H.R. 5175 - Democracy is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Elections (DISCLOSE) Act

Time and time again, I have said that Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh really and truly do not care about our nation.  And, time and time again, they prove it - as Rush has by being against the bill H.R. 5175 - Democracy is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Elections.

I cannot understand how Limbaugh could come out against this bill, which passed the House 219 to 209 with 8 not voting.
Our Supreme Court lost its collective mind not long ago and declared that Corporations had the same rights as individuals.  This meant that the Campaign reform laws that were passed were essentially knocked down.  How could anyone think for one moment that a Corporation should have the same rights as an individual in this country?
Here's the deal:  Lawmakers should have to tell us under whose bed their boots are.  We should have the right to know to whom they are grateful when they are propelled to public office.  Maybe, this is isn't what our founding fathers had in mind, but they couldn't possibly conceive that we would one day be a country of over 300 million people.  They couldn't possibly conceive that a candidate for president would have to get his or her (they certainly couldn't have conceived a woman president) message out to everyone and it would take a ridiculous amount of money to do so.
And, from where does that money come?
You, me, corporations, lobbyist groups, etc. etc.
Don't we have a right to know?  I believe we do.
Apparently, Rush Limbaugh doesn't think so, neither does Paul Ryan - he was one of the 3 nay votes from Wisconsin - and neither does our other 2 Republican Representatives from Wisconsin.
You should think about that when you go to the polls this coming November.  Think about who wants you to know what's happening and who doesn't.
God Bless America - she needs it!

Random Thoughts

This weekend, I had quite a few ideas for articles, but the time went so fast, I never had a chance to formulate them into coherent thoughts. Now, I'm a little sleepy and I have to get ready for work, so I was thinking of just a listing of random thoughts. Maybe, a little something to get the conversation started.

• Teddy is the cutest and smartest kitten I have ever owned. He is an amazing creature and totally worth all of the allergy driven issues I'm having since we became his parents.
• My car is really pretty and I know this because a lady at the bookmobile told me.
• Paul Ryan's office must be getting more cards, letters, emails and phone calls than normal. I have called him once and sent an email on two different subjects and have not received a response on either. One issue -- Alternative Minimum Tax -- I've been waiting over a month for a response. It isn't like his office, so I'm making a guess that they must be really busy.
• If I'm right and Paul Ryan's office is busy, that can only be a good thing. It means, I hope, that my fellow Americans are becoming more involved. Well, really, it means just my fellow southeastern Wisconsinites are becoming more involved.
• Today is the day that gay Wisconsinites can register for domestic partnership. THANK YOU GOD and Governor Doyle! This whole gay marriage issue has really gotten a lot of people's tits in a wringer, as my mother would say, and for what? What has anyone who is against gay marriage gained by denying marriage to someone they don't even know? Oh, I know what they think they'll get, they think they'll get a slice of the that pie called Heaven. And, won't they be surprised when they don't. However; gays can and should take solace in the following..."Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you." Matthew 5:11-12
• There is nothing cuter than three cats watching a rainstorm.

Well, gotta get ready for work.

God Bless

Congressman Ryan's Healthcare Idea

Congressman Ryan sent out a flyer regarding his healthcare plan. He wants to give everyone a $5700 tax credit -- not a deduction, you receive this credit whether you paid money in or not -- to everyone in order to buy healthcare. The tax credit works out to $475.00 per month, which sounds like a lot of money for health insurance, until you realize that group plans can cost that much and trying to buy insurance as an individual is very expensive.
There are some questions I want answered and I'm sending an email to him to get them:

• From where are Americans supposed to buy this insurance? Are we going to be able to get the kind of coverage we currently have with our employers and at the group rate?
• From where is the government going to get the money for the tax credit? I pay for my employer insurance pre-tax, so I am not paying taxes on my health insurance. My pre-tax premium is way less than the $5700 tax credit and $5700 will practically wipe out my tax obligation and the tax obligation for a lot of Americans, so where is the government going to get the extra money?
• Will I have to prove that I purchased healthcare insurance or put the money into a health savings account in order to collect? How can we be certain that people use the credit for that which it was intended? If there are no guarantees in place, we could end up spending a lot of government money without covering a significant portion of Americans.
• What will this do to company policies? Won't this encourage companies to just dump their healthcare plans and let individuals do it on their own?
• Who is going to educate those who don't understand anything about insurance? I have a college degree and insurance policies confuse me. Who is going to make sure the American public is well informed?
• Won't this just encourage fly by night insurance companies? How can we be sure people won't be scammed into policies that really aren't worth the paper their printed on?

It is something to think about. Contact your Congressman to find out more information.
God Bless