Widespread Voter Opposition to Healthcare Takeover

Widespread, courtesy of the lobbyist buses.

"Hey, you're not allowed to call people un-American! Only we are allowed to call people un-American!"

Blanche Lincoln got in to the "unamerican" act on saturday - of course she retracted and apologized a whole 3 minutes later.

she is scheduled for several AR events this week and you can feel the bloodlust for her on their sites

this will not end well

This does point up a rather profound differences between Democrats and Republicans that's developed in the last few decades.

Democrats define "Americanism" in terms of adherence to a shared set of constitutional ideals, aspirations and civic assumptions, along, perhaps, with the adoption a set of uniquely American meta-cultural attitudes that are generally accepted across ethnic groups--stuff like the value of hard work, a belief in upward mobility and a better life for your kids and so on.

Increasingly, Republicans have come to adopt a of "Americanism" grounded in 19th century European notions as modified by Roger Taney's opinion in the Dred Scott case. It's about being white, somewhat xenophobic, militaristic, and is rooted in quasi-mystical notions about soil and the virtures of rurality. The only Constitutional value that enters into it is the Second Amendment. People with brown skins are entitled to a kind of conditional mesne citizenship as long as they talk and act like WASP's and are constantly showing fealty and obscience to the right wing version of Americanism.

It's no wonder we spend so much time talking past each other. We can't even agree on what it means to be an American and, to the extent we can even understand what the other side means by the term, we find it repulsive.

I will question your patriotism.

If you are comparing the American President to Hitler, I'm questioning you patriotism.

If you would like to see two American Citizen rot in a North Korean jial, I'm questioning your patriotism.

If you would like to see your fellow American die due to lack of health insurance, I'm questioning your patriotism.

If you are willing to allow health care cost cripple are economy, I'm questioning your patriotism.

So pelase Democrats question the patriotism not only of the Teabaggers, corporate sponsors, and Republican Congressman for not being part of the solution.

The Republicans as Sargent put it are doubling down on Bagger thuggery. Indeed they have no choice. The crazies and the bithers are fundamentally anti-democratic.....

Who ya gonna believe the NRCC or your lyin eyes

The nativist Bagger is just the enforcement arm of what Pearlstein railed against....I note the NRCC has even picked up the words "political terrorists"..

Perhaps they ring too true, cut too close to the bone

The recent attacks by Republican leaders and their ideological fellow-travelers on the effort to reform the health-care system have been so misleading, so disingenuous, that they could only spring from a cynical effort to gain partisan political advantage. By poisoning the political well, they've given up any pretense of being the loyal opposition. They've become political terrorists, willing to say or do anything to prevent the country from reaching a consensus on one of its most serious domestic problems.... Health reform is a test of whether this country can function once again as a civil society -- whether we can trust ourselves to embrace the big, important changes that require everyone to give up something in order to make everyone better off. Republican leaders are eager to see us fail that test. We need to show them that no matter how many lies they tell or how many scare tactics they concoct, Americans will come together and get this done.

If health reform is to be anyone's Waterloo, let it be theirs.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/
content/article/2009/08/06/AR2009080603854_pf.ht
ml

NRCC Doubles Down On Defending Protesters; Circulates Vid Of Dem Getting Booed
http://theplumline.whorunsgov.com/health-care/nrcc-doubles-down-on-defending-protesters-raps-pelosi-and-hoyer/

In for a penny in for a pound

Now that the political terrorists at the RNC and NRCC have unleashed the mob, they have no choice BUT to double down and ride this nag as far as she'll take em

The mob rules the GOP

I would venture the REAL un-American group in this nation consists mostly of the Democrat and Republican leadership in Washington.

BOTH parties are to be blamed for the fiasco in Iraq, the meltdown, the torturing of human beings (remember, folks, Democrat leadership is also protecting those who torture), the vilifying of half the commoners in this nation, the total lack of accounting and auditing standards in the federal government, different laws and rules for those in power, complete lack of honesty and integrity (look at how many folks put in hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars to help one of these mobsters get elected only to have that SAME crook quit or drop the job halfway through in order to promote themselves somewhere else).

Sickening! The only worse scenario is when uninformed or gullible voters continue to elect them into powerful positions... IMHO

It's been said that when you have the facts, you pound the facts; when you don't, you pound your fists.

We can't just state the facts. We need to pound them. Only then will they have a chance of drowning out the fists.

Actually, I think that everything that the Republicans, the health insurance lobbyists, the astro-turfers, the cynical conservative propagandists, the mobs, the intimidation tactics, and the manufactured outrage are completely, totally, 100% American. But more South American, like Chile under Pinochet. So, I don't question the patriotism of those who are fanatically opposed to healthcare reform. They are truly loyal, and patriotically devoted to the right-wing dictatorships that they have supported throughout the years.

First, the person who released this letter, I can not tell if it is Ken Spain or not, would appear to be a pretty decent writer. He/she is by no mean a Sallinger or Woodward but there are several basic problems I have with this written statement. The first which jumped out to me is towards the end. The above statement reads, "David Obey resorted to calling his constituents thugs:" then below is the actual quote which was cited ,"[House Appropriations Chairman David] Obey also blamed Republican-affiliated groups for the loud protests that have greeted lawmakers at health-care forums. Obey says the groups are deliberately trying to shut down dialogue and debate, and he called their actions 'thuggery' and 'disgraceful.'"

Here is a perfect example of the type of word-jujitsu I have seen many political people use before. It is clear just by reading the quote used that Mr Obey called their ACTIONS "thuggery", so how the hell does the writer of this email/letter draw the conclusion that Obey has called "his constituents thugs:"? I mean this is basic friggin grammer, Obey was talking about an action, an action does not necessarily define a person nor does a verb get to suddenly be a noun. Does this person have an editor? I understand it is a small grievance but it disregards the actual quote and any context the quote came from. The other basic problem I have with this is the fact that the GOP freely admits that Freedomworks is part of this campaign to get people fired up going to townhalls. If the GOP really wanted to claim that the DEM's or the WH is on smear campaign against its the people, then why have they not come out against the efforts of groups like Freedomworks, (a conservative lobby group)? Clearly whatever genuine concern their constituents have is maligned by groups like this who expose the entire campaign as spurred on by corporate interest. Again if the GOP is really genuine then they would come out against this sort of impropriety or at least the appearance of it, yet they don't.

As an aside I talked to a Dr from Houston this weekend while celebrating a birthday and was excited to ask her some questions regarding this health-care debate. She told me that she thought America needs to move in the direction that other developed western nations have gone to, a fully realized social health-care system. Maybe we can all ask those who are close to us who are in the health-care profession what their thoughts are on the matter of Us health-care. Start a blog so we can share their stories.

By the way, why no link to the putative PR release? I couldn't find it on the NRCC web site. You didn't make all that up did you? Tsk.

In the eyes of republicans you are Un American if you disagree with them like Cindy Sheehan, MoveOne.org, liberal bloggers and any American against the Iraq war. I will give the Republicans credit they are unmatched in their ability to spin both sides of story in their favor while the democrats sit silent as usual. If the republicans can only learn to govern the way they spread their hypocritical bullshit we might be able to turn this county around

Now watch the msm frame the debate around the republican’s meme and force everyone to defend Pelosi statements instead of examining whether what she said is true and question the motives of the protesters and similar statements made by republicans in the past

Inside Story on Town Hall Riots: Right-Wing Shock Troops Do Corporate America's Dirty Work
http://www.truthout.org/081009I

The recent spate of town hall dustups may look like an overnight sensation, but they've been years, even decades, in the making.

Since the days in the late 1970s, when the New Right began its takeover of the Republican Party, it has cultivated a militia of white people armed with a grudge against those who brought forth the social changes of the '60s.

These malcontents have been promised their day of retribution, a day for which they are more than ready

pelosi and hoyer didn't say dissent is unamerican. they basically said shutting down dissent (as in people expressing an opinion you oppose) is unamerican.

but why let details get in the way of a good talking point?

The runaway premium similar to the peak fuel price last year and left so many folks in despair insists on staying the course with the attitude 'unchanged', clearly this trend could bankrupt individual, business, and government. Now the government subsequently is tasked with these two main assignments, first, to address premium inflation, second, to expand coverage to all in urgent need.
In order to cover all and not to add to the deficit, the public option can not set the same rates of private market, rather, it needs to have the function to keep it in check in terms of inflation, too. Unfortunately, this 'unavoidable' direction is aggressively being accused by the runaway premium, citing government 'take-over' .
Under the circumstances the energy bill to determine human future and the other major issues is presently piled up, who wants to waste time making enemies ?, which also does not benefit the forthcoming election.
On the other hand, to make things worse, critics say the savings from the proposed public option is not enough to meet the revenue goal. Furthermore, on another hand, some say 'hands off' . Where do these No tax, No saving and the like intend to force this reform to go ? The conclusion by 'just-say-no' is no doubt. Ironically, the Deficit-sensitive groups have a distinctive common ground, they all have a Deficit-driven background out of question.

Of all choices, the best thing would be savings through efficiency. Considering the wasteful structure, the highest premium in the world, and the most expensive part of medicare, with the prevention / wellness program in place, an American style innovation, an 'outcome'-based payment founded upon IT system may be enough to save more than 50 billions per year (500 / decade), both 'improving quality' and removing the unnecessary procedures (as pay is dependent on patient's outcome). Young folks and advocates need to explain the notion of a pay for outcome agreement to the elderly misled by the disinformation.

Unlike private market, this public option includes large-scale investments, these large investments still does not get the fair score, instead seem to become a source of acute conflict, even so, this common sense-based program needs to develop further as early detection goes beyond monetary value.

In short, with the heartbreaking tears in mind (Nearly 11 Million Cancer Patients Without Health Insurance), private market also needs change and should join together to complete this reform , as promised, if not, the runaway premium only has itself to blame. Job-based coverage (indirect payment), mandate code, and ample capital might be favorable to the private market. And It can be said that fair competition starts with fair market value.
Over time, supposedly, the public plan will concentrate more on basic, primary cares, and the private insurers will provide their clients with differentiated services.

Thank You !