Moving!

To my friends that have followed me: please join me at my new location.

This page will be merged with the new page, which also has a facebook page to boot!

Thanks for your support,

Joseph

The Warrior, not the War

One thing that I've learned is that politics, policy, and war do not necessarily make pleasant bed fellows. I have met a lot of people with a lot of different things to say about the wars and foreign policies adopted by the U.S. government. With such a sensitive and polarizing topic, I thought I'd offer my thoughts, as a U.S. Veteran, on this subject.

The politics of war are not hard to decipher. Being strong on national defense, homeland security, and appearing to be "pro-military" are considered safe places to land if you are somehow involved in politics. Unfortunately, the politics of war are always going to be present and will play a hand in the decision making process, which doesn't necessarily bode well for the policy of war. The policy behind war is much harder to nail down.

During the debacle that was the ramp up to the invasion of Iraq, it was told to us that there was irrefutable evidence that there were many weapons of mass destruction (WMD) that were potentially vulnerable to being sent to people that intended to do us much harm. After all of that, it is hard to believe now anything that I hear about this. Based on my experience in the military, I find myself asking so many questions...

Is the problem still in Afghanistan? Is it in Pakistan? If it is, what is being done about this on the Pakistani side? What about financial aid that is being sent to either of these countries - including the issue involving corruption? What about the emergence of Al Qaeda in Yemen? If Yemen is a direct threat, why aren't we at war against Yemeni terrorists? Or are we already? What actually constitutes a threat to us? How can we fully buy into a war that went unattended to for many years due to the lies of our government in trying to sell the invasion of Iraq? When we went to Iraq, I was on board because I couldn't see how our government could ever make such up front lies about what we were looking at, in terms of the threat we faced. How could we trust, as a citizenry, the word of many of the same individuals today?

It's hard. I'm not anti-war, under proper circumstances. I'm not anti-military, and I'm not a extremely "left" person. What am I then? I'm devastated that thousands of us had to die in a war that was EXTREMELY unnecessary by every account I've seen. I'm pissed off that I feel like I can't trust my government when it comes to war, because now it seems that "last resort" is a term that you hear but don't see practiced. I'm angry that the media doesn't help keep American's on task because of the agendas that they pursue - which apparently don't include objective reporting. I'm sad because I don't know if it will ever get better.

You don't have to blindly support war because you're a Veteran, or because you're a (insert party affiliation here), or even because you don't want to seem un-American. There are patriots of all shapes and colors, and it's okay if you're not necessarily co-signing the actions of our military. What I would like is to see people not question the patriotism of those that dissent to the idea of war. I would like to see people not make assumptions of those that have served during these wars, and assuming only the worst. We are not indiscriminate killers, nor are we the ones that make the decision to send us there.

It's about the warrior, not the war. Separate the two, respect each other, and remember that freedom isn't free. Lives are lost, families are broken, and futures are changed every day. If you're a religious person, pray for the troop, and the families. If you're not religious, put good "vibes" out for those that you don't even know. Most importantly, the children of our troops need their parents, and spouses need their significant other to come home unharmed.

Fight well, and hope for peace.

Dear Gracie

Dear Gracie,

The days have turned into weeks, the weeks now a month, and I feel like it was only yesterday that I was fighting for space in my bed. What I wouldn't give for that problem tonight.

I think that saying goodbye this time around has been harder than any other, except for the first, and I've struggled with understanding why this time was so hard. Maybe this time has been so hard for me because it all happened too fast. You were here, and then you were gone. The seemingly countless discussions on where you were going to live were too much for you, and too much for me. I tried so hard to reassure you that no matter what you wanted to do it would be OK with me - and I can see now that I was the one that needed reassurance.

Talking about something that is so hard to talk about isn't fair to you, and I know that. I'm so desperately in love with you that I sometimes can't see you for the child you are. You're still my baby, and at the same time I feel like you're much older and wiser than you really are. I hope that you're doing better now than you were doing then. Me? I'm not doing so great. I find myself tearing up just thinking about the times we'd spend together. I still struggle with how things played out, and how fast saying goodbye to you came and went. There will be a time when maybe all of this will make sense, and I'll look back at it and it won't feel so terrible. I am scared for that day to come, because if the day ever comes that having you here doesn't hurt more than anything I've ever felt than a part of me must have died, and I don't want that to happen.

It's happened before, and it took Mommy/Miyumi/Kelly to bring me back from the edge. Lonliness and indifference are two things that I've learned to adapt to, and I don't want to be that person anymore. I just want to be whole, and I only feel truly whole when I hear your voice in your room, or hear your little steps down the hall. I don't even go into your room anymore because it hurts so much that you're not in it. I keep asking myself why does this have to happen to me, and I know that there isn't really any answer for that. For all of the people in the world that don't give a shit about their children, here I am, only wanting to be with mine, and I don't have that right.

I can only hope that one day our time will come. I hope so much that you'll see me for the parent and person that I am, and that you'll find home in our house. Until then I can only sit here and wonder what you're doing, wonder if you're happy, and wonder if you ever think about me like I think about you. I miss you so much, I hope that in your life you never have to feel the way I feel whenever I think about you.

I love you.

Little Man

The birth of my new son was similar to the birth of Gracie - and yet altogether different. When Kelly's pain medication failed to kick in it was one of the most heart wrenching experiences that I've ever been a part of. It's not so much the fact that she was going through the trials of giving birth, I can deal with that, but it was more about the look in her eyes and how helpless I felt knowing that there was nothing I could do to help ease her pain - even if just a little.

After the entire birthing experience I'll never look at Kelly the same. It's amazing how she performed, and the respect and admiration I have for her is different than any I'd had up to this point. I'm luck to have such a strong woman in my life, and her softness isn't lost in all of that strength. I'm thankful for the beautiful little man that I get to destroy - uh, I mean, teach - for the rest of my days.

I hope they're numerous...

Opening day was when?

Most people that know me best know that I love the Athletics of Oakland very much. Even through these past couple of seasons that have not been so great I have followed the team with some level of closeness. The time for that is over.....

I know you're burning to know why that is, right? Well although time has become an issue it is more than just a lack of time. To me, the fact that the A's are currently looking for another home is more than just a little distressing. Major League Baseball (MLB) stood up a commission to determine if the A's had any viable options for a new home in Oakland, which I see as just a formality that is being paraded before Oakland and its fans so that they can at least say that they tried.

Consider the fact that MLB commissioner Bud Selig and A's owner Lew Wolff are old fraternity brothers, or the fact that Wolff has had a hard on for the south bay since day one. Wolff is the man behind the San Jose earthquakes and has some real estate investments in the area (hotels), and beyond that, he just unsuccessfully tried to land the A's a stadium in Fremont - about as close as you can get to San Jose without infringing on the San Francisco Giants' territorial rights to San Jose.

The commission has probably already met with Selig and provided it's recommendations to him suggesting that the A's move to San Jose - regardless of the fact that the city of Oakland has 3 prospective stadium locations and more political will than we've ever seen on the matter. It doesn't matter though, the A's are moving to San Jose because they want the San Jose dollars that comes with such a move. Fremont would have given them access to some of that San Jose money - Oakland does not. Just like with everything else, do you think money is not the driving force on this matter? Do you think the commission matters? Do you think the fans of Oakland matter? Selig has already met with the Giants to discuss territorial matters:

http://articles.sfgate.com/2010-03-21/sports/18842232_1_oakland-alameda-county-coliseum-san-jose-new-stadium

To the nice man that emails and calls me to buy season tickets again:

Look, you're a nice guy, but with no commitment to Oakland and its fans you somehow are supposed to illicit a commitment from me? Seriously?

To Lew Wolff:

We were here pulling for the A's long before you were lining your pockets with our money Mr. Wolff - but that doesn't matter either, does it? Do me a solid and go fuck yourself.

Greed makes me sad.

Empty Nest

As I approach the tender age of thirty I've been reflecting on the years that made up my twenties. The ups and downs have been numerous, and yet I find myself feeling more stable than I ever have in many ways.

The greatest moment of my life to date was the birth of Grace. The greatest accomplishment of my life has been becoming the father that I am today. The greatest challenge of my life will be becoming the father that I hope to be. The greatest fear of my life is failing to reach this goal, which I am determined not to allow to happen.

The past year without Gracie has been especially rough for me. I have never known the emptiness that I have felt without my baby here. I have gone out to visit her for a long weekend here and there and they have done an OK job to help with the "Gracie fix," but nothing could ever replace having her here with me.

Consider visiting your child, if you are lucky enough to have one, and they ask you multiple times if they are coming back home with you. Or almost begging you to take them with you...do you know how helpless that makes me feel? My daughter wants only to be with me, her father, and I can't even meet that basic request. I feel so sad, so angry, and so hurt for her and the circumstances that I find us in. She just wants to be with me and I just feel helpless.

I'm too young to have an empty nest, come back home my little birdie...

Healthcare and you

The long and arduous trail that our country has traveled during the national health care debate started long before the election of Barack Obama. The Clinton administration fought for health care reform. The Nixon administration struggled with it. Presidents from over 50 years ago attempted health care reform, albeit unsuccessfully. This is not a new problem. There is nothing that has been said in favor or in opposition today that hasn't been said for decades now, by both republican and democrat. The question was never whether or not the American health care system needed to be changed, because everyone agrees that it does in fact need to be changed.

Yet we find our politicians arguing not the merits of single payer (Canada) vs. public option, but instead arguing the merits of doing something vs. doing nothing. How can there be consensus that something has to be done, yet there has been no compromise on doing anything? I literally mean nothing, at all.

Opponents of this bill can argue that it's a government take over of health care, or that it is the government just spending more money that we don't have, but those are shallow arguments that don't hold water. The more troubling issue is that instead of finding out for themselves about the merits of that argument, most opponents of this bill just assume this to be so.

Here is the truth according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which is a non partisan entity that rates proposed legislation for costs.

1. In the first ten years the deficit will be reduced by 130+ Billion dollars.

2. In the second ten years the deficit will be reduced by over 1.2 TRILLION dollars.

The net effect is that *almost everyone will be covered and it will save everyone that pays taxes and currently has insurance more money. So why not save money and do the right thing? Opponents will say what they will, but the CBO has spoken. Both Democratic and Republican members of Congress rely on the CBO - so there is no cherry picking of data here.

Do no oppose for the sake of opposition. The bill is not perfect by any means, but to condemn a bill that most people know very little about just out of fear of change is not the American way. Our President won the popular and electoral votes of Republicans and Independents alike, and he ran on enacting this specific change. It what he was sent there to do, by an overwhelmingly huge majority, so cut through the talking points, the lies, and the misinformation and respectfully disagree. Argue merit. Propose policy. Do something besides say "no."

It wasn't too long ago that our President and his administration was calling his opponents "unpatriotic" for not buying into his policies. All I'm saying is provide alternatives, provide ideas and be a part of the solution. When did that get so hard....?

So what does this mean to you? Well, here is what the bill will do chronologically....

The second the bill is signed by President Obama:

Small Businesses

Small businesses can start applying for tax credits to buy health insurance for their employees. This will make it easier for small businesses (America's most important employers) to provide care to its employees and make insurance available to more Americans. This will help small employers continue to:

A. Keep the employees they have and not lay them off due to how expensive it is to cover their employees.

B. Start to hire new employees because of the flexibility that the tax credit will allow.

C. Cover Americans that would otherwise be uncovered.

Senior Citizens on Medicare

Senior citizens on Medicare will get long awaited help with the purchasing of prescription medication, a shortcoming of the current Medicare benefit. Many Medicare recipients cannot afford the drugs they need.

As of June 21st, 2o1o:

High risk patients with pre-existing conditions that have been deemed NOT insurable will have "high risk pools" created for them and allow them to purchase the insurance that they need that they are unable to get as of today.

As of September 23rd, 2010

Children:

All children must be covered regardless of pre-existing conditions.

Coverage:

Insurance companies cannot drop you because you get sick - this actually happens now.

Limits:

There will no longer be lifetime limits on how much they will spend on provided care. No matter how expensive the procedure(s) you need, they will have to pay for it.

Young Adults:

Your children will be allowed to stay on your coverage until the age of 26, instead of the age of about 22 right now.

As of January 1st, 2011

Use of your health care dollars:

Insurance will be required to spend 80-85% of every dollar you pay them on care provided to you, and if your insurance company does not meet this requirement they will refund the difference to you as a rebate.

Preventative Care:

Medicare patients will begin to receive free preventative care with zero copay.

*All of the above changes will take place within the first calendar year*

As of 2014...

Pre-existing condition ban:

The complete ban on denying all Americans access to health care based on pre-existing conditions.

Exchanges:

Health care exchanges will be open to those that still are not covered, providing a competitive arena for health care consumers.

Annual Limits:

The Lifetime ban on payment of benefits will be in place already, but the annual limits on care will be abolished at this time.

All of that and it saves us all money. Who can be against that...?