Monday, June 30, 2014

Sorry, but the Socialists are winning this one

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As a small business owner of a manufacturing company with less than 50 employees I finally have to admit that whether I like it or not the Socialists are going to win the battle for medical care. The small win on the mandate by Hobby Lobby brings me no solace. Early last fall when it was time for us to renew our policy we managed to keep our employee insurance plan in place with an increase no where near the huge predicted cost increase I was expecting. Our insurance broker warned at that time that the major suppliers of insurance were not passing on huge increases at that time because they were holding their cards close to their vest waiting and watching what was going to happen with the implementation of Obama care and what if any the push back was going to be.

Well this year it is different and it looks like the cards are going to be on the table. Although our renewal date is not until end of September June is usually the time we start to review where we are and what we are going to do come October first. After several meetings with our broker it seems our choices are quite limited. We can keep our current insurance carrier and policy and take the expected increase which they are predicting to be in the range of 35 to 60% because there is a move in the legislature to allow companies to keep what they currently have but not to cap cost increases. We can move to a company plan on the "exchange" that government has sanctioned or we can just drop company coverage and get out of the insurance business entirely.

To try and keep our current insurance as it is if it is so allowed which is still unclear would mean a cost increase the company could not bear. Our broker believes the 45-60% increase even if we can keep it is likely. To try and keep it and pass the even half the cost of the costs onto our employees is a cost they cannot bear. To take less of a cost increase and offer a plan with fewer benefits from what the government offers is not an option. Therefore the only choice we have is to drop insurance entirely for our employees.

Yeah I know the Socialists win and they get to point to greedy business owners for not stepping up and taking care of their employees. Good thing for employees that the government is there to look out for them and take care of them. We have decided to cap our costs and take what the company now pays towards insurance and do a universal hourly pay increase to every employee. As we paid 85% of our employees coverage they will all see a fairly substantial initial pay increase. We are paying that out to every employee even the few who did not participate in our insurance program. But then we are out of the insurance business.

Our insurance broker will meet with every one of our employees at our facility on company time and help walk them through their options for insurance and get them signed up well before our policy lapses as of October first. Sounds like a fair and reasonable alternative plan except for the fact that it still sticks in my craw and makes me mad every time I go over what seems to be the only logical path for the company to take. As much as I replay it in my mind I cannot come up with a better alternative.

I know what bothers me most and that is that the Socialists have won this one. Many other small businesses are in the same boat we are. Some have offered up that everything will be fine and my employees will be able to get coverage from qualified insurance companies through the government exchange and maybe that is so for the first year or two but even our insurance broker agrees that it will not last and insurance costs will continue to sky rocket and fewer services will be offered. In private and off the record they admit that even the big insurance companies admit that the system is designed to fail and will collapse. The big insurance companies have seen the writing on the wall and know the end is in sight for them so they are out to make all the money they can with new people being pushed onto the insurance roles. They know that the system is designed to collapse and lead to a single payer government program so make the money while you can. Besides the government has given the insurance companies a promise to subsidize them if all the extra benefits they have had to promise drops their bottom line so what do they have to lose.

Okay I have to just get over it and move on. If any of you see a better alternative path for my company to take just post it or PM me. And to the Socialists I have only two things to say. First you didn't build it we did. Second as FFDP said in Way of the Fist, "you might win one battle, but know this we'll win the f**kin war...

50 Years of Mischief: The Triumph and Trashing of the Civil Rights Act

 https://afth.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/census-race-300x225.jpg

July 2 marks the 50th anniversary of the most famous Civil Rights Act in U.S history. Passed after the longest debate in congressional history, the Civil Rights Act (CRA) promised to secure justice for all regardless of race, color, creed, sex, or national origin. As I wrote in Race and Liberty: The Essential Reader, the law “was understood to mean ‘colorblindness’ by nearly every observer at the time.” The plain meaning of the act might be summed up as: “Nondiscrimination. Period.”

Supporters of the Civil Rights Act did everything in their power to make the language plain, clear and strong: one key clause stated:

“Nothing contained in this title shall be interpreted to require any employer . . . to grant preferential treatment to any individual or to any group because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin . . . .”
A chief sponsor of the law, Senator Hubert Humphrey (D-MN), rejected the “bugaboo” of preferences or quotas by stating “If the senator [opposing the act] can find . . . any language which provides that an employer will have to hire on the basis of percentage or quota related to color, race, religion, or national origin, I will start eating the pages one after another, because it is not in there.”

In 1964, opponents predicted that a governmental push for racial outcomes was bound to occur, regardless of the plain language of the act. After all, the principle of a government limited by respect for individual liberty had always been flouted by those in power—including segregationist opponents of the law who now acted “shocked! shocked!” that the government might treat individuals differently based on race. This was sheer hypocrisy coming from those who defended racial discrimination by state governments.

Yet, hypocrisy aside, fifty years experience has shown that the CRA did lead, almost immediately, to the bureaucratic creation of racial categories (“check boxes”) used to further discriminatory treatment by a government seeking pre-determined outcomes in hiring, college admissions, contracting, voting, and much more.

50 VA hospital workers claim retaliation for blowing whistle on the horrors they saw

Via LH

 

When Valerie Riviello, a nurse at a Veterans Affairs facility in New York, saw the clinic restrain a sexual assault survivor to a bed for seven consecutive hours, she released the woman.

The next day, Ms. Riviello said, she was removed from her post as senior nurse manager and given a full-time desk job that prohibited her from contact with patients. She eventually was reprimanded and is facing a 30-day unpaid suspension for releasing the woman.

More with video @ The Washington Times

Action, Please:NC: SB594, Pittman Amendment Don't Sellout Gun Owners

 
 Please copy and paste below.  Can't believe Pat McElraft (Carteret, Jones, traitor signed on.
 
Dear Representative:

I am outraged that the House failed to pass the Pittman Amendment to SB 594, “Omnibus Justice Amendments” which would have protected legally licensed Concealed Carry holders from becoming felons because of simple mistakes. I understand that there may be one last chance to correct this and I EXPECT YOU TO DO SO. I understand that this was a recorded vote and I will REMEMBER IN NOVEMBER.

There are other ways of preventing gang violence than criminalizing potential mistakes by those I love. Such legal language is simply unacceptable and will not be forgotten. Make every effort under your power to stop this from happening. Anything less will be remembered at the polls in November.

Sincerely,
Brock Townsend



 Dean.Arp@ncleg.net,
 Marilyn.Avila@ncleg.net,
 John.Bell@ncleg.net,
 Hugh.Blackwell@ncleg.net,
 John.Blust@ncleg.net,
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 Pat.McElraft@ncleg.net,
 Chuck.McGrady@ncleg.net,
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 "Rep. John Torbett" ,
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"........Common Core national standards… you’re looking at a complete distortion of civic education as we know it in America.”

Via avordvet 

 http://volusiacountyrepublicans.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/NO-to-Common-Core-Featured.jpg

A classroom resource provided by a group founded by three lead writers of the Common Core State Standards teaches 8th graders as fact that the U.S. Constitution is a "living document" and that the nation's founders only considered white males with property as persons under the law.
But leading constitutional scholars challenge both assertions.

More @ CNS News

Family Saved When Well-Trained Gun Cuts Down Murderous Home Invader

 DEFAULT_CRIME

A murderous thug broke into a Chino Hills home looking for his ex-girfriend, then attacked her father with a knife, stabbing him repeatedly.

The criminal didn’t count on his victim being armed:

A Chino Hills homeowner shot and wounded an intruder — his daughter’s ex-boyfriend — moments after the man repeatedly stabbed him, sheriff’s officials say.

More @ Bearing Arms

Robbed gas-station store puts magical “no gun” sign on door

 Keith's Superstore no gun sign

I would bet $10 the owner of this gas-station store is a Democrat because only Democrats believe in word magic and only Democrats can be this stupid.

On March 19, 2014, a Mississippi concealed weapons permit (CWP) holder, a white male in his 30s, walked into Keith’s Superstore — a convenience store attached to a Chevron gas station at 7843 Highway 11 in Lumberton, MS.

Two Out of Three American Youth Unfit for Military

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The U.S. military estimates that roughly two thirds of today's youth are ineligible to serve due to a variety of physical, behavioral, and educational issues. Military hopefuls can be deemed unfit for service due to tattoos, felony convictions, low scores on intelligence tests, and drug use, among other reasons.
The most common reason recruits are disqualified is obesity. Child and adolescent obesity rates have skyrocketed in the past 30 years, and in some states nearly one out of five high schoolers is considered to be obese.

The military's new tattoo standards have also put a hamper on some recruits. The military has banned tattoos on the hand, forearm, calf, and above the neck. In most states, it is illegal to tattoo someone under the age of 18 unless a parent has given consent or is present.

Additionally, about a quarter of high school graduates cannot pass the Armed Forces Qualification Test, meaning that they lack even basic mathematics and reading skills needed to join the military. A recruit scoring below the tenth percentile on the AFQT is "generally" not permitted to join the military.

More @ Townhall

Another Rapist for Gun Control

 Convicted Felon and alleged CeaseFire Chicago rapist Richard Hernandez.

The only people that benefit from gun control are corrupt governments and criminals, but I repeat myself:

On the streets, Richard Hernandez was supposed to stop violence as an “interrupter” in the celebrated CeaseFire program.

But Chicago cops have another name for him: rapist.

Hernandez faces 36 counts charging him with sexually assaulting and kidnapping a teenage girl while he worked for the program, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned. He’s among at least nine employees of the anti-violence program to face serious criminal charges in recent years.

More @ Bearing Arms

At the Core of the IRS Saga: Tax Collectors as Political Hitmen

http://cloudfront-media.reason.com/mc/2014_06/Lois-Lerner-IRS-CSPAN-testimony-428.jpg?h=225&w=300

It's all good fun to mock the Internal Revenue Service's plausibility-challenged explanations for just how potentially embarrassing (to the IRS)  emails were lost and why they can't be recovered, but let's not forget what's at the core of the story: the tax collection agency's long and storied history as a political hitman. IRS audits have been targeted at political opponents of incumbent presidents, tax information has been leaked about enemies of powerful members of Congress, and the agency's own employees have abused their power for personal reasons.

More @ Reason

GUNS ENCOURAGED: Colorado Restaurant Invites Armed Customers

 ownes

If the food is halfway decent, I see a real franchise opportunity here:

When waitress Ashlee Saenz takes your order at Shooters Grill in Rifle, she not only carries a pad and pen — she also packs a loaded Ruger .357 Blackhawk handgun holstered on her leg, Old West style.

It’s loaded and she knows how to use it.

More @ Bearing Arms

NC: Marine accused of desertion back in US custody

 

A Marine corporal who was declared a deserter nearly 10 years ago after disappearing in Iraq under mysterious circumstances is back in military custody and will face charges to be determined by a two-star general.

Cpl. Wassef Ali Hassoun, 34, turned himself in and was flown Sunday from an undisclosed location in the Middle East to Norfolk, Va. He is to be moved Monday to his original home base of Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, according to a spokesman at Marine Corps headquarters at the Pentagon, Capt. Eric Flanagan.

More @ Townhall

Antarctic Sea Ice Growing Despite Global Warming Warnings

 http://public.media.smithsonianmag.com/legacy_blog/antarctic-ice.jpg

The sea ice coverage around Antarctica over the weekend marked a record high, with the ice surrounding the continent measuring at 2.07 million square kilometers, according to an environmentalist and author who says the ice there has actually been increasing since 1979 despite continued warnings of global warming.

The new record was posted for the first time by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s online record, The Cryosphere Today, early Sunday morning.

It's not apparent if the record actually occurred on Friday or Saturday, says Harold Ambler on his blog, Talking About the Weather.

More @ Newsmax

Pope Francis: Communists stole Christian ideals

 Pope Francis (AFP Photo / Vincenzo Pinto)

Pope Francis, whose criticisms of unbridled capitalism have caused many to brand him a Marxist, said in an interview published Sunday that communists “stole” Christian ideals.

The 77-year-old pontiff was asked during his interview with local Il Messaggero newspaper about a blog in the Economist magazine by a journalist who said the Pope sounded a lot like a Leninist because he often criticized capitalism and called for reform of the global economic system.

I can only say that the communists have stolen our flag. The flag of the poor is Christian. Poverty is at the center of the Gospel,” said the Pope. He was referring to passages in the Bible which state the need to help the poor.

More @ RT

FIFTH generation welfare Mamas

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Black mobs are now invading downtown Detroit.

This is different than what usually happens there.

This recent black mob violence represents a  shattering an uneasy and informal truce in that town: No funny business in the downtown area.

Now the local media is struggling to cover it in a way that does not show the violence is from black mobs.

Here’s the article. “Rowdies shift downtown.”

here’s the letter from Detroit:

 More @ WND

Thousands of Illegal Aliens Bused Across US into Cities

Via comment by cavmedic68w on US Militia Launch ‘Operation Border Closure’ to De...

LAREDO, Texas--A glimpse into the reality of the thousands of illegal immigrants being released into the U.S. by the Obama Administration was captured on video in a Greyhound Bus station in Laredo, Texas this weekend. The illegal immigrants who cross as incomplete family units simply enter the U.S. illegally, turn themselves in to U.S. Border Patrol agents, are processed, and then released with a notice to appear at a future date for court proceedings. U.S. taxpayers then fund bus tickets for the illegal immigrants to go to the U.S. city of their choosing. Approximately 95 percent of the illegal immigrants never return as promised for court proceedings, according to Hector Garza, a Border Patrol agent and spokesperson for the National Border Patrol Council (NBPC) Local 2455.

More @ Breitbart

Who Speaks AGAINST Immigration And FOR American Workers? Hardly Anyone

Via Mike

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/US-border-notice.jpg
 Yeah, right.......

The CIS study I wrote about on Friday some good work in it, even if some of it is, er, derivative.
 Congressional Budget Office projections indicate that if the Schumer-Rubio bill (S.744) becomes law, the number of new legal immigrants allowed into the country will roughly double to 20 million over the next decade, adding to the 40 million immigrants (legal and illegal) already here.1 This increase is in addition to the legalization of illegal immigrants already in the country. The primary argument for this dramatic increase is, as Republican congressman Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) has argued, that without it the country faces “labor shortages”. The National Restaurant Association, National Association of Home Builders, National Association of Manufacturers, Business Roundtable, U.S. Chamber Commence, and numerous other companies and business associations have all argued that immigration should be increased because there are not enough workers in the country — both skilled and unskilled.2 This report examines employment trends for immigrants and natives to see if potential workers are, in fact, in short supply.
More @ VDare

Hidden amid the foliage and scrap metal, abandoned fleet of WWII fighter planes lie rotting in the backwoods of Ohio

Via WiscoDave

These eerie pictures show all that remains of a fleet of World War II U.S. Air Force fighter planes. With their livery almost obscured by rust and moss these abandoned metal skeletons are almost unrecognisable from the once great air crafts they were. Pictured is a B-25 Mitchell

Planes were lovingly collected by scrapyard worker Walter Soplata in his back garden in Newbury, Ohio, in 1940s

 But since his death the planes lie at the abandoned graveyard amongst overgrown foliage and scrap metal

 The haunting images of the aviation graveyard were captured by 24-year-old photographer, Jonny Joo

Hobby Lobby Wins

 hobby_lobby_06

The U.S. Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision Monday ruled that a “closely held” for-profit business can opt out of Obamacare’s controversial contraception requirement based on religious objections.
The case brought by Hobby Lobby, an Oklahoma-based arts and crafts chain with about 13,000 employees, and Conestoga Wood Specialties, a Pennsylvania cabinet maker, challenged the Affordable Health Care Act requirement that employees provide free contraception coverage, including abortion-inducing drugs.

Hobby Lobby’s argument was based on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which protects the individual beliefs of citizens.

The majority opinion by Justice Samuel Alito, said the Department of Health and Human Services “argues that the companies cannot sue because they are for-profit corporations, and that the owners cannot sue because the regulations apply only to the companies, but that would leave merchants with a difficult choice: give up the right to seek judicial protection of their religious liberty or forgo the benefits of operating as corporations.”

More @ WND