America's Getting Sick

With the newly proposed health care reform bill, I'm frightened, as a free market system loving American, to know what lurks in the new bill. Quotes from all over the media are beginning to paint a striking picture of the socialization of American health care.

The Washington Post notes, "it targets those most able to pay" and IBDeditorials points out that the bill explicitly states, "Except as provided in this paragraph, the individual health insurance issuer offering such coverage does not enroll any individual in such coverage if the first effective date of coverage is on or after the first day" of the year the legislation becomes law.

I'm not one to flip out over usual policy decisions-after all, politics never go the way you want all the time, but this bill is, as Obama would put it, "a game changer".

Marines Are Terrorists?

According to the DHS report, since I have military service and support the second amendment as well as the the life of unborn babies, I am a "right-wing terrorist". Imagine that--the men and women who take an oath to protect and defend this country from all enemies foreign and domestic are terrorists. So maybe, in the Obama administration's estimate, the Osama Bin Ladens of the world are true patriots? Who knows, maybe Bill Ayers will be the next Commandant of the Marine Corps!

What a disgrace. Anyone who's ever served this country in the fight to protect freedom and democracy should be praised and celebrated, not villified. What a sad benchmark for this country--I weep for the clear denigration of honor.

Punctuation

This is different than my usual posting topics, but I still think I'm going to post it anyway.

Anyone ever have trouble with finding the right sentence punctuation--particularly when deciding between an exclamation mark and a period? Sometime the period comes off as condescending but other times the exclamation mark sounds much too enthusiastic or as if you're nearly shouting. I find this is largely the case in online writing like blogs, emails, or even texting.

Example:

I hope her hair looks better this time.

I hope her hair looks better this time!

There almost needs to be something between that would connote a strong statement, but not quite to the point of exclaiming it--just purporting it. A purportion point would suffice I should say.

Losing Focus

Johnathan Chait, senior editor at the New Republic, made an interesting--not entirely genius, but interesting--in the recent online publication noting that,

Obama has come into office having won the popular vote by seven percentage points, along with a 79-seat edge in the House, a 17-seat edge in the Senate, and massive public demand for change. But it's already clear he is receiving less, not more, deference from his own party. Democrats have treated Obama with studied diffidence, both in their support for the substance of his agenda and (more importantly) their willingness to support it procedurally.

It really makes one wonder where the President's focus really is.

http://www.tnr.com/politics/story.html?id=07bd4a20-60a7-44a9-ab92-115eeb62bd92

North Korean Missiles

It appears as though North Korea is preparing for a missile launch--to the backlash of South Korea, and the rest of the free world. They just can't seem to figure it out can they?

http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-03-26-voa6.cfm