I’m sure not gonna vote for him again!
I would remind you that your political prognostication skills are pretty much an epic fail, as well.
I prognosticated nothing, and I’m sure he’d like to actually accomplish something in his second term. Can’t do that when no one takes you seriously.
If anyone should know…
It should be the President. Every lie knocks him down a point or two. He’s running out of wiggle room.
So, the President for Life Amendment gets held back a few weeks. Big deal.
Here’s the real scandal to me: politicians lie. It’s just what they do. What I want to know is why the journalists and bloggers who supported the law have shifted on a dime to “It’s good that all these sucky plans are being cancelled.” I would have expected the liberal journalistic community to be more honest brokers. Why did they keep up the deception for so long?
Here’s Jonathon Chait:
Oh, now you tell us. Was this obvious to you in 2009, and if so, why didn’t you mention it to your readers then?
Ever see those ads on TV, aimed at seniors, all about the health insurance they can buy, without any background medical information or exams? What do you figure the quality of those policies might be? They’re cheap as dirt, sure. And they pay off handsomely if you are a victim of an elephant stampede during a snowstorm on the 4th of July. Other than that, you get bupkis.
Now, if you are dumb enough to buy one, you might think you actually have insurance. And if you don’t need it, you’re gonna be real happy with it.
Is that legal? Sure it is, its all part of the magic of the Free Market, blessings and peace be upon it.
Think no reputable insurance company will soil their hands with that sort of dirty money? Wanna bet? The same people who give out bonuses to guys who figure out creative ways to avoid paying out for legitimate claims, you think they got scruples? Screwing sick and desperate people, those guys got ethics?
So, sure, if you haven’t needed it and have the illusion of security and the illusion that you are one sharp cookie who got a great deal…yeah, you’re gonna be pissed if someone tells you it illegal, because you are an idjit who traded the cow for a magic bean.
But Obama didn’t screw you. You were already being screwed.
Ah, and the only way to save us was to lie to us.
I find it strange that the (or at least some) talk about the government running their lives, but are the biggest supporters to try to get laws past about what people do in their own homes. Many because it is against their beliefs, so they push social issues that agree with themselves, they seem to want the right to tell people what they can do, and then complain that the Government is running their lives because they are asked to pay their own way. They seem to be able to buy a $500.00 I Pad, nothing wrong with that, but if they can afford such things then they should be able to buy Insurance for their own health’s sake.
Here is an AP story from 2009 pointing out the problems with Obama’s statement about keeping old health insurance plans.
So why is the conservative machine making a big deal now? I have a lot of theories, including special elections and local races, but it doesn’t actually matter that much. What does matter is that maybe if certain pundits or politicians hadn’t been lying about death panels and more, they could have criticized something factual like what Obama said about not losing their plans.
However, the strategy largely seems to have worked for conservatives. Now when you search Google for Obamacare lies, all the top results are the recent hullaballoo instead of the host of other lies or “not quite true” statements made over the years by those opposed to Obamacare.
I think the most parsimonious answer to why people, regardless of their political leanings btw, are making a big now is because it is actually happening now.
Do we really want to go down that road? Even with after-tax dollars, the all-wise government should tell people what it should spend it on?
Hell, we’ve had threads on this board where liberals defend to the death the right of people who receive taxpayer assistance to purchase junk food with the money. If we go that far, then why can’t people spend their OWN money on an Ipad instead of health insurance? It’s an unwise choice, but what is freedom if not the freedom to make unwise choices? If freedom means only to make good, government approved choices, then the word is meaningless.
Obamacare is a disaster? Shucks, looks like we’ll have to implement single payer then. Just as planned! (yeah right)
Especially in a consumer economy like ours, where the Free Market (blessings and peace be upon it) depends so much on people buying “food” they shouldn’t eat, “news” that makes them more ignorant, and a wide and varied supply of loud, shiny crap. Freedumb.
We support greedy charities that sell us pink ribbons and rifle our pockets for change. How many lives could we save if all women could afford to hustle right down to the doctor when anything seems abnormal about their boobs? I have no idea. Do you?
How about insurance that doesn’t ensure much of anything but an opportunity to play Wheel of Coverage? Spin carefully, don’t hit “Bankrupt”. Or “Dead.” How many of us here personally knows somebody who has gotten a jolly good rodgering from their insurance “provider”? I know several myself. How about you?
What kind of humanity is reflected in paying out handsome bonuses to people who figure out new and creative ways to deny legitimate claims? This is the sort of thing we admire, we hope only to be so lucky as to raise our children to screw their fellow citizens so they can afford more loud shiny crap? Anybody here think its remotely rational to pay $20 for a Tylenol in the hospital that you can get at the Dollar Store for 3 cents? Someone tell me why that makes sense. Someone point out to me where competition is driving down prices and enhancing quality. Competition may be good for us, but collusion works for them, they sit down and reasonably negotiate divvying up the pie. And the pie is us.
And they don’t give a rat’s fuck if we live or die. Hell, if they could figure out a way fo us to keep paying them after we settle in for the Dirt Nap, they would do it! You know they would do it. Freedumb. Fuck that shit!
Why wasn’t that, and not if-you-like-your-plan-you-can-keep-it, the message?
If it’s so easy to sell stuff to the folks you deride, why resort to false advertising?
Serious question #1: Will Obamacare reduce the cost of Tylenal that hospitals charge?
Serious question #2: Were these evil insurance companies not at the table when this legislation was being written?
They *own *the fucking table. But that’s Obama’s fault.
This explains all the lies about the effects of Voter ID. Opponents are perfectly willing to lie, to claim people will be disenfranchised, in order to get legislation defeated they just KNOW is bad for the country.
And I suppose it will be true about the next liberal initiative, yes?
Really? Is that the correct takeaway here? Because it seems as though someone who is willing to lie about health care because the public needed the lie in order to pass it would have no reason to stop at that subject.
Or is it the case that while they were willing to lie to us about one thing, there’s just no way they’d ever lie about TWO things?
Everyone who’s saying, in effect, “Yes, it was a lie, but for a worthy cause,” might want to take a stab at answering why their next story should be taken at face value.
More or less, and that’s one of the reasons (not the only reason) that I’m suspicious of this legislation. I’m willing to give it a chance, but I’m not ready to sing it’s praises.
Your words, not mine.
Nifty! Try to score points on a tangential issue by pretending relevance, and if anybody answers, you can claim a hijack!