Thoughts on Three of the Day's News Stories

  Some thoughts on some of the news of the day:

 President Biden, Keep Your Promise

  President Biden, when a candidate, promised to "end dark money groups," according to a Washington Post story that referenced information from a publication known as The Daily 202. As a candidate, Biden promised he would ensure that "any entity of any kind that spends more than $10,000 on federal elections . . . must publicly disclosed its donors."  

  Overturning the present dark money rules -- some of which were instituted during the Trump administration five months before the election -- might be a little more uncomfortable for President Biden than it was for candidate Biden, though. The new dark money allowance ended up benefiting Biden, as his campaign took in $145 million in dark money, compared to only $28.4 million for Donald Trump. (The Trump-era changes increased some nonprofits ability to campaign for a candidate while concealing their names.)

  Roll back the Trump-era errors. No, go further, President Biden. Do as you promised in the campaign. If anyone spends more than $10,000 on a federal election -- whether contributing directly to the campaign or operating as a PAC -- require them to reveal their identity. In fact, lower it to $5,000 or even $1,000, if you will. 

Rep. Owens Deserved a Setting-Straight, and got it

   Utah Rep. Burgess Owens deserved -- and received -- a setting straight after going on Fox News Monday and saying, "My city of Salt Lake City, they defunded (police) by $5 million and the murder rate went up 40 percent."

   The Salt Lake Tribune came back the next day, noting that while some funding was moved off the police department's ledger, the overall funding for police went up from $79.1 million to $82.2 million. Homicides did increase from 12 to 16 in a twelve month period, but in a city with a low homicide rate, just a difference of few can translate into a large percentage, in this case, 33 percent. (Where Owens got 40 percent is not clear.)

TaylorMED's Inexpensive MRIs Help Hold Down Medical Costs

   TaylorMED MRI in Lindon, Utah, is offering pricing that counters today's high medical costs. While an MRI typically might cost $2,611 nationwide, TaylorMED offers it for $399. So, TaylorMED, though operating outside of the insurance network and therefore requiring the payment all out-of-pocket, still sometimes is less expensive than the hospitals, since many insurance plans have high deductibles. 

   TaylorMED, created by Kevin Taylor, who trained at the Mayo Clinic, does not require a doctor's referral, and scheduling is possible within a day or two, if not on a walk-in basis. Once you have the MRI, you take it to your doctor for evaluation.