I
made a conscious decision to personally boycott the two restaurants, not
because I was against eating healthy or a smaller portion but because I did not
think, it was the role of government to tell us what to eat, how much salt to
use, or how many ounces of soda to consume. Many of us can stand to lose a few
pounds which we can do on our own without government interference or the nanny
state.
Michelle
Obama also dabbled in overnight gardening at the White House although she does
not hold degrees in horticulture or nutrition. Schools have changed their menus
at her directive, requiring increased food expenditures, offering fresh fruit
and vegetables which children promptly started throwing in the garbage or using
them for food fights. High-schoolers even staged protests across the country,
demanding that the old menu be reinstated. For much younger students, fruits and
vegetables are still an acquired taste, particularly if parents have not
introduced them earlier to their children as part of daily meals.
The
Darden Restaurant Group which employs 180,000 people across the U.S. is making
headlines again. In anticipation of the unfortunately named Affordable Care Act,
better known as Obamacare, Darden is cutting hours for many employees in four
different markets. They are not sure how much Obamacare is going to cost the
company in the future. To mitigate increased cost, they are cutting employees
from full-time to part-time status. By reducing their hours, Darden does not
have to pay for their healthcare, forcing some employees into the government-run
exchanges which are part of Obamacare. Additionally, there is a re-definition
of full-time status as 30 hours of work per week.
The
Darden Industries CEO, Clarence Otis Jr., has given a lot of money to
Democrats. He has been an ardent supporter of Let’s Move Campaign, the
signature healthy initiative of First Lady, Michelle Obama. If the company is
to survive, according to the CEO, major changes must take place. The number of full-time
employees must be lowered in order to avoid the $100 per day per employee
penalty in Obamacare if insurance is not purchased. Darden cannot afford to
offer full-time insurance benefits to all of its 180,000 employees. The Darden
Restaurant Group survived so far because they received a waiver for the
Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) in 2010. Most waivers will expire at the end of
2012 or have already expired.
And
Clarence Otis Jr. is not alone. Real estate mogul, David A. Siegel, who runs
Westgate Resorts, a huge Orlando-based time share company in Orange County, an
Obama leaning county, has sent a warning letter to his employees. If Obama is
re-elected, there is a strong possibility of layoffs. He is not exactly telling
them to vote for either candidate, however, if they vote for Obama, increased
costs and uncertainty would force him to reduce staff.
Hiring
across the country has been on hold because of the entire tax structure
increase. Most companies face an uncertain future about taxation for employers
and employees, the overt and hidden costs of Obamacare, forcing big changes for
many firms. Business confidence has been quite low in the last four years. New
taxes on successful producers will leave Siegel with no choice but to cut the
size of his company. His employees have been reduced already from 8,000 four
years ago to 7,000 today.
“With
the new Obamacare coming in and now the threat of higher taxes, it just means
less money to expand our business. We are not going to fire anybody, lay off
anybody, as a result of who they vote for, or who they lean towards, it’s just
that I want them to know what the future holds for them and their families.” (David
A. Siegel, CEO)
As
the new round of Medicare cuts was to take effect in October this year, the
administration found $8 billion to avoid the painful cuts temporarily under the
guise of research. The $8 billion helped delay the elderly outrage at the
voting booth when confronted with the shift of $719 billion over ten years from
Medicare to Obamacare.
This
is what happens when nationalized health care is passed in the middle of the
night, without bipartisan debate, and then forced on Americans against their
vociferously expressed will. As Nancy Pelosi said, “You must pass the bill to
find out what’s in it.” The American people are finding out and they do not
like it.
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