Be INFORMED

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Newt Gingrich’s Christmas Present

    Merry Christmas everyone. You to Newt

Twas the Day Before Christmas—in Virginia

by Neapolitan        Sat Dec 24, 2011

Reposted from Neapolitan by Kaili Joy Gray

'Twas the day before Christmas, and all through the land
All the candidates went to events that they'd planned.
There were breakfasts, and lunches, and dinners galore;
There were so many speeches their throats became sore.

Late last night, on their bus, they'd been snug in their beds,
While a vision of victory danced in their heads.
But today, there would never be time for a nap;
Just a flight or a drive to some dot on the map.

Then from deep in Virginia, there came such a clatter!
The media sprang to see what was the matter,
And found that, despite spending mountains of cash,
Two front-runners' efforts were gone in a flash.

In Virginia, no votes go to Gingrich or Perry,
So Christmas, for them, will be much less than merry.
"Too few signatures gathered", the state's rationale; it
Appears that their names won't appear on the ballot.

"Just get 10,000 signatures, as the state asked.
Go and get'em!" the candidates' staffers were tasked.
"There are five million voters!" and out they were sent,
Their goal to go gather just point-two percent.

But even so few was, it seems, just too many;
They may well have not bothered gathering any.
A few scattered thousands, their meager collection,
And these two are out of this March's election.

You'd think, with their millions, and well-paid promoters,
They'd maybe connect with a handful of voters.
But Perry's aw-shuckness, and Gingrich's "greatness"
Meant nothing: their campaigns were vanquished by lateness.

Oh, the horror! The anger! The utter dismay
On this Christmas-y Eve of a Christmas-y Day!
Yes, for Perry and Gingrich, the end of the race--
In Virginia, at least, where they're gone with no trace.

In Virginia, their campaigns fell in on themselves,
Like the work of some angry, malevolent elves.
And the candidates face these Virginia defeats,
Where the Klown Kar continues with two empty seats.

But while many rejoice at this most recent reason
To laugh at this silliest GOP season,
Remember, before you go off with a grin:
While those two may be out, all the others are in.

Now I'm through here; I've had a few minutes of fun,
But tomorrow is Christmas; there's work to be done.
So I'll leave you with this: as I head out the door,
To the GOP wannabes, let me implore:

"Now Bachmann, now Romney, now Hunstman, now Perry,
And Gingrich--yes, you of the multiple-marry--
Santorum, and Johnson, and even Ron Paul:
Please go away! Go away! Go away all!"

 

Saturday, December 24, 2011

American Healthcare Hassles: Part II

    Any of you diabetics reading this know what I feel like with my sugar levels going up throughout the day, as you have also suffered the same dilemma on more than one occasion. The nausea, weakness, and the dry mouth alone would make most normal people wish that they were dead. Forget about the risk of coma after a certain point, and possible death.

   So how did the day end?

    Well, after being unable to find any cash by either a loan from friends, or a little bit of work, I decided to make my way to the closest emergency room some 3 miles away. I did not have enough cash in pocket to be able to take the local city bus, so I started walking at 1 in the afternoon. I walk pretty quick even when feeling like shit, so I was looking at maybe a 45 minute walk. As luck would have it, I ran across some homeless friends of mine at an intersection not far from home, who told me to go into a clinic sitting at the same intersection because one of them had been treated for no charge. That is where I went to.

   Seven sheets of paper-work to fill out, no problem. Clinic did not even ask for an I.D., which was really cool. Sat in their waiting area from 1:45 until 4 waiting to see the doctor.

    Got through the exam, and got me 2 scripts for the Insulin I needed.

   Now, this clinic charges patients on a sliding-scale, there is nothing coming out of the building for free. They will bill me for the initial visit ( $ 15 ) but the meds are gonna cost up front. If I had the money, I most certainly would not have complained about the price of the Insulin ( $6 Per vial ) because it was much cheaper than having to buy at regular price. But. I did not have any money even at that price, so I was basically in the place for a little more than 3 hours and got nothing.

   At this point, I was tossing in the towel and beginning to head to the hospital, as I had originally planned. Then fortune turned to the better.

    I ran into a friend of mine who offered to buy me at least one of the vials I needed, which was just fine and dandy with me. I figured that I would pay him back whenever I was able to, but he told me “ Merry Christmas “ and not to worry about it. So that worked out great. I got at least one vial I needed, and I did not go apeshit and kill anyone.  I say that because high sugar levels tend to make me very ill and hostile to the point of actually knocking the crap out of someone.

   So I ended up with one vial ( NPH ) and I avoided a $1,000 emergency room visit.

    I am not finished with this topic, so the next time I will taking a look at just how pathetic the United States of America’s healthcare system really is.

    Nobody needing medicine that keeps them alive should have to worry about how they are going to get the stuff when an emergency situation arises and they are broke at the time.