The Face of Healthcare Opponents

I am a registered Republican.  Not because I believe in what the party has to offer.  No.  I'm a registered Republican because I get to vote in the party's primaries, take part in its polls and get all their mailings.  I'm not a huge fan of Democrats, either, but looking at what has gone on the past few days, I have to say that the Republicans not only look like uneducated backwoods morons, but they actually seem proud of it.  Granted, not all of them, but it's the ones who aren't who are even more disturbing than the ones who are.

Why aren't they speaking out against what is going on?  Palin using war talk.  McCain endorsing that and saying there will be no more cooperation the rest of the year.  (Was there any in the first place?  What an empty threat.)  The ones who aren't ignorant aren't calling those who are out on the carpet.   Why is that?

The Republicans lost the healthcare debate.  They had a chance to participate.  Blew it.  The Democrats sent it home, for better or for worse (I believe a little of both), without the aid of the Republicans.  They took a page out of the Bush administration playbook and said, "Fuck you, we're doing it anyway."  And now the GOP doesn't like it.  Doesn't like it one bit.  Palin is so angry she may actually read a book or something and get herself edjimacated.

Do Americans really tolerate sore losers?

People who know me or read a lot of my "stuff" know I have problems with both parties.  I'd much rather see this "kick ass and take names" approach used for good (like healthcare reform -- real reform -- not what we got) than as a prelude to war.  Which leads to another question: Where were these tea baggers when they realized their tax dollars were going to mercenary groups in the desert?

Did the tea baggers not know their tax dollars supported war and Haliburton?  Or did they not care?  Hey, tea baggers, here's a thought:  When all those Iraqi war vets come home and develop oddly colored semen and facial tics twenty years down the road and the government refuses to help them because there's no proof it is tied to some crazy chemical cocktail they were exposed to fighting for some oil overseas, this healthcare reform may end up helping them.  That's a good thing, right?  Or would you rather they just suffer silently?

I don't disagree with everything the Republicans stand for, just like I don't agree with everything Democrats preach.  I do, however, calls them likes I sees them, and in this case the Republicans are proving just what sore loser, whiny, unpatriotic pricks they really are.

Thanks for having me in the party, though.  I'll be sure to have fun with it in the upcoming elections.    

9/2/09 Town Hall Meeting on Health Care Reform in Humboldt

I'm watching the replay of Eureka's town hall meeting on health care reform with the stereotypical politician Mike Thompson. This is far better than the coverage given on KIEM. The crowds, many of them fanning themselves (copies of the Constitution, perhaps) and yelling over people. It's not as crazy as some of what I've seen in other places. Nobody in a wheelchair is getting heckled. At one point, Thompson pulled a small boy out of the crowd and hit him with a hammer. He declared, "If he has no health care, he will die!"

The crowd went ballistic. Some applauded. One man screamed, "Let him fend for himself." He tore a cell phone out of an obese woman's hands as she tried to dial 911.

The boy was eventually dragged out of the room.

A Santa Claus clone then takes to the microphone and talks about being turned down for insurance and wanted to know if the reform would tackle that issue. Thompson gave the stock answer, and Santa sat back down. Not sure why Santa needs insurance. He's magic.

Thompson looks like a bird.

A Jewish woman named Nicole who is a writer gets up. Jews take a risk anytime they stand up around angry people. If there's no blacks or openly homosexual people around, the anger can turn to them. Nicole talks about getting Medi-Cal and how she now has health insurance through her job, but still likes the single payer plan. That plan is off the table, though. Sorry, Nicole. Hey, at least the crowd didn't start talking about Nazis.

A milquetoast guy stands up. He is nervous. He says he reads everything he signs. With the amount of time it took him to get his point across, I definitely believe that. Fucker probably reads his grocery receipt in line, too, as your ice cream melts.

Thompson just violated HIPPA. Talked about what kind of health insurance his wife has. Maybe not a gross violation of HIPPA, but she should kick his lily white, wrinkled ass.

The camera pans over the crowd. I see Dave LaRue. I know him. My guess is he is against health care reform, most likely because Fox or Limbaugh told him so.

Now a guy is talking about how he hates his insurance. He is taking people to task for their support of the insurance companies. Very articulate. He should be behind the microphone and not Thompson. Thompson is a suit. An ineffectual suit.

Thompson takes another question. His answer veers into a discussion about bleeding nipples and an unhealthy fascination with Internet porn. Thompson references "Two Girls, One Cup," but calls it "Two Women With a Cup." "It's disgusting," he says. "Have you seen this? I have. Several times. I'm disgusted. These are nice looking ladies. They don't have to do that. Nobody has to do that. This is the society we are in." The crowd is going nuts. They are screaming at him to get back on topic. I can't hear him. Then I hear, "... and they do this in a cup!"

The meeting is back under control, or as close to control as it can come.

I'm done. This nonsense needs to run its course.

Humboldt County Health Care Reform Protestors Are Fucking Morons

Mike Thompson. Our Man In The Government. Town hall meeting at Redwood Acres. Yesterday. As will all the health care reform town hall meetings throughout the country, a lot of mentally disabled people let their voices be heard.

You know the ones I'm talking about. The ones who ape what they heard some talking head on Fox say. They shout down people while screaming about not wanting to pay for other people's health care. They want us to take care of ourselves without the government getting involved. They don't get that the government is involved in all aspects of our life already (except where it really counts). They don't get that a single payer system is off the table. They don't get that there are no death panels. They don't get it, so they come off as dumb fucks tilting at windmills, except these dumb fucks carry guns (not at the Humboldt town hall meeting, though).

Here's something that should give these cock suckers for the insurance industry a bit of a pause. What do 75% of all the people who file for bankruptcy due to medical reasons all have in common? They all have health insurance. If that doesn't cause you to question the viability of the current system, you aren't paying attention.

In Humboldt, one guy stood up to speak. From what I saw on the news his wife got sick and he didn't have the money to pay for it. He was proud to announce that he paid for it himself and then demanded the government stay out of his health care. So I question this. Did this guy have insurance? If so, why didn't it pay for his wife's illness. Did he not have insurance and was somehow thinking the government was to blame for this? Did he not want health insurance despite the fact that it's a smart thing to have? What he said essentially broke down to: My wife got sick. I had no insurance. Had to pay the bills myself. Government -- keep your mitts off my problem.

This is the most articulate Humboldt County parrots can get?

I'd love one of these protesters to leave a comment here explaining his or herself. I just want to know your side of it beyond what I see on the news. Here's your chance, but be smart. I don't get flustered like a politician.

Reformed On Health Care Reform

I, as addicts are fond of saying, have had a moment of clarity ... and it's all thanks to the healthcare reform screamers. I have found, after careful research and soul searching, that these gun-toting senior citizens and wealthy folks are right, but flawed. You see, because they are relying upon flawed sources (right wing talk radio, which is not known for truth, and a drug addict named Limbaugh) their arguments are weak and don't go far enough.

People like those Tea Party Patriots are right. We don't need government involved in healthcare. Government screws up everything it touches. And we're to let medical decisions like who lives and dies rest in its hands? I think not. I'm an anarchist. I don't trust the government. Why was I thinking healthcare reform was a good idea? The only problem is that these opponents, because of the morons they are listening to, only know half the problem.

Not only should the government get out of healthcare reform (public option, my ass), but we need to get rid of the VA, Medicare, and Medi-Cal/Medicaid – to name just a few things. These are all government run programs. These are all at taxpayer expense, and they reek of socialism.

Soldiers have taken on a job. They have signed up and are getting paid, just like any other job. If you work at McDonald's, you know the risks. If you work for the military, you know the risks. Why should we treat our soldiers any different? They aren't dumb. They come from some of the most educated, wealthiest families in the country. They are getting paid a handsome sum. If they get hurt, their own insurance should cover it. Don't have their own insurance? Too bad. Tea Party Parrots aren't saying this, but it's true. The government footing the bill for their medical care is socialism plain and simple. We, the taxpayers, are being double-dipped. We are already paying the soldiers' salaries, which are quite high given the poor job they are doing overseas (terrorism has increased, Bin Laden has not been captured and so on since they got over there), so they can afford their own medical insurance. We don't need them sucking off both government tits. In fact, I would say taxpayers should not be funding the military period. All it is paying for is war overseas. Where was this grand, expensive military when 9/11 happened? All those fighter jets and the towers still came down? Heads should've rolled over that one. We shouldn't be fighting overseas anyway, and we haven't been invaded since Dinosaur Times. Military funding is bad money following bad practices. Tea Party Parrots need to step up to the plate and call it what it is. Paying for the VA and for the military (and the soldiers bloated salaries/retirement) is a waste of taxpayer dollars and an insult to hard-working Americans everywhere who don't fuck up their jobs.

And then there's Medicare.

Medicare primarily covers the elderly and disabled, two groups of people who not only suck up most of the medical costs in this country but are also two groups that contribute the least. Elderly people's best years are behind them, which is why they no longer work. Outside of factory labor, fast food and occasional movie bits, the disabled don't produce more than they consume. These two groups are given lots of lip service about how valuable they are, but if that were the case would they be the butt of so many jokes? The government is paying for these groups' medical needs. Yes there is a buy-in associated with Medicare that many have to pay for themselves. The Part B buy-in at this point is $96.40 a month. The Medicare client or the government pays that. Either way, that's a small price to pay for the amount of services these folks use. We need to get our government money out of there and turn them over to private insurance companies. I know the Tea Party Parrots are some of the same people spouting nonsense about death panels, but if there ever is to be a death panel, these two groups need to be the first to go. It's not young and middle-age folks using these services. It's your grandmother and your uncle who got all fucked up in a drunken auto accident. Good-bye. And quit using my tax dollars, you leeches!

Medi-Cal and Medicaid go without saying. These are more services paid for by the government in the hopes that if people have healthcare they will have healthier children, get check ups, and get items of concern taken care of before they become bigger problems and cost more money in treatment. All well and good, but it is still tax money going to preventive measures. We all know that if people get sick without healthcare they don't clog up the emergency rooms. They crawl into a corner and quietly die. Besides, by taking money away from these programs and putting it the working people's paychecks where it belongs, we can ensure that the Medicare clients are the first to go when we let swine flu rage out of control. The two take care of each other if we just take that net away. Nets aren't always good things. Just ask tuna.

While we're at it, we need to eliminate all welfare -- social and corporate. Corporate welfare, of course, eats up more than social welfare with its subsidies, bail outs, free land give aways, airwave give aways and so on. We call all wax romantic about how CEOs are the ultimate rugged individuals who built their businesses from nothing, but the railroads, Internet, transportation industries, weapons industries, pharmaceuticals and so on would not be here without big government control of the marketplace, subsidies and the like. We need to remove the corporations safety nets, too. Nobody rides for free anymore, and corporations do not need protectionist measures at the expense of the taxpayer. No more public risk, private profit. No more bail outs. These corporations got us into this economic mess, and now we need to show them we mean business. They need to play under the same rules as individuals. And this goes for small businesses, too. No more write-offs. No more incentives. You're out to dry with the rest of them.

Ironically, Fox and Limbaugh are people/entities who thoroughly benefit from corporate welfare, and they are the ones spreading so much misinformation. They are protected by the FCC, who keeps “pirate” radio stations and broadcasts at bay and acts as a de facto censor with how it doles out “licenses.” We need to get rid of the communist-inspired FCC and let these media institutions defend themselves ... minus our taxpayer dollars. And while we are at it, we need to stop having state, federal and municipal authorities enforcing laws. These laws, which are inefficient at best, don't benefit everyone, and the amount of time it takes to draft them, enforce them and carry out justice is a waste of valuable tax money. Why should child molesters be protected from angry mobs? Why should white collar criminals enjoy the same protections as said child molesters? They shouldn't. The justice system we currently have is borderline socialist, and that also means the prisons must be abolished. I don't want my tax money used to keep these sociopaths safe from the public that wants to rip them to shreds. Let's stop throwing money at this problem and let good ol' fashion street justice take its course. Hey, Madoff! I've got a noose for you. Gonna string you up like a pinata and let those bilked take a few dozen whacks at you with baseball bats. We'll pull you right out of that cushy cell you're in. How many hits do you think it will take before your juicy bits spill out? Twenty? Four dozen? We're waiting!

No more tax money should be spent on programs meant to keep teens from having sex, either. I don't want the government making those decisions. Bigger families means more consumers and producers (at least until they get crippled or old). Fourteen and fifteen-year-old girls are at the perfect breeding age and are desired both by peers and older men. Why do we want to hamper that? Are we another China? Sure seems so. In just a few short years these young ladies' desirability will decrease 20% by every year they stay in the market. We need those babies and we need them now. I just don't think we should be paying to keep them from pregnancy or helping them give birth. That's what mommy and daddy's insurance is for.

Say what you want about Baby Bush, but he was a good president. He kept his mouth shut. He didn't try to fix problems that aren't the government's domain (such as war, energy, healthcare and so on), and he didn't stand in the way of “progress.” He let corporations ride for free, though, which was a huge flaw on his administration's behalf. If he had just cut government out of all those things it does now, such as aiding veterans (which was drastically reduced under his watch – hurray!) and maintaining the roads, he would have left office a victor instead of disgraced. Now we have this Obama character with big plans. And we have his enemies, which are a group largely void of individual thought or foresight. I've always been a big picture guy who has said the truth as I see it. These puppets shouting down politicians at town hall are suckers. Fox, Republicans (government whores like their Democrat cousins), and Limbaugh want to protect their own interests and are using these people to do it. They want the tax money to go to things like corporations and the FCC, never seeing how socialist these institutions are. (Or in the case of corporations -- tyrannies.) I just can't believe these town criers can't see this. Maybe I'm wrong and they do see it, but they lack the strength of their convictions (something far more likely). They are definitely lacking something, though, and it isn't just brains.

As I drove to the movies today, I saw the perfect of example of my tax dollars being used in a way that does not benefit me. In front of me was a car with handicap plates. I'm not disabled, so I cannot park in their spaces. If I do, I get a ticket. Cities use blue paint to denote handicap parking spaces. Blue paint costs taxpayer money. Administering the blue paint costs taxpayer money. Having someone look for violators costs taxpayer money. For someone to actually process the fine and deal with the financial end costs taxpayer money. I don't want my money going toward that. I get no benefits from that system. I only lose money in the end. How is this fair?

If you are against healthcare reform and you have a family member on Medicare, you are a hypocrite. If you are against your tax dollars funding “socialist” programs and you or a family member benefits from the VA hospital, you are a hypocrite. If you are against the government “interfering” with the free market and yet you aren't calling for the end of state, county and federal run prisons, you are a coward at best. If you think welfare should end for citizens, but don't think that it should end for corporations, you are a hypocrite and a coward. I bet that fits the bill for most people who oppose healthcare reform. The sad thing is, not only are they hypocrites and cowards – they're being played. Effectively. Smoothly. Sadly. They are pawns. Weak-minded. Untested. Uneducated. Ignorance is not only bliss, it's dangerous in some cases. Because of how weak they are, they give me my one out when it comes to the government using my tax dollars for medical purposes. You see, I would gladly pay taxes to have all of them forcibly sterilized.

Anyone with me on this one?

healthcare

Destruction

It's late.

I remember when things used to be simpler. When things really mattered. I remember thinking I had things under control. A girl I used to know decades ago said she only knew of three people who had their shit together. Me. Charles Manson. Henry Rollins. At least I think that was the list. Kind of a mixed blessing there either way.

Can't imagine what she'd think now if she looked into this brain of mine.

I'm tired of feeling this way. Not doing enough creative writing. Did some last night. Felt good. Felt real good. Felt like I was moving my future along. Haven't had time tonight. This does not count.

I start to slip when I don't do creative writing. I get a little touched.

I have these ideas for this blog and the others. Want to do a piece on justice. Want to do one on the powers of words and symbols. On Satanic Music For Good Children I want to do a piece on the Beatles. When my daughter turns eighteen I have this idea of going to South America for a while and finding a cannibal tribe. Want to partake. Some people want to see the Great Wall. Daddy Bush wanted to jump out of a plane. I want to get in touch with our most primal of fears. Will I do it? Maybe. Maybe not. Probably not. Quite honestly, I'm not too keen on camping, and that seems like it would be a little too much roughing it for my own good. I appreciate things like showers, running water, cable television. Still, it would be an experience worth writing about. Living amongst cannibals for a month. Taking part of their culture. Chronicling it. Fascinating.

I like coming on here when I'm tired and just writing whatever comes to mind. It's cheaper than therapy, and it does cause me problems from time to time, but I'm no stranger to controversy. I wear it like a comfortable coat. I don't care, and it shows.

See all those healthcare reform public meetings that devolve into chaos? I find it fascinating. I'm all for protesting, even violent protest. I just think the protests I have seen so far are poorly thought out rhetoric. It seems like the louder one screams the less they have to say. I wonder if these people have actually read anything on the reform outside their comfortable sphere of influence, or if they've relied only on talk radio and the columnists they agree with. To get all sides of the story, you have to look at all sides. I heard one screaming about socialism and how she doesn't want the government providing healthcare. I don't trust the government, either, but I had to wonder if she wanted the VA to stop providing care for our soldiers or if that is somehow different? I hope she's protesting that, too. Also saw one saying she didn't want her country to look like Russia. Since Russia is primarily capitalist now, I'd have to agree. I've always been partial to pre-Civil War Spain myself, but that won't fly now. Hell, we drink Coke!

It's late. It reminds me a line from The The. "It's late/And I'm the last person on this plane still awake." I may have gotten that somewhat wrong. It may be "train" instead of "plane," but the idea is the same.

Too tired to edit the manuscript. Don't want to fuck it up. I like having a block of time where I don't have to do anything and I'm wide awake. That ain't now. That depresses me. Everything sucks me dry. I feel like I'm putting a lot of time and effort into things that just don't need it.

A casual friend said something interesting to me today. Her words kinda shot around my head for a while. "You're the only person I know who can operate effectively at the edge of anger for so long. When do you stop?"

I don't know. Didn't know what to say. Could only laugh. That did not help the conversation.

Another co-worker told me she liked my shop local diatribe. I thanked her. It's nice to hear some positive words from time to time. That one seemed to hit home for some people.

It's only Tuesday. Can't imagine the rest of the week.