Ryan Price's Soapbox

Health Care Bill Passes Senate on Christmas Eve:

As most of you were out shopping for last minute Christmas gifts, our wonderful law makers in Congress were busy passing the Health Care Reform Bill by a margin of 60-39. Now It moves on to the House where they have to add their pieces and attempt to have it pass there as well as in the Senate in order for this to go into effect. Now trust me I don’t hate health care reform because there are honestly things i like in the bill. I think the denying of coverage for pre existing conditions is absolutely Un-American and should have been fixed years ago. Believe it or not there are people who keep their jobs and hate it for years simply because they need the health care to either pay for a child or spouse that might be sick.

Taking the super wealthy to pay for this is simply not an option. We need to find better ways besides taxing those who work their butts off in order to make 100k+ a year. The fact that it is going to save us 130 billion dollars and in a decade 1 trillion is simply not true. First off, that is under the assumption you push people off Medicare/Medicaid if not and both plans still exist them we have effectively added 1 more government run program to add to the debt.

Here’s a tip to Congress, instead of trying to BUY votes, try working together as a collective whole! Act as a congress of one not 60.

Attempted Terrorist Attack over Detroit:

When stuff like this happens, it tells you that our security still has numerous holes in it and that we are letting our guard down. This should be a big wake up call that we are by no means out of the woods by a long shot. The people on that flight should be counting their blessing that the guys leg got cooked and not the plane exploding in the sky over Detroit. Second of all, where was our wonderful intelligence on this, HIS OWN FATHER warned the Embassy about this in Yemen. Now granted this was not within our borders but we should expect our allies to have their security bumped up or at least at the gates with American destinations have tighter security getting on the flights. Our problem now is not solely directed at Afghanistan, its global and we best start paying attention because when we don’t and we take our eyes off the ball…that is when we’ll have another horrific attack on the scale of 9/11.

Protests erupt in Iran again:

Most of you remember the Iranian Elections earlier this year and the massive protests that erupted and subsequently claimed the lives of many young Iranians. While our president stood idle and turned a blind eye to it the rest of the world was standing behind them and urging them to claim the torch and bring them the freedom they have been denied for years. Well again, protests have broke out again and it seems more and more like we don’t care. Iran would not be a threat if the world pushed out the repressive rulers that abuse human rights and kill those who go against them. Iranians want the freedom and peace that the west enjoys…why is it so hard for us to give it to them!?

Ryan Price -

ABC News is reporting this morning that the CIA knew Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan was attempting to make contact with al Qaeda – months ago.  This isn’t something that just came up.  The CIA is refusing to brief the intelligence on just what’s been going on, an indication that they either failed to communicate this information to the Army properly, or they simply don’t know yet and are fact-gathering.

Regardless of which reason the CIA has for not briefing Congress, we do know that Administration policy (as well as the previous administration, to a lesser extent) affects the sharing of this kind of information as well as actions that might take place later.  The politically correct, blame America first mentality is destroying our country from the inside out.

There were plenty of signs that something should be kicked out of the Army (and certainly not promoted).  Hasan was part of a radical mosque in Virginia, headed up by a jihad promoting leader named Anwar al Awlaki.  There was the CIA intelligence issue of electronic communications with terrorists.  And, more glaringly, Hasan’s co-workers said he was growing increasingly radical in recent months and years.  He was an officer in the military, yet he told his fellow officers that he was a Muslim first and an American second.  Still, he was promoted through the ranks in the Army.

General George Casey, Jr., the Army chief of staff, has more pressing concerns on his mind.  More precisely, he’s worried that there will be a backlash against Muslims in the Army.  General Casey started off the spin machine for his bosses at the Whitehouse when he said it would be a “greater tragedy” to risk diversity in the Army.  Really? Worse than 13 people dead?  13 families destroyed? Diversity is worth more to liberals than those folks?  Holy cow.

The Obama Administration, of course, will not call this the terrorist attack that it was.  Instead, they will say it was just a crazy gunman who had a gun he shouldn’t have been able to purchase.  I can hear the Brady Campaign crazies coming.  Of course, they can’t seem to understand that these attacks almost always happen in “sterile” zones where concealed weapons aren’t allowed.  Such was the case here, as well.  A crazed gunman (or a terrorist) might be able to kill a few people, but just one or two concealed carry license holders (or citizens practicing open carry, in those states that allow it) would prevent the death toll from climbing higher.  This happens time and time again.  It is repeated all throughout history.  An armed society isn’t just a polite society… it’s a safer, freer, more civilized society.