About Peter G Peterson

What do Barrack Obama and Peter G. Peterson have in common?

One is the President of the USA.

The other is a retired Wall Street "Tycoon" turned philanthropist.

One likes to spend like money grows on trees.

The other likes to spend his money towards his chosen cause, which he claims is to: "focus on America's key fiscal-sustainability challenges."

One likes to talk about fiscal responsibility.

The other likes to take definite steps and precise actions in dealing with fiscal responsibility.

Now, one might think that the second gentleman is being very honorable... In fact, upon reading this quote from a brief article about him in News Week titled, "Why I’m Giving Away $1 Billion," one might think the gentleman is quite honorable, indeed:

For years, I have been saying that the American government, and America itself, has to change its spending and borrowing policies: the tens of trillions of dollars in unfunded entitlements and promises, the dangerous dependence on foreign capital, our pitiful level of savings, the metastasizing health-care costs, our energy gluttony. These structural deficits are unsustainable.

Later on in the same article he expands on this theme:

Underlying these challenges is our broken political system. Our representatives, unlike our Founding Fathers, see politics as a career. As a result, they are focused not on the next generation, but on the next election. When the long-term problems are large and real, they anesthetize us, mislead us, divert us—anything to keep us from giving up something or having to pay for it. Too often, our political leaders are just enablers, co-conspirators in a disingenuous and greedy silence. Our children are unrepresented. The future is unrepresented. The moment is long overdue for us to become moral and worthy ancestors.

Three cheers!! ...and then, some more!!! Right?

Not so fast...

Let's pause and go back to the original question -- what could Barrack Obama and Peter G. Peterson possibly have in common when you look at their seemingly contrasting view points and/or actions?

FIRST, what they both have in common is attendance at a summit to be held this week hosted by Barrack Obama. You can read about it in this article posted to 'A Pakistan News' titled, "Peter G. Peterson Foundation"

SECOND, their agenda's match on one very important issue: entitlements, particularly with respect to health care.

You see, the "unspoken" word is that the honorable gentleman, Mr. Peter G. Peterson, appears to have another agenda quite dear to his philanthropist heart:

"Mr. Peterson has never been shy about using his Wall Street wealth to try to cut Social Security and Medicare, and he recently stepped up his efforts. Last
year he spent $1 billion to endow the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, which seems to have destroying these programs at the top of its agenda." [emphasis added by me]

So now I'm thinking we are about to get an earful on how the so-called "entitlements" for the above two programs are the greatest threat to our financial stability (yeah, even greater than Wall Street bankers, Fannie, Freddie and the too-big-to-fail-lot -- imagine that).

The spin will be -- and is already shaping up to be -- that if we can fix the health care system, we can also fix the entitlement program... two birds -- one stone.

Don't believe me?

Check out this quote from another article over at The Jamestown Sun:

If President Barack Obama sincerely wants to expand health care access with a broad, bipartisan vote, here's how he can do it:

Tackle entitlement spending first.

Hey, I'm all for fiscal responsibility in Government.

In fact, I think this Administration is quickly bankrupting all citizens of this great nation with its outrageous spending policies and expensive agendas.

But when it comes to entitlements in the form of Medicare and Social Security... I have a bone to pick with this Government... indeed, even the honorable gentleman himself.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Social Security the one thing all working adults and businesses pay into... over a lifetime of working?

Is it your fault -- you the taxpayer -- you the business owner -- your fault that those funds have been so sorely abused, misappropriated, and worse over the years?!

I think not.

In Canada it's called Social Insurance -- and their Government is not allowed to touch those funds for other Government programs. Guess what? They LOWERED the age to file/retire there.

The retirement age there is 55.

Here, in the USA, they are considering raising the age to 67 ...possibly higher.

As for health care... don't make me stand on that soap box again.

It's your insurance industry that needs a thorough cleaning in this country -- top to bottom -- inside and out. They are hammering away at the wealth of this nation every minute of every single day.

Look, it's so easy to find an example of someone discontent and/or misdiagnosed when it comes to health care -- in BOTH countries.

One of our uncle's died just a few short months ago because they "pulled the plug" on him after 4 days. You see, after a certain age in this country, that's it. Your health care system isn't run by the medical community. It's run by your insurance industry. The insurance industry dictates just how much health care you get, when where and how.

For everything you hear about how supposedly-lousy the Canadian health care system is, you probably haven't even heard a word about this important study comparing both health care systems -- the first joint survey of the USA and Canadian health care systems (2004).

My parents, both in their upper 70s, receive phenomenal care in Canada.

The same eye problem I have, my mother had fixed within one week of getting it diagnosed!!! Here in the USA, I'm told it's natural... comes with aging... learn to live with it.

So don't sell me that bill of goods about the poor health care in Canada!

Frankly, I've seen and lived the difference, and the care down here is a far cry from what I used to get... and I used to get it for nothing... now I pay a small fortune!

Ask someone here in the USA how long they wait, if they rely on their insurance, to get any kind of non-life-threatening procedure completed. One acquaintance of ours had to wait 9 months for back surgery here in the USA! My uncle (in Canada) had to wait 3 weeks for a hip replacement. My other uncle had a quadruple bypass 6 years ago -- no waiting -- alive and doing quite well, even for his advanced years, in Canada.

Shucks... I didn't mean to go down this path.

Back on point here.

You're about to get a plethora of propaganda supporting many different agendas for many many different reasons.

Always look beneath the surface, because there are people in this world that don't have your best interests at heart. They have their own agenda, and chances are very high that it won't benefit you in the long term or the short term in my humble opinion based on what I'm hearing and witnessing lately. And lately, it seems to me at least, most of "them" are in politics or from the Wall Street jungle.

Yes... this is just my humble and personal opinion.

But still...

Keep your eyes open...