Sequesters and Budget Cuts. And We Eventually Learn that We Get What We Pay For.

 

Of late, Wally’s been mystified about how we American citizens can demand that our government do so  more with a heck-of-a-lot-less less.  “It worked for a while,” he recently said.  “But now we’re seeing the actual costs.”   Although it was fun to cut taxes, increase loopholes for the top 2% while cutting spending for programs aimed at poor and middle class citizens, most of the rest of us got no benefit and mostly pain from the sequestration and budget cuts. The Koch brothers and other billionaires, meanwhile, made out like the bandits that they are. 

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), for instance, had its budget cut nearly $600 million since 2010.  In addition, the National Institute of health has had its budget cut nearly $1 billion.   Back in 2010, some conservatives were screaming about a high deficit and insisting on cutting government while slashing taxes for the top 2% or, as they like to say, “The job creators.”

And now that the Ebola shit is about to hit the fan, deficits don’t seem all that important.   But Wally remembers what happened with Veterans Affairs back in May and “the same exact principles apply with this mess,” he said.

Wally’s been watching as Ebola has played out in the media.  “I’m confused,” he said.  “There are so many spokespeople, all contradicting each other.  In the old days, we would have had a single person telling us everything we needed to know, and that would have been the Surgeon General.  But thanks to the National Rifle Association (NRA), we don’t have a Surgeon General.    Not only would the SG be the face health and safety, this person would also help set medical policy during this emergency and perhaps, most of the many mistakes that were made, would have been prevented from the get-go. 

Fun with FoxNews:  First, Fox News smears theSurgeon General nominee for saying that guns were a public health issue and then smears Obama for not having a Surgeon General.  Actually, Republicans are doing something very similar.  First they refuse to confirm the nominee for SG, then complain about the fact that Obama does not have a Surgeon General.  Neat trick

An Open Letter to President Barack Obama

This Weird Wally Repost is happening because Weird Wally changed his mind.  Back in March when this letter was written, WW was pissed and going to stay home on Election Day.  But although the big banks are still coming up with new and barely legal ways of getting money for nothing, it will only get worse if people like myself, don’t vote.  Republicans are counting on minorities, single moms, unemployed, seniors, and the usual none voting suspects to stay home.  They figure we're so lazy and apathetic we’ll neither notice nor care.  But do you want the country and your life controlled by a bunch of miserly old white men who only want to stay in control?  If so, we’ll all get what we deserve.

FYI:  Keep an eye on the housing and rental markets.  Wall Street will make a mint and the rest of us will pay.

Dear Mr. President:

I have always been a fan of yours and voted for you in the two previous elections.  As the 2014 elections approach, however, it is very possible that I will sit this one out.  I realize how important this coming election will be.  If, for instance, the Republicans take control of both the House and Senate, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will be wiped out and voted into nonexistence.  Worse yet, Social Security may well become privatized and Medicare, morph into a voucher system that is of little real use to us average citizens.  I won’t even bother to go into what they might attempt to do with foreign policy and voting rights.

Despite all of the above, I am so very unhappy with the way our government is working.  For one thing, I still don’t understand how the ACA works.  Had there been a “public option,” included in the ACA, I would have understood, at least, one thing about the ACA.  But without a public option, I understand none of it.

As a retired African-American male, I appreciate what your Administration is doing to fight voter suppression and your taking "Chained CPI," off of the table in future budget negotiations.  But Chained CPI, never should have been on the table in the first place. 

Having said all of that, I'm very upset over the fact that with all the corruption and illegal activities that happened on Wall Street just before your first election, no one of any significance has even been charged nor gone to prison.  Granted, a $20 billion dollar fine sounds like a lot of money, but to a company like JP Morgan Chase, it's simply a cost of doing business and not serious enough to change either behavior or the culture.   Now, had the CEO, Jamie Dimon, been sentenced to a minimum of 5 years, Wall Street might have finally paid attention and started cleaning up their acts.   And more to the point, why not push for a revival of something like Glass-Steagall?

Since I'm neither super smart nor super informed, I think there are other Americans like myself, just waiting to be inspired.  And a few CEO Indictments plus an even small possibility of a Glass-Steagall look-a-like getting to first base, would be more than enough to fire me up.

Sincerely,

Walter Lide