Paul & Ron Ryan

Father and son are truly scary. If I recall...I think they're Objectivists or aligned with Ayn Rand's philosophy more loosely. Which loosely interpreted means little government involvement in social welfare programs, such as welfare, medicaid, medicare, foodstamps, housing, social security. Transitioning the baby boomer generation, who paid into the system for social security, medicare and has lived with an expectation that these were retirement cushions, this is going to be a period of moral and personal destruction. It will not be resolved easily or simply. AMericans have yet to learn how to save, conserve, be frugal. So telling Americans they cannot have 'stuff' and have to limit their lifestyles to precisely what they can actually afford, which may not be a house/car/designer stuff may fall on deaf ears. It's like reading a woman's magazine where every other page is a recipe for low fat cooking followed by family ads depicting happy parents and kids eating at McDonalds. Kids are being encouraged to take their moms to McD's for mother's day, because a burger/fries is so affordable. Living now on disability, I was anticipating Medicare coverage in 2012. In the next 12 months I honestly dont know what type of coverage I will have as a decision will need to be made either for COBRA or a different type of insurance for 12 months. A stupid gap period...if a person is deemed eligible for Medicare, give it to them, why make someone wait 18 months? Privatizing Medicare and asking the current older generation to buy their own insurance to pay for their medical needs seems unrealistic. My own kids cant afford health insurance and are in exactly the same situation I was in my 20s-30s-floundering with only seeing a doctor for emergencies, otherwise turn a blind eye to general health maintenance. Problem with that is medical problems often creep up and gradually get worse. You ignore the exhaustion thinking its the long work hours when it could be something more serious. I dont mean to sound like Chicken Little, but I went through this and when I finally did have medical insurance worth something, it took another 2 decades to get a correct diagnosis and treatment. But its late, physical damage is done. For me to lose coverage now while taking maintenance meds allowing me to function is not a small matter. I want Obama out of office-as everyone on both sides, even those cheerleaders who are sitting silent now have come around to where I waa 3 years ago; where'd he come from? who the hell is he? and the media hysteria pushing him solely for being The First Black Man to Be President, wasnt enough. We were tired of war and the Bush regime(s) and grabbed on to anything that seemed a panacea to sooth our souls. The birther certificate issue is so meaningless, he needs to go simply on his record of dithering incompetence and lack of ability to LEAD. Ironically the stalwart dictators of the Middle East smelled his incompetence very early, Iran sailed right by with their reactor, into the Strait of Hormuz and back home again while Obama had nothing but sound bytes to offer. The list of pathetic gestures is too long, I'm too tired at the moment to enumerate them...packing takes alot out of a girl:-) So I'm watching the obnoxious GOP candidates carefully-if all they have to offer is Rand's solution to the national debt, already passed by the House, plus Trump/Huckabee/Bachmann/Orville the Mormon as their candidates, I will be forced to vote for a democratic ticket. The right thing would be to vote in a slate that wants to fix the mess, clean the corruption, trim government programs and make them 'means tested' but I dont see that happening in my lifetime, maybe never. Capitalism has become less an opportunity for Everyman and perverted into how much an individual can accumulate, whether they need it or not-GREED packaged under a different name with a bow on it. Many of us who walked a straight line, paid bills/taxes and lived within our means are sitting around with not much to show for years of 14 hour days. Idealism in this area is replaced with a sense of personal survival and I will be unable to afford a private health plan after the monies sucked out of my paycheck for years was misspent by the government that now cries it has to raise the debt ceiling and we're all broke and have to choke...I dont have to choke if you stole my retirement from me. There is always another option...