Restoring the American Dream
What’s needed? The big picture: Restoration in two areas, change in three . . . .
1) Restoration of the U.S. Constitution is crucial.
We mean the power of the states, the power of individual Americans, the Bill of Rights and especially the Bill of Rights’ 10th Amendment to the Constitution must be restored. America has lost its character as a land of freedom and opportunity largely because of willful expansions of the power of government at the expense of the States and the individuals. It is because of this long-standing abuse that . . .
2) Restoration of fiscal sanity and integrity is necessary.
The Economy is the key issue for 2010 and to any thinking person must remains so at least until 2020. To be precise here’s the present situation, these are the problem areas:
A. Our real unemployment is about 18% if everybody who’s given up looking for work is added in to those on the official no-job count.
B. Our present National Debt stands at $14 TRillion.
C. Unfunded obligations of the U.S. Government in Medicare, Social Security and the federal side of Medicaid are almost $112 TRillion. If unfunded Welfare payments over the next 40 years are calculated and added in . . . then the total of unfunded liabilities for the United States amounts to roughly six times the total Gross Domestic Product of the entire world.
D. Our economy is growing very slowly: at the rate of a typical third-world nation.
E. We don’t have nearly the manufacturing base we had in 1970.
F. We have willfully handicapped the nation in matters of energy and particularly use of coal, oil and other fossil fuels.
G. Much of our outstanding debt is owed to nations which are not properly speaking allies or friends of America.
H. Our people are overtaxed; the government spends too much and too unwisely; and the government is involved in thousands of places where government has no business being involved.
I. Our businesses find friendlier environments for expansion in other countries than they do here in the United States and foreign investment is similarly repelled.
J. Our government has created a whole new “expensive and expansive political class” which ignores the will of the people and whose main purpose seems to be the advancement of issues favorable to the political class itself.
K. Our states are being forced into bankruptcy by the penison plans of government workers; and by the burdens commanded them by big federal government (for example the new Obamacare will bankrupt all the states between 2018 and 2024 because of the shift in Medicaid responsibility) and all of them are either functionally bankrupt now are will be within fifteen years.
L. Government has become the enemy of business and especially small business. “Too big to fail” means that the taxes upon small business and medium-sized business will forever prop up big companies which take unreasonable risks . . . we are privatizing the success of big companies and penalizing the public for their failures. Beyond issues of fairness and policing corporate good-citizenship, government needs to get out of the private sector.
The specifics, What exactly must be done?
I. Between 2012-2020 cut total overall federal spending by 50%; defense budget; border protection and homeland security spending by 40%; spending in most other areas by 55%.
II. Between 2012-2018 cut all taxes other than income taxes by 45%
III. Create a simplified new income tax beginning with 5% taxes for those single earners who earn less than $100,000 up to 20% taxes for single-earners making $1 million or more and married earners making $1,200,000 or more. Eliminate all “deductions” and loopholes except deductions for spouses and children and property taxes. Permanently establish inheritance tax at 10% for estates worth more than $300,000 and at 5% for all other estates. Simplify the personal tax code so that anyone with a 10th grade education can understand and easily comply with it . . . maximum of 60 pages 12-pt. type.
IV. Defund, repeal and replace Obamacare with a simplified program based largely upon a) tort reform aimed at cutting malpractice awards by 50% and malpractice insurance by 50% b) preventive medical intervention and screening based upon lifestyle improvement and the 7 Golden Rules of Health c) placing the Center for Disease Control and a 10% increased budget in charge of educating and informing the public about item b d) cutting iatrogenic deaths, illnesses and injuries by 80% based upon a uniform “checklist” created for nurses and doctors based upon individual patient problems and by moving 75% of the most dangerous drugs already approved by the FDA onto special “superwatch” lists and cleaning up the corruption in the FDA that permits such dangerous drugs to be approved in the first place e) instituting a new policy at the FDA that drugs which merely treat symptoms have 300% tougher approval restrictions than drugs that actually cure ailments
V. Forbid cap and trade laws for pollution and cap and trade businesses and exchanges. After 2018, gather real scientists and fund them to really investigate the history of the earth’s temperature variation over the three million years and to evaluate the reality of a) man’s contribution to temperature change up or down; and b) the nature of any changes in temperature over the last 10,000 years and the relative contribution of nature and man’s cultural contribution to those changes.
VI. Each new bill must pass a “TEA Party audit” for Constitutionality. Each proposed bill needs to deal with only one area of influence and must show specifically which of the 17 named powers of the federal government in the United States Constitution creates the power for the federal government to pass such a law. No amendments are allowed during the original passage of a bill, all bills must be rewritten totally and comply with items VI, VII, VIII, IX, and X on this page.
VII. Each bill must avoid all earmarks or other variations from the bill’s main purpose.
VIII. No bill may require more than 100 total pages.
IX. Each bill must be printed in a voter-straightforward language condensation reviewable for one week (on the internet?) prior to voting on the bill of no more than five pages in total length. A voter 20 question test on the bill will be similarly provided.
X. A provisional budget created by the leaders of both chambers of the congress must be passed not later than April 15 of each calendar year; and no new bills may be entered into congress until the provisional budget is passed by 66.67% majority in both chambers.
XI. No legislator will be eligible to vote on the bill who doesn’t pass the voter 20-question test with a 90% or better.
XII. No legislator may sponsor any bill until he’s served at least one year in the House or two years in the senate.
XIII. Pay down the National Debt beginning in 2016 for as long as necessary at the rate of 6% per year or more.
XIV. Require that every year by June 30, a federal budget be passed by 66.67% majority. Failure to pass such a budget means that congress doesn’t get paid; is required to continue in session until such a budget is passed;and each member will be fined 1/24 of last year’s income until such a passage occurs.
XV. Pass a balanced budget amendment requiring that every year (except during TRUE emergencies or when paying down the National Debt) a 1% budget surplus be required in the federal budget.
XVI. Pass an all-of-the-above energy policy which rewards with start-up tax breaks and credits research into alternative energy sources but which has the federal government rewarding the building of refineries; drilling for oil and natural gas and mining of coal; and building of nuclear power plants in safe and responsible fashion.
XVII. Do the “TEA Party Audit” on all government agencies for constitutionality, etc., etc. Engage a “Blue Ribbon Panel to audit the entire federal government for agencies and programs that are not constitutional; as well as wasteful, duplicative, ineffective, corrupt, or better left to state, county, and local authorities or to individual free will.
XVIII. Eliminate all pay and budgets for “Czar”-type appointees as well as all power to control any facet of American life. If a candidate for appointed office cannot be vetted and approved of by the FBI and the senate for a cabinet or sub-cabinet level position, they may visit the White House only once a year in an “advisory” role.
XIX. No members of the Communist Party or similar organizations may serve in any federal government position other than a civil service job for which they’ve passed an appropriate test.
XX. No bill may employ a euphemistic title using words such as “reform,” “improvement,” etc. unless the leaders of both parties deem the title worthy. In other words if a bill is a change but at least one major party does NOT believe it’s a reform, etc. it may not be labeled as such. The purpose of this provision is to encourage bi-partisan cooperation.
XXI. The Department of Education be reduced in scope to 3% of its 2010 level of budgeting and personnel. 60% of all savings from these reductions will be included in the yearly federal education budget every year into perpetuity.
XXII. Federal money returned to the states for education be provisional (20%) on new less-binding tenure for all teachers based upon demonstrated competence over five years. And Federal money to states for education will be based upon (80%-80%+) competence in students passing federally created and mandated tests every other year. Satisfactory passage means 80% funding; outstanding passage (for say 20%) means an additional 10% funding to excellent schools. Private schools which comply on 5-year tenure and take the test and pass are eligible for 10% funding.
XXIII. No terrorists caught outside the United States regardless of nationality shall have any rights beyond a highly reduced Geneva Accords guarantee of freedom from abuse. Questioning by appropriate U.S. government agencies for up to one month before official charges are filed is allowed. Any American caught in a terrorist act or any foreigner so arrested faces a maximum penalty of death regardless of the success or failure of the act.
XXIV. Any American violating willfully the civil rights of any person, American or foreign, by abusing provision XXIII shall face a maximum penalty of up to 20 years inprisonment.
XXV. Change the present term limits and change the retirement plans of congress. Maximum for Supreme Court Judges: 32 years or the age of 80 whichever comes first. Maximum for senators 12 years. Maximum for representatives twelve years. Combined Maximum in congress 18 years. Maximum retirement annual pension 25% (of the present maximum).
XXVI. Change congress to a part time activity meeting no more than 28-32 weeks per year; never meeting (except in TRUE emergency sessions) between November 1st and January 15th.
XXVII. Change the passage requirements of bills in the House beginning 2018 to 3/5 (60%) majority; and of bills in the senate to 2/3 (66.67%) majority and for minor adjustment of financial bills to 55% by both chambers.
XXVIII. Freedom of speech and freedom of expression shall be modified to encourage responsible speech. To wit: any person who’s speech can be judged by a jury of his peers to be highly irresponsible and to serve no useful communicative purpose and no other logical result (intended or otherwise) but to hurt, anger, endanger, defraud, villify, inflame, or cause emotional distress to others is guilty of “reckless speech” or “reckless expression” and punished as the law will allow up to a maximum of three months in jail for a first offense.
Examples: Crying “fire” in a crowded public place where no danger exists. Most instances of so-called “fighting words” uttered in hate, haste or anger. Most “hateful” demonstrations at funerals. Most burning of or damaging of the American flag, the Bible, the sacred texts or flags of other cultures. Most burning of effigies. Actions like creating fires in public places; overturning cars or smashing cars; etc. So-called “practical jokes” or similar acts which endanger individual or public safety. Much higher standards are required for speech or expression aimed against the states or federal government or public officials, but reckless speech and reckless expression are a danger to to the public and will NOT be allowed.
XXIX. Reasonable free speech and free expression is NOT to be abridged by abuse of new law and any persons found guilty of attempting to limit reasonable free speech or reasonable free expression will serve a minimum of one year in prison.
XXX. A combined Inspector General Six-Year Review of these policies shall be done in 2018 requiring not more than 45 days. Based upon the results of that review, a new Six-year plan based upon the need to restore the constitution and fiscal sanity shall be created or the present plan shall be judged a success and continued.
Ya’ll live long, strong and ornery,
Rajjpuut
** Here’s a reprint of Rajjpuut’s Folly shortly after Obamacare was passed on Christmas Eve last year revealing the Seven Golden Rules of Health . . . .
December 24, 2009 - 3:51pm - by A1Rajjpuut
Today we'll concentrate upon one of the greatest health care entities ever created: the Seven Golden Rules of Health. However, to put things in perspective, let’s quickly touch upon the evils of recent history: that evil monstrosity called Obamacare which has just passed the senate. Now the two legislative branches will attempt to create a more evil combo between them sometime after the new year begins. What’s wrong with this picture?
1. It completely ignores the single most valuable piece of health care advice ever given “First do no harm.”
2. It completely ignores the most valuable health research results ever achieved (the Lester Breslow ten-year UCLA study of vigorous older people) and Rajjpuut’s 7 Golden Rules of health that were extracted from it.
3. Trillions of dollars of new taxes will now be added over the coming years.
4. No program to return Americans to fitness, health and better quality lives.
5. Brand new federal bureaucracy established with 388 new agencies or offices created (almost 10 times what FDR did in 12 years).
6. Lying assumptions were required to get the bill “approved” by the CBO.
7. Huge corrupt buyouts of individual senators were required to get the votes to pass it.
8. It does nothing to address the underlying health care mess financial mess in the country.
9. It does everything to exacerbate the country’s present financial ills and unemployment problem.
10. Of Rajjpuut’s 44 points needing reform, Obamacare only addresses one (infant mortality) and does not address it well but avoids the key issues because of the liberal agenda of the proposers.
11. It keeps the inept FDA in place and doing sloppy business as usual.
12. It allows the politicians on both sides of the aisle to pretend that Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security (the three grand GSBs “government spending boondoggles created by the left) have not bankrupted the country and that they do not right now owe $112 TRillion in debt and obligations that cannot be paid.
13. It allows them to create another entitlement entity based upon promises that will NOT be kept such as the cuts in Medicare and the cuts to physicians and hospitals written into the bill – promises they will not keep as history tells us.
15. It creates another “set-aside” entity from which the left can rob the country by refusing to honor the “iron-clad” set aside provisions as they’ve already bankrupted us with Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
16. It adds another level of power and control (now adding 16% of the economy) to the already too massive federal government and moving us more surely to abject Marxist -style socialism.
17. The bill and the process it was achieved under are all unconstitutional.
18. The bill has a provision for establishing oversight committees for Medicare that, as set up presently, would not allow itself to ever be abolished (perhaps the most heinous part of an heinous process and heinous bit of legislation).
19. No one yet has read all of the house or senate bills finally passed.
Let us now return to happier subjects: Interested in adding 35 years of high quality living to your lifespan?
Here's how, and here's WOW!*
If anything beside the spendthrifts in Washington, D.C., can derail the American Dream, it's the ever increasing cost of health care both to the nation at large and to the individual. Roughly 77% of the price of a new American automobile is tied up in employee salary and benefits, especially health care. This is why it’s so difficult to compete with foreign automobile offerings. This health issue then is of great national interest; but in a very real sense, good health is a very personal matter . . . as the "Spider Man" movies remind us: "With great power comes great responsibility," and you, the individual, certainly wield immense power in the battle for your own health, fitness, longevity and in avoiding high health care costs.
While working as a health educator for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas in 1976, Rajjpuut read about a recently-completed long-range study of vigorous, hardy older people. The gist of it all came to this: the University of California (Los Angeles campus) extracted seven lifestyle practices that vigorous, hardy senior citizens tended to share as a group. As for the study results, here's what those salubrious old folks had in common:
The Seven Golden Rules of Health
1. Eat a large healthy breakfast daily
2. Regularly eat 3-4 smaller meals daily
3. Maintain a healthy normal weight
4. Avoid tobacco and drug use (minimize over-the-counter remedies)
5. Drink alcohol extremely moderately
6. Sleep 7-8 hours nightly
7. Practice regular vigorous exercise
The "magic" from the study came when UCLA extrapolated their finding out into the general populace. They discovered that if they took two men, one aged 55 years old and the other 20 and compared their lifestyles . . . if the 20 year old practiced 0-1 of the "Seven Golden Rules" and the 55 year old practiced 6-7 of them: the two men had the exact same life expectancy. That is, it would be absolutely no surprise at all if they both dropped dead on the same day, say 28.2 years in the future. I'm not sure what that means to you, but the 35 years difference between the two men is my personal definition of "quality of life." Understand this as you’ve understood nothing more deeply before: the synergistic wallop of obeying at least six of the seven rules can mean up to 35 years of quality life added to your existence – now ain’t that something?
Further studies by other groups have shown that when it comes to changes made before age 42, once the individual starts to practice the Seven Golden Rules . . . within eight years most of the harm from the prior twenty years of a dissipate lifestyle is gone. That means, for example, quit smoking and follow the seven golden rules for eight years, and it's almost as if you've never smoked a day in your life. Benefits from lifestyle changes after age 42, were less consistent but still quite significant.
A few comments are in order. Buckling seatbelts was a fairly new idea at the time of the study. If an eighth and ninth golden rule are needed which I would add from my experience as a health educator, they would be:
8. Buckle-up in moving vehicles and always observe proper caution around machinery
9. Avoid highly processed foods and fried foods and eat some high-fiber food daily
Rule #5 "Drink alcohol extremely moderately" deserves some discussion. After a brief flirtation with boozing as a youngster, Rajjpuut rarely consumes a six-pack a month these days, so that's what he practices and preach. However, in the actual study the amount of liquor mentioned was "averaging slightly less than one beer or glass of wine per day." Over the years since the study, much has been made of the value of red wine in the diet. All this implies that a little bit of alcohol is preferable to none at all. If there is one area of the study that he would put in question it would be that conclusion. Here's his "take" on the matter. The trouble with saying that teetotalers are less healthy than extremely moderate drinkers comes in two areas: A) a whole lot of teetotalers are reformed alcoholics who in many cases regrettably did great damage to their health prior to quitting drinking altogether and presumably shortened their probable life spans in the process. It is my intuition that IF the study had eliminated this effect from former alcoholics in its study, their fifth rule might have been modified: "Rule #5 "Drink alcohol extremely moderately or not at all." Additionally, from experience Rajjpuut suspects that there are "overly pious personalities" out there who don't drink and resent everybody in the world who does . . . and in fact they deeply resent almost everybody in the world for any number of reasons. If they were removed from the rolls of non-drinkers, he's sure the non-drinkers would have averaged a longer life also. So his last addition to the Golden Rules of Health is:
Rule #6 7/8 Have a sense of humor, relax
If on top of all this great advice, the individual, let us call him "Bill" takes charge of his own health and finds a health-conscious (rather than disease-oriented) doctor "muy simpatico" who believes that the purpose of wise medicine is to keep people hale-healthy and out of his office . . . and if Bill always seeks at least a second opinion in considering serious health care matters, then he and his doctors are part of the solution to the health care mess rather than part of problem. If every company had a full roster of employees like Bill then health care costs and costs across the board would drop markedly starting now.
Ya’all live long, strong and ornery,
Rajjpuut
**The first time Ol’ Rajjpuut put up the “Here’s how and here’s WOW” subhead he didn’t notice that WOW were the initials of “Word of Wisdom” which is something a Mormon friend told him about roughly four decades ago. In any case, for simple healthy lifestyles the whole state of Utah seems to be showing the nation what behaviors are wisest and what’s not and the individuals there are averaging longer, healthier and more vigorous lives as a result.
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