Meeting a Victim of the UK NHS

We have got to defeat the Democrats and Repeal the HellCare Tax Monstrosity.  I just got back from a friend’s house who was having a barbeque fundraiser to fund their mission trip to Peru this fall. I met a lady there from England.  She and her family have been in the US for 9 years.  In 2000, while still in the UK, she was diagnosed with MS ~Multiple Sclerosis~; she didn’t get any treatment; the doctor just told her that to return if she had any problems.  After being in the US for awhile, she went to a doctor here for an ear infection.  When the doctor looked at her medical history, he noticed that she had MS and asked her what treatment she was on.  The doctor was speechless when my new friend told him that she wasn’t on any.  Before she left the doctor’s office, she had an appointment with a Neurologist where she immediately began treatment. 

Her and her husband’s original plan was to work here in the US for 2 years and then go back to England.  After being here for only 7months, they were offered by her husband’s company to get a permanent work visa.  They immediately knew that they wanted to stay.  She said the living environment was much better here. With her history with the medical system in the UK, I’m not surprised.  

I had a “discussion “with a BO/BS supporter who says he supports the Hellcare Tax Monstrosity because he believes that only then will the elderly and sick get healthcare.   This was my response to him.

"I have personal experience with transplants and pre-existing conditions and your assumptions are just plain wrong.   First of all, how many of your “fantasy” scenarios actually happen?   How many abortions do happen?   Second, why do you believe that only the government can provide healthcare?  We personally were beneficiaries of charity when my daughter was on dialysis.  We could not have paid for her dialysis.  It was the generosity of fellow Americans ~not the government~ that kept my daughter alive while on dialysis.  It was ~and continues to be~ medical technologies that were discovered because of free-market healthcare ~not government bureaucrats~ that kept her alive.  It’s also those “evil” pharmaceutical companies that are keeping her alive right now.  Without the anti-rejection meds that she is currently on, she wouldn’t be with us.  In addition, we have already had to pay more because of Hellcare.  My dh’s employer had to change insurance companies because of the increases from HellCare, so our deductible that we pay out of pocket is several hundred more a month than last year.  The future of my daughter depends on medical technologies yet to be discovered; that will only be discovered within the private sector of medicine.

"You really believe that HellCare will save the elderly and sick?  Who do you think will be the first to be cut from treatment when it becomes too expensive to keep them alive?  Great Britain’s government healthcare kills off over 130,000 elderly patients every year.  http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2161869/Top-doctors-chilling-claim-The-NHS-kills-130-000-elderly-patients-year.html#ixzz1yLe4vSSr

"Or how about taking BO/BS at his word when he said that “taking a pain pill” instead of life-saving surgery for a 99 year old woman who needed a pacemaker would be the better option. 

"The hypocrisy of your “choice” of healthcare for the elderly and/or sick over the life of pre-born babies is astonishing.  It isn’t an either/or choice.”

My experience tonight with an actual victim of socialized medicine in the UK just solidifies my resolve to defeat BO/BS and the Democrats in the Senate and House so that we can Repeal not only HellCare, but the other job-killing and Liberty killing laws that the Democrats have forced on Americans. 

What is the Dems Plan?

Last weekend, CongressCritter Steve Cohen was interviewed by Neil Cavuto and 1) disputed the fact that according to the Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation, over 1/2 of Americans don't pay Federal Income Taxes and 2) that even if that were true, these 50% of Americans shouldn't pay any because they are poor and can't afford it like the "rich".

Apparently, I wasn't the only taxpayer that took note of Mr. Cohen's answer and he too wants to hear Mr. Cohen's plan for how he would reduced the deficit.
From the Commercial Appeal

Kudos to U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen for his candor regarding the fairness of the tax code. When confronted by Neil Cavuto with facts showing that the rich already pay most of the taxes while half of Americans pay no income tax at all, Cohen acknowledged that fairness is not the real issue. Comparing the federal government to "bank robbers," Cohen explained that the real reason the rich are targeted is because "that's where the money is."

What Cohen fails to mention, however, is the fact that taxing only the rich will not raise enough revenue to solve our nation's debt problem. The balanced approach advocated by the Democrats will require raising taxes on families earning well below $250,000 who do not consider themselves to be rich. I therefore urge Cohen to put forth a specific, detailed deficit reduction plan so that we can see exactly whose taxes he plans to raise and by how much.

Brian Teepe

Cordova

In the comments, one supporter of Mr. Cohen offered up this summary of Mr. Cohen's plan.
cpcobb writes:

"Congressman Steve Cohen supports President Obama's plan for reducing the federal deficit. In a city where so many citizens are dependent upon social security, medicare, and medicaid, Congressman Cohen has said he does not want these benefits reduced, so he is in favor of reduced defense spending, closing corporate tax loopholes, and raising taxes on those whose income is $250,000 and more -- that is, Obama's plan. Congressman Cohen is championing the Memphis Aerotropolis, a long-term development plan to boost Memphis business. Personally, I would like to see corporate tax loopholes closed but at the same time have the corporate capital gains tax rate reduced to promote business development. All things considered, Congressman Steve Cohen is the best person to represent the best interests of all Memphis citizens in the federal government."

My answer to this was:

"Actually BO/BS doesn’t have a plan. He never put one down on paper.

1) SS, M/C, and M/D are broke. They have to be restructured if anybody is going to be benefiting from them in the near future.

2) BO/BS's idea to close the "loophole" for corporate jet owners would only put $3 Billion into the treasury over the next decade according to Bloomberg.

3) You could eliminate Defense spending ~which is the main job of the federal government~ and still only reduce the deficit by 1/3.

4) The rich don't earn enough to cover what Congress spends each year.
From 2009 per the IRS:

AGI over $200K = $1,964.3 B Taxes paid = $434.3 B
AGI under $200K = $5,861.1 B Taxes paid = $431.6 B
Individual Income Taxes paid in 2009 = $865.9 Billion.

You could confiscate all incomes over $200K and NOT cover DemonRat Congressional Spending.

You could double all individual income taxes and NOT cover DemonRat Congressional Spending.

The problem is spending, pure and simple. We send enough $$ to politicians in D.C.
The National Debt has increased by $4.8 Trillion since Mr. Cohen was elected to Congress in 2006. His plan is to continue to buy votes by spending taxpayers money. Taxpayers can’t afford him anymore."

Another commenter ~New Guy~ took issue with my facts from the IRS about how much the rich could pay with this comment:

"this statement is factually incorrect in composition statistics intended to be misleading. As reported quite widely in news (including Fox) the return of rates to 2001 levels for 200k/250k people would raise $70B alone. That is a 3%-4.5% increase in their marginal rate only. I'm not suggesting it be this, but if you raised it 70%, it would be well over the deficit all by itself."

To which I replied:

"You must have went to Memphis City Schools and flunked math. $70 Billion does not even touch this year's deficit. The deficit for 2009 was $1,400 Billion; 2010 was $1,300 Billion and it's on track to be $1,600 Billion this year. The Federal government will spend $3,800 Billion this year and borrow $1,645 Billion.
If you taxed those $200K and up at 100%, you would only get $869 Billion."

Mr. Cohen, What's Balanced about 51% of Americans that pay NO Fed Taxes?

CongressCritter Steve Cohen tries to make the case for "shared sacrifice" and is called on it by Neil Cavuto.



Since Mr. Cohen apparently doesn't know that 51% of Americans don't pay Federal Income taxes, here is the letter from the Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation.

In summary, for tax year 2009, approximately 22% of all tax units, including filers and non filers, will have zero income tax liability, approximately 30% will receive a refundable credit, and approximately 49% will have a positive income tax liability.

Now granted I didn't go to Memphis City Schools, but 100 - 49 = 51.

Here's another little factoid for Mr. Cohen. There aren't enough rich to tax to cover the deficit. From the Dailymail.com From the IRS: 8,274 people with incomes of $10 million per year or more — earned a total of $240 billion in 2009. You could confiscate all their income and only run the government for 24 days. Also, individual tax collections totaled $1,175,422,000,000 in 2009. Doubling federal income taxes for everyone would still leave us $400 billion or so shy of balancing the budget.

What budget have you ever balanced, Mr. Cohen?

Which Tax Creates Jobs?

Senator Marco Rubio asks an excellent question. Which of the proposed tax increases by the DemonRats will create jobs?



The latest example of millionaires and billionaires demonized by BO/BS are corporate jet owners; however, according to Bloomberg this end of the tax break ~which was in the stiumlus bill so technically, it's a DemonRat tax break~ would only put $3 Billion into the treasure over the next decade. In fact, if you add up all of the proposed tax hikes the DemonRats are currently demagoguing on they would only equal 9 days and 23 hours of deficit spending. That's not going to fix the current budget crisis.

The answer is more taxpayers; not more and higher taxes. History has shown that raising taxes doesn't raise revenue. The latest example of this is the Bush Tax Cuts. BO/BS even know this. During a primary debate in 2008, when asked the question about why when revenues increased when the Capital Gains Tax rate was lowered in 1997, revenues went up, why he would raise the tax rate and his answer? "For purposes of Fairness"



How high does BO/BS and the DemonRats want the unemployment rate to be? It's a bad idea to pass anything that make it harder to create jobs.

I ask with Senator Rubio;
Which of these new taxes will create jobs?