News Day Tuesday

Well, I see we all made it through another Monday. Mine was long and painful but... I'm still here so, there's that! I got started rewatching the last season of Call The Midwife while working on my family tree which kept me entertained but didn't keep my mind of the things that were hurting. Today I'm on call for picking up Austin so I'm having to just breathe through the pain so that I'm alert enough to drive. There is definitely a connection between bad weather on the way and my pain levels. My piriformis nerve is inflamed - which is literally a pain in the butt - and my shoulders are both hurting. My back hurts so bad that the slightest movement takes my breath away. It is just all kinds of fun being me right now, even with the great smelling candle and the awesome peach iced tea.

I wasn't sure I would have anything newsworthy to blog about today and I hate writing blogs where all I do is tell you how much pain I'm in because... nobody wants to read that, do they? It's News Day Tuesday and I wanted to have some real news to talk about. I just can't watch the news right now. I am so sick of the election coverage that I can't even stand to watch The Five and I love The Five! At this point it's just angry people on both sides being angry at the people on the other side and not giving any suggestions for improving life for anyone. I'm not on either side which makes me either angry at everyone - or no one, depending on my mood. Right now it's everyone. I've dreaded another Clinton presidency since the last Clinton presidency and I'm convinced that no matter what, it's going to happen. I just can't listen to that shrill voice another minute. I'm so sick of the hypocrisy... because seriously, Hill, you mean to tell me that you and Bill pay more taxes than you have to? I don't think so. At least Trump is earning and losing his own money without having to sell his government connections to make a living. Every time I mention either candidate I offend somebody in my life and there is enough about me to be offended by without bringing politics into it. I won't be watching the news for the next eight years, at least, so y'all let me know what happens. Although I might watch the debate tonight because I do find Mike Pence interesting and I think he might actually discuss policies and not politics.

But despite avoiding the mainstream media, I am keeping a close eye on the weather. I haven't sat in an insurance office in three years and I'm still addicted to risk management. I texted my kid yesterday saying, "come home this weekend".  I said something along the line of "don't let money be the reason you stay in harm's way." He got out of New Orleans just two days before Katrina. He was a teenager then and I'm no less worried. Also worrying about my friends in Virginia... we've got enough room to sleep six or seven more people on beds and couches and we've got a couple of air mattresses. We've even got a porch swing that converts to a bed so... y'all come on West to dry land.

There are two pieces of news-ish items that I wanted to share. The first is from our local Facebook page. We get the tv news out of Atlanta around here but it really has nothing to do with our part of the state usually. There's a local newspaper that comes out once a week so it's always about a week behind. The way you keep up on the news here is by watching the local Facebook community groups. The big news today? Somebody's goat is in town and they're looking for the owner. I love living here! This is the picture of the actual goat in town. He obviously belongs to someone because he has a collar... although I will admit that I didn't know goats wore collars. So much still to learn about rural life!

The other news item that I wanted to share is regarding national healthcare. We got some mail addressed to Cosette this week that is from her health insurance. I am pretty sure she's on medicaid but it's called something else. Anyways... there was a newsletter that came addressed to her and since it was a newsletter and not an actual envelope I opened it up and flipped through it. I was surprised to find a chart describing the rewards program for taking your kid to their checkups. So .... not only are you getting free healthcare, if you go to all your prenatal visits, for instance, you get a VISA gift card for $20. If you go to both prenatal and postnatal, you get another $30 prepaid VISA gift card PLUS a stroller or a playpen. If you take your baby to all of their checkups in their first 15 months you get a gift card for $60. So... doing the math here... you get pregnant and you get all your healthcare AND the baby's healthcare for free PLUS you profit $110 and a stroller or a playpen. This made my head explode!

Now... I understand that they're trying to make sure that babies get a healthy start and that they get all their immunizations. I understand that the costs of preventing illness is a lot less than the cost of treating an illness. What I don't understand is this concept of having to bribe people into accepting the free health care that is provided for themselves and their child. While I was waiting for my disability to be approved I was without health insurance. I was so grateful to be admitted to a local health clinic to be able to obtain my blood pressure meds that I happily did whatever they asked me to do. Those visits were not fun because there was always a wait but I knew that it was in my best interest to go to those visits. I thanked the volunteers every time I was there. I can't imagine them having to give me some financial incentive to come... I wanted to live so I went to my appointments. Even as a young mother I can't imagine someone having to pay me to make sure my children got the healthcare they needed. And honestly... if someone is so worthless that they can't be bothered to take their kid for their checkups they don't need to be having children. Just think of all the people who are just slightly above the income limits for these programs who might possibly be included if we weren't rewarding people for doing the things they ought to be doing in the first place! It makes me sick knowing that the working poor are getting fined for not being able to afford healthcare and the ones on medicaid are getting their pockets lined just for showing up! ARGH!

The program doesn't end with just babies. It goes on all the way through... including rewarding women for having their yearly exam and mammogram! You can make fifty bucks a year just by doing those things! HOW MANY MORE WOMEN could they treat every year if they didn't reward these women for doing the right thing? It makes me so angry. It's the epitome of the "Nanny State". If people don't care enough about themselves to accept and be grateful for the free healthcare they're receiving, I say, leave them to natural selection. If you're too lazy to go... you get what you get.

I'm grateful that Cosette has medicaid. Of course, even if she didn't we would make sure that she got proper healthcare. But I guarantee you Tasha needed absolutely no incentive to make sure Cosy went to all of her doctors appointments!

I'm interested in your feedback on this issue. Should people who are receiving free healthcare have to be bribed to accept it? Am I a big old insensitive meany that doesn't understand why people should be rewarded for doing the right thing... you know, with a reward besides just being able to survive? Let me know what you think...

And I guess I'll end my weekly news broadcast there. Hope your week is going well and that you're making careful plans to avoid any bad weather! (Hint, hint, three day supply of water, food and medicine... or come home... that's all I'm saying...). Love and hugs and go find your goats, y'all!