Life Now That Obama Has Signed the New Health Care Bill?

With the passage of this new health care package that Congress has passed and that President Obama has signed into law, a whole new set of feelings has engulfed my soul and I do not enjoy what those feelings are telling me.  It was a package meant to give the people a greater sense of security in their lives.  If that be true then why does my soul tell me that it feels less secure now?

This package was meant to assure all that our government has the best interest of the people in mind when they passed this law. The talk from all that advocate this type of legislation is that no one has to worry about their health care concerns anymore.  Why does my heart tell me that this legislation goes against every one of my self interests?

I have had people admonish me because they say I am selfish and heartless by placing my own self-interest above the interests of others.  They have attempted to make me feel guilty by making accusations then challenging me on it that was meant to tug at my heartstrings such as Truth101 has done in one of his posts here.  They make these accusations to prove the justification of their own political beliefs.  They make these accusations in confidence that no one can respond to them in any other way except in a manner that would affirm their political stance.

The one big problem with accusations like these is that  those who make them are not willing to accept the consequences of those accusations if they be answered in any other way except in the manner that affirms their own political beliefs.  What they fail to accept is the fact that if the accusation is answered, that answer itself truthfully invalidates their beliefs and affirms the beliefs of the person who gave the answer.

And from this we can see another problem with this point of view.  It is the fact that when I am to think of others, a big element of those others are the very ones that are accusing me of being selfish.  Come to think about it those others consists entirely of those that accuse me of being selfish and cold-hearted.  In other words they are accusing me of something that they are being themselves, people who are looking out for their own best interests at the expense of others.  They are just presenting their ideas in a misleading way.

With these thoughts carried out to this conclusion I can now understand why my feelings are as they are and why I feel no sense of security with the passage of this health care bill signed and enacted. The people who are advocating for this bill seek a mandate that I satisfy their interests before I satisfy my own.

Have a good day all.

Grandpa Makes a Fearful Prediction in Hopes He may Be Wrong. Is He Wrong?

tAs we sat there stuffing ourselves with all of the food in the picnic basket that grandma had prepared we could hear how grandpa’s words had stirred the crowd as they gathered in small groups.  It seemed as if the reaction to the words were positive but grandpa just shook his head sadly as he said,

“Words of praise are nice to hear but we have come to a point in our history where I do not believe words of protest will suffice.  It will require action from the people.  It has come to the point where we, as a nation, must be willing to show that our words mean something and that the people need to back up those words with action.

I’m afraid that we, as a people, may have gone past the point where freedom and liberty is important to the people.  Security and dependency has replaced those values in the hearts and minds of the people today.  All one has to do is look at how society reacts to the negative things that occur in their everyday life to see that.

We have become a people that no longer accepts the risks of everyday living as we once had to.  When people are broke where do they run to except to the federal government and beg for welfare money?  When anyone loses their job where do the people run to except to the government unemployment office to apply for unemployment money?

We have become a nation that is used to the idea that if you want something that in order to get it requires that you buy insurance also.  And what is insurance except the placing of responsibility on others to do what is morally and legally your responsibility?  There hardly is a moment in your life that isn’t covered by some type of insurance.

If you are in your home you are covered by home insurance.  If, in your car, you are covered by auto insurance. If, at work, you are covered by your employer’s insurance. If you are in a place of business you are covered by the insurance that business has.  Even when you are just plain walking down  the sidewalk or crossing the street you are covered by the insurance of that city.

The big problem is that in each and every case we, the people are paying for the insurance premiums in some way or another whether it be in higher prices, higher taxes, or even in lower wages. We are gradually insuring ourselves against everything except poverty and bankruptcy and that is where the path of socialism must lead us.  And that is the path of the blind and ignorant.  But, unfortunately it is the path that people, at times, must travel in order to see and understand their foolishness and wake up to the reality of life.

Now, I’ll grant that we haven’t gone down that path far enough yet that we cannot turn around and take the path of liberty once more but we are getting close to that point of no return.  The people will need to make a choice between the illusion of security or the reality of freedom.

I hope that I am wrong but I don’t think that the people have in their hearts to take back what was bequeathed them by those who gave their lives that we may know what liberty truly is. The feeling of security is a mighty strong drug and I believe that the people have become addicted to it.  And  the only leaders I see now days are those leaders that will take this nation down the path of socialism that promises even greater security.  And this is a promise that can never be kept.

Now this belief does not mean I have given up the fight for your liberty, boy.  There is too much at stake in this fight for liberty. I also know that there is much to do before that time comes when we will only have that choice of giving up or actually commit ourselves to be civilly disobedient to the dictates of those who rule over us.  I am also a practical man and the time to start preparing for the possibility of defeat is now. ”

With those words said grandpa got up and said that it was time to go home and start making preparations.  I knew there was going to be much to discuss at the dinner table for the next few days.