Drink to My Health

Well, good evening, and welcome to yet another rant from the cowgirl.

Health insurance. Need I say more? It's not insurance, it's, well INSIDIOUS!!! I happen to really like that word, and for those of you who think I don't know what I am talking about, I even happened to look it up!

insidious: adj. 1. intended to entrap or beguile 2. stealthily treacherous or deceitful, (and my personal favorite...) 3. operating or proceeding in an inconspicuous or seemingly harmless way but actually with grave effect.

So it is without question that I do declare health insurance companies to be in fact, insidious altogether. They themselves are an insidious disease (used in the dictionary reference that I cited), that we, ironically, cannot live without. Well, I guess we can, but the question is...how long. They operate in a way that SEEMS harmless ("Oh, yes, we're here to HELP you when you get sick, and help reduce your doctor's bills..."), but in actuality, they are raping you for all you're worth (financially).

Today, after a quite wonderful day of riding and training horses, working cattle and the like, I collected my mail only to be unpleasantly surprised with a notice from my so-called insurance (insidious) company. Effective March 1, my premiums are going to increase. Mind you, this is not an oh-so-small, don't-worry-about-it, it's-not-a-big-deal increase. Oh no, it was a whopping $40.00 per month increase on my already hefty premium. My premium is already increased due to the fact that I was seen previously for something that is not going to ever kill me, but they thought I may cost them a tiny tiny bit of money one day, so they jacked me up. So, now I am getting hit twice!!!!

So what is their excuse, you ask? Oh yes...the rising cost of health care, new technology (of which I have yet to take advantage) etc, etc. Rising cost, my foot! What they don't want to really tell me is that my premium is going to cover the cost of bogus claims by people trying to rape the system. This country is so screwed up. We have to pay outrageous amounts of money to go to university/college, and then once we are out and trying to start a life on our own, we can't afford to get health insurance. Then, of course, because the insurance companies are so crooked, doctors jack up their rates (rising cost of health care) and we all get screwed. To top it all off, no one in government is doing a DANG thing about it. Instead, we are dumping a gazillion dollars in Iraq (a country we will NEVER save...), illegal aliens are having children on US soil to reap our benefits, illegals are getting free health care, workman's comp claims are out of control, social security benefits are dwindling, and the government continues to pay for new computers for all terminals in the VA Hospitals. How screwed up is that???

Is there nothing we can do? Sure I can raise a stink, but it'll get "buried in appropriations" and its business as usual. I can't afford insurance, but I also can't afford to not have insurance. Why are other countries getting it right? Their governments subsidize education and health care.

Health insurance companies are terrorists on our home turf, yet we are out there fighting a war on a concept, not something that is tangible. Let's bring it home, and deal with our problems here. I want to know that if I get sick, I won't feel guilty because I can't pay my doctor's bill. You might as well just shoot me now!

A little much, I know, but that's how I feel. I'm gonna go pop my vitamins and get ready for bed, cuz this here cowgirl wants to ride for years to come.

Systematical Failure

America's "system" is messed up. I don't know how else to describe it. Everything from Social Security (will I get any when I'm old???), to disability, to unemployment! What I mean by screwed up is that there are too many ways to take advantage of the "system" and there are many people out there doing it. Allow me to explain...

I just saw a friend of mine from college recently during the New Year's holiday. He is a firefighter. During the summer months he is on a helicopter crew. He loves what he does. He is in his mid twenties, young, healthy, and enjoying life. Problem is, he enjoys it at the expense of the rest of us. You see, his work season lasts approximately four months, give or take a month or two. He is usually full-time employed during the summer months (the fire months, mind you), and the rest of the year he is a full-time student (sort of) finishing up his bachelor's degree. I met him in the fall of 2000 when I transfered to a four year university. He was in his second year there, I believe. Unfortunately for him, he had some "difficulties" completing his degree in a timely manner with qualifying grades, and had to leave for a short time and beg to come back. I congratulated him when I found out that he wasn't going to give up and that he was going to clean up his act and finish his degree. I thought that was great. What I didn't know was that his poor grades and many alcohol-induced, sleepless nights were paid for by yours truly and the rest of us hardworking taxpayers.

Here is his defense. He works fighting fire during the summer months risking his life to save whoever and whatever, and then is "involuntarily unemployed" because it IS a seasonal position, and then takes unemployment money out to pay for the rest of the year. I asked him recently if he would like to take a job up here at the ranch cutting down some trees in one of our pastures that desperately needs some attention and he said he may be interested, but only if he is paid "under the table" so that he can keep his unemployment money. I couldn't believe it! I look back at the time when I was in school. I too took seasonal positions during the summer months, but as soon as school started back up, I found another job to carry me through until the next summer. The thought of digging into my unemployment money never once even occurred to me! And then to know that it is taking him twice as long to graduate because most of the time was spent partying (when he could have been studying and working part time) makes me so incredibly mad, I felt I had to BLOG about it. So you are now hearing my rant. It's not like he can't find another job to carry him through. Like I said, he's young and healthy; he can read and write, and I am sure has a number of other skills that could be useful to an employer. Heck, anyone can clean a horse stall, and that's what I did to help pay my way through school!

He isn't the first that I have known to do this. Another friend of mine a few years ago was doing a similar thing. Only this guy didn't do ANY work (seasonal or non). He just got laid off one day and decided to live off of unemployment for a while. He was 30 years old. Mind you, he spent hundreds of dollars per month on alcohol, cigarettes, and "great green bud!" Once he drove 4 hours round trip just to buy some really good bud for $200!!! Don't forget, the gas costs money too!!! And he wasn't working for any of that money! It drove me nuts! Meanwhile, I was busting my butt applying for jobs because my seasonal summer job had ended and I needed to pay rent!

And he wondered why he couldn't get a girlfriend...

No wonder the rest of us won't have any social security benefits to look forward to when we get old. No wonder our government is in a deficit. Don't forget we also spend a lot of money on new computers for all the doctors in the VA Hospitals all over the state (see previous blog).

This makes me so mad I want to actually go to someone to "turn him in." But I know that wouldn't fly. Legally, he can do what he's doing, provided he doesn't get paid for any other work, but that IS the problem!!! Our "system" is so non-systematical (is that a word???) that it doesn't work. Unemployment is kind of like insurance money. If you are involuntarily unemployed (not fired) it is money that you have previouslypaid into to get you by until you can become unemployed again. Unfortunately, people think that it is money that they paid into at one time to pay for the rest of their life and all their partying!!!

Someone tell me how we can put a stop to this.