A real example of Obama's hope and change

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   tobey100posted 13 years ago

   I've been off hubpages for a week.  I've been meeting with my accountant trying to salvage what little I have left.  Remember Obama's promise that if you're happy with your current health insurance you won't have to change?  Well, due to the fact that some of his CHANGES kicked in July 1st, my employer is dropping our insurance provider due to a rate hike based on the requirement to cover everything under the sun.  We've been informed we now have to settle for less.  Remember when Obama promised that if you made less than $250,000 your taxes wouldn't go up a dime?  My accountant gave me the good news that due to Obama's CHANGE, mine are going up to the point that I'll have to sell part of my property or risk losing our home place that's been in the family since 1888.  A grand total of 32 tax hikes or exemption cuts.  Remember Obama's statement just last week that the economy was coming back and doing well?  I used to have 107 employees.  I now have 85 and, due to Obama's CHANGE, I'm losing 20 more by the end of the year.  These are people that I've worked with for the past 10 years.  I don't believe the world is coming to and end by 2012.  I do believe the United States won't last that long.  How's that hope and change working for you?

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   Brenda Durhamposted 13 years ago

   Obama considers the United States to be an "experiment";  that's what I saw him say in a television interview.
   
   America needs to tell him to get his hands off OUR Country before his "experimentation" totally destroys it.  We're not his lab rats.

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      Strophiosposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      "For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken... we shall be made a story and a by-word throughout the world."
      
      This trope is older than America itself, and the idea which it encapsulates is one of experimentation: We are striking off on our own with new ideas (experimenting). If we screw up, then we shall be a warning to others (like an experiment).

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   Flightkeeperposted 13 years ago

   Hope and change is not working for a lot of people. But I hope the change is hurting all the people who voted for him more because they're the ones who put Obama in that position.

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   rkhyclakposted 13 years ago

   My brother has an autoimmune disease that requires a chemo-like drug to be put into remission. He last had to have the Rituxin 2 years ago. He needs it now as his disease has exacerbated, however, he has to wait 2-3 weeks for insurance to approve it, whereas 2 years ago it was immediate. Meanwhile, he's in severe pain, off work and in danger of losing his job, and incredibly sick. I'd like to see the fit Obama's dumb ass would throw were it one of his children or siblings that couldn't get treated due to HIS Hope and Change.

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   chigoiykeposted 13 years ago

   Y'all should cut him some slack!!

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   rkhyclakposted 13 years ago

   For what? What has he done in the last 18 months that has actually been of benefit for this country? Deteriorate international relations? Completely screw up health care? Increase the national debt into the trillions? Disrespect ally countries leaders? Disrespect our own troops? Increase unemployment to 9.5%? He's spending money (that doesn't exist) hand over fist and effectively selling us out to anyone who will listen to him, which, thank God, is becoming a smaller and smaller fan base. Sorry, I will cut him no slack. He doesn't deserve it. And don't give me the load of BS he inherited all of his problems from Bush, that excuse is getting sorrier and sorrier by the day.

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      Strophiosposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      
      
      That's the opposite of true. Which relations in particular are you referencing, because I'm pretty sure that, if anything, he's improved them with most nations. In fact, I'm pretty sure your implied statement is just objectively and totally wrong.
      
      
      
      This one's kind of funny. Not because insurance companies have responded to the bill which might actually force them to provide care sometimes by jacking up rates and basically proving to all those watching that they are just as evil as we've said they are, but because if Obama had had what he'd originally wanted (single-payer) it wouldn't have happened.
      
      Additionally, as terrible as your experience is (and you have my sincerest condolences), that is a story which was played out hundreds upon hundreds of times before the health care bill as well. In fact, it was often worse: insurers would not simply wait "to approve it," they'd cut care altogether, claiming some kind of underlying condition. Or, the patient just didn't have insurance at all.
      
      
      
      Not certain, but I'm pretty sure it was already there on the back of everyone's favorite president: George W. Bush. Additionally, the increasing debt is a useful economic tool, because it's backing stimulus spending. If you like, I can give you a basic lesson in Keynesian economics and how they work.
      
      
      
      I'd like citations for both of these, because I'm pretty sure he's done nothing but respect our troops and I can't immediately recall any instances of "disrespect[ing] ally countries [sic] leaders."
      
      
      
      On the subject of the economy:
      
      "The Congressional Budget Office said in May that as of the end of the first quarter of 2010 the Recovery Act has “[i]ncreased the number of people employed by between 1.2 million and 2.8 million,” raised inflation adjusted GDP “by between 1.7 percent and 4.2 percent,” and lowered the unemployment rate. So there have been positive trends in terms of the unemployment rate and GDP growth since Obama took office, and according to Boehner, the President “owns” that trend:" from: http://thinkprogress.org/2010/07/01/boe … s-one-job/
      
      and the accompanying graph is at: http://www.speaker.gov/blog/?p=2312
      
      
      
      On the subject of the stimulus see above.
      
      
      
      Would you like me to link you to the John Stewart segment demonstrating how, throughout Bush's presidency, republicans were reaching back and blaming things on Clinton, even though he handed to Bush an excellent economy and a surplus? Because I think you'd find it very informative.

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         Ron Montgomeryposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Please do not introduce facts and sound reasoning into the forums.  Wingnuts consider these to be personal attacks.

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         Jim Hunterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         A surplus?
         
         A surplus of what?

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            tobey100posted 13 years agoin reply to this

              Surplus and Obama go together like ice cream and toilet paper.

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            Strophiosposted 13 years agoin reply to this

            A surplus of money. See here: http://mediamatters.org/research/200509130001

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               Jim Hunterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

               There was not a surplus, there was debt, a surplus is money left over once debt is payed!

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                  Flightkeeperposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                  It would be pointless to point out Econ 101 with the libs. They just don't get it.

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                     Jim Hunterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                     Obviously.

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                     Strophiosposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                     See above for why this attack is totally incorrect, and should in fact be turned towards yourself.

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                        Flightkeeperposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                        I did but it's no use my getting it if you guys don't

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                  Strophiosposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                  That's not even remotely how that works. Surplus is a term used in opposition to deficit. Debt is a separate term. Their interaction is as follows: surplus and deficit refer to whether the spending for a given year is either surpassed by or surpasses revenues. If revenues are greater than spending, you have a surplus. This surplus can then be used to pay off some of the debt, the long term loans the government has. It's analogous to a homeowner with a mortgage: the mortgage is debt. If he has money from his paycheck left over at the end of the month, that's a surplus. If he had to borrow to make it through the month, that's a deficit, which is then added to the debt.

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                     Jim Hunterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                     Why don't you put that logic into practice with your creditors, in the real world if you have 20 dollars and owe 30 you are in the red!
                     
                     Spin it however you like.

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                        Strophiosposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                        You still don't understand how this works. At all. Your willful ignorance is in fact astounding.
                        
                        The word surplus has a meaning, when I use it I use that meaning. When you replied, you used an entirely different meaning. I then explained the meaning to you. This is your reply. Your grasp of the English language is... less than impressive.
                        
                        To explain once more: In the real world if you owe 30 dollars, which you are paying off at 5 dollars per month, and you make 20 dollars per month after all other expenses then you are running a surplus. You can use this surplus to pay off more of the debt, of you could spend it on other things, since you only owe 5 dollars per month. If you had to borrow money to make it through the month, you ran a deficit.
                        
                        That's the way surplus, deficit, and debt work. That is what the words mean. Please start using English like the rest of us.

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                           Jim Hunterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                           I got to the insult and quit reading, have a nice day.

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                              Strophiosposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                              I apologize, if that will get you to read my response and give it due consideration. I do believe it is worth it:
                              
                              To explain once more: In the real world if you owe 30 dollars, which you are paying off at 5 dollars per month, and you make 20 dollars per month after all other expenses then you are running a surplus. You can use this surplus to pay off more of the debt, of you could spend it on other things, since you only owe 5 dollars per month. If you had to borrow money to make it through the month, you ran a deficit.
                              
                              That's the way surplus, deficit, and debt work.

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                                 Jim Hunterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                                 Thank you for the apology, as for how debt,deficit, surplus work, if you owe money then no matter how you much you think you have left over you really don't!
                                 
                                 You owe money, ergo no surplus, just debt!

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                                    Strophiosposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                                    You are using the word to mean something it doesn't mean. You are using an entirely different definition from the rest of the world. Furthermore, the definition you are using doesn't even effectively counter my point about Clinton: that he balanced the yearly budget such that we could be effectively paying off government debt with the surplus every year and that Bush took that budget and wrecked it, such that we are adding to the debt every year instead of subtracting from it.

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                                    Ron Montgomeryposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                                    Your knowledge of basic economics is running a deficit.

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                                       Jim Hunterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                                       Maybe, but I have no debt!
                                       
                                       Its real funny that so many can judge the intelligence of others by words on a computer screen. As a taxpayer would you rather have debt or no debt?
                                       
                                       The answer you give will be the true judge of intelligence!

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                                 Pcunixposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                                 I think it is interesting that if you take the total wealth of just the Forbes 400, it's usually very close to the total deficit.
                                 
                                 That's just the top 400.   If we taxed all of the truly wealthy just a few percentage points on what they hold, we could pay off the deficit in a decade or less.
                                 
                                 They'd hate that idea, of course.

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   Dame Scribeposted 13 years ago

   Ron M. so true blame always got to go somewhere

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   MikeNVposted 13 years ago

   Real Americans are waking up to the lies.

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      Strophiosposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      What exactly do you mean by "Real Americans"? Keep in mind that making a one to one identification with conservatives is cheating. (And really dumb)

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      Pcunixposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      The lies of the Tea Party?
      
      Why yes, I think some are.

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   lovemychrisposted 13 years ago

   I slipped into poverty during the Bush years.
   Every time I tried to warn people, they would say "Stop whining."
   
   So,to all you repubs who always told me to shut up:
   
   "Shut up and stop whining!!!"
   
   You are only experiencing now what many of us have been going through since 2000....it was put into place back then you know. You are reaping the pain now, since you had the luxury of more money to avoid it then. It was meant to happen long ago.
   
   And the beauty is, they can now say it's all Obamas fault, and have the excuse to KILL gvt.
   
   You think you have an Oligarchy now???
   
   Wait til you cry to have corporate America back...then you will see real depravation.

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    Uninvited Writerposted 13 years ago

    Are you sure you aren't Sab Oh?

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       Jim Hunterposted 13 years agoin reply to this

       I asked you yesterday what you meant by that, no I'm not sab oh. Would that be a bad thing?

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          Flightkeeperposted 13 years agoin reply to this

          Nope, not a bad thing in my book.

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             Sab Ohposted 13 years agoin reply to this

             Yours is a fine, fine book indeed. Domo.

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             Ron Montgomeryposted 13 years agoin reply to this

             You own a book?

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                Sab Ohposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                Another personal insult? I thought we talked about this.

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                   Flightkeeperposted 13 years agoin reply to this

                   No worries. Got it taken care of.

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    Studio Eposted 13 years ago

    How come the price of gas is going down while gobs of oil is filling the gulf and the price of gas real high before the gulf gobs.
    
    Things that make you go hummmmmmmm.

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