To that end, on April 26, 2010, the President of the European Central Bank, Jean-Cluade Trichet, delivered a speech to the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) called, “Global Government Today.”

Forbes online summarized the Trichet speech to the CFR as follows: “The President of the European Central Bank, Jean-Claude Trichet, told Forbes that global governance is extremely necessary if we want to prevent another financial crisis.”

Robert Rubin, Chairman of the CFR, signaled his support and that of the CFR for global government by responding to Trichet as follows: “Jean Claude, you were terrific.”

By his remarks, Trichet, was reinforcing the position of European Union President, Herman Von Rompuy, who recently announced: “2009 is also the first year of global governance.”

The primary institution of global governance, according to Trichet, will be the Global Economy Meeting (GEM) held in Basel, Switzerland. Trichet explained that this body, with its agreements, “has become the prime group for global governance among central banks.” GEM is a committee of the Bank for International Settlements, a non-governmental organization controlled by none other than the large banks of the world.

The UN’s World Bank President and CFR member, Robert Zoellick, explained how this will happen. Said Zoellick: “If leaders are serious about creating new global responsibilities or governance, let them start by modernising multilateralism to empower the WTO, the IMF, and the World Bank Group to monitor national policies.” That means that the big banks—which Trichet referred to as a parallel government—will give global institutions the power to regulate national policy.

Doing so creates a global government.

If global government becomes a reality, the United States will no longer be a free and independent nation but will rather be under the control of the global government body.

Last fall’s environmental conference in Copenhagen was intended to establish global control of energy, and now the World Health Organization has called for the power to collect taxes to support its efforts.

International agencies that collect taxes, other international agencies that control energy—these are additional components of global government. The rush is on big time, and most Americans, including most lawmakers, have no idea about what is happening.

In addition the International Education program known as International Baccalaureate (IB), which is sponsored and controlled by UNESCO (a branch of the UN), is now taught in over 800 U.S. schools, and is subsidized by state and federal tax dollars. In a various articles I have pointed out that IB is the prototype of global education—being developed and tested right here in the United States—another key component of global government.

On top of all this, state lawmakers are eagerly trying to qualify for “Race To The Top”—the federal education program which has states writing curriculum standards that conform to “international standards.” Translate “international standards” to mean UNESCO curriculum standards.

The tentacles of global government are penetrating our nation from all sides—and by his intention to sign the proposed environmental accord at Copenhagen, President Obama has made it clear that he enthusiastically supports global government. We need to seriously ask if we as a nation have either the will, or the means, to stop it.

It’s ba-ack! Health-care plan redoubles ‘marriage penalty’

Congressional proposals could penalize couples $10,000 for saying ‘I do’

By Bob Unruh
© 2010 WorldNetDaily

Bills pending in Congress that would nationalize health care by setting up mandatory insurance purchases and fines for not complying could penalize married couples $10,000 annually and are a direct attack on marriage, families and the church because of their discriminatory provisions, according to a congressional candidate.

“This is as awful, I will say evil … this is as evil as it gets,” Allen Quist, who is running to unseat Democrat Tim Walz in Minnesota’s 1st congressional district, told WND.

Quist said the fine print of provisions still alive in both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives deliberately create enormous pressure for couples to live together without marriage – or even get divorced – by charging married couples thousands of dollars more in premiums and fees.

“And it’s deliberate,” Quist added, “This is clearly not accidental.”

Continue reading at WorldNetDaily.com

As I have pointed out, however, the marriage penalty becomes far more serious for individuals making over 400% of the Poverty Level. For two married people, that is expected to be $64,000 per year in combined income, $32.000 each. Two married people at that income level should be ready to pay over $9,000 more in health insurance premiums than they would if they were unmarried.*

This huge marriage penalty occurs because the bills cap premiums and provide subsidies only for those making less than 400% of the Federal Poverty Level. Two married people will leave this subsidized system when their combined income reaches approximately $64.000 by 2016. The same couple, however, if unmarried, won’t be off the subsidized system until their combined income approaches $100,000—a window of over $35,000 where people will pay more than $9,000 additional for their health insurance if they marry.

This discriminatory system will have a big impact on people at lower income levels, too. They will realize that if they marry and improve their earnings, they may reach a point where their health insurance premiums will skyrocket, increasing by over $9,000 a year. Only half of those insurance premiums will be tax deductible. This huge added cost, real or potential, will provide a powerful incentive to not marry.

The marriage penalty will also be devastating for married persons now receiving health insurance from their employer, should that insurance be discontinued. Once such persons are on the individual insurance market, they will receive a portion of their former health insurance benefits only if their combined income is below 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. For this reason millions of couples are likely to see their insurance costs go up by that same $9,000 plus figure—if they stay married—a cost many of them will avoid if they divorce.

Under the new system, whether people are single or married, it will additionally be difficult to rise above 400% of the Poverty Level because of the major increases in health insurance premiums people will then be required to pay.

____________________
*(Analysis by Congressman Dave Camp, House Ways & Means Committee, The Prescription Pad, 12-17-09). This added premium cost of over $9,000 for couples who marry is based on the cheapest insurance available.

Quist emphasized that our goal should be for every United States citizen to have the opportunity for the highest quality health care possible at an affordable cost.  He said, “The best way to improve our health care is by genuine reform of our present system; not by a radical shift to a government-run program.”

Quist said he agrees with Representative Collin Peterson who described the bills now under consideration in Congress as follows: “This is ideology run amuck.” And as Peterson also said, “I have so many problems with this [House] bill I don’t even know where to start.” [http://minnesota.publicradio.org]

According to Quist, “There are only two ways to allocate available resources—consumer choice or government dictates. These bills transform health care in our nation from being primarily a system of consumer choice to being one of government dictates.” “A system of government mandates,” said Quist, “won’t work over the long haul and is out of place in a free society.”

Quist stated that the bills are not about controlling costs. He noted that, “Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has admitted that putting reasonable limits on malpractice lawsuits would save $53 billion each year—over half a trillion dollars over ten years.” “If this was about controlling costs,” Quist said, “we would start by enacting real reforms concerning these lawsuits. The fact that this matter (tort reform) is off the table clarifies that the real purpose of the bills lies elsewhere.”

Quist said that the House bill’s $1.trillion cost estimate by the Congressional Budget Office over the next ten years is another major concern. Quist noted that this is a trillion dollars in addition to the half trillion dollars we are not saving by ignoring the medical malpractice problem. Quist said, “To paraphrase Everett Dirksen, a trillion here and a trillion there, and after a while it adds up to real money.”

Quist said that the real driving force behind these bills is ideology. “Congress is run,” said Quist, “by people who believe that problems are best solved by the federal government taking over.” Quist added, “Look at what has been happening overall: 1) problems in the auto industry are dealt with by the federal government taking over automobile companies, 2) problems in the banking industry are managed by the federal government taking over banks, and 3) here we go again—problems in the health care system are addressed by the federal government taking over the Health care industry.” “Do we see a pattern here?” asked Quist. “This is all about liberal ideology,” said Quist.

Quist said that at the forums he will outline a number of free market proposals for health care reform which he believes are superior to a government-run system.

Forum Schedule:

• Monday, Nov. 9th
  Rochester Ramada Inn – 7:00 PM
• Tuesday, Nov. 10th
  Mankato Happy Chef – 12:00 Noon
• Tuesday, Nov. 10th
  Worthington Pizza Ranch – 6:00 PM

The public is invited on a first come-first served basis.

I begin with a conversation I had recently with my son in-law who runs an automobile repair shop north of Grand Marais, near the Canadian border. I asked him if he had ever repaired cars owned by Canadians who were coming here for medical care. He said, yes he had. He also said it was not that unusual. I then asked if he ever repaired cars owned by U.S. citizens who were traveling to Canada for medical care? He replied, “Are you kidding? Why would anyone do that?”

He was reflecting what we all know—that Canadians come here for health care because we have more to offer. Why should we make radical changes to our system only to move to something that is decidedly inferior?

The answer to that question lies in statements by the President’s Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, who has said, “Never let a crisis to go to waste.” And:  “They [crises] are opportunities to do big things.” That means “big things” in the mind of Rahm Emanuel, of course.

It follows that the health care bill is also about “big things,” big ideas–the ideas of Rahm Emanuel and those who think like him. One of the most important “big things” for Rahm Emanuel is government-run health care. The bill in Congress is not about “reform.” It’s all about the federal government running things at the expense of our freedom.

For example, you now can decide if you want to buy health insurance or not. It’s a free country. It’s up to you. But under this bill, that freedom is gone. By law you must have insurance, and if you don’t, you will be fined and can even be put in prison. Your freedom to make that decision is gone.

Let’s go to a second example: You now can decide which insurance company to do business with.  Under this bill, that freedom becomes an illusion—the reason being that all insurance companies are forced to join the “Health Insurance Exchange” where they will essentially be run by the government.  You can choose the company, but in reality it doesn’t matter because all the choices are the same.

A third example—you can now decide what medical treatment is right for you. It is a free country—you decide. The Pelosi bill, in contrast, creates what it calls the “Medical Benefits Advisory Committee.” We will just call it “the Committee.”  The Committee will decide the parameters, the limitations, within which you can make your decisions.

Notice what has just happened—in a free country we the people put limitations on the government. That is what we mean by “limited government.”  That is the purpose of our Constitution.  But in the Pelosi bill, the government puts limits on us. We have crossed the Rubicon. We have been changed, transformed, from a nation of limited government to a nation of limited people. That’s what this bill is all about.

What to do? Congresswoman Michele Bachmann of Minnesota’s 6th district is asking those who can to come to the front steps of the nation’s Capitol on Thursday, 12:00  noon, for a press conference on this bill. I will be there. If at all possible, you need to be there, too. We need to demonstrate by our being there that this bill is absolutely not acceptable in our free land.

If you can’t be there, you need to be calling and writing your senators and representatives in Washington. Find out who the good ones are and who the bad ones are. Get on the case of the bad ones. Call and write them not just once, but repeatedly until they come to their senses and agree to vote ”no.” It was Everett Dirksen who said, “The more I feel the heat, the better I see the light.” We have way too many Senators and Representatives who need to feel that heat.

Every generation in our country has fought the fight for freedom. For George Washington it was the War for Independence; for Abraham Lincoln it was the Civil War; for Ronald Reagan it was the Cold War. And for us—it it this war, it’s the battle against the Nanny State, the battle to remain a nation where we are free indeed. This is our fight, this is our time. Let us not shrink from the task. Let us leave to our children a nation of people who are still free.

The American Dream consists of liberty and opportunity. Liberty means the freedom of self-government and the freedom to conduct our lives as we see fit. Opportunity is being able to pursue our goals in life without undue restrictions. It means being able to improve our station in life through our own initiative and hard work.

Sadly, the American Dream is now being undermined. The health care proposal (HR3200) now in Congress—which amounts to a government takeover of the health care industry—means that patients and their families, in consultation with their doctors, will no longer be able to make important health care decisions. Under this proposal those decisions will be made by bureaucrats in Washington. This new system requires a serious loss of freedom as well as a loss of the quality of health care we can receive

The estimated cost for this health care proposal is $1 trillion over the next ten years–$13,000 for every family of four in our nation. This will be our cost for our own loss of freedom as well as for a reduction in the quality of our health care.

Health care is really a state issue. Congressional leaders are making it a federal issue because they are hungry for power. They think they can run our lives better than we can.

The American Dream is also being compromised by Congress through excessive government spending resulting in unsustainable government debt. The $787 billion stimulus package alone—one bill—passed into law in February of 2009, added $10,000 of new government debt for every family of four in America. As Milton Friedman often said, ‘There is no such thing as a free lunch.’ At some point this debt must be repaid.

Then there is the $1.4 trillion deficit for fiscal year 2009. That amounts to $18,500 of new debt for every family of four—in just one year! In addition, those in power in Washington are planning to add $1 trillion in debt each year for the next ten years with no end in sight. That totals $130,000 over the next ten years of new debt for every family of four—added on top of the huge debt our nation already has. This debt will bankrupt our nation! Congress has clearly lost its way.

On top of all this, the House of Representatives, in July of 2009, passed the infamous Cap and Trade bill. The Heritage Foundation estimated that this bill, when fully implemented, will cost each family of four $6,800 each year in higher energy and related costs. And how will we benefit from this new mandated expense? The results will be too small to even measure! Meanwhile, China, a country that is not this foolish, is positioning itself to overtake our nation as being the new economic super-power of the World.

It should be obvious to most anyone that the bills now being passed by Congress will do immeasurable harm to our nation and to every citizen in our nation. Because of the direction Congress has taken, we are losing the American Dream.

All of us need to do our part to turn this around. Every generation of Americans, in some way, has had to fight the fight for freedom. This is our fight. This is our time. Join with us in this all-important battle to restore what America is really all about. Join with us in restoring the American Dream.