Get Ready for Your Health Care ‘Re-Education’
After Congress passed ObamaCare, senior Democratic leaders predicted that public opposition would fade and voters would reward congressional supporters in the November elections.
However, the exact opposite has occurred. Opinion polls show that ObamaCare remains deeply unpopular with the American people, because it will limit their freedoms, reduce their access to quality medical care, and raise their health care costs.
Democratic congressional candidates now regard health care as toxic for their re-election chances. Those who had voted for ObamaCare are running away from that fact, whereas the few Democrats who voted against ObamaCare now use it as a selling point in their campaigns.
But rather than acknowledging that their health care plan is fundamentally flawed, the Obama administration is trying to pretend that the problem is merely one of bad public relations. Hence, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius has stated that “we have a lot of re-education to do.”
This Orwellian re-education program has now begun, directed against three major targets: the voting public, doctors and patients, and health insurance companies.
The first target of the “re-education” campaign is the voting public.
Prior to its passage, ObamaCare supporters repeatedly claimed that the plan would “bend the cost curve” down. However, detailed analyses instead show that ObamaCare will actually raise health costs, while reducing patient choices. Hence, ObamaCare supporters are now attempting to sell a different message.
As Politico’s Ben Smith reported:
Key White House allies are dramatically shifting their attempts to defend health care legislation, abandoning claims that it will reduce costs and deficit and instead stressing a promise to “improve it.”
In other words, they’re hoping that the voters will be too stupid to notice this abrupt about-face.
The second target for “re-education” is doctors and patients.
Liberal media outlets like National Public Radio are now trumpeting the supposed virtues of the “medical home,” where primary care doctors and specialists theoretically coordinate their expertise to provide comprehensive, integrated care for patients. Even the phrase “medical home” has a warm-and-fuzzy feel. But under ObamaCare, “medical homes” will instead likely be used to control costs by using primary care doctors as gatekeepers to restrict access to expensive tests such as MRI scans, or to specialists such as cardiologists and orthopedic surgeons.
Patients will be herded into these new “medical home” plans under ObamaCare laws, which will start limiting employers’ ability to continue offering their current health plans.
Similarly, the government will nudge doctors into working for “medical homes” via a combination of financial rewards and penalties. Once there, the government will specify how doctors must practice and what “quality” measures they must meet in order to get paid.
Hence, under ObamaCare “medical homes” will be more like “medical government housing projects.”
If the Dems are willing to crush the first amendment for opponents of Socialized medicine, then isn’t it a given that they will also have the nerve to crush democracy steal this November’s election with millions of dead, illegal and duplicate voters?
Chavez will be proud….and jealous.
Eric, That was MY first thought! Seems like an election in dire need of rigging for the Dems – and we know how good they are at that game!
Dems are good at rigging? If that was the case they would have won in 2000 and 2004. They are so bad at rigging elections they rightfully won both of those and somehow still lost.
I doubt either sides solely fix these things but they do work together on it for sure.
Just because you don’t hear the name “ACORN” doesn’t mean those people went away. And don’t forget the Ohio judge who gave us the “park bench is a valid address” ruling.
Anyone who can get away from work or other responsibilities on Election Day, please volunteer to be an election worker or poll watcher. That’s what I’m planning to do.
Yeah, I can imagine Sam Adams pushing petitions objecting to King George regulating toilet flushes, taxing citizens to care for other people’s parents, controlling every doctor’s medical practice, and prosectuting ministers for quoting the Bible. Yeah, and today’s conservatives make Neville Chamberlain look like Attila the Hun.
That’s why we need to ensure that the Republican margin of victory exceeds the Democratic margin of fraud.
that margin is getting ever closer to 100%…
And with the census bureau, the USSC, the FBI, IRS, DHS, USPS, and everyone else who can control who gets to vote and who doesn’t under their control, it’ll be easy to “fix” the elections to yield the “correct” result as required by The One.
It’s already started with the failure to ensure that absentee ballots are sent to troops overseas, which disenfranchises potentially hundreds of thousands of traditional GoP voters.
I never for once believed that ObamaCare could lower the cost of healthcare.
The Dem will know how the public feels once the mid term election results are out.
And no, it’s not only the economy.
This “medical home” is on a par with the clinics in Engand. Before you can get any advanced treatment, you have to go to your GP who will or will not recommend further treatment, and if he won’t yu have no recourse. In addition, you have to sign up with a specific GP clinic and, once signed up, it is very difficult to switch to another doctor, (There goes freedom of choice). The doctor is paid by the number of patients he has on his register, not by what he does for them. To see the doctor you have to sit in his waiting room. The horror stories coming out about the atrocities and waiting periods in Englnd, are all true. The latest is a 43 year old woman with breast cancer who has been denied an important course of radiotherapy, which is at present forbidden by the rationing body NICE. How do you tell a woman with small children that they will have to watch her die? It is no wonder that many people are getting private insurance. Miraculously, there is very little waiting for hospitalizations with private insurance, whereas under the NHS you could wait years for a procedure. My sister has. I can’t believe that this is where we are headed, unless Obamacare can be repealed. I hope and pray it will be.
“I can’t believe that this is where we are headed, unless Obamacare can be repealed.” Change your thoughts and words here (if I may join the government in suggesting that!!!!….yikes, now I’m doing it!)….you may want to say, “I don’t want to believe……” If you keep on saying “I can’t believe….” that denial is setting you up for further repression and deception. We had BETTER BELIEVE WHAT IS COMING AT US and respond accordingly. We had BETTER STOP DISBELIEVING. It IS this bad. It IS this dangerous. Stop pretending it’s anything less.
How about if we all just decide we’re not going to play the game? Don’t sign up for it, and don’t pay for it. I’m not going to. Millions of people must refuse to go along with it. If the govenment can’t deal with 12 million illegal aliens, how will they deal with 75 million American citizens?
Don’t kid yourself, Granny. The government *can* deal with 12 million illegal aliens; it just *won’t*. Rest assured, they *can* and *will* deal with with citizens who have the temerity to not knuckle under to government edicts.
Well, in that case, a major “unexpected” expense for ObamaCare will be for body-bags.
AMEN Emma!
This latest outrage by HHS secretary of the Nanny State is just the beginning. Americans must understand that Big Government cannot and will not solve their health problems or for that matter any of their problems. Any government with that kind of power is unchecked and no doubt will begin to bully their citizens. This is a great example of the facists tendencies of liberals as they impose their “control freak” ideas on the rest of us.
November is the time to speak! It is time to take our country and our freedom back. To reduce the size of government and limit the power of these idiots.
What country is this when the federal government feels privileged to attempt to strongarm private companies into silence regarding the harmful effects of it’s policies? When did such fascists, totalitarian threats from the executive branch become acceptable?
Wow!
Free speech?? Anyone??
It’s just out in the open now
In a chilling response, Secretary Sebelius has just ordered insurance companies not to blame their rate hikes on ObamaCare. She warned that she would show “zero tolerance” for any insurers spreading such “misinformation.” Companies that objected could be banned from the new government-run “insurance exchanges” where millions of Americans will be obliged to purchase their health plans starting in 2014.
This is a line straight out of an old gangster movie where a mobster is shaking down a businessman. “Nice little business you have here. It’d be a shame if anything bad happened to it.”
When did such fascists, totalitarian threats from the executive branch become acceptable?
Wow!
When? January 20, 2009. That’s when his Obambiness was coronated. After all, he won and so he gets to do anything he wants in true Chicago fashion. [/sarc]
When? When Obama shook down BP in full public view. There are courts for lawsuits.
“This November, let’s teach every politician who supported ObamaCare a lesson. And let’s make sure it’s a lesson they never forget.”
I’m there with you! November can’t come soon enough for me. I just got my notice in the mail last week that my insurance premiums are going up, a lot. So much for Obamacare “bending the cost curve downwards” on insurance premiums. I am making it my mission in life to get as many conservatives elected as possible and, for the first time in my life, I’m actually promoting conservative candidates to my friends and relatives. We need to make dramatic changes in Washington if we want to see any substantial changes. Hopefully, those changes will come in November.
But what really irritates me and millions of other Americans is this: We were TOLD by the mainstream media that if Obamacare passed, insurance premiums would go down. I never believed it at the time, but many Americans did. How many lies do we have to swallow with this administration? How many lies will they tell to get their agenda passed? And how soon will it be that all private insurance companies are driven out of business and socialized medicine is the norm in this land of ours?
Every SINGLE person in Congress who voted for Obamacare should be thrown out of office. Every one. Then maybe we can start repairing the damage done by these socialist zealots.
Small Insurance companiew are being bought up by the larger ones. Small business has the target on its back (with this administration). Disregard their claims…its a fact.
“Every SINGLE person in Congress who voted for Obamacare should be thrown out of office.”
We need to do more than this. Every single Democratic House member should be voted out of office, unless they publically say that they will caucus with Republicans and vote against Pelosi as Speaker. By ensuring Democratic leadership of the House, the “moderate” Democrats were the enablers of Obamacare, whether or not they actually voted for it.
First Amendment for me but not for thee.
Geez, I thought JAN Sibelius was depressing, but this woman is ridiculous.
It’s not about health care, education, finance or anything else the government “reforms”, it’s about power and social engineering.
1984 is well and alive in 2010.
Don’t fall for it folks, speak with your vote, get them out of office.
Health care reform is needed, but not this one !
Hi Granny,
1) It’s Jean Sibelius, not Jan.
2) I find Sibelius symphonies to be mostly very uplifting (except for #4).
3) Can’t wait ’til November to start sending these guys packing!
Cheers
i really dont think we, all of us, know because we havent read the 2000 page booklet and i dont think, at least 95% of all concerned about this bill has read this manual. so we did not do our homework. blind leading the blind
Stop playing Obama and pushing the blame. 95% of those concerned did not know what was in the bill they should not have voted for it, period. Nutsy Peloser could not even tell you what was in the bill but she was damn sure if it passed you were going to like it. Your comment is as stupid and ignorant as the idiots who voted for this piece of garbage.
I noticed that Kathleen Sebelius wasn’t wearing her Swastika arm band. Was she out of uniform?
They threaten insurance companies that make legally required projections to the SEC. That tells me all I need to know about Obama’s gangster government.
Like they say in the movie, “You can’t handle the truth.”
This action is treasonous, and impeachable. Can these people be any more out in the open about their criminal intent?
And the main stream media is complicit in the conspiracy, and cover-up.
The TEA Party, and/or possibly a ROGUE REPUBLICAN, could be running indictments off a printing press.
Democrat Nancy Pelosi: “We have to pass the bill so you can find out what’s in it.” We still don’t know. And Democrat Alcee Hastings on Obamacare: “There are no rules, we make ‘em up as we go along.” And now the Democratic marching orders are to stop campaigning on Obamacare, and their new mantra is “we promise we will improve it.” Is this after they “magically pass” a bill no one has read? Is this after they make it up as they go along? Is this more Democratic elitists telling the simpletons that elected them that they know better? November cannot get here soon enough.
Come on November!
Wm. Shirer, in “Rise and Fall of the Third Reich” documents the regulations that governed the concentration camps (already in place in 1933, 8 years before the United States entered WWII).
Article 11 provides for “The following offenders, considered as agitators” to be hanged: Anyone who “collects TRUE OR FALSE INFORMATION about the concentration camp; receives such information, buries it, talks about it to others, smuggles it out of the camp into the hands of foreign visitors, etc.”
If sebelius wants to step up the process, she could just recycle old Article 11. I hope they’re not under the illustion they’re doing anything innovative here.
It’s also good to keep in mind that Hitler never did dissolve or abrogate the Weimar Constitution. He actually “based the ‘legality’ of his rule on the despised republican constitutition….thousands of decreed laws—there were no others in the Third Reich—were explicitly based on the emergency presidential decree of February 28, 1933,….under Article 48 of the constitution,….” signed by Hindenburg, the last President of the German Republic.
Kathleen Sebelius is an unelected, not vetted President Obama czar who is a power hungry Communist; her statement will just reinforce the idea & energize the Tea Party to repeal ObamaCare. Americans will not put up with self-appointed tyrants. Her words will come back to haunt her. Sebelius needs to be vetted & approved by Congress given she is essentially working in a cabinet position since she has a considerable budget. Congress needs to freeze all the Obama Czars–41 thus far–& have them all vetted. The Communist czars will not stand the scrutiny & wither under the sunlight as their corruption is made plain. As a result, Sebelius will crawl back from the cesspool from whence she came.
It is Kathleen (“cough into your sleeve”) Sebelius’ job as Czarina of Health and Human Services to oversee the creation of the kajillion new agencies that will be required to administer Obamacare.
Manically intensified bureaucratization of “healthcare”, disembodied morons making decisions about your treatments, I can hardly wait.
We got a big dose of Kathleen during the manufactured agitation and orchestrated attempts at engendering panic over H1N1.
This former governor of Kansas and dear friend (well, former friend) of abortion doctor to the world, Dr. George Tiller, has definitely shown herself to be power hungry, as you say.
And not very bright.
If Obamacare doesn’t get repealed and/or the move by Attorney Generals in something like close to half the states isn’t successful (Obamacare negated on grounds of the illegality of forced purchase of a product), let’s hope, at the very least, Kathleen and her boss Barack (nd all the other proponents of gangster government serving this administration) aren’t around for second terms.
I thought she was the Secy of HHS, and as such, was confirmed by the U.S.Senate?
Czarina was a personality assessment, not meant to be descriptive.
Poetic license.
“Czarina” was a personality assessment based on Sebelius’ behavior & authoritarian attitude, not meant to be literal.
Poetic license.
For the record, there are too many Czars and Czarinas calling shots in the Obama administration without any form of oversight for their appointments.
Further for the record, oversight itself is kind of iffy, given that we now have Elena (“no military recruitment while I’m running Harvard”) Kagan and Sonia (“Wise Latina”) Sotomayor on the SCOTUS.
“Under ObamaCare, insurers must now offer dozens of services for “free,” including various forms of cancer screening, vaccinations, and AIDS testing. But of course, there’s no such thing as a free lunch — instead the costs must be shifted to other customers. Hence, many insurers have started raising their rates, explaining that it is due to these new regulations.”
Come on, a 1.5% increase because of free screening (which will pay for itself many times over by catching diseases sooner) is not why insurance companies are raising rates by 9%. Insurance companies got a gift with this legislation and they shouldn’t lie about it to explain away the cost increases that occur every year.
Boris asserted:
Come on, a 1.5% increase because of free screening (which will pay for itself many times over by catching diseases sooner) is not why insurance companies are raising rates by 9%.
False. If such screening really did “pay for itself”, the profit motive of the insurance companies — as well as every individual’s rationally selfish desire to avoid letting serious health problems develop if they can be avoided — would have resulted in a demand and supply of such screening without the need for coercion by the state.
Nothing on earth justifies any aspect of this health care “reform” law. It is a massive violation of the individuals of all Americans. It’s nothing but a gigantic power grab by our power-lusting Looter-in-Chief Obama and his fellow power-lusting looters in Congress.
God help us if we do not massively repudiate the “progressives” in November.
Increased screening may save lives but it doesn’t pay for itself in reduced costs. If anything, studies have found that increased screening increases costs. Just to ascertain if positive test results are really positive and not false positives increases costs through additional tests.
It depends very much on what the screening is for and what the criteria are for selecting who gets screen. I agree that costs can increase depending on what specific disease is being screened for; however, these increased costs almost always lead to lower mortality rates, and that outcome has to be weighed as well.
Insurance companies are under financial pressure from more than bundled services. There are winners and losers with this plan. They know who they are, and Sebelius is just reminding them. I just wonder when we’ll have to bail ‘em out.
While it wouldn’t be the first time governments and industry colluded it’s important to watch the pea. It isn’t under the numbers shell or any other shell. It’s in the operator’s hand. This is a power and principle issue, not a monetary one. Stick to the constitutional abuse problem and all will be well. The perversion of the proper relationship between citizens and their governments (and not the other way around, as RR remarked) will always produce negative effects. The law will have to be overturned, not complained about in its details but scuttled. Every time you get into its details, you accept is as the fact it ought not to be. A repeal would require a substantial majority to pass over presidential veto. Two thirds, I think. I wish I could say I see that happening in November.
Stupid is as Stupid does.
Funny, the Republicans DID come up with several alternatives to the Obama care Health Care Reform mess. And like the arrogant bunch the left is, ‘dismissed’ any ideas ‘different’ from the left’s ‘radical agenda’. It’s astonishing….
What’s even more astonishing is that the cry on the left was people didn’t have ‘access’ to or couldn’t ‘afford’ ‘quality health care.’ Many ‘quality’ hospitals had to shut their doors, because of all the ‘free’ ‘quality health care’ they were providing and people were getting.
Fine example of how other people’s money eventually dries up…
‘Under Obama C Insurers must offer ‘dozens of services for free’…
As people who ‘actually’ work in business for a living,(as opposed to paper pushing and pissing off many many people) we know any ‘extras or freebies’ that are going to affect the bottom line gets passed off to the consumers.
Most of us have been around long enough to know ‘there is no free lunch’!
CANNOT WAIT FOR NOVEMBER TO GET HERE – LETS VOTE THESE PEOPLE OUT!!
Dr. Hsieh. Thank you for another excellent (and scary) article. As a Canadian who values individual rights – I know, practically a contradiction in terms – I sincerely hope that Americans will start making some inroads on reversing the odious results of the progressive movement over the past 100 years.
A freakin Nazi and Tyrant in everything but name. Screw this sanctimonious bitch and her dictatorial powers, she can take her tyranny and cram it right up her ruling class arse!
Along with all her statist compatriots and fellow apparatchiks of the Amerikan Nomenklaturer, including that psychopath soros and his yes man who is an illegal alien that usurped the office of president, our very own muslim in chief Boo Hoo Obama.
ObamaCare is the capstone in the Obamunist arch, the self-immolation that will best characterize this Administration as the last stage in the Anti-Constitutional Interregnum.
Remember in November.
hhs secretary;kathleen sebillius”was my gov.of kansas,and i’m thankful she’s gone;but i don’t believe in kicking the can down the road,and passing’kansas’s no#1 child predator on to the nation to be america’s#2 child predator.behind only;hillary,”i’m a hyphenated american”clinton.my greatest anger,is not,at her though,there leaves little doubt who this woman is,as well her sic-o-phant,obsessions to prey on children;mine is of the absent minded,pedophile worshipping voters;that voted for this president,and other democrats,they had to know,,believed,what barack obama believed;and if they didn’t know what these people’s beliefs are then they,are either to ignorant to vote,because the truth was easy to find,unless the worship of money,clouded their judgement.which makes them not much different then the professional,deadbeats,and society predators,who proudly worshipped at the alter of barack obama,and kathleen sebillius,only because they know they,are professional pimps for deadbeats,and predators;putting the obsession of money,over wrong,perverse,or evil conquest.is an accessory to the crimes,committed,against god,and the least of us;the most innocent,and vulnerable,among us;god’s guaranteed saints.”our society’s children,especially the unborn;who are not given any right to exist,at all;my greatest anger,is at my own senators;senator sam brownback,and senator pat roberts;both who claim to be pro-life consevatives.and even though,kathleen sebelius was going to be nominated easy with-out their vote,or input,on her behalf.couldn’t wait to bow to the alter of barack obama,and kathleen sebillius.praising her as though she was the greatest thing,since moses leading the hebrews,out of bondage,and into the promise land;all in exhange for,empty promises,of more pork,;for their district,which to-date,for their, judas iscariot,30 pieces of silver,telling kansans,to call the offices of sam brownback,and pat roberts,and thank them,yes thank them,for more green windmill,government regulated,and sponsored,socialist/marxist union,and illegal immigrant jobs;i hope their conscience bothers them,either way,i will nevervote for these,lying false prophet,false doctrine,hypocrites,again.jimmy joe;the “the liarfryer”
“praising her as though she was the greatest thing,since moses leading the hebrews,out of bondage,and into the promise land;all in exhange for,empty promises,of more pork,;”
were the hebrews really promised…. more pork they couldn’t find in the promised land? LOL!
Dr. Obama came up with a pill larger than the patient could swallow and nurse Sebelius is going to make sure that it goes in one end or another. The irony of this bad medicine is that it was never about health care, it was about taking over the insurance companies. Everytime anyone says “health care” they are chanting and repeating the fundamental lie of this issue. The arch-deceiver in vast hell is taking notes on how well the puny mortal politicians could perpetuate such a con job.
Sebelius/Obama are already wrecking medical care from the stimulus/porkulus package which mandated elelctronic health records for the sake of efficiency. Which government program promotes efficiency?
“Remember in November!” Say it. Know it. Live it.
Repeal ObamaCare.
In a chilling response, Secretary Sebelius has just ordered insurance companies not to blame their rate hikes on ObamaCare. She warned that she would show “zero tolerance” for any insurers spreading such “misinformation.” Companies that objected could be banned from the new government-run “insurance exchanges” where millions of Americans will be obliged to purchase their health plans starting in 2014.
Michael Barone used a very apt phrase…
Gangster Government
“A Gangster Government.” Its even worse than that, they call themselves Democrats or Progressives but they are really neo-communists, the New Communists of the United States. Real Democrats like Harry Truman, Kennedy or Zell Miller believed in the country, these Obama gangsters believe in ruining it forever for an idiology, Secretary Sebelius is the perfect example of the Communist apparatchik, the cold bureaucrat that can sentence you, your parents or children to death with the turn of a regulation. What went on in the death camps of communism is alive and well, it just takes ignorance to let it flourish again.
Of course at this point such behavior would be expected from this administration that is clearly after power above all else. Paul Hsieh is right to insist we have to get rid of Obamacare and not vote for the politicians that supported it. Let’s hope their replacements will act according to the principles of individual rights, work to reduce the size of government and restore our liberties!
Two things that the Pravdas of the world are not discussing:
1- Big Zero is again talking to kids at schools at 1pm today(Cult Leader figure).
2- FLorida started the law suit against OBAMACARE.
This “medical home” gatekeeper idea parallels the Canadian system. A friend of mine up there developed anemia, but her GP had retired. It took so long to find a replacement — about six months — that she had to self-medicate using over-the-counter supplements, and was already recovering on her own by the time the system ground around to connecting her to another gatekeeper. Gee, thanks!
Fortunately, she had the knowledge, as a retired nurse, to self-medicate properly; someone lacking this knowledge would have been SOL, eh?
The acid test for my vote in 2012 is going to be “Will you vote to repeal ObamaCare?”
Excellent question. Unfortunately, there’s a good chance you’ll be asking it of someone who’s willing to lie to get elected. We’ve seen that time and time again on both sides of the aisle. Truth-tellers will rise to the surface, but it may take longer than we have. I don’t know. But I do know there’s no value in getting answers to even the best questions from liars.
I hate to disillusion you…but people will be “untruthful” to get elected…so, your test, well, I hope you will find another way. Look at their background, achievements, and associations also.
Wow, being that nice to such a dip weed statement almost choked me.
Wonderful essay, Paul. As far as it goes.
But, we may be missing the Freudian clues left littered all over the political landscape.
Sebilius didn’t say that the public need to be educated, she said “we need to implement a re-education onto the public”.
Bear with me for a moment. This administration has, from the days of its campaign stops…been found to have Che posters on the walls, proposed civilian armies..with slogand and chants, refused to prosecute armed thugs in camouflage at a polling place who were talking about killing some “cracker babies”, who openly worshipped and idolized Mao, who turned off the security system on credit cards for political contributions into the campaign…allowing foreign influence unfettered and unexamined, who wanted as a “green czar” a “truther” and avowed Communist, a Reverend who wanted God to damn America, and an ex-Weatherman who wanted to exterminate 25 million Americans.
The most stubborn “problem” that the extreme, radical, Black Panther/Weathermen/Pelosi/Sebelius crowd wants to exterminate…is the aging, heartland, AND LIKELY IN NEED OF HEALTH CARE…anti-leftist.
The best way to do this, is through attrition. Force them into a system that decides FOR THEM what health care they can get…and then deny it.
Spend away our treasure, so that they state is “forced” to take over energy, housing, transportation (including auto), banking, finance, …and squeeze those stubborn anti-leftists out of existence…while “re-educating” the rest.
Far fetched? Didn’t they say they were going to “allow the elderly to die?” If you kill off the solid base and import 30 million illegal voters to your base, you can build a permanent majority. If you seal in 95% of the African American vote and block the military from getting their ballots in on time…you chip away at the margins of what can be fairly achieved.
If you own the mass media and block every investigation in the court of public opinion, deprive the public of the facts and then “re-educate them”, you put down any resistance before it forms.
This legislation was passed by Democrats who admit they never even read it. It was crammed down America’s throat…by fiat. The “legislators” who didn’t legislate…they merely followed the dictated outcome without examination or even actual participation…have proven they are not intending to do the job. They are serving a different master. Not the people…but the Party.
And THAT’S what this upcoming election is about. It’s the People vs. The Party.
Let William Ayers and Robert Reich and Seblius and Pelosi find another way to exterminate 25 million of our countrymen. They aren’t using our votes to wipe away patriots with the swipe of a pen. Maybe these leftist extremists can be given a little re-education of their own come November.
Couldn’t have said it better myself. Overall, there is a concerted effort to address any concerns separately and attach blame for “rabble rousing” to a different individual for each issue. For the new tax legislation it’s Boehner. For ObamaCare it was Palin. For the bailouts it was any CEO. It gives the impression that these are all unrelated so the big picture isn’t so readily visualized. Then the threat doesn’t seem quite as, well, threatening.
And it *is* a threat. Occasionally the mask slips and a word or turn of phrase such as that used by Madam Secretary, “re-education”, or “spread the wealth around”, or “I don’t worry much about the Constitution”, etc and we get a quick glimpse into how it really wouldn’t be a stretch to find that suddenly all these pieces come together and we have lost our liberties. Everything not forbidden will be mandatory.
Excellent, excellent….5 stars….if given the chance, they will ..yes they will…i just have to listen to their words, read their writings, and watch their actions….it’s plain to see
Lock’n Load.
Reeducation of the public has been ongoing for several months via AP news stories. Our local paper has printed a series already. Articles bash high cost services.
and this is what I was thinking in October of 2008
Here is the problem in a nutshell. When the entrenched media decided to cast off the last vestiges of their pretense as guardians of the truth and as impassive seekers of fact…when they decided to openly and nakedly rig the election by and through their powers of distortion, they sealed off the portals to inquiries such as this.
The question is not now, nor has it ever been for anyone with an IQ above an ACORN…whether Senator Obama flirted with extreme far left radical ideology. It is pure sophistry to suggest otherwise. What has not been asked, in point of fact, what has been shielded from view for the American voting public…is how much took hold and how much remains in place.
Only when the prepared speeches end and the off the cuff mark seeps out of its shackles in the dungeon of duplicity, can we get a glimpse through the tower at the prisoner waiting to escape.
We are to assume, and then believe on a leap of faith…that “Frank” Marshall Davis…who sat the young Barry at his knee and told him how to think like a CPUSA member, yet left no mark upon the impressionable lad. (apparently in between abusing substances and 13 year old girls)
We are to assume, and then believe on a leap of faith that the radical professors at college (perhaps Edward Said being one?), and the radical fringe students with whom he chose to spend his free time, left no mark upon the worldview he was developing.
We are to assume, and then believe on a leap of faith that the Saul Alinsky training on how to “beat a democracy to death with its own rule book”, left no mark upon the use of the system to install radical extreme destruction and replacement into it, by pretending to be a non-threat to the middle class.
We are to assume, and then believe on a leap of faith that the funneling of hundreds of millions of dollars to “reeducation camps” which indoctrinated schoolchildren in the cultism of William Ayers view of this country, was a misread of the situation and because “Republicans” had their “names” involved as well…it was not a bad thing after all.
We are to assume, and then believe on a leap of faith, that the selection of Jeremiah Wright’s house of hate, inspired as it is upon the Marxist-black nationalist screed of James Cone…was merely a place to hang a prayer book on Sunday and offers no further exposure into the mind of the Democratic nominee for President.
We are to assume, and then believe on a leap of faith, that the dinners with wives and tasty wines and cheeses with Rashid Khalidi was merely an intellectual evening of professorial chatter and stories about living abroad, rather than an embrace of the notion that suicide bombers are honorable martyrs in a just cause.
We are to assume these things and more, based upon a leap of faith…because the truth remains sequestered behind the ink barrels and celluloid confines of a corrupt media prison. It is shackled and gagged and we only hear faint muffled shouts for freedom, when the campaign makes a slip of the tongue.
“THEY are bitter, angry slothful, but WE are the change you have been waiting for”
“THEY cling to their little religions, our religion is based upon political theater. THEY say their little prayers to their inferior deity, we declare if our deity doesn’t kill THEM, we must kill our deity”
“THEY salute their little flag and wear their little flag on their lapels, we stomp on that flag with dirty boots, because it is the “wrong” kind of patriotism”.
Oh…but if you point out these people….the Maoists whose blog disappears the day he is discovered, the playing of the God should damn America speech, the New Party membership….you are attacked as a “right wing demon”.
GUILT BY ASSOCIATION! GUILT BY ASSOCIATION!… is shouted by the guards at the gates where truth is held hostage.
No, guilt by affirmation. It is not the association that raises the question at hand. It is the affirmation by act, affirmation by deed, affirmation continued fealty to the ideology. It is the lack of examination of these acts of affirmation that condemns the entrenched media as co-conspirators.
For so long, Saul Alinsky said…the imbeciles who attacked the system from the outside with violence were making it harder to tear it down from the inside with its own rules, its own Constitution. You did not need to set bombs, you needed to set traps.
“YOU are not gonna like what we do and the polls are going to drop…but then you will “come around” to see that we are right”. (except for the 25 million who don’t perform in the reeducation camps, apparently, they will disappear under the boot of Ayers along with our flag)
“We need more government” “We need to redistribute YOUR wealth, in order to make things “fair”. And, if you protest…then we will impose a “fairness doctrine”…and our “civilian army” will enforce it.
We will have a new Presidential seal, you will hang portraits of our Dear Leader from your buildings, we will have forced conscription into working for US…you know…kind of like slavery…only better…since its for the “cause”.
Foreign money is now acceptable to assist in our elections. Voter registrations are ensured “fairness” by “impartial” overseers of the PARTY. The list of voters on OUR side has swelled beyond mathematical comprehension.
You will never, ever, ever win another election. The PARTY has decided to redraw all the districts. Your voice and your vote will be drowned in a sea of corruption. All for your own good.
Now, give me your wallet while I redistribute your wealth. Joe the Plumber, you ask? I don’t know…he seems to have disappeared. The state media has some nice music for you to listen to tonight. Please ignore those screams from the dungeon and enjoy your evening.
me too, but you say it so well.
New deal: if we don’t trust the outcome of elections, we’ll just decide we won and launch a coup. You resist? You get shot.
Here are some things I was thinking in November of 2008.
What does all this mean? I simply can’t piece together an answer that doesn’t give rise to more questions.
I don’t know what to believe, other than to say…I’m not convinced of anything I’m being told and am growing ever more suspicious of what I am not being told, what is being hidden and what is being done with the Left-handed Monkey Wrench that the Grass Curtain Plumbers are using on the truth.
Massive voter registration fraud, massive campaign financing…with serious and dangerous circumvention of safeguards?
Repeated, consistent and haunting connections with some of the most virulent haters of America; these haters attack on the salt of the earth small town folks and “flyover country” residents; an even more frontal assault on the Constitution; a “spread the wealth” economic distribution plan; an open suggestion that a “fairness doctrine” be imposed to shut down talk radio and possibly other dissenters; an outline to drastically curtail the military budget and reduce our ability to defend militarily against foreign enemies; replacing that role instead with a “private civilian army” not constrained by oversight of the military…instead reporting directly to the civilian Commander?
Drown out opposing or dissenting voices? Kick them off the plane and shut them down on the airwaves? Take the property of the dissenters and give it to the loyal party workers? Indoctrinate schoolchildren and have them chant slogans and sing songs to the leader? Paramilitary exercises and “calls to action”, orders to “get in their faces” and browbeat your own parents and grandparents?
The media suddenly and almost completely consumed by a lack of curiousity, it ceases to defend “the little guy”…but instead attacks them with a ferocity heretofore reserved for national politicians. They goosestep their way to salute the private seal, the absence of the flag, the Che Guevara poster.
Let me summarize:
1) Strip the military of funding and reduce its manpower and ability to defend;
2) Strip the access of dissenters by kicking them off the plane, refusing access via the airwaves if they ask tough questions, institute a “fairness doctrine” to eliminate their voice on radio, possibly more on the way with the Internet.
3) Strip the capital and property and begin to redistribute those funds and property to party loyalists;
4) Attack the constitution, insert judges not elected by the people as operatives in redrafting it to suit the policies and procedures which the people never voted to approve.
5) Build a civilian army of loyal party members, in a new revolutionary guard against enemies…whomever they may be.
6) Take away the 2nd amendment rights of the people, by force, if necessary…because they “cling to guns and religion”. Not sure if religion is going to be allowed to “cling” to at this point, or if religious theater and theopolitics will be advanced.
7) Replace traditional symbols with new ones…the flag is the “wrong” kind of patriotism…but personal seals, wall sized portraits, a personal flag for the Leader are the “right” kind. Posters of fellow revolutionaries appears to be ok as well.
8. Nationalized healthcare, nationalized banking and finance, nationalized insurance, nationalized 401k’s, nationalized homeownership, nationalized energy, nationalized education, nationalized agriculture and food production.
9) Elections rife with voter registration fraud and political operatives blocking investigation into the massive, overt and clear attempts to rig an election for one candidate with ties to the offending organizations. Jimmy Carter will be called in to announce that the elections are “fair”.
10) Massive evidence of campaign finance irregularities, foreign influence and laundered money, in order to buy more votes. Control from an outside agency or country is hidden and denied.
11) Louder and more vicious attacks on Jewish people popping up as a “gutter religion”, the “cause of massive suffering”, the “reason there is no peace”. A team is assembled to “reduce the Zionist influence”.
If I was going to start a revolution…I certainly couldn’t pick a better groundwork or foundation than this
Kathleen Sibelius: My nomination for “Gauleiter of the Year.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gauleiter
I’m am going to sooooooooo enjoy voting this year.
This administration will NEVER concede to ObamaCare being an unaffordable mess.
Remember when Senator/Deacon/Doctor Tom Coburn called out ObamaCare during the ‘mandated health insurance summit’, stating Medicare Advantage recipients would pay higher rates under Obamacare?
Obama sanctimoniously said that wasn’t the case. Following the lunch recess, an aide whispered in his ear Medicare Advantage rates WOULD RISE, he quickly stated it would rise and moved on..
No apology, recognition of ignorance on his part. NOTHING.
Did the Obamabots truly believe stealing $50 billion annually from that portion of the senior citizen community, strongarm private businesses to provide health insurance, low-income tweener & 20, 30 somethings to buy health insurance, tens of millions of poor citizens provided tax funded insurance would LOWER health insurance costs?
Obviously those same individuals aren’t accountants or possess ANY critical thinking ability.
The Government has their greasy thumb on the auto industry, the college loan biz, the housing market, Wall Street AND health insurance and still aren’t considered Socialists?
I think the last sentence should read ‘Democrat’ rather than ‘government’, otherwise, I completely agree.
It’s astounding how much ‘soft socialism’ this country is willing to accept.
Shortages for common medicines, isotopes for radiological testing and physicians are common in the Canadian “one size fits all” egalitarian medical system.
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/Generic+drug+shortage+hits+patients+doctors+nationwide/3470959/story.html
http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2010/08/22/Isotope-shortage-evokes-medical-concerns/UPI-84911282489096/
http://www.thestar.com/article/860720–health-ministers-ask-ottawa-for-action-on-medical-isotopes-shortage
http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/front/article/1199351
And use this convenient link (paid for by tax dollars) to see how much time you have to die before you receive treatment for your condition if you live north of New York, Ohio and Michigan, in ONTARIO, Canada.
http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/public/programs/waittimes/
Great article. These people are soooo predictable, which could be funny, but unfortunately they want to control my access to things that could save my life!
Yes, November will bring changes, but do Republicans get it? We shall see.
Many thanks to Dr. Hsieh for his continuing work to expose the government agenda and speak up for the ideas that can make a difference!
Whenever I want to reduce the cost of something, I always turn to government. With layers of highly paid bureaucrats overseeing entrenched unions supported by mountains of regulations, how could efficiency not blossom?
Brilliant. Concise, accurate, and punchy. This is especially good:
“Hence, under ObamaCare ‘medical homes’ will be more like “medical government housing projects.’”
Writing doesn’t get any better than that.
Well done.
Great article! And as scary as the destruction of our medical system is, I’m even more worried about the escalating attacks on our freedom of speech. Government takes our money to indoctrinate us and simultaneously prevents us from voicing our concerns or stating facts. That’s the road to full totalitarianism.
Tax strike, anyone?
The jails won’t hold us all.
Sorry, but the folks hand-wringing over “socialized medicine” and “Obamacare” belong in the same nutzo category as Birthers and Global Warming deniers: US health care is a mess of skyrocketing costs and deteriorating quality, and all that Republicans have done is obstruct any attempt at fixing things, including shoveling out disinformational BS talking points to the gullible.
That’s right, thanks to federal and state government regulations, free health care for illegals, medical physician lobbies and outdated tort laws (I wonder how much the American Bar Association and medical special interests contribute to Democratic campaigns?). And now, thank you so much President Obama, Nancy and Harry, we can expect costs to rise even higher.
BC, you’ve learned Obama’s trick of strawman arguments well, I see.
I read all 3 links you provided.
1) Americans *choose* to spend $ on health care (at least up til now.) That we spend more than other countries is, in itself, not an indictment of the system. Granted, costs are going up – read the da%$ed bill and you will see costs will soar. What has angered many of us is that there are simple, concrete ways to help bring done the cost of health care. . . but they aren’t in this bill.
2) The article you link to re: deteriorating quality just cites errors during surgeries as being dangerous. It does *not* give ANY data supporting the notion that quality is deteriorating. Further the HC bill does NOTHING to address this.
3) Your link to factcheck cites ridiculous claims that I have never heard before. . . and certainly not seen here.
Your little rant is the same name-calling and misdirection we’ve learned to expect from Obama and his apologizers.
I’ve learned something way back about wasting time following links from BC. The guy is logically crippled. His links seldom apply directly to what he thinks his point is and without exception they provide no support for his statements that any critical thinker would accept. More often than not they actually support the opposing view.
To furball: Glad someone in this forum knows what it means when a bit of text is blue highlighted. Now as far as your points go:
1) No, there was never a real choice-choice. I remember back in high school reading about elastic and inelastic supply and demand curves. The example given for a perfectly elastic demand curve — meaning that if you raise your price even a little, demand would fall off almost completely — was the price of corn on the wholesale market: with no overall shortage, consistent quality, and multiple suppliers, a farmer had no choice but to sell at the going price per bushel. The example given for a perfectly inelastic demand curve — meaning that you can raise your price even a lot and the demand would stay about the same — was the price of medical care: people put their health and that of their family before pretty much everything else. If you have to sell your car to get your broken leg fixed, so be it. The ancient Hippocratic Oath, which governed the ethics of doctors for thousands of years, was/is a recognition of the potential abuse of power that doctors have, and that covered money as well, given this passage from the classical version: and if he is in need of money to give him a share of mine.
The cost of medical care kept pace with the cost of everything else up until the 60′s when a slight divergence appeared, but it wasn’t until the 80′s, thanks to some pretty awful legislation by Reagan and the Republicans (surprise, surprise) that encouraged the corporatization of health care, including consolidating hospital systems and closing urban and rural clinics, that things really started getting worrisome.
Mr. and Mrs. Joe Schmo simply went along with all of the changes — there was never any “choosing” on their part. People stick with their doctors whenever they can, and pay whatever they have to, out of pocket or through insurance premiums, and the changes in the heath care industry since the early 80′s has exploited that.
And there are *no* simple ways to reduce the bill — everything you may have heard about the impact of frivolous malpractive lawsuits and illegals getting free care is pretty much no more than playing-to-the-gullible, grossly exaggerated BS. Chump change at best compared to the real, much more complicated reasons for why health care costs are zooming up.
2) Unfortunately, there are no good, definitive non-free studies with good historical records and graphs I can link to: most are just piecemeal stuff like this.
The most serious problem with dealing with the causes of both the soaring health care costs and medical errors is the complex labyrinth of secrecy that has not enveloped the entire health care industry. The most important yet least discussed part of the health care bill is that it will much more easily allow for forensic accounting inquiries into any hospital system, insurance company, or pharmaceutical firm suspect in cooking numbers or price gouging.
3) PJM is one of the more sane right wing sites despite some pretty nutzo articles from time to time (as well as nutzo commentators like “Just Passing Through”), whereas others like Hot Air or especially the Free Republic go into WTF?!?ville on a regular basis.
‘(as well as nutzo commentators like “Just Passing Through”’
This from a guy that is STILL consumed by BDS 2 years into the new administration.
You are embarrassingly easy to predict, by the way. You never vary from the script. I could write your coming screeds after the November election for you. The difference is that I would use links that while they wouldn’t support your narrative – no critically coherent references would – they at least would not directly refute it.
To Just Passing Through: “BDS”? Oh yeah, the term right wingers defensively came up with when people who weren’t morons started pointing out what a complete and utter f*ck-up and liar Bush was. Just because he’s been out out of office for a little more than 1 1/2 years doesn’t exactly mean he’s a better person. You might as well be using the term “BLDS” for people complaining about bin Laden. Also, you’re the one bringing up Bush here — I didn’t refer to him in my original posting here.
I’m semi-predictable in the sense that I tend to deal with logic, reality and verifiable info rather than the numbnutted rumors of the day. And you would be as successful duplicating my postings as a sparrow opening a can of corn.
BC, once again I read your links.
1) What several mention (and Consumer Reports backs up with a nice graph) is that Hospitals and Doctors outpace insurance companies and pharmaceuticals in the rise of HC costs. Yes, part of this is due to deregulation in the 80s, allowing more privatization and corporate takeover of hospitals. But I believe if this had been accompanied by allowing insurance companies to operate across state lines and allow them to custom-tailor plans, they could have reduced the “money-grubbing” alluded to in the Boston Globe series.
2)To refute your point about tort reform, consider the following CBO quote which considers the “utilization” effects of tort reform – that is the $ spent on “defensive medicine” to guard against a lawsuit: “the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) of the Department of Health and Human Services, for example, has estimated that a cap on noneconomic damages alone would reduce costs to the federal government by between $25 billion and $44 billion per year.”
I don’t want to argue specific HC proposals here. In general, I like the old saying about computers: Quality/Low-Price/Speed – you can choose any two. In Health Care, it might be: Freedom-of-choice/Low-Price/Ease-of-Use – choose two.
I can envision a free market competition of providers and insurers where individuals could choose just the kind of coverage they want; but to make an informed choice would take a *lot* of homework.
I’ve read hundreds of pages (not all) of the HC Bill of 2010. I want it repealed because I do not like what it does. (I also didn’t like *how* it was done, but that’s another issue.)
Successful duplicating your posts? Everything you think you’ve mastered – economics, politics, science – is nothing but poorly understood drivel.
You’re easy to predict, hopelessly muddled, and any commenter here could write your posts. You read from a script and you don’t think that’s apparent. And you think you impress with your superiority? You don’t even understand the information in the links you yourself cite.
Yup, I could write your comments for November. It’ll be that ignorant, redneck suburbanites, concerned only with their lawns and kids soccer teams couldn’t understand the REAL issues and how to interpret them. You’ll point to a few successful defenses of bluest of blue seats and tell us that the sophisticated urban intelligentsia, your cafe crowd, thereby proved their superior grasp of what this nation needs. You won’t be able to resist. You’re predictable. There wont be anything to substantiate what you say. Just a defiant and incoherent screech.
You’re no challenge. You prove that over and over again.
BC,
you’re wasting your time with these people – they live in a fantasy world where they’ve been brainwashed to forget that healthcare premiums doubled between 2001 and 2008, and that while there is some increase in costs from the healthcare act over the initial years the costs are projected to come down afterwards, while the larger increases we are seeing now are mainly still made up of rampant overtreatment and lack of younger people in the pool – the head of the health insurance association has said just that. And the money funnelled into the pockets of failing hospital executives is staggering, even in non-for-profit facilities.
They are also of course ideologically opposed to living in a decent society that reduces inequalities, such as health inequality, even though all the evidence shows that less inequality would increase the country’s productivity and benefit them. If they were turkeys they’d vote for Thanksgiving. And of course while they had power under Bush they did absolutely nothing other than make things worse, and they are also are oblivious to the fact that the relatively mild reform is very much like what the GOP proposed in the 1990s when they attacked the Clinton reform.
“The example given for a perfectly inelastic demand curve — meaning that you can raise your price even a lot and the demand would stay about the same — was the price of medical care: people put their health and that of their family before pretty much everything else.”
Your knowledge of economics is about nil. The company I worked for went through about 6 insurance company changes in a period of 20 years, all based on cost of insurance. Your example only works when there are a very limited number of insurance providers, which is why Republicans were pushing to open insurance availability across state borders, to open up competition. The Democrats don’t care about competition because their ultimate goal is a British type of system, that is presently going bankrupt.
As far as your contention that in the 80′s costs started rising out of all proportion to cost of living because of legislation under Reagan is ludicrous. The reason costs started rising is because of technological advances in medicine. Ever hear of CT scans, computers, etc.? The hospitals went into competition with each other by modernizing in order to provide better care and stay competitive. These costs were passed on to the users and the insurance companies. You think technology is free? Maybe in your and the Democrat’s world.
Dr. Hsieh,
>Hence, under ObamaCare “medical homes” will be more like “medical government housing projects.”
Nice turn of phrase; I like that! And of course you’re exactly right. The ObamaCare plan is aimed at convincing people of the preposterous idea that slavery is not slavery, and that less freedom is in our best interest. Nonsense!
They will get my response in November
Great article Dr. Hsieh. This is a big issue that more people should be aware of. Nice work explicitly stating what is going on so that everyone can understand.
To furbal: You again get kudos for not being knee jerk right wing jerk like certain whiny, knock-the-cereal-bowl-off-the-table and poop pants types posting here. As far as your new points go:
1) As far as allowing insurance companies to tailor plans and making it easier for consumers to pick and choose, the Massachusetts model actually created something very similar: a one stop shop where one could easily pick out a basic health care plan that was a bit cheaper to purchase than if you spent hours web searching and calling around for prices. However, the cost of the basic plans have shot up pretty much in parallel to overall health insurance plans. The real issue is that price gouging has been allowed to go on so long that it’s become institutionalized across the entire health care industry, from hospitals to drug companies to insurance companies and so on. Even trying to find out what are the real costs for a standard procedure like chemotherapy is blocked by now widespread policies in place that fuzz up costs and charges, including confidentiality agreements the precludes anybody from talking without a subpoena.
In other words, “money grubbing” has become far too successful at making far too many people wealthy for the entire national health care system for it to be for discarded without a major fight.
2) There are no studies whatsoever (legitimate ones that is) that show tort reform having any sort of real impact on reducing costs, and that factors in so called defensive medicine. The NY Times actually has a good summary of the major issues with trying to use tort reform as a primary component for an alternative health care reform plan. And this is a more detailed look at it. As I pointed out before, whatever possible savings you might get here is chump change compared to the major shenanigans going on at the corporate level.
Obama’s plan isn’t perfect by any means, and I think it took a major hit when the public plan was dropped, but…it’s the *only* plan out there that was a real plan and not just some collection of random, factoid talking points based on what sounds good rather than on good research.
As we all know that brain drain is a major headache in India with huge numbers of students going abroad for studying and then opting to stay there. The best solution for this specific problem is to study overseas but prefer to utilize your skills for the development of your home country India. Studying abroad is a matter of conceit for the students and they are correct in thinking so.
http://www.brilliantpreschool.com/plus/view.php?aid=517
An issue that nobody in the MSM is raising, but an issue to which our local Congresswoman alluded during her townhall-type meeting with us here a few months ago is that apparently there are clauses in the new Healthcare Legislation which stipulate that it will provide not only monthly Social Security payments and Medicare for elderly felons released from prison and for elderly illegal aliens, but monthly retirement PENSION checks for them to supplement their monthly Social Security checks, too, all as bribes, apparently, to get them and other illegal aliens to vote for Democrats; pretty outrageous considering that very few or none of them paid anything into Social Security. What the Democrats won’t do to empower themselves, and to conceal their sneakiness from the public – with the full cooperation of the MSM.
Its like you learn my thoughts! You appear to understand so much approximately this, such as you wrote the ebook in it or something. I think that you can do with some percent to force the message home a little bit, but other than that, that is great blog. A great read. I’ll certainly be back.