Bush's Prescription Drug Plan and Common Horse Sense

Wit, Age and Tomfoolery
Schuyler, with masterful, deft movements, got his cocktail shaker into full gear and prepared a drink he found called a Brazen Hussy. Some immediately thought of Ginger Rogers, some recollected memories of Jean Harlow, and yet others thanked the full moon that we weren't imagining George Bush in just another one of his costumes, or even that real brazen hussy who fumbled her most recent trip to Europe to convince them that we were basically a decent country. Nevertheless, back to the important things in life: Schuyler's cocktails. Tonight he used that "new to a lot of us" Tito's Handmade Vodka, made, by serendipity, in Texas, a state where you cannot access a humane Senator no matter how many hoops you jump through. Oh, the other ingredient making this drink so good was Cointreau.

 

Wit, according to our dictionary, is defined as: "The natural ability to perceive or know; understanding; intelligence; good sense." Age, silly, is that condition you get if you didn't ask the tooth fairy to keep you in a perpetual state of childhood, and tomfoolery is the wit that comes out of Washington. Now, you'd think a country magnificent enough in its wit to invade a rinky-dink country that wasn't a threat to us would, first, forego tomfoolery in dealing with its citizenry, and second, possess the wit to set up a system of prescription drug benefits for its citizens that did not require the proverbial rocket scientist to figure out. Oh, horse sense? To a certain degree that involves the horses' knowing when it's time to poop, and wit and tomfoolery? Well, that has to do with the Republicans' knowing, through their own brand of wit, when to pick it up and throw into the fan, and tomfoolery? That was us, thinking the Republicans had the wit to know how to design a drug prescription plan that much less developed nations learned to master half a century ago.

 

Signing Up for Bush's Prescription Drug Plan?
"Seniors" and people with disabilities on Medicare, are being asked to sign up for George Bush's prescription drug benefit plan. It's not mandatory, Bush crows, it's just there are penalties if you don't sign up in a timely manner.

 

Now, about that signing up: once you do, you're stuck with your plan, and to decide which plan you should sign up for, you need: an actuarial, a certified public accountant, your general practitioner, cardiologist, proctologist, gastroenterologist, oncologist, psychiatrist, rheumatologist, etc. You need to have a list of all the medications you are taking now and may take in the future (oh, you'll also need a good medium to help you on that one.)

 

And, there are a gazillion plans out there in every state. You have to compare what each plan will cost you, what your premiums will be, what your co-payments will be, what deductibles you may have, what, in other words, is this really going to cost. Now that you have decided on the best plan that seems to meet your needs and your pocketbook, it's time to sign up. Wonderful, but here's that old tomfoolery: that plan you spent a jillion hours finding may not cover the drugs you take now and may need to take tomorrow, so, it's back to the drawing board, but hey, silly, it gets better:

 

After all that investigation, that old Washington Tomfoolery rears its ugly head (modeled partly on Condi's head and partly on Bush's.) Seems Bush didn't seem to think it was important to hold the drug prescription providers to the contract you thought you were signing: "I'll pay this for that, and you, in term, agree to provide me with the medications I needed, thought I would need, and was taking when I signed up for your plan." No, Dear John, tomorrow they can decide not to provide you with any of the medications you thought were guaranteed to you. Now, Dear John, it's beginning to smell a bit less like plain old tomfoolery and much more like manure.

 

Oh, and by the way, among that group of elderly people and people with disabilities more than two million have significant mental impairments, and they're supposed to navigate this maze.

 

Oh, About That Horse Sense
Seems a few groups around the country have it since even before this quagmire plan begins (seems Bush loves quagmires) they have started filing lawsuits against the Federal Government (Bush.) These groups are already afraid for the people they advocate for, among which some are what the government calls "dual eligible," people who are on both Medicaid and Medicare. The problem really is serious, and the plaintiffs, fortunately, are important enough that the government is going to have to pay attention. They include: Action Alliance of Senior Citizens of Greater Philadelphia, the Congress of California Seniors, the Massachusetts Senior Action Council, the Maine affiliate of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, the New York Statewide Senior Action Council, and the United Senior Action of Indiana and, the plan doesn't even take effect until January 1, 2006.

 

California's Saints and Archangel
California Has (At Minimum) Three Saints/Angels: Barbara Boxer, Jane Harmon and the Archangel Henry Waxman. These three people really do care for these sullied United States and up here we're convinced the three together could run the country better than any Republican could ever dream. Tonight, though, looking up at the full moon, so beautiful none of us could describe it adequately, several of us did think of Henry Waxman, perhaps one of the country's most underappreciated watchdogs: he doesn't let this corvine cabal of an administration get by with anything it tries to slip by us.

 

Bob and Judy ran across a copy of a letter he wrote on November 30, 2005 to Mark B. McClellan, Administrator Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Basically, it was a report card on how McClellan and Bush ruined what should have been a good program; a report card with straight F's. Pretty sad. Mr. Waxman's report is very detailed, and we urge you to contact his office, either in California or in Washington, so you can read the entire scathing report. Bob and Judy handed us all copies, and we thought we'd just mention the headings of some of his paragraphs, which will alert you to some of the subjects Mr. Waxman discussed with Mr. McClellan.

 

These paragraph headings are: The Medicare Drug Card Program, The Government Accounting Office Request, the GAO Findings on Implementation and Enforcement, Erroneous Website Information, Overbillings, Inadequate Oversight and Enforcement, Failure to Substantiate Drug Discounts, GAO Findings on the Drug Card Publicity Campaign, and his conclusion. Scathing's not the final word: this program is criminal in its complexity, inefficiency and gifts to the large pharmaceutical companies. The aged and the infirm seemed to be the last thing on this administration's pathetic mind.

 

Please, please contact Mr. Waxman's offices and get a full copy of his report. Mr. Waxman's last line is: "I am enclosing copies of the new GAO reports for your review. I request a detailed explanation of the reforms your agency will take to address these issues and to administer and enforce the new Medicare drug benefit effectively." Now it's up to us to be vigilant and make sure Mr. McClellan responds fully and appropriately to Mr. Waxman's letter. As good Democrats, liberals and progressives, we have to help the good guys among us so get off your duff and hop on that pony: there's a war raging out there. (Oh, in my antiquated country English, 'corvine' just means a crow, as in corvine birds are carriers of fatal, viral infections.)

 

Teenagers Have to Eat, And Who Are We To Dawdle?
As soon as they rang the dinner gong, we sprang into action, literally flying to our places in the dining room, showing less decorum than the teenagers, who took their places at the dining table in the great room with "grown-up" aplomb.

 

Beatrix and Charlotte teamed up on our appetizers, prawns they had marinated in amber Corazón tequila and a dry fino sherry. Also in the marinade, they had sections of Valencia oranges, whole peppercorns, garlic, scallions and cilantro. Beatrix and Charlotte decided to use the new, extra-large Viking skillets we had bought since the shrimp had to be cooked very quickly over a hot flame. Their presentation, on red lettuce leaves, was perfect. Once again, we drank our sherry to accompany the prawns from our new Royal Leerdam Sherry glasses, and thoroughly enjoyed the bone dry, pale straw-colored Domecq's La Ina.

Comfort soup can be mild, expertly prepared Consommé, or it can be a heavenly Hungarian Beef and Egg Noodle treasure in a bowl. Since we're not a timid bunch, we used the spicier hot paprika, eschewing the sweeter paprika, leaving it for wimps. Beatrix and Charlotte, British and French, are inspired when it comes to choosing wines, so their wine tonight was a near-professional but decidedly ethereal pairing. They selected a Cave de Vacqueyras Vacqueyras Cuvée du Président 2001. This is a typical southern Rhône wine, full-bodied, with notes of leather, plum and smoke.
Marie Christine and Jean-Paul enlisted Max's help with the grills in the pool house, but otherwise they alone prepared tonight's Grilled Salmon Fillets with a Garlic Sauce. As with the soup, this dish was not for the delicate: the sauce was made with basil, scallions, shallots, garlic, Serrano chiles and ground pepper. As breeders of exquisite Baroque sport horses, they probably share a lot with the rest of us: they may be French, but they're not afraid of spice, and a Serrano or two just make them livelier! For their salmon, they brought over some Chilean Chardonnay, a Montes 2004 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay from the Curicó Valley. They served some beautifully braised endive with the salmon, which is all that dish needed.

After an interlude provided by the fanciful apple/mango sorbet, we were ready for Max's Grilled Leg of Lamb. The lamb too, turned out to be spicy, containing more of the hot paprika, mint leaves, garlic and rosemary. The investment in banks of Viking grills turned out to be a wise one, since no matter what the weather, Max is always willing to grill and make the trip from the pool house back up to the main house. Grilling allows Max to shine, because he not only grills different kinds of meat, but he uses the grills to bake us his myriad varieties of "cowboy" bread, and a multitude of vegetables. Tonight, in his cast iron skillets, he baked us some Chipotle Whole Wheat Bread and grilled some beautiful scallions, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms and new potatoes. It's impossible to convey with mere words the aromas imparted to the lamb, the bread and the vegetables by the perfect mesquite chips Max likes to use. He and Charlotte brought several bottles of the Zinfandel they had in their wine cellar that they thought would be delightful with the dish, a Peachy Canyon, 2003 Zinfandel, Old School House, Paso Robles, with enormous aromas of blueberry and blackberry. The wine, as was the food, was smoky.

 

Judy made us individual tartlets of peach and apple with a nice, crunchy crust. She chose a Nino Franco Prosecco di Valdobbiadene Sparkling Wine, which was perfect for the not-too-sweet tartlets, but also works as an aperitif, so it is a malleable, adaptable wine.

 

Baroque Horses, and Good Night
We missed Marie Christine and Jean-Paul when they spent those two years adding to their mastery of the art of working with Baroque sport horses. If you have ever seen the magnificent White Stallions at the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, you get an idea of what it is they do, and you can get a feeling for the kind of horses they breed here. Several of us share their interest in the "old school" of Baroque horses. We, for example, breed Andalusian horses, but by and large, most of the farms out here are Quarter Horses, barrel racing: middle-United States.

 

Whoa! Time just flew, but some of us still have last-minute farm chores, the kids have homework, and the rush was on to clear up, clean up, sweater or jacket-up and go back home.

 

Summary:
Washington doesn't have, right now, any horse sense, and it's full of tomfoolery. D.C. is hell-bent on hoodwinking elders and people with disabilities, and if, as a society, we were sage, we'd place a lot of faith in our California Saints and its Archangel. Pity the poor people in Texas, for example; they have the bubble-headed co-ed who went out of fashion in the sixties, and the impossibly pasty-white doughboy who can't keep his mouth shut.

©Copyright 2005 Grindstaff Chronicles. All Rights Reserved.
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Reprinted from The Grindstaff Chronicles Newsletter which is published in the USA by farmers, ranchers, and neighbors.

It is intended to share the thoughts and lifestyle of people who work hard, like to relax and enjoy life, and are often dismayed by news, politics, and the events of the day that defy common sense.
http://www.GrindstaffChronicles.com
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