Health Care Histrionics: What's Behind the Angry Folks at Town Hall Meetings?

Some members of Congress holding town hall meetings on health care this month have been met with unruly, rude, and occasionally armed constituents. If this wasn't such an ugly scene, it could be a Monty Python sketch: An angry mob of Americans literally up in arms over . . . access to affordable health care.

A deeply disturbing part of watching hand-gun toting people shout angry words (and presumably some spittle) into the face of a member of Congress has been the racism on display during these theatrics. It is deplorable, intolerable and must be condemned on the spot by everyone, and particularly by any elected official in the room.

As to those who say they are motivated solely by displeasure with government policy, I understand deep dissatisfaction with government after spending eight years being very angry about the actions of George Bush and Dick Cheney. Among many nightmarish decisions, Bush and Cheney took our country to war - war, for gosh sakes - and the rationale given to Americans for doing so was a lie. In contrast, President Obama wants to provide Americans with health care; folks, health care reform is not a reason for mass public insanity.

What is the same between the two situations is that lies are coming from right-wing extremists, many of whom earn their living spinning fabrications and calling it truth.

Here is the truth people: There is no proposal for the creation of so-called death panels. There is no proposal to end the care of the critically ill to cut costs. Anyone who tells you a different story is promoting their own agenda, looking to line their own pocket, and using you as a tool to their own ends.

It's time to end the histrionics. This discussion about health care reform is important. Asking questions is good. But don't let the people motivated by racism, or their own ego and economic interest, derail something as important as making sure all Americans get the medical care they need.

To the Opponents of the President's Health Care Reform Plan: Why Do You Hate America?

To the Congressional opponents of health care reform, and their pals: So, you like the status quo on health care, eh? But what was that your friend Sarah Palin said? Only dead fish go with the flow.

The facts support implementing health care reform now. For example, according to a report published last June by the White House Council of Economic Advisers:

[H]ealthcare spending, which currently accounts for about 18 percent of the country's economic output, could reach 34 percent by 2040 if the current rate of cost growth continues. The report called that outlook "unsustainable."

Most working Americans with health insurance get it through their employers and the study said rising costs have increased insurance premiums and cut into workers' wages. A reform that reins in costs would improve economic efficiency and boost economic output by more than 2 percent in 2020 and by 8 percent in 2030, the report concluded.

That would translate into $2,600 in higher income for a family of four in 2020, rising to $10,000 by 2030, the report said. Since about half of healthcare costs are paid by federal, state and local governments, their budgets also would benefit greatly by reform, it said.

Providing medical coverage to the uninsured will also help the economy by improving the overall well-being of the work force -- providing a net benefit to the economy of about $100 billion a year, the report said.

Without the overhaul, the number of uninsured Americans would rise to about 72 million in 2040, it said.

(Via Reuters).

The status quo cannot continue. Let's just get the necessary changes done now, folks.

Check out the full video of last night's press conference by President Obama on the topic of health care reform.

Peggy Noonan on Sarah Palin

Peggy Noonan's column this week in the Wall Street Journal is about Sarah Palin.

Ms. Noonan, don't hold back; tell us what you really think about Palin:

In television interviews she [Palin] was out of her depth in a shallow pool. She was limited in her ability to explain and defend her positions, and sometimes in knowing them. She couldn't say what she read because she didn't read anything. She was utterly unconcerned by all this and seemed in fact rather proud of it: It was evidence of her authenticity. She experienced criticism as both partisan and cruel because she could see no truth in any of it. She wasn't thoughtful enough to know she wasn't thoughtful enough. Her presentation up to the end has been scattered, illogical, manipulative and self-referential to the point of self-reverence. "I'm not wired that way," "I'm not a quitter," "I'm standing up for our values." I'm, I'm, I'm.

In another age it might not have been terrible, but here and now it was actually rather horrifying.

Read the rest here.

More on Greta

When last we bothered to look at the career-doings of Fox News talking-head Greta Van Susteren, she was flailing around for phony ways to criticize President Obama. Now Chris Cillizza at the Washington Post reports that Greta's husband, Washington lawyer John Coale, is a close adviser to failed Vice Presidential candidate, current Alaskan Governor, and potential candidate for who-knows-what, Sarah Palin.

How charming.



(Via The Huffington Post)

Dick Cavett: The Wild Wordsmith of Wasilla

From the New York Times, Dick Cavett posts a piece called The Wild Wordsmith of Wasilla, which starts out as follows:

"Electronic devices dislike me. There is never a day when something isn’t ailing. Three out of these five implements — answering machine, fax machine, printer, phone and electric can-opener — all dropped dead on me in the past few days.

"Now something has gone wrong with all three television sets. They will only get Sarah Palin. . . ." (Link to the rest of this piece.)

Governor Palin Says She's Got First Amendment Rights, Dang It

Political Party Symbols

Almost every American knows this about the major political parties: Democrats = Donkey. Republicans = Elephant. So, what's wrong with this picture? Link

Garrison Keillor on McCain - Palin

Feeling sluggish this Monday morning? Garrison Keillor's brisk and crisp opinion piece on the McCain - Palin ticket will kick-start "the little grey cells."

McCain/Palin Lie to the American People During Their Campaign. Won't They Lie Again if Elected to Serve?

How hard is it to name, at a minimum, the leading newspaper in Alaska? What conclusions about Governor Palin can reasonably be drawn from the interview?

Bush, Palin, the Economy - and Snow in the Forecast

Odd things are going on. As with all things unpleasant, I blame George Bush because he can always be found somewhere in the causation chain. Here are a few of the oddities:

Conservatives, who typically decline to argue among themselves in public, are arguing among themselves in public over Sarah Palin according to a story by James Rainey in the Los Angeles Times.

Economic instability continues. Although yesterday former Labor Secretary Robert Reich was on MSNBC with the most sensible comments of the day.




And, it's going to snow on Mars.

T.G.I.F.

"Tell me when its over."

Unlike Tiger, above, who has decided to check out of current events, the rest of us have to pay attention, and it's been a long week. The financial system crisis, John McCain in grid-lock, and Sarah Palin uttering nonsense on t.v.

At the L.A. Times, James Rainey has a review of Governor Palin's performance during her interview with Katie Couric. Mr. Rainey succinctly, and fairly, identifies the the Governor's knowledge gap. Her very real absence of the knowledge required to lead the country in the event that 72-year-old John McCain could not is disturbing.

McCain reportedly will participate in tonight's Presidential debate. It will be interesting to watch. Then we can turn to something more relaxing: Big Ten Football.

T.G.I.F.

Bill Clinton: America's Most Selfish Adult

You may be asking, "How could Bill Clinton be America's most selfish adult?" What about all those financial industry folks whose greed has corrupted politics and made hash of the financial system? What about obsessive leaders of religious cults? Sure, those folks are selfish, too. Here's the difference.

Bill Clinton puts himself into roles in which he is to act for the public good. For example, take his oath as a lawyer. A lawyer's advocacy for a client is tempered by one thing: upholding the integrity of the judicial system, which really means putting first what is in the best interest of the community. Another obvious example is Bill Clinton asking the community to put him into positions of public trust as Governor of Arkansas (yeah, yeah, Arkansas, right -- nonetheless!) and, of course, as President of the United States of America.

What happened in Arkansas can stay in Arkansas. As for the White House, from a policy standpoint, am I glad that a Democrat was President from 1993 - 2000? Yes, of course. From a 'politics as theater' standpoint, was I glad that that Democrat was Bill Clinton? Not always.

Representative government is supposed to be about the people, not the politician. You, my literate and well-read friends, know that Mr. Clinton has on occasion put his personal - very personal - interests ahead of the public interest (don't forget the pardon-mess at the end). Politicians, like all of us, mess-up at times. But this wasn't a state legislator or obscure Florida Congressman chasing underage Congressional pages. Mr. Clinton was the President.

Maybe you've forgiven all of that. Maybe you don't think that the attitudes and behaviors of Bill Clinton while in the White House contributed to making the road tougher for Senator Gore in his presidential run. Maybe. But knowing all of that history, all of those facts, let's look at the present.

What irks today, and why I think Bill Clinton is America's most selfish adult, is that he is not helping the Democratic nominee, Senator Obama, win the White House. Instead, Bill Clinton appears to be helping John McCain.

* He invites John McCain to speak at the Clinton Global Initiative conference, and gives McCain a lavish introduction. As Jonathan Martin points out, that invite probably wouldn't have happened if Hillary Clinton were the nominee.

* Clinton is on the Today show defending McCain's suggestion to postpone the Presidential debate.

* Clinton appears on the David Letterman show, discusses the Presidential election, and does not even mention Senator Obama's name. Comedian Chris Rock appeared on the show after Clinton. In case you haven't seen it, here is Rock's response at the Huffington Post.

* While he appears unable to take opportunies to praise the Democratic nominee for President, Clinton has pleanty of praise for Sarah Palin.

What possible explanation is there for the former leader of the Democratic Party to be such a wimp about campaigning for Senator Obama? The only reason I can think of is that he is completely self-centered.

Some day in the future Hillary Clinton may run again to be the Democratic nominee for President. If she does there is only one way for her to get my vote: divorce Bill Clinton.

For Your Lunch Break: David Letterman Rips On Senator McCain

When newspapers were the dominant medium for mass communication, the old saying was never antagonize folks who buy ink by the barrel (the actual old saying was a little saltier). Today, never antagonize folks who are on t.v., and subsequently YouTube.

Here is David Letterman's reaction to John McCain canceling his appearance on Letterman's show.

Big Problems. Little Problems.

 

There are many big problems right now. Our military is still engaged in a war in Iraq. Crisis is striking the nation's financial markets due to unfettered greed combined with the chowderheaded, anti-government, anti-regulation platitudes and attitudes of Congressional Republicans and George Bush and his administration.

If that isn't bad enough, the GOP has also nominated an incompetent person for vice president and an unprincipled person for president, John McCain. John McCain has for decades promoted the environment from which today's financial crisis has emerged. And the federal government that these Republicans have demonized and cannibalized must now step in and fix everything. This situation is . . . aggravating.

Yes, things are a mess. And in the middle of all this, small problems remain. Those leaves outside the house will fall, and the gutters must be cleaned, a job the New York Times calls "one of the dirtiest and most dangerous chores around the home."

To retain my sanity with respect to the big problems, I will continue to do what I can in the next few weeks to elect the candidate of my choice for President, Senator Barack Obama. And as for the little problems, I will consider some of these tips on gutter management from today's New York Times. These are small steps but as the cliche goes (and with leaf-management on my mind): from a tiny acorn grows the mighty oak.

Food and Drink

Quick: Who would be a more competent leader of this nation, Sarah Palin or Martha Stewart?

My answer is Martha Stewart. Martha has that little felony conviction issue, of course, but should that disqualify her? (I don't know if there is any statute prohibiting the President or V.P. from having a felony conviction; shoot me an email if you do know). The conviction may make it impractical for her to be VP. Wait a minute. What am I thinking? With the selection of Sarah Palin it's clear that there are no barriers when it comes to becoming a GOP nominee!

The point is that American knows more about Martha Stewart and her decision making process than we know about Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. And based upon Ms. Stewart's record, we know that she just would not endorse something, such as war, unless it met her rigorous standards.

We can count on Martha Stewart. For example, are you looking for an excellent lemon meringue pie? Her recipe for Mile High Lemon Pie, found in The Martha Stewart Cook Book and pictured above, is the best. The meringue on my pie burned a bit, which is not Martha's fault.

In sum, we know that Ms. Stewart is competent and capable. Sarah Palin . . . not so much.

Maureen Dowd Today

Good column from Maureen Dowd this morning: "The really scary part of the Palin interview was how much she seemed like W. in 2000, and not just the way she pronounced nu-cue-lar. She had the same flimsy but tenacious adeptness at saying nothing, the same generalities and platitudes, the same restrained resentment at being pressed to be specific, as though specific is the province of silly eggheads, not people who clear brush at the ranch or shoot moose on the tundra."

Mexico. It's right there. Or, maybe a little to the left. Anyway it's near by.

Dowd continues, "Asked by Charlie Gibson what insight into Russian actions her Alaskan proximity gave her, Sarah blithely replied: “They’re our next-door neighbors. And you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska.”

Wow. Sometimes I can actually see Mexico from Arizona. Sometimes when I'm in Buffalo, N.Y., I can actually see Canada. I have so much international-viewing experience, and am so ready to lead this nation.

The Governor Palin Interview. Here She Is. Cue Bert Parks.

Governor Palin's voice sounds very familiar. It reminds me of a voice from a sketch on the Garrison Keillor radio program: the Minnesota dialect. I'd like to hear her say, "Let's have a cup of coffee."



While watching the YouTube clip, above, I was so hoping that that the former beauty pageant participant would tell us that what she really wants 'Charlie, is world peace.'

And, gosh, this is not to put down the Gov's participation in beauty pageants. From what I understand, these pageants are all about the scholarship money. Why bother with attempting to fill out financial aid forms when you could instead just fill out a swimsuit!

Gov. Palin . . . Still and Again

It's Sunday and as much as I try to not think or read about John McCain and Sarah Palin, I'm not able to stop. It's like a mosquito buzzing around your ear or having a canker sore inside your mouth: annoying.

Palin, who could be President of the United States in a few weeks, has thus far not been available for press interviews. Presumably, she is busy memorizing sound bites that she will use at some future date. Huffington Post is reporting that ABC News will conduct an interview with her sometime next week.

If you were preparing someone like Palin to be President in a couple of weeks, what would your candidate need to know? Middle East. Status of war in Iraq. Immigration.

How to spell potato.

The McCain/Palin team isn't wowing everyone. The L.A. Times went to Pennsylvania, a key battle ground state, to get a reaction on Palin from women voters there. Not everyone loved the Gov:

When Palin belittled Obama's history as a community organizer on Chicago's South Side -- suggesting he was a do-little activist while she, as the former mayor of tiny Wasilla, Alaska, had "actual responsibilities" -- Sandy Ryan, 59, clicked the remote. "That's enough of that. I switched over to 'House Hunters,' " she said with some disgust over dessert with a group of women from the senior housing complex she manages.

Check out the whole article.

And, let's get fired up and ready to go.






This little dog is waiting for answers. Waiting for change. Waiting.