Tag Archives: medicare

Christian living

What is your retirement plan?

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No, not your financial plan (Though I hope you are saving regularly via a 401k or some other mechanism.  Do not count on Social Security!).  I’m asking about your plans for your post-retirement activities.

Self-indulgence would get old very quickly.  The Bible doesn’t speak of retirement.  God numbers our days and we never know what might happen health-wise, but there is plenty we can influence with our habits. Of course I hope to spend time with family, enjoying hobbies and doing a little traveling.  But my larger goals are to continue to teach, study, serve, etc. as long as I can.  I try to keep myself in great shape so I can be energetic and stay on the giving end of the service spectrum as long as possible.  God willing, I’ll still be doing prison ministry, mission trips, teaching, and more for a few decades.

John Piper made some excellent points in What Happens When You Turn 65, including a laundry list of people who did amazing things after the age of 65.  His closing thoughts:

Dependant Till the End

And don’t forget, if you are running this marathon with Jesus, you have a great advantage. God has promised you: “Even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save” (Isaiah 46:4). Nothing to be ashamed of here. We’ve been dangling in the yoke of Jesus ever since he called us. At out peak, we were totally dependent. So it will be to the end.

So, all you Boomers just breaking into Medicare, gird up your loins, pick up your cane, head for the gym, and get fit for the last lap. Fix your eyes on the Face at the finish line. There will plenty of time for R and R in the Resurrection. For now, there is happy work to be done.

What are your plans?  I hope you are aiming at a strong finish!

Hat tip: Randy Alcorn

Politics, Sexuality

Good news: 65% of Americans haven’t lost their minds. Yet.

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See 65% of Americans reject gay-affirmative lessons in elementary school: poll | LifeSiteNews.com.  Emphasis added:

A recent poll released by Wenzel Strategies and World Net Daily indicates that a large majority of Americans – 65 percent – do not approve of gay-affirmative lessons in grade schools.

The poll was conducted for World Net Daily by the public-opinion and media consulting company Wenzel Strategies.  The telephone survey conducted April 19-21 asked the question: “Do you believe elementary school children should be taught that homosexuality is a normal alternative lifestyle?”

Only 22 percent of respondents said they believe such teaching would be right, while another 13 percent said they were unsure.  The vast majority – 65 percent – said they do not approve of such teaching.

“Whether they object on moral grounds or simply out of concern that many U.S. schools are failing in their core missions of teaching basics doesn’t really matter – the vast majority of American adults want this type of curriculum kept out of the classroom,” Wenzel chief Fritz Wenzel said.

“Americans are particularly averse to the introduction of gay issues into the curriculum of the nation’s elementary schools,” Wenzel said. “Even among Democrats, who have been much more sympathetic to the promotion of gay issues, just 32 percent said they believe this should be taught to elementary school students. Just 11 percent of Republicans and 25 percent of political independents said the same thing.”

. . .

To the question, “Should students be taught how to perform gay sex acts as part of ‘safe sex’ lessons in school?” more than 73 percent of respondents said no.

This isn’t some made-up issue, by the way.  It is the logical consequence of making civil rights out of sexual preferences.

The issue of pro-homosexual teaching in schools has had renewed debate recently in California with a bill that would mandate such teaching in the curriculum.

Many have also noted the renewed vigor with which gay issues are being promoted in schools following the appointment by President Barack Obama of well-known gay rights activist and founder of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), Kevin Jennings, as assistant deputy secretary of the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools.

. . .

“Teaching children sexual techniques is simply not appropriate. Unfortunately, it is part of a consistent pattern by some homosexual activists to promote underage homosexuality while pretending that their mission is simply to promote tolerance for so-called alternative lifestyles,” the newspaper said.

“It is outrageous that someone involved in this scandal is being paid by the taxpayers to serve in a high-powered position at the Education Department, of all places. At some point, [Education Secretary Arne] Duncan, Mr. Jennings, Obama administration spokesmen and the president himself are going to have to start answering questions about all this. Refusing to do so won’t make the issue go away.”

Politics

An adult approach to the Federal budget

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This should be big news tomorrow: New at WSJ: Paul Ryan announces that GOP’s 2012 budget would cut $6.2 trillion in spending over 10 years « Hot Air.  The Democratic proposals on the table would destroy the country.  I say that without hyperbole.  Don’t believe me?  Try borrowing 40% of your spending year after year and see how that works out for you.

I keep hoping against hope that The One will gradually realize that signing on to this plan, or some version of it, is actually in his interest politically. There’s literally nothing he could do to alienate the left to the point where they won’t vote for him — most of them trust his judgment more than they trust their own, an unforeseen side effect of Hopenchange messianism — so he could win over independents by coopting Ryan’s plan and have nothing to fear about losing liberals in the general election. There’d be nothing much to fear from seniors, either: I think Ryan and Boehner are so sincere about tackling this problem that they’ll give O whatever bipartisan cover he needs to get this done. (Boehner has promised as much.)

Politics

Naivete can be so costly

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You might think that Obama fans would have learned not to trust his promises.  He promised cooperation but is more radically Left than any President has been or hopefully will be.  Afghanistan was the “good war,” but he is doing everything he can to lose it (by doing nothing).  And on and on.

So why do people believe the health care fictions?

Even without the lies behind sneaking taxpayer-funded abortion to the health care ill it is still an awful idea.  People argue by anecdote with problems in the current system.  Conservatives agree and offer solutions that are ignored, such as tort reform and increased competition.  But people still want to turn control of this over to the Federal government knowing that it will be almost impossible to ever get it back.

I’m just pointing out what should be obvious: Eliminating insurance and giving all the power to the government is a bad idea and it is not a logical conclusion from the premise that insurance companies have flaws.  Using that logic, they should concede that since Medicare is already experiencing $60 BILLION in fraud that giving even more to the government is just begging for more fraud.

Or they should concede that stories of bad care with socialized medicine would make us stay with private carriers.

Perhaps the solution is a little more complicated than just turning over control to the Federal government and hoping for the best.

Some argue that health care is too important to leave to the private sector.  But what about food?  That is even more important.  By that logic the government would take over food production and more.

Questions for those wanting government to completely control health care:

  • Do you find government agencies to be more customer oriented than other businesses? 
  • Do you find their employees to be more qualified than those in the private sector? 
  • Do you get better service from monopolies or from businesses who must compete?
  • Do you get better service from contractors if you pre-pay or if they get paid when the work is done?