Support this bill and Joe Biden will feed this hungry puppy-or how to sell anything to Democrats.
Read Time:3 Minute, 35 Second
It’s my recent observation that no matter how heinous a piece of legislation is, if there appears to be a kernel of good within, Democrats will support it. Nuke Iran? Abolish the public school system ? Waterboard all our firemen ? Yeah all of these actions would be analogous to what Arnold said in “Predator” after striking the alien – “Bad idea” – but if it keeps the puppy fed it’s all worth it.
Democrat 1:
Nuke Iran? Millions of innocent people would die. There’s no proof they’re a threat.And they may retaliate!
Democrat 2:
But the puppy.
Maybe far-fetched but it worked with the HIBOB, Health Insurance Bailout Bill. Children aren’t dogs and no price should be put on a child’s life-but don’t you think for maybe 100 or so billion a year we citizens might have gotten a little more in exchange for being forced to purchase a really crappy product from a really corrupt industry? And then subsidize it with our tax dollars?
How about caps on lifetime and yearly insurance payouts. Important and timely and desperately needed. But last I knew the loophole Harry reintroduced into the Senate Bill-“unreasonable cap limits” is still in there.
Or no more denial due to preexisting conditions. It doesn’t start till 2014 for adults, although there’s a 5 billion dollar high risk pool for the interim. For kids, it starts in 6 months. But I just found out it’s only for insured kids. Kids without insurance don’t fall into the 6 months category, they have to stay alive till 2014. Oh wait, the high risk pool ? Well according the Dept of Health and Human Services it will exhaust in 2011 or 2012. And you have to be uninsured for at least six months to get in the line.
No limit on insurance company rate hikes. None.
Where do you go to appeal your insurance company ripping you off ? You go right back to them and ask them to review it. That’s the appeals process. Or if they drop you cause you’re sick too much, what then? Since the bill doesn’t empower any regulatory group you just have to go to your state insurance commissioner like you would now. There are some states which have a 100.00 a day fine for this type of thing if it’s proven. It can be cheaper for an insurance company to wait you out, gambling that you’ll die before the 100.00 a day fines equal the amount saved by denying you service.
I could go on but those few of you not figuratively skipping through the White House Rose Garden wearing party hats and blowing horns and giggling get the message-this is the industry the skipping giggling party hatted horn blowers are so happy to be bailing out and they ain’t giving much in return.
Ever wonder who wrote the Senate bill ? According to Max Baucus who extolled her on the House floor it was Liz Fowler, former VP of Wellpoint.
We can all agree Obama/Pelosi/Reid are intelligent people. If I were to accept the fervent belief of Democrats that there was nothing underhanded about the Big Pharma Deal or any of the behind the scenes machinations reported in the Nation and Huffington and this whole thing was totally on the up and up-if I accept you guys belief that this bill was the best that the Administration could do-then realistically what chance is there for real reform ?
If raining 100 billion dollars a year upon an already wealthy industry could only produce this almost comically weak piece of crap-how do you possibly envision real reform? If it takes 100 billion dollars a year of working Americans earnings to produce this dross-what type of investment would it take to regulate the industry Democrats are so eager to fund?
Obama and Pelosi and Reid didn’t put a foot in the door-they put a gun to our head, took our watches and wallets and shoes and handed them over to the folks who fund their reelection campaigns while we cheer. And cheer some more. And get all teary eyed. Until we realize our valuables are gone and we’re standing in the rain and the bus left. And we still don’t have affordable health care.
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I’m not fond of sayin’, just askin’ …. Too much quanta … just too much…..
Always with you Vigil. Too much or too little or not enough.I’m just sayin’….:-) 🙂
Oso, I am with you. As you know I am a supporter of the prez but I think he screwed the pooch on this thing about 7 or 8 months ago. He certainly screwed it up after the State of the Union address. You may recall my piece on “The Tree”. Well, he called out the Republicans, threw down the gauntlet, and stood there and watched as everyone fumbled around. He was still trying trying to make peace with the Barbarians as they were ripping and tearing down his door, gate, wall, and anything else they could. In the end the same people hate him that hated him before. No one is giving him any more credit for trying to be Mr. Nice Guy than before than would have then. The Democrats in the senate who would not line up with the President should have been told that there would a major price to pay for not toeing the party line. The Republicans who were simply saying no to anything that was being offered no matter how beneficial it was to the American people should have received a message (behind the scenes) that they could kiss their earmarks good bye. Like Clinton Obama should have told them that if they wanted filibuster to bring it on and do it for real and it you want to shut down the government, so be it. The health care bill was that important to this country. In that regard, the President disappointed me. When you take on something this important you don’t back down and you don’t hand it off to others to handle you fight for you.
So let me get this straight. The president should have allowed the Republicans to shut down the entire government thus costing millions of workers millions of dollars in lost wages, not to mention all things government screeching to a halt. All national parks close, all regulatory services, and etc. Well that makes perfectly good sense. Sure. That’s what he should have done.
In addition, and I want to make sure I understand:
You write:
When you take on something this important you don’t back down and you don’t hand it off to others to handle you fight for you.
I am confused and I know it is a short trip but are you talking about President Obama? The guy who traveled from one end of the country to the other campaigning for health care reform? The guy who not only stumped across the nation but gave press conference after press conference in an effort to apply pressure on those reluctant Democrats by actually explaining the bill and dispelling the myths perpetrated by the Republicans? The guy who held meeting after meeting with Republicans and Democrats alike in an effort to achieve bi-partisanship which would have improved the existing bill? You don’t mean the same president who canceled a long planned overseas trip to stay in Washington to make sure the legislation made its way to his desk? Are you talking about the same president who spearheaded landmark legislation the likes of which haven’t been seen since the enactment of Medicare? This is the guy who just gave up and handed it off to “others,” whoever they may be?
I just want to make sure we are talking about the same guy. Vigil is fond of saying’..”I’m just sayin’,” so I’m just sayin’…..
Oso, you’re the man! Still driving in nails with that sledgehammer! HIBOB is CRAP! The fly-over states’ ignorance has trumped potentially intelligent and productive legislation yet again. Even when they stand to have gained the most from it.
I’ll stop now…. (before I go off the tracks on the propriety scale) I haven’t read Mike’s COMMENT POLICY.
Oh Man! I forgot about the comment policy. Thanks Vigil 🙂
Lots of Democrats are disappointed with final bill. But it is something to build on. When the Social Security Act was passed in the 1930s, half the population were not covered, including the vast majority of women and practically all minorities, it has been improved over the decades and it is still not perfect. I have read so many contradictory pro and con arguments on what’s in the bill it’s becoming hard to know what’s what any more. The stance I am taking is, if the hardcore right is against it, it must be OK.
Oso writes:
“Waterboard all our firemen?”
ROFLMAO!! I needed that this morning my friend and welcome back, but I don’t want to take your post lightly. On the contrary it is food for serious thought.
As to HCR you know how I feel. It is a beginning. Would I have preferred something more? Absolutely. Then again do I wish I could be driving a Mercedes as opposed to a Toyota? Absolutely. I can’t afford the Mercedes right now, but if I work it right some day..some day…I don’t give up hope. I am just glad I have some form of transportation.
Bottom line: We barely managed to get what we got because of fierce opposition from Republicans and Democrats alike. I wanted Single Payer. Maybe a Public Option? Didn’t happen because of the opposition. Again we were lucky to get what we got. Was I disappointed? Hell yes! But the practical as opposed to the emotional part of me took over and I realized after much weeping and gnashing of teeth that this was the first step up a long ladder. I am convinced that universal health care is at the top. We just have to get there. It will be a long hard climb but at least there is a ladder.
P.S. The post on hungry pets was already scheduled complete with beautiful German shepherd puppy picture. It in no way is linked to the incredible coincidence of Oso’s post and Joe (BFD) Biden’s equally beautiful German shepherd puppy. It is a coincidence. It really is. I’m not kidding 🙂 🙂
I was going to delete my original comment but apparently that’s not an option.
So, Oso, my friend – and a very bright one at that – the bill has passed. It is the law, period. It’s time to quit looking back, to move on, to work for new amendments that will help bring about those things you feel are needed.
You’ve been expressing your frustration for some time now, which is fine, but the law is on the books. Move forward. Organize a movement to get additional amendments. It will happen in time.
Ain’t nothing in life perfect.
This is not reform, it’s the beginning of healthcare regulation and it is a “wait and see” how affective it is. I fervently hope that this is just the beginning of a series of congressional moves that eventually lead this country to either a non-profit insurance industry, or a single payer national system. It is a high priced gamble, but the only one our Congress was willing to make. Sad, but true, and still a victory in the grand scheme of American things.
You have the right to your views and to express them. I have the right to fart and pass on.
“I could go on but those few of you not fig u ra tively skip ping through the White House Rose Gar den wear ing party hats and blow ing horns and gig gling get the message-this is the indus try the skip ping gig gling party hat ted horn blow ers are so happy to be bail ing out and they ain’t giv ing much in return.” very funny… and point taken!
Oso~! dude, you have me thinking… and I appreciate this review of Health Care. Doubtless you know that I was of the clan of “we don’t much like it but it makes some needed headway” yet, where you are leading with these posts is not just informative, they sway. They sway.
Good job.
🙂