"Bed Sore," originally published Nov 25, 2011
Now that Thanksgiving is over, it's time to get down to the serious matter of cleaning up all the leftovers.
By which we don't mean turkey, stuffing, and pumpkin pie.
Rather, we're talking about all of the political "leftovers" from earlier in the year... and the year before that...and the year before that. Like the failure to control government spending, the failure to establish any realistic energy policies, the failure to make America's strength known to either her allies or enemies, and the abject failure to seriously address our nation's unemployment crisis.
The thing about leftovers is that they get less and less appealing the older they get... and the leftovers cited above are absolutely ancient.
Although Washington traditionally does even less than usual (as hard as that is to imagine) between Thanksgiving and the new year, we'd be delighted if the politicians actually decided to celebrate the fact that they're employed by doing their jobs for a change.
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"Giving Thanks," originally published Nov 26, 2009
According to the latest Rasmussen poll, support for the Democrats' healthcare plan has fallen to an all-time low, with only 38% in favor. Only 14% of those polled believe that "healthcare reform" will actually reduce medical costs...and those 14% aren't exactly the sharpest carving knives at the holiday table if you know what we mean.
Obamacare is especially unpopular with senior citizens, who will be losing their Medicare Advantage plans, taking the brunt of $500 billion in cuts to Medicare and, according to the healthcare bill (page 1,637, paragraph C, subsection 2), "be cast adrift on ice floes, their wails and lamentations lost to the crashing waves."
(UPDATE Nov 29, 2013 It's very convenient that Hope n' Change can take a bit of a break by running cartoons from the archives today, but also somewhat depressing that these cartoons remain topical and accurate years later. -Stilton)
BONUS: Oh, what the heck - here's a fresh 2013 cartoon too!
13 comments:
Dr.Jarlsberg,your Hope n'Change published on Nov.26,2009 fits me to a T. I received a letter from Horizon B.C.B.S. of NJ on Oct.1st 2013 advising me that my Medicare Advantage plan would not be offered to me in 2014.
I have been trying for 2 months to enroll in one of their new plans that were offered to me without success.After speaking with numerous people and told to call many different phone numbers,I was told by all that their computers were not yet upgraded and programmed to accept enrollment and to call back in a week. I took a bereavement and Thanksgiving break and will start trying again on Mon.Dec 2,2013.
I am nearing a meltdown with this disaster affecting my already fragile health. If only I could tell that fake in the White House in person how much I hate his and his administration's health plan,It would alleviate much of my distress. Thanks for allowing my rant,I could go on and on.
Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Loved the new cartoon. Clearly the turkey on the left is the alpha turkey and will soon have the other turkey begging for mercy. Happy leftovers to everyone.
@ oldredleg - not to add to your distress, but just wait until the obamacare call centers are outsourced to where English isn't the first, or even second language of the customer service reps.
"My name is Patel, I see by our records you are old and diseased. May I be of help to you by recommending mortuary services available in your location?"
(Sorry, hard to have a thick unintelligible accent in writing).
@oldredleg -
You can try writing obama a letter critical of obamacare. He might even respond, like he did to this guy.
@oldredleg- I'm genuinely sorry for the problems you're facing...along with millions of other Americans.
It's hugely frustrating that back in 2009, Obamacare's horrendous effects on Medicare Advantage plans was already known (I'm no genius, I just read reliable news stories) but ignored and/or buried by the mainstream media.
And actually, Medicare Advantage would have taken a huge blow before the last presidential election if the government hadn't pumped billions of taxpayer dollars into artificially extending the plans as an alleged "test" - which was really nothing more than delaying the law's impact until after the election.
I hope you'll somehow find a plan that works for you. And in the meanwhile, you can rant here all you want.
@TrickyRicky- I just liked the idea of the turkey not accepting just a pardon, but actually kicking Obama's scrawny ass around for additional concessions.
@Bobo- I think a lot of Healthcare.gov customers would be delighted to speak to "Patel" about now. The problem is that they're more likely to get connected to "LaQuisha" with an entirely different set of communication issues.
As for the mortuary referrals, you may not be kidding. If you'll recall, Obama originally wanted the law to demand "end of life counseling" for all patients reaching a certain age, to help people determine whether they want to be a burden to other family members if faced with a serious illness.
In Obamacare's current form, that little chat with Dr. Kevorkian isn't mandatory, it's voluntary - but highly encouraged.
Oh, I don't worry -- the worse it gets, the harder he'll fall -- the more lies the media tells, the worse off they will be when the ugly truth can't be hid. The more brazen his last supporters, the resolute those against him.
In a way, Obama is putting the distrust of government to a new test, and it will be shown that no one trusts any of it anymore and the thing will collapse.
My Clinton was wrong that the era of big gov't is older - but Obama will bring that end to a new height and intensity.
on the other hand, the FDA and EPA are trying to declare Tryptofan a hazardous chemical and will be outlawing holiday turkeys just in time for the collapse.
Many are optimistically looking toward the 2014 elections. I'm trying to keep a throttle on my enthusiasm, even though, in a reasonable world, quite a few 'public servants' would be sent packing after the elections and just maybe saner minds could start on the rebuild of government!
I went back into the archives of several of my favorite sites, and, I'm sure you'll remember, most of them felt as we did...that Obama's reign was just about over! Lesson learned...don't count them chickens till they are hatched!
God bless America (burp) 'scuse me!
I graduated from college with a degree in design in 2009, just in time to catch a lot of the larger companies in my half of the country dump their design departments to save money in the impending recession. Long story short, after competing with my peers to try and land a job in my field went south, I ended up taking another job which paid so lowly I was eligible for food credit and cash assistance.
Things in my family had gone bad. Cancer, loss of loved ones, new problems, less money. I was trapped.
Last week, I was notified that due to my continued "participation" in the food and cash assistance, I was considered an "extreme case" and am now being forced to attend a 6-hour a day "job search and compliance" program despite having a job and not making enough to make ends meet. I'm forced to apply for additional work at any hiring entity put in front of me - places like McDonalds and such - and if offered the job, I need to accept it (somehow, despite being employed already.)
Essentially, the program ends one of two ways - 1. I accept the job and am taken off assistance as no longer deemed needing it. 2. I reject the job and am taken off assistance for "noncompliance" to the program.
This administration is scrambling to justify themselves, and what this tells me is that at this point they're DESPERATE to get people off of any assistance so they can pad their numbers and pretend they've done a good job. Expect new polls in the first quarter to show a drop in people on welfare and assistance, and know that it's because the programs are being rigged to put people on the street and not because any economic policies are working. Stay cynical,, friends.
Bobo,
You've got to go phonetic (not frenetic) to convey a "thick unintelligible accent" in writing.
Juss tdryeeng to helbp heeeerdddd.
I trust that during your gatherings and conversations with loved ones this week, that you took the administration's suggestion and talked about "The Affordable Care Act", formerly known as "ObamaCare".
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/nov/28/michelle-obamas-idea-thanksgiving-table-talk-push-/
"“As you spend time with loved ones this holiday season, be sure to talk with them about what health care reform can mean to them,” she said, in the email that contained 14 talking points that could be raised. Among her touted topics, The Post reported: Talk about the need to sign up for Obamacare. And, ask guests to bring W2 tax forms, or pay stubs, in order to verify income levels."
Boy, I sure did. I talked about how instead of saving $2,500-a-year as the President promised, I'm now paying twice what I was when he took office. I lamented what I could be doing with all that money. I'm just thankful that I'm still employed enough to pay it, unlike millions of other Americans.
@oldredleg, many of my Progressive friends still hold up Medicare as a great big government success story, which befuddles me. If Medicare is so great for our elderly, then why does it require that people buy supplemental plans? Why is it so complex? Why isn't everything covered and why are there "donut holes" and other befuddling complications? Why can't any person under Medicare show up at and doctor or facility and get taken care of?
I'll tell you one reason: The people responsible for this mess don't have to sweat such details for their own care.
And don't worry @Bobo; The call centers will be kept right here in the USA, to be staffed by the recently re-employed Acorn people, which will only be helpful to you should you need to get your under-aged slave-trade sex workers covered.
@Jim Hlavac, I can only hope so. ObamaCare is unique because it forces the absurdities of big government upon ordinary citizens in a most undeniable way. And unlike most social programs promulgated by the left, it definitely isn't "free". Most certainly, many people, including the more educated and ambitious young who bought the childish "hope and change" nonsense who've come to age in an America that wasn't as opportunistic as their parents will get the message.
But I do fear that ObamaCare's failure will be but a bump on the road. There are just too many million Americans who've been brainwashed since day-one with the "learned helplessness" ideology of the left. They simply are incapable of seeing any life that isn't given to them by someone else.
@PRY, the GOP is going to have to do more than merely be the "alternative" to the statist failure that is Obama. They need a powerful, consistent, and uncompromising vision like Reagan offered after the disaster that was the Progressive '70s. I don't see that yet.
@Anonymous, all I can do is sigh. Unfortunately to the "caring" left, you are but a pawn on their game. I'm sorry.
@Jim Hlavac- I hope you're right (we've already established that you tend to be more optimistic than I am). I somewhat question whether we'll reach a time when "the ugly truth" can't be hidden; it's certainly true that the ugly effects will be impossible to hide, but the media will continue to hide causation, and the ill-informed will continue to cover their ears rather than hear that they've been fooled.
@PRY- I honestly don't know if I can ever feel as hopeful about future elections as I did about the one in 2012. The consequences were so high, and the choice so clear - and yet nincompoops and liars still carried the day. I'm afraid the word "voters" now causes me to exhibit a reflexive sneer followed by a heartsick sigh.
@Anonymous- Obama loves quoting individual stories to try to show the positive impact his policies have on "real" people. I don't think he'll be using yours anytime soon, even though I think your experience is much more reflective of the New Normal.
I think you're right that the bureaucratic mess you're in currently is designed only to prop up the president's numbers - while feeding you into a woodchipper.
On a side note, if you're trained in design have you considered offering your services on Elance.com, or any other freelance sites? It might bring in a little money, even though competing with artists and designers from other countries can really force prices down.
Good luck and keep us posted.
@Bruce Bleu- See, that's the sort of celebration of cross-culturalism that makes this site so special: pidgin English lessons.
@John the Econ- Obamacare didn't come up at our Thanksgiving table, other than a brief moment when the word was uttered and everyone rolled their eyes and shook their heads.
And "ditto" to the remainder of your comments.
When I heard that Big Red had pardoned a turkey, I thought for a moment that Holder had gotten off the hook...
Hope you had a great holiday!
Is it not a conflict of interest for one Turkey to pardon another Turkey?
Oh well; I guess the 'Gobbler in Chief' will get away with this one too.
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