‘Great Ghettoputer,

Yes, it appears that Dr. J refers to himself in the third person. The Czar takes no responsibility for this, as the Czar sometimes refers to himself in the third person. Sometimes we refer to ourselves in the first-person plural. Other times, the Czar may mix persons and number as it amuses us.

Even so, another peculiar trait the good doctor shares with the Czar is outrage over other people stealing his stuff! Exempli gratia:

Dreaded Czar,

Long have our friends at NRO trolled the writings of the Gormogons for ideas and commentary (sometimes pilfering them before we even write them). The Old Gray Mare is now perusing the Gormogons for news stories as well.

If you recall, back in October, Dr. J wrote about paying a higher portion of his health insurance premium than his income challenged colleagues.

The New York Times picked up on this just yesterday.

Dr. J. became aware of this by watching a story about the article on Fox News during a teeth cleaning. Dr. J would rather have a root canal than read the NYT without the pinhole camera that is FNC doing the reading for him.

What is delicious about this article is that Mr. Ableson still finds a way to bash Republicans.

He says, “Even as companies warily eye the uncertain landscape of the new health care law, especially with the Republican midterm election gains at the federal and state levels, they also are seeking novel ways to deal with year-after-year increases in health care, because the share-the-pain era is coming to an end.”

Especially with the Republican midterm election gains?

Last time Dr. J. checked, open enrollment is in October at most places of employ—before mid-term elections. Furthermore it was a 2000-page bill voted for entirely by Democrats that relied on illegitimate tricks and nonsense to get it passed. Most Republicans want healthcare reform that lowers costs. They weren’t even invited to the closed door meetings about Obamacare. Dr. J likes the Mackey Plan.

As previously mentioned, while he is not thrilled with the hike in his premium, Dr. J feels that his private employer needs to do what it needs to do to minimize the overall financial burden for its employees. Otherwise, those employees would leave. Dr. J’s current employer provides the same benefits package to everyone. The only difference will be in January the employees portion of the health insurance premium will be income based. At present, out of pocket, Dr. J pays less than half of what his dentist pays for health insurance.

An interesting thing as well is that the article deceptively describes tiered benefits as not being new. The author sites the GE benefits package. Dr. J cannot speak to the GE benefits package. He can however speak to a large pharmaceutical company’s benefits package (as he was extended an offer of employ from Big Pharma a few years ago). Benefits packages for big corporations are tiered both in costs and in perks. A big wig may have a bigger contribution to his benefits package, but he gets a bigger package. Of course the NYT would give details, as they might undermine the story.

The point is, health care costs are now rising as a consequence of Obamacare. It is not the Republicans’s fault at present, but they better do what they can moving forward, or we will all be in a pickle, and of course they will be held accountable for the sin of inaction.

Mr. Ryan (R-WI), if you are reading, please take a look at the Mackey plan, or Dr. J’s version. I think it might work.

Best,
Dr. J.
Royal Surgeon

* Dr. J does not consider Mr. Anh Cao (R-La) or Mrs. Olympia “I voted it out of committee” Snowe (R-Me) real Republicans.

Sigh. Better get used to it. The okhrana isn’t even investigating these things for the Czar any more.

The Czar of Muscovy

Божію Поспѣшествующею Милостію Мы, Дима Грозный Императоръ и Самодержецъ Всероссiйскiй, цѣсарь Московскiй. The Czar was born in the steppes of Russia in 1267, and was cheated out of total control of all Russia upon the death of Boris Mikhailovich, who replaced Alexander Yaroslav Nevsky in 1263. However, in 1283, our Czar was passed over due to a clerical error and the rule of all Russia went to his second cousin Daniil (Даниил Александрович), whom Czar still resents. As a half-hearted apology, the Czar was awarded control over Muscovy, inconveniently located 5,000 miles away just outside Chicago. He now spends his time seething about this and writing about other stuff that bothers him.