Can you believe that this is the post this past week that got the most comments, Lynn? Guess they were a lot of disenchanted voters from the great Chocolate DoNought Interest Group that needed to vent. (they are known to cause a little indigestion, aren't they?) LOL!

Sadly, you are mistaken. The tea party is exactly what the country was founded on. The original government was small and took care of the critical feature of society, public safety. But the definition of public safety has grown into a monster that says that only the government can take care of us. They are sorely mistaken.

As far as racism is concerned, all people fundamentally judge and compare other races at some level, as well as each other in their own race, and with the exception of the extremes like the black panthers and the kkk, we are doing OK but can do better.

The real point of the Tea Party is to reduce government and taxes and create supportive communities that help each other, not taxed silly and redistributed as the government programs see fit. The other key issue is the fact that there is a growing number that use the system and are rewarded for producing nothing of value. We have begun to take away rewards for those that succeed, because we don't want to hurt someone's feelings. This is sad, and I can only hope we can turn it around so the next few generations are as good as our first 200 years. Wake up America, strive to be the best, help each other as needed and don't wait for a handout.

I'm from Canada and our taxes are fairly high but I like the fact that seniors, children and the disabled are taken care of so I don't mind contributing to that. Sure there are some able bodied people sitting at home waiting for the cheque in the mail but that's something we have to live with in order to ensure that our fellow Canadians who otherwise couldn't survive without help get it. I also like the fact that everyone is covered for health insurance and that our roads and bridges are tended to regularly. Health care should not be "for profit" IMO. I know some people can't bear the thought of paying taxes if someone else who doesn't pay taxes benefits from it but we're all in this together.

LOL at the tea party wants to shrink government, you baggers do know that the taxpayer pays haliburton to do private stuff. redistibuting the money from taxes is what the government does, IF you think you can "protect" you land by yourself you are insane. IF you think you can put out a large fire by yourself you are insane. What the tea party favors is what they are spoon fed by ALEC and others

Our seniors, children, and disaabled are taking care of in our wide social welfare net too. And while we have some headed to Canada to get their presciption drugs (less now that Medicare Part D went through under George Bush). And those higher cost we experience for our Prescription Drugs is due to the fact that here is where the private for profit drug companies get reimbursed for the costs of developing their new products.

Last I looked, we also have many Canadians coming here for medical care, especially surgical care, some on private supplemental insurance plans made necessary by the delay in receiving treatment under your overstretched public universal payer system. Just as we have a flood of legal and illegal immigrants streaming into our country seeking economic opportunity, but also access to the social safety network we have established, including a system of hospitals and clinics that turn no one down for medical care.

As a Canadian ,who also worked for parts of 7 years in the US of the 35 years that I worked for a Canadian multinational corporation, I can second pretty much all of what Sandra says. Having used both Canadian single payer health care and American insurance-run health care, American insurance-run health care doesn't measure up to Canadian health care in any way. In access, quality, and medical outcomes, Canadian health care is much better than anything I saw and dealt with in the 3 states in which I worked in the United States.

Polls show that:

• 91% of Canadians and 45% of Americans think that Canadian health care is better than American insurance-run health care.
• Only 3% of Canadians and 42% of Americans think that American insurance-run health care is better than Canadian health care.
• The remaining 6% of Canadians and 13% of Americans think they don't have enough information to choose.

About the only thing I might differ with Sandra about is about people sitting home waiting for cheques. I suggest that those who do without valid reason are few and far between. For example, I sit home ..... because I'm retired and collect my company pension, Canada Pension, and Old Age Security cheques, but I worked 35 years with one company, about 45 years in all (some in high school and at university) to EARN that.

Paying for health care by taxation probably sound alien to Americans, but it provides health care twice as good as most Americans have now, at half the cost (1.3% overhead and no profit instead of 55% overhead - including added overhead by insurance companies, overhead added to physician bills to deal with insurance companies and overhead added to hospitals to deal with insurance companies -none of which occur with single payer ) , but if Americans knew the real truth (not the distortions and propaganda that Americans "know" about Canadian health care, they would likely chose single payer over insurance run health care in a heartbeat as we Canadians did in 1966.

Hey Keith, about 40 or more times more Americans come to Canada to get the health care they're denied in the United States than there are Canadians going to the US.

Americans thinking that any number of Canadians go to the US for medical care is a crock .... of propaganda and basically false.

Canadians with serious illnesses (except fewer than you can count on one hand - BY CHOICE, not necessity) get all of their medical care in Canada and would not go to the United States in any circumstances, no matter how seriously ill they are.

99% of Canadians that Americans can point to who supposedly went to the US for treatment, either the people are made up, or their stories are made up, bribed by American insurance companies to exaqgerate, if not outright lie (as Shona Holmes did - claiming that the non life threatening benign cyst that she had was a "brain tumour" -and the fact is that she had to wait longer at the Mayo Clinic than she could have had surgery in Ontario, despite her lies .... and gullible Americans like Keith buy into all the lies and propaganda).

I can walk thorough the waiting room for admitting at the hospital here - Canadian hospital, and 1 in 5 waiting to be admitted have an American flag and an American address on their luggage.

The few American hospitals which claim that any Canadians going there have at most 60 a year, 5 a month, and most have absolutely none, whereas many Canadian hospitals have 10 to 15 Americans admitted a day, 365 days a year.

I buy meds from Canada, as they are affordable via mail, and not afforable via Medicare

When Big Pharma approached the Canadian federal government begging for longer patents (to keep generics off the market longer) the federal government made them as deal (which they jumped at) longer patents in exchange for negotiated prices.

My prescriptions cost me $135.60 a month in Canada. I checked with Walgreens in the US just as a estimate for information, and the exact same prescriptions there would cost me $860 a month in the US.

What is so frustrating is to watch people defend paying the 860$ and trash the country that pays 135.60. The tea party seems to always hate what the favor, dislike what they like, defend those they disagree with, argue and make fun of those they agree with, and so on...

To a large part the American insurance industry funded anti-Canadian health care campaign of misinformation, distortion, and lies mostly dates back to the beginning of the recent American perception need for massive health care reform and the possibility (which Obama wrote off to begin with) that the American health insurance industry would be eliminated and replaced by a single payer system as we have in Canada, and the American insurance industry had to pay for a massive disinformation campaign against anything Canadian.

Meanwhile, Canadians have feared the American insurance-run health care system for decades. Despite the disinformation and lies that Canadians are "streaming" across the border for American health care, the actual fact is, not only are Canadians not "streaming" across the border for American health care, Americans are actually literally streaming across the border for Canadian health care, and have been for at least four decades. Only recently, the last 3 or 4 years, have American been deceived into fearing Canadian health care, Canadians have justifiedly feared American health care for decades, as American started streaming into Canada for health care around 1975.

After a couple of tries in each of the 3 states in which I worked, each time, based on my experience with American health care, I made the decision to go back to Canada for health care rather than to risk my life with American health care. I was not alone. I had about 100 other Canadians working with me in the US, and every single one of them made the same decision as I did, to go back to Canada for all health care, rather than risk inferior American health care any longer. We went to lawyer (all 100 or so of us) and filed legal papers which instructed the company that, should we become ill or injured at work, if they failed to send us back to Canada for medical treatment, that we would file a law suit against any American physician who even set a finger let on us, and a law suit against any American hospital we might have been sent to. To a person, we totally rejected American heath care in favour of Canadian health care while we were working in the United States.

Since then, and after we retired, many of us have had serious conditions, (some cancer requiring surgery and chemo etc, some heart disease requiring bypass surgery, as well as many chronic conditions) and to a person, we still get our medical treatment exclusively in Canada and still outright reject the American health care system as inferior to what we have in Canada.

I wonder what Michelle would say or do to panty wearing Barrack if he wanted that "chocolate goodie", that pussy whipped sorry excuse of a head of household, Gladys! LOL!

Say Keith that is funny, since no American is overweight Michelle Obama is just trying to control you.

Keith What does the President and his wife have to do with Romney visiting his constituents and then insulting those very constituents? This has nothing to do with food but insulting the very people you want to vote for you is another matter. But that is the way it is isn't it Keith? Talk to people any type of way and then expect them to kiss your a$$ because you feel you are the best thing since sliced bread. Keith you missed the point. There you are talking about food and it was not about food but respecting people and this lady was letting this clown Romney use her place of business and they left the place in a mess.

Oh...and I thought it was supposed to be about the "chocolate goodie". BTW, were the bills paid by the Romney staffers, or was he expectred to wash the dishes in payment for eating there.

Would like to know her politics before she agreed to have her restaurant serve as a campaign site. Or did the commercial windfull she was expecting sway her decision there, Gladys! As to the 7-11 Cookes, well, the local bakery didn't get their commercial out of it as hoped, so that's the way the cookie crumbles sometimes.

I think the who thing is laughable....extremely laughable is the people that take this seriously. And that would be you, Galdys! LOL!

Keith,

While a more in depth discussion of cream filled pastries, muffins, and handcuffs is tempting - let me comment on the US/Canadian drug costs topic from one of your above posts. An additional reason for American companies to sell their products at lower costs in other countries has to do with marketing strategy. Obviously, research and development of any new drug is quite expensive - a company will only take the risk (failure rate is quite high) if the potential for profit is high. By selling the company's products at a lower price in another country - it makes the market unattractive for any new foreign entrants into the pharmaceutical market - no purpose in trying to develop a competing product if you can't recoup your R&D costs. The lower costs basically establish a "barrier to entry".While Michael Porter's Five Forces Analysis is now considered "old school" it is still a useful way to view business.

You are also, of course correct, that prices are higher in the US because drug companies can get it.

The trees are just the right height.

In Michigan they are, Jason. And Michigan's electoral votes are going to be counted in whose collumn in November! LOL!

Obama's. You don't think Romney will win Michigan do you?

I see where Ezra pointed out that Karl Rove looked really silly with that claim that Obama was trying to "buy the election" right before a Romney Super Pac received a 10 million dollar check from Donald Trump's casino mogul friend.

Given what happened in the Michigan state legislature with their banning the right of an elected representative to speak to a bill because she used the "V-word" (it was an abortion bill), I'd say that Grandpa's insinuation about Michigan winding up going for Romney is even sillier than what Turd Blossom said.

Give me a V! Give me an A!...

Ah, don't go there Cabbie... Use the "V" for viral instead, because that's what's happened to the story...

Shoot, if Romney can't even say donut, he'll never manage that one...

You are right Romney is just your average Joe from middle America

Don't be silly, none of the politicians are average Joes. I'm just happy that he is not the average Joe. The problem is average Joe has selected a life where median household income is 50K, debt around 20K and struggles to make ends meet. If you want to do better, you follow the path of those that do better than you. Based on your comments, I guess the professors at the University of Oregon don't know any more than the students. The faculty at the colleges I went to for my undergraduate and master's degree were not Average Joes, they are experts in their field of study, paid very well and taught me many great things. My employer is an expert at what they do. I strive to be the best father I can, guiding my son to reach for the stars and do his best and not expect the world to take care of him. But, I will love him, even if he chooses to be an average Joe.

The average Joe has "selected" to be poor? Based on your comments you have no idea what you are talking about. Oregon is a top school. Romney, in your mind, has chosen to be rich, I wonder why more people do not chose to be rich? IF you are saying Romney is an expert at something, so be it, but the only thing he is an expert at is being rich. So you keep following the rich like Romney and the Koch's and enjoy your life.

Yes, average Joe has chosen to be poor, because they have chosen not to do the things to be rich. They buy things they can't afford to impress people they don't know(houses, cars, electronics, etc) I'm sure Oregon is a good school, but based on how you talk, since professors are wealthy, they cannot possibly be good people.

If you live on less than you make, invest wisely(stable mutual funds) and continue to try to do better in life, anyone can be rich. I have a friend that worked at Burger King for their first job. They saved and bought a BK franchise and as he saved up money, he bought more. Now he's loaded. People like you don't do anything and just blame that guy for being rich. What you can do instead is try to teach people how to do better and not rely on others.

Chosen not to be rich. RobW, please explain to me how all can be rich? For every one of your friend stories you provide likethe Burger King one, there are 100,000 people that do not make it and sadly you want to put those people down even more by telling them how worthless they are since they are not rich. Buy things to impress people? Yeah that tomato sandwhich really impressed everyone I saw, you folks with your heads buried in the sand about the poor make me want to puke. When life deals your, RobW a hand that leaves your poor and dependent upon some government program to survive I only hope you have not destroyed that very program you need.

Ubetcha, let us just fire all cops and all firefighters. While at it let us get rid of the military as they are all socialist in there, and the military is an arm of the federal government, which you folks want to destroy

Sorry but that is not what you present, you folks say all government is bad, as you have said in your story. Teabaggers say they favor things they are against and say they are against things they favor, then yell at top of lungs how right they are and how wrong others are for not agreeing with you 100%

If tea baggers were for efficiency, they would want a universal single payer, government funded, physician run health care system with overhead of 1.3%, and not the current American insurance run health care system with cumulative overhead and bureaucratic corporate waste of 55% of what you pay wasted with paperwork and bureaucracy to ration the health care of Americans bureaucratic exclusions, like pre-existing conditions etc. That's what 55% of what you pay for American insurance, deductibles, and copays amounts to. 55% bureaucratic waste. Government funded systems like Canada's have 1.3% overhead by comparison, and US Medicare has 3% overhead by comparison to the 55% cumulative overhead of American insurance run and insurance rationed health care. The 150 American insurance companies have 200 times the employees that a single payer system, yet you say you are against 200 times as many unneeded employees like the American insurance companies have.

Because Canada has a single payer system, a Canadian hospital needs 3 or 4 accounts receivable employees for the single payer, government. Because the United States has insurance run health care, a similar sized American hospital with the same number of beds needs 40 to 60 accounts receivable employees to deal with the massive bureaucracy of American insurance companies, yet the system you favour is the one with 40 to 60 employees to do the job that 3 or 4 would do in a single payer system. In this case, you favour massive waste.

The American insurance-run health care system is the most bureaucratic and wasteful health care system in the world, 28 times more bureaucratic and wasteful than any government funded, physician run system, yet tea baggers want the wasteful and massively bureaucratic insurance-run and insurance-rationed system, rather than including everyone with better health care than you have now, for less than half the cost of what you pay now, with 1.3% overhead with a government funded, physician run single payer system.

How many nations that have universal health care (many with single payer) have changed to an American style insurance run health care system? The answer is zero, but not only is the answer ZERO, but most nations like Canada would defeat any party that wanted to change to an American style health care system.

The easiest way for a Canadian politician to get elected is if he can convince voters that HIS OPPONENT favours American style insurance-run health care system. 91% of Canadians favour Canadian health care over American insurance-run health care in any circumstances, no matter what would ever be wrong with them, and 6% of Canadians have no opinion, while only 3% of Canadians would even consider an American style insurance run health care system or ever going to the US for any kind of treatment, and most of that 3% would still actually stay in Canada for treatment, when push comes to shove and they get sick.

Well said John Murphy, you have shown that the tea party folks actually favor what they are against.