The court by design is to keep capital hill on honest footing. They by design are not to be political in their rulings. They by design are an equal branch of government with the authority AND DUTY to strike down laws that do not meet constitutional muster. They by design are appointed for life so that politics cannot hold keeping their job, etc. over their heads and again, therefore allowing them to operate without bias in their rulings.
Justice Roberts, not Kennedy was the deciding vote? Wow, you could have knocked me over with a feather on that one. Why is it that the "liberal" justices NEVER stray from POLITICAL viewpoints and whenever the sanctity of the courts ruling on a controversial decision, that it rests squarely on the shoulders of the conservative justices? This one really should have been a 9-0 decision!
The government is forcing people to buy something. Justice Robert's writing picks out a scapegoat of calling the mandate a tax and not a penalty. He quite simply is wrong!
Now the repercussions for us all:
1. Healthcare costs and especially insurance rates will RISE DRAMATICALLY for everyone! They will have to or that insurance company will not offer major medical insurance (as many have all ready done prior to this decision actually, look it up) and only offer life policies, annuities, etc.
a. Since the insurance company cannot charge more for pre-existing conditions individually, then they will factor that cost into EVERYONE'S RATES, therefore raising all premiums.
b. It's simple math and ONLY MATH here. Why should a perfectly healthy person pay the same rate for medical insurance as another person that has, let's say, cancer? I'm not being mean here, I'm being real. They simply should not. Did this healthcare law try to fix that, NOPE! They put the burden on anyone else besides themselves. Why? Simple; they are simply stupid when compared to the minds of the business world! Remember the credit card law passed and went into affect in August a couple years ago? What happened then? EVERY credit card company raised their rates to 29.99% first then some have backed down the rate only to a very select few individuals. The other side effect is many great programs credit card companies used that us consumers liked and used have gone away! One example I know first hand is my former company has it's local credit card via GE Money. There was a program if you purchased on the company card, that you could have a 5 months same as cash (no payments, no interest, no accruals). The company sold major appliances and therefore people did NOT have to wait until tax rebate time to make those big ticket purchases. They could get a new fridge and have 5 months to pay it off if they were approved for the card. The day before the law went into affect, GE Money informed us that option was no longer available for us to offer due to the new law! Face it people, congress can NEVER SAVE US! They really should stop trying!
2. Many large and small companies will drop healthcare all together and simply pay the fine! AT&T if I recall right made statements when the law debate was going on initially, that they would save 7 BILLION, yes with a "B", dollars by dropping healthcare and paying the fine! How many companies will be willing to shoulder that much burden just to be "nice" to their employees?
3. The individual mandate states basically that if a person does not get healthcare they will pay a 1% income tax penalty to the IRS at tax time. Take for example a person making $30,000 a year. A normal decent job, steadily in the middle of the middle class. Well here's the math. 1% of $30,000 is $300. Yep, $300 a year. That's only $25 per month! What person in their right mind is going to pay even for an employer's participation plan for their healthcare when they can be on the government's nickle for $25 per month???
I am NOT saying our healthcare system didn't need fixing. If does. However, as usual, the feds overstepped their bounds and instead of doing the hard work and fixing the problems, they do this poor excuse of sweeping healthcare legislation that in the end, will cost us ALL MUCH MORE than before!
Liberals, please don't say a word about healthcare prices in 4 years or so. Definitely do NOT blame those pesky insurance companies! No one likes the insurance man when they buy but they love to see and thank him when he brings the policy check to them in the worst of times! Insurance is one of the most heavily regulated industries in this country. Are there some bad apples? Sure, as with any industry. However, the whole of the insurance industry is there to provide financial relief to us at a very rough time (mostly) in our lives and they make money at the same time, which normally to most anyone is a win-win.
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
We have the answer to foreign oil right now! It's called the Bakken Formation in ND, SD, MT and up into Canada!
Check out this small, about 3 minute, You Tube new video clip! The figures are from the US Geological Survey too! Not some "wacky" nerd like dude somewhere. The estimates put just this one formation to have oil reserves that would make it the largest in the world! That's right, more than Saudi, more than Iraq, more than Iran, more that Kuwait, more than.... well you get the picture! Please, please, please publish this to your Facebook page, My Space, your blogs, your emails to anyone that will listen! This along with our natural gas reserves can put the USA completely, totally, absolutely, and unconditionally energy independent! Get excited about this and pass it on so we can start a serious tidal wave of public opinion! This is too important not to. Get on board, right now!
Quick numbers from this report:
Bakken Formation, USA = between 150 to 500 BILLION barrels of oil
Saudi Arabia = around 260 Billion barrels of oil
Now, before anyone "green" starts yelling, this is on dry land and NOT off shore! Also, I'm all for electric cars, solar and wind power, etc. and one day those technologies will become financially workable. Today they are simply NOT financial workable. Today they also are NO WHERE CLOSE (even if it were free to produce) to being able to provide the QUANTITY of energy we need in the US. Funny how no one talks about that fact in the debate isn't it?
Again, I'm not knocking green energy at all so please stop knocking oil. Oil is not a bad word. We can obtain, transport, refine and use it responsibility here in the US. We have tons of oil (and don't forget about natural gas) within our borders. We have the technology TODAY to get at it. So, let's use it until the more renewable energy sources become available to us both in quantity and in technology.
Lastly, again to kinda put a cork in the extremist, oil hating people out there, see the list (and a partial list at that) below showing products we use oil to manufacture and use! Again, even if renewal energy sources were feasible for current use, we would STILL NEED OIL to make all the things we use on a daily basis that so many of us don't even think about. Plastics, waxes, drugs, soap, paint, etc., etc. just to name a few. The list below, again is just a partial list, hopefully will open some eyes. We still need to make sure the oil industry is producing our own American oil safely, effectively, and efficiently for sure but don't make oil sound like it's small pox, okay?
Quick numbers from this report:
Bakken Formation, USA = between 150 to 500 BILLION barrels of oil
Saudi Arabia = around 260 Billion barrels of oil
Now, before anyone "green" starts yelling, this is on dry land and NOT off shore! Also, I'm all for electric cars, solar and wind power, etc. and one day those technologies will become financially workable. Today they are simply NOT financial workable. Today they also are NO WHERE CLOSE (even if it were free to produce) to being able to provide the QUANTITY of energy we need in the US. Funny how no one talks about that fact in the debate isn't it?
Again, I'm not knocking green energy at all so please stop knocking oil. Oil is not a bad word. We can obtain, transport, refine and use it responsibility here in the US. We have tons of oil (and don't forget about natural gas) within our borders. We have the technology TODAY to get at it. So, let's use it until the more renewable energy sources become available to us both in quantity and in technology.
Lastly, again to kinda put a cork in the extremist, oil hating people out there, see the list (and a partial list at that) below showing products we use oil to manufacture and use! Again, even if renewal energy sources were feasible for current use, we would STILL NEED OIL to make all the things we use on a daily basis that so many of us don't even think about. Plastics, waxes, drugs, soap, paint, etc., etc. just to name a few. The list below, again is just a partial list, hopefully will open some eyes. We still need to make sure the oil industry is producing our own American oil safely, effectively, and efficiently for sure but don't make oil sound like it's small pox, okay?
A partial list of products made from Petroleum (144 of 6000 items)
Solvents | Diesel | Motor Oil | Bearing Grease |
Ink | Floor Wax | Ballpoint Pens | Football Cleats |
Upholstery | Sweaters | Boats | Insecticides |
Bicycle Tires | Sports Car Bodies | Nail Polish | Fishing lures |
Dresses | Tires | Golf Bags | Perfumes |
Cassettes | Dishwasher | Tool Boxes | Shoe Polish |
Motorcycle Helmet | Caulking | Petroleum Jelly | Transparent Tape |
CD Player | Faucet Washers | Antiseptics | Clothesline |
Curtains | Food Preservatives | Basketballs | Soap |
Vitamin Capsules | Antihistamines | Purses | Shoes |
Dashboards | Cortisone | Deodorant | Footballs |
Putty | Dyes | Panty Hose | Refrigerant |
Percolators | Life Jackets | Rubbing Alcohol | Linings |
Skis | TV Cabinets | Shag Rugs | Electrician's Tape |
Tool Racks | Car Battery Cases | Epoxy | Paint |
Mops | Slacks | Insect Repellent | Oil Filters |
Umbrellas | Yarn | Fertilizers | Hair Coloring |
Roofing | Toilet Seats | Fishing Rods | Lipstick |
Denture Adhesive | Linoleum | Ice Cube Trays | Synthetic Rubber |
Speakers | Plastic Wood | Electric Blankets | Glycerin |
Tennis Rackets | Rubber Cement | Fishing Boots | Dice |
Nylon Rope | Candles | Trash Bags | House Paint |
Water Pipes | Hand Lotion | Roller Skates | Surf Boards |
Shampoo | Wheels | Paint Rollers | Shower Curtains |
Guitar Strings | Luggage | Aspirin | Safety Glasses |
Antifreeze | Football Helmets | Awnings | Eyeglasses |
Clothes | Toothbrushes | Ice Chests | Footballs |
Combs | CD's | Paint Brushes | Detergents |
Vaporizers | Balloons | Sun Glasses | Tents |
Heart Valves | Crayons | Parachutes | Telephones |
Enamel | Pillows | Dishes | Cameras |
Anesthetics | Artificial Turf | Artificial limbs | Bandages |
Dentures | Model Cars | Folding Doors | Hair Curlers |
Cold cream | Movie film | Soft Contact lenses | Drinking Cups |
Fan Belts | Car Enamel | Shaving Cream | Ammonia |
Refrigerators | Golf Balls | Toothpaste | Gasoline |
Sunday, January 8, 2012
How to Fix SOCIAL SECURITY ..... yep, I'm stepping on the third rail here!
No politician wants to "step on the 3rd rail" being Social Security. Everyone knows it's broken without anything done to it but no one will speak about it! It drives me nuts. Main part that is revolting is the political gamesmanship both the D's and the R's take when the other side makes a comment on how to fix it???
The main reason I get so mad is there are a number of ways to repair what is there or to replace the current system with another. Here is one idea for discussion:
Being that I have my insurance license, I have a very simple idea that I believe would have multiple benefits to the country and it's citizens. Now, first off, this is just one example and I'm sure there could be a product created to achieve greater results given the scope of the policy I'm recommending. Now that the disclaimer is over, here is my idea.
When a citizen enters the work force, instead of FICA withholding's going into the Social Security Fund, each person has a Universal or Whole Life Insurance Policy taken out on them. For example, an 18 year old male, non smoker that the total contribution to the policy being $150 per month would fund a policy with a face value at issue of $100,000 in life insurance (death benefit increasing with cash value option) that could be worth $734,000 in cash value and have a death benefit of $896,000 at age 65. Then the person takes that just short of 3/4 of a million dollars and rolls it into an indexed annuity then they could have a lifetime income of around $36,000 per year minimum (if annuity index does well, then could be more).
While that's not a lot of money, it's definitely much better than many social security checks now being received! Not only that, but everyone working in the country would also have life insurance to establish an estate for their families for those that don't make it to 65 years old. Think of every working person in the USA being insured for at least $100,000 (will go up with age and continued payment premiums to keep policy in force) with a serious cash value accruing along the way.
Now, if that individual could leave the policy alone until they were 69 years old, then the cash value would be over $1,000,000 and the death benefit over $1,200,000 at that same $150 per month! I don't know about your paycheck but the FICA portion for many is well over that amount on a monthly basis.
Consider that my example is with a current universal life insurance product that anyone in Florida (state where I am licensed) could get as long as their health made them eligible for the underwriting process and for most 18 year olds that's not a problem! Now if the insurance industry would put their business minds together, I'm sure a universal or whole life policy could be put together that could increase those benefits by restricting loans out of the policy, etc. (current universal or whole life policies allow loans to be taken out for their cash value) or many other ways to ensure funding the policy will continue and not be depleted along the way.
Let the current Social Security Administration administer the receipt of funds and transfer to the insurance company chosen. Each state regulates the insurance companies in their states and that would continue. They would have to figure out an equitable division between insurance companies to write the policies but with such a large number of policies compared to current levels, there would be plenty of business to go around. Probably would need more insurance companies to handle it all. But those are good problems to have. Now you take the money out of politician's hands and place it directly into the economy! All insurance policies are backed with a number of protections and state insurance boards to ensure the policies remain funded, so safety would not be an issue.
Before you yell at me about the disabled or children of deceased parents, etc. that currently get social security funds in one way or another, I bow to you on those instances but I would say that those exceptions are a very small percentage and could be taken care of separately via some kind of program but the main thing is there would be so much money to do it with at the federal level as social security would not be a burden on the government. Anyway, something to chew on and I'm sure there are ways to improve or amend the idea. So, D's, R's, I's and L's come on and put down political gamesmanship and roll up the sleeves!
What do you think??? Come on and let me know!!! Have a great day everyone!
The main reason I get so mad is there are a number of ways to repair what is there or to replace the current system with another. Here is one idea for discussion:
Being that I have my insurance license, I have a very simple idea that I believe would have multiple benefits to the country and it's citizens. Now, first off, this is just one example and I'm sure there could be a product created to achieve greater results given the scope of the policy I'm recommending. Now that the disclaimer is over, here is my idea.
When a citizen enters the work force, instead of FICA withholding's going into the Social Security Fund, each person has a Universal or Whole Life Insurance Policy taken out on them. For example, an 18 year old male, non smoker that the total contribution to the policy being $150 per month would fund a policy with a face value at issue of $100,000 in life insurance (death benefit increasing with cash value option) that could be worth $734,000 in cash value and have a death benefit of $896,000 at age 65. Then the person takes that just short of 3/4 of a million dollars and rolls it into an indexed annuity then they could have a lifetime income of around $36,000 per year minimum (if annuity index does well, then could be more).
While that's not a lot of money, it's definitely much better than many social security checks now being received! Not only that, but everyone working in the country would also have life insurance to establish an estate for their families for those that don't make it to 65 years old. Think of every working person in the USA being insured for at least $100,000 (will go up with age and continued payment premiums to keep policy in force) with a serious cash value accruing along the way.
Now, if that individual could leave the policy alone until they were 69 years old, then the cash value would be over $1,000,000 and the death benefit over $1,200,000 at that same $150 per month! I don't know about your paycheck but the FICA portion for many is well over that amount on a monthly basis.
Consider that my example is with a current universal life insurance product that anyone in Florida (state where I am licensed) could get as long as their health made them eligible for the underwriting process and for most 18 year olds that's not a problem! Now if the insurance industry would put their business minds together, I'm sure a universal or whole life policy could be put together that could increase those benefits by restricting loans out of the policy, etc. (current universal or whole life policies allow loans to be taken out for their cash value) or many other ways to ensure funding the policy will continue and not be depleted along the way.
Let the current Social Security Administration administer the receipt of funds and transfer to the insurance company chosen. Each state regulates the insurance companies in their states and that would continue. They would have to figure out an equitable division between insurance companies to write the policies but with such a large number of policies compared to current levels, there would be plenty of business to go around. Probably would need more insurance companies to handle it all. But those are good problems to have. Now you take the money out of politician's hands and place it directly into the economy! All insurance policies are backed with a number of protections and state insurance boards to ensure the policies remain funded, so safety would not be an issue.
Before you yell at me about the disabled or children of deceased parents, etc. that currently get social security funds in one way or another, I bow to you on those instances but I would say that those exceptions are a very small percentage and could be taken care of separately via some kind of program but the main thing is there would be so much money to do it with at the federal level as social security would not be a burden on the government. Anyway, something to chew on and I'm sure there are ways to improve or amend the idea. So, D's, R's, I's and L's come on and put down political gamesmanship and roll up the sleeves!
What do you think??? Come on and let me know!!! Have a great day everyone!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)