Bob's BLOG

Many people do not know the difference between these two types of government rule. Do you know the difference? You'd be amazed! cut and paste: http://www.flixxy.com/political-systems.htm

As some of you might know, I recently had arthroscopic surgery on my left knee. Just looked over the 14 pages of itemized services provided by the hospital and staff. Wonderful staff, this I have to admit. My medical records for the 45 minute surgery was a whooping $21k of which insurance paid $16k. (Since I told em I was from the border town of South Slovakia; they moved the balance due over to some Democrat who was in at the same time for his annual flu shot) Here are but a few of the listed actual itemized charges: NEPTUNE MANIFOLD (I don't know what that is but, I sure hope it helps me to stop snoring) it costs 87.28; INCISOR cost 145.08 (happy they didn't work on my molar) SUCTION MAT was 38.35, (Walmart has them discounted for only 4.98 or two for 10.00); STYLET INTUBATION SATIN SLIP (love that name - now I'm the envy of the neighborhood) I got for a steal at only 12.95; SOLN LR 1000 for 140.00 (betcha they could have used the LR 750 for half that cost...

Dear Bob, Knowing your interest in health care reform legislation, I wanted to share with you how I plan to vote on the final health care reform package. The health care bill being considered by Congress now accomplishes three things: one, it reduces health care costs for families and small businesses; two, it improves access to affordable care, regardless of pre-existing conditions; three, it lowers our budget deficit. That's why I am supporting it. Over the past year, I have been contacted by thousands of Middle Tennesseans with opinions on health care. Because this issue is so important, I have heard from passionate voices on all sides through face-to-face meetings, call-ins, surveys, town halls, calls and letters. During that time, I have consistently said I would not support any version of health care reform unless it brings down rising health care costs, improves access to affordable care, and does it all without adding one nickel to the national deficit. I've no...

You can find these words in the congressional records; the quotes were attributed to Sen. Everett Dirksen, a senator from the State of Illinois: (On Government Spending and Growth) - in 1951. “Mr. President, within a short stone's throw of where we are debating today sits a committee of Senators sweating, laboring earnestly to find a million dollars here, a few hundred thousand dollars there, in taxes. They are sitting within a few steps of this Chamber. I am referring to the Senate Finance Committee. They are trying to protect the business structure of the country which generates the wealth which produces the taxes we so wantonly and with blithe spirits and gleeful abandon freely squander. And I think it is squandering, as a matter of fact. This is the most remarkable area of contrast that I know anything about. In that committee they try to find a few million dollars in taxes. Here we are considering an amendment increasing an already huge appropriation by $1,000,000,000. It is...

I’ve done lots of reading about the old west and western movies and one area that interests me is the stagecoach, the mass transit of the time. Back then, when riding the coach, a passenger would be required to make a choice as to the type of ticket they would buy. Did you know a stagecoach passenger could choose between three classes of tickets: first, second, or third class? The term coach, even today in airline travel, implies a second class seat. If the stage passenger chose a first class ticket, they were afforded special treatment or guarantees the other class passengers were not given. A first class ticket meant they would be provided food at certain stops along the way, choice of seat on a non-heated, non-air-conditioned, wooden box that seemed to hit every rut on the road while being pulled along at a blazing speed of 20 – 40 total miles in a 12 – 18 hour day – depending on the time of year and weather, of course. There were other significant fringe benefit first clas...

I grew up with a deep affection for western movies….any western. They mesmerized me. They entertained me, and in my mind they even transported me to another era and time. Whatever it was, they were addictive. I could watch westerns for hours and hours and then repeat the process. Even to this day, I can watch the same western I saw years ago with the same enthusiasm as if seeing it for the very first time. Westerns have a way of electrifying my mind that any other movie genre can rarely accomplish. Perhaps, the quintessential western transformed me and taught me meaningful life-long lessons and helped shape me into the person that I am to this very day. It was the older westerns that invariably taught me some of the best lessons; there where good guys and bad guys in this world, right and wrong, and you were honor bound by your work and a hand-shake. Back in my era, good guys always wore the white hat and bad guys wore the black hat; and the good guy would always overcome the...