I Am Elvis A. Gordon, And I Approve This Message

"I have come to the conclusion that politics is too serious a matter to be left to the politicians."

-Charles de Gaulle

Hello. My name is Elvis Aron Gordon. I am here to speak on behalf of all the house cats in America who support Hillary Clinton For President.

First of all, my mommy, daddy, and myself want to congratulate Senator Clinton, on her latest win in Indiana this past Tuesday. Way to go Hillary! You go girl! I will be crossing my paws for you to experience big wins in the remaining primaries, and we will be right by the TV waiting for all the updates! I am proud of you for not giving up. You are showing just how hard you are willing to work for this country, and that's why I am in your yard. It saddened my mommy to hear about yet another defection to the Obama camp, by someone who had previously given his endorsement to you, George McGovern. It made her sad to hear this news, because she had admired him over the years, and to see him jump ship because it seems as if the odds are against you, makes him nothing but a fair- weather supporter. We want to reassure you, we are not. Especially me, which is why I am writing this blog entry today. Well, I am not typing it of course, but I am dictating it to my mommy, so if there are any spelling errors... that's her... not me. Meow. :)

When I knew that we would be electing a new president soon, I was first of all relieved. LOL. President Bush... GRRRR... But then I talked it over with the two human parents I live with, and we discussed all the problems that need to be fixed. It's a long, long, long, long, list. ME--OW. The war is important, the lack of education is big, humans losing their homes is scary, because where will the house pets go? I saw on the news, that some humans are so desperate that sometimes they simply leave their furry friends behind alone, when they have to leave their homes. They couldn't even take their pets with them. Sometimes their pets were found alive, sometimes it was too late. MEEEEWWW. :( That makes me sad. I am lucky enough to have a place to live, and plenty of toys, and sometimes I am even able to get all the medication I need... I am luckier then a lot of humans are.

Recently, I found out that I have the big C... cancer. My cancer is Feline Lymphoma. Dr. B says it is more aggressive then we first thought. My mommy cries sometimes, and sometimes so do I, but we get up, and we get dressed, and we face the day as best we can. We have a lot to be grateful for, she has medical insurance, and I have the best veterinarian in the whole world, who is doing all he can to make me well. Some cats aren't so lucky, and some humans aren't either. If mommy and daddy didn't have any medical insurance, mommy would not be able to take care of her diabetes as well as she has. She and I both have diabetes, and it costs over $100 a month to take care of me alone, if she were paying full cost for her supplies, it would cost another $125.

What about all the humans without health care in America? From what I have seen by watching, Charles Gibson on ABC World News Tonight, people are getting sick like never before. Did you know that there are 12 million Americans living with cancer right now, and another 1.4 million will be diagnosed this year? Senator Clinton has tried for a long time to help bring affordable health care to American humans. She has a solid plan, and according to Factcheck.org, her plan has been lied about and misleading statements always seem to come out just before the primaries, which isn't fair.

I don't think the next president should be elected because he is something called a "phenomenon." I am sure he is a good guy deep down, but that isn't why humans should vote for him. You should be electing a human president who knows how to roll up their sleeves, and get down to the work that in store for you. Someone who has been working for years to improve the quality of your life. I know from having cancer, that when your health isn't good, it's much more difficult to put your toys away, or to chase butterflies, or even walk all the way to the corner of the yard, to sit in your favorite lemon tree. Mew. :(

My mommy said to my daddy the other night, "Alan, watching Elvis have to go through cancer, is the hardest thing I have ever done, can you imagine what it must be like to watch a human child face cancer? Especially if their parents don't have health coverage?" Mew. :(

I believe that problem can be fixed. And I believe Senator Clinton has the best ideas for getting the job done right. Here is a good article you should read...

Giving Hillary Credit For Schip

I have other reasons for supporting Senator Clinton for human president. And I might write another entry sometime, but for now this is what I have to say.


I AM ELVIS ARON GORDON... AND I APPROVE OF THIS MESSAGE. :)

-OndineMonet
"House Cats For Clinton"
Berkeley, California
May 7th, 2008
Afternoon

An Apple A Day

"He who has health, has hope. And he who has hope, has everything."

-Proverb

I can only imagine what it must have been like, for millions of American families who depended on the children's health care bill, to see President Bush veto it. The bill would have expanded coverage to allow over 4 million children into the program, which would have been paid for by increasing the federal cigarette tax. Which to me, increasing that tax, makes all the sense in the world. It is an indisputable fact, that smoking causes harm, both to the smoker and to those in their immediate environment, through second hand smoke, and yet, Americans continue to light up. For smokers to subject themselves, and their loved ones to the toxins emitted by their smoke, is inconceivable to me. I can't understand it. I probably never will understand it. In fact, I have never quite figured out why smoking around children has never been deemed a form of child abuse, considering the rise of asthma among the nations youth. So, to me, to pay for the program by taxing one of the most environmentally destructive habits we Americans engage in, makes perfect sense. But President Bush quietly vetoed the plan yesterday, and in doing so, may have sealed it for big changes to come in 08.

Bush cited concerns about the bill leading to socialized medicine, and he felt the bill was too costly, but I have my doubts about that being behind his true reasoning. Bush has always catered to big business, and lets face it, the Tobacco companies probably would not appreciate one more tax levied against their product. On the other hand, would Bush want one more thing taking possible funding away from his Iraq war project? Right now, America is spending 10 Billion in Iraq each month, the Children's Health Insurance Plan requested just 7 billion per year, and offered incentives for states to cover the children in the lowest income households first, while allowing children of some middle class households, which earned under a certain amount per year, coverage. So, what would cause the president to turn his back on the health and well being on our children, especially when it was a bi-partisan bill? Could it be... politics? His lame duckness? His love of big business? Does he simply not care about these children? Is it that he felt the bill gave the democrats too much glory?

Sometimes I think he does things like this, because he has never had to live through any catastrophic medical emergencies. He has never had to worry about where his next meal is coming from. He has never had to work two jobs, just so his children had health coverage, he has never had to struggle, and face having to decided between paying the bills and putting a decent meal on the table for his family. He has never had to face the sometimes overwhelming financial and emotional burden of caring for an aged parent. He has never had to face the kinds of hardships most folks go through. The loss of a loved one, who couldn't afford health coverage is devastating enough, now imagine the pain of losing a child this way.

Type 2 diabetes can strike at any age. Yesterday, I was waiting in line at my HMO's pharmacy, while I was watching coverage of the presidential veto. I was waiting for the first refill of my diabetic testing supplies, since I was diagnosed with Type 2 last July. At that time, I was given a OneTouch Ultra2 blood Glucose kit, which included the meter, the pencil lancing device, a 200 count box of lancets, and a 200 count box of test strips. The kit was free, I didn't even have to pay my usual co-payment, so I had no idea how much the refills were going to be. I was very pleasantly surprised to find out yesterday, that my refills are covered 100 percent under my plan. I didn't have to pay anything. But just out of curiosity, I asked for an itemized receipt just the same. I found out that my health care plan had saved me over $120. What would I do if Alan suddenly lost his job? I would have to face not being able to manage my diabetes, and the very real possibility of my eventual death from complications of diabetes.

OneTouch Ultra Test Strips - $99.00
OneTouch Ultra Ultra Soft Lancets - $22.00

I check my blood about 6 times per day. When I get up each morning, before and after each meal, and before I go to bed, but that's just me. It's different for each person, depending on their own individual diabetic needs, so can you imagine what it must be like for a family with a child with no health care coverage, to have to face paying full price for their diabetic supplies each month? I wonder how many children in America right now, are going to be with cancer, or diabetes or some other potentially devastating illness, because their parents can't afford to take them to the doctor for a routine physical. There are 43 million Americans living without health coverage, and of that number, 6 million are children. How long will we continue to let down the most vulnerable among us? Some republicans expressed concern that Bush's veto would make it more difficult for them in the 08 national election, you know what, they should be concerned! Does the path to doing the right thing, get any more clearer then this?

-OndineMonet
"An Apple A Day"
Berkeley, California
October 3, 2007
Late Afternoon