Here is a post from http://starvingbloggist.blogspot.com/. I stumbled upon this because this person became a follower of mine on Twitter, so I thought I would check his blog out. Here is the most current post on his page, my comment, and the ensuing insanity. This is what we are up against. People who are bent on spreading blatantly wrong information to people who blindly follow their leaders to town hall meetings with pitch forks. They have insults, but no solutions. Sadly, this is very typical.
From The Starving Bloggist
Monday, August 10, 2009
The Petition Against Obamacare
President Obama and Congress are pushing 'reform' that will move America closer to a government run system like Canada and Britain. If they succeed, most Americans will no longer be able to keep the insurance they have. Instead, they will be forced into a government run health insurance market, with most people enrolled into a government run health care plan. - For more information or to sign the petition against Obamacare please go to....www.freeourhealthcarenow.com
5 comments:
Elizabeth K Wright said...
I find so much wrong with this including the fact that a single-payer system is not even on the table. No where in the legislation does it say that people will lose the right to private insurance companies. It is irresponsible to spread incorrect data.
August 10, 2009 10:34 PM
Christine W. said...
Are you saying that you want a single payer system? Are you crazy? Do you know what that would do to our country? All of our doctors will be paid less, which will minimize the amount of doctors that are available, and it will discourage others from going to medical school to become doctors. It will make government the one in control of your health decisions, and will allow them to decide whether or not you should get certain procedures or prescriptions that you need. It's called rationing... Ever heard of it? It is happening right now in Canada and Great Britain. Why do you think so many people from other countries come here to the United States for health care? Because we have the best health care in the world. It is not perfect, it does have its flaws that need to be reformed, but it does NOT need to be totally overhauled... And anybody that says so is just looking for a free handout without even taking into consideration how it would affect our nation as a whole...
August 10, 2009 10:58 PM
The Starving Bloggist said...
Elizabeth you are 100% wrong. President Obama's plan does not allow you to keep your private insurance after five years. Get your facts straight tutz.
August 11, 2009 6:30 AM
Joe said...
My Rep. cosponsored the adminment that would require everyone to be on medicare. I've haven't heard if it was voted down or just stuck somewhere we can't find it until it's to late. Witch is the problem, like the Bailout, Stimulus, and Cap&trade, we will not know what's really in it until it's to late. That's why everyone is so upset at these town meetings. I do believe we can, and should help those with out heath insurance who want it to get it. But to make us all suffer or redo the system is a wast of time, money.
August 11, 2009 9:07 AM
Elizabeth K Wright said...
In response...
Christine W.-
No where in my comment did I say that I wanted a single-payer system and no I am not crazy. Yes, I do know what health care reform will do for America - it will help to insure the 45 million Americans that do not have access to regular health care. The statement that lowering the cost of health care will decrease the numbers of doctors, which has not proven to be true in any other country that has attempted health care reform. What it will do is decrease the enormous profit that insurance companies are making off of sick people.Let's talk about rationing for a moment. It is happening here, in America, at this very moment. It is happening because decisions are NOT being made by you and your doctor. They ARE being made by insurance companies that dictate what tests and procedures can be done and what they will pay for. Yes, that is rationing and the new plan will help to eliminate this current problem.I also feel the need to correct you when you say that people come here from all over the world because we have the best health care system. They come here for many reasons, but that is surely not in the top 10. America is ranked 37th in the world in health care and we pay the highest cost. France (God forbid) happens to be ranked number one and they have a public/private hybrid system in place that seems to be working very well.People who are against health care reform also seem to forget that we have 2 very socialistic, widely successful health care programs in this country. - Medicare and VA Health/TriCare. If you loathe the idea of socialized medicine so much, should we repeal those programs as well?I take offense when you state that I am looking for a free handout because I believe the system needs to be overhauled. I work for a small business and we pay extremely high premiums for our health care. Under this plan, our small business would benefit but I would like you to know that I am a hard working individual and am, under no uncertain terms, not looking for a hand out of any kind.
The Starving Bloggist -
If you can point out to me chapter and verse where that is listed in the proposed bill, I will eat my hat. Linda Douglass, the White House Office of Health Reform, has a video at this link - http://www.whitehouse.gov/realitycheck/3 - in which shows President Obama specifically states that if you have insurance and doctors that you like, you will not be required to change them. We are not trying to fix what is working in the system - only what is broken.Also, just for your information, it is rather in appropriate to use a derogatory term in referring to someone who simply disagrees with you.
Joe -
I will agree with you that the bill is complicated, but it is also available to be read in its entirety. The people that you see at town hall meetings are not just angry citizens. They have been lied to and given incorrect information by people who have something significant to gain by maintaining the status quot. When someone makes an outrageous claim, like Sarah Palin and her "death panel" comment, people should question the legitimacy of it and not just blindly follow the false thinking.I happen to think that we can insure the people that are not insured and reform the system to take some of the burden off of everyone.
Feel free to read my blog and comment there as well. I am open to alternatives and other ideas. I want an open discussion based on facts, not on misconceptions that have been propagated by people that have far too much to gain in this discussion, or lack thereof as the case may be.
August 11, 2009 3:32 PM
Those who are informed about the proposed health care system know that the government health care isn't intended to replace private insurance. It is, however, intended to provide healthcare to individuals who could otherwise not be able to afford private health care. The issue that concerns me is that the government is essentially socializing healthcare, and taxpayers will bear the cost. To date, there has been no discussions that I am aware of that shows what the individual cost for this health care is. It certainly isn't "free". The government has to get the money from somewhere, and that somewhere is likely to be increased taxes for all Americans. The issue that concerns me personally, is that the government health care may be cheaper and therefore more affordable to everything that other private insurances. This may create a positive scenario where private insurance companies reduce prices, which is generally a good thing. But many people might just opt for the government health care without knowing the long term costs. Taxes will pay for it, and as more and more people join government programs, income taxes will be further increased in order to pay for it. The issue then becomes one of increased income taxes for Americans. No one wants higher taxes, but then who is going to pay for the government health care? If taxpayers arren't going to get the bill, then where is the money going to come from? More and more people will join the government program, and taxes will continue to rise. Now I was engaged to a beautiful German woman for several years, spend a lot of time in Germany, and have an excellent understanding of how their socialized health care system works. I know first hand that the Germans have excellent healthcare, but it comes at significant cost to the German citizen. Income taxes for begin at lower income levels than for US citizens, and progress to higher percentages very quickly compared to US income taxes. People there pay a lot more in taxes than we do here, and make less money in comparison. My concern is that we, as Americans, allow these new health care reforms to bring forth additional taxes for Americans, that will further burden Americans, as well as the American economy.
ReplyDeleteRight now, the only people that really know what is going on are our senators and representatives who are trying to quickly push these reforms through. My suggestion would be to sit back a bit and give all Americans the time required to digest these proposals and have the facts before passing any kind of health care system that can put the US into greater debt. As it stands, Social Security is going bankrupt, and Medicare and Medicaid are severely underfunded. How are we expected to introduce a massive new healtcare system before we know exactly how it's going to be paid for?
I currently pay over $200 dollar a month for my own personal health care. Will the government health care be a better deal for me? Unfortunately, that question has not yet been answered to my satisfaction. I also don't believe in using "free" government healthcare if it is going to effect a burden on our country. Health care is not a right, though I do believe that having a good quality of life is. Unfortunately, the two differ considerably. Medicare and Medicaid need to be reformed, as Medicaid is already there for people who cannot work or cannot otherwise get healthcare for a variety of reasons. Reform must be made to the systems we currently have in place before we move on to a new system. Until then, I cannot support Obama's health care proposals.