Category: Scott Gurvey's Public Offering

There's a great line in an early scene of the musical "1776". Richard Henry Lee of Virginia has introduced a resolution declaring the 13 colonies "free and independent states" and the Second Continental Congress is deciding if it should consider the proposal and open debate. A tied vote is broken by Stephen Hopkins of Rhode Island, who declares, "In all my years I never seen, heard, nor smelled an issue that was so dangerous it couldn't even be talked about. Hell yes. I'm for debating anything."

There were no transcripts of the proceedings of the Continental Congress. Playwrights Sherman Edwards and Peter Stone used writings by and about the founders for much of the dialog, but I've never been able to find anything to prove that Hopkins really said that, or anything resembling it. Still, even if we do not know what the founders said, we know what they did. They did debate and approve the resolution, even though their action put them individually at grave personal risk as it moved their constituants from insurrection to outright war.

So it's on to the Senate. And if you think it was tough getting health care reform through the House, wait until the self-proclaimed "world's greatest deliberative body" gets hold of it.

In the end, majority rules in the House. So while the process of making law resembles the making of sausage, in the end, something usually comes out. If HR 3962 were to become law, most Americas who do not have insurance will no longer have to choose between death and destitution if a serious illness arises; Americans now insured through group plans arranged by their employers will no longer have to fear being thrown to the wolves running the market for individual insurance policies if they lose their group coverage; and Americans swimming in the individual coverage pool will no longer have to fear being denied coverage or priced out of the market due to a previously existing condition, or having coverage rescinded if a claim is made. We will all be free of the fear of running into a life-time cap which means a catastrophic illness leads to bankruptcy.

October 22nd has been a big day on Microsoft's calendar for several months. That is the first day you will be able to go to a store and buy a boxed copy of Windows 7, the newest iteration of Microsoft's operating system. There will be a big launch event here in New York, with CEO Stave Ballmer making the keynote speech. We expect to have Ballmer on Nightly Business Report that night. But two of Microsoft's competitors, we refer to them as archrivals these days, appear to be working overtime to spoil the Softies' party.

In fact, the rumor lines have been buzzing with word of the plans by Apple and Google to steal some of the limelight. Apple has been a thorn in Microsoft's side for years, primarily by virtue of television commercials ranging from clever to downright nasty, all nagging the market leader about alleged shortcomings in Windows. Sources say Apple will launch another round of those provocative ads next week, focusing on the difficulty users still running Microsoft's 2001- era Windows XP will have in upgrading to Windows 7, as well as the supposed vulnerability to bugs and viruses of Windows systems.

Mr. Conrad (D., N.D.) votes no, Ms. Lincoln (D., Ark.) votes no, Mr. Nelson (D., Fla.) votes no, Mr. Carper (D., Del.) votes no, and the Chair, Mr. Baucus (D., Mont.) votes no. While it is true that there will be more opportunities, as health care legislation staggers through Congress, to add some sort of government insurance plan to the package, these five Democrats certainly drove a nail deep into the coffin of the "public option" as they rejected a proposal offered by Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D., W.Va.) before the Senate Finance Committee.

Even when Sen. Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) followed up with a proposal with payment procedures more generous to doctors and hospitals than those in Sen. Rockefeller's plan, Sens. Lincoln, Carper and Baucus still voted no; along, of course, with all the Republicans on the Committee.

I had one of the 24/7 cable-blabber channels serving as white-noise for my office the other day when I saw a comely anchor look up at the ceiling and muse, "I wonder if health care should be a right?" The non-comely guy in the co-anchor chair next to her nearly had an attack of apoplexy, and as he gagged she added, "Just asking" and moved on.

This was not to be the end of it, of course. Later in the day a producer who knew a good thing when she heard it brought in a couple of "experts" to discuss the issue. The word "discuss" has an unusual meaning when applied to these talk channels, where a rational exchange of ideas and a meeting of minds is the last thing that they want. Informative discussion is, you see, considered boring in the world of talk television. What sells are raised voices, belligerence and name-calling. The more, the merrier.

This is what we were waiting for?

Before Congress took the month of August off (don't you wish you got as much vacation time?), all the requisite committees in the House of Representatives completed a draft of a health care reform bill. The same was true over in the Senate, with one exception. The Senate Finance Committee, chaired by Democrat Max Baucus of Montana said it needed more time.

But, said the man often cited as one of the best cross-aisle negotiators in the Congress, given a little more time he could do what no one else had; put forth a truly bipartisan reform plan. So we spent weeks hearing about the Gang of Six, Baucus plus two other Democrats and three Republicans, who were working 'round-the-clock on the legislation.

It's one year since the deluge. One year since the collapse of Lehman and the 500 point Dow plunge. So why am I worried that the emperor has no clothes? Now take note, I like this emperor. But I didn't hear one thing in President Barack Obama's speech to Wall Street to convince me we are any less likely to have a repeat of last year's debacle, or that regulatory changes will provide us that protection any time soon.

I know the President has his hands full. But what I see is this. The guy who ran the New York Fed, and was supposed to be keeping an eye on the big money center banks, is now Treasury Secretary. The guy who ran the Federal Reserve, and let the big money center banks grow like Kudzu until they threatened to destroy the world if they imploded, and let those same banks take on so much risk they did implode, will now, pending Senate approval, continue to run the Fed for many years to come. The idea of a consumer protection agency for Wall Street seems to be a non-starter on Capitol Hill. Ditto the idea of restraining Fannie and Freddie, which are still bleeding all over the taxpayer's balance sheet. And all the regulators and the various committees of Congress which oversee them are engaged in a massive turf battle over who will regulate what. Meanwhile, whatever regulation there is of Wall Street, is for the most part taking place behind closed doors.

There's got to be something in the water down in South Carolina. You'd think we'd be talking about the substance of President Barack Obama's address to Congress on health care. Instead the talk of the 24/7 chat fests online and on cable has been about Rep. Joe Wilson, the South Carolina Republican who yelled out, "You Lie" as the President promised that his proposed health care reform would not provide insurance to illegal immigrants.

That outburst broke the strict protocol of the House of Representatives. Members can, and do, call each other every name in the book when they're off the floor. But on the floor they are not even supposed to use personal names. It's "the distinguished gentlemen from the state of where-ever" or "the honorable gentlewoman from this place or that." It all makes things a little boring, if you ask me and I'm not sure where this tradition came from. Members of the Continental Congress were experts at name calling and disputes not infrequently rose to the physical, duels with walking sticks right on the floor. To this day members of the British Parliament heckle each other and government leaders during the Prime Minister's question hour. It makes for a much better show.

When I got the email saying that Microsoft and Nokia would be making an announcement about a new partnership I was excited. I was all ready to hear that Nokia would make a Windows branded smartphone running the Windows Mobile operating system. That meant a big app store and a system anyone who downloads a free copy of Microsoft's Visual Basic Express or Visual C# Express can program. Alas, it's not to be.

Now the deal they did announce today, which will bring Microsoft's Office apps to Nokia's Symbian smartphone platform, should be a money maker for both companies. And give Blackberry a few headaches. But I still dream of a true competitor to the Apple iPhone, which is one of the neatest toys around. The only reason I don't have one is that in the part of the world I inhabit, Verizon is the best wireless system by far.

Windows Mobile on Nokia? Apparently neither company is interested. I guess I still have to dream of the day AT&T loses it's exclusive on the iPhone.