THE WALKING DEAD

Anyone over 65 will soon join an emerging sociological niche I call the "walking dead". legions of Americans are there now. Over 72 ? then you might as well turn in your blackberry fold your arms and roll over dead or at least pretend to be dead. The rush to cut health care cost in this most profitable of area proves that the politicians might consider the elderly expendable. The first place President Obama focused immediately to save on was the the so called "end of life care" and care for those over 65.. A drastic cut in health care for the elderly would pay for the reform. An immoral solution to a long standing problem. Insurance companies have for years exploited the sentiment and guilt of Families in America with sky high premiums for saving your life when you are least productive and have the value of used Ford Focus with high millage.

You have already been jettisoned into space by the banking sector. You will find it almost impossible to apply for a new low interest credit card or even a normal run of the mill card. Even your 825 FICA score that you thought would open the door to mortgages, car loans and credit does not matter. Even if you do have that super private medical coverage they will probably not pay for any life saving options to save your poor old soul in a timely manner.

This move towards institutionalizing the niche of the "walking dead" is fast approaching when healthcare Lobbyists and politicians on both sides of the aisle are allowed to "reform" health care. There was no doubt in my mind that once someone suggested cutting health care for the elderly everyone would jump on the bandwagon. The next shoe to fall will be denying care to illegal immigrants,

There is a good argument to look for savings in this area. However one must realize that it is the health providers who have focused on this area due to high profits and greed. Not replacing a knee or hip after the age of 65 and then keeping someone in intensive care for months after a massive heart attack at 85 does not balance out. Perhaps a great deal could be saved with end of life counseling. Most seniors would not want their families to spend time with an unresponsive vegetable. They probably would not want extreme measures to prolong their life when death would be a better choice.

This is a positive argument for enacting end of life counseling provisions in the new health care plan. But alas a media circus orchestrated by a brain dead politician has killed this as even a thought. Dropped like a hot potato.

Now that the focus is on the high cost of elderly care I would hope that Uncle Joe will not be denied a knee replacement or Auntie Florence will not get her heart pacer. After all Uncle Joe likes to kick a soccer ball around with his six nephews and Auntie Florence will continue to bake those delicious brownies that everyone in the family enjoys so much.

COST NOT DELIVERY

There are some touchy issues affecting the out come of the new "McDonald's" style health plans. One of those being "end of life care". Most alarming is the fact that the citizens of the United States have a blurred vision. When end of life care open discussion becomes a tabu subject through cheap media rumors then the public might even need a seeing eye dog. When petty alarmist can put so much fear into the mix with the help of the media then it is obvious that some clear, concise explanations should be spoon fed to the public. So called town meetings with selective audiences is not very democratic. Will wealthy citizens be able to privately "super size" their coverage with private plans? Will there be a budget "state run economy menu" for the rest?

What possible difference will it make if the actual delivery of health care cost continue to increase to the point of no return? A bill to halt the mounting cost of health care will quickly bring one to the reality that a plan to lower cost and eliminate the fluff in the private and public sector is more important. Useless philosophical, ethical arguments about who should get what. Why should the public ignore out of control rising health care cost. Do we really need an expensive bug a boo beauracracy to administer such a program if rising health care costs will make it obsolete in a few years

MOVING AHEAD WITH A CANADIAN FREE TRADE DEAL

You wake up one day and Panama again has passed legislation to make more inroads to a rock solid economy. This agreement on bilateral free trade is expected to go into effect as early as 2010. Mr. Harper and President Marinelli announced this during a visit by the Prime Minister of Canada. Hopefully it will increase the exchange of export products and of goods and services. The economy in Panama grew by 9.2 percent in 2008 and experienced only a slight dip due to the worldwide economic crisis. The U.S. has delayed a pending agreement due to concerns about possible job loses and Panama acting as a tax haven for U.S. Citizens. Both agreements benefits the banking, shipping and services related to the transport sector. A future increase in trade with Canada is expected once the pact is ratified by both the respective legislators in both countries. The United States again lags behind with treaties delayed in Latin America by human rites issues and potential tax cheats. This seems to be a fairly hypocritical reason to hold up trade which is important to the U.S. economy. When the U.S. practices what they preach on human rights internationally and domestically I will understand delays due to issues over "human rights". Perhaps the U.S. should also use existing laws in the U.S. to collect their taxes. The U.S. has been less than perfect in both areas.

Simple Truth once again.

CULTURAL SUICIDE

THE UNITED STATES SENATE AND HOUSE IS NOW LOOKING TO SAVE MONEY BY THE OUTRIGHT DENIAL OF HEALTH CARE TO THE AGING. RUMORS ABOUND BUT THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT THIS IS A MOVE TO DENY AS MUCH HEALTH CARE AS POSSIBLE TO SENIORS IN ORDER TO OFFER A "YOUTH ORIENTED SOCIETY" BETTER HEALTH CARE. THERE ARE RUMORS ABOUT ENFORCED EUTHANASIA COUNSELING FOR THE ELDERLY, AND LIFE SAVING PROCEDURES CUT FROM COVERAGE OF THOSE OVER 50. THESE MAY NOT BE TRUE. BUT THERE IS ONE REALITY THE POLITICIANS ARE DESPERATE BECAUSE THEY HAVE FAILED AT DELIVERING HEALTH CARE. THERE IS AN ALARMING INCREASE IN THE OPINION THAT THE ELDERLY ARE EXPENDABLE AND SHOULD BE SACRIFICED FOR THE YOUNG. THIS IS A GENERAL CULTURAL ATTITUDE AND SUPPORTED BY A LARGELY "YOUTH ORIENTED" SOCIETY. THIS IS A MOVE TO DISCARD WHAT IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE GREATEST POOLS OF KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE IN THE UNITED STATES. IT IS CULTURAL SUICIDE.

THE SIMPLE TRUTH, THIS IS DECADENT AT BEST AND A FROM OF INHUMAN GENOCIDE AT ITS WORST.

THE DRUG FACTOR

THE WIDE SPREAD USE OF DRUGS BY PERSONALITIES SEEMS TO BE ROUTINE. THERE IS A LONG LIST OF ROLE MODELS WHO HAVE BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH THE HABITUAL USE OF DRUGS. RECREATIONAL DRUGS AND PERFORMANCE ENHANCING DRUG USE IS EPIDEMIC. RECENT ROLE MODELS LIKE BILLY MAYS, MICHAEL JACKSON AND OTHERS WERE LINKED TO DRUG USE BY AUTOPSIES SHOWING DRUGS MIGHT HAVE BEEN A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR IN THEIR DEATHS. OF COURSE THERE ARE DENIALS AND DELAYED AUTOPSY REPORTS TO DIVERT THE PUBLICS FOCUS ON THIS REALITY. WHEN A SOCIETY IGNORES THE WIDE USE OF DRUGS BY POTENTIAL AND ESTABLISHED ROLL MODELS YOU MIGHT WANT TO QUESTION IF THERE IS A SPIN DOWN TO RAPID SOCIAL DECAY AND THE EVENTUAL DECLINE OF THE U.S. BY DEFAULT WE ARE ENCOURAGING THE USE OF DRUGS.

EMPIRES DECLINE AND FALL.

SLUM TOURS

The ugly American, the ugly English, the ugly German, the ugly French and other uglies have added another outrageous, silly activity to their insensitive arrogant habit of using the worlds poverty as a toy to amuse themselves. This would be the emerging and well organized "slum tours of the world" a group of on line companies who offer well organized tours to the worst slums in Africa, India, Brazil and even Ireland. These tours hide behing the mask of "education". How could you possible feel if you and your family were forced to live in a compound of cardboard and tin shacks that your government had ordered you into by diminishing choice? Demeaning is the only single word I can think of to describe this trend of nations forcing the poor to live in compounds that have no sewers, water, electricity, few schools and have no real physical, social or economic infrastructure. They are no better than the internment camps that were used in world war two and are alarmingly emerging again as a way of isolating undesirables in many nations. Now the slums have become "safe" tourist attractions were people are viewed by the enlightened tourist in a fishbowl habitat. This adds to the original demeaning actions of countries by allowing tourist to pay for tours to what are no more than internment camps for the poor and homeless. How much of the profits from the tours go towards helping alleviate the misery that permeates these slums is in question and should be.

info@favelatour.com.

http:www.nicheafricaholidays.com/

http:www.belfastcityblacktaxitours.com

http:www,realitytoursandtravel.com/

http:www.belfastcityblacktaxitours.com/

http:wwwrealitytoursandtravel.com/

All offer safe, "Educational" tours mostly in air conditioned mini vans, with tour guides and in some cases armed security. Some excerpts from tour sites follow,

"For the 2008/09 tourist season we introduced a market tour (2.5 hrs duration) through the busy areas of Crawford Market and surrounding bazaars of Kalbadevi and Bhuleshwar. Mumbai is all about the amount of people and the chaos and there's no better way to experience this than visiting this area. There are a few oasis of tranquility within the madness such as Jama Masjid Mosque and Mumbadevi temple where the guide will talk to you about the area and its people and their beliefs."

from sand travel.

"Welcome to Cape Town South Africa, the gateway to Africa.Cape Town, is the jewel of the Western Cape and home to the many customs and cultures of its rainbow nation. The Mother City hosts the majority of it's population in townships on the Cape Flats. Many of these vibrant and welcoming people originally hail from Madiba's (Nelson Mandela - former President) birthplace. It's a must for every visitor to Cape Town to experience a day in the life of the locals. Interact with the township dwellers as they go about their daily routine and find out more about their past, their future and what currently drives them."

from Nomvuyo's Tours

Recently I met a group of young eco. tourist wearing the Pura Vida t shirts that most tourist buy in Costa Rica. They were a well behaved group of obviously affluent young people in their teens and early 20s. (the price of such two to three week eco tours is well above $2000.00 USD without the air fare) They were form my native state of New York and none of them had accents that would indicate they were from Brooklyn or the Bronx. I would suspect most were from some of the more affluent suburbs not far from New York City but in reality worlds away from Brooklyn or the Bronx.

I put to them the same question that I would ask the slum tourist. Do you truly have a concern for the environment or poor people and just how much "good" are you doing?

The fact is most will return to their comfortable, affluent habitat and use the experience to write unusual, unique papers in college. The older ones will tell stories to the other members at the country club, or cocktail parties that will single them out and impress others. These activities, eco tourism and slum tours, just add to the bad taste activities that the "Haves" participate in. The tour companies reap profits by putting on a show that is less than humane and everybody goes home thinking that they have experienced the hunger and poverty of these unfortunate people. Actually the last time they experienced even a tinge of hunger is when they left a bicycle in the driveway and were sent to bed without supper. In reality the young ones are spoiled from the riches of an affluent environment and the older ones are one step away from becoming diabetic via glutony. My advice to all of them, donate the entire cost (including air fare) of your trip directly to the slum people through a viable agency. The average cost of a tour group of 20 from the US can exceed some $80,000.00 USDA. That would go a long way towards possibly wiping out a slum or at least improve it's infrastructure. Stay home and become an activist, wipe out poverty that is only a few miles away and enter the slums of America to help your own. I dare you to stop gawking at the rest of the world and clean up the mess you are responsible for first. Perhaps that might qualify you to try conquering the rest of Global poverty.

SARAH PALIN TAKES A WALK

The media buzz is hurting my ears. The noise about Palin'a shrill resignation as Alaska's lame duck governor comes as no surprise. This makes one wonder what other issues truly out weigh this media event. The world seems to now host politicians and personalities who like clowns in a circus , well clown around, and take a back seat to the real lion tamers who are the Banks and Corporations who represent the real time acts. Often I feel that this three ring circus is truly three rings of activity operating as separate entities. In Ring one we have the media who now have less control mostly because of a real hosing down by the internet. This dilution of power probably leaves the public confused. In Ring two we have the politicians and so called World leaders and the other people who sweep up the resulting manure. They are performing independent of reality or at least it is difficult to tell reality from hopes and dreams and outright deceit. Ring three has the Banks, Financial institutions and corporations who collectively brought down the world economy and continue to reap outrageous profits while utilizing taxpayer money. These guys are the real evil lion tamers and stars of the Circus. However they would like to lie low and have unbridled freedom to continue fleecing the public with their own tax money. The world leaders/politicians dance around like puppets in ring two trying to put patches on the economy while feeding the lion tamers in ring three prime steaks in the form of support from the Feds. Unfortunately there is no Ringmaster. Perhaps one effective Ringmaster could bring the show to order. The world is a disorganized circus.

Diffused, confused power is the theme. Hopes for a new leader or Ringmaster fade. Obama held out some hope for "a world leader" but he is now diminishing his potency by involving himself in local racist leaning issues and moonwalking backwards like the late Michael Jackson. Shuffling one step forward and two back while secretly puffing on a cigarette and "rethinking" statements/actions to shore up the American Economy and therefore the world economy. Other leaders down south like Oscar Arias, who has trouble holding a tea party for Central American players, are the norm. Then there is the French Prime Minister who finally forced Europeans to draw a line on a politicians private moral behavior. Most "leaders" are clowns performing their usual act in ring two oblivious to what is going on in ring three and focused on the press in ring one. Where is the Nation or individual leader who can bring order? That is a depressing question. Some real potential world leaders have unfortunately aged beyond the energy level needed to lead us out of this chaos. They are also exhausted from dealing with their own national problems. Perhaps our readers can see a world leader emerging by looking in unlikely places like Africa or Latin America. America is leaning left but not by design. America simply lost it's balance and will "right" itself with the next presidential election. Republicans will probably take control again in spite of twitter or any other technology used by clever Democrat/technocrats. The resulting time lag that a change in administrations causes is hardly something America needs. Change will not solve the problems and change will not bring peace.