++++++DISCLAIMER
So here is the thing, this post is a personal rant about my disappointment about the fact that my state is going to sue the United States of America. Utah is joining a handful of other states in an effort to prevent people from living, that might otherwise die from lack of health coverage. Okay, that's bold, I know. But that's actually what they are trying, spending my tax dollars to do it too.
Full disclosure, I currently have no health insurance. I normally wouldn't divulge such personal information, but feel it's now relevant to help you understand where I am coming from here. We were able to get Cicada and Gulliver coverage after I lost my job, but I am too fat among other reasons to be able to get insurance. If I can get my weight down, then we might have a chance.
The whole situation of being scrutinized by several insurance companies was really humiliating. I hated being at the mercy of a corporation for the future of my health. The timing also wasn't good because I just got a bug and when Humana sent out an RN to our home, I vomited during the health procedures. Brilliant.
I am happy to pay a reasonable rate for insurance if I could get it, but the way it's set up now makes me feel like sickly hamburger meat that McDonalds would never touch because they know it means lost revenue. It makes me as an individual determine that the worth of my health is dependent on my current situation. I know a few people that were born with conditions that make them uninsurable, and not much makes me even angrier because their families have to suffer additionally because they have to fork over 100 percent of the bill.
If I get in a car accident tomorrow that cripples me for life, Cicada spends the rest of her life crippled financially. Makes sense. So yes, this is personal, and I know I am risking offending some, as I indicated in the previous post, my political thinking is not very welcome where I live. Not to mention that one of my very best friend's father is the Governor of this state.
The truth is I have avoided exposing my politics on my blog for that very reason, but now, it seems like I owe it to myself to not allow my fear of offending, prevent me from speaking from my heart about a more important issue, because really, right is right, and if they are really my friends, they will forgive me eventually. I also want to say, I am not a political scholar and make no pretense of understanding all the ins and outs of this particular bill. I just want to speak to the greater issue, and I really feel that the rest will be taken care of as we go forward.
+++++ President Obama's healthcare bill just passed a few days ago, and I have to say I am pleased. I wish I had more people around me other than Cicada and Gulliver that think this is a step in the right direction for this country, but unfortunately nearly everyone I know has got their little underpants in a twist. I chalk it up, 100 percent, to partisanship. If George W. Bush had passed this, (haha, that just made me laugh), but if he did, everyone here wouldn't think twice about it.
I explain this in the previous post, but it's no secret that Utah is silly with ardent, dyed in the wool, Republicans, and that's cool, it really is. What is not cool however, is fighting potential progress that has Utah and a few other states are trying to SUE the United States Government because they claim that what happened was unconstitutional.
I have some words about that. First of all, like it or not, we need government, we need something to hold these 50 states together, to some how....UNITE us. Our founding fathers knew that and they did have the great foresight to speak of checks and balances of power, and other areas to establish what is the responsibility of government. A day or so ago,I was running through the Constitution in my head, because I memorized that first block of text in school and I stopped on two phrases:
Here is the first:
{Insure domestic tranquility} or in other words: make sure that the country is at peace, (and I feel I can add, not just from war, but also having peace of mind, if possible.)
{Promote the general welfare} or in other words: Do what you can for the betterment for the general wellbeing of the citizens.
Health care for those that need it most, anyone?
Why is allowing regular folk like you and me the chance to not be crippled financially if we ever become seriously ill or in a terrible accident, NOT promoting the general welfare. How is it not constitutional? Why would our for founding fathers not want our country to make sure that the dark side of Capitalism not allow itself to trump what is right for our sick, our poor, and so on. Our government provides the framework for the benefit of our civic lives. It provides us what it has to, and then the states and the citizens fulfill the rest.
SO what do we need? We need order, we need civility, we need protection and safety, and we need the peace of mind that if we might not die in a preventable circumstance, when we won't have to. In this country, right now,we all have that weighing on your minds all the time the fact that there is no check of power for insurance companies, and that isn't domestic tranquillity, I can assure you.
I know opponents of this bill passing will say that President Obama and Nancy Pelosi trampled on the Constitution by bypassing the states right to determine whether or not they want healthcare, blah blah blah. (and this is where I have to get a bit dramatic)
States have NO business deciding on an individual basis, whether or not to decide if it's fair or not that insurance companies get to do what they do, (if someone gets the boot from their insurance company, or someone being called a liar because they said they KNEW they had cancer when they signed up for insurance and so their insurance company won't cover them.) States have no business being involved with deciding if someone that was born with bad kidneys or brain damage, whether or not they will always be uninsurable. You know WHY? Because states should not be put in that position. It works with certain things like gay marriage, so you can go to Massachusetts if you want to get married fine, and not Utah. That's their right according to state law.
But you can't have people saying, well if I move to California, I won't have to die because they don't have pre-existing conditions there. Can you imagine people being like: Hmmm, If I stay in Nebraska, I die......but If I move to Vermont, I live. "Um,.......Honey, were moving to Vermont!"
My state wants to sue my country, and why?
My opinion is that it comes down partisanship like I said, it's the same reason zero percent of Republicans voted for this bill. That tells you everything you need to know right there. No Republican wants to be ostracized by his friends in Congress or his constituents at home. He knows that if he supports a bill that is presented by Mine Führer Obama, he will never live it down. Never mind that this is an ethical bill at it's very heart. Heaven forbid that a few have the courage to see the good in this bill, or try not at least get it revised further instead of calling our President a Pinko Commie and putting voting party lines instead of......ug, I think I am done.
I am sorry Pete.
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12 comments:
I think our author is confusing the right to heath care with the right to health insurance.
Insurance is a private industry, in it to make money, period. Even the non-profit insurance companies, like our own Select Health, are still in it to make money. I work for a non-profit and we still have budgets and worry about income because we don't survive without money.
Another error, you state that, "States have NO business deciding on an individual basis, whether or not to decide if it's fair or not that insurance companies get to do what they do..."
Wrong, they absolutely have that right. Our founding fathers wanted to protect us from an overreaching federal power so they said that the federal government only has the power to do what the constitution expressly says it can do. Everything else is considered a state right. There is nothing in the constitution which allows the government to force us to get health insurance.
Murray, you can go to the doctor today if you want to, you just have to pay for it. (Oh the horror)
Don't label anyone who opposes this legislation for it's clear violation of the constitution as someone who doesn't want health care reform.
I agree that the system needs to change, but don't agree that king obama as the right or authority to mandate insurance coverage.
Well,
This author sees things differently than you PJC, as you well know.
I dint states didn't have the right, I said they have no business, meaning there are simethings that need to come from the top down for our betterment, and just because you see unions like the the USSR, and think that we will be ruled that way, downtown mean that we will. This isn't about control, it's about helping those that need help most, those who's voice isn't powerful enough, and who's voice us more powerful than the United State government.
It's going to be okay, if not, then I'll save you a place in the bread line.
Auto correction on the iPhone bugs sometimes.
Sorry
1. when I was a kid, I found out my grandparents were democrats and I was pretty confused because I had thought democrats were evil and my grandparents weren't.
2. iPhone corrections kind of make comments and blogs like a fun puzzle to figure out.
3. right to health care vs. right to health insurance seems like its the same thing to a lot of people. its kind of quibbling to say otherwise.
4. I don't know the details of this bill and I don't know anything about it being unconstitutional but it seems that we did have a chance to vote on it and we were simply outvoted. What's so bad about the actual bill itself, I wonder?
5. I mean "if it makes you happy, it can't be that bad." Or if it makes the masses happy can it be that bad? Because really, the whole point is to make a better life for people with the reform. Its not like its "cannibalism" and we are gonna eat up all the capitalists.
6. I'm pretty sure that there will be some things that aren't gonna work in this health care reform bill but what's going on now isn't that great either...at least for murray and family (apparently) or me and my family so as it stands, hooray for health care reform.
7. In general, I think suing is a pretty messed up practice, except when my old roommate went on Judge Judy for a pyramid scam. That was just awesome.
1. Democrats are not evil.
2. iPhone corrections drive me crazy
3. Health care and health insurance are two very different things.
Health care is the treatment you receive from a doctor. Insurance is a business which came about in the late 1800’s to make money on the idea that their customers would pay more in premiums than they would spend on doctor’s bills.
4. We did not have a chance to vote on this bill. Did you vote on this bill?
Whether a bill passes or doesn’t has no bearing on whether or not it is constitutional. If the federal government wants to mandate health insurance they should amend the constitution to allow them that privilege.
5. This is one of the dumbest comments I have read on a blog. If it makes you happy then it can’t be that bad??? Under that logic, let’s legalize drugs, prostitution, and polygamy. Maybe it makes you happy to steal your neighbor’s car, let’s go ahead and pass a law to allow that.?
6. By all means, if something isn’t working let’s just give it to the government to fix it. They do such great work (post office, DMV, Amtrak, Social Security). If there is a problem any old solution would be better than the problem right? My arm hurts maybe I should cut it off, that would solve the hurt.
7. The Supreme Court is the final check against the Executive and Legislative branches overstepping their constitutional authority.
Sorry Murray, I did not mean to stir things up. I usually don't comment on blogs because I'm afraid people will take things the wrong way.
Sorry PJC, I did not mean to offend you.
1. yes i realize that democrats are not evil. I was like 8 at the time. it was funny that as an 8 year old I experienced turmoil over it. I do not think my grandparents were evil or any other person is evil simply for their views on politics. Obviously, that is absolutely ridiculous. I only added that because of Murray's previous post and how people can be so exclusive in who they agree with simply because of their political party.
2. I'm sorry they drive you crazy.
3. If you can't afford health insurance, you wouldn't be able to afford health care. Maybe you could treat a cold or too but anything big and you would experience serious financial problems or not receive health care. People can fight over "rights" all they want while people do not receive the health care they need. So I'm not saying that there isn't a difference but the end result is the same. I mean if you have a right to health care but can't afford it or the insurance to pay for it you don't get health care. Do you understand what I'm saying? Not agree but understand. Basically, it all comes down to money and who has enough to afford health care and in my opinion that's not good.
4. Obviously no, I did not directly vote on this bill, but the people that represent me did. The system we have is based on the belief that we, the people, vote for men that can represent how we would vote or at least we trust them to make a decision for the greater good. At least, that's what I hope for.
5. I was referring to Murray's last blog that I was assume was tongue in cheek as was my comment, because obviously, we don't want all of those things you listed. I agree that is a really dumb thing to say if it isn't tongue in cheek.
6. I totally agree that the government is inefficient but who else is gonna fix it? Who else has done anything? Maybe, lots of people, I just haven't heard anything about it. I understand your arm analogy. I guess it depends on how bad my arm hurts. How bad is the system we have now? For lots of people, its fine but what are we doing for the people its not fine for? The ones who would cut off their arm. The ones that the 2014 date is still too far away.
7. In general, I do think suing is ridiculous. However, I'm not referring to the whole system of checks and balances. I have not read the whole constitution or if I did it was circa 1995 when I was in high school. I really do not know why this is unconstitutional according to some people and not to others. If the supreme court decrees it unconstitutional so be it.
The thing that sucks about being an independent is that every vote can be different.
I think it's good that something is being done about it. I would liked to have seen a bill pass that made the markets more competitive, but that didn't happen. I believe in capitalism, and I think that making things more competitive would have brought down costs, but at the same time this is better than nothing.
I just wish they would have tacked on something about going to a metric system.
Sorry Bedelia,
PJC is a lawyer, so he likes to argue points. Maybe he got confused, and thought those were my points. He's not into blogs. We are diametrically opposed politically, but we still great friends, and so we are used to this kind of bickering, and you happened to get caught int he cross hairs. I hope you still come back.
Jordy,
I agree with what you said, I am not a capitalism hater, I see the virtues with it breeding competition and lower costs, I just resent the evilness that comes out of it. Se la Vie right?
And Cicada would agree with you about the Metric system, it's all Greek to me, so i can leave it because I don't know what I am missing.
Well except for 8mm and 16mm and 32mm film stocks, I get that.
Oh, and that Sheryl Crow comment was tounge and cheek, PJC must have missed that, because he loves Sheryl.
bedilai,
I get fired up when it comes to the constitution (a habit of my trade i'm afraid) and i hope that i have not offended you, and apologize for being snippy. You have not offended me in any way. This is one of the things that makes America great, that reasonable people can have different views and express them.
Murray and I have had many a spirited debate about such topics and are still friends after 31 years. (that makes us sound really old)
I agree that our current system is broken and a fix is desperately needed. I don't agree with every piece of legislation passed by either predominate party, but usually you just have to live with it.
What does bother me is when any political party ignores the safeguards provided for us by the constitution. It's just a piece of paper filled with ideas that protects us from tyranny. If we don't hold our government to those ideas then we have lost our protection. We won't end up in a Soviet style country overnight, but little by little we open ourselves up to complete control by our government.
Obama will pass lots of legislation that I won't agree with because he is a socialist by nature and i am conservative/libertarian by nature. As long as he plays within the rules i can live with it, you win some, you lose some. But when i see that our leaders are ignoring the constitutional safeguards, i think it shouldn't stand.
Have you ever read Atlas Shrugged? It is a story about the government takeover of the free market, little by little, because of "financial emergencies". Sounds all to familiar. My fear is that the American public will take any solution thrown out to them because it is sold to them as a fix to a "financial emergency." That's how the politicians grab power, in times of crisis. Both sides do it.
Let them pass health care reform, but do it right, stay within their authoritative bounds. That's all that i ask.
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