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Show (^ommunity ews Parental rewards Life Covering what matters most A2 • WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2008 -N E W S- Spanish Fork 280 North Main St. Spanish Fork, UT 84660 Line Henderson Publisher Namon Bills Editor Dana Robinson . Assoc. Editor The Spanish Fork News is published each Wednesday tor $37.50 per year in area and $41.50 out of area by J-Mart, 280 North Main St., Spanish Fork Utah 84660. Email stories to editor@spforknew5.com Email ads to ads@spforknews.com CaiJ us at 794-4964 POSTMASTER Send address changes to Spanish Fork News 280 North Main St. Spanish Fork, Utah 84660 The entire content of this newspaper is Copyright© 2008 Spanish Fork News. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without the written permission o\ the editor or publisher. THE SPANISH FORK NEWS (USPS 024716) is published weekly for $37.50 per year by JMart Publishing, 280 North Main St., Spanish Fork, UT 84660. Periodicals Postage Paid at Spanish Fork, UT. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Spanish Fork News, 42 East 300 North, Spanish Fork, UT 84660. DEADLINES Weddings, anniversaries, missionaries, 1st birthdays, articles, photos, letters to the editor Friday, 12 p.m. ings with us when we leave home. Life After Birth On those hard days when Janene Baadsgaard the baby is screaming, the toddler paints his entire I remember the years bedroom in petroleum jelly, when I was basically home- and the preschooler gouges bound with many young the new sofa with a butcher children. Sometimes I won- knife, it's hard not to feel dered if I should be doing like you're going to go crasomething more important zy. Feeling overwhelmed is "out there." On my hard a chronic parenting condidays, I had moments when tion. It's not easy to work I wondered if I was throw- very hard every day without ing myself away for children pay, recognition or reward who didn't seem to appreci- for little people who throw ate anything I was doing for up all over us, scream in them. When we are mothers our face and throw things at of young children, we are our head. It's not easy to fix generally young ourselves, nutritious meals that mostly or at least new to being a par- wind up on the floor. It's not ent. It is not easy to painstak- easy to clean a house that ingly extract our selfishness. is being destroyed, even as So we hang on as long as we work. It's not easy to be possible, hoping someone romantic with our spouse will eventually appreciate all when we haven't even had we do. One day it dawns on a chance to take a shower us - the eyes of God see ev- all day. It's not easy to be a erything, and that's enough. parent of young children. It Most of our behavior takes years to grow into our with our young children is role. a private experience even We know we're making they won't remember - con- progress when we finally sciously. Yet there is another stop feeling sorry for our memory of the heart - a deep self. We're ready for the personal feeling we carry next school in parenthood inside that tells us if we are when our life becomes less ioveable or unlovable, safe about us and more about or unsafe and whether or not them. Our perspective shifts. we can trust others. We learn We realize being a child isn't these things from our par- easy either. Hey, it's not easy ents, and we take those feel- being three. Try climbing up battles we fight on the home front, our name will not appear on a monument. We will work our whole life for something we never see finished. But if we make the necessary sacrifices, parenthood will be a personal cure for self-centeredness and an anecdote for false pride. The primary relationship we have in this life is with our self. There is nothing like parenthood to make us face our self and seek divine help. Then when we lay our head on Janene Baadsgaard our pillow at night, we may on a commode that is twice not see the dream of CEO as big as you are. When we printed on our office door begin to look at our children or visions of mansions and the way an educated art pa- luxury cars. We will see the tron in a museum looks at radiant faces of our chilMichelangelo's David or dren and hear the echo of Da Vinci's Mona Lisa, we their laughter. will see them as the masterJanene Baadsgaard is pieces they really are. the author of many books Taking care of those who for families including 15 Secan't take care of themselves crets to a Happy Home, On is a mission - a calling and the Roller Coaster Called worthy of our best effort. If Motherhood, Winter's Promwe work very hard and give ise, Financial Freedom for our all to our parenting ca- LDS Families and The LDS reer, our children might turn Mother s Almanac availout well and they might not. able at local book stores or We are an important part on-line at wwwspringcreekof our child's life, but we books.com. Read her colcan't realistically take all the umns titled Baadsgaard Bycredit or blame for the adult our child becomes. We only lines at wwwjanenebaadshave to take the blame and gaardblogspot.com. She can be reached at janenecredit for how we turn out. baadsgaard@q.com. No matter how many Galloping Geezer Gary Davis I know of a man in California who gave half of his income to his church. When this liberal use of his means was reflected in his income tax return, it prompted a query from the IRS. The man came to his meeting with the revenue raider, armed with all the necessary verification to establish that his tax returns were legit. "I can't prove that you falsified your return," the government shill said accusingly as the meeting concluded, "but I know that you didn't give that much money to your church." What the G-man was really saying was that there was no way HE would give that much money to his church. This brings to mind the media hysteria and feminist fulminations, (look it up), over Sarah Palin and her Down Syndrome baby. There is no way they would welcome a DS baby into their life, so they can't believe anyone else would See SACRIFICE* A3 The future of health care revealed Mike Morley STATE REP. Twenty-five years ago, with the birth of our first son very near, my wife and I were concerned that we didn't have health insurance. I visited with our family doctor and we agreed to a trade for services - the delivery of my baby forconstruction work on his home. I next approached Mountain View Hospital and asked what the cost would be for the birth of our baby. They were surprised. It seemed no one had ever asked that question before. So, over the next hour or so, we discussed several options - a 24-hour stay, a regular delivery with no complications, payment upon leaving the hospital, etc. and we were able to agree on a price. The delivery went just as planned and 24 hours later as we were leaving the hospital, I paid with a check marked "Paid in Full". Six weeks later, we received a bill from the hospital showing their normal and customary cost of services which was about three times what I had paid. I took my canceled check back to the hospital, reminded them of our agreement, and left with the balance of the bill having been written off. For at least the past couple of decades, the health care system in Utah and in the United States has been controlled by health insurance companies, government mandates, and layer after layer of bureaucracy. Most consumers spend more time shopping for shoes than they do for health services simply because all of the decisions about doctors, procedures, hospitals, and treatments have been made by whatever insurer we have cho- sen. Our preferred doctor or the closest hospital may be just around the corner, but if they are not approved providers or facilities for our health plan, they are not an option. Consumers must have choices and flexibility. We should be able to shop for health care much like we shop for home or auto insurance: with options, variable deductibles and coverage which can be increased or decreased depending on need. We need more flexibility for such things as a la carte services, health savings accounts and using pretax dollars to pay for health care. We need expanded risk pools, so small businesses are not at a decided disadvantage. We need personal accountability for unhealthy behaviors which increase risk. In the 2007 General Session, I sponsored HB 9 Health Care Cost and Quality Data, which established an online database where health care providers post information on the cost of a specific procedure or episode of care and report on the outcome for each. This single bill has stimulated conversation and been a catalyst for health care reform in Utah. Just this past session, the legislature established a task force which is pulling together the best minds from government, the business community, health care providers, medical professionals and insurance companies to look at this issue in depth and make solid recommendations. I am optimistic that positive, substantive changes in Utah's health care system will result. Recently, the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce published a vision statement for the future of health care, which reads, "We envision a health care system that will sustain a vibrant economy and enable people to live healthier, more productive lives. In such a system, every Utahn will have access to affordable, basic health insurance and care that is paid for with pretax dollars, chosen by the employee, portable from job to job (or for the selfemployed) , guaranteed issue, rated based on a broad-based risk pool and structured to incorporate cost controlling features. Health care consumers will have access to complete information that will allow them to make prudent decisions about their care and employers can make defined contributions to the health care of their employees. In such a system, we will increase accountability, eliminate waste, transform incentives, extend compassion and, most importantly, improve people's lives." This vision of a portable, flexible, market-driven health care system is one I have long advocated and is far superior to the government-mandated entitlement system being widely discussed on a national level. A few weeks ago, my son and his wife realized that their insurance would not cover the approaching birth of their first son. So, together, we visited Mountain View Hospital to discuss the costs for the birth of their baby. Our experience bore little resemblance to my visit some 25 years earlier. This time, we were presented with a cost sheet detailing prices and services from which he could choose varying levels of care. Certainly, it is just one step, but it is a step in the right direction. This is my vision of the future of health care in Utah. Letter to the Editor Campaign Signs Dissapearing Campaigns can be funny things. While we are opponents during a campaign, Mr. Morley and I are not life opponents.. While I don't agree with the way Mr. Morley chooses to legislate, I have no personal animosity with him. I have become aware that campaign signs (Mr. Morley\s) have been disappearing. I disdain this sort of thing and believe that when a person chooses to post a sign for their particular candidate or issue, that is a way of expressing their freedom of speech. It's a constitutionally protected right. It's also an act of theft and unbecoming of good people. I have heard of neighborhoods and religious congregations that are divided because of certain issues in our community. One issue that seems to be particularly divisive is charter schools versus regular schools. I am saddened to hear of such things. Charter schools are public schools. They are part of our school system. Each of us has different reasons for choosing the sort of education we choose for our children. We shouldn't get caught up in which is better nor should our children feel this tug- of-war. We should show respect for the individual choices our friends and neighbors make. If we really want to do what's best for our children we will all agree that education is important and will work to see that our public schools (ALL of them) are adequately funded. Contention should not be part of our predominantly Christian community. While we disagree on issues, we should not let it cloud those things that are most important-our relationships with each other. I would never want to lose a friend over a campaign. I'm sure that some of my friends will choose to support my opponent. That's their choice and I value their friendship just the same. We can disagree on is- sues but maintain our friendships by simply agreeing to disagree and letting it go at that. By the way, Mike Morley has never filed for bankruptcy. Let's stop circulating that rumor, okay? Character assasination may be okay for the presidential candidates, but it's not okay with myself or Mr. Morley. Sincerely, Debbie Swenson. |
