I’ll start with a teensy ray of sunshine following the passage of the health care bill, since I’m in an Eeyore mood with my own special rain cloud. Mark Knoller reported the following on Monday:
CBS New Poll: Approve of Congress 14%. Disapprove: 76%. (Poll based on random sample of 1,059 adults nationwide.)
Not that the Democrats give a hot damn. They won, yada yada. For the Bill Schers of the world, I guess we’ll find out how happy the American people are about being ignored, condescended to, and demeaned by the president and Congress. Was Bill Clinton right when he told the netroots last year that approval would immediately go up once the bill is passed? Seems like the answer is a big “no” at the moment.
Meanwhile, Americans are stuck with what the Democrats have wrought. And much as they hate the policy rape, they’ll come to identify with their captors soon enough.
Why? It’s human nature.
First, no one will allow Congress to repeal a law that would take away health care “for the children.” Not even the toughest Republican wants to have that conversation with a crying constituent. So it won’t happen. So all the talk of “repeal it” is hopeful hokum.
Second, there are Medicare cuts in the bill. The country is going down the economic crapper and cannot afford the current Medicare and Medicaid obligations, so the cuts and the bill stay.
Third, when people pay huge taxes and then get nothing for it, they know the taxes won’t go away so they complain about the product. That’s what will happen here.
Now, this bill will change everyone’s life for the worse, so there’s that happy thought. Happy? Well, American citizens from young to old will curse the Democrats.
The young people will be furious because when they voted for Obama with unicorn dreams, they didn’t imagine having to actually pay for health care with money that could be used to buy beer. Dude just harshed their mellow.
Old people will be angry because if there is one group of people who hold on to their entitlements with boney, clingy fingers, it’s old people. So with the new health care bill, they get more free drugs but they have to pay for so much else. They won’t be happy.
Small business owners will be more disheartened. We’re in a recession, remember? Yeah, these companies are barely holding on during these tough times, trying to not fire people or lay them off. Now, they have to add health care costs. Guess what? There will suddenly be many more companies with 49 employees. Are you in a company of 60 people where health insurance isn’t provided? Uh-oh. Watch out.
Doctors will stop taking Medicare and Medicaid patients. I already don’t. In protest, doctors across America will simply refuse to accept any government plan. Chaos will ensue. Old people will be hit hardest.
So yes, people are ticked off. Irate even. The Democrats don’t care and the American people are helpless to do anything except pour money into Republican candidates.
And that brings us to the Republicans. Reversing this travesty depends on them. These are the guys bandying about immigration reform and who routinely get lost in the weeds. Will the rage the American people are displaying help them keep their focus? Maybe.
It’s distressing putting my hope in any politician’s will to act nobly. It’s not in the job description. Politicians, even the fresh, green, idealistic politicians who will be elected in November, get polluted almost immediately. They start listening to “advisers” and the more seasoned pros. They start doing what legislators do: make laws. And laws, by definition, impinge on rights. That’s the way it works.
So no, I don’t believe health care will go away. I believe it will divide us, create chaos, and turn the conversation away from big dreams and freedom to provincial “my piece of the pie” talk.
Health care “reform” makes America small. That’s just the way Democrats like it.
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