Buffett Should Stick To What He Knows
Jun 27, 2017 Obamacare, Political, Tyranny
I don’t know how many times Warren Buffett will have to be wrong before people stop listening to him. I know he is pretty good at investing and he has billions of dollars but he should probably stick to the things he knows in order to avoid looking like a fool. Buffett once quipped about the fact he paid a lower tax rate than his secretary despite making so much more. His income was from capital gains and hers was ordinary income. Both are taxed at different rates (capital gains are lower). The liberals ran with his statement to make the claim the rich do not pay their “fair share.”
Buffett was recently interviewed on PBS and he stated that America needs to go to a single payer health care system like the one in the UK. He stated America could afford it as a wealthy nation and that this is what will solve the health care issues.
To be fair, Buffett did state he was not an expert on health insurance. He probably should have ended there but he kept going and that made him the fool once again.
WOODRUFF: “Something that affects all businesses is the cost of health care in this country and you’ve been vocal about that. You argue right now, in fact, that the cost of paying for health care can affect a company even more than taxes.”
BUFFETT: “Well it does. I mean in terms of our competitiveness in the world; health care in 1960 was 5 percent of GDP. And there’s only a hundred cents to the dollar. So it’s gone from 5 percent to 17 percent. And it keeps going up. Corporate taxes have gone down from 4 percent to 2 percent. So corporate taxes are way less of a factor in American competitiveness than overall business than medical costs.”
WOODRUFF: “As we sit here today in Omaha, the Republicans in Congress are madly trying to figure out what to do to replace ObamaCare, the Affordable Care Act. Do you have a firm idea in your mind what ought to be done about ObamaCare? Everybody acknowledges there’s been some problems.”
BUFFETT: “I think that’s way outside of my circle of competence. But I would say this. You can’t have that five go to 17 and move on to 20 and 22 or 24 percent, because there are only a hundred cents in the dollar. Health care is gobbling up well over $3 trillion a year. It’s just about the same as federal, the federal budget, I mean it’s getting up there.”
WOODRUFF: “Are we now at the point where the country does need to think about some sort of single-payer system in some more or another?
BUFFETT: “With my limited knowledge, I think that probably is the best system. Because it is a system, we are such a rich country, in a sense we can afford to do it. But in almost every field of American business, it pays to bring down costs. There’s an awful lot of people involved in the medical — the whole just the way the ecosystem worked, there was no incentive to bring down costs.”
WOODRUFF: “It sounds like what you’re saying with a single payer system it’s easier to figure out a way to?”
BUFFETT: “More effective, I think.”
We can’t afford 22 or 24% of GDP going to health care but the government can afford to pay the bill? Now I know that Buffett thinks a single payer system will reduce costs but he is wrong. The government never does anything efficiently and it never does anything UNDER budget. One only needs to look at Medicare (>$79 Trillion in unfunded liabilities) to see how inefficient government is. That program costs billions upon billions more than it was ever estimated to cost and shortfalls are addressed by reducing the amount doctors are paid for the care they provide. And what assurance do taxpayers have that once government controls health care it won’t start adding to the program? Look at Social Security (>$15 Trillion in unfunded liabilities). The government established that socialist program many decades ago and has added to it along the way so that now we have untold numbers of people on disability or some other aspect that was added. We can’t afford to sustain that program because government mismanages it and keeps adding treats to the Christmas tree…
Any person, and Buffett should pay close attention here, who thinks single payer government run insurance is good should look closely at the Veteran’s Administration. That program is a single payer government run program that only involves a small portion of the population as a whole but it is rife with waste and abuse. It is a fiasco that costs so much there are talks of decreasing other military programs to move money to the VA. There are long lists and veterans wait for months, or longer, to be treated. Many die before they are ever seen. This is the kind of program the uninformed like Buffett want for all of us.
Buffett tells you we are a wealthy nation and can afford it. This flies in the face of reality because the government is 20 TRILLION dollars in debt and has unfunded liabilities that exceed 100 TRILLION dollars. We are not a wealthy nation. We are dead ass broke because of people like Buffett and their belief that government can provide, do it all and afford it.
Government can’t because the taxpayer can’t and that is the bottom line.
A few more notes. Buffett is old and will be dead before anything like he proposes would ever take place. He won’t have to deal with it and even if he lived his wealth would ensure he never had to deal with it (neither will his heirs). It is also important to note that in the interview Buffett claims that businesses can’t afford health care costs but government can [so basically, the burden should be shifted]. I have already shown government can’t afford it but the bigger picture here is that Buffett, a business man, is talking about how to make his (and all) businesses more profitable. He wants to do that by putting the burden of health insurance on the government thus clearing businesses of that debt and burden. Of course Buffett would claim government (read the taxpayers) can afford it. He wants people to embrace this socialist crap so his businesses will be more profitable.
Buffett admitted this was not his expertise. Perhaps he should have left it at that instead of offering his opinion on something he is woefully unprepared to address.
To recap, Buffett does not know what he is talking about, single payer is a terrible idea, increasing the GDP will lower the percent of GDP health care costs and opening the market for insurers will give people choices that will reduce costs without involving the government. The government cannot do anything on a budget.
Anyone who wants single payer should move to the UK and live there for the rest of their lives. They get what they want and the rest of us are not burdened by their stupidity.
Related:
US Debt Clock
ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ
Cave canem!
Never surrender, never submit.
Tags: burdens, insurance, lies, single payer, taxpayers, UK, warren buffett
Obama Is Generous With Our Money
Jan 6, 2014 Commentary
Imperial Leader B. Hussein Obama went on vacation to his alleged home of Hawaii (he has a perfectly good home in Chicago, ask Tony Rezko) and a lot of taxpayer money was spent for him and his family to bask in the warm Hawaiian sun while the folks back east suffer the cold.
OK, so leaders deserve vacations. Perhaps though, the millions of people who are looking for work would just like the guy to work on the economy so they can earn money to pay their bills much less take a vacation.
In any event, the amount of money spent and whether it was a wise use of tax dollars can be debated from both sides with little resolve.
One thing is clear though, leaving Michelle Obama back in Hawaii so she can spend her 50th birthday with friends is not appropriate use of taxpayer dollars.
The Imperial Leader gave his wife a birthday present of allowing her to stay in Hawaii. The problem is that part of the cost (her security and travel) will be borne by taxpayers. The last time she traveled separately the estimated cost was between $63,000 and $100,000.
B. Hussein Obama is very generous with OUR money. Seems to me if he took a decision like this and there is no good reason for it (some emergency where he had to leave his family behind) that the Obama family should have to reimburse the government for the additional costs.
Liberals are always generous with other people’s money.
Cave canem!
Never surrender, never submit.
Obamacare Needs More Money – SURPRISE!
May 2, 2013 Political
Nancy Pelosi said we had to pass it to see what was in it and Obama promised it would not add costs (I think he said it would bend the cost curve down) to the budget. Looks like Pelosi was right because we have been finding all kinds of bad things that no one knew about now that the monstrosity has been passed.
Obama was wrong when he said it would not increase costs. It is more likely he lied in order to create a new crisis that must be solved with more money because that is how progressives work. They create a problem, come up with a solution and when that solution causes more problems they develop solutions to the newly created problem. Those solutions involve more money and bigger government (and more problems). It is a never ending cycle.
Democrats are blaming Republicans for everything under the sun (even though the Democrats caused the problems) in hopes of retaking the House in 2014. But secretly Democrats are worried they might lose the Senate, in part, because of Obamacare.
The Democrats are vulnerable in 2014 because Senate seats in red states are up for reelection and many red state citizens are not happy with Obamacare. The costs continue to rise and every day a new item is found that people do not like.
Max Baucus (D- MT) has stated that Obamacare will be a train wreck if it is not implemented properly (and all indications are that it is not) and he has seen the writing on the wall. He has decided he will not run for reelection and the thinking is that his seat will turn Republican. Many other Democrats face similar circumstances and will be in trouble.
Republicans will hang Obamacare around their necks (remember, not one Republican voted for it).
Harry Reid has recently concluded that Baucus is correct and is saying that more money is needed to properly implement Obamacare. So there you have it, the monstrosity that is Obamacare needs MORE of our tax dollars in order to be implemented. The bill was touted as costing fewer than a trillion dollars (900 billion) but many people who looked at it stated it would end up costing in the neighborhood of 2.5 TRILLION dollars. Looks like we are approaching that level.
So much for bending that cost curve down.
Obama was wrong, or he lied. Either way we are stuck with paying more for a law that will not do what it claimed. It will not save us money, it still leaves millions uninsured, people can’t keep their doctors, there will be death panels, and illegals will be covered by the law.
Yes, it is a progressive monstrosity. Like Social Security, it is a progressive plan designed to enslave people to government and will end up costing more than claimed (by design).
It is good that Democrats could lose the Senate but that will only solve one problem. It will keep Obama in check for his last two years (but it will give him another entity to blame) but having Republicans in charge is no solution to our problems either. We have had that and we ended up with problems.
We need to have a complete overturn of Congress. The Senate can’t happen all at once because of the way they are voted on. We can solve part of the problem by repealing the Seventeenth Amendment and go back to how our founders wanted Senators installed, by appointment from the states (not the people). That will take a while and is not likely to happen at all given the Amendment process.
However, WE can vote them out every two years until we turn the upper chamber over.
We can also get rid of EVERY member of the House in one fell swoop.
All it takes is for the people to take back the country.
We can do it but we need to put country above party and ensure we hold ALL politicians accountable. Remember, they think they are better than you. As they discuss more money for Obamacare they are working on ways to exempt themselves and their staff members.
The country needs an enema to flush the toilet floaters out of DC.
Cave canem!
Never surrender, never submit.
Tags: enema, Harry Reid, lies, more money, obamacare, taxpayers
Whose Money Is Being Lost?
Nov 16, 2011 Political
The US Government used bailout money to help General Motors and other auto companies. The stated goal was to rescue companies that are too big to fail but the reality is that the government used the money to pay off union backers while screwing over investors. We were told that a profit would be turned and that we should not worry because they are the government and they are there to help.
Looks like the estimate of making money is turning out to be a lie told to us by politicians hell bent on robbing us blind. It is not a lie to those of us who said it would not happen and to those of us who realized the lies the auto companies told when they said they paid back the money. They took stimulus money to pay back the loans…
The estimated losses in the auto bailout have risen to 23.6 BILLION dollars, 9 BILLION more than the last estimate because GM stock is not doing well.
The government has expressed its position in this way:
In its monthly report to Congress, the Treasury Department now says it expects to lose $23.6 billion, up from its previous estimate of $14.33 billion. Detroit News
Herein lies the problem. The Treasury is not going to lose any money. Let me express the sentence so it has the truth; In its monthly report to Congress, the Treasury Department now says it expects TAXPAYERS to lose $23.6 billion, up from its previous estimate of $14.33 billion.
Government seems to forget whose money this is. The money that was spent to bailout the unions and the union workers came from taxpayers. All money that government spends comes from some other entity (most of it through taxes) which means the Treasury (as is true with all government agencies) cannot lose money. All it can do is lose money that belongs to the taxpayer.
I did not agree with the Wall Street bailouts but at least those folks paid the money back (some after being FORCED to take the money in the first place). If those Occupy morons want to protest they should be marching at GM and at the union shops.
Of course they should also be protesting in DC.
We have to call these people on this kind of stuff. This has been going on for far too long in that the government acts as if it spends and loses its own money when it is in fact spending, wasting, and losing OUR money.
Cave canem!
Never surrender, never submit.
[tip]If you enjoy what you read consider signing up to receive email notification of new posts. There are several options in the sidebar and I am sure you can find one that suits you. If you prefer, consider adding this site to your favorite feed reader. If you receive emails and wish to stop them follow the instructions included in the email.[/tip]
Tags: bailouts, gm, lies, moeny, pay back, taxpayers, treasury, union thugs
Joe Wilson Was Right, Obama Lies
Aug 11, 2011 Political
On 9 September, 2009 Representative Joe Wilson shouted “you lie” after Obama made the claim that none of the proposals (Obamacare) would pay for the health care of illegal aliens.
The reforms I’m proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally.
This prompted Wilson’s outburst and led to his apology and a rubuke from Congress (a partisan attack by Democrats).
The problem is, Wilson was right. The Department of Health and Human Services has announced the grant money that will go to to areas serving migrant workers and the immigration status of workers will not be checked.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced on Tuesday that it has awarded $28.8 million to 67 community health centers with funds from the Obamacare health reform law.
Of that $28.8 million, “approximately $8.5 million will be used by 25 New Access Point awardees to target services to migrant and seasonal farm workers,” Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Spokeswoman Judy Andrews told CNSNews.com. HRSA is a part of HHS.
Andrews said that grant recipients will not check the immigration status of people seeking services.
Health centers do not, as a matter of routine practice, ask about or collect data on citizenship or other matters not related to the treatment needs of the patients seeking health services at the center. CNS News
This means that some of those migrant workers will be illegals and will get health care services paid for with Obamacare money. If they are not going to check (and why wouldn’t they) then they are allowing people who are here illegally to use the health care services.
In other words, as Joe Wilson put it to Mr. Obama;
YOU LIE!
Cave Canem!
Never surrender, never submit.
[tip]If you enjoy what you read consider signing up to receive email notification of new posts. There are several options in the sidebar and I am sure you can find one that suits you. If you prefer, consider adding this site to your favorite feed reader. If you receive emails and wish to stop them follow the instructions included in the email.[/tip]
Tags: illegals, joe wilson, lies, obamacare, taxpayers