Obama Euphoria, What It Means

This article from Llewellyn Rockwell at the Mises Institute spells out the meaning of America's 'breakthrough' election.

"This is why we hear about "breaking barriers" rather than encouraging opportunity, about policies rather than freedom, about power rather than entrepreneurship. For the media writing about all this, it is the only intellectual model they have in mind. The conflict view of society was taught to them in college and is reinforced daily in the press. Also, unless you have some clear filter in mind, it seems like the conflict view is supported by plenty of evidence, given that the rise of the state has actually generated social antagonism where none should exist."

Here's the whole article: Breaking Barriers or Dividing Society?

Rockwell makes the case that human progress results from commerce and not from changes in the political landscape.

"A much better indicator concerning the status of any group – racial, religious, sexual, or otherwise – is commerce, which is the real engine that makes society work. And here we see that there are no such barriers in existence. We need only look at the status of black-owned businesses to see that there are more than one million in the United States, generating revenue of some $89 billion per year, which is more than the GDP of 140 countries around the world, and growing (according to most recent data) at a faster pace than all businesses."

Even though Obama promises the hope of change, what Rockwell describes as a world view based on conflict will retain its status quo in our educational system and news media. It is my hope that Rockwell turns out to be wrong, but I'm afraid he's not.

McPainful Episode at the Texas GOP Conventions

Professional electioneering begets more and more of itself. Alan Stang from News with Views details the sordid proceedings of the Neuces County and Texas state GOP Conventions. I think this paragraph sums it pretty well:

"A word should be said about the convention mentality. It appears to be a species of hypocrisy so intense, so total, that it metastasizes into brainwashing. It is a bizarre combination of politics and show business, a procession of dignitaries with perfect hair and choreography, speaking through mechanically pasted Senator McNasty smiles, thundering that the main problem in the country is the Democrats. For instance, on the dais in Houston, Newtie Gingrich favors wall to wall drilling for oil. Elsewhere, he is an Al Gore carbon “footprint” environmentalist. Asking about the discrepancy means you are disloyal."

Read the whole thing here.

If this sort of thing is happening all over the country, and I've heard of like stories in Missouri, Alaska and Nevada, then perhaps Obama wins this election by a landslide. Either that or McCain wins narrowly, with a little help from the electronic voting machine vendors.

Obama Is Done!!

Today, Barack Obama announced his plan for Universal Health Care Coverage. I am adamantly opposed to Universal Health Care because it places our health care at the mercy of politics.

Anyone who practices or uses alternative health care should note that this is a major advancement toward removing your livelihood and your choices.

Here's the beginning of the article:

Obama offers universal health care plan
By MIKE GLOVER, Associated Press Writer

IOWA CITY, Iowa - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama (news, bio, voting record) on Tuesday offered a sweeping health care plan that would provide every citizen a means for coverage and calls on government, businesses and consumers to share the costs of the program.

Obama said his plan could save the average consumer $2,500 a year and bring health care to all. Campaign aides estimated the cost of the program at $50 billion to $65 billion a year, financed largely by eliminating tax cuts for the wealthy that are scheduled to expire. President Bush wants to make those cuts permanent.

Here's the link to the whole article: Obama Health Plan.

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The plan proposes to reduce health insurance premiums for those already insured. It also increases taxes to help cover the costs of the program.

A doctor friend of mine made a suggestion that makes much more sense. His plan would be to reform the health insurance industry so that they would only offer major medical coverage. That means catastrophic care and hospitalization. All of the other costs such as exams, lab testing, therapies and prescriptions should be determined by market forces, ie... make doctors, specialists and drug companies compete for the business and bring their costs into line with what people can afford on their own.

I don't want bureaucrats, who don't know me, have any say over how I attend to my health needs. You shouldn't either. This is another reason why we need Dr. Ron Paul in the White House. Dr. Paul understands, not just the taxation implications of socialized medicine, he understands the assault on our personal freedoms plans like this pose.