Why else, after all, would he offer his official congratulations for receiving a Nobel Peace Prise, on behalf of Canada? Oh, the statement says on behalf of the liberal party of Canada, but anyone with half a shot at paying attention will know that was submitted with the same apparent opinion that he represents the majority of Canadians he’s been sharing with Canadians.

Neverminding the fact he hasn’t really produced anything concrete yet, he’s been in office nine months. His troops are still in Afghanistan. His troops are still in Iraq. And his last attempt at peace talks didn’t go so well, so on Israel grounds it’s shockingly premature. I’m ignoring the Iran thing for obvious reasons.

Even prime minister Stephen Harper acknowledges the prise’s award is for what he hopes to do, not what he’s done already, in his congratulations to Obama. Congratulations that, and rightfully so, are on behalf of Canada. What does Michael Ignatieff have to gain from issuing his own, also smacking of being on behalf of Canadians? Folks, I have no idea.

There’s just no way it could possibly be that someone might actually be looking to prove the insurance structure in the United States has actually gone out of controll, is there? I mean, surely not–the idea’s being floated by the democrats, after all. Here’s the catch, though. They’re going after insurance companies who’ve received 2 billion dollars or more in premiums, who’s employees received 1 million dollars or more per year between 2003 and 2008. Yep, definitely yet another democrat attempt to stick it to the insurance companies. Really. Because you shouldn’t expect that if you’re making that much money and doing anything that deals with people’s health, folks are going to want answers.

Fox News is shaking their heads and wondering, though, why it is they’re not telling the republicans about it. Well, I wouldn’t either. Since the election of Barack Obama, they’ve taken the insanity that was George W. Bush and turned it into something that even Canada’s conservative party, who’s seen as being on their equivalent of the political right, won’t even touch with a 10-foot poll. Losing to Obama? That’s okay, just claim he’s not eligible to be president. Don’t like his healthcare plan? That’s okay, just scream disaster and point north (it works quite well, by the way). That’ll get things done.

The amusing part in all this is, none of this has anything to do with a supposed conspiracy theory or anything like that. It’s no secret, even to bloggers that are obviously on the right of the political line, that healthcare costs in the US are less than tolerable–the article even goes so far as to point out that of the 47 million supposedly without insurance, 18 million of them make $50000 a year or more and have still not elected to purchase insurance. That article sort of halfway hints at the actual problem with the healthcare system as it stands now–healthcare may be afordable, but at what other costs? Do you not send your kids to college so you can aford to pay for the insurance?

And that’s the kicker. That’s the point behind the notice served to 52 insurance companies nation-wide–the same companies the republicans would be perfectly fine with allowing to continue to raise prices for service who’s quality doesn’t actually go up along with them. Because, you know, if it ain’t broke, why fix it? But if the system wasn’t broken, it wouldn’t be at least a small part of the election platform on the US side of the border every 4 years–at least on one side of the battlefield, anyway–and, most noteably, Obama wouldn’t have won on it in this past election. And now, the democrats want to find out exactly how broken is broken. And, let’s be honest here. If you have employees making over a million dollars a year from money that’s being paid out by people expecting you to provide them with medical coverage rather than spend your time looking for reasons not to do same, it’s broken. But, since it was a democrat behind the push, it can be little more than a conspiracy to obliterate the US economy. Because, you know, that fits much more easily into fox news’s tiny little ideological box. And, at the end of the day, that’s clearly all that matters.

What’s set him off is an interview (video) on ABC, in which prime minister Stephen Harper correctly stated the issues of wait time that Canada’s healthcare system deals with are a provincial, and not a federal, matter. When asked by the reporter on more than one occasion in the interview if wait times were a concern and what he planned to do about it, Harper continued to tell him it’s a provincial matter.

I’m not entirely sure the reporter understood it after the second or third time Stephen Harper said it. He almost seemed a tiny bit disappointed that Harper wouldn’t jump into that debate–wonder which of the wingnut club paid him to try that out. Johnson apparently was quite disappointed with it. So, he decided to create one

Apparently, if you happen to be a republican, “I don’t want to get involved” somehow translates to “I don’t know”. From somewhere in that interview, and I for the life of me can’t see where, Orrin managed to grab on to the idea that Stephen Harper just doesn’t understand exactly how Canada’s healthcare system actually works. Well, to put Orrin and his supporters at ease, it works very well, thank you.

I’ve said it once, but I wouldn’t mind saying it again. Canadians can take criticism. Quite well, actually. But it may be a good idea to perhaps learn a thing or two before doing so. Just a thought. I mean, it might actually help your case a little better, I’d think. Of course, I could also be wrong–that’s not unheard of.

Clearly, the group is more than a little cautious where this bill’s concerned–and who wouldn’t be? It’s pretty well larger than life right now. And, clearly, Barack Obama’s going through a tiny bit of an overconfidence phase. Sorry, Barack. Apparently you don’t get to guarantee support for something just by opening your mouth. Next time, before you declare an organization’s intent to support something, maybe you aught to make sure that organization actually supports the said something. Just a thought, of which the opinionated fool has plenty.

Now, of course, Obama points out to the reporter writing the article Harper brings it up to him every time they get together–he calls it representing the concerns of his nation. And, he’s right. When Canada’s own liberal party, who many believe to be more to the left than their US counterparts, balks at the measure as it stands right now, you know it has to be a little iffy. But, Obama says it’s nothing serious–said he needed the stimulous bill passed and passed now, so there wasn’t time to debate the issue. And we’re all supposed to just smile and nod, because that must be how it goes.

Barack, I liked your other idea better. Stick to that. You can at least pretend to know what you’re talking about with that–although, you could probably take some lessons on that from north of the border as well. Not that you will, of course, but even an average blogger can have a fantasyland. The only difference is it doesn’t make headlines.

So basicly, if Obama tries to do his job, they’re going to make it rather difficult for him to get anything really accomplished. Including, apparently, blocking two members of their own party among others from being appointed to positions in the pentagon and department of justice respectively. She may be in the opinionated deadpool, but apparently her party has learned to adopt the Palin style political touch–shoot yourself in the foot if you don’t get your own way then see what happens.

In other news, republican members of the house of representatives released a joint statement this morning. Effective immediately, they are resigning to pursue other avenues. In the statement, they said could better serve their country by quitting.

Folks are scratching their heads now on just why it is Obama, Gates and Crowley would dare to even think about drinking a beer made by a company not owned by Americans. Of course, they toss around the theory that it was just a mistake–they were under the impression, due to the presence Budweiser has in the US, that it was an American company. I can buy that. Of course it might just be that they drank what happens to be their preference. He may be the president of the united states, but that doesn’t mean he can’t have semi-decent taste in beer.

Note to the American-owned breweries. If the president won’t buy your product, it’s not a political statement. He just doesn’t like your beer. Live with it.

The article reports that while in their car, Barack Obama’s name was typed into a computer, which triggered a warning from the NCIS. The secret service was notified, called the Georgia state police station in which the officers are based, and a suspension was born. Boys, I may not be an intelectual mastermind over here, but I do believe you just screwed up. Forget career limitting move. I believe these particular individuals may have just redefined career ending. Kind of makes me wonder who else gets randomly tossed into those searches. On both sides of the border.

Update 7/15/2009: He got out of it, too. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you an Afghanistan opponent’s favourite excuse. As of now.

The Obama camp has dug itself in a little bit deeper than it was hoping for, though, in trying to ramrod a healthcare reform bill, plus a cap and trade bill, through congress at the exact same time–and is getting more resistance than it planned on to both. What may have surprised Obama, though, is some of the resistance is coming from inside his own party, including Sen. Robert Byrd who has already indicated he won’t support the cap and trade proposal as it stands right now due to fears over new emissions regulations that would be introduced by the bill, and how it would effect the mining industry. In theory, Obama’s ideas, at least on a healthcare front, are souind. In theory. But he’s going to have to do a lot more sweetening of the pot–on both fronts–if he wants to be able to push things through before the fall. Otherwise, he may have talked himself into a hole that there’s no digging out of.

The Globe and Mail rightly pointed out, in quoting a recognised speaker of the house, that all politics is local. And that’s exactly how it should be looked at, whether or not you’re speaking at a world summit. Canadians can’t aford a second stimulous–there are those who would most likely argue we couldn’t aford the first one. And that’s why even the more left-leaning media is reluctant to criticise Harper for acting precisely how it’s expected he’d act–conservatively.

While it does mean he’s at odds with Barack Obama and gordon Brown on what may be advertised as key issues at the G8 summit, right now more than at any other time, his primary concern needs to be focusing entirely on what would be best for Canada. Unemployment is still sitting above 8%, we still haven’t gotten a definite stopping point for this constantly increasing debt, and little if any of the first round of stimulous dollars has actually been translated into actual in-progress projects. Until that does happen, and the results of that translation become available, we shouldn’t be throwing even more money at what right now is still a rather large questionmark. For all the positives Obama brings to the table–and there are a lot of positives, to be sure–a money problem, which is what this recession really amounts to, more than likely won’t be fixed with more money. One doesn’t need to be an economist to know that.

So, I ask anyone who gives a damn, can you figure out which of the three stuges actually comes close to what might, possibly, be considered a semi-truth? Somehow, I don’t think it’s Obama, seeing as his own administration seems to be in agreement with Harper’s general attitude, even if he himself isn’t. And Brown just seems to be continuing the British tradition started by his predecessor in sucking up to the US president of the day. I’m scared to say it–I’ve never been known for being a conservative supporter before, though there’s definitely a first time for everything–but could Stephen Harper actually be the closest to giving us the real picture? The honest to goodness “please save our country” part of me wants to say no, but… the links seem to stand for themselves. I don’t think the Michael Ignatief fan club will enjoy swallowing that pill.

Obama maintains the US won’t be heading towards a single-payer healthcare system, much like that which you’d see in Europe, or Canada, but rather will be implementing a two-tiered system. Congress, however, seems to be clinging to the notion that single-payer is almost a certainty if one agrees to go along with the plan proposed by Obama. The only problem here is no one–neither for nor against the proposed reform–seems to really get it.

The gloom and doom segment of the anti-healthcare crowd seems to be stuck on the notion that *any* government-funded healthcare will put private insurance companies in the ground for good. Simply put, it won’t. (*) Even if Obama decides to adopt a model similar to that found in Canada, and even if he decides to outright call it a single-pay, government-run healthcare system, and even if over half the population of the US ends up taking advantage of the said system for one reason or another, it more than likely won’t amount to the complete crippling of the US health system as certain people like to charge. What it will mean, more or less, is folks who can’t for whatever reason aford insurance-unemployed, don’t get paid enough to do so, employer won’t pay for it, etc–won’t be completely screwed. There will still be the option of taking up an insurance plan with a private agency. And, it might even make the private companies slightly more likely to not require you take out a second mortgage in order to do so.

On the pro side of it, Obama’s supporters seem to be almost as alergic to the term “single-pay”, electing instead to try and brand it as a two-tiered healthcare system, where the government will pay for only those who have absolutely no other option. But that seems to be all we know about where he’s coming from. that, and the fact that it comes with a hefty bill attached. We’ve not seen any real specifics on the healthcare side of things out of the Obama camp aside from that to base any kind of a real opinion on.

As stated, the general, vague idea Obama’s put forth to us so far is, in theory, an awesome idea. And if I were in the US, I’d be keeping my ear to the ground on this one–well, I’ll be keeping my ear to the ground on this one anyway. But as it stands now, I get the impression he’s no more or less got an idea exactly what it is he plans on doing re: the healthcare system. If he does actually plan to implement some kind of convoluted two-tier system, then I don’t want to have to say it, but he’s going in a very wrong direction with the idea. And yes, if that is the case, Obama’s critics may have something here when they say it’s not going to work. Just not necessarily for the reasons they’re saying it’s not going to work.

(*): I am a Canadian resident, so my opinion on this may or may not be slightly biased–I like our healthcare system. Sue me.

Update: When pressed for more information on exactly what if any kind of limitations Obama would set on his new healthcare proposal, he wasn’t very forthcoming. Or rather, he wasn’t forthcoming at all. Not exactly a good way to inspire confidence in those who’s support you need, elle presidente.