This is were I stopped on the 23rd----------------- ---------------------------------------------------------

 As expected I've started up again this morning and I'm a little more introspective.  Thinking about it last night, if the country really needs my help I have no objection to contributing to the solution.  

If you read my other articles you'll see I don't like the thought process many people exhibit.  You know the one I'm talking about where if they're having troubles they think the solution is to make everyone else have the same problem.  For some reason it is common for groups of people in this country to look at their problems and think to themselves "I can't solve this".  Their next reaction is to hang their head in despair and give up.  They'll sit around all day lamenting, "My  health insurance is so high, my taxes are to high, I don't get paid enough, politicians don't listen". Admittedly, I don't understand this reaction. Flopping around on my back and doing the dying cockroach is seldom my approach to problem solving.  On the other hand, too many others don't even try and solve problems.  That's one of the reasons I like the entire Tea Party movement.  At least the people in this group have gotten to the place where they are exploring solutions.  I relate these attempts to students in my math classes that attempt to do their homework.  Some of these attempts are pretty bad but one thing is certain - the students must try to do the work in order for them to understand the material.  That's why I hate to see the mocking press coverage we've seen.  I equate the press's reaction to the Tea Party attempts to understand what's going on in Washington as equal to an instructor recommending to dissolve a class in civics because one or two students didn't understand the material.  I wholly reject the notion that just because these groups are mostly made up of novices they should disengage from the political process. Again I may be a little biased on this point as well.  Although, my personality would demand I engage even if I were a lone voice in the wilderness, it is nice that there are others out here learning the ropes.  I don't even mind being part of a group with blemishes (especially on a day like yesterday when I had a migraine so bad I couldn't even make sentences).  That's why  I encourage the press to help educate and stop vilifying.  We as a society need this engagement.  Perhaps only the polished should be elected.  Perhaps only those willing to get plastic surgery should be official spokesmen.  Perhaps one of the qualifications of a congressmen is being a trained actor but the congressmen is a representative of the people and this country needs the underlying discourse to help guide him.  The press should not be on a crusade to stifle that discourse.

That said though, I must say I am trying to lead people away from a common first course action of trying to level the playing field by destroying other peoples benefits.  Take for instance the difference between what I pay for health insurance as compared to what most people pay for health insurance.  For some reason there are a number of people in this country that look at this and say "that's not fair, how do we change the system so the others have to pay as much as I do".  Then they start working on a "solution"  which for them is to figure out how to make it so I pay more.  When I look at the situations like the comparison of how much I pay toward health insurance verses how much others pay, I think to myself, "that's not fair, how can we change the system so others pay as much as I do"?  Then I start to conceive a solution to ensure others get an opportunity to pay a reasonable amount of for health insurance".  These may sound the same on the surface but they produce two very different results.

That's one of the main reasons the recent healthcare legislative process bothered me so much.  We kept being told one of the main problems with our healthcare system was how much we spent on medical services.  The cost per person and cost as a percent of GDP are significantly higher in the United States than any other country.  But when the professional politicians enacted the solution the only thing the Republicans, Democrats and Congressional Budget Office agree upon was that this law will make it so a greater portion of the GDP will be spent on healthcare.  How does that happen?  I think it is directly related to the the outlook and attitude of the people developing the "solution".  Somehow they got away from the goal of creating a system capable of providing care at a reasonable cost and instead embraced trying to even out the current system so that everything looks "fair".  Of course one of the main reasons the current system isn't fair is because it transfers too much of a working families money to the healthcare industry.  It doesn't become any more fair in the new system which promises to take even more of that workers money.

That was a big lead up to get to the subject of the USA Today article.  Military healthcare cost are rising and how much of that additional cost should younger retirees like me pay.  The way I see it there are basically three pools from which to draw; the military retiree, the working taxpayer or the healthcare industry.  Recent history tells us the Obama administration will throw in with the healthcare industry.  The recent health insurance law shows the administration idolizes doctors so much they will do everything in their power to ensure doctors get paid.  They were willing to prop up a failed health insurance industry.  They put more money in the system so medical payments can rise.  They make sure there is enough money so doctors can pay for malpractice insurance.  They force young adults and families into a system to make sure doctors have a way to get paid for treating the elderly.  With this history it's very unlikely we will see any proposals from the administration which would do anything but work to transfer the maximum amount of money from either the working tax payer or the military retiree.

The first form of payment I feel rightfully justified to ask of all my military retirees (and in this case even active duty members and families) is to be a good consumer.  Not only that we've got to demand our military management do a better job of managing.  One example.  The USA Today article talks about how many prescriptions were given out to military members.  I had surgery a couple years ago and the doctor told me he was going to prescribe me a pain killer.  

aaaaaaaahh  I'm almost to the point where I throw in with the taxpayer but the wife tells me I've got to take the kids to a birthday party.  Guess if you are interested in seeing if I actually do you'll have to come back Sunday night.

Sorry I didn't write here Sunday

Now it's Tuesday Morning at 0100 and I'm annoying myself that it is possible three or four of you are coming back to see if I've finished.  Where was I?

I had surgery a couple years ago and the doctor told me he was going to prescribe me a pain killer. 

 Oh yea, that's a two or three page lead up in and of itself. I can't do that tonight. I had an aside thought I wanted to throw in here anyway.

Earlier I made a comment about the Obama administration idolizing doctors.  And I purposely did it in a tone as if to make it seem as if this is a negative thing.  Truth be told I idolize doctors too.  Now I could justify my taking that tone by saying I was really just talking about the leaches the make their money by attaching themselves to the doctors.  I was talking about those people as well.  But I was purposely including doctors in the group because like it or not they are on the other side in this issue.  That is if doctors didn't get paid so much health care costs would be lower.  In this particular setting there are three sides, doctors, the taxpayer and the military retiree.  I like all three groups.  The question is at the end of the day whose argument is going to carry the day when it comes to dollar allocation? 

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