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LAWMAKERS FAILING TO STRIKE QUICK VA DEAL AS OUR VETERANS WAIT FOR CARE
CHARLES PAYNE: The budget has grown dramatically and the President himself bragged about how much money has been thrown at the problem. The serious problems are, of course, structure, the lack of leadership and really the lack of accountability, money is not going to make that better, but make it worse probably. They have to figure out how to honestly fix this thing, it is going to need a free market solution and whether you dismantle it and make it free market; it is something that a lot of the politicians in Washington do not want to happen.
DAGEN MCDOWELL: The problem is central control, greater centralization of management in the last decade or so, and subsequent democracy where the regional area lost control and it was moved back to Washington. Some of the money, the CBO estimate came in on the house side of this bill came in lower at $35 billion, should be given to the veterans so they can have access to private care rather than waiting, waiting, and that is well spent, but an overall reorganization of the V.A. needs to happen.
BEN STEIN: There is such a thing as learning. I argued against privatizing the V.A. care, but I am convinced by Gasparino and others on the show that the way to go is to convert it to the free market system and give them vouchers, money, or a money substitute so they can go to their own doctors. I think that the problem is bureaucracy, and I, myself, would not want to be treated in a bureaucracy, the veterans should not be unless they want to be. So, give them vouchers, let them spend it themselves, and we will get better care in a free market. Of course, there has to be some accountability, standards and fees, but let's go to the free market solution by all means.
ADAM LASHINSKY: This is a political topic. We are talking about the veterans, who are fighting in the armed forces and going to war for us, and earmarks are an appropriate way to spend money. If we can take the money that we got, and get it more quickly to where it belongs to solve this political problem. This is a screw-up, and everybody agrees, it is a terrible screw-up, so it is appropriate to behave politically with the money. Get it to the veterans to get the care improved quickly, and then talk about vouchers and structural reform and what not.
GOOGLE CEO SUGGESTS MORE PART-TIME JOBS SHOULD REPLACE FULL-TIME WORK
BEN STEIN: What a ridiculous, incredibly condescending, sneering thing to say. What a joke. I mean, most people do need to work as many hours as they can to pay the bills, feed their families and keep themselves housed and fed. It is so ridiculously condescending. This is an idea that was floated in the Great Depression, and has been an idea floated around forever. It is a ridiculous idea, but I guess in the world of multibillionaires, you never have to say you are sorry.
DAGEN MCDOWELL: I have always worked for the companies where all of the employees worked themselves to the bone, and they loved it because they loved their jobs. So, I understand that it is coming from the not just from a rich person, but somebody who comes from the tech industry where the guys who start the companies, Adam can correct me if I am wrong, but they live and breathe the businesses and sleep under the desk and rarely sleep.
CHARLES PAYNE: You have Google making an acquisition every week; they have an insatiable desire to get faster and stronger. Richard Branson who has started a hundred businesses in the last 20 years, this is the guy that is telling us to slow down? Are you kidding?
ADAM LASHINSKY: Well, the larger point he was trying to make is that historically, already the case that we can have similar standards of living without working for as hard as we have for so long and that is basically true, regardless of how it sounded.
GREENPEACE VIDEO ATTACKS LEGO OVER ITS PARTNERSHIP WITH SHELL OIL
CHARLES PAYNE: What does Greenpeace use when they take ships and ram them into fishermen and other people trying to make a living around the world? Do they use oil or water? What exactly are they using to fuel their campaign in the first place? It is hypocrisy and it is ridiculous.
DAGEN MCDOWELL: They're trying to put pressure on the company not to get in bed with Shell Oil or any oil company.
ADAM LASHINSKY: I don't have anything against Shell Oil or against oil companies, if you're in an organization that does and thinks they're evil, this is a perfectly good and clever marketing campaign to go out. I think it is clever of Greenpeace.
BEN STEIN: Carl Marx said, "History repeats itself, the first time it is tragic, second time it is comedy." Greenpeace used to be an incredibly important brave group. They used to be great people, now they're a joke.
STOCK PICKS
CHARLES PAYNE: Yelp, Inc. (YELP)
BEN STEIN: Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK-B)
ADAM LASHINSKY: Vanguard LifeStrategy Moderate Gr Inv (VSMGX)
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