Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Welcome to the Machine


It starts out small, a little relinquishing of responsibility here, the easy way out there and soon the machine begins to grow.  It takes on a life of its own, feeding on the selfish nature of humans.  Every time we give up our responsibilities for the sake of an easier, more convenient life, we feed the Machine that threatens to engulf our life, our liberty and our pursuit of happiness.

I recently came across an article about a mother fighting for the right not to have her child immunized.  She happens to live in a state that requires immunizations for entrance into school.  The girl suffered significant ill effects from her first round of immunization and her mother is more than a little reluctant to subject her to further immunizations.  However, because state laws requires immunization before entrance to school is allowed, this mother's child has been denied access to a state education.

Although some may find this outrageous, I see this as a logical outcome of relinquished responsibility.  Any time we give our authority to others we also give up our right to choose. The mother in the article gave the authority to educate her daughter to the state, and in doing so she gave up her right to choose what she thought was best.  She presented her child to the Machine and the Machine chose.

And as we feed the Machine, it will continue to grow and consume.  When we rely on the State to provide our health care, the State will, in turn, tell us what we can and can't do.  The State will tell us what we can eat.  The State will tell us what tests we are allowed and what treatments we are eligible for.  They will tell us when we are too old to receive health care and when we are too disabled to bother with.  And we will have no choice, because we sold our souls to the Machine.  When we rely on the Machine to pay our way, we give the Machine the right to choose for us.



It has already begun.  When we began third-party pay through insurance companies, we lost our right to choose our treatments.  Our insurance company must be notified of any procedure and decide whether to allow it or not.  They choose what doctors are available to treat us and how long we are allowed to stay in the hospital.  And all because we relinquished our responsibility to pay for our own health care.

I can hear it already.  "We pay taxes so that our children can be educated!" and "I PAY for insurance - what are you talking about third-party pay!"  But the reality is we have given our responsibility to another.  Paying taxes to the Machine does not imply being an active member of your child's education.  You are paying someone else to educate your progeny.  And the system you have chosen to educate your child has absolutely no accountability to you.  They choose the curriculum.  They choose the teachers.  They choose to introduce your child to "alternative" lifestyles. And they choose whether you child must be immunized or not.

The more we relinquish our responsibilities to the State the more we feed the Machine.  And the more we feed the Machine the more it will require to maintain itself.  The only way to disable the Machine is not to feed it.  In order not to feed it, we have to not expect anything from it.  We have to rely on ourselves, our families and our churches.  People still have souls, the Machine does not.

Call me an idealist, but the truth of the matter is that I still believe in life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  And I believe that comes from inside of us. Through faith in God.  Through hope and hard work.  My life, my liberty and my happiness does not come from the Machine.

Unless we change our direction, we will all be saying Welcome to the Machine.

"Welcome my son, welcome to the machine"
Pink Floyd

23 comments:

  1. Excellent!!! Once again, you have spoken the truth with kindness! LOVE IT!--S

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  2. Excellent thoughts... I wonder how much time you spend finding such great images that always go with what you're saying? What are some of your favorite artists? So many of the images you choose (today excepted, of course) are so softly painted and family-oriented. It's always a joy to ponder them. (been enjoying Scarlet Thread, although the spelling makes it harder than it should be)

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  3. A very wise man (my pops) told me loooooooong ago, "Participation equals subjugation"....something to think about.

    Preppin' Mama.

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  4. I agree with your analysis, but it's a question of "who will bell the cat?" I don't think I should be paying taxes to support policies I disagree with, but how do I avoid it? A Ghandian response of simply refusing will wind me up in jail with my land confiscated. I did home school my kids, although my wife and I were teaching in public schools at the time. Unfortunately, though they got a better education, it was harder on them in terms of lacking a "piece of paper" from the local high school. The system is set up to reinforce compliance, and nonconformists are penalized at every step in the road. I know there's a problem, but I don't see the solution.

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  5. The child will be much better off not being in the gov. school anyway. I know thats not a popular opinion, but its honest.

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  6. Enola, right on target...as always.

    Preppin' Mama, I hear you loud and clear. To put a different spin onto the manta of the hippies: turn off, tune out, drop off. Don't play the Machine's game. Be self-reliant and pay in cash. The less the Machine knows about each of us, the better off we will all be.

    You don't have to march in the streets with pitchforks in order to send a message to the Machine. All you have to do is refuse to accept the "free" lunch it offers. Just say NO!
    Stand up! Speak out! Keep your freedom!

    NoCal Gal

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  7. Just as we've become enslaved to taxation and insurance and garnishments of the multi-levels of government that just slowly piled up, one by one over the last century, WE THE PEOPLE must slowly over time dismantle the auto-feed response mechanism of the system by NOT supporting it.

    Barter or negotiate a reduced fee cash price for your healthcare with your choice of local health practitioner and dental provider.
    Hospitals will accept this negotiation as well.
    Do your homework first, and make an offer.
    Pay for your items and services with cash.
    Better yet, start using your resources and talents to procure what you need in exchange for your excess
    production. Not producing more than you need yourself? Then start to do so. Sell the excess.

    Create your own Galt's Gultch. For more tips on how to pull back on the reins of your machine eating contributions, websearch: Who is John Galt?

    P.S. mama4x, I don't think you'd be spelling clearly either if you were pulling 16 hour work shifts without air conditioning, and very little sleep.


    Notutopia

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  8. I agree with you. I do. We live as simply as we can and as self sustaining as we can. We take it very seriously. But, we do have health insurance. And believe me, I am intimately acquainted with how an insurance company can act like a big butt. But we also have a child that absolutely has to have a medication that costs $1,200.00 per month. Without our insurance, we could not provide that medication and also provide for all of our other needs. What are your thoughts on situations such as ours? I'm honestly asking out of curiosity, no insult intended. I read and agree with your writings here on this blog so the question is coming from someone who is very similarly minded to you.

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  9. Backwoods Woman, if you don't mind...I'll tell you about my own situation and give you my suggestions.

    I have rheumatoid arthritis. I take 3 prescription meds for it and 2 OTC meds. One of those Rx can cost as much as $120.00/month - just one. But I made a few phone calls and then negotiated a much lower price with the pharmacy at my local grocery store. That med now costs me 40.00/mo.

    My point is this, there is a huge markup in prescription drug prices and in name brand prices. There is also a great discrepancy in prices between different pharmacies. Shop around. Plus, the pharmacies, doctors, and laboratories are all linked and they all share the bounty when a person uses insurance.

    Insurance premiums will be rising - they have to. Between the government trying to squeeze them out of business and all the disasters this country has suffered this year, the insurance companies will have to raise their prices. So it is time to shop around now and find alternative sources for that important medication for your precious child. It takes more effort, but it will be worth it in the longterm.

    Good luck.

    NoCal Gal

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  10. Mama4x - I look all over the net to find pictures to put on the blog. Sometimes I find just the right one and other times they just have to do. I love the soft, romantic portrayals of family. They speak to my heart. Yes, Maid Elizabeth has always struggled with spelling, however, I have encouraged her to write anyway. She is a voracious reader, but interestingly that didn't translate to her spelling ability. She continues to work on her weak areas, but I believe that what she has to say is worth reading.

    NoCal Gal and Notutopia - As always, both of you are right on top of the situation. You are looking to make things right, not just complain about them. I admire both of you tremendously. You give me something to aspire to.

    Backwoods Woman - I am not the least bit insulted. You have the very questions that I have. The unfortunate truth is that at this point it is almost impossible to disentangle ourselves. We too have insurance. It isn't an option. I wish there was a better way. It would take the collective saying "No More", and I just don't think that is highly likely. Keep the faith.

    Enola

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  11. BackwoodsWoman,
    Not knowing what med your child is taking, I will assume from the cost, that it is made in limited supply.
    Even so, you may want to try this approach. It has worked for many others who were prescribed exorbitantly priced drugs on restrictive budgets.

    Look on the bottle and seek the Pharmaceutical Company that is the actual maker. If that drug is being re-bottled by your pharmacist and there is no name on the vial, then do a web search to find out the maker from the Trade name.

    Call your local hospital or physician that you frequent and inquire as to Whom is that specific maker's regional drug representative and get their work phone number. Preferably mobile number if they have it. Call the rep. and be prepared to explain your financial restrictions due to the cost of this medicine.
    Ask if you are eligible for any stipend support from the drug company if you were to pay for this drug in cash at a negotiated cost. Once the rep lets you know if there is a discounted cost possible, start from that quote, or Offer half of what you're currently paying for the medicine.
    Many times if you let them know how pleased you are with the product, they will
    go to bat for you. Remember, It all depends on what they have in regional stock, and that rep will know better than anyone else.
    Many times the distributor is given incentive samples for MD office dispensing, that need to be used soon and they will give them to you gratis, but you must ask.
    If you are fortunate to have been given a discount, Be prepared to have to pick these meds up at your Doctor's office. Not at a pharmacy. So have that info available, such as your prescribing MD name, address, and their phone number.

    Good Luck and God Bless.

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  12. I guess with most of the serious childhood diseases eradicated thanks to vaccines it seems inevitable that through ignorance or misinformation people would choose to forgo vaccination. 100 years ago 5 out of 10 children died before age 5 and 4 out of the remaining 5 died before age 21. Most of these deaths were the result of common childhood illnesses that we vaccinate children for today. It is ironic that vaccinophobia could only exist in a society protected by an effective vaccination policy

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  13. Gee anonymous at 8:48pm, so 100% died by age 21? Why are we still here? Yes, the childhood illnesses are mostly eradicated due to the vaccines, however, we have a whole new slew of diseases with long term effects and health care costs caused by the same vaccines. Causing another disease/condition to prevent a different one is not the answer. When it comes to vaccines and many so-called drug treatments, the medical community ignores their Hippocratic oath of first, do no harm. Most mainstream medical treatments do not address the cause of a disease process, they only cover it up by treating the symptoms and in the process, cause more problems, aka side-effects. Because as a society, we are so set on treating symptoms (and this is where the money making is), real research into why we have the symptoms, and how to take care of the cause of the symptoms, is ignored.

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  14. NoCal Gal,

    I, too, have RA. Have you been successful in creating any stockpile of medications in case of short/longterm disruptions? I am very concerned about this, and would welcome any suggestions you might have.

    Thank you!

    Amy

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  15. Not ALL in the medical community ignore their Hippocratic oath. I believe you are referring to Federal and State and Community Public Health mandates on the issue of mass population vaccination protocols.

    Due to the insemination by Government, of more and more mandates, and the conversions
    of private choice healthcare into public and governmental systems, and the mandating of the
    National Healthcare System, (Obamacare), your right to making choices will be narrowed even further, and not choice enhancement as they would like you to believe.
    The new system dictates what healthcare protocol standards of care, MUST be adhered to,
    whether a providing Healthcare Professional objects or not. This is another casualty of this
    new healthcare system.
    I would not be surprised at all to see that it will become mandatory that ALL participants of this system will be required to receive vaccinations.
    The negative consequences to Physicians, is that if they do not comply with the
    Health care Administrations regulations, then they
    DO NOT get paid for their services rendered to any patient who is covered by the government payment providers.

    Don't you see that this all started many years ago, with Clinton's Health Care Reform. Since then, Physician's are at the mercy of the Health Care Administration, no matter how much they lobby Congress and fight to reject these mandates. Too Many are leaving the Medical Field altogether as a result of this intrusion in their ability to practice. Others have gone to a solely private practice accepting payment by cash. Even the insurance companies are subject to mandates, and this severely affect one's choices in a Medical practice.

    The core issue here is does the citizen and the state they live in, have the right to chose.
    That is the issue that needs to be argued with the government machine and studied and won.

    On the issue of infectious diseases, here is a very informative presentation to understand more on how
    the Cycle of an Infectious Disease impacts man.

    Understanding Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases
    http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih1/diseases/guide/understanding1.htm

    and here is a course study on Infectious disease Cycles
    http://www.veomed.com/va030728952010

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  16. Sorry to go off-topic for a moment, but I'd like to address Amy for a moment.

    Amy, I have stock-piled my Rx meds little by little. I refill my prescriptions as soon as I can and then set aside about 1/3 of those refills each time I do. I now have about 2 months' worth of meds in my bugout bag. I have tried the homeopathic "remedies" with no success whatsoever, so am striving to amass more Rx meds. As a backup, I'm also buying OTC NSAIDS.

    Frankly, I have no illusions about what will happen to me when I can no longer get my prescriptions filled. To that end, I am making my house as wheelchair friendly as possible. Thankfully, the house is one level - no stairs.
    What are your plans?

    Amy, keep the faith,and plan now for the worst while praying for the best. Good luck to you.

    NoCal Gal

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  17. anon 6:27; What diseases do vaccines cause? And pleeeze don't say Autism! The simple fact is we who live in the 1st world (North America, most of Europe, Japan and Australia) have the best health care and the best health in history. Most people in these countries live on average twice as long as the people in 3rd world countries. For the most part we die of "old age". But dying of old age isn't pretty; the top three causes of death are heart disease, cancer and stroke. These diseases are not common in 3rd world countries where most people don't make it to old age. So some of the statistically challenged who fail to understand these simple fact jump to the conclusion that we have an epidemic of heart attacks and cancer. Obviously not understanding what "dying of old age" means. The next conclusion they jump to is "something" caused all this illness. They think it is the food (fast foods, high fructose corn syrup, sugar, meat, processed foods, salt, trans fats, etc.). Others think it is all the man made chemicals. But in fact our life expectancies keep getting longer and our general health gets better as time goes on.

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  18. Well, another State governor has bypassed the Legislators and mandated that ALL girls in TEXAS, no less, must be vaccinated with the STD vaccine.

    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16948093/ns/health-kids_and_parenting/t/texas-governor-orders-std-vaccine-all-gi

    I am all for the vaccine, personally.
    But, This is not the consequential issue again!

    The issue is that the machine keeps making these once very important private decisions.... mandatory.
    We no longer have option of choice.
    They claim to know what is best for our body.

    A bad day against citizen rights.
    A bad move for a Texan "Republic" Governor, but no surprise, as Perry is becoming more social centrist politically every day.

    UGH! No, Triple UGH!

    notutopia

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  19. Hello again, NoCal Gal,

    Apparently, great minds think alike! Like you, I am slowly stocking up on my prescription meds, but I have to do it by skimping on dosages now. I have a little stockpile, which I'm regularly rotating. We are in the process of moving from our two story house to a single level so that as/if I decline, the stairs won't be a difficulty.

    I believe the future for each of us may become relatively grim, but I don't like to contemplate what will become of those of us who are "medically difficult" or expensive to care for. I trust God to care for me as I age, as He has thus far. God bless you!

    Amy

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  20. I'm not sure where my comment went, so I'll reproduce it here . . .

    NoCal Gal, thanks for your quick reply. Apparently, great minds think alike. I have been gradually stockpiling my prescriptions meds, but I have to do it by skimping on dosages, and without the knowledge of my rheumatologist. I am also in the process of moving to a single-level home from our two story. This will make a great difference, I think.

    I believe that the future may be unpleasant for those of us who are "medically difficult" or expensive to care for, but I trust God to care for me, as He always has. God bless you as you collect and rotate your stockpile.

    Amy

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  21. In some ways our state is even worse. Our children are homeschooled and if we have our way they will never see the inside of a public school. However, our state requires our children to be immunized regardless of whether they will attend a public school. I could maybe see upon entrance, requiring it. But come on! The only way we could get out of it is if we give a notarized letter stating that they are against our religion. They are not against our religion, we just think they're dangerous and unneccesary. So what's a person to do?? The machine is much bigger than anyone realizes!!

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  22. Pleeez don't buy into the quack's who pronounce all vaccinations dangerous and unnecessary. These diseases are still around and with tens of thousands of unchecked illegals streaming in from the 3rd world these diseases will all return. If you want to protect your children and yourselves then vaccinate. Please get your medical information from trained medical personal and not opinionated nuts. I am not trying to offend but the anti-vaccination message is dangerous. We in this country live in a dream world of good health and safety and it has lulled us into a belief that nothing bad will happen to us. It can and will. Our incapable government is putting us all at risk with our intentional lack of an immigration policy that makes sense for Americans. Once this "landmine" explodes it will be too late for most to vaccinate to prevent whatever illness goes pandemic. It's just a matter of time and chance.

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  23. Excellent thoughts... I wonder how much time you spend finding such great images that always go with what you're saying?Once again,you have spoken the truth with kindness.

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