I love it when people prove my point for me. It is no secret that my underlying belief is that the Federal government has become a hive of elitists, in fact, an American aristocracy that when faced with the anger of their constituents, invariably lash out with the modern equivalent of “Let them eat cake”. Of course you know that that phrase was reportedly blurted out by Marie Antoinette when she was told that the people had no bread. It didn’t work out very well for Marie and she would eventually be beheaded by guillotine during the French Revolution for her uncompassionate dismissal of her starving subjects.
Americans are now facing the same uncompassionate dismissal by their elected officials. The anger that bubbled up to the surface during the healthcare town halls was dismissed as “Astroturf”, not grass roots. The people that were demanding answers from their representatives were called an “angry mob” and “manufactured”, marching to the orders of corporate America and the Republican Party. I’ve been to Tea Parties and I can tell you I joined of my own free will and they are organized locally. We network with other Tea Party and patriotic groups and decide when and where to protest ourselves. I have not seen a single word given to us by big business, pharmaceuticals, healthcare insurers or the Republican Party. It has all been spontaneous and it has all been very “grass roots”.
The Democratic Party, on the other hand, provides funds for MoveOn.org and Organizing for America and these are the groups that are protesting in favor of Obamacare. There were even ads taken out on Craigslist over the summer by Calpirg, a pro-Obama, pro-socialism group in California that promised pay for protestors! “Need a summer job? Protest for healthcare reform.” Somehow Ms. Pelosi thinks those protests are legitimate but the Tea Parties aren’t. In fact, the people shouting at the Tea Parties made her weep as she had flashbacks to the protests of ‘70’s and that “frightened” her. What she forgot to mention is that the angry and violent protests of the 70’s were conducted by people that share her ideology. Tea Party protestors don’t blow things up; left wing, anti-American radicals do.
Through all of this, one thing keeps resonating in every Congressional interview, in every Presidential speech. Despite all of the meetings, protests, letters and phone calls to Congress…they still don’t get it. We are not being heard and it is appears that those that have heard us are choosing to ignore us. I recently sent an e-mail to the White House about healthcare reform and I probably wouldn’t be upset if I had never received a reply. After all, who am I? I am not a foreign dignitary nor am I a member of Congress. I am a whiney little blogger that probably has far too many opinions for my own good. But I did get a response and it only reinforced my belief that they just don’t care. I will post my e-mail to the President and then the response I received.
Mr. President,
Americans are now facing the same uncompassionate dismissal by their elected officials. The anger that bubbled up to the surface during the healthcare town halls was dismissed as “Astroturf”, not grass roots. The people that were demanding answers from their representatives were called an “angry mob” and “manufactured”, marching to the orders of corporate America and the Republican Party. I’ve been to Tea Parties and I can tell you I joined of my own free will and they are organized locally. We network with other Tea Party and patriotic groups and decide when and where to protest ourselves. I have not seen a single word given to us by big business, pharmaceuticals, healthcare insurers or the Republican Party. It has all been spontaneous and it has all been very “grass roots”.
The Democratic Party, on the other hand, provides funds for MoveOn.org and Organizing for America and these are the groups that are protesting in favor of Obamacare. There were even ads taken out on Craigslist over the summer by Calpirg, a pro-Obama, pro-socialism group in California that promised pay for protestors! “Need a summer job? Protest for healthcare reform.” Somehow Ms. Pelosi thinks those protests are legitimate but the Tea Parties aren’t. In fact, the people shouting at the Tea Parties made her weep as she had flashbacks to the protests of ‘70’s and that “frightened” her. What she forgot to mention is that the angry and violent protests of the 70’s were conducted by people that share her ideology. Tea Party protestors don’t blow things up; left wing, anti-American radicals do.
Through all of this, one thing keeps resonating in every Congressional interview, in every Presidential speech. Despite all of the meetings, protests, letters and phone calls to Congress…they still don’t get it. We are not being heard and it is appears that those that have heard us are choosing to ignore us. I recently sent an e-mail to the White House about healthcare reform and I probably wouldn’t be upset if I had never received a reply. After all, who am I? I am not a foreign dignitary nor am I a member of Congress. I am a whiney little blogger that probably has far too many opinions for my own good. But I did get a response and it only reinforced my belief that they just don’t care. I will post my e-mail to the President and then the response I received.
Mr. President,
Now that Congress has taken the position of adding to the national debt through Harry Reid's offer to doctors and since they have declined to allow the American people the right to see this legislation on-line, both of which violate your promises, do you intend to withdraw your support for this initiative as you also promised?
Let's be honest. You and I both know that this is not about lowering premium costs for American's with insurance and it is not about covering those without insurance...this is about the gross mismanagement of existing Federal programs. Medicare and Medicaid are bankrupting the Federal government and Congress has already raided the Social Security trust to keep it afloat to spite massive annual losses. The so-called "thinkers" in Washington needed a way to begin the process of driving Americans into a government run, universal care system so the funds would be there to continue this massive Ponzi scheme.
Are you people really any better than Bernie Madoff? Enough already; the reforms that the majority of America want are market reforms that reinforce the free enterprise system. We do not want government care, we do not want an expanded government and we are not willing to allow the Federal government to "tweak" the Constitution to make the unconstitutional, permissible.
As an Arizonan, I intend to vote for the referendum in the 2010 ballot that would exclude Arizona from having to participate in this scam and through my vote; I intend to hold any of my representatives accountable that do vote for this as it makes its way through Congress.
We have had enough. Taxation has placed an oppressive burden on America and we can no longer afford these massive tax and spend plans that the Democratic Party has become famous for.
Sincerely,
Paul M. Magel Sr.
The reply I received?
Dear Friend:
Thank you for sharing your thoughts with me. I have heard from countless Americans struggling to afford health insurance and health professionals striving to provide care. I appreciate your perspective.
There is broad consensus among the American people on the need for affordable, high-quality health care. The rising cost of health care is the most pressing financial challenge for families and for our Nation, and controlling this cost is essential to bringing down the Federal deficits we inherited. We must end unfair insurance practices that leave millions of Americans without coverage, denying them access to care, and exposing them to extraordinary burdens. And we should ensure that all small business employees have access to affordable, high-quality health plans so that we can make our economy--and our small businesses- -more competitive. Now is the time to move forward, and I am working to get health insurance reform done this year.
Since I took office, we have done more to improve health care than we have in the previous decade. In February, I signed H.R. 2 to provide coverage for millions of children through the Children's Health Insurance Program, and I signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to make key investments in computerized medical records and preventive services.
Still, more must be done to lower costs, expand coverage, and improve the quality of health care. My 2010 Budget makes a major down payment on health insurance reform by implementing efficiencies in government health care spending while improving the quality of care. To help fulfill the debt we owe to our service men and women, it includes the largest proposed single-year increase in veterans funding in 30 years. It expands health care coverage to an additional 500,000 veterans by 2013, implements technology that eases the transition from military care to veterans'
care, and enhances screening and treatment services for those suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury.
Looking forward, there are tough choices to be made, and I will seek to bring employers and workers, health care providers and patients, and Democrats and Republicans together to create a system that delivers better care and puts the Nation on a sustainable, long-term fiscal path. To learn more about my agenda or to share a personal story, please join me online at:
www.healthreform.gov. For further information on health care and assistance that may be available to you, you may call 1-800- FEDINFO or visit: www.usa.gov.
I share the sense of urgency that millions of Americans have voiced. I watched as my ailing mother struggled with stacks of insurance forms in the last moments of her life. This is not who we are as a Nation; together, we will fix it.
Sincerely,
Barack Obama
To be a part of our agenda for change, join us at www.WhiteHouse.gov
The reply I received completely ignored every statement I made. There was not a single point in my message that was even touched on and the idea that the reply goes as far as providing links I can use to “join” with the President to work towards passing healthcare reform is insulting. He even had the nerve to include the story of his ailing mother struggling with “stacks” of medical insurance paperwork in the last moments of her life. My doctor’s office fills out all of my forms so maybe he should change doctors but that doesn’t answer the larger question…where was her family? You know, family, the people that love you and help you with these things or is the government supposed to provide those services too? Maybe the finished bill will have a couple of billion dollars earmarked for “hugs”. Maybe we can even find some community based organization we can fund to provide the hugs….like ACORN.
As you read those two e-mails, did you see one thread of evidence that my e-mail had even been read? In retrospect, sending that message was probably a mistake since I am sure it is being counted as just another example of an “American that is concerned about healthcare reform”.
No, they are not listening and it doesn’t appear they will. The only hope we have is to maintain the pressure. The longer the anger is vocal and public, the more they will understand that this is not going to go away as it has in the past. The one thing they want more than Universal Healthcare is another term and if we make it clear that the choice is one or the other, healthcare reform will die a quiet death and they can get back to their primary concern of raising money for their next campaign.
Paul
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