I live in an upper middle class suburb of Chicago. Though the majority of residents are conservatives, government is enormous. Even the government here is struggling. They just announced the layoff of teachers. The town council voted for a 2 cent per gallon tax on gas. We now pay a total of 50 cents for tax on each gallon. The state is proposing a 2/3 increase on individuals income tax and a 1/3 increase on corporate tax. We have the income, so they will continue to raise the taxes.

I was mailed a traffic ticket last week which will cost me $125. My crime – a mounted camera caught me failing to make a complete stop at a red light. I was making a legal right turn on red, but that doesn’t matter. I viewed the video online and it’s true, I am guilty of rolling over the white line as I made the turn. The camera is not there for safety, it is there to get cash for the local government.

The federal government is certainly doing it’s share of getting more of our money. I don’t know if you are aware of this or not, but congress just passed a healthcare bill that includes a few taxes. Here is a list:

• For individuals with “Cadillac insurance plans” ( I don’t even know what that means), there is a 40% tax over a certain amount.
• For small businesses with 50+ employees, they will be required by law to provide health insurance for their employees. They will face heavy fines and penalties if they don’t obey. This is a big reason the bill calls for an additional 16,000 IRS agents.
• For businesses in the healthcare industry – pharmaceuticals, medical supplies, insurance, and tanning salons (yep, you heard right); they will face higher taxes and fees. I’m sure they will cheerfully pay those and not pass any costs on to us.
• For those lucky enough to make over $200k per year, you will have a higher medicare tax taken from your payroll check.
• Capital gains, investment, and interest income will have added tax to pay for healthcare.
• It will be harder to get the medical deduction. Until now you could take a medical deduction if over 7.5% of your income went for healthcare expenses. This bill raises that percentage 10%.
• If you don’t have insurance now, by law you will have to buy it or be fined. This will not be a problem if you have income. Actually, it is not really a problem if you don’t have income. Those with income can be taxed and it will be payed for you.

As long as we can keep paying, there will be no healthcare crisis. If this bill does not pay for itself as the democrats promise, no problem, they can tax more of our income.

The New York Times reported that 2010 will be the first year that Social Security benefit payouts will exceed the receipts from taxes. You could take all the money from the three wealthiest American families – the Buffet’s (Warren not Jimmy), the Gates, and the Walton’s and not begin to provide enough resources for the coming Social Security bailout.

Don’t worry, there is still money to tax so there is no crisis. Whew!

I give democrats credit for doing all they can to take care of the disadvantaged. Their method of paying for these programs is the problem. First, they somehow believe that big government spending will help the economy and somehow save money. Their second step is the age old socialist tactic of income redistribution (taxation). Margaret Thatcher said “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money.” This brings us to the republicans.

Traditionally, democrats spend and republicans pay. Republicans are like the parent at the kitchen table looking over the bills. A good parent will do more than just complain to the family about what they are spending. A mature parent will come up with ways to generate more money. The problem in Washington is that the republicans are now the irresponsible siblings of the democrats and whine because they don’t get their way.

I cringe at these conservative arguments that claim Obama is a socialist, a Muslim, the Anti-Christ, and is not born in America. Is this the best the right can come up with? It doesn’t matter, WE still have to pay for this healthcare bill. Have republicans forgotten about capitalism? Do they even know the story of the industrial age, telecommunications, railroads, gold rush and mining, energy, and technological advances through American entrepreneurs? It wasn’t Social Security that made this country great, it was the freedom to dream and work toward a better life.

I have listened to republicans whine over the last year because the democrats would not listen to their healthcare ideas. I’m glad they didn’t listen! The republican ideas were as bad as the democrats. The free market is the only hope that we will ever see basic needs met for every American. The free market is the only hope that we will again see a vibrant economy. The free market is the best solution for joblessness. This should be the message of republicans.

At one point, Obama heard the cries of the republicans and invited them to a one day healthcare summit. Instead of begging for his crumbs, they should have held their own “grow the damn economy” summit every day until small business in America was confident to invest, hire, and take risks again. By the way republicans, we are still waiting.

The democrats have made profit into a dirty word. The republicans need to make Americans feel sexy again for makin’ money! We are not looking for a program or a handout, just protect us from the heavy hand of government and the stifling power of big business.

I am grateful for the healthcare I have received throughout my life. In 1957 I was born in a small rural hospital in East Tennessee with a club foot. At 10 years old, doctors performed surgery to straighten my legs. I would later become an athlete and routinely outperform others in physical activities. I want to start a boxing league for guys over 50 right now.

My kids experienced numerous health problems landing them in hospitals. We had multiple knee surgeries and one burst appendix. Even with insurance, my family has qualified for the medical deduction on income taxes multiple times. I have no complaints about the nurses, doctors, or hospitals. I have never appreciated the complicated billing process or the mounds of paperwork required. Like everyone, I hate how much medical care costs.

My greatest fear is that this healthcare plan will limit services, increase costs, and overall reduce the quality of care. Obama promises just the opposite. I hope he is right. My problem is that once the government is in charge there is no accountability. The progressives say that over 40,000 people die each year because they do not have access to healthcare. Once this bill is passed, that stat will be hidden. If the bill passes, will anyone question 10 years from now how many died due to lack of care?  Even if 80,000 were to die the government would claim success. They would say that 160,000 would have died without the bill.

Ditto on the costs. I believe each of us will pay more for healthcare regardless of this bill. The government again will boast of their genius for reducing costs. They will say that costs would have skyrocketed without their intervention.

The big number is the uninsured. Obama says this bill will insure 30 million people who do not currently have insurance. Does the government have the names of those people and will they follow up in 10 years to see how many are in the program? That would be no, but they will proclaim loudly about the millions who received it. When you get government control, you get political spin and no real accountability.

I listened to two doctors, on both sides of the issue, debate about the bill’s effect on various medical procedures until my head was about to explode. Each procedure carries it’s own unique requirements, complications, and risks.  Is Nancy Pelosi really the best person in the country to provide a solution to this mess?

I am getting sicker by the minute.