The Health Insurance Debate

I’ve been listening to the Health Care debate (and not just passively listening) for months now. The "problems" that our leaders say they are attempting to fix are simply smoke screens. They say they are pushing to lower costs. This plan, if you look at any of the independent studies, will NOT reduce costs, but rather INCREASE them. Why are they purporting to lower costs then? It is an outright lie so that enough of us will buy into the plan to get it passed. They're telling us what we want to hear. If you listen to their words it sounds great. If you look behind the rhetoric and dig down to the substance of this debate you realize that cost was NEVER the issue. They simply want to make decisions FOR you, the American Citizen (and non-citizens for that matter, but that’s another debate…). It is another step towards tyranny; an all powerful central government making the decisions, not just about insurance, but about health care itself. Once they dictate coverage, they can deny payment to a cancer patient because the cost is too high for the mortality rate. Or they can mandate an abortion because the child will be born with severe birth defects or disease. Or they can refuse to give care to seniors because they have already passed their life expectancy and are no longer “productive members of society”; . This is exactly the thing that happens in other countries where a central government power makes the health care decisions on behalf of its people.

I’ve said it before. Anyone who believes that government controlled healthcare will be cheaper is either a fool, or has an agenda. These people most definitely have an agenda.

My Grandpa

This week has caused me to pause and reflect on things more than I usually do. I find that so often I go about my day so caught up in what is going on that I don't stop to ponder. I think to a degree I've always been that way. It just seems that life can go a million miles an hour when you are working and raising a young family. Things come at you so fast that you don't take time to stop and ponder.

Since Grandpa Willis died this week I have made a greater effort to ponder. I have pondered on the memories that I have of him. There are so many things that I remember about my Grandpa, but probably the most potent memory is of his happy pleasant character. I don't think that I ever, in 26 years, saw my Grandpa upset or angry. He always had a smile on his face. I think I inherited much of that trait from him. I also inherited his unique laugh. If you knew Grandpa, you know what laugh I'm talking about. It is a very distinct chuckle, and he did it often. He would tell a joke, or see a grand baby do something silly and you'd hear his distinct "eheh, eheh". It wasn't roaring laughter, just a light chuckle, but it would always bring a smile to your face to hear him laugh.

Grandpa enjoyed life to the fullest. He enjoyed playing his harmonica, especially when grand kids were there to dance and play along. (and he was good at it...) He enjoyed his wood shop. I have a little wooden rocking horse (well, actually my mom has it now...) that he made for me when I was a little kid. He enjoyed serving the Lord. Grandpa and Grandma served several Full Time Missions. When I was thinking back on my memories of Grandpa, I realized that much of my younger "memory years" were when Grandpa and Grandma were on their missions. I remember looking forward to when they came home. They always had fun stories (and fun souvenirs) to share with us. He enjoyed good visits with family. I remember how as I kid when we'd go to Grandpa's house the boring adults would sit in the living room and talk. It was often a Gospel related discussion. They were boring and we'd go out in the woods and play. Then I remember a transition to when I looked forward to those living room chats. It was fun to sit and listen. Grandpa had a great understanding of and love for the Gospel. You could tell that he truly enjoyed the Gospel of Christ.

I hope I can enjoy life the way my Grandpa did. I'll always remember him with a smile on his face and with a smile on mine.