Why I am afraid: One word … Obamacare

I would like to give the Republicans a great amount of credit.  They did a masterful job of winning the election on Tuesday, and they did so with the old fashion type of campaigning that has proven successful time and time again.   They painted the opposition as do-nothing losers who have hurt the economy and middle-class Americans and America’s standing in the world.  Then they said what they would do to make it all better.  I'm not so sure that it is an admirable approach, but both parties use it and this time it worked exquisitely.

The fact that economy has been growing by leaps and bounds, the stock markets are at record highs, unemployment is the lowest it has been since Barrack Obama took office … all of that was lost in the message that has been broadcast by disgruntled Republicans since the day President Obama took office (lead largely by the ultra-right wing Tea Party).   You start with a huge boulder, chip away at it day after day, and after six years all you have is a pile of gravel.  Obama was the boulder and the Republicans held a big chisel.

All of us with short memories forget the days before Obama won election.  The economy was in a shambles.  Joblessness was double digit.  The United States was frowned upon by other nations (largely because of the actions of the former President).  Much of that was forgotten as the architects of Washington, DC gridlock did an admirable job of instilling the notion that nothing could get done in the nation’s capital without a major overhaul.

On radio and TV yesterday and in an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal, the new leadership is talking about their priorities.  And I agree with much of what they have to say.  Lower energy costs, increase jobs … pretty much most of the things that we have already seen happen (lacking in the comments is anything about increasing workers’ wages which are still lower than they were a decade ago).   They claim they are now ready to do it in a bi-partisan way.   That is all good.

But the one singular issue that remains a top priority for the newly elected Republican controlled Congress is to do away with the Affordable Care Act.   The exact words in the Wall Street Journal piece penned by Mitch McConnell and John Boehner:  “It also means renewing our commitment to repeal ObamaCare, which is hurting the job market along with Americans’ health care.”

And that’s what scares me … and scares me deeply.  Since 2008 when I left my job in California, I had not been able to get health insurance in the U.S.  I had a pre-existing condition, cholesterol, and took one pill a day to keep it under control.  The prescription cost nine-dollars ($9) for a one year supply for the medication, and my cholesterol has been perfect.  But no one, not one US insurance company, would sell me health insurance. Not at any cost.   I was flatly denied time and time again.  So, I was forced to buy expensive international health insurance from a Latin America based company (with extremely high deductibles), that restricted my visits to the U.S. to under 180 days a year.  Yes, I was a California resident; yes, I owned my home in Palm Springs; but no, I could not live there full time because of my health insurance restrictions.

When Obamacare came along, I was able to finally get health insurance in the United States, and at a cost I could afford.  I have had an opportunity to use it and I am extremely impressed.  I have been able to establish a relationship with a medical group in Palm Springs, I have been able to get timely appointments, and the care I am receiving is exceptional.   None of that would have been possible without the passage of the Affordable Care Act.  My apartment in Mexico is now for sale.  California is again home.  And I hope it can continue to be.

When I hear that Obamacare has hurt so many millions of people, I wonder who and how.  Certainly, it was not me.  When I was a reporter, I realized how easy it was to find “victims” of virtually anything, and thus I am sure that those who are against the President and his progressive health care plan would have no problem scraping up those who claim they have been harmed by it.  The Republicans have been very good at finding them.  The Democrats, on the other hand, have done a terrible job of countering those negative stories with stories of success … stories like the one I have to tell.

So yes, I am scared to death that if indeed the Republicans soon to be in charge carry out their agenda, I will not be able to fulfill my dream of again living in America.  I will be forced to again move to a foreign country where I am more welcome, and where I can get health insurance.

There is a solution.  If the new leadership is seriously hell bent on wiping out the Affordable Care Act, as they have said they are (and I have no reason to doubt they aren’t), they should then be prepared to provide an alternative (call it Boehnercare if you want to, I don’t care) to help the millions of Americans who indeed have been helped by Obamacare.   I would be more assured if I heard them say they would be meeting with their Republican colleague, Mitt Romney, and getting his input as to what should be done, since he successfully implemented an Affordable Care Act-like program in Massachusetts in 2006 when he was governor there.  I am not hearing any of that.  All I am hearing is the same old baseless rhetoric, rooted in hatred toward the Democratic President, that his landmark health care program must be thrown out and thrown out completely, thus creating a problem without a solution.

I want to give the Republicans a chance.  I want to believe that they have what it takes to make America a better place.  But I also want to live in America again.   And without health insurance, which I could not get before Obamacare became a reality, that simply won’t happen.

Flying Kites and the Man on the Moon

This is a real test of how old you are (or aren’t) in many ways.  Remember when kids used to fly kites?   They were such simple kites back then.  You bought those diamond shaped kites for a dime at the neighborhood variety store (that was Pala Dime and Dollar where I lived), tied a rag to the bottom string for stability, got out your wad of twine, went to the play field at the nearby grade school and hoped for wind.

My favorite kites were the Man in the Moon kite and the Jolly Roger kite  (the Man in the Moon was my number one favorite.   It was boss).  If a big gust of wind came while the kite was in the sky, sometimes the paper would shread and you’d have to reel it in quickly.   Tape it up.  Launch it again. Or, if the string broke while in mid-air, you’d see your kite soar far away over roof tops and street lights.  You’d then jump or your bike racing through the labyrinth of roads in your part of town trying to find the downed kite before another kid could snatch it up.  And you were constantly told to never try to recover a kite if the string was draped over a power line because you’d die (although, come to think of it, I never heard of any kid dying from retrieving a runaway kite …. Even if the string was hanging from a power line … nonetheless kids, don’t try it).

Anyway, I think of kite flying today because of the Man in the Moon kite and remembering how crazy it seemed to an eight year old boy that there would be a man in the moon (The moon had cheese on it, right?  Not men).  And it was all brought to the forefront this morning when I read that today is the 45^th anniversary of a man actually landing and walking on the moon.  If you were alive back then and probably older than five, you likely remember it.

It was a Sunday afternoon on the West Coast, we all gathered around the one TV set we had in the living room about 1:00PM, and watched the historic landing and first steps on the moon.  The ludicrous idea of that man in the moon from my kite flying days had become reality.  

People nowadays say they were such innocent times back then.   It was an era of pride and triumph, unlike today.  I’m not so sure that is true.  Yes, today we have jetliners being blown out of the sky, wars are being fought and people are killing each other over religious ideals, civilians with fire power unimaginable in 1969 are entering schools and theaters and office buildings randomly murdering dozens of innocent people weekly.  Other than religious wars, those types of things weren’t happening in ’69.  But there were race riots, there were assassinations, and there were crimes just as hideous (though perhaps not as well publicized as they are today) all taking place in the 1960s.

 

As for innovation, getting a man on the moon was a monumental feat, especially for that era.  But look at the advances that we have today (back then I can remember having to call an “Operator” to make a long distance call between San Jose and Stockton and then paying 50 cents a minute once it was connected … remember your parents calling “Hurry up, it’s your grandparents calling, long distance! Talk fast!”).

Nonetheless, as a teenage kid, it was a fun time.  So, for this day, put aside the shooting down of jetliners, the world wide tensions, the killings and the wars, and the unanswered voice mails (imagine the concept of voice mail in 1969).  And take ten minutes to slip back 45 years today to a much simpler time … when TVs were still largely black and white, you dialed a phone with a dial, not push buttons, and “Let It Be” was number one on the record charts.  And on that Sunday afternoon, Neil Armstrong took one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.  Click HERE to relive the moment.

Why I hate flying

 

"Is this any way to run an airline?  You bet it is."   Back in the 1970s, that was the popular slogan of now defunct National Airlines (in 1980, it was gobbled up by Pan Am which in turn Delta took over).   National was a proud airline with a good reputation.  But today, National Airline founder George T. Baker is likely rolling over in his grave ... especially if he would be able to Google "Is this any way to run an airline."

That simple slogan search on Google produces tale after tale of the pitfalls of modern aviation travel, with the vast majority of the problems being put squarely on the airlines.

Years ago, I gave up on United.  Their planes were dirty, the employees were rude, and United just didn't give a damn about its passengers.   They lost me as a customer, and to this day, I will not fly United unless I have no choice.

Soon, American was to follow.   I had close to 200,000 frequent flier miles on American.  But the same bad attitude from haggard flight attendants, the "can't do attitude" that they and the airline exhibited, and the failure to modernize their fleet had me taking my last American flight about six years ago when I used up the last of my miles.

But now, American has also taken over US Airways, and with the takeover, the bad attitude and poor customer service that has been rampant with American is making its way into the US Air culture.

I have flown US Air a lot over the past several years, as it is my preferred airline in and out of Puerto Vallarta (connecting through Phoenix).  Sunday’s experience has proven that the common sense thinking of US Air has been forgotten in the mindless corporate decision making of its new owner, American.  And so we have the demise of another airline.

Sunday afternoon we arrived in Phoenix about 3:00 on a flight from Cabo San Lucas.  We had a connecting flight to Palm Springs at 6:43.  We built in the extra time because last time, we missed our connection due to extremely long lines at U.S. Immigration and especially at TSA.  But on Sunday, the lines weren't as bad so we got through by 3:45.

There was a 4:35 flight to Palm Springs so we went to the counter and asked if we could get on it (we only had carry-on luggage so we were ready).  The gate agent said sure, there was plenty of room for us, but at the gate she would have to charge us $150 because it would be a ticket change.  She said I could talk to customer service.  

So, I went to the customer service desk where three lovely ladies are sitting there filing their nails and combing their hair.  They seemed bothered that someone would actually ask them a question.  I explained that we'd like to take the earlier flight and there was room on it.  Nope, you have to wait three more hours because that is the ticket you bought.  "Not our problem," as one of them said (as she took a break from ratting her hair).  I explained that if we took the earlier flight which had plenty of seats available, that would open up seats on the later flight that they could possibly sell to last minute passengers who would pay a lot more than we did. Furthermore, it didn't make sense to send a plane partially empty when you could fill seats.  She said, “Yeah, we used to do that, but no more.”  She said it was the new rules from US Air. 

So we waited for three hours, got on our flight at 6:43 (that appeared overbooked), and made it home as scheduled.  Really, no big deal in the long run, but more of a disturbing sign of lack of care that many airlines now exhibit.

I understand the airlines want to gouge customers as much as they possibly can, but their rules now have become so stringent, it doesn't make good business sense ... plus, it ticks off once loyal passengers.  For me, I'll do whatever it takes to not fly US Air again, and I have been a very good customer of theirs.  But again, they don’t care.

There are still several domestic airlines that I have flown recently that seem to be less rigid and more in tune with serving passengers than reaching deeper and deeper into their pockets.  Alaska Air and Southwest are a couple.  Continental used to be, but it doesn’t exist anymore either, taken over by the dreadful United.

In short, I am like a lot of other people these days.   I don't like to fly anymore.  It's not that I have a fear of soaring six miles above the earth in a metal tube with wings (I don't).   It is simply the hassle associated with getting through the airport, dealing with the idiots that run the TSA (check out the story on WFTV’s website today about the TV reporter from Washington, DC who had trouble getting past a TSA agent in Orlando, FL who thought a “District of Columbia” driver’s license was from a foreign country and demanded to see the reporter’s passport … really).  Now you also have to put up with crappy attitudes of airline employees, dealing with grumpy passengers (who are pissed off after putting up with crappy attitudes of airline employees), and finally putting up with the few airlines that remain.   And you wonder why I prefer driving between Palm Springs and Puerto Vallarta.  Oh, and thanks for the memories US Air ... I'll miss you.