WOW REPORTS (7/13-7/17) | 07/12/2009 11:00 pm

wOw Reports: What News Matters to You -- And Why?

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151 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Freida, Im sorry our Govt has left your town…I pray those thugs you speak of never show up at your door.

By C Hardy on 07/13/2009 10:09 am

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Freida its not much but I send you hugs. I understand about speaking out. All my fears about the prior administration are all being shown now. We all in each community hand in hand need to address these kind of issues. There are too many hate groups of all sorts out there now:(

By S G on 07/13/2009 10:20 am

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Hmmmmm. I see that the probe into Bush policies is front and center again, with Dick Cheney’s name being bounced around. Eric Holder is entering into the fray now.

I’m not sure I want to hear all of this again. Should Congress be saddled with this now in addition to health care, cap and trade, Sotomayer, and immigration debate is much bigger than the media is giving us.

Perhaps so. After all, it is the job of Congress . Many of us are not getting a vacation this year. Some people never know that luxury. Perhaps Congress shouldn’t either until critical issues to this country are resolved.

By Maggie W on 07/13/2009 9:51 am

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Maggie - I agree, Congess has so much on their plate and Obama wants it rushed through - I think no vacation for them until they can get some of these major issues taken care of. I am not sure if Congress can take on another task of war crimes for Cheney or Bush, right now. I am not saying never look at them but it seems Obama isnt too concerned about it b/c he is pushing so much more - why is that?

By C Hardy on 07/13/2009 10:08 am

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Precisely my thinking. Congress also just gave themselves another raise. Let them work for it. As for health care, just because the President wants a draft on his desk by August doesn’t mean he will get it or should. I realize he doesn’t want this to drag on forever. That, in part, is what killed it in ‘93. But this time, take the time to do the darn thing right!

By Maggie W on 07/13/2009 10:15 am

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I absolutely totally agree with you. Perhaps this administration needs to take this time to see where the fraud and abuse is in medicare and welfare. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? Get rid of the freeloaders and give this government assistance to those who really need it. In fact, give the ones who must have it an increase from the savings then move forward, slowly, precisely to put a solid Universal Health Care plan in place. If it takes next year then so be it. The stimulus wasn’t well thought out in my opinion and that should be a lesson for this administration. We need to get things right and if it means dragging your feet to shore up the issues then we need to do that.

By deber B on 07/13/2009 10:55 am

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During his campaign, President Obama promised time and time again that health care would be his first priority. Fine, he is pursuing that head on. He is rattling chains of big pharm and insurance. But I agree with Paul Krugman. The President needs to address the country and explain in his direct way of speaking why this plan probably will not happen this year. He also , in my opinion, needs to take a stronger leadership role in this.

Bill Clinton wrote an essay about his grandfather. His grandfather always considered FDR his friend , although he never met him and did not always agree with him. He sat close to the radio during those fireside chats. He always felt he knew , through his radio, what was happening in DC and in the country. Sometimes the news was encouraging; most of the time it was not. President Obama needs to learn to report the disencouraging news as well as what his aspirations are. Americans deserve to know directly from him and not the media’s interpretation.

My worry is that will get a plan alright but find that in four more years ,we will have to revise the whole thing again to the tune of another trillion here and there.

By Maggie W on 07/13/2009 11:44 am

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And, your concerns are well taken, Maggie. Your worry is the republicans worry as well. Republicans KNOW our country needs to do something about health care. Like you, we just want it done right and we want to make sure EVERYONE is covered and not a plan that leaves 15 million uninsured. There is a solution to this and, hopefully, this administration will takethe time to find it even if it is next year. It is worth waiting for.

By deber B on 07/13/2009 11:57 am

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Maggie, a Trillion $ is not that much - the waste now in $$$$ going to the for-profits is incredible. Once that is curtailed, the money will be there, overnight in fact. The best person who laid this out, to the letter, was Nader. That is who should have been appointed to hear this up. He wouldn’t have played congressional ball - it would be done.

We’re an international embarrassment. Did you read today’s US News & World Report? Between health care and Texas’s battling evolution, and science, our nation appears in the dark ages.

"Public Option?" I’ll take the POTUS and his family into a city ED for a 24-hour shift and show them just what a "PO" will do. This is getting ridiculous - falling pray to corporate America’s greed is not humane, period.

Out of the other side of mouths, all I hear about is stopping the number of abortions (or ALL!) yet no one’s keeping men’s trousers zipped, or charging them for women’s health care in pregnancies, and births, and no one has apprently thought what women think, "How will I care for a child, health care, education in a nation with the lowest level of education in the civilized world, and the highest number of people on Minimum Wage …?" Talk about "abuse… " Give me a break!

ref http://www.usnews.com/blogs/john-farrell/2009/07/13/the-anti-evolution-movement-in-texas-highlights-idiot-america.html?s_cid=et-0713

By C jay on 07/13/2009 10:44 pm

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Absolutely - it’s amazing how there’s never enough time to do it right the first time, and yet there’s always so much time to keep fixing all the mistakes.

By Andrea Brandon on 07/13/2009 1:18 pm

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Early during the campaign, I read that all Presidents actually accomplish about 30% of what they promise while campaigning. I’m beginning to wonder if it is that high. So here we are… with too much on the plate and 100 % bickering on both sides.

By Maggie W on 07/13/2009 1:34 pm

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I’m wondering if it’s that high, too, Maggie.

By Andrea Brandon on 07/13/2009 2:49 pm

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I’ve read that if presidents don’t get it done in the first 100 days they’ve missed the opportunity. I agree that this administration has way too much on their plate. It is my opinion that if they had taken their time to address the first stimulus like they are the second stimulus we might not have lost so many jobs….

I am still of the mindset that we should’ve put $5,000 into the hands of all qualified (those who filed taxes for last year) with the stipulation they had to spend it within 60 days or be assessed a 10% penalty we wouldn’t be where we are right now. I believe GM should’ve filed bankruptcy immediately to begin reorganizing. Hindsight is 20/20.

I do believe the bickering is good, however, to a point. John McCain said on Sunday that small businesses have been ignored and they are the companies who provide the jobs and they are the companies who have laid off the most employees. President Obama promised he would not raise taxes. So far it looks like the rich are going to get a pass on paying for Universal Health Care and, fortunately, the cap and trade bill has lost steam. I didn’t want to see the struggling middle class get hit with higher taxes not at a time like this. They, too, are the backbone of this country.

So, now we wait and see how the healthcare will be handled.

By deber B on 07/13/2009 2:57 pm

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True about the bickering because there is ongoing dialogue. But the fear is that Congress will stuggle on, compromise here and there, two steps forward, four steps back, and eventually collapse under its own weight. There are may plausible scenarios with health care. The whole thing is so overwhelmingly burdensome that the simplest approach may be the best. Cohn suggests implemental Medicare, starting with lowering the age to 55. Later, drop it to 45.. which would unlock the job market and free up employers to hire older workers without having to provide health insurance. The big insurers have never been threatened by Medicare. They still do a multi billion dollar business by writing expensive supplemental policies. Medicare’s safety net for a wider population sector has some attraction, but first Congress would have to attack Medicare fraud… the many headed monster that has enjoyed a very comfortable existence for many years now.

By Maggie W on 07/13/2009 3:30 pm

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Maggie, if anyone wonders why our costs are so high all they need to do is look at medicare…assess it….fix it….and get the fraudulent recipients out of the picture. I still say once they clean that up and have a strong base (and it should be a learning experience as well) then build on it with confidence.

I’m not familiar with Cohn’s theory. I’ll do some research on that this evening and give you my opinion. Do you like it?

By deber B on 07/13/2009 4:08 pm