Without sinking too far into the Void (the Void being that dark, scary place that is made up of a mix of public opinion, paranoia, and the too-infrequent spark of rational thought), I have been trying to understand the reasons against health care reform and I just... don't.. understand.
I think what confuses me the most is the fear. What are people afraid of, really? Why is there not the same terror over things that actually might kill them, en masse... things like water shortages, food shortages, and a horde of other catastrophic results of the changing climate?
I'm all for dissent, but where was the dissent and outrage when we were about to embark on a war which some of us, even back then, said was ill-conceived? Sure, there were protests, but not this level of outrage and, might I suggest, media support for the opposition. Liberal media bias indeed.
Speaking of terror and fear.. why does it not exist over the future terrorists and America-haters that were created in Iraq, Afghanistan.. and other places surely to come?
No.. the thing we are afraid of most is...
heath care reform and a public option?
Seriously?
I just don't understand it.
The word "socialism" is tossed around with scorn and horror, whilst people happily drive along on their state-funded roads and send their kids to state-funded schools with state-mandated curricula, while their parents and grandparents enjoy the benefits of Social Security and Medicare, while their country is defended by soldiers who, along with their spouses, have their health care provided by taxes... for life.
Help me to understand the cognitive disconnect, please. I would like to know, I really would. I just can't stomach anymore Fux News style spin on this issue.
To illustrate the fear, aside from the obvious "death panels," silliness started by Palin, Bishop Harry Jackson suggests that in a universal health care scenario, he would not have survived his bout with cancer.
What?
It sounds as though he is suggesting that people in countries with government-run health care (England and Canada come to mind) are doomed to die of cancer should they be so unfortunate to become ill with it. Conversely, one could infer that he suggests that no one in this country, with our current health care system, has ever died of cancer.
But we all know, or should at least, that neither is true.
So, please.. I beg you tell me... what are people so afraid of???
3 comments:
People receiving kick-backs from pharmaceutical companies and health insurance companies are plenty scared of the idea of socialized medicine. And money talks. So many people on so many levels of our government have been on the take for years. It's not a conspiracy theory to say that--it's recorded history!
As someone who has had my insurance company deny treatments that might have benefited me--and approve treatments that did NOT help--I'm all for socialization of medicine. There's no dilemma at all as far as I'm concerned.
Of course, I'm not getting paid to share an opinion.
Hi Jeff! Thanks for your reply and insight.
I can understand people who are benefiting from the current system being opposed. It's the "real" people and their fright that really gets me, people who would probably benefit from health care reform...
Having health insurance but being denied certain treatments, as in your case.. that kind of stuff isn't being talked about right now for some reason. Nor is enough emphasis being put on people who are denied coverage, or people who are self employed but can't afford insurance.
I wanted to add that I am sure there must be some valid reasons for opposing reform. I can't imagine what they might be! (like you, there is no dilemma here.) But, they must exist. It's this other, uglier, scary, embarrassing side that's surfacing that is really sad. It's similar to what was going on during the election (and still today), calling Obama "Hitler," for example, or people freaking out about their guns being taken away. There was a even a man recently who showed up to a town hall meeting which Obama was attending, and he had a gun strapped to his hip. Another made sure Obama knew he was a member of the NHRA (pointed to the logo on his shirt as proof) before asking Obama his question on health care... it's almost at though the issues are getting completely confused. People are in a panic that their rights, guns, and health will be taken away from them.
I don't know if they've been paying attention, but they lost plenty of their rights during the last administration.
So, yeah. Why now, and with such fervor.... I think those guys who are receiving kick-backs must be doing a really good job convincing Average Joe that a cheaper heath care option is not in his best interest.
You know, there are so many reasons people are opposed to whatever is being put forward (we still aren't sure what that is yet, since the bills aren't done being written and revised). Some of the reasons are more rational than others.
I think, first and foremost, some of the opposition is a culmination of the anxiety and rage felt by those who feel the America they know (white, Christian, capitalist, etc.) was lost when Obama was elected. Whether such a place existed and whether it is really gone are debatable, certainly, but I think it's the feeling. The town-hall meetings give these people a chance to be heard and make the rounds of the news. The more attention they receive, the greater they think their numbers are and the more they feel justified.
Another reason is taxes. People hate taxes. Everyone hates taxes. Anytime a government program is expanded it is assumed taxes must be raised to pay for it. The idea that taxes will be raised to pay for any healthcare reform is certainly real, and in tough economic times (OK, anytime really) people hear the word taxes and react. It really doesn't matter what the taxes are going towards, some people simply know to oppose them.
Another, perhaps slightly twisted argument is that decent healthcare is a privelege, not a right. This argument is fallacious for many reasons, but that's not the point here! The point is some people believe it, therefore they vehemently oppose "entitlements" that they have to contribute to.
I work with a gentleman who opposes government healthcare for another reason altogether: religious beliefs. His argument is that the church has a responsibility to provide for the needs of those who live without. He opposes the notion fo the government getting involved in an area where the church is responsible. I think he is more upset with the church than the government, though, for shirking its responsibilities. I think this is a rare argument, but it's real.
There are many other reasons, ranging from lies being spewed by the Limbaugh/Hannity/Becks of the world to fear of the slide into socialism to some people just being mad that Democrats are in power.
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