I think it would be hard for anyone to look at the current situation surrounding healthcare in this country and believe that this is as good as it gets........not a chance. However, it would also be extremely difficult for a clear-thinking individual to think that having the US government running our healthcare system is a better option.
This country was built on people in the private sector working together, putting their thinking caps on, and bringing out a solution to the situations that have confronted us as a nation since it was founded so many years ago.
The government is outstanding at building a military, building highways, and generally overseeing the things in our lives that contribute to our overall well-being, like the preamble of the Constitution states, "to provide for the common defense and to promote the general welfare", it does not say to run or manage your healthcare.
I think a point that a lot of people are missing about this situation is that if we adopt a program that allows the government to manage our healthcare system, doctors will become employees of the government, at whatever the going salaries will be, and do you really believe that that lends itself to the best and brightest going through the years and expense that medical school entails, only to come out and have government dictate what care they can provide and how much money they can make?
There is a lot more negative in this proposition than there is potential positive......just think about it.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
9/11
Let us never forget............let's don't forget where we were when we heard the news of what was going on in NYC at the Towers. I was on my way to work when I turned on the radio in the car and heard that the first tower had been hit. Of course, at that point, they said that it seemed like it was probably random, but then, while I was listening, they reported that the second tower had been hit. I remember calling Lori and asking her if she had heard what was going on. She had been on the phone with her mom, who lives in the EST time zone, and had called to let her know what had been happening. Lori and Jordon were watching on television. He was less than a month from turning four years old. How do you really explain something like that to someone that young? What a day, as it went on and the two other planes crashed, one near the Pentagon. I remember that I had NEVER felt scared within the confines of this country, at least from the threat of outside forces. Those of you who are such staunch critics of President Bush can say what you want, but that day changed the way that he had to lead FOREVER. I would venture to say that none of you would have wanted to have his job during the rest of his term as Commander-in-Chief. I remember hearing the phrase over and over, "the end of our innocence." I remember the emptiness I felt for the people who were still fighting for their lives, and those who were fighting for the lives of others, laying their lives on the line in a very big way for people that they didn't even know. I was probably never prouder to be an American, and it really was a time of great healing for our country, in the sense that we all came together in a way that had not happened in a really long time, and was sadly overdue. Not that I would ever wish another 9/11 on us, or anyone else, but our country right now is sorely in need of that kind of unity again.
We find ourselves severely divided over issues that should on some level draw us all closer together. We should be able to fundamentally agree that there is a problem with the healthcare system, and that reform in some form is desperately needed. However, because we can't seem to agree on what that reform should be, parties on both sides want to steadily point fingers and lay blame. For example, not agreeing that the government should run the healthcare system is not the same as saying that the system isn't broken and doesn't need to be fixed. Private business in this country has always been a better solution to what ails us than to have government manage our day-to-day affairs. The government actually knows that, too, which is why so many of the agencies that we think of as government agencies are actually independent private corporations that the government contracts with to handle their individual responsibilities. I learned a lot about this during my time of selling technology, because my clients were mostly nonprofit organizations, and a lot of the ones around DC, and even spread throughout the states, were performing duties that I am confident most people would be surprised to find out weren't actual government entities. The government makes an excellent overseer and enforcer of our rights as citizens, but they make horrible managers of business. The truth is that from a fiscal perspective, you know that if you or I managed our affairs financially the way the government does, we would probably be buried UNDER the jail. While that is nothing that is germain to this particular administration, they have chosen to spread the money around much more freely than previous ones.
Despite what many may think, I don't view this administration as inherently evil, I just believe that they are sorely misguided in trying to determine what is the best way to give the American people what they want or even need. For example, a much better solution to the big business bailout that we had would have been not to reward those corporations for bad management practices by getting them out of the crack that for the most part, they had put themselves into. A much better solution would have been to shut those corporations down, taken the same money that they dumped into them, and invest it, instead, in the people that would have been affected by the companies closing down, but instead, now, we have the federal government in the banking business, in the automaking business, and other industries that they really don't belong in.
What I really started out this post to say was that regardless of all of the things that seem to be dividing us right now, we need to put our focus on the things that bind us all together - mainly the fact that we are all Americans, and whether any of us like it or not from one day to the next, we're all in this together. It is in all of our best interests to view our situation this way. While healthcare is a privelege, not a right guaranteed anywhere, it is critical that we figure out a way for ALL of us to have access to to good quality medical care, but the system needs to be set up in such a way that we do that and not the government. More government is never the answer. They need to keep improving the roads, and make sure that we have a strong military to protect our borders and protect countries around the world that need our help. The rest needs to be put in place, managed by free enterprise, and overseen by the government to ensure that the people's best interests are protected.
If you received an invitation to read this, you are someone who means something to me, and, if after reading it, you still disagree with me, then I pray that we can just continue to agree to disagree, but always keep it on a non-personal level, because I don't bear any ill feeling toward anyone for having a varying opinion than my own. As I have said before, many, many times, I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend with my life your right to say it.
We find ourselves severely divided over issues that should on some level draw us all closer together. We should be able to fundamentally agree that there is a problem with the healthcare system, and that reform in some form is desperately needed. However, because we can't seem to agree on what that reform should be, parties on both sides want to steadily point fingers and lay blame. For example, not agreeing that the government should run the healthcare system is not the same as saying that the system isn't broken and doesn't need to be fixed. Private business in this country has always been a better solution to what ails us than to have government manage our day-to-day affairs. The government actually knows that, too, which is why so many of the agencies that we think of as government agencies are actually independent private corporations that the government contracts with to handle their individual responsibilities. I learned a lot about this during my time of selling technology, because my clients were mostly nonprofit organizations, and a lot of the ones around DC, and even spread throughout the states, were performing duties that I am confident most people would be surprised to find out weren't actual government entities. The government makes an excellent overseer and enforcer of our rights as citizens, but they make horrible managers of business. The truth is that from a fiscal perspective, you know that if you or I managed our affairs financially the way the government does, we would probably be buried UNDER the jail. While that is nothing that is germain to this particular administration, they have chosen to spread the money around much more freely than previous ones.
Despite what many may think, I don't view this administration as inherently evil, I just believe that they are sorely misguided in trying to determine what is the best way to give the American people what they want or even need. For example, a much better solution to the big business bailout that we had would have been not to reward those corporations for bad management practices by getting them out of the crack that for the most part, they had put themselves into. A much better solution would have been to shut those corporations down, taken the same money that they dumped into them, and invest it, instead, in the people that would have been affected by the companies closing down, but instead, now, we have the federal government in the banking business, in the automaking business, and other industries that they really don't belong in.
What I really started out this post to say was that regardless of all of the things that seem to be dividing us right now, we need to put our focus on the things that bind us all together - mainly the fact that we are all Americans, and whether any of us like it or not from one day to the next, we're all in this together. It is in all of our best interests to view our situation this way. While healthcare is a privelege, not a right guaranteed anywhere, it is critical that we figure out a way for ALL of us to have access to to good quality medical care, but the system needs to be set up in such a way that we do that and not the government. More government is never the answer. They need to keep improving the roads, and make sure that we have a strong military to protect our borders and protect countries around the world that need our help. The rest needs to be put in place, managed by free enterprise, and overseen by the government to ensure that the people's best interests are protected.
If you received an invitation to read this, you are someone who means something to me, and, if after reading it, you still disagree with me, then I pray that we can just continue to agree to disagree, but always keep it on a non-personal level, because I don't bear any ill feeling toward anyone for having a varying opinion than my own. As I have said before, many, many times, I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend with my life your right to say it.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Home Inventory https://www.securehomesllc.com/?a_aid=dongravesconsulting Inventory
In the time it takes to read this post, a homeowner will have been the victim of a robbery. There are an average of over 7,000 break-ins on any given day, which equates to one just about every 12 seconds. Not only is this a big risk, but you also have to contend with the very real possibility that at some point, you could experience a loss of property due to fire, flood, tornado, hurricane, or any other disaster.
If you're like most people, you won't have any idea what the total value of your possessions is, because you don't have any kind of a current inventory checklist, and when you have a need to figure it out, is not the right time to work on that, because trying to remember all of that information when you actually need it, it's almost impossible to recall everything that you had.
However, if you would develop one, there would be several benefits to it, not the least of which would be reduced insurance premium rates, ease of determining a loss in the case of a tragedy, simpler and quicker insurance settlements, expedited estate settlement, or ease of calculating things in case of any life change, like divorce.
Don't cause your family to have to go through the inventory process at the emotional time of a potentially devastating loss.
See Secure Homes link under Key Links to the right.
If you're like most people, you won't have any idea what the total value of your possessions is, because you don't have any kind of a current inventory checklist, and when you have a need to figure it out, is not the right time to work on that, because trying to remember all of that information when you actually need it, it's almost impossible to recall everything that you had.
However, if you would develop one, there would be several benefits to it, not the least of which would be reduced insurance premium rates, ease of determining a loss in the case of a tragedy, simpler and quicker insurance settlements, expedited estate settlement, or ease of calculating things in case of any life change, like divorce.
Don't cause your family to have to go through the inventory process at the emotional time of a potentially devastating loss.
See Secure Homes link under Key Links to the right.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Loan Modification Problems
The Backlash to Banks is growing over mortgage modifications. Read the story attached at the following link to see what people are going through when they attempt to deal directly with their lenders.
Life Insurance and You
Life insurance will be one of the most important purchases that you will ever make. In the event of a tragedy, life insurance proceeds can help keep the bills paid, keep a family business going, finance future needs like your children's education, paying off your mortgage, securing your spouse's retirement plans. Please contact us and let us help you secure your family's future. Thank you!
Friday, September 4, 2009
Life Insurance Calculator
So, how much life insurance coverage do you need? Well, the answer isn't really how much life insurance you need......it's how much investment capital your family will need at the time of your death. Take advantage of this life insurance calculator to determine your need. www.lifehappens.org/life-insurance/life-calculator
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