Americans can do this

Why not establish a Medicaid payroll tax? We have a Social Security tax, a Medicare tax and unemployment insurance taxes. These funds, even if it is just one cent on every dollar of pay, could be used by the states to help fund their Medicaid programs.

Make laws that allow Medicare and Medicaid programs to negotiate with drug companies for lower prices. Regulate the health care industry to provide quality health care (not just expensive procedures) and the health insurance industry to provide affordable premiums.

Why shouldn’t everybody pay for health insurance? If you drive a car, you must have insurance. If you can afford to pay for health insurance and choose not to, then require the individual to pay for treatments out of pocket. If they don’t want to participate in the health care insurance program, why should they expect to use medical facilities?

I believe good quality health care should be available for everyone. I have been fortunate to work over 40 years, in fairly good health, with affordable health insurance provided by my employer. I was able to retire at 61 because my company subsidized health insurance for retirements starting at 60 through 64. I will be transitioning to Medicare this year and hope to have the same level of care at the same affordable rate.

But what about U.S. citizens who, for whatever reasons, find themselves with chronic, critical illnesses and no means to pay for health insurance and no means to pay for health care? Do we want to be a country that says “only the fittest survive” and turn our backs on the down-and-out, the unhealthy and the poor? I hope not. That’s not the America I want to live in.

‘Public’ servants?

I am sitting here watching Sunday Morning on CBS. One of the major topics on this day is the great divide between our two political parties and the media that often promotes this divide. Hey, it’s all about the ratings, folks!

I have some deeply held beliefs of my own which I will not share here, because that is not the point. The point is that many of our elected politicians are not doing anything to bridge that great divide, to bring our country together, and, frankly, I am sick to death of hearing about this every day when I turn on the news.

For example, this week it’s all about the health care bill. It seems to me that our representatives are more concerned with looking like big heroes to their constituents by wanting to abolish the ACA rather than sitting down and saying, yes, the ACA has some flaws, but let’s sit down together like ladies and gentlemen and see what we can do to improve it. But that’s not happening.

And, of course, they are already looking ahead to 2018 when many of them are up for reelection. Will my people reelect me if I don’t toe the party line by perhaps adopting a more moderate view and actually reaching across the aisle? Their predecessors did that many times, and you know who they are.

Folks, these politicians are here at our behest. Please keep that in mind. They are serving at our pleasure. We voted them in. But right now they’re holding us hostage with their uncooperative and often childish behavior.

I say that when 2018 rolls around, we refuse to go the polls. Period.

Biblical literacy

The Bible is a library of sixty-six books that have been a major force in shaping the Western world. Those who believe in the "Holy Bible" and in God and the Messiah find happiness, and live long healthy lives.

Many Christians pretend to believe that the Bible dropped from heaven fully written because they think that this is what Christianity requires them to believe. When they begin to realize that a literal view of the Bible is not what Christian scholars believe, they respond with great enthusiasm. We need to find a way to introduce competent biblical scholarship to the people who sit in the pews of our churches.

The Bible is not an eyewitness account of ancient history. It was not revealed directly by God to anyone, nor was it dictated by God on high to some willing earthly scribe.

Inquisitive and educated laypeople for whom the familiar Sunday school stories provide the substance of most of their biblical knowledge need to know the origins, the background and the essential meaning of each of the books of the Bible. They also want to know the background, the context, the level of authenticity and even the trustworthiness of the message found in these various books. They are aware that the Bible has been a major force in shaping the Western world, and they want to understand that impact. The best way to accomplish this goal is to read and study the Bible.

Some people refer to the Bible as an acronym for "Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth."

This story was originally published April 6, 2017 at 2:10 PM with the headline "Americans can do this."