Prior to the 2004 Presidential election, the law in Massachusetts required unexpectedly vacated Senate seats to be temporarily filled by choice of the Governor. John Kerry’s seat would have been vacant if he were elected President, so the Massachusetts legislature simply changed the law — preventing Republican Governor Mitt Romney from possibly appointing a Republican.

Shortly before the late Senator Edward Kennedy’s death, he asked the state legislature to change the law back to what it was — allowing current Democratic Governor Deval Patrick to possibly appoint a Democrat.

In the weeks before Senator Kennedy’s death, he argued that the state of Massachusetts deserved to be fully represented in the U.S. Senate. I agree completely. But the Senator was diagnosed with brain cancer in May, 2008. If he was so devoted to Massachusetts, why didn’t he pressure the legislature to hold a special election in January, 2009 at which time he would step down?

The good justice better damn well be sairy for what’s he’s done. Did he stop to think for even a second how dispassionate his actions would be to the families and friends of those who lost their lives over Lockerbie, Scotland on December 21, 1988?

I have house guests coming this weekend so I’m freshening up the guest rooms. When I was laying out the towels, I grabbed my favorite set just like I always do… and I spent a few seconds checking for frays — just like I always do.

You see, my favorite set of towels is 21 years old. I bought them when I purchased my first home. I fell in love with them as soon as I saw them, but I couldn’t afford them — so I bought one set out of one paycheck and another set out of the next one. For ten years, they were used daily and went in the washer and dryer weekly. They’re Martex Liberty of London, just in case you’re curious.

Since then, they’ve been used by guests several times a year. I’m sure they’ve faded a little, but they still look brand new.

I’ll bet you my favorite set of towels there isn’t a manufacturer out there today — including Martex — who’d promise their towels would last for 2 years, let alone 20.

According to Dr. Barbara Starfield, health care professionals in the US are responsible for 225,000 deaths per year from iatrogenic causes, making doctors, nurses and hospitals the 3rd leading cause of death behind cancer and cardiovascular diseases. That doesn’t include the number of patients who simply experience complications stemming from poor decisions made by care providers, resulting in more physician visits, more prescriptions, more emergency room visits, more hospitalizations, more long-term visits and even more deaths — all adding up to an additional $77 billion in unnecessary expense.

The United States came close to ranking dead last out of health indicators measured for 16 countries… and further studies show that the poor rating can’t be correlated to bad health habits or lack of technology.

Introducing another 40 to 50 million people into a health care system that’s already struggling is a recipe for disaster. You want to redistribute wealth? Find a way to recover that $77 billion and put it to better use.

References

• Journal of American Medicine, July 26, 2000
• Doctors Are The Third Leading Cause of Death in the US, Causing 225,000 Deaths Every Year
• Medical Errors, the FDA, and Problems with Prescription Drugs

Last November, I speculated on the skills Obama would need to fly our country:

Executing drastic corrections too quickly can be fatal.

The phrase “slow down” does not exist in Obama’s vocabulary. Between the Wall Street bailout, what he’s done to the auto industry, the stimulus package and what he’ll do to health care if he succeeds in getting his way, he’s dug us a hole big enough to bury the moon.

Autopilot only works if you know where you’re going.

I’ll give him credit for one thing. He has kept his promise about taking this country in a new direction. Now if he could only tell us what that direction is.

Losing your focus when you hit bad weather can be fatal.

He gave a boat load of money to Wall Street with no strings attached, punished the auto industry and wants to provide health insurance to illegal aliens and people who’ve chosen not to have it. Exactly what problems is he trying to solve?

You need both a right wing and a left wing and they have to work together.

He’s done nothing to unify Congress, although he has a perfect opportunity: If he can fire Rick Wagoner (CEO of General Motors), he can sure as hell fire Nancy Pelosi.

The person you put in the right seat needs to be prepared to take over.

Joe who? Google for Biden in the news… you won’t find anything that’s newsworthy. You will find that the English language has acquired a new word: Bidenism In the long run, I suppose his silence is a good thing.

If Obama and Congress succeed at implementing public health care — which is basically government-subsidized health insurance — will the companies participating in the program be subject to the same antitrust regulations as other public companies?

If the answer is no, then Congress is blatantly side-stepping the law. If the answer is yes, then public health care is dead before it starts.

When I see a bird that walks like a duck and swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, I call that bird a duck.

James Whitcomb Riley

Mr. President: You can do all the town forums you want and at the end of the day, I’m still going to call it a duck. If you have to spend all this time trying to sell this thing, did you ever consider there might be something really wrong with it?

About π Approximation Day

To the family of Nathaniel Turner, my sincerest sympathy.

To Leslie Schuler, if even half of the news reports are true, may God torment you in hell for all of eternity.

But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

— Matthew 19:14

“The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt. People must again learn to work, instead of living on public assistance.

— Cicero, 55 BC

We all know what happened to Rome, don’t we?