Anti-vaxxers threaten U.S. workplace, economy

Want your kid to look like this?

The National Institute of Health has said ...

"The agenda of anti-vaccination activists may be causing a drag on the U.S. economy as the measles outbreak forces people to stay out of work and seek medical care."

This is the statement by the director for the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci. His premise is, “If you wind up getting more infections and diseases that were vaccine-preventable, those are entirely avoidable burdens on the economy.” In other words, it is the anti-vaxxers that are causing this problem, but we knew that already. Here are some numbers re. cost...

"a University of North Carolina study showed vaccine-preventable diseases among adults cost the economy nearly $9 billion in 2015, with unvaccinated individuals responsible for 80% of those costs."

There is a total of 704 measles cases now, the biggest number since the disease was considered controlled in 2000. There is no excuse for this happening other than the fact that these anti-vaxxing parents decided not to vaccinate their children, resulting in the outbreak. An outbreak that could prov fatal for some...

"Dr. Fauci, who helped develop a vaccine against AIDS, warned that measles itself is dangerous and can kill. The disease, before vaccines were available, killed an average of 2 million to 3 million people a year globally. In the United States, there were about 2 million cases [of measles] and about 500 deaths per year.”

If the feds don't take action soon, we could top those figures causing hundreds, maybe thousands of innocent deaths.

Threats required for health insurers to do right thing?

I have never been completely sold on Bernie Sanders' Medicare For All plan, simply because it is so hard to visualize the GOP allowing health insurance companies to be expelled from the marketplace. And I am not sure it would be such a good thing, even though they have been a blight on health care for years. The reason is, I think the government would do a worse job. Perhaps the best approach is a combination of government and private business.

At any rate, health insurers have conveniently decided to add new Medicare benefits. These include...

Anthem added new supplemental benefits including those addressing social determinants of health...Blue Cross and Blue Shield launched a “social determinants of health benefits package” offering healthy meals for seniors

Of course, this doesn't even come close to addressing Bernie's concept that all Americans should be given their medical care free. On the other hand, there are numerous countries that have universal healthcare, which is paid for by the government...

Canada, Austria, Belarus, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom.

Bernie Sanders argues...

"the single payer version of Medicare For All would eliminate co-payments, deductibles and allow Americans to pick the doctors they want free of insurance company restrictions and provider network rules."

Apparently, the Medicare Advantage plans are popular today for many seniors with supposed increased benefits that I have never thought were worth the increase in cost. But, back to the original question, why did it take threats from Bernie's Medicare For All concept to make the healthcare industry cough up more benefits? The answer is the greed of the health insurance companies for more profits, and that is why the government should be in control.

Please give me your COMMENTS on this issue.

The latest on gun control...or not

GUNS KILL...USING PEOPLE

AR-style weapon used in Poway synagogue shooting-legal or illegal?...Appeals court upholds Mass. assault weapons ban...Baltimore shooting at a cookout kills one and injures many...Here's why Democrats aren't saying much about gun control...The latest list on innocent victims kill by guns, just in 2019...Four shot dead in Ohio apartment...

Please give me your COMMENTS on this issue.

Wake up Democrats...Bernie Sanders can win

Bernie has the ball(s)

I cannot believe that major donors, party operatives, senior lawmakers and rival candidate Pete Buttigieg would conspire against another liberal who has shown that he can not only raise big funds but also spark a huge lineup of contributors and loyal volunteers. But they did. Is there jealousy on the part of these lawmakers and fellow candidates, the fact that they may have dismal track records? Or do they simply wish they had the balls to do what Bernie is doing?

I am not completely sold on the Bern yet, and won't be until he gets much more aggressive on gun control. One of his volunteers called me recently since my wife and I had supported him in 2016, and I told him my concern over the gun control issue. So, I have to look at Joe Biden, who, although middle of the road, seems more inclined to get solidly behind the gun violence issue. But let's just assume Bernie does come out solid in this area.

Some say the Vermont Senator isn't electable, but then he didn't get the chance to challenge Trump in 2016 thanks to Debbie Wasserman Schultz and the Democratic National Committee. Few can claim the favorability ratings that Sanders has maintained since coming on the presidential scene. Right now he is outperforming Trump in the polling. The Guardian says there's infighting and bad blood left from his run against Hillary Clinton. Here's a point of view...

"social psychology research tells us that people who have different ideas about politics than us are not generally bad people – they’re mostly good people with different convictions."

Bernie Sanders' convictions are definitely different than establishment Democrats, but in my eyes they are also definitely better. That's why I am an Independent.

Please give me your COMMENTS on this issue.

Washington is a 3-ring circus

WITH DONALD TRUMP RINGMASTER OF CHAOS

Two Los Angeles Universities quarantine 700 in measles scare...One dead 3 wounded in synagogue shooting...Trump concocted voter fraud proven another of his fantasies...Just how much worse could the measles outbreak get?...Three children shot by Oklahoma police..."Carrywear," new fashions for women to carry more guns on the street brought to you by none other than Wayne LaPierre and the National Rifle Assn.

Please give me your COMMENTS on these issues.

NRA going down in flames

LaPierre-North

First, National Rifle Assn. president Oliver North asked head gun nut Wayne LaPierre to resign re. challenges surrounding the organization's fundraising and nonprofit status...

"The organization's 2016 election spending, including $36 million to help Trump, has prompted regulators in its charter base of New York state to threaten to investigate its nonprofit status."

And then Oliver North resigned from the NRA in the midst of what he described “a clear crisis,” all of this during the organization’s annual conference in Indianapolis. In addition, "Maria Butina, the Russian operative who used her NRA activism to illegally infiltrate American conservative circles, was sentenced to 18 months in prison." And, apparently North confronted LaPierre with threatening information about the long-time gun lobby chief.

No matter what the reasons, gun control advocates are having a field day in their celebrations of the demise of a group that has spawned non-stop gun violence during the tenure of Wayne LaPierre. The NRA has been at odds with law enforcement for years over its nonprofit status, and its contributions to lawmakers and presidents. But the gang of gun huggers has been protected by a cowardly Congress afraid of losing the NRA's donations.

It was reported that Oliver North "created a committee to investigate alleged financial improprieties at the NRA." Then another report said...

"that a civil complaint in Virginia filed earlier this month and amended Wednesday claims that North has been receiving income from advertising firm Maria Butina while it has been under contract with NRATV to produce a documentary series."

And then if was discovered that Ackerman McQueen "was sued by the NRA earlier this month over allegations that it was deliberately concealing details about how it was spending millions of dollars received by the group." LaPierre has also claimed that North is just in it for the money, which is interesting considering the head gun nut has made a fortune as CEO of the NRA.

In the meantime, 39,773 Americans were killed by guns in 2017; the NRA spent $9.7 million in 2018 to defend Republicans’ complete control of Washington; there are between 280,000 and 520,000 bump stocks in circulation. Check The Trace for more on gun violence. I rest my case against the NRA and Wayne LaPierre.

Please give me your COMMENTS on this issue.

Latest on the NRA downfall

DOWN WITH THE NRA

NRA's own membership says group is 'F*cked’...New York Attorney General going after NRA non-profit status...NRA dumps top lawyer...Everytown posts The NRA in Crisis...Why the NRA is struggling