But Anyway...Thoughts on Healthcare Reform

I've been seeing on the news this week how some of the town hall meetings that members of Congress are having about healthcare reform are being disrupted by loud, obnoxious and pissed off citizens. Interestingly it seems that through some sort of cosmic fate that this is only happening where Democratic members of Congress are holding meetings.

But anyway.

Since most of these meetings are being held during the daytime, I'm seeing via media coverage that a lot of older people an others not at work seem to be filling up these meetings.

But anyway.

There's been debate on whether these rabble-rousers are part of a coordinated effort by the Republican Party to gin up some fake "astro-turf" (as in fake grass roots) protest against health care reform so as to kill it on behalf of the big business health insurance and pharma companies that are so important to the Republican campaign coffers.

But anyway.

Yes, but anyway...lets pause for a moment on this. Lets assume that the people causing all the ruckus are not the unwitting pawns of the right wing. No. Lets give them their due and assume that they are, in fact, simple middle class citizens and the retired concerned that reforming the healthcare system is a scary proposition that they don't want to see happen. Lets take their word on that.

My assertion is, if this is all true, that these people are gravely misguided and offer a look at what's wrong with the USA and not some sort of rebellion to be admired.

Lets analyze a few aspects of this for a minute:

Fighting for what's hurting them the most. It's funny (as in tragic) how people are so ready to defend the very system that is killing them. In some cases actually killing them. In the same way that people are duped into voting for conservative politicians espousing "family values" only to have them - once elected - ignore that and bend over backwards for the big business that are outsourcing jobs, enabling huge tax cuts for the rich and getting us into wars that kill mostly poor kids...people who could REALLY benefit for healthcare reform are willing to line up against it in the name of vague notions of "America" or "freedom." Lets be straight here. The free market is strangling our healthcare system. It is the reason we're in such dire straights with healthcare, not the answer to our problems. For indeed, the primary motivation of our healthcare system is spectacular and short term (quarterly) profit and it is not providing insurance, access and care. You can see where that has got us. Like those HMOs? Until incentives for profit are aligned with providing access to care and actual care (or eliminating those incentives) nothing will change.

So I ask, why do people defend the very thing that's bringing us all down?

"I want my country back!" This is one line chanted by the crowds. Yeah, get your country back from what? What do you not have now that you had six months ago? The only thing that's changed is that there's a different president from a different party and that same party controls Congress. Is that what those people are talking about? Upset that McCain/Palin and the Republican party took a beating in 2008? OK, well, fine. But, that's not a reason to abdicate your senses. Or, is the notion here that people want to go back to the good old days of W? Or maybe an earlier time than that? Is that what these people want back? Good old boys running things? That worked out pretty well for most of us. The whole "I want my country back" rings quite hollow to me and is a give-away that many of these protesters are disconnected from reality at best.

The claim that "this is socialism." Bibles in hand, protesters say that the proposed healthcare reform is socialism and soon people in government will be passing judgement on who lives or dies. First off, the USA has is such a conservative country that it has no conception of what socialism is. Literally, one guy said, "Get the government out of my Medicare." Really? As Bill Maher said, that's like driving across the country to protest highways.

In reality, some of the most successful and rock solid programs in our nation's history are "socialism" by the definitions being bandied around these days. You like a little thing called the US Army? How about your local fire department, police force or public trauma center? Oh, and how about those roads you drive on to go to Starbucks and to see your family? You think having some money coming your way after you retire or get laid off is good? And how about the healthcare your grandmother gets from Medicare? What if all these things were private and to get the services you had to subscribe to a private company to get them...if you could afford to?

All of the services I've named above, and many more, are by definition "socialized" programs in the good old U.S.A. that we all benefit from. Most the rest of the civilized world has long ago figured out that healthcare is one of the things that we all benefit from having too...and yes, many have socialized that to some degree or the other. Want to know what most of the 36 countries rated with better healthcare systems than we have in common? Most have a socialized component of their system and guaranteed coverage.

Finally, you want to wave around your Bible as some sort of protest to socialism? Jesus Christ. No literally, Jesus Christ. He was, by the modern definition of it, a socialist. Read the frickin' book.

A broken system will yield sharp objects. In the end, protesting against healthcare reform for whatever reason is the ultimate folly because the current system is broke to the degree that it is not good for anyone. Sure, there is more than one way to reform healthcare, but any way you slice it...if reform fails now and status quo holds serve, the problem will not go away. And the problem is so intertwined with the rest of the economy that letting it rot further is not the answer. Nope. It's only gonna get worse if not tackled now. Think about this: when that Baby Boom Generation really starts to hit in there and sucks up healthcare dollars and services, the shit's really gonna hit the fan. You think that mob is not gonna be waving Bibles and signs? I don't. I think they'll be wielding more potent instruments.

I think you can see that, taking the town hall disrupters at their word, my assertion is that they are misguided and way off base. I'd bet you a beer (a decent one too) that 100% of protesters this week actually benefit from a socialized service and that the majority either know someone or themselves directly benefit from Medicare or Medicaid. Ignorance breeds bad decisions and I think that's what we're seeing here.

But anyway, I'm sure Twitter, John and Kate (plus their eight) and Paula Abdul will solve all these problems. What am I all worked up for?

Tea-Baggers: Hypocites, Rubes or Both?

Gatherings of like-minded anti-tax citizens earned wide media coverage this week as part of a conservative-sponsored "Tea-Bagging" day. The meetups were to protest the notion that Americans pay too much tax and that we should not be pleased by emergency government investment in certain sectors to help save key industries like banking, lending, auto manufacturing and real estate.

The tea reference alludes to the Boston Tea Party in which wealthy white aristocrats dressed up as Native Americans and went "tea-bagging." In the parlance of the times, this means they dumped bags of British tea into Boston Harbor in protest over the notion that American colonist should not be forced to pay a tax on tea by a government in which they had no representation. That, and, the tax in question was also part of the larger Tea Tax law that actually made British tea cheaper overall...cheaper than the previously low price Dutch tea that many in the Americas bought from smugglers. That had something to do with it too, but you don't hear much about that.

Anyway, the phrase "tea-bagging" that protesters initially used for their actions this week has a more modern sexual connotation. So, it's kinda funny for a bunch of conservatives to openly be participating in "tea-bagging." But, there's been plenty to chuckling over that already. So, lets set that aside.

Lets also set aside for the moment that overall, income tax rates are lower today than they were when Republicans ran things in the Regan era...and certainly lower than the Eisenhower or Nixon administrations.

Lets set aside the fact that one of the key contributing factors to the economic crisis our nation now faces is exactly the supply-side, deregulation/small government, deference to corporate America, tax cutting economic religion that conservatives so love to talk about.

And finally, lets set aside the fact that unlike Colonial tea partiers, today's Americans do elect their government representatives.

No, instead, to measure the credibility of these modern day tax protesters, lets do a little experiment. Lets look at the front page a newspaper from a city in a conservative area - one that has covered the tea-partyers festivities recently. Lets look at the Charleston Post & Courier from April 16.

From their featured story, you can see that there was quite a turnout in Charleston, SC to "protest" taxation overall and government investment to save or salvage key industries. OK, now, lets see how many other stories on that front page include or relate to services provided by public tax money. There are a lot actually, but here are just four:

• There's a story here about a student arrested for trying to stab his teacher. Do tax protesters like the fact that there were police who could intervene here and arrest the suspect? How about the fact that there was a school in the first place, not to mention roads for the teacher, students and police to get to and from the property?

• And oh, over here there's another story about a chili cook off to raise funds so a local middle school can afford computers for its classrooms. So....right. Don't tax me, but why is it that I have to throw a chili cook off to make sure my kid can learn some computer skills in school?

• And, here's one about the state senate having to cut $202 million from the budget - a move that will mean significantly cutting police, social services and environmental and economic development programs. And why? The governor won't accept Federal stimulus money.

• And, perhaps most telling, here is this story about a Charleston high school student who has filed a lawsuit in attempts to force the governor of South Carolina to accept $700 million in Federal stimulus funds to help keep government services, most importantly schools, up and running during the financial crisis. Parents are holding chili cook offs to raise money for computers in their kids' classrooms while the state government contemplates gutting major social services...and the governor is un-accepting of Federal funds to help in all of these areas because of some conservative small government belief that the Feds shouldn't be spending money on states' matters? Wow.

You get my point? These people out protesting "too much taxation" in an era of relatively low taxation or "socialist government" in an crisis instigated by unfettered capitalism can only be doing so if they are purposefully trying to be hypocritical for short term political gain...or because they are, well, stupid. Yes, stupid rubes being used as pawns by wealthy conservatives who don't have any interest in their lives, but can gin them up on the notion that "the liberals" are jacking them around with taxes and "socialism." How else can you explain how reality so diametrically opposes the anti-tax rhetoric?

In either of these cases - the protest is fake. It's not real. If followed through upon it would mean more financial ruin for the very people holding up the signs and shouting out the slogans at rallies this week...but also spectacular wealth for a very, very few people and corporations.

Look, I don't like taxes just as much as the next person, and yes I know there are certain taxes that could be done away with that would make our lives a little better. No argument. But, I think many people - and certainly the media - is missing the boat here. These protests are manufactured events created to try and generate a perception that Americans are over taxed and don't want the government "interfering" with anything. The truth is, we're not over-taxed compared to our history or to the rest of the world today.

Another truth is that, just like the original "tea-baggers" of 1776, the rallies this week were orchestrated by a bunch of wealth aristocrats and business owners who don't want to pay taxes - and who don't like the way the government now is trying to bring back some sanity and equity to society.