Lies, Rammed Down Our Throats

Is there no responsibility in the media? Is there no conscience? It seems that any idiot willing to let the cameras roll can be a "source" of information these days. The thinly veiled lies that confound us at every turn are fabricated by a tiny fraction of the population. The media's urge to record pent up frustration flowing out with no concern for anyone, anything, or even the truth has led us to see the position of the few as ubiquitous among the public generally. This too is a lie.

As Jay Leno painfully documented last week on his program, there seems to be a standing wave created by using the mantra, "crammed down our throats". Especially as it relates to health care. When I was in journalism, and learning about the field, we were taught that we had a responsibility to the truth. As painful as it can be, the fourth estate has a responsibility to the public that is every bit as important as the Judiciary, Congress or the President. When everyone else wants to look away from our problems, the lies and deceit that they are based on, or the fallacy trumped up and trumpeted as the "public good", truth, good reporting and the honest facts are the only thing that can sway public opinion and give us the necessary cohesion and leverage needed to reign in excessive power in Washington.

Our local television news, (I saw it on CBS, but other stations had the same raving lunatic on as well) had on a congressman who claimed that the US has the best health care in the world. Now, when we are rated at 37th in the world, why would he lie like that? Because it doesn't fit the mantra. The lie that is being perpetrated upon us is that we don't need change. I don't begrudge the congressman his fallacy, but to treat it as truth or news is a violation of our right to good information. There is nothing wrong with having worse health care than Morocco, Chile and Costa Rica, but don't hide behind ignorance or spout lies designed to help your biggest contributors.

We are all being played here. The lies are being perpetrated by special interests. Our interest comes last in their scenario. In our old understanding, the Republicans were supposedly supportive of "small business". Those who could see through the veil of lies understood that only the well-heeled elites held the real power, but the ramshackle underdogs, the little guys who create the most jobs in our economy were unaware, or at least okay with the fact that big dogs run things. Business thrives in an environment of stability and loves the security of hard numbers that can be calculated, ultimately figuring into prices that we all pay to keep them afloat.

Spiraling health care costs have done more to undermine American business than any other factor. Some insurance premiums have more than doubled in the past year, most have jumped 1/3. Oddly enough, insurance providers have nothing to do with actual care. In fact, they often complicate the work providers do and subject the ill to undue scrutiny, aggressive sales tactics and unreasonable limitations on what they will cover, passing huge debt and liability on to those who thought they would be covered by their policies. Businesses cannot adjust their operations to this volatile, and often hidden cost of doing business. The loss of productivity and profitability associated with this one factor requires employers to either stop offering benefits to workers, or to build their empires on shifting sands.

The majority voted for Obama because we wanted change. When the leaders of the past were making bad decisions, we were told "America, love it or leave it." Progressives were painted with a broad brush that implied that we were "Reds", "Commies", "pro-gay", "Anti-family", "Tree Huggers", or worse. More than two years ago, I told all the inspired people who wanted to vote for Obama, "You may really want him to win. You might even get to vote for him. He might even win the election, but after that will you have to fight for him." The sleazy back room deals and the lack of real change only becomes our own fault if we let it continue. Shining the light of truth into the dark corners of government is the only way to rid us of the oppression perpetrated by the current power brokers and their minions. If we do not demand the truth, we will continue to get lies.

Don't let the beneficiaries of "business as usual" cram another lie down our throats. Universal coverage is needed to make sure that we can all get the care we need at a reasonable cost. Remember the old adage, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." It seems that drug companies, insurance companies, and Republicans are the only ones opposed to the positive changes that would come from reform. Access to preventative care for everyone would do the most to improve the health of all Americans. Billions could be saved by just learning how to "get healthy" instead of waiting for crisis before intervening. After a heart attack is not the best time to eat better. Once you have diabetes, exercise won't help as much as if it were a lifelong practice. Learning what we can do now to avert a crisis later on is not only cheaper, but less traumatic, more therapeutic and more fun than what we do now. The current system assures that we all remain complacent, ignorant and sick. Health care has just two words, Health and care. What we have now is disease, with an astounding lack of care.

Confiscatory Taxes to Fund Health System

Now, if you have read many of my posts before, you will know that corporate welfare is one of my chief concerns. Having been part of the welfare system as a child, I know how demeaning and fruitless it is to allow recipients to remain weak, dependent on the dole for their way of life. On the other hand, forcing people to pay for the lifestyles of the rich and famous is even more abhorrent to me. When virtually all of the world's economic powerhouses rely on "socialized medicine" to care for their people, why is it that we saddle the American people with the ballooning cost of "health care"? Business and industry have been allowed to either provide, or not provide care for their workers as suits them. Without the strong unions of years past, there would be no health care included in the salaries of most workers. One of the first things to go when companies hit a hard patch is their insurance programs, especially when the cost of policies start increasing at double digit rates, like they are doing today.
Now there is a new system being considered that would require the least among us to pay the lion's share of the cost of providing "care" to everyone. This only points out the disconnect between the "haves" and the "have not's" in our culture. Those who are doing well see no need to change. They also seem to have very deep pockets for supporting a phalanx of lobbyists who have spent over three billion dollars telling our politicians in Washington what they want and need out of the legislation being considered. Meanwhile, we the people are told by the major media markets that "we place Health-care Legislation way down our list of priorities". I might have missed something, but since when has the "first black" President ever had Congress at his disposal? I assure you that our representatives know where their money comes from. Asking them to bite the hand that feeds them is simply naive.
The only sensible proposal was made before the election, by a then-Senator from Illinois, who said that a preventative approach would save money no matter how much it cost by enhancing health rather than only responding to disease. (Which BTW is much more expensive.) This message has been lost in the bitter cross talk guided by the media and large commercial interests. No one wants a resolution that makes sense or is equitable, unless they realize that business as usual is killing Americans daily. The people who peddle drugs don't want change, unless it means less government oversight and higher profits. Insurance companies don't want change unless it makes them more money and increases the number of people they can exploit for their part in it. Doctors, sadly are in favor of change, but are too busy trying to decipher the new litany of new drugs being put on the market and the myriad of forms insurance companies have come up with to "distinguish themselves in the marketplace".
We voted for the President, many for the first time, because we felt that our voices would be heard. Now, powerful elites want to make us pay for the privilege of basic "health-care". For a country who is 37th in the world as far as health, we desperately need change. We voted for change, we expected change. It would be a shame to have to move to Sierra Leone or Nigeria to receive the better health care that we voted for just over a year ago, but that the wealthiest among us are loathe to accept as worthy of their support.
When all people are given the care that doctors want to be able to provide, think of the massive shift that will take place! Unsatisfied workers could quit unfulfilling jobs that only retain staff because of killer benefits. Start up companies would not have to lose sleep over not being able to care for their employees. People who are only having procedures done because their benefits are running out could wait until procedures are actually needed. The elderly could stop paying insane fees for the "security" of knowing that they will be cared for in their dying moments. Most emergency room visits could be avoided because people could afford to go to their doctors again. In the giant administrative offices of the largest insurance companies, there would be massive lay offs but it can be argued that merely finding ways to weasel out of promised coverage should not be counted as part of our Gross Domestic Product anyway. Imagine a world where human effort was put to actual care and creation of things that had inherent value rather than simply creating larger bottom lines for people who create nothing and only sell a false sense of security.

Republicans Stymie Universal Health Care

Today, Republicans invoked a rarely used procedural dodge to subvert Universal Health care in The United States. They forced the plan, all seven-hundred and some odd pages to be read out loud into the record. Developed by an independent congress person, this document was the best chance American Citizens had for comprehensive Health Care Reform that would protect individuals from the extractive subsidies of a "business as usual" approach to our out of control disease care system. It would have allowed every American to sign up for a medicare-like system in which the sheer number of those enrolled would drive down costs and increase access to services.

Thanks, we really need you (mostly rich, white) guys looking out for our right to no care. We need to shout from the rooftops about the continuing subsidy of large drug companies, insurance companies, and a delivery system that results in outcomes worse than Nigeria and Sierra Leone. If there were ever as reason to think that Republicans were on the ropes, this would be it! The only people afraid of universal coverage are those who are counting on the funds from ultra-wealthy lobbies to get re-elected. Good heavens, when will they learn, the most important part of their job is to represent us. The finger of the average politician, rather than being on the pulse of public will and opinion, is on the speed dial button of their largest donors!

It is criminal that the same representative that proposed the new legislation had to withdraw the proposal because of the amount of time that would be wasted reading the whole document out loud. I guess that most Republicans don't like to read. If we are to regain our place as a well-respected player on the world stage, we need to act like reasonable and compassionate people rather than thugs and poor losers. We voted the Republicans out of both the White House and Congress on purpose. They led us through a time that saw the fastest run up in inequality in the distribution of wealth that has ever occurred on the planet, and jeopardized the world economy because of the unequaled greed exhibited by a few thousand people who are making over one billion dollars per year.