Ice Breaker

Touched
At the same time, he is preparing Florida Blue, a nonprofit Blue Cross and Blue Shield plan, for 2014, when most of the requirements of the federal Affordable Care Act go into effect. Insurers will have to offer a policy to anyone who wants one, regardless of their health, and will not be allowed to charge more in premiums to people with expensive medical conditions. The plans the companies offer will be highly regulated through government-run exchanges that are still getting their final regulatory touches. (NYT, 2/5/2013)

Here is an example of someone who cannot be denied coverage. Barney Harold O'Brien (not his real name) is 55 years old and self-employed. Although he knows that he should buy health insurance he has never wanted to spend the money. Money that he says he would rather spend on a new Ford F150 pick-up truck. Barney - never one to work-out - is 5 feet seven inches tall and weighs 250 pounds. For breakfast, he swings by Dunkin Donuts to get a large coffee and three cream-filled donuts. Lunch is either Taco Bell where he enjoys the Grande Loco Supremo Gordo Macho Taco or McDonalds where he likes the 1/4 pounder with cheese. He likes it so much that he orders two along with large fries and a milkshake. On the way home from work, Barney grabs two "hot 'n ready" pizzas at Dominos (or is it Little Caesars?) and a case of Bud Light before settling in to watch MSNBC. 

Thankfully, under Obamacare, Barney cannot be denied health insurance and he does not have to pay more than his neighbor who is training for the next marathon.

Who is picking up the cost of the extra medical bills that Barney will generate? You are sucker!

This is not insurance. This is madness.


Budget Crunch
Mr. Obama, who missed a deadline this week to submit his annual budget to Congress, acknowledged on Tuesday that a broader deficit agreement is unlikely to be reached by the March deadline. He provided no details about the tens of billion of dollars in spending cuts and tax adjustments that he wants Congress to pass quickly. More specifics could come when he delivers his State of the Union address next Tuesday. (NYT, 2/5/2013)

Displaying the same distracted stoner affect first seen in Hawaii with the Choom Squad, Obama blows off his homework again. 


Acting Out
Restarting a politically tinged debate, the Senate voted 85 to 8 on Monday evening to take up a renewal of the Violence Against Women Act.  (NYT, 2/4/2013)

Here is what you need to know about anything Congress comes up with that includes the name of a minority group in the title. One, it is completely unnecessary. Two, it is a pander to the group. Three, it is an open invitation to tort lawyers to begin suing. 

In 2013, we need a Violence Against Women Act? Really? Is violence against women legal now?


Tap Tap
Republicans tapped Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a rising star in the Republican party who is frequently mentioned as a 2016 presidential contender, to deliver the Republican response to President Barack Obama's State of the Union address next week. (WSJ, 2/6/2013)

Easy prediction: Liberals will seek to demean Rubio in similar fashion to how they seek to demean black conservatives by calling them "house negros." They will coin a new phrase, perhaps calling Rubio the "Republican Party's gardener." This is what Liberals do when confronted with an ethnic politician who they insist belongs in their camp.