Wealthy Senators and the Consequences

Most of us are shocked by the obscene amount of money required to successfully run for elected office now, particularly on the federal level. Hence, more millionaire politicians, from the mayor of NYC to the U.S. Senate. I believe that fact leads to a variety of consequences and one of them especially affects Dave and me.

I really don't like the term senior citizen, probably because I am one, but as a group we seniors are vulnerable to the decisions of these rich pols who don't have a clue how the rest of us live. The decisions that have me riled up at the moment are 1) not to give Social Security recipients a cost of living increase this year because according to the fat cats we don't need it, and 2) now the Senate has decided that President Obama's promise of a $250 check to Social Security recipients this spring to soften the blow would cost too much, and besides of course, we still don't need it.

I would love to see each U.S. senator put on a Social Security budget for one month. Toward the end of that month we would send him/her to fill the gas tank on the old car we drive, then to the drug store to buy normal items like toothpaste, deodorant, maybe a greeting card, a pain reliever, and most important refills for a few prescriptions. Following that, Sen. X would have to go to the grocery store to buy a week's worth of groceries for two people, including non-food but necessary items like laundry detergent, paper products, soap, and perhaps some pet food. Then home to find the mail carrier has brought utility bills for the month. We would then ask them, "How are you going to pay for all this?"

How I would love to be a fly on the wall for that conversation. Maybe I'm wrong, but I believe that once a person rises that high in elective office, he or she is so cushioned from the real world lived by the majority of U.S. citizens, seniors or not, that they are no longer representative of their constituents. Of course those millionaires in office never were.

Out here in reality we are still having a tough time making ends meet. That $250 probably seems like chump change for the members of the U.S. Senate, but to people like us it's a good amount of money that could have been put to very good use - partially paying the bill to heat our homes, for instance.

This and That, Rants and Raves

Whoopee! The government is sending a check for $250 to make up for not giving us a cost of living increase in our Social Security checks this coming year. Ooh boy - how shall I spend it? Since my husband just came out of the coverage gap in the Medicare prescription plan and I won't come out of it before the end of the year, it's already spent thank you very much. I know the old saying that getting old isn't for sissies, but now that prescription drug costs are so high and continually climbing, that's even more true.

Oh well, we're enjoying nice fall weather (the leaves are all on the ground now), it's football season, and college basketball games will start next month. What more could I ask?

My current pet peeve, meanwhile, is an ad showing how Onstar can stop a stolen car once the police have identified it. In the commercial the car pulls onto the side of the road and comes gently to a stop. My vision is of a guy who has stolen a car racing down the highway with the police in pursuit. Suddenly Onstar cuts the power to the car and he loses control causing a multicar collision in which many people die. No thanks, I'm not interested.

One more bit that I absolutely must mention is a move in an NFL game yesterday that outraged me but didn't seem to bother the network guys at all. One of the Vikings was returning a kickoff for a touchdown. Great play for him, wonderful for the Vikings. Meanwhile, a Viking player who was guarding him came upon a line judge who was trying to get out of the way but just wasn't quick enough. The Viking hit him, hard, as though he were a player with pads and a helmet. The poor man lay on the ground for a while, during which time everyone celebrated the big return. The official finally was walked off the field and never returned.

There was no excuse for such a hit - no Steelers nearby, plenty of room to go around the official. The player wasn't even penalized for the hit as far as I could tell and I am really furious. I love football but there are definitely some things that could stand correcting in the sport, and that's one of them.

No Social Security Raises for Two Years?

So there will be no cost of living raises in Social Security payments for the next two years. Well, that's just great. Go ahead, kick us while we're down, won't you?

"They" say we won't need it. For those of us on the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan that just ain't so. My husband and I both fall into the infamous "donut hole" by midsummer. Then we pay 100% of the bill until January. Don't try to tell us the meds we need to keep going don't cost more every year. That premium will go up too, the amount deducted from our Social Security checks, a double whammy.

Every time I see a full page ad or a TV commercial for Spiriva or Advair, for instance, I feel like I'm paying for it. (We have a friend who works for a pharmaceutical company who tells me they NEED those ads. We've agreed to disagree.) All we can do is wait for a generic version to come out. How long do those patents last anyhow? Meanwhile, if I want to breathe, I'm stuck paying for these brand names.

Apparently "they" haven't been grocery shopping in years either. My grocery bill gets higher and higher but I get less and less for my money. Even the soap we bought for 40+ years is so scooped out, we've switched brands in disgust. Quality of name brand products used to keep me loyal, but quality went the way of quantity so I buy store brand now. I won't even get into the pathetic quality of the "fresh" produce in the supermarket. Thankfully at this time of the year we can buy from a farm stand.

Do "they" buy auto, homeowners, and life insurance? Even here in a rural area our premiums are terrible. And don't get my husband going on taxes - school and real estate taxes, state taxes, federal taxes all beat us down. Still our taxes are lower than friends 20 miles away in NY state pay.

Well, "they" say not to worry, we'll get along just fine. Sure thing - just try living my life for a while.