Week in Review: 6.2016

Del Tackett

Feb 8, 2016

Britain approved genetic experimentation with little embryo babies this week. Makes me a little sick to even write that. The article attempted to make it seem okay because, after they have been “genetically played” with, they wouldn’t be allowed to let the embryos grow into “babies” but would be required to destroy them after they had developed to a certain size. Of course, there are those who would say that a human embryo is not yet human nor a baby, but they can’t tell you when it does become so. And, they are normally the same people that will string up anyone who destroys an eagle egg. We obviously value an eagle embryo but not a human embryo. It seems to me that we all should be deeply and radically concerned with anything that opens the door to experimenting and engineering the human genetic code. Especially when it destroys human life.
We finally made it to the election primaries this Tuesday. Some of us naïve folks thought that would ratchet down the vitriol. The list of GOP contenders did shrink a little, but the drama has risen. The contest between Hillary and Bernie came down to a small percentage difference and some coin flips. Bernie believes something fishy went on. Donald came in second and he is incensed that anyone would dare trump him on anything. So he is thumping Cruz and crying that Ted stole his election. Cruz apologized to Ben because of CNN releases that sounded like Ben was getting out, but he wasn’t, so Ben was naturally upset. But Donald, not missing an opportunity to rant, jumped on the bandwagon and vented anger at Ted on Ben’s behalf. But Ben’s response, which was calm and conciliatory and Donald’s anger, mean and exploitive, are miles apart, revealing critical character differences. Surprising many, Marco came in third. He is now getting thumped because he appears to have the “mo” in New Hampshire. The Remnant needs to stay engaged.
The OMB (Office of Management and Budget) released is annual outlook report and there was no good news. Some might say it was lost in the primary foam, but that isn’t true. Blue Media will never highlight bad economic news when a Blue President is in office. Now if a Red President were in office…but, maybe not. Blue Media favors a larger and larger government. So it may not be concerning to them when the OMB now says that the future deficits are going to be worse than expected. Rather than our federal deficit declining, as we have been led to believe, the curve will actually steepen. We are now on track to spend $8.5 TRILLION dollars more than revenue over the next ten years. This is hard to get your mind around. So we don’t. Lost in the report was the estimate that the U.S. economy is projected to grow at only 2%, one third less than it has averaged annually since WW II. And, missing from the report, is the catastrophe that would happen if interests rates go up, because a huge part of the debt is paying interest on TRILLIONS of debt we already owe. That interest rate is freakishly low right now. It wouldn’t take much to double the rate and things begin to tip over. But, we go glibly on…spinning the cylinder and laughing when we pull the trigger, because nothing bad has happened yet. Pass the beer and the pizza. Turn up the volume. Swipe the card. Don’t stop the party…
Speaking of abrupt ends to oblivious parties, there is a bomb that is about to go off…in Venezuela. Almost 20 years of socialist rule, where government “spend, spend, spend” is the solution to everything, has the country on its knees. Inflation is rampant. The bolivar, their “dollar”, is worth less than 10 cents (U.S.). A corn cake will cost you $1,000 bolivars. In one year, the cost of meat has risen 600%, eggs, cheese and milk, 400%. The overall inflation rate this year is expected to be 720%. Put this in our own context. If you paid $2 per gallon for gasoline in 2015, this year you will have to pay over $14. In one year it will be almost $100 per gallon and one more will make it $700/gallon. That is why people are having to take a stack of money to buy their groceries and that is why the Venezuelan government has to keep printing more money. This week, 36 Boeing 747 cargo planes arrived in Caracas packed with nothing but newly printed bolivars. We need to pray for the people of Venezuela for they are having to pay horribly for another socialistic government lie.
Bernie Sanders, who is an avowed socialist, has a lot of followers. At one of his recent rallies, a reporter was asking his fans to define socialism. They couldn’t. One person thought it meant caring for people. That, of course, is the cover. Underneath is the truth…the horror that gets dumped on the people, like those in Venezuela.
Following other states, Colorado is currently evaluating a euthanasia bill. Don’t be fooled here. As health care becomes increasingly a public funded benefit, your diagnosis will be seen more and more as a burden to the “system”. The financial incentives to terminate old and sick people will get greater and greater. Dana Palmer wrote a compelling article recently. She has been battling her insurance company to get approval for a consultation with a brain cancer specialist. She rightly wonders, if the proposed Colorado law were in effect, if her insurance would counter her request with a notice that they would be more than happy to pay for a lethal prescription instead. In fact, it isn’t outside of reason to think of a situation when someone is given a terminal diagnosis, that that is all the insurance will pay for. Back in 2005, Dana was given 3-12 months to live. She was diagnosed as hopelessly terminal. Thankfully, she wasn’t only given one option…to die. She has battled and continues to battle…thankful for every breath she takes. I am of the opinion that government health care will increasingly not care.