I've been steaming about a proposal the President made recently. I've always suspected that the fool and his supporters think that every problem in American life can be solved by a tax cut.

Dig this: His health care reform proposal is to increase and expand health care savings accounts, the tax shelters where one can squirrel away income, tax-free, for use in paying medical bills.

Obviously, this is a great solution to the 40 million or so Americans without health insurance. The problem isn't that they can't afford health insurance, but that the tax breaks just weren't adequate... This may be the most aggressively insensitive and selfish proposal yet from this bunch. The financial services industry would benefit with increased management fees from the assets in these accounts, the wealthy citizens who save in the accounts would see additional reductions in taxes and high-end medical services would thrive (Denver, I once read, needs two MRI devices to serve its needs--we have 14 in this city).

How does this help the poor and the marginally employed? The favorite example would be the Wal-Mart worker making $8-10 an hour. Throw in a divorce and a child and ask how she is supposed to pay for health insurance that can run to hundreds of dollars a month? With a tax shelter for money she can't set aside?

It's true. This President really thinks tax cuts are the only solution needed in life...

CDs listened to today:

• Ludwig van Beethoven: The String Quartets, disk 6
• Marshall Crenshaw: Life's Too Short
• Benedict Mason: String Quartet No. 1
• Georges Bizet: Carmen Suite No. 2
• Garbage: Beautiful
• Various Artists: The Drum & Bass Sessions 2, disk 1
• Sam Phillips: Fan Dance