The departure of Rush Limbaugh for Costa Rica is now imminent with the passage of the second health care legislation — the so-called fixes of the original bill. Limbaugh threatened earlier that if Congress dared to pass the legislation he would leave for Costa Rica, here. It was an offer that Congress could simply not pass up.
In his prior radio interview, Limbaugh stated to a listener: “I don’t know. I’ll just tell you this, if this passes and it’s five years from now and all that stuff gets implemented — I am leaving the country. I’ll go to Costa Rica.”
Here are the flights this weekend from Florida near his beach home from Expedia:
12:00 pm Depart Miami (MIA)
Arrive San Jose (SJO) 4:55 pm Sat 27-Mar
Duration: 6hr 55mn
American Airlines American Airlines 2189
10:35 am Depart Miami (MIA)
Arrive San Jose (SJO) 4:55 pm Sat 27-Mar
Duration: 8hr 20mn
American Airlines American Airlines 993
LACSA LACSA 692
Connect in Panama City (Tocumen Intl.)
3:10 pm Depart Miami (MIA)
Arrive San Jose (SJO) 4:00 pm Sat 27-Mar
Duration: 2hr 50mn
American Airlines American Airlines 1051
Nonstop flight
As a further assistance to speed his departure, here is all the Spanish he will need on his new Spanish radio program in San Jose, Costa Rica:
Tea bag – bolsita para hacer tĂ©
Socialism – socialismo
Conservative – conservador
Free Market – mercado libre
OxyContin – OxyContin
I think it’s hilarious that you all think we are living in a 1st world economy.
Nuff from me, I’m waaaaaay too cranky….
Duh,
I guess Intrade, like conservation of energy, is something you don’t understand. Intrade is basically a free market bookie that will take bets on anything. People actually buy and sell bets (with real money) and the site figures out the odds based on how people are betting (just like any other bookie). Intrade showing a Democratic victory in the 2012 presidential election trading at 58% means that 58% of the people are betting on a Democrat winning. Since people actually have to put money on it, this makes it better than a poll (especially this far out) and it provides a metric for the odds in question with a well-defined methodology (unlike your psychic).
Byron,
The CBO numbers are what we have – mostly I object to using the CBO numbers when they support an argument and ignoring them when they don’t. There needs to be some sort of ‘canonical’ estimate in order to have a rational debate and I would certainly have no objections to improving the CBO’s methodology.
And for what it’s worth, I think that a 1st world economy is child’s play compared to modeling all the behavior of a single human cell. (Not that either of them are easy…)
Byron,
How can they raise taxes on food? Don’t we have “a right” to food? Shouldn’t there be some public place where we can all just go and pick up some food?
If I don’t have food, I won’t have a need for health care.
This is the problem we have when we start to call everything “a right”.
Companies say health care costs hard to swallow
The health care overhaul will cost U.S. companies billions and make them more likely to drop prescription drug coverage for retirees because of a change in how the government subsidizes those benefits.
In the first two days after the law was signed, three major companies — Deere & Co., Caterpillar Inc. and Valero Energy — said they expect to take a total hit of $265 million to account for smaller tax deductions in the future.
With more than 3,500 companies now getting the tax break as an incentive to keep providing coverage, others are almost certain to announce similar cost increases in the weeks ahead as they sort out the impact of the change.
Figuring out what it will mean for retirees will take longer, but analysts said as many as 2 million could lose the prescription drug coverage provided by their former employers, leaving them to enroll in Medicare’s program.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gmzNv5LYXOA6UM_XmUHdOe9augtQD9ELVL3G1
Byron watch over the next several weeks what the major companies in this country say. The accountants are just reading into what it’s gonna cost them.
Slarti:
The problem with the CBO is, I think, the fact that they do linear analysis. They don’t take into account reduced revenues from higher taxes or regulations. They do not do a dynamic analysis of tax revenue based on government regulations (including tax policy).
It may be noble to have health care for all but it is going to be expensive and we are probably headed for extra taxes, my guess is on consumption and food so that people off the radar have to contribute. Those Value Added Taxes are going to be detrimental to industry. They are going to have to a serious feed back mechanism to be able to be responsive to shifts in consumption.
Good luck with that. You think a cellular mechanism is complex, good luck with an entire 1st world economy.
Slarti,
“does the link you provided not say exactly what I said it did?”
The link DOES NOT say exactly what you said. It’s some kind of goofy price to volume graph, based on an unscientific prediction. It’s not even a poll. It is no more relevant than that of my psychic, or the observed activity of a cockroach.
Wootsy,
In Kansas City they have been force to close down almost half of the schools due to budget shortfalls.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35806883/ns/us_news-education/
It sucks, but what else can they do?
“Two wrongs don’t make it right.”
Methinks we have swung way beyond right and wrong. It’s time to sew some legs back on he body.
Duh said:
“I would have been too embarassed to provide a link too.”
Not embarrassed, just lazy (I’m trying to answer Byron’s post on another thread) – does the link you provided not say exactly what I said it did?
Duh said:
“My psychic says the Democrats don’t stand a chance in 2012.”
That’s just the kind of highly credible, unverifiable source that I expect from you…
And I just saw a cockroach turn to the right as I turned on the light in the furnace room.
With two exremely reliable sources already making the declaration, I don’t think the Democrats should even bother spending the time or money to have a candidate in the race. LOL
Oh I’m cranky now. Here in my neck of the woods Florida they are working on repealing a law that ensured decent teacher/student ratios. The whining (now) is that it is unaffordable. I think it was much more affordable when it was passed. In 2002.
http://cbs4.com/wireapnewsfl/Florida.Senate.approves.2.1588134.html
What good are laws if they are not enforced equally?
What good is a Government that uses the least of those it governs to feed the fattest, most private and non-contributory aspect of the population? If we are headed for some semblance of socialism it is because of this sick dynamic.
Slarti,
http://www.intrade.com/jsp/intrade/common/c_cd.jsp?conDetailID=639648&z=1269717590796
I would have been too embarassed to provide a link too. 🙂
My psychic says the Democrats don’t stand a chance in 2012. 🙂
Duh,
Just go to Intrade and search for ‘2012 US Presidential election’.
all the $$$$ that’s been drained from the public through war, corruption and Corp./Gov. greed over the past 10 years.
Two wrongs don’t make it right.
“Now that we know they used fuzzy math. ”
I am not an economist but I can’t see anything fuzzier than not addressing all the $$$$ that’s been drained from the public through war, corruption and Corp./Gov. greed over the past 10 years. There’s a great big monster out there…denial. It’s idiotic to expect that people will go back to business as usual.
Why should they? We?
Of course there have to be cuts. Nobody has any money any more. Gee, is it just me?
Slarti said “Intrade.com has the odds of re-election (or a democratic victory, anyway) at 58% right now.”
Could you provide a link? I looked but could not find that.
Bdaman said:
“And it was pretty likely no one other than a democrat would win Ted Kennedy’s seat.”
Not really when you consider the ineptitude of his opponent…
I think that it is pretty likely.
And it was pretty likely no one other than a democrat would win Ted Kennedy’s seat.
Bdaman,
I guess you’re scared of my bet… The point is that you should keep an eye on that number (the 10 year CBO projected debt) – if it doesn’t start falling by the end of President Obama’s first term then that is a problem, but to try to cut the deficit now would be insane (if you don’t believe me, look at what happened when FDR tried to cut the deficit during the Great Depression (in 1937, I believe).
Bdaman said:
“And you say less than 10 in 2026. Of course that’s if he gets a second term. Big if Doc.”
I think that it is pretty likely – Intrade.com has the odds of re-election (or a democratic victory, anyway) at 58% right now.
By the way, what actions of Republican lawmakers indicate that giving them power will result in reduced deficits?