Light Quote: "The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear." Aung San Suu Kyi
Light Moment: This headline was actually printed in the sports section of the newspaper."Gators to Face Seminoles with Peters Out". I wonder what the games attendance was?
Uncle John's Bathroom Reader 12th addition
Soapbox Light: Last week several events occurred in the political scene that require some new light. This week on "Meet the Press" ignorance reared its ugly head in the person of Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma. My head nearly exploded as Sen. Coburn stated "we do not need health care reform, we have the best health care it the world". This statement is patently false and needs to be illuminated. Here is the shocker Sen. Coburn is a Doctor! Ignorance dressed as an educated man spreading fear and lies, clearly not walking in the light. According to a recent World Health Organization survey we rate 37th. Let me say that again 37th, a far cry from number one! Yet the countries we malign that have national health care all rate better than the U.S. That's right, I said it Canada, Great Britain and France all have better health care delivery systems than we do. With France being number one. Who is buttering Sen.Coburns bread. Could it be the insurance industry, big pharma the AMA or all of the above. Lord knows millions are being spent in attempt to kill this reform. With that in mind we bring up are next Lord of Darkness. Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa, now here is a man who has taken over two million dollars from the insurance lobby and claims to be a fair dealer. Yet last week this paragon of lies and fear stood before voters in Iowa and said Grandma should be afraid of the Health Care Reform "Death Panel". Folks there is no "Death Panel"! This man is scaring people into believing his lies and deceit. My friends, in the only bill to pass, the house bill this panel does not exist. Further, in his earlier support of the Bush 05' Medicare Rx rip-off bill he supported a similar voluntary program to provide "counseling only" to patients that asked for end of life counseling. Keep in mind this monument to honesty and integrity is on the Senate finance committee and any law would have to go by his shining moral clarity!
Just so you all do no think we just pick on Republicans. Here are some Dem's shrouded in shadow. Ben Nelson has opposed any serious look at health reform and has expressed doubt about supporting any single payer legislation. He to has taken large contributions from the health care industry. Earlier in the year he helped defeat the bankruptcy cram down bill that would have helped troubled mortgage holders. This was done as a payoff to the banking industry whom he had taken million from. Fifteen other Democrats joined him in this shameful vote. The Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus has taken over two million from the health care lobby. He refused to even listen to single payer advocates at the recent so called committee hearing on health care reform. That's right folks they did not even listen to any single payer advocates. Another dark star for the Democrats is Senator Kent Conrad this is the moron that proposed the health co-op. What the hell is a health co-op, there is no such animal. Further as of today this paragon of the public interest said there is no support for single payer in the Senate and there never was. Here's the straight skinny, all of these empty platitudes are designed to water down or outright defeat any legislation so as to protect the industry that has helped line their pockets so nicely with your money.
I would ask you to note that the CEO's of the major health care companies average 11.5 million a year in salary. The Insurance Industries profit has risen 1,000 percent over the last five years. Did you get that a 1000%! Do you think they have an interest in defeating this reform. The insurance industry has plenty to spend and they are spending it on both sides. In the final analysis one must ask what value does the insurance industry add to the health care formulae. Their motivation is pure greed!
The President is another politician moving into shadow. During the campaign he stated he would not sign any bill that did not have a single payer option. Well as you can see his talking heads sent out over the weekend are quickly tap dancing away from that position. The Presidents has said recently "single payer is a small sliver to the overall picture". Boy, that is singing a different tune. Is that change we can believe in? My friends if you voted for Obama on this issue let him hear from you. Do not let him sell us out to the moneyed interest of the insurance industry.
My friends the fix is in! This so called health reform bill will be no reform at all. The only law your are going top see passed is a bill that requires all Americans to have insurance and they must buy it from private health care providers. There will be no cost reforms. There will be no competition. The whole thing is going to be one big pay day for the health care industry as it will mandate coverage and widen their customer base. We must not let this corruption stand your lawmakers are selling you down the river for money. Protest this corruption as a nation of people who are tired of the fear, lies and deceit that seem to be the bread and butter of political speak. Insist that the right thing be done for all and not just those that have profit as a motive. In the end we must as a community decide if it is right to profit off the pain and suffering of other human beings. If the answer if yes then we should refrain from calling ourselves a Judea-Christian society. Insist in the right to health care.
Light Fact: Over the last eight years 1% of the population received 66% of all available compensation dollars.
Light Reading: "What's the Matter With Kansas" by Frank Rich
This is a very insightful, humorous and sometimes painful read. However, it is startling it its truth. Rich talks of privatizing profit and publicising risk, something I think we have all seen ad-nausea over the last year. The author solves a great mystery and answers the question, why will people of low economic strata vote repeatedly against their self interest? Mr. Rich illuminates the falsehood in the statement "what is good for Wall Street is good for Main Street. If you have ever wondered at the rationale of the average American voter this book if for you. It reads quickly and is done in a humorous story telling manner that revels some frightening but illuminating facts about politics and manipulation in American political culture.
Light Music: Found a great vintage album recently; Henry Mancini's Music From Peter Gunn. Folks they do not make music like this any more! This is s sweet martini grove! Every cut is perfect and will take you to another time. Fallout is especially cool with the music hitting the stratosphere. I am usually a straight rock and roll guy but this record kicks ass! Go ahead give it a listen as an added bonus you might find it in the bargain bin, I did.
Light Box: The state of medical care in America today. This picture published by the Los Angles Times shows an event at the LA Forum last week where 7,000 people were treated for free over a week long period. The event was sponsored by Rural Access Medical a non-profit out Tennessee to provide medical treatment third world countries. Over the last two years RAM has saw a need to operate here in the U.S. RAM sponsored a similar event last month in West Virginia where Americans without means were treated in stock pens! Is this a picture of the best ran health care system in the world?
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