The Government And Money…

One of the biggest issues here in the US, and probably all over the World right now is about money, taxes, and benefits in general. And with reason. Money is tight for everyone right now, be it an individual, a family, a city, state or the national government.

This is an issue we need to look at very closely. But the subject is a VERY touchy subject for many of the wrong reasons, as it deals with individuals and their goals.

This is were I see things as it deals with the US, my family and I…

First off, we need to start at the bottom and at the top of the structure concurrently. I will start here with the “top”, national government of the US, and work down to my family and finally me.

Having worked in the US Government initially in the US Army, and now as a Veterans Administration Employee (as well as one other position) I have seen how the US Government spends money and how small or big it is. Many aspects of our US government are WAY too large, while in a few they are way to small. We spend too much money on financing and looking at entitlement programs for individuals and “groups” (those groups beings social/racial/sexual) and in managing those programs once they are set up. Once we realize that EVERYONE is a human, and treat everyone the same, regardless of their race/creed/sexual preference, and get rid of a vast majority of the entitlement programs out there, our national budget will start (but not get there) to get under control. At the same time, because we are doing away with the programs, the size of the over reaching government will shrink. (Don’t worry, I’ll talk about jobs as well!)

The Government, at the top levels needs to start participating in the health and retirement programs, which probably should stay in place, just like their constituents are required to. And once they leave office, they should have the same benefits that would be given on the “civilian side”, meaning they don’t get their non-contributing pension when they leave, even if they served for only one or two terms. Speaking of terms, ALL positions in the US Government should be term limited, with no more than eight (8) years of service before moving on. Since the majority (ALL?) of the members of Congress are not farmers or active business people anymore, we need to do away with the long term breaks, which were set up to allow the original members to go back to their farms and plant, harvest, etc. They are paid full time salaries now, work full time like the rest of us. They should have the same leave (vacation) practices that the rest of the Government employees have. In just these steps, several millions of dollars are actually saved.

Our law making process needs to be looked at, and in many cases cut back on. Funding the “investigation” into laws that “protect the individual from themselves” needs to be cut out, and the emphasis should be on laws that protect the citizen from others. Removing laws that protect an individual from themselves (what they can eat, where they can get it, adults wearing seat belts (although I think every person should wear one, that should not be a law that requires monitoring, etc.), etc. should happen immediately. Laws should deal with protecting someone from someone else. Requiring children to wear seat belts makes since, as they do not have the reasoning capability to understand the dangers of not doing so. Laws on toy manufactures restricting what they can use in the production of toys that may harm kids makes since. This change in our law system will save even more money, and help focus the time spent on the floors of Congress being reviewed and in-acted.

There are some government organizations that do need to be increased in size. Our military as it makes since for readiness and ability to respond to US issues and, in a somewhat more limited fashion, global issues. Our intelligence agencies should be properly funded and staff to meet our need for proper intelligence for the safety of our nation. And laws should be review, rewritten and/or deleted to better focus on the national protection of citizens, more so than individual protections as it seems to currently be.

Now, how do we fund these things? First off, EVERYONE, individually, not business (more on them shortly), in every State of the US should be taxed the same. My recommendation is a flat 10% of gross income, across the board, for all income levels. Eliminate all the tax loopholes that are out there that stop people from getting breaks, which will reduce the need for such a large collection agency we call the IRS, reducing it’s size significantly, although not getting rid of it, as it has a valid function, allowing only charitable donations as a reduction of taxes up to 25% of the total tax paid. Tax should be done on gross income, before expenses. This is earned income, including on investments, etc. Once you earn it, you pay the taxes. If you reinvest that earnings, after taxes, be ready to pay taxes on the earnings that investment garnishes later! No deferment till you actually put it in your pocket, because when you invest it again, you put it in your pocket for a second before you re-invested it!

Business should be taxed at a flat rate of 10% as well, after operating expenses are deducted. Again, aside from operating expenses, get rid of all loopholes to reduce taxes. Public companies should pay their taxes BEFORE paying dividends, which should not count as operating expenses, but benefits to investors. Buying back stock is NOT an operating expense in this case either. However, assisting employees in medical expenses IS an operational expense!

With the reduction of Government jobs as outlined above, there will be some people “on the streets” without work. We need, as a nation, to get back to providing our own food. Farming needs to become an important business again, and that will require many hands and bodies to work the fields and make things grow. This will do several things. It will decrease, in the long run the cost of food. We need to open our own oil fields. This will further reduce the cost of food, while it helps reduce the cost of oil products as well. Both of these two endeavors will increase the need for labor pools. We need to get back to being the innovative nation we use to be, bringing our industries back within our shores and building things again, from the ground up!

All of this requires that we begin re-building our education system as well. Which will require more teachers, again more jobs. Our education system should get back to the basics, focus on the foundations of business and innovation, reading, math, history (to learn from past mistakes and good events), and social studies. It should include the arts: music and art, which should be MANDATORY up to a certain age, and start early to get the foundation there.

This nation was built on “faith” in God. That faith needs to come back as well. This will cause ripples, but it is fact, and should be looked at closely, as the departure of that faith has caused many of the problems we now see here in the states!

More of “I don’t get it…”…

I don’t get government management folks at all. I was in a job in which a person was doing such a pour job at work, they tried to get him fired in his first five months of work three times that I know of. This person even bragged about it to anyone that would listen. Now mind you, in the first year you work with this agency, you are on a one year probation in which they can terminate you for any or no reason. You sign a paper stating you understand that when they hire you! Somehow the Union got him out of trouble each time.

Now, this team had inspections frequently, and at least monthly, but normally more often than that. This guy flunked each and every inspection in a big way. You would often find him hiding in a room surfing the internet on someone’s computer (which he wasn’t supposed to be on) or on his cell phone or the company phone instead of doing his work. When he was asked why his work wasn’t done almost every day, he would say he was given too much work to be completed by one person.

At the same time there was a guy that was one of two people, out of about 20 people, that had passed his inspections 100% every time, never receiving a “gig” on his area of work. He tended to take more sick time off than most (to be with his son at HS sporting events, and after having asked for personal time off, and not getting it, because he didn’t schedule it in the December before (not that he was there for leave selection) that year) people on the team though.

A job opening in another department came up, and both applied for it. The guy that did crappy work, and who they attempted to fire got an OUTSTANDING review was a great employee, and highly recommended for the position. The guy that did OUTSTANDING work, although called off sick 8 times in six months was given a VERY BAD review and was recommended against the job.

Of course the “bad employee turned good in the review” got the job.

On the new job, this person who couldn’t do the first job continues to not work, always on the phone or in front of a computer surfing the internet. He would take 1 hour plus lunches instead of the 30 minute lunches he was supposed to, and instead of two fifteen minute breaks he would take thirty to fifty minute breaks as often as he wanted to, not just the two. Leaves the job at least 10 minutes early most days, and was coming 5 to 10 minutes late each day.

MANY people complained to management, but nothing appears to have been done about it. There was a two week stretch were “middle management” came into the area for “watching and shadowing” us, but all they did during that time was go to meetings or sit in front of their computer answering emails. There was no shadowing and no observing what was going on.

There have been even more complaints from this guys teams mates, and while there may have been one meeting (again with the Union involved) about his long lunches and breaks, nothing appears to have changed. There was a short two or three days where he took 30 minute lunches and his 15 minute breaks, but things are “back to normal” again. Long lunches and long and frequent breaks…

Then there is a person on this team that does their work daily, plus some, is on time, seldom takes his breaks at all (except lunch) and is continually getting “written up” for small things, often out of his control, and in some instances that of his non-working teammates job, not his!

What is up with management these days?

I know when I was management, ran companies or departments, if I had an employee that wasn’t doing their work, they would be talked to, the meeting and their responses document, their job performance documented, they would get three chances to fix their issues, and if they didn’t they were terminated and replaced. QUICKLY! So as to get the job done. I would NOT give the person a OUTSTANDING recommendation just to get them out of my department. That continues to negatively impact the company and it’s purpose in life!

Supposedly the Government follows that same process, but I’m not seeing it in this organization!

I don’t get it!!

The US government…

Two hundred plus years ago, the US was formed and we voted in our government. The initial intent was to have a government of the people for the people, by the people. We set term limits on our President, but I think we forgot to set term limits on Congress. I don’t think back then they figured people would WANT to do it long term, because they were all farmers or other business people that had jobs outside of their civil service of serving the people, and they had to get back to their jobs. This is why they had long breaks throughout the year, to bring in crops, to plant crops, or to insure their businesses were running right.

We still have those breaks, why? This is their only job. They should be working year around. Yes, they should spend some of their time in their home States, but it should be working time, and they should be taking care of business five days a week, year around, except for legal holidays and leave time (vacation).

I think it is time to take back our government. It is time to put term limits on our Congress. Two terms max, just like the President, in their life time.

While we are at it, while they are serving the public, they must continue to pay into Social Security, instead of the Congressional programs, and those funds are currently in the Congressional Retirement program, need to go into the current Social Security program, closing that option for Congress (kinda like what Congress did to the “Old Military” folks a few years ago in shutting down their medical and retirement benefits) to have, no matter how long they work in congress, to retire for life with great benefits, better than those they serve, US!

While these folks are in office, they must follow the same laws that everyone else must follow, no bouncing checks, not sex crimes, etc., with the ability to get off on them. (And when they are out of office, they still need to follow the laws…) When they freeze federal employee benefits, their benefits should be frozen as well, such as pay increases, medical benefits, etc.

We need to get our government back to a government for, by and of the people…

Food Production, in the US and world wide…

It use to be in the US farmers were some of the riches people around, because they had land, and because they sold the food that everyone ate. Farmers passed on their lands and crops to their children who did the same as they got older. Over the past 80 or so years, this trend has changed.

One of the main reasons this has changed is the cost of living in general going up, making it harder for the farmers to get the loans they need for equipment improvements, land improvements, and equipment maintenance. With the high over head in producing the food, we have the very low profit the farmer makes in selling the products to the processors and providers.

Add to this, the children of the families that have been farming for years are wanting more, due to the lack of money and prestige in farming these years. These kids do not want to carry on the legacy of their families, because there is not money, prestige or fame anymore. And who can blame them, with the current cost of farming!?

It is time to get back to the basics here. We need to make farming important again. We need to lower the cost of living across the board. Part of this deals with getting rid of the Unions in the US and lower cost that way. The next part is lowering medical cost by putting limits on medical claims, lowering medical insurance (they make millions and pay out pennies), and changing the way pharmaceutical companies are allowed to do business. (Talked about about that here.)

Then we need to get the families of farmers interested in farming again, especially the younger ones who are wanting to move on!

Today’s Medical Care…

Last February (2010), I started having right upper quadrant abdominal pain, as well as extreme diarrhea and nausea, occasionally leading to vomiting. I was working at the VA when it got REAL bad one night so I went to the ER there. I was seen, taken to X-Ray and told I would be scheduled for an ultrasound. That took another week. Received a clean bill of health. No explanation for the pain or other affects.

A few weeks later I got pretty bad again, so I went to a civilian ER and was worked up there. I had a CAT scan, ultrasound and X-Rays, all of which were clear (except for a fatty liver, working on that). I was given pain pills and a consult to the Surgeon. The surgeon looked me over, said I needed another ultrasound, upper and lower GIs, and a HIDA scan. Time was taking to long so he did the lower GI and had the HIDA scan done. Lower GI showed one, small pre-cancerous polyp (removed) and otherwise was 100 clear.

In the HIDA scan I was told at the beginning that once they injected the dye, it should take less than an hour to show up, and then they would inject the “goop” to see what happens from there. At 45 minutes still no gallbladder showing up. About 5 minutes later I asked what was going on, and the MD that was in the room said it can take time, but if it took much longer (1 hour) to show, he would consider the test of the gall bladder successful and that there were problems with the gallbladder. At one minute before the hour, my gallbladder started to show up. Took another 40 minutes to show up fully to be able to inject the dye. “Borderline test”, but so far, OK I was told. When they injected the dye, I had 4% over the minimum level to have for an injection fraction to be a normal test, again borderline.

Between the two test, the Surgeon said it was not equivocal enough to perform surgery, so he insisted that I go to the GI doc next. The GI doc did an upper GI, which found many ulcers in my stomach, presumably from the ibuprofen a Nurse Practitioner at the VA hospital put me on for the arthritis in my VA issued knee. Seems that every time I took one and as it broke up every place it landed as it broke up an ulcer was created. We treated that, and I presume it has been cleared up.

Here is my first, solid complaint. We only presume it is cleared up as we have not done anything to verify it is cleared up. The pain has not lessened, I still have the diarrhea, nausea, etc. Why haven’t we done another upper GI to verify it? This, by the way, took 7 months to get too. This happened in August of 2010.

My pain and other symptoms continue…

Here a few weeks ago when Debbie and I went to Florida for our working vacation, it started off bad with me having VERY bad diarrhea, and nausea. And TONS of pain in my RUQ (Right Upper Quadrant). Sunday I began feeling an organ (I swear I could feel the whole thing) moving/quivering, and had even more extreme pain. During that day I passed around 15 “stones” from 1mm to 4mm in size.

We headed back Tuesday morning from Florida, with the pain growing by the minute it seemed. My threshold of 1-10 went to 15, resetting my 10 pain level. That evening, at a rest stop, I passed three “stones” the size of my pinkie tip. Let me tell you the pain… I’ve been told it is as bad as having natural birth. If this is the case, I will honor all mothers even more for enduring live birth, especially without pain relief!

When I got back I went to the VA docs and asked for their review. Two weeks later, no word back, and I work there. Not happy….

I was told this past Monday that I had a follow up appointment (I was never told before then!) for this past Wednesday with the GI doctor, who by the way called my pain Fibromyalgia (SP?), which it meets NONE of the requirements for the same. So I went. He said, “I guess it is your gallbladder if you are throwing stones.” Let’s get you another ultrasound and some pre-op blood work, looks like we are going to have to cut. So, I had another ultrasound the next day, and the blood work. Ultrasound was apparently clear (I guess I passed all the stones. I was told, and only after I called and demand results three times, that with a clear ultrasound, and clear (even if borderline) HIDA scan, they would not be able to do the surgery.

So, here I sit, over year later, still in pain (oh, they will give me pain pills if I want them), and undiagnosed as to what is going on with me.

THIS brings me to the MAIN problem I have with all this…

Our medicine today, and mind you I work in the field, and have most of my adult life in one position or another, is not here to find the root cause of a problem and fix it. They are solely there (or so it seems to me) to mask the problems or ignore them. They don’t proactively work on finding a problem and fixing it at the core, and not at the symptom level. They don’t examine the patient fully or do much in investigation.

I am sure it is because insurance won’t pay for looking into it, they can save money that way, but still, let us take medicine back to TAKING CARE OF THE PATIENT’S PROBLEMS!!

Reading Books – Paper or electronic?

Over the last few months I have read several blog entries on reading books, which was better, reading from a paper book or reading from an electronic book. Last night, Christmas Day, we went to my wife’s brother’s house for dinner and another exchange, and the topic came up there as well.

Those people on the side of reading books in paper format have the following reasons, among others, for preferring to read in paper:

Those people that advocate the electronic books mainly say:

For the past 5-6 years, since the e-book concept has been around, I have tried reading books on my Palm, or on my laptop, and just couldn’t get into it. I agreed with many of the comments that the pro-paper book people had to say.

But with the advent of the current e-book hardware options, I have to say I’m a VERY happy convert. I have acquired, thanks to my wife, a Kindle Wireless Reading Device, Wi-Fi, Graphite, 6″ Display with New E Ink Pearl Technology. Some of the worries I had initially where screen flicker, hard to read, eye and hand strain. None of these issues are present with this great device. I have been able to now purchase over 40 books, receive them instantly, and start reading them when I am ready to. And I can read them on my computer or cell phone if I want as well, at no added cost. (Not that I will often.) After having my first Kindle stolen at work, when I receive the replacement, bought by my wife again, I was able to instantly update the books I had purchased before to the new Kindle.

LOVE it!

So, my reasons for going to electronic books:

I have to say the reasons to stick with a paper book, especially in today’s economy and with environmental concerns are no longer valid, we should all shift to ebooks…

Time for Change…

Obama was right we need change, and especially now. Things are not working well now, and as a Nation we are falling apart.

We are once again being over taxed on everything, often against our will, for a big government that we really do not need. Let us cut our deficit by shrinking our government down to a government that meets the needs of the nation, and get rid of the extras that really aren’t needed in the form of programs that are beyond stupid, meaning the various government ran research programs for mating practices of insects, etc. We should be restructuring our welfare programs and placing limits on who gets them and how. Instead of those that are not working, give the education programs to those working in low income jobs, and help them get better jobs. Then those that are not working can step into the jobs that are vacated by those moving up, and then those low paid people can start getting welfare training for better jobs after they work a few months to a year and get in the habit of working daily.

Next we need to install term limits to our House and Senate. Two terms and you are done, next! Now, don’t change the two sections of the Congress at the same time, and not in a year where we get a new President, but two terms is enough. The positions were not intended to be long term, and were not intended to be such high paid jobs with such great benefits.

Next, since it is a full time job now, the breaks must end, and the members of Congress should be “in office” year around, not just less than half the year between all the breaks. There is no longer a need for such long and frequent breaks. They can do some time in their State, which they don’t do much now, but they should be at work 5 days a week, 52 weeks a year, like the rest of us. No more permanent retirement plans, that are not paid for either. If they want their time to count towards retirement, they can do it the same way the rest of us must, by paying into it. (Or return all of us to a defined benefit plan instead of a contribution benefit plan.) For those that have already retired, we leave alone, but all those currently in office start paying today, and when this term ends, if they have already had at least two terms, they are done. Loosing all benefits they received.

When it comes for a new Bill to be passed, the Bill must ONLY deal with the aspects of the Bill, and no add on passages that have nothing to do with the bill. (No earmarks or what ever you want to call them.) JUST the particulars of the Bill. Then, after discussion it is a straight up or down vote on the Bill.

Let us get back to running the country like a business and making it successful and one of the most powerful and riches Nations in the World!

Fiat Money… The Federal Reserve…

Fiat Money is basically Monopoly money. That is money based on good will alone, and has no backing what so ever. In 1971, we were taken off of the Gold Standard, which was a process of which every bill printed by the US was backed by gold. Without Congressional consent the President took us off the gold standard, and the rest of the world followed in our foot steps, making all money funny money.

History has show us that when money is not backed by something of value, such as gold, silver, or other precious metals, etc., it looses it’s “currency” and becomes the downfall of that nation. Look at my article on The Way of Rome as an example of a nation, a LARGE nation that vanished due to fiat money.

They were producing money left and right to fight wars, to create social programs to keep people happy, etc. Sound familiar? And they were getting into debt with other nations as they did so. They finally fell, along with the other reasons I posted before.

Then we have the Federal Reserve Board. Did you know that they are not Federal? And that they have no oversight by the US Government? The “management” consist of wealthy bankers from all over the world, and they are the ones in control of our money, how much is made, interest rates, how the bank can handle that money, who must report what on how much money is transacted, etc. The name “Federal” is there to make us think that they are part of our government, but they are not. And our Presidents allow them (both sides of the political fence!) to do as they please.

Two things need to happen. We need to get back on the Gold Standard, recall all our debts that we forgave with Japan, Germany and other nations, WITH the interest that was agreed to back then, and remove the Federal Reserve from power.

We are coming closer and closer to melting away as a nation of power and a nation in general. And I’m not happy as to where I see us ending up!

Time for everyone to educate themselves on the money/currency processes of life, and what is happening to us here in the US, for those of us that live here in the US.

If you outside of the US, look at your money situation as well. It is also fiat (fake) money with no backing but the good will of the nation (is there such a thing?) and your taxes.

The US revolted due to taxes, and here we are, taxing ourselves even more and the government is spending more than they receive in taxes, and paying themselves more each year as we the tax payers make less each year due to inflation and more taxes!

TIME TO STOP THIS MESS!