YOUR COMMENTS

Robert, "How do you sleep at night?"

Very soundly. Thanks for asking.
I usually read a passage or two from the US Constitution and/or The Federalist Papers. This simple act gives me the strength I need when confronted by utter nonsense.
Perhaps you should do likewise. Then you might understand that we are not responsible for supporting the whole world and all it's "tired, poor, huddled masses" yearning to send their paychecks overseas to their relatives who are not here. YET.
This outdated immigration policy might have made sense when we needed huge numbers of warm, unsklilled bodies to staff the Industrial Revolution and the settlement of the west. In our new, ever less manufacturing intensive economy this influx(invasion?) of unskilled labor is a recipe for disaster.

I would sleep alot better if more of my fellow citizens bothered to understand what is, and is not, contained in the Constitution. Perhaps then we would begin to develope fair AND sane policies.

I wonder? What minority group(s) will be the new cash cows when smokers are either driven out of existence, or more likely, driven to the underground economy?
I do enjoy those tax-free ciggs I've been buying lately. You know, the ones that fall of the backs of trucks.
- Mike P., Manchester

So now we are going to start visiting the sins of the parents upon the children? Evidently being born somewhere else is a sin. Wow, what a bunch of considerate compassionate Christians we have here. We have billions to give to fat cat bankers on Wall Street but the Main Street urchin is held hostage. How do you sleep at night?
- Robert, Deerfield

What is also not included in the article is the number of employers who will take away coverage for a workers kids cause of this. So those of you with good coverage for your kids will lose it to a government run nightmare. This is all about Democratic vote buying as now they will be able to walk around and say vote for us unless you want your kids not to be able to see a doctor.
- Brian, Schwatka

Bill Duncan your rant does not disclose why the UL editorial is wrong? You just throw out your own useless fodder.
- Alex Klemco, Deering, NH

Well I guess someone has to pay for the "Who's Your Daddy" gereration! Legal and illegal.
- VC, Derry

Most of you are so off the mark it is pathetic. Who the heck cares about the tax on cigarettes and whether or not an additonal tax will make people quit?
The point here is that the new administration (Democratic) US Government is trying to piecemeal national welfare for every illegal immigrant and minority population resident in this U.S. by buying off the "middle class" with "free" entitlement all the while piling on new taxes that will choke them into poverty. And they are going to keep trying until they have succeeded in making this country a third world country no better than Venezuela, and with all the problems of France, Germany and England.
- sandy, thornton

People who know me know I think every penny counts. Nonetheless, I have no idea how something like this makes its way to an editorial. This editorial is on a $32 million dollar expense. The TARP, or public money bailout of the financial industry is $700,000 million. Add that to the money already spent on AIG, Fannie, Freddie and others and we’re approaching $2,000,000 million. $32 million does not even rise to the level of rounding error.

How can the editors continue to try to demonstrate that Republicans are fiscally conservative? Where have the editors been for the past eight years? The country has seen behind the curtain. How about an editorial on how the editors think the Republican middle class entitlement prescription drug coverage can be funded? Instead of a $32 million issue, you would have an editorial on an about $80,000 billion dollar issue.
- Peter Sorrentino, Manchester, NH

To those who smoke - roll your own. You can buy 200 wraps and a bag of tobacco for less than $10 versus the +$42 is now costs to buy a carton of cigarettes (it will cost you between $6 - $10 for the machine to stuff the wraps, but that one time investment still makes it cheaper to roll your own).

I know, I know, I can hear people now, "just quit". But for those who are addicted to nicotine, that is easier said than done. Plus, you have to WANT to quit, its just not a matter of quitting.
- Chris, Dover, NH

This editorial is all wrong. Here’s why.

First, you recycle the old Republican bogyman that SCHIP takes kids off of private insurance, even enhancing its credibility by citing a specific number (without showing a source, of course). That’s a recurring ideological concern expressed by Bush and Republicans but has never been shown to be the case. How many families do you know with incomes of less than $60,000 who can buy their own health insurance? Or who would drop their kids off their company plan to get SCHIP coverage?

Then you get pretty exercised over the size of the tax increase on big cigars and moves on to your real point, how our Representatives don’t want to target poor kids, just rip off smokers to subvert the private insurance system. But here’s what really happened.

Rep. Deal (R-GA) was tasked with introducing a motion to recommit, the standard Republican tactic for getting Democrats on record in a way that gives their troops campaign ammo. Mr. Deal’s motion is a whole sack of grenades meant to blow up the SCHIP bill now that the presidential veto is not available. This is not a serious legislative proposal, just and early shot in the 2010 congressional campaign.

Rep. Deal’s key provision required states to certify that they had reached a 90% participation rate among children with family incomes under $40,000 before enrolling kids from higher income families. Apple pie, right? Great UL editorial fodder. But everyone knows that 90% participation is unattainable and that, in any case, there is no way to accurately measure participation rate at the state level. So it amounts to a simple dishonest attempt to keep the program from getting to additional families in need.

As the Democrats pointed out on the floor, SCHIP already puts poor kids first by targeting enrollment bonuses only to the poorest kids, those in Medicaid. And 80% of SCHIP’s newly insured children have incomes below current eligibility levels.

And by the way, the SCHIP does NOT cover illegal immigrants. This isn’t even a close call. Here’s the explanation: http://www.cbpp.org/9-25-07health3.htm
- Bill Duncan, New Castle

John A. of Manchester, in lauding SCHIP's cigarette-tax increase, you join my town's Clintonoid state rep in hoping both to eliminate a vice (at gunpoint) AND to close a budget gap by failing to do so. You will obviously fail at one or the other. Either you are unable to see elementary effects on behavior of a policy change, or you are conning us.
- Spike, Brentwood NH

Well said Carol. These are scary times indeed.
- Alex, Nashua, NH

At $0.60 per pack isn't the tax increase in the hundreds of millions of dollars? A tax of one dollar per American smoker per year would cover the $32 million SCHIP expansion. This is much bigger than that.

The article doesn't say otherwise but it does bury the lede.
- Jack Diederich, Somerville, MA

They didn't have any of this crap when I was growing up. I was just poor and we got by with what we had. Now that I have worked so hard so many years to make a good life for myself and my children, the government takes from me, and takes some more and gives to someone else. To the point where I again am at risk of having nothing. People who make 1/3 of my income are better off. You can't just keep taking from one group and giving to another. At least in Europe, everyone benefits from their tax dollars, not just the designated poor. What is the incentive for anyone to get their act together and do for themselves. You can't just keep giving free handouts indefinitely to people in an attempt to achieve some unobtainable ideal. It doesn’t work. If someone is eligible for insurance through work for their kids, then they should provide it, whether or not they qualify income-wise for some federal program. Maybe I should change careers from Engineering to McDonalds cook. I might be better off.
- Marc, Mason

What the editorial does not say is that YES, children of ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS are eligible for this health care along with folks making $60K plus a year. This is just another step towards amnesty for illegals - and another steps towards Government intervention is almost every aspect of our lives.
Carol from Dover - excellent points; I couldn't agree more.
- sandy, thornton

Take the financial situation, for example. I wish we would allow unsuccessful businesses to fail and stop bailing out banks, auto makers, and even the porn industry. I wish we would begin to rely on the free market (something we never have really done completely) and stop subsidizing or nationalizing everything from education and health care to Big Oil.

Since Barack Obama is the first African American President of the United States, it is incumbent on him to “represent” — and on us to accept whatever he does, no matter what “it” is. Political correctness requires that we must not only hope for his success, it will be socially unacceptable to deem him unsuccessful, even if he drags us into Marxist hell.

Hoping that Obama succeeds is not the same as hoping he does what I would consider to be a good job. If he leaves office with America stronger, freer, and more financially secure than it is when he takes office on Tuesday, I will be the first to praise him. What I expect from him, however, is that he will make Americans more dependent on government while restricting our behavior with more regulations. I also expect he may fraternize with all of the wrong leaders of the world, just as he has in his personal life.

Others may call this success, but I will not; and it will not be a job well done in my opinion.
- Carol Klein, Dover, NH

Nothing like beating down a small industry with just what American doesn't need...MORE TAXES! Looks like we are going to make history - this is the biggest tax increase on a singel product in history. What a shame!
- Dave, Salem, NH

In about 2 years "middle-class" will by synonymous with poor. We just aren't able to appreciate this yet.
- Ted, merrimack

Middle-class entitlements? Those three words (the first two and the third) are completely oxymoronic. Looks like I will have to go do research again on the 'rest of the story'. As usual in this paper.
- Lyn, Manchester

Maybe with the higher taxes on cancer sticks less people will smoke. Less sick people from smoking will lower the price of health care.

I know I am dreaming (regarding the lower costs), but at least fewer people will smoke. THAT is a good thing. I read that fewer kids start or try it as the price goes up.

Don't say that it is biased against low-income people. They have a choice just like everybody else. Nobody is forcing anything in there mouth and lighting it on fire.
- John A., Manchester

So predictable it's hilarious. Hmmm. Gee, I wonder what they are going to do about all the lost revenue from the drop in sales. Oh ya, they already started a campaign to bring sales in from other states by touting our No Sales Tax. That must be working out real well. Good thing they care enough about those kids to put them eternally in debt to the government. Even funnier will be the reality check that will come for all those that gave Dems and RHINOs a landslide. Along with what will surely be oppressive tax burdens, I guess I should thank you all for giving liberals and progressives enough rope to hang themselves. Thank you. Looking forward to the funeral.
- Deirdre Taylor, Goffstown

That is one of my concerns - does the bill apply only to American citizens? And why make more and more people dependent upon government...oh, that's right.
- Tom, Campton

Just the first stage in nationalizing health care in the US - don't forget, this is being done "FOR THE CHILDREN"!
- Mike, Derry, NH

As the job skills of people becomes worth less and less. Employers find the need to only insure those they deem the most valuable.

This program is a byproduct of the failure of employer based insurance. They will be more to come.
- Chris, Merrimack

Does this SCHIP bill, like the one that John E. Sununu hung his hat on last year, differentiate between Healthy Kids of American citizens and Healthy Kids of foreign invaders? Or is it, like last year's bill, a piecemeal attempt to pass part of the general amnesty that Bush and McCain couldn't con the nation into supporting?
- Spike, Brentwood NH