Has Your State Told Obama NO GO on A Health Insurance Exchange?

Published: Fri, 11/30/12

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In This Issue:

Are Statin Drugs Like Crestor and Lipitor for You? By Richard C. Young
Another Lesson Learned about Self-Defense By E.J. Smith
Has Your State Told Obama NO GO on A Health Insurance Exchange? By Richard C. Young
Where’s the Cream? By Steve Schneider
America in Crisis By Richard C. Young

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The Fed is Number 1 in Wealth Destruction
This month I had lunch with retired BB&T Chairman and CEO, John Allison. Speaking with John was a special privilege given his unique background in the financial industry. John was the longest-serving CEO of a top-25 financial institution, serving BB&T from 1989 through 2008. John said he used to believe the Federal Reserve was second only to Congress in destroying wealth and well-being. Now he believes the Fed has moved into first place. Read more by clicking here.

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Are Statin Drugs Like Crestor and Lipitor for You?

The Cleveland Clinic Center for Continuing Education recently released a 20-page report entitled Physician’s Guide to Cardiovascular Disease Prevention. The Cleveland Clinic is justifiably world-renowned, and the October 2012 guide offers some worthwhile reading on risk factors, diet, lifestyle, fibrates, and niacin. Also included is a two-page discussion of statins. It is noted that statins are among the most widely prescribed medications in the United States. The 20-page report also includes five pages of references and suggested reading, along with a five-page advertising supplement for Crestor. It seems logical to me that most physicians reading this study will be strongly influenced to prescribe statins to patients designated as “at risk.”

I am a professional research analyst, not a medical professional, but I read extensively on health-related issues in order manage health matters for my family. When discussing statins, I want to know if statins offer life extension prospects for older men (like me) and woman (like Debbie). For these two groups, just what are the prospects for life extension with statins?

Do you know about NNT? Linked here is a concise piece I wrote on NNT’s a number of months ago.

I describe NNT as it relates to an article specifically on Lipitor. Each time you or family members are prescribed a drug (statin or otherwise), I suggest that you courteously request the relevant NNT number from your physician. If your physician does not have NNT information on hand prior to starting a prescription drug regime, do your own homework. Research and study lead to a better understanding of the health factors that affect your family.

You may find it surprising, but some of the most important lessons I learned at a handgun course at Sig Sauer Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire, had nothing to do with shooting a handgun.

One lesson was not to rely on the police for protection. This was not a slight against the force. The instructor has worked with several officers and would tell you they are excellent at what they do. But the police are rarely in a position to act while an event is unfolding. Often, they can only be there for you after the fact.

I’m not saying you need to have a handgun at home. That’s a personal decision between you and your spouse. What it does mean is that you should do whatever you can to make sure you’re prepared to defend yourself and your family in the event there’s a threat.

I don’t see any harm in understanding how a handgun works. It puts you in a defensive mindset, and believe me, you’ll begin seeing holes in your circle of defense whether you own a handgun or not. You’ll be able to make significant upgrades to your self-defense situation just by learning more about the subject. You simply cannot rely on anyone but yourself for the protection you deserve.

Dick Young’s #1 Personal Security Must Have

Here is a tentative list of the states with a health-care backbone as well as a list of states on the fence. This secondary list needs a barrage of emails to those governors’ offices and fast!

The “Backbone 17” are Alabama, Alaska, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

The 12 fence sitters are Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, and West Virginia. I would look for most of this group to join with the Backbone 17, which largely defang Obamacare and make funding political suicide.

>> read more

Where’s the Cream?

>> read more

America in Crisis

In The Financial Crisis and the Free Market Cure, John A. Allison writes, ”The financial crisis is the most important event in 80 years. It will have a significant impact on the quality of your life and of your children. The majority of the explanations for the crisis and the ensuing recession presented in the popular press are not true. Destructive policy decisions are being made based on this misidentification of the causes of our financial problems.”

Mr. Allison is president and CEO of the Cato Institute. (Debbie and I are Cato Benefactors.) John previously was at BB&T, where he was the longest-serving CEO of a top 25 financial institution. During Mr. Allison’s tenure, BB&T’s assets grew to $152 billion from $4.5 billion, and BB&T became the tenth largest financial services holding company headquartered in the United States. In his position, Mr. Allison indeed shared a unique inside view of the factors leading to the financial crisis.

Through Cato, I’ve gotten to know John and just recently finished John’s latest book, The Financial Crisis and the Free Market Cure. Not only is John’s book invaluable on explaining the crisis, but it is also the best book I have read on an industry in which I have been involved for nearly five decades. Below are some highlights from The Financial Crisis. In coming posts, I will continue to share some of John’s most important and vital insights with you.

Government policy is the primary cause of the financial crisis.
Government policy created a bubble in residential real estate.
If we do not change direction soon, the United States will be in very serious financial trouble in 20 to 25 years.
The economic forces that now have been set in motion are laying the foundation for a long-term disaster.
Social Security deficits, Medicare deficits, unfunded state and local pension liabilities, government spending deficits, retirement of the baby boomers, and a failed K12 education system are huge issues.
Countries do not go bankrupt like businesses do. They typically hyperinflate—that is, print valueless money—and move to some form of authoritarian government. In 1920, the U.S. and Argentina had the same standard of living. Argentina, through authoritarian government policies, has made itself into a third-world country despite having vast natural resources. The U.S. will be the next Argentina if it does change direction soon.