What if Atlas Shrugged?

Considering what is going on in our world, I have been pondering this question. In Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand tells the story of the "Producers" of society, and the world that saps the life out of them.

Who are the producers? We are. The people who go to work every day and perform a function from which society can derive some benefit. This could be in the form of a beautiful opus that we all enjoy, a knowledge of medicine and the power to heal that comes with it, or a delicious meal that we can cook for others. Whatever the contribution, we make one. What is our thanks? We get taxed. We pay through the nose. If we put our foot down, we are "selfish". Don't we want to help our fellow man? When is enough enough?

I want to put my foot down. I want to say "No more!". I am sorry that the Jones' next door do not have health coverage. I truly am. But since when is it my responsibility to pay their bills? Did they lose their job do to the collapse of out auto industry? Well, I tried to help. They were selling their ability to make cars and I contributed to their cause by purchasing a new vehicle.

Now Obama is wanting to tax our health benefits. My gut reaction, in the face of even more taxes, is to quit. I obviously will not be doing that, but I want to. If we all did, the powers that be would have to find another way other than taking it out on the hard-working people who break their backs to make this world go round.

I think I need to revisit my old dog-eared copy.

#@$%^&*()

Obama is thinking of taxing our insurance!

Seriously? I worked 142 hours on my last paycheck, instead of the 72 hours to which I am obligated. I went without sleep for days, worked until my feet were screaming with pain. I did this to gain a little financial edge in light of the upcoming new quarter at school (in other words, new tuition bill and new set of text books to buy). Of that, Uncle Sam took over $1900. One thousand, nine hundred dollars. There are certainly people who live on less than that per month, but that is what I paid out in ONE PAYCHECK! If my insurance is taxed in addition to this, I will not be able to stand it!

Butt Out, Obama.

Why is my President getting involved in affairs of private commerce? The last time I checked, my American brothers and sisters were still overseas in a war zone. Hey Obama! Get involved in that. That, after all, is your job. Even I am starting to get a little bit pissed, and other than being a staunch Republican, I don't usually get into politics. And I am a simple kind of girl. But I equate this to my going into work and saying "Nope, I am not going to see patients tonight because I have X, Y and Z to complete for school." But I don't do that, because I know what my job responsibilities are while I am on my emploter's dime. Obama never learned that lesson, apparently.

Is this what you wanted, America? Is this the "Change" you were looking for? The American public made a huge mistake.

Dear President Obama,

Let me just clear the air by saying first and foremost that I did not vote for you. I am a Rebublican through and through. This did not stop me from tearing up when you were elected. You see, despite my stuffy Republican ways, I am all for change and progress.

Other than being a Republican, what other roles do I play? Well, I am a mother and a wife. I am a full-time student. I am the sole supporter for my small family of three. I am a full-time healthcare provider, a taxpayer, and more.

What does this have to do with anything? Well, quite simply, I would like to be exempt from having to work more so my tax dollars that I earn can go to bail out companies, or to pay for the healthcare of others. After all, 40 hours per week of my time, and thus my family's time, is devoted to the health and welfare of others. Must my paycheck be as well???

You see, there used to be a time when my family was below poverty lines. While my low-income neighbors were complaining about the low dollar amount they received in food stamps while spending their welfare checks for weed, I was using mine to put gas in my car to get to and from class so I would not need the help any longer. I earned my ticket out and subsequently to my nice middle class job with benefits. Yes, I have insurance. I have great insurance, but even so, I still spent $200 on prescriptions today. This means I cannot afford to pay for the others who don't have insurance.

And speaking of the bailouts that are spreading like wildfire: I don't feel like I should have to pay anything toward that, either. I have contributed to the wealth of these companies in other ways. I help CitiBank by paying my student loan payments with interest each month. Sallie Mae too. I helped the automotive industry and the banking industry at the same time about 4 months ago when I had my bank give the dealership $22K in exchange for a 2009 model car. In exchange, I pay 19% interest each month because I have a medical bill in collections from my son's premature birth 7 years ago. Another way I help the banking industry? I know my limitations and do not take on debt I cannot afford.

I saw through it all. You said you would take care of us middle class people. I saw through it, but everyone wanted to believe you. Now you are giving all of this money to people who don't need it. Or people who may need it but do not deserve it because of their manner of conducting business. Is it fair for me to have busted my ass for all of these years so I could better provide for my family, so you could give my money away to these people? Is it fair for me to have to work like a dog, when I cannot get so much as a little bit of help toward my $36K/ year tuition bill? No wait, I forgot. My husband is now going back to school, and my son is in private school because the public school system I pay to support has grossly failed him. So in total, my family is paying more like $56K/ year for just tuition.

So please, President Obama, take more of my money. After all, there is still a little bit left to be had. There must be, as we are not yet living in a cardboard box under a bridge. Not yet, anyhow.


Sincerely,
A Pissed-Off Taxpayer

I Missed History Today....

While I was in Chem Lab. I was a little bummed, even though my Republican self had nothing to do with Obama's election. I am still thrilled that our country finally took the step of electing an African American president.

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How Do I Feel About This? A Loaded Question

If I say I hate it, I am a bigot, a raceist. a white supremacist. If I say I love it, I am going against anything I have said thus far. So that makes me a liar, a hypocrite. What if I say I have mixed feelings? Does that make me a chicken? A fence-rider?



I don't feel like any of those titles. So instead, I will stick my neck out and say I was not pleased with our nation's choice of leader. I still doubt he will do all he says. And I am scared for the future of my family in a share-the-wealth America. I donate to charity, and I pay a ton in taxes. I do my part. But I do not feel I should have to the share what I earn with individuals who will not get out and even attempt to improve their lives. So I am scared.



There really are a few points of Obama's election that give me that warm, fuzzy feeling. I love that our nation has reached the point of being able to elect an African American POTUS. Progress is beautiful.

I also was quite impressed with our President Elect's address the following day, when our economy is chaos. It was what we naysayers needed to see.

My guy lost. And I am scared, but I guess I may have to just wait and see what Obama has in store for us. I hope all of the hype will not turn out to be an elaborate way of smack-talk.

Poor, Poor W.

He will be missed, and here is why:

Sicko Ballot

This is the greatest day to be American. Our day where we all do the same thing, complete the same action by voting, to choose our leader. I mentioned this to my Marine husband, fully expecting agreement from him. After all, he is one of the many who fought for my right to do what I am about to do. But his reply was this : "The SuperBowl is the greatest day to be American!" Not quite what I had in mind. Maybe the BCS Championship would run a distant second in my book. But definitely not the Super Bowl.

So I am schlepping my arse to cast my vote. I would not dream of not voting. I have voted in every presidential election since the day I turned 18. And yes, I voted for W. Both times. Not my proudest point. The first time was a gimme. The second time, I wanted to give him a chance to straighten out the Iraq War. But after 4 years, it is time for another guy to have a chance at it. McCain, you're up.

And I'm sick. I mean sick. I am pretty sure I have been visited by influenza early in the year. It started a week ago with mild sinus symptoms. One of the ER docs wrote for an antibiotic, which I waited to fill, assuming it would go away. A week later, the same symptoms are there, but actually worse. Plus I keep developing low-grade fevers, having chills, then breaking into horrific sweats. I ache all over, and my nose will not quit for anything.

But dammit, I am voting. Let's just hope the local Senior circuit has had their flu shots.

Why am I a Republican?

A while back, a friend made the statement to the effect that, with all my family has gone through, they cannot believe I am not backing Obama for this election. As the day approaches when we all will have a voice in the selection of our next leader, I have been pondering the very question he asked.

We were poor. Very poor. On two occasions in our life. I think I should speak on those two occasions.

Our first trip through Poverty was when we were first married. Evan was a newborn. We were struggling to pay the basic bills like rent and electric and car payments. I knew the only way to remedy our financial situation was to make more money. You cannot cut back on your expenses when your expenses are the bare bones of need. But how was I to go back to school to do this for my family?

We turned off the cable. We went without a phone. Internet access? Nah. With the money I saved from my budget, I paid payments on tuition at the local college so I could start taking classes. And while taking those classes, I made sure that I studied like a mad woman. Even for those classes that were a cakewalk. I did this so that my GPA remained immacualte. The healthcare-related fields are pretty challenging, so the school used anatomy and physiology to weed out non-hackers. I remember my instructor getting called into her boss's office over my 100% overall grade in the course. This is a hard class, why does this girl have a perfect score? I remember my instructor saying that is is just Andrea.

So I worked. And worked. And worked. And the next semester, I didn't have to worry about my finances because I had proven my worthiness of my education that I had others willing to step foreward to say "Hey, I will give this girl a scholarship because she has earned it." It was not because of my race or gender or family status or religion or for any other affiliation. It was because I proved myself.

So I graduated. With honors. And within the first month after graduation, I passed my credentialing exams and had a license to practice. And because I had done so well at school, I had many people willing to overlook my greenness as a new graduate and take a chance on me. We could afford the brand new house suddenly. I could afford to give my son everything he wanted. The few years we spent without a pohone or cable or internet no longer mattered because we had those things now. I did it.

Then March, 2008 hit us. I was working, making way more than our family needed. My husband was a stay-at-home-Dad. We could afford that luxury. And then I was diagnosed with a brain tumor. I was terrified, and terribly ill. I was unable to work. The only comfort I had was that our country has laws to protect people like me. I took FMLA leave for two weeks while they did about 8 head scans in 2 weeks. The little money we had saved up disappeared as the medical expenses rolled in. And then my employer broke the law and fired me, even though I was on leave. This is when the Summer of Hell began. I tried to make it. I did everything I could do. I applied for jobs everywhere, despite the fact that I had not been medically cleared to do so, being honest about what had happened. Noone wanted to take a chance on me after what had happened. The electric and cable were disconnected on the same day. My car was repossessed. I lost it all. I was finally persuaded to go and try to get help.

So I did. It was the most humiliating experience I have had. I took my paystubs and all the necessary information and I applied for governement assistance. Foodstamps, medical cards, cash assistance. I will never forget the worker's face when she looked at my paystubs, stating that I made more money than anyone she had ever known. I saw the look on her face when she found out that my son actually belonged to my husband, that we were married when he was born and that, yes, my husband still lived with us. I got approved for the help. $200 per month in food stamps for my family of three, and $200 in cash assistance. For the months of April, May, and June, my total aid was $1200. Last year, I paid $25,000 in taxes. I had, technically, earned my little piece of help.

But I had an aquaintence who got help also. She had never worked, not even completed high school. Her husband had a full-time job. They got $600 per month in food stamps, $300 in cash assistance, Medicaid for the whole family, their rent subsidized so they only had to pay $50 per month. Noone pressured her to get a job, to get her GED. But the number of tax dollars made available to her family was limitless. All she had to prove was that they had no money. There was no concern with whether or not there was any effort on their part. For my little bit I got? I had to fight tooth and nail, had to provide lists of job contacts. The amount of money I received in one month was about equal to what I earned in one DAY before my family encountered our crisis. Did they really believe that I didn't want to work? That I could be content with that? My rent was 4 times the amount of cash assistance they were giving me.

I had always believed that those taxes I paid went to help people like us, who were in a tight spot because of something horrible that had happened to them. As the amount of my taxes grew and grew with the amount of money I earned, I figured I was doing my part to help society. I assumed that society would return the favor if I needed it. Boy, was I wrong. That isn't how it works at all. The food dollars I got kept us in groceries for about 2 weeks each month. The money I got went to pay for fuel so I could interview for jobs. The only thing that even kept us from drowning was the fact that before that point, I had always paid my bills. The electric company and phone company and landlord were all lenient with us because you could honestly look at our records with each company and see a a distinct break beyond which I had stopped paying earlier and in full, and had started to fall behind. And the only way out was for me to finally find an employer who would do the research, look into my story and see that while it was unfortunate, I really was terminated from my only job in my field because I had been diagnosed with the tumor. The only way to recover from the ordeal we had survived was to accept that position, even though it was an hour and half's one-way drive away, and count down the days until I was no longer an orientee. To the point where I could take overtime and dig myself out of the mess we had fallen into.

So No. I will not vote for a candidate who will endorse or condone the redistribution of wealth. Do the people who will do nothing to help themselves truly deserve the same-sized piece of the pie that I do? Do our tax dollars truly need to go to fund more programs to help these people, when the very people they were designed to help fall through the cracks? The people like me, who work and better themselves, who pay their taxes without complaint and then encounter something so terrible and can't get the help they need?

Instead of creating more programs to help these people, maybe we need to reign in the programs we have. Adding a work requirement, like Obama has done? Is that enough? I have always worked, and when the money I earned wasn't enough, I did what was necessary to get a job that would provide the funds we need. Everyone can do this. Even if you are not academically inclined, there are still technical schools out there that can get you trained in a trade, some of which pay even more than I make. So you can be productive, so you can make your contribution to society.

Until some more of this happens, I will not vote for a candidate like Obama.

Closeted Rebublicans?

Apparently, it is not cool to be a Republican. Only the most established celebrities will admit they are backing the GOP. WTF?

I Want...

Sarah Palin's glasses. There, I admitted this publically. Well not really publically considering there are about 2 people who will read this. Good thing my annual eye exam is corresponding with our upcoming election, or what would I do?

So I am searching Sarah Palin online to look for a pic I can use to see these specs up close and personal. And I find all of this other stuff. I mean, unless you have had your head buried under a rock recently, you know all of the dirt that is spreading about this woman. Yes, I guess there are some family issues with her. Sure, okay, I give them that. But is there anyone out there without family issues??? And Don't get me wrong...I love Desperate Housewives. I don't plan my life around it or anything, but I like the show. As a matter of fact, when the show first came on the air and there was this crazy frenzy over it, I did this huge paper for one of my college courses speculating what America's love for the show said about us. But am I gonna pick a candidate because Eva Longoria doesn't like her.

So now while we are on this topic, there are some things that irritate the living hell out of me. Lack of Experience? Well, let me ask you this: are ANY of the candidates experienced at being POTUS? Last I checked, the answer to that is a big fat NO. I know they are referring to an overall lack of experience in politics, but still...And one of the celebrities on the site to which I linked even said she will be president. She is McCain's running mate. Yes, I realize this could mean she would one day be our Prez, and I realize, amidst all of the jokes, that John McCain is a little more advanced chronologically. But people are acting like he is going to kick the bucket tomorrow. C'mon, really??? The sad thing is that I do not know if Americans will disregard some of this hype, and a large amount of flying mud to make this decision we are all facing. Never underestimate the power of the American people to vote for Pretty Speeches. This scares the crap out of me. After all, I earn my money.

Warning: Rant!

I do not like this man. I cannot put my finger on it, and in our day of prejudices and stereotypes, I have been very careful to make sure it is not for an impure reason. I am all for a minority to be in the White House. I think our country may need it. We have to move forward and grow, and the next step is someone other than a white male moving into the White House. Yay for progress and diversity!

But this man? He is too slick, too polished. He gives rousing and heartfelt speeches and has the ability to say all of the things the American people are wanting to hear. But where is the evidence backing of all of these la-ti-da plans for change? Who is going to pay for all of the programs he is wanting to institute? Middle class people. Me! I am going to pay for it.

Well here is what I have to say about it: People, if you cannot get health insurance, go out and find a job that provides it to you. If your skiils/ education level do not allow this, then change them. It sucks out there, and I had to do what my family needed me to do. We were poor. We had no way to move up. I sucked it up and took 24 credit hours per semester while helping my husband through school, raising a kid and running a household in order to get a job and credentials that would ensure my ability to have the things I need, and to provide my son and husband with the things they need.

We live in the United States. There are so many programs and resources to pay for vocational training or higher education that you can literally get paid to go to school. So suck it up and do it. If for some reason, you are disabled and cannot work or obtain the education to better yourself, than taxpayers like me will be glad to continue to foot the bill for your medical needs to be met. We have been for years. If for some reason you lost your job, as I did recently, we will continue to provide you with federal programs to get food. But to completely reform the government to provide handouts is unnecessary. I say give people a hand up and the tools they need to provide for themselves down the road. We do not need to create more sponges.

And medicine? Yep, we medical people are sheer evil. We want nothing more than to take your money. We will let you die if you don't have the coverage. No, WRONG! I am on the code team at work. I make decisions in the blink of an eye how I am going to help a patient in crisis. The patient is not wearing a gown with "Uninsured" stenciled across the chest. And honestly the only time I have ever looked at a patient's insurance information is to provide them with the best care. For example, the patient has insurance x and needs a test, and insurance x requires a specific diagnosis or criteria to pay for the test, and the patient does not meet the requirements...the test is thousands of dollars. What would you do? Well patients have the right to refuse or accept any procedure. So you let the patient know "Hey, you need this test for x reason, but your insurance will not cover it. Do you still want the test?" It is a courtesy, not a refusal to treat. Other than that, I do not give two shits about my patient's insurance information.

So are we now gonna talk about the costs of healthcare? Pharmaceuticals take a fortune to develop. So, yes, they are expensive. Healthcare professionals themselves are expensive. Look at me, for example. I had to attend college, to the tune of thousands of dollars. I had to take credentialing exams to the tune of thousands of dollars. I have to obtain licensure in every state in which I touch a patient. That is expensive. I have to attend classes and maintain competencies in my field each year. That is not only expensive, but time consuming. So while I would love to do my job for free, I have a family to support, and it takes time and effort to maintain my legal ability to do my job. So I do not come at minimum wage. They have to pay me to compensate for that. Now consider that my hospital employs over 50,000 people, most of which have some sort of credential associated with their name. Do that math. Then consider the equipment they need to allow us to do our jobs. The stethoscope I use to listen to your breath sounds was $300. The ventilator I run costs more than most houses. And we run several of them at a time, so do that math. Then think of all of the little things we use, and all of the disposable equipment we have to use in the name of sanitation. And the upkeep on the high ticket items. And this is just my department of the hospital. So I guess my point is that healthcare is expensive. There is no way to avoid that. We cannot just go revamping the healthcare system in an effort to change that. It will not work unless we all want to live in poverty to absorb the cost of a publicly-run healthcare system. Because someone is going to have to pay for it. And besides, do you really want a disgruntled governement employee to determine if your child gets the surgery he or she needs? I don't.