We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Obamneycare Converts Health Care Into Profits

Click here to access article by Paul Craig Roberts from his blog.

The author attempts to explain that neither health insurance programs advocated by Obama and Romney really makes much difference. He argues that... 
Both plans raise costs, reduce care for the elderly, and divert tax dollars away from health care to private profits.
I find the so-called Obamacare program that takes effect on January 1st mind-boggling. However, the changes to my health plan (insurance to supplement benefits from Medicare) supports this author's conclusions. After recently receiving a notice of changes to my health insurance, the first thing I noticed was that the monthly fee increased from $35 to $59. But, then after studying the benefits section, I learned that I would have to pay more in "out-of-pocket" fees and that coverage of services was reduced. Roughly speaking, it appears that the real cost of this supplement insurance has increased by 100%!