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REQUIEM

Below are the two final essays to be posted on Allegiance and Duty Betrayed. The first one is written by a friend -- screen name 'Euro-American Scum' -- who, over the past four years, has been the most faithful essayist here. He has written about everything from his pilgrimage to Normandy in 2004 to take part in the 60th–year commemoration of the invasion, to his memories of his tour in Vietnam. His dedication to America’s founding principles ... and those who have sacrificed to preserve them over the past 200+ years ... is unequaled. Thank you, E-A-S. It has been a privilege to include your writing here, and it is a privilege to call you my friend.

The second essay is my own farewell. And with it I thank all of the many regular visitors, and those who may have only dropped in occasionally, for coming here. I hope you learned something. I hope a seed or two was planted. But, even if not, I thank you for stopping by ... 25 March, 2010

8/03/2009

'Healthcare Reform':
Lies, Corruption and Hunger for Power


One of the loudest, and most oft-repeated, reasons given by our elitists in Washington for the need to dramatically overhaul the most effective and efficient healthcare system in the history of mankind is that healthcare in America is too expensive.

I have read countless analyses of the bill by those who have at least attempted to read it. And nowhere in H.R. 3200 -- at least to my knowledge -- is tort reform addressed. Tort reform should sit on the top of the list of remedies for our high healthcare costs. Reducing jury awards would reduce malpractice insurance premiums. Reducing malpractice insurance premiums would reduce physician and hospital costs. And reducing physician and hospital costs would have a dramatic effect on the overall cost of healthcare in America.


Why, then, is tort reform a non-issue? Put simply: Congress is in the pocket of the trial lawyers. They can demonize the insurance industry. They can demonize drug companies. They can insinuate that physicians perform unnecessary surgeries in order to inflate their bottom line. But where are their rants against the mountains of frivolous malpractice lawsuits that are not only adding dramatically to the overall cost of healthcare, but are also driving thousands upon thousands of good doctors out of business?

(*crickets*)

Trial lawyers are a sacred cow. The anti-capitalist elites pick and choose their self-created enemies of the people with power-based skill.

I have determined to read in its entirety H.R. 3200, not so that I can join the crusade to derail the abomination popularly known as the healthcare reform bill – although I certainly will do my best in that regard – but simply because I believe that it may be among the most important (this time in an infamous sense) piece of legislation ever deliberated upon in the history of our republic. I want to know what it contains before my family and I become unwilling, but inevitable, victims of its toxins.

I say ‘inevitable’ since the limitations this bill places on citizen choices for private health insurers (i.e., the ability to change from one private insurer to another, or the ability to alter an existing policy) are virtually non-existent. Combining that infringement on our liberties with the fact that government-care premiums will undercut private health insurers, it is just a matter of time before the American people, and American business, have no choice but to submit completely to a government healthcare monopoly in which bureaucrats ... many of them unelected and unaccountable to the electorate ... will be making life and death decisions for us all.

I have been reading for about a week now and am up to page 200 (of 1,017). I wish there were 100 hours in a day ... or that the bill were significantly more straightforward and didn’t require six readings of each paragraph. Reading this monstrosity is slightly more uncomfortable than repeatedly sticking oneself in the eye with a hot poker. The verbiage is an acute example of overkill, and yet the intent of most of it is still nebulous.

I have spent hours on some of the sections – reading certain paragraphs over half a dozen times because their intent is so unclear – and I often come up with more questions than answers.

For instance, one example (of countless):

Upon the urging of a friend (thank you, John Cooper), I temporarily skipped ahead to page 424 which tackles ‘Advanced Care Planning Consultation’. I did that because so many conservative bloggers are claiming that the ‘end of life planning’ in that section is euthanasia-related.

I found that the section apparently amends the Social Security Act, in that it offers a Medicare-covered ‘advanced care planning consultation’ every five years. Yet I cannot find anywhere in the section a reference to whether this ‘consultation’ is voluntary or mandatory (as some are reporting). It would seem to me that that stipulation is of some importance.

Such grey areas are extraordinarily dangerous because the bill is so convoluted and complicated that, were it to become law, I can envision many instances where interpretations would wind up in court (and it is rife with interpretation-inviting wording), and the results would depend on which activist judges were to render the decisions – with alarming precedents begin set all along the way, of course.

I actually concur with John Conyers’ opinion that it is a gargantuan task to read this bill – but it would require significantly longer than his 'two days' to do (I would estimate, conservatively, a good week, at eight solid hours a day). And even then a conscientious reader would have a mile-long list of let-me-get-this-straight questions to set before an attorney.

The difference between me (and you, dear reader) and Congressman Conyers, though, is that the dishonorable Mr. Conyers is paid to read and understand the legislation on which he votes. His Michigan constituents expect him to have a working knowledge of bills that he supports and votes to include in the law of the land.

I truly doubt that any of the 535 people who dare to call themselves our ‘leaders’ in the House and Senate will expend the time and effort to read through this entire bill. So, in a truly representative republic, in which those representatives take their ‘public servant’ role seriously, it seems to me there are two alternatives:

    (1) Simplify the bill so that you can vote on something understandable, that can be read in a reasonable amount of time, and understood by someone without a juris doctorate, or

    (2) Wait to vote on the bill until you have read, and understood, everything it contains
Or, better yet, our ‘leadership’ might want to re-read (or perhaps read for the first time?) the United States Constitution, whose over-riding emphasis is on limited government and individual liberty -- and which clearly specifies the minimal role of the federal government.

Our Founders were very specific in the parameters they defined as the powers of the federal government. Its powers consisted of those powers that the individual citizen, or the states, could not efficiently perform themselves, such as providing for the common defense of the nation (i.e., securing the borders perhaps?), ensuring unhindered, safe trade on the high seas, crafting treaties with foreign governments on behalf of the republic, regulating interstate commerce ...

Our Constitution states that the American citizen has the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Healthcare ... or many of the other ‘rights’ that our government has convinced us were bestowed upon us by God (and they have convinced us of this simply in order to incrementally become godlike themselves, in order to ensure a kind of perverted ‘equality’ in achieving theses faux-‘rights’) ... is not enumerated, either literally or by insinuation, in the life, liberty and pursuit of happiness vision.

Healthcare is a good, and a service, not a right. It is something a citizen is expected to earn. And, if a citizen is incapable of earning that good/service, then, in a moral society, private entities will work to pick up the slack. Genuine liberty always results in an increase in human charity, which in turn promotes self-reliance. Government programs for those in need destroy charitable organizations and foster dependency. Trouble is, in America 2009, goods and services are gradually morphing into rights. And with each successive addition to the list of 'rights' comes an increase in the dictatorial power of the federal bureaucracy.

Many a power that should have remained in the hands of the people and/or the states (see the Tenth Amendment: The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people) has been usurped by the elitists in the White House and on Capitol Hill. Not only have they taken our liberties from us, but they are now dictating, extra-Constitutionally, tyrannical boundaries on those liberties that remain, and they intend to enforce their illegal laws with a fascist ferocity that would have rendered Mussolini green with envy.

As far as I am aware there has not been a Constitutional amendment that permits the federal government to:

    (1) limit a citizen’s choice regarding his selection of healthcare providers, with all ‘options’ inevitably ending at the door of government-care

    (2) force an employer to provide a specific kind of healthcare for his employees (let alone micro-manage that policy down to the last dotted i and crossed t).

    (3) designate a federal bureaucrat, or committee, to determine accessibility of healthcare options to various segments of the citizenry

    (4) force private healthcare plans (read: free market businesses) to enroll certain clients

    (5) use public money to pay for insurance for some, citizens and non-citizens

    (6) require government access to personal health records

    (7) dictate payment limits for healthcare services

    (8) require the citizenry to purchase insurance

    (9) place ‘employment obligations’, dictating fields of study, on the states
and on and on, ad infinitum ...

Mark my word: It won't be long before our 'right' to healthcare morphs into the government's power to dictate how we must live in order to receive that healthcare.

Here is the document:


United States Constitution

I defy anyone to find anything in that precious document that permits the federal government to limit our freedoms, and impose the draconian requirements and penalties on the separate and sovereign states, individuals and businesses, as outlined in this legislation. The Tenth Amendment strictly prohibits all of the above.

Here is the President’s oath of office:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.

Here is the House and Senate’s oath of office:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

America has been betrayed by her leadership. Our ‘public servants’ are introducing blatantly unconstitutional legislation that will have toxic, liberty-robbing, quality-of-life-altering ramifications far into the future. The legislation is so filled with draconian usurpations of power that even those ‘representatives’ who will eventually vote on the finalized bill are freely admitting that they cannot reasonably be expected to familiarized themselves with its contents.

And they claim to be our ‘public servants’.

With every stroke of the pen, and every refusal to hold fast to their oath of office, they are declaring themselves enemies of the principles upon which this republic was founded. It is increasingly falling to the people to resurrect the Constitution and see that it is returned to its former pre-eminence. Ignorance of our roots and apathy that has kept us from holding our elected representatives accountable have led us to this place.

It’s time for outrage.

Rick and I are having houseguests for three weeks this month – a British woman with whom I have been corresponding for fifty-two years (we became ‘pen pals’ when we were both ten years old), her husband, and their adopted seventeen-year-old son.

During their stay with us, if our schedule permits, we plan to attend the August 11th townhall meeting at which Senator Arlen Specter will be the main speaker. We hope to be able to speak, and we also hope my friend will be able to ask Senator Specter why he intends to force American healthcare to mirror the British system, by which she and her family have been handcuffed for decades. But, even if we are not able to do so, I strongly suspect that others will voice the questions we are prepared to ask – and they will be equally unwilling to accept talking-points pablum as an acceptable answer.

I urge every reader here to do something similar. Attend a townhall meeting; write to your representatives and tell them how outraged you are, and that you intend to work night and day to see to it that they are not returned to Washington if they support this abomination.

August of 2009, during this congressional break, may well prove to be among the most watershed times in the history of our republic. As I see it, upon returning to Washington, our ‘representatives’ will be prepared to do one of two things:

    (1) Tell their colleagues how outraged their constituents are, and that they can no longer support this travesty, or

    (2) Roll up their sleeves in agenda-driven arrogance, determined to railroad this bill into law, in spite of the wishes of those who put them in office.
There is no room for compromise on this legislation. The only acceptable vote is a resounding ‘No!’ – and then a resolve to start from scratch to author minimal legislation that will allow the free market, and individual liberty, their rightful place in the healthcare process --- legislation that will stop placing a redistribution of wealth, the realization of a leftist agenda, and the accumulation of obscene power in the hands of a ruling elite, at the top of the objectives of all 'leadership' that enamates from Washington.

The American Republic required strict limitation of government power. Those powers permitted would be precisely defined and delegated by the people, with all public officials being bound by their oath of office to uphold the Constitution. The democratic process would be limited to the election of our leaders and not used for granting special privileges to any group or individual nor for defining rights ... from A Republic, If You Can Keep It

~ joanie

132 comments:

trustbutverify said...

Progressivespeak: "Health Care Reform"

Real World Definition: "The Hostile Takeover of the American Way of Life by Big Brother"

A very good analysis here, Joanie. I have it bookmarked to use in arguments with useful idiots.

Anonymous said...

Both the AMA and AARP are endorsing this monstrosity. It just goes to show that the AMA doesn't give a damn about medical care and AARP doesn't give a damn about seniors.

I'm going to be sending your article to my local newspaper to see if they have the courage to print it. If you would rather I didn't, just say so.

2ndAmendmentDefender said...

One of the loudest, and most oft-repeated, reasons given by our elitists in Washington for the need to dramatically overhaul the most effective and efficient healthcare system in the history of mankind is that healthcare in America is too expensive.

And one of the loudest and most oft-repeated charges made against people who are against this bill is that they are hard-hearted, selfish Americans who don’t give a damn about their “brothers” who can’t afford health insurance. These socialists always make their power grabs sound like compassion when they’re anything but, and they demonize their opposition. It’s sick.

joanie said...

I like your dictionary, trustbutverify. :)

~ joanie

joanie said...

Both the AMA and AARP are endorsing this monstrosity. It just goes to show that the AMA doesn't give a damn about medical care and AARP doesn't give a damn about seniors.

Excellent point, anonymous! Political agendas (generally leftwing) too often take precedence over the aims for which a group originally stood, or supposedly stood anyway.

Thanks for sending this to your local newspaper. Please feel free to use anything on this site to spread the truth that the mainstream media refuses to touch.

~ joanie

joanie said...

2ndAmendmentDefender, you are so right!

I have already run into the accusations of which you speak. Witness this give-and-take that I had recently on a stock investment forum regarding the healthcare bill. It illustrates precisely what you are talking about:

Other Poster (in response to a post I had made on the bill):

How long have you be on the payroll of the right wing spin machine? If not yet are you trying to get there soon.

Typical crap sow fear and distort the facts.

Well since you can afford private health care insurance it should not effect you then should it? Oh but you left that important fact out like you usually leave out important facts.

Well since many people could not afford health care anyway I guess that the almighty dollar was a limiting factor any way. Ohh and you forgot the private insurance providers that would also limit what you could get. In many cases they dropped you as soon as you got really sick. So hows that for a limitation?

If you have NO health care then you are limited by quality and availability by default. What you forgot to mention was the simple fact that the US government cannot afford to pay for the future cost of health care. You run your mouth about this plan and the fact that there is no money that the tax payers have paid and then you don´t want tax increases or any controls over health care costs. You keep talking out both sides of your mouth. What is you solution except to bash Obama.

Keep the suckers in FEAR FEAR FEAR that is what you guys did best when we attacked IRAQ for WMDs that did not exist. That is your main weapon. You are a professional at this, you have all the characteristics.


My Response:

It’s difficult to debate someone on an issue when, at the very outset, the person immediately labels you with an absurd stereotypical bias.

What in my post on healthcare rationing even intimated that I:

(1) don’t want tax increases

(2) can afford private health insurance

(3) was in favor of ‘attacking Iraq for WMDs that did not exist’?

I have never on this board disclosed my personal financial condition -- especially whether I have private health insurance.

I have never on this board argued for no tax increases.

I have never on this board expressed an opinion one way or another regarding the war in Iraq.

And yet, to you, anyone who expresses (admittedly conservative, in this case) common sense concern over aspects of this healthcare bill is automatically lumped into a pre-determined category which assumes that they fall into some universal ‘right-wing’ lock-step, on all other issues completely unrelated to the issue at hand.

If you go back and re-read my short healthcare post, I suspect you may discern, with your jaundiced crystal ball, other personal characteristics of mine – in addition to the aforementioned assumed anti-tax stance, ability to afford my own insurance, and hawkish war views. You may even determine that I’m a gun-loving, Bible-thumping, flannel-shirt-wearing, tobacco-chewing, front-tooth-missing militia member who has more than one brother named Darryl.

Not necessarily saying I’m not any of the above. Nor am I necessarily deprecating any of those characteristics either. Simply saying that I suspect that, to you, the presence of one mandates the presence of all. After all, we ‘right-wing radicals’ are not capable of independent thought or differing views.

I make it a practice to avoid discussion with anyone who resorts to personal attacks, or who immediately stereotypes other of my perspectives (outside of the topic of discussion), with no foundation for doing so.

So have a nice day ... :)

~ joanie

Minuteman23 said...

If you go back and re-read my short healthcare post, I suspect you may discern, with your jaundiced crystal ball, other personal characteristics of mine – in addition to the aforementioned assumed anti-tax stance, ability to afford my own insurance, and hawkish war views. You may even determine that I’m a gun-loving, Bible-thumping, flannel-shirt-wearing, tobacco-chewing, front-tooth-missing militia member who has more than one brother named Darryl.

ROTFLMAO!!!!!!!

But seriously, once again this is something that every American should read. I bet more than half of them couldn't tell you one sentence from the Constitution.

Good work, lass!

EllwoodLee said...

These creeps are killing two birds with one stone. They're grabbing a huge amount of power from the people and the states and they're giving themselves the right to dictate health care for seniors which will help them reduce the Social Security and Medicare rolls. How convenient that when both systems are doomed to go bankrupt they decide that it's time to ram through this "reform" bill.

B*st*rds!

Alexi B. said...

I used to laugh at those who called Obama the anti-Christ. I'm now beginning to wonder. I've never witnessed such evil cloaked in something "sweet."

This is a wonderful piece of writing Joanie. I'll be sending it along to family and friends.

Anonymous said...

Video: Obama Explains How His Health Care Plan Will �Eliminate� Private Insurance:

http://www.breitbart.tv/uncovered-video-obama-explains-how-his-health-care-plan-will-eliminate-private-insurance/

Euro-American Scum said...

There's an underlying theme to the entire healthcare debate that hasn't even shown up on the Fox News radar.

There is an aging demographic bulge of baby boomers who are just now starting to enter into their "decade of health problems."

Does anybody really believe that a nation that has no respect for life in the womb, no regard for the crippled, the infirm, the mentally and psychologically challenged, will have any consideration for this creaking glut of self-absorbed narcisists?

Does anyone really believe that when they grow old, infirm, and expensive that they will suddenly be cared for in a country whose moral compass has been going haywire since the 1960s?

In an age when, more than ever, cost is the motivating factor for everything, keeping the up-and-coming senior population in a style to which they have become acustomed is something nobody is going to want to do. Nationalized, rationed healthcare would be an ideal means to eliminate this very problem (not to mention reduce the population to a managable level).

So much for the sanctity of human life. You can kiss that goodbye along with the sovereignty of a once-great nation.

E. A. Scum

KathyMlynczak said...

You betcha, Scum.

A good part of this "reform" bill concentrates on "end of life" concerns.

It's no coincidence that the Social Security and Medicare Systems are soon bankrupt and this bill that cousels seniors on "end of life" issues is being rammed down our throats.

When we reach our twilight years we're going to be considered of no more use to society and quietly "retired."

The ones who claim to be so compassionate are really the least compasionate of all.

KathyMlynczak said...

Joanie, this column is one of your very best and that's saying alot!!!

Euro-American Scum said...

KathyMlynczak said...

It's no coincidence that the Social Security and Medicare Systems are soon bankrupt and this bill that cousels seniors on "end of life" issues is being rammed down our throats.


Yes, well it's no surprise to me that end-of-life counseling will be covered under this radical new umbrella plan that precludes even the possibility of going outside the system for care.

I wonder how this will affect VA coverage for wounded war veterans coming home from the Middle East?

Of course by then, they will have served their purpose and will be of no longer use to what remains of the country.

Anonymous said...

Joanie, have you heard of the Apollo Alliance? Please do some research on it. It is the biggest story of the century.

stonemason said...

Chris Matthews’ guest on Hardball last night just doesn’t get it. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, Democrat from Texas, had some unkind things to say to Matthews about those “Conservatives and Libertarians” who, he asserts, are sabotaging the health care “debate” in America.

It seems that Doggett, along with Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania and others in Congress who support Barack Obama’s push to socialize our health care system, have been met with people actually disagreeing with them at town hall meetings. Imagine, the common people thinking that they may have something to add to the debate about how the government wants to spend their money — the insolence!

Chris Matthews Says People Who Don’t Want Socialized Medicine Are “Zany”; Texas Congressman Agrees

stonemason said...

Euro-American Scum said:

"I wonder how this will affect VA coverage for wounded war veterans coming home from the Middle East?

Of course by then, they will have served their purpose and will be of no longer use to what remains of the country."

Of all of the things that will happen as a result of this overhaul of healthcare, this is probably the unkindest cut of all.

DaveBurkett said...

Too bad there's no known cure for advanced fascism.

Great article, Joanie!

DaveBurkett said...

The free-market approach to health care reform is a much better idea than a government takeover of private healthcare in America. Insurance companies, like banks, should be solvent in order to meet their future obligations to policyholders when the need arises. There is a legitimate function for state regulators in that regard; however, state regulators have gone way beyond assuring the solvency of insurance companies. Regulators now dictate policy terms, set rates, kill competition, and impose millions of dollars in fines on insurance companies when any of the regulator’s arbitrary rules are not followed to the letter. I submit that regulators are responsible for the high insurance rates not doctors or insurance companies....

Read more:

Choose the Free Market Option

Anonymous said...

Joanie- Do you watch Glenn Beck? If not, you need to. Ya gotta love him. He uses the word "socialist" at every possible occasion, and if no occasion presents itself, he makes room for one. Other pundits are afraid to.

Anonymous said...

If this unconstitutional health care bill doesn't give Americans nightmares, maybe this paragraph from the White House's own website will:

There is a lot of disinformation about health insurance reform out there, spanning from control of personal finances to end of life care. These rumors often travel just below the surface via chain emails or through casual conversation. Since we can�t keep track of all of them here at the White House, we�re asking for your help. If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to flag@whitehouse.gov.

"Fishy?" Just how does one define "fishy"? And exactly what does the White House propose to do about people who are railing against this bill? Whatever happened to free speech?

This just proves that Team Obama is a group of Chicago thugs.

Anonymous said...

By the way Joanie, how do I recognize you when we both wind up in the gulag? Will you wear a red carnation in your hair or something?

Clair Buffenmeyer said...

Glenn Beck said in an interview today that he believes some version of this bill will pass sometime in September and Congress will ignore the will of the people. So much for "representative government."

Barry up the road said...

Another great piece Joanie. Great insight and analysis. Thanks for doing the hard work of reading the bill. I tried for about three hours and decided it was way "above my pay grade".

Your observation on the ambiguity and complexity is right on. For far too long our laws, regulations and codes have been written "by lawyers for lawyers". The attitude is to give us some general guidelines to follow and let the courts sort out the details. If that keeps their lawyer friends employed, so much the better.

Thanks for keeping the flame alive.

Cal Thomas Lookalike said...

Here's another "symptom" of the Obama administration's lack of ______ (you fill in the blank):

The American Spectator : Too Poor to PayThe American Spectator
Washington Prowler
Too Poor to Pay
By The Prowler on 8.3.09 @ 6:09AM

Recently, high-profile visitors to the White House, including senior corporate executives, have found themselves paying for their own meals when sitting down with President Barack Obama, something unheard of in previous White Houses, according to former aides to President George W. Bush and President Bill Clinton.

Thus far, there have been at least three instances -- the most recent coming last Friday -- where CEOs or other non-political guests were asked before arriving to the West Wing to provide credit card information so that their meals could be billed to them. According to one source, the meals cost between $20 and $40. "That's not including tip," the current White House aide quipped.

The White House has officially stated that reason to charge for the meals is to remove any appearance of impropriety or conflict of interest, according to a statement put out by White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki. But there are no rules barring the President from buying lunch for guests, whether through the White House budget or his own wallet.

In fact, those presidential employees with guest privileges at the White House dining room, known as the "mess," cannot charge their guests' lunch to White House accounts. With a few exceptions, all employees pay for their guests out of their own pocket.

So, with no ethics issue barring the President from buying his guests lunch, what are the reasons? According to another White House source, the Obama Administration in its first 200 days may have burned through much of its budgets for the Executive Residence and the White House's annual entertainment account.

"We've done a lot more entertaining than previous administrations have," says the White House aide. "The whispering here is that we're over budget and where we can, we're trying to save money."

However, when journalists were feted with other friends of the White House on the South Lawn last month, with dunk tanks, food and drink, they were not asked to pay for their entertainment.

Euro-American Scum said...

DaveBurkett said...

Too bad there's no known cure for advanced fascism.


There is a cure for it. But the generation with the spine to pay the price for that cure has all but died away.

robmaroni said...

Our cowardly "representatives" have started canceling their town hall meetings in droves. I guess that way they can claim they didn't realize how unpopular this bill is.

Great great post, Joanie! God bless!

robmaroni said...

Euro-American Scum said, But the generation with the spine to pay the price for that cure has all but died away.

You got that right. I remember seeing a picture taken from a barracks in Iraq a year or so ago. A Marine had written, "The Marines are fighting a war in Iraq. America is at the mall."

MontyPython2 said...

Abortion and the Obama Healthcare Plan: The Essential Facts

Anonymous said...

Instead of extolling free speech, the President of the United States and his henchmen are calling ordinary Americans who are showing up at town hall meetings to tell their leaders that they're fed up "angry mobs", and "the Brooks Brothers Brigade", and other even more derogatory labels.

This is THEIR PRESIDENT who is degrading them because they DARE disagree with him!

It's unbelievable!

Euro-American Scum said...

EllwoodLee said...

These creeps are killing two birds with one stone. They're grabbing a huge amount of power from the people and the states and they're giving themselves the right to dictate health care for seniors which will help them reduce the Social Security and Medicare rolls.


There are two related, albeit more sinister components to the underlying drift of your observations.

American business has hit the mother lode the last fifteen years. They're staring at sixty years of low-paid slave labor the country has imported from south of the border. They've got a vested interested in keeping those people healthy, on the job, and trapped in their low-paying jobs. Socialized medicine accomplishes this nicely.

Second, there's the ever-increasing glut of seniors just starting to hit their expensive, health-related problem age. What better way to deny them the health care they need to live with dignity, and also reduce this cost-indulgent group through a kind of benign neglect than with a massive government bureacracy, in which said seniors have no alternative, and no say-so in how their care is administered?

It goes way beyond compassionate neglect. It adds up to wholesale euthanasia under the now-familiar banner of liberal compassion.

It's a death sentence. Nothing less.

Gary Burgess said...

IT'S TIME FOR OUTRAGE!

You said it, Joanie!

Our own government is behaving like a dictatorship and demonizing anyone who disagrees with them. Our elected representatives are badmouthing US and claiming that we are part of some kind of organized mob with underhanded motives when all we're doing is standing up for our freedoms.

I want my America back!

Gary Burgess said...

Euro-American Scum, you're right in your assessment of this bill as a death sentence for seniors.

And you hit the nail on the head about illegals also.

The constant stream of illegals is gravy for these leftist. In addition to what you pointed out, they are slowly changing the whole character of our society. Diluting the number of people who actually understand the ideas that this country was founded on. And it's those ideas that the left wants to erase. They've done it in our education system and now they're doing it by importing people who don't give a damn about this country's original foundations. They are an always growing percentage of our population and you watch- they'll eventually have the vote too.

joanie said...

EllwoodLee said...

These creeps are killing two birds with one stone. They're grabbing a huge amount of power from the people and the states and they're giving themselves the right to dictate health care for seniors which will help them reduce the Social Security and Medicare rolls. How convenient that when both systems are doomed to go bankrupt they decide that it's time to ram through this "reform" bill.


You have their number, Ellwood.

I suspect this has been in the works, in one form or another, since Hillarycare bit the dust back in the early nineties. One doesn't formulate this kind of insidiously detailed bill overnight.

And everything just seems to have fallen into place for them, what with the carefully-planned dumbing down of the electorate allowing for a man with absolutely no qualifications to ascend to the presidency, armed with a virulent agenda that he formulated over a lifetime of rubbing elbows with America-haters.

Very dark days are ahead, and those who opposed them are going to find themselves increasingly persecuted.

Thanks for your valuable input.

~ joanie

joanie said...

Minuteman23 and Alexi B. -- Thanks for the kind words. :)

~ joanie

joanie said...

'Anonymous' -- It's videos such as the one you provided that should be on the evening news every night, added to the list of lies and deceptions that gained this man the presidency.

Media whose aim is to educate and inform only occurs in a dream world these days.

If it weren't for Glenn Beck (my modern-day Thomas Payne), I don't believe I would watch any 'news' at all.

~ joanie

joanie said...

Euro-American Scum asks, 'Does anyone really believe that when they grow old, infirm, and expensive that they will suddenly be cared for in a country whose moral compass has been going haywire since the 1960s?'

No one who has been paying attention for the last twenty years. And I would put the 'paying attention' segment of American society at somewhere less than ten percent.

The most effectual means of preventing [the perversion of power into tyranny are] to illuminate, as far as practicable, the minds of the people at large, and more especially to give them knowledge of those facts which history exhibits, that possessed thereby of the experience of other ages and countries, they may be enabled to know ambition under all its shapes, and prompt to exert their natural powers to defeat its purposes." --Thomas Jefferson: Diffusion of Knowledge Bill, 1779. FE 2:221, Papers 2:526

Not a prayer here anymore.

~ joanie

joanie said...

Kathy Mlynczak said:

The ones who claim to be so compassionate are really the least compasionate of all.


Sounds (entirely appropriately) like something from 'Animal Farm'.

Thanks, Kathy.

~ joanie

joanie said...

'Anonymous' -- Yes indeed I have heard of the Apollo Alliance. They have played a major role in authoring much of the erosion of freedom that is masquerading as Constitutional law.

I urge anyone who does not know much about this group to do some homework on them.

Thanks for bringing that very pertinent group of 'players' to our attention here.

~ joanie

joanie said...

Dave Burkett, I am afraid the 'free market option' is breathing its last breaths. Capitalism (in its pure form) has been declared the enemy, and small businesses and entrepreneurships are in the cross hairs of our 'leadership'. Can't have success based on the individual's freedom to succeed. The government will now be carving a mandatory place for itself in every American 'success' story from here on out.

And, in order to accomplish that, they simultaneously have to re-define 'success' because it cannot actually happen when the participants are in bondage.

Thanks for the link. The article is tremendous!

~ joanie

joanie said...

'Anonymous' -- That paragraph from the White House website is absolutely chilling.

When we disagree with this administraion and congress, we are not only labeled as fanatics, but we are apparently qualified to be 'reported' as some kind of threat to the nation.

I have visited the White House website countless times over the years. Yet there is something eerily unsettling about that site now. No sense of 'America' there. One 1/4" American flag, hardly noticeable, in the corner, and the rest reads like a leftist recruitment manual, and seems to decry all that is genuinely American.

~ joanie

joanie said...

'Anonymous said: By the way Joanie, how do I recognize you when we both wind up in the gulag? Will you wear a red carnation in your hair or something?

You're the second person in as many days who said something like that to me. :)

I have not been posting much lately on an investment site that I usually frequent, and just today I received a message from another poster reading, 'Where are you? Did the goons come and take you away?'

Different wording. Same stark reality. :)

~ joanie

joanie said...

Thanks for the kind words, Barry, and for the insightful commentary on lawyers and the courts -- frightening and real.

~ joanie

joanie said...

Cal Thomas Lookalike --

Your find regarding White House meals is just another entry on the endless list of evidence that this cadre has absolutely no class.

Speaking of which (somewhat related) ... Take note sometime of the way in which Obama 'salutes' (if you can call it that) when he emerges from Marine One.

I've probably seen him do that two dozen times, and not once have I seen him even look at the Marine who is saluting him. He always offers a half-hearted 'salute' and looks away. Talk about loathing the military.

Reagan always used to look the Marine right in the eye and give him a snappy, I-am-grateful-for-you salute and a warm and appreciative smile.

~ joanie

joanie said...

Thanks for the link, Montypython2. I will check it out in the next day or two.

~ joanie

joanie said...

'Anonymous' and Gary Burgess --

I share your outrage.

This president is the first in history who has regularly criticized and demonized his predecessor, the only American news station that dares to tell the truth about him, and now American citizens who will not march in lockstep with his every pronouncement.

It's surreal.

~ joanie

Anonymous said...

Obama's biggest problem is that b*llsh*t has a short shelf life.

Anonymous said...

It looks like there's more knowledge of what's going on in the nation and the world on this web site than in any daily major newspaper. Kudos to you all!

Greta Hoffman said...

Joanie,

Here's a great editorial from Investors Business Daily, called "Getting in THEIR Faces for a Change":

The candidate who told his supporters "to argue with them and get in their face" now finds the shoe on the other foot. So they're taking names and encouraging you to turn in your neighbors.....

Link

john galt said...

Thank you for this excellent commentary, Joanie. You covered all the bases with great finesse!

Have a look at this:

For fear of being "ambushed" by Republican "lynchmobs," Democratic congressman Brian Baird (WA-3) said he refuses to hold in person town hall meetings over the summer month long congressional recess.

Citing the G.O.P.'s "Brown Shirt tactics" as the impetus for his decision, Baird told the Columbian he will instead hold a telephone town hall.


Democratic Congressman Fears Ambush by Brown Shirt Extremists

Fascist cowards!

Anonymous said...

Liberals love what psychiatrists call "projection" The believe that any protestor must be a paid shill, so they are calling normal American citizens "mobs" who are getting their marching orders from the evil insurance companies.

Sometimes I think they actually believe this because it's become a way of life for THEM.

If this bill passes, even watered down, we're toast.

Yogi said...

Meet the Mob

I hope you're able to skewer Specter, Joanie!

Anonymous said...

The greatest guilt today is that of people who accept collectivism by moral default; the people who seek protection from the necessity of taking a stand, by refusing to admit to themselves the nature of that which they are accepting; the people who support plans specifically designed to achieve serfdom, but hide behind the empty assertion that they are lovers of freedom, with no concrete meaning attached to the word; the people who believe that the content of ideas need not be examined, that principles need not be defined, and that facts can be eliminated by keeping one's eyes shut. They expect, when they find themselves in a world of bloody ruins and concentration camps, to escape moral responsibility by wailing: "But I didn't mean this!"

Those who want slavery should have the grace to name it by its proper name. They must face the full meaning of that which they are advocating or condemning; the full, exact, specific meaning of collectivism, of its logical implications, of the principles upon which it is based, and of the ultimate consequences to which these principles will lead.


---Ayn Rand, in Anthem

Facismisyourworstenemy said...

I didn't realize you were back to posting Joanie. And I didn't realize how much I missed reading your articles.

Thank you for this one. Spot on, as always!

I can't get to a town hall meeting but I'm really glad to hear that you're going to try to confront Specter. He needs to be tarred and feathered.

Anonymous said...

Joanie,

Another well written, insightful piece.

We once had the best health care in the world. If we could get rid of the big pharma and mega hospital system lobbyists, we might be able to return to it. It is unconscionable for pharmaceutical corporations to charge Americans many times what they charge other countries for the same medications.

- sigh -

Patriot Schwester

John Cooper said...

Joanie--

I owe you a sincere apology. I'd been checking your blog every few days for months now hoping you might have posted something new. I never saw anything. Come to find out, I should have refreshed my browser...sheesh.

This was one of your best pieces, and that's saying a lot.

John Cooper said...

Anonymous

No irony intended, but God bless you for posting the quote from Anthem. It's perfect.

Bob McElroy said...

Sarah Palin's statement on healthcare:

As more Americans delve into the disturbing details of the nationalized health care plan that the current administration is rushing through Congress, our collective jaw is dropping, and we’re saying not just no, but hell no!


The Democrats promise that a government health care system will reduce the cost of health care, but as the economist Thomas Sowell has pointed out, government health care will not reduce the cost; it will simply refuse to pay the cost. And who will suffer the most when they ration care? The sick, the elderly, and the disabled, of course. The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama’s “death panel” so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their “level of productivity in society,” whether they are worthy of health care. Such a system is downright evil.


Health care by definition involves life and death decisions. Human rights and human dignity must be at the center of any health care discussion.


Rep. Michele Bachmann highlighted the Orwellian thinking of the president’s health care advisor, Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, the brother of the White House chief of staff, in a floor speech to the House of Representatives. I commend her for being a voice for the most precious members of our society, our children and our seniors.


We must step up and engage in this most crucial debate. Nationalizing our health care system is a point of no return for government interference in the lives of its citizens. If we go down this path, there will be no turning back. Ronald Reagan once wrote, “Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we’ll ever see on this earth.” Let’s stop and think and make our voices heard before it’s too late.

- Sarah Palin

Sarah on Facebook

She's not as eloquent as you Joanie, but she gets more press. ;)

E said...

And someday, when you lie there on the edge of death, sick in bed with lifesaving care being withheld under Obamacare, would you not wish to give all of those days you had, to go back and seize that one day, that one day that you decided to FIGHT THE TYRANNY?

E said...

When they come for your guns and ammo, give them the ammo first.

John Cooper said...

Remember reading about the Enabling Act in pre-war Germany? That was where the legislature, by a 2/3 majority, gave up their lawmaking authority to Adolph Hitler. I wonder how many people realize that this health care bill does the same thing. Throughout the bill, there are sections like this one that turn over all decisions about our health care to the Executive branch, and forbid Judicial review of those decisions:

SEC. 223. PAYMENT RATES FOR ITEMS AND SERVICES.

(a) Rates Established by Secretary-

(1) IN GENERAL- The Secretary shall establish payment rates for the public health insurance option for services and health care providers consistent with this section and may change such payment rates in accordance with section 224.

[body omitted]

(f) Limitations on Review- There shall be no administrative or judicial review of a payment rate or methodology established under this section or under section 224.

Also, while everybody was distracted with the "Beer Summit" the Obama administration ginned up the IMAC Bill (Independent Medical Advisory Countil) to control the coverage, delivery, and payment of Medicare. That bill includes this language:

“(j) LIMITATION ON JUDICIAL REVIEW.—A person adversely affected by a recommendation of the Council that is approved by the President under subsection (f) may file a petition for review, not later than 30 days after such approval, in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. Review shall be limited to the question whether the Council’s recommendation exceeded the Council’s authority under subsection (c) or (d). Notwithstanding the previous sentence, a determination by the Chief Actuary under subsections (c)(6) and (d)(4) shall serve as conclusive evidence that the requirements of subsections (c)(5) and (d)(3)(A), respectively, have been met, and no further review of the Council’s compliance with those requirements shall be available. Review under this subsection shall be heard and decided expeditiously. Other than as stated in this subsection, no court shall have jurisdiction to review a recommendation of the Council, or the President’s approval or disapproval of such a recommendation.

Fascism: "It can't happen here!"

Anonymous said...

In addition to that, Cooper, we're recruiting our young to "work for the government" by forgiving their student loans if they do. And we're recruiting our neighbors to snitch on each other (and we've just seen the beginning of that).

The parallels between this government and Hitler's are not anything but subtle.

Anonymous said...

Great column and great comments. I learned a lot.

Anonymous said...

Protests Reveal The New Civil Rights Issue: Ignoring The Will Of The Majority

John Cooper said...

A good friend just sent me a book by Thomas Paine. Allow me to quote from it:
~~~~~
"“Men of passive tempers look somewhat lightly over the offenses of _______, and, still hoping for the best, are apt to call out, Come, we shall be friends again for all this. But examine the passions and feelings of mankind. Bring the doctrine of reconciliation to the touchstone of nature, and then tell me, whether you can hereafter love, honor and faithfully serve the power that hath carried fire and sword into your land? If you cannot do all these, then you are only decieving yourselves, and by your delay bringing ruin upon posterity. Your future connection with _______, whom you can neither love nor honor, will be forced and unnatural, and being formed only on the plan of present convenience, will in a little time fall into a relapse more wretched than the first. But if you say you can still pass the violations over, then I ask, Hath your house been burnt? Hath your property been destroyed before your face? Are your wife and children destitute of a bed to lie on, or bread to live on? Have you lost a parent or a child by their hands, and yourself the ruined and wretched survivor? If you have not, then you are not a judge of those who have. But if you have, and can still shake hands with the murderers, then you are unworthy of the name husband, father, friend or lover, and whatever may be your rank or title in life, you have the heart of a coward, and the spirit of a sycophant.”"

Anonymous said...

But if you have, and can still shake hands with the murderers, then you are unworthy of the name husband, father, friend or lover, and whatever may be your rank or title in life, you have the heart of a coward, and the spirit of a sycophant.

God rest Paine's soul.

d_o'connor said...

Great research and great analysis, Joanie. I wish you had a much wider audience.

I'm not pinning any hopes on the results of the 2012 election, but I still can't help wondering what the electorate will answer when whoever is the Republican candidate asks them, "Are you better off than you were four years ago?"

d_o'connor said...

Thanks for the Paine reference, Cooper. It's a good one for sure.

Here's another:

We ought to reflect, that there are three different ways by which an independency may hereafter be effected, and that one of those three, will, one day or other, be the fate of America, viz. By the legal voice of the people in Congress; by a military power, or by a mob: It may not always happen that our soldiers are citizens, and the multitude a body of reasonable men; virtue, as I have already remarked, is not hereditary, neither is it perpetual. Should an independency be brought about by the first of those means, we have every opportunity and every encouragement before us, to form the noblest, purest constitution on the face of the earth. We have it in our power to begin the world over again. A situation, similar to the present, hath not happened since the days of Noah until now.

I think we need another flood.

Dawn Peiffer said...

When the government steps in to help you with your personal problems or responsibilities, like "end of life counseling", one hand is helping you while the other hand is taking your freedom.

Today's voluntary service will be tomorrow's requirement, enforceable by fine or imprisonment.

Once the bottom line cost of this program begins to overwhelm the federal budget, the pressure to cut the expense of single payer healthcare will result in even more healthcare rationing.

And where will the greatest savings be found? Only one place can the savings be large enough to make a difference: seniors, and those with terminal illnesses.

John Cooper said...

A must see video: Rep. Tom Price admonishes govt-takeover of healthcare (Rep. Price is an M.D.)

trustbutverify said...

Cooper, your Thomas Paine quote reads like it was written today. It's truly amazing how some things never change, especially as regarding some men's evil nature.

trustbutverify said...

Thanks for the link to Rep. Price, Cooper.

Nancy Pelosi told members of her party that, if they talk with Republicans about the plan, they will be excluded from the conference.

And these are the same people who criticize the Republicans for not working with them and for being partisan.

And God bless him for pointing out that NOT ONE of the ills of American healthcare is addressed by this bill.

Rep. Price is a true American patriot.

Anonymous said...

"Political agendas (generally leftwing) too often take precedence over the aims for which a group originally stood"

That is true for the NAACP, ADL, NOW, Sierra Club, etc etc etc

Anonymous said...

.
'Un-American' attacks can't derail health care debate

By Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer
USA TODAY Aug 10, 2009

http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2009/08/unamerican-attacks-cant-derail-health-care-debate-.html#more

Americans have been waiting for nearly a century for quality, affordable health care.
. . .
We believe it is healthy for such a historic effort to be subject to so much scrutiny and debate. The failure of past attempts is a reminder that health insurance reform is a defining moment in our nation's history — it is well worth the time it takes to get it right. We are confident that we will get this right.
. . .
However, it is now evident that an ugly campaign is underway not merely to misrepresent the health insurance reform legislation, but to disrupt public meetings and prevent members of Congress and constituents from conducting a civil dialogue. These tactics have included hanging in effigy one Democratic member of Congress in Maryland and protesters holding a sign displaying a tombstone with the name of another congressman in Texas, where protesters also shouted "Just say no!" drowning out those who wanted to hold a substantive discussion.

Let the facts be heard

These disruptions are occurring because opponents are afraid not just of differing views — but of the facts themselves. Drowning out opposing views is simply un-American. Drowning out the facts is how we failed at this task for decades.

Health care is complex. It touches every American life. It drives our economy. People must be allowed to learn the facts.

The first fact is that health insurance reform will mean more patient choice. It will allow every American who likes his or her current plan to keep it. And it will free doctors and patients to make the health decisions that make the most sense, not the most profits for insurance companies.

Reform will mean stability and peace of mind for the middle class. Never again will medical bills drive Americans into bankruptcy; never again will Americans be in danger of losing coverage if they lose their jobs or if they become sick; never again will insurance companies be allowed to deny patients coverage because of pre-existing conditions.

Lower costs, better care

Reform will mean affordable coverage for all Americans. Our plan's cost-lowering measures include a public health insurance option to bring competitive pressure to bear on rapidly consolidating private insurers, research on health outcomes to better inform the decisions of patients and doctors, and electronic medical records to help doctors save money by working together. For seniors, the plan closes the notorious Medicare Part D "doughnut hole" that denies drug coverage to those with between $2,700 and $6,100 per year in prescriptions.

Reform will also mean higher-quality care by promoting preventive care so health problems can be addressed before they become crises. This, too, will save money. We'll be a much healthier country if all patients can receive regular checkups and tests, such as mammograms and diabetes exams, without paying a dime out-of-pocket.

This month, despite the disruptions, members of Congress will listen to their constituents back home and explain reform legislation. We are confident that our principles of affordable, quality health care will stand up to any and all critics.

Now — with Americans strongly supporting health insurance reform, with Congress reaching consensus on a plan, and with a president who ran and won on this specific promise of change — America is closer than ever to this century-deferred goal.

This fall, at long last, we must reach it.

Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is speaker of the House and

Steny Hoyer, D-Md., is House majority leader.


August 10, 2009

Red Stevens said...

It's fascinating the way Democrats have bullied their way into power and policy by using large special interest groups to influence the electorate and the elected.

Now that conservatives are trying to have their voices heard, individually, they are being called unruly "un-American" mobs by the very people who have no power without such mobs.

Our president spent his life working with such groups and now his minions are aghast that individuals are trying to have their voices heard, so the pot is calling the kettle black when the kettle is completely innocent to begin with.

The world is upside down and about to destroy any semblance of truth and justice. Can't have such trivialities standing in the way of "progress."

Cal Brindisi said...

Anonymous said:

"Political agendas (generally leftwing) too often take precedence over the aims for which a group originally stood"

That is true for the NAACP, ADL, NOW, Sierra Club, etc etc etc


And then there are those organizations that are rotten to the core to begin with, and whose names bear no resemblance to their aims. "People for the American Way" comes to mind.

Anonymous said...

These town hall meetings are a joke. Our leaders are listening to all the outrage and then they're going to go right back to Washington and pass the monstrosity anyway because they "know what's best for us."

Euro-American Scum said...

Anonymous said . . .

These town hall meetings are a joke. Our leaders are listening to all the outrage and then they're going to go right back to Washington and pass the monstrosity anyway because they "know what's best for us."


Just so, exactly. They answer to no one, because these bottom feeding political cutthroats know they will face no consequences from the electorate, now or in the future.

Time for a little revolution, don't you think? Too bad this current crop of what passes for citizens has neither an appreciation for the country they've got (or had), nor the stomach to defend it.

Anonymous said...

Joanie, do you have anything to report about Sen. Specter's meeting?

joanie said...

Joanie, do you have anything to report about Sen. Specter's meeting?

Rick and I have houseguests for three weeks – a ‘pen pal’ from England to whom I have been writing since we were both ten years old, her husband, and their seventeen-year-old son.

The five of us attended Arlen Specter’s town hall meeting in Lebanon, PA yesterday morning.

We arrived at the college at 7:45 AM and the doors opened at 9:00. We were fortunate enough to be among the first 250 people because that was the hall’s limit. More people were turned away than were allowed to enter. (I would estimate that there were close to six hundred people in line.)

We of course were prepared with several questions to ask the dishonorable Mr. Specter, but upon being seated the audience was told that thirty ‘random’ people had each been handed a card with a number on it and only those thirty would be allowed to ask questions.

Needless to say, that announcement did not go over well with the crowd, and most of us suspected that the ‘chosen thirty’ were probably hand-picked Specter supporters, but that turned out not to be the case.

I would say that all but two or three of the questioners were very well informed – with a handful of them asserting that they had read H.R. 3200 in its entirety -- and they posed very astute questions and provided excellent insights into this legislative monstrosity.

Only one of the thirty questioners was in favor of the proposed ‘reform’ bill, and, although she was treated with respect by the crowd, she did not receive any real support.

Senator Specter was – to put it bluntly – pathetic. He simply kept repeating the same, tired talking points, namely:

(1) I will not vote for a bill that expands the federal deficit, and the current bill under consideration in the house does not

(2) All citizens will be able to keep their current private insurance, if they are happy with it

(3) The government will see to it that we save on healthcare by requiring preventive medicine, and by eliminating Medicare and Medicaid fraud
Needless to say, all three oft-repeated talking points were met with derision, and contrary, fact-based arguments from the floor.

He made an attempt to answer perhaps eighty percent of the questions – generally with only four or five sentences, and sometimes with replies that bore no resemblance to the question. And occasionally he would listen to a longer question/comment, shake his head, and simply ask for the next questioner. He was most definitely not interested in genuine input from his conservative constituents.

One questioner said that he would like to see this healthcare issue put to referendum. Specter feigned interest in such a thing and responded, ‘I’ll have to give that some serious thought and take the idea back to Washington with me.’

The audience saw through his ‘representative’ façade and laughed heartily at that insincerity.

The largest and loudest responses from the audience came when he asserted (1) that the majority of Americans are in favor of a single-payer system, and (2) that he is dedicated the remaining true to the Constitution. After both comments, the audience reacted with utter disbelief and disgust.

(to be continued ...)

joanie said...

(continued ... )

Even though we were not able to pose our questions, those questions we would have asked were covered by the other questioners, and many of them quoted directly – page, paragraph and line – from the house bill. To be blunt, Specter seemed a mental midget compared to the majority of his questioners, and seemed to know significantly less about the legislation being considered than most in the audience. He kept repeating that the senate does not yet have a bill in place, as if that were an excuse for him to be entirely unaware of the contents of the house bill.

He also pleaded ignorance regarding the paragraph on the White House website that is encouraging Americans to ‘snitch’ on their countrymen who are reporting ‘fishy’ information on the president’s plan. Either he is woefully uninformed, or he did not want to admit to knowing about that particular travesty.

As we were leaving, our English friends commented, ‘I don’t believe he answered one single question. He appears to be very adept at avoiding rational explanations – quite an escape artist.’ They were absolutely astounded at his tap dancing agility.

When they first arrived here, we asked them what they think of their healthcare system. Their response was, ‘We have no real complaints.’ It appears that they have not yet found themselves among the unfortunates who have had to wait many months for necessary surgeries, etc. And what inconveniences and lack of quality and availability in healthcare they have experienced, have simply been accepted as a way of life.

... which served to make us acutely aware of what we see as perhaps the most insidious aspect of this 'reform': the fact that, once a generation of Americans has lived under such an oppressive, tyrannical system, that generation will not know the beauty of what used to be. You cannot genuinely mourn something you have never known -- at least not to the degree that you will fight and sacrifice to restore it.

Since then, we have been describing to them how our system works, and what H.R. 3200 includes. We have also been watching quite a bit of Glenn Beck’s analysis of the healthcare ‘reform’ package, and giving them other material to read on the socialization of American medical care.

Since we have been stressing the unconstitutionality of the entire enterprise, they have begun to show a great deal of interest in our Constitution as well. (We gave them a copy to study, and they have been asking many questions, the most recent of which was, 'What would you change about the Constitution, as it stands now?' And our answer was that this republic would be immeasurably better off if our leadership would merely follow its dictates, and if we could somehow erase all unconstitutional laws from the books. If that monumental feat could be accomplished, the first major change we would then make to that precious document would be to repeal the Seventeenth Amendment.)

They appear to be realizing just how superior -- especially in terms of choice and availability of treatment -- our system is, as it stands now. And they are in complete agreement with us that a move toward government-care would be a disaster in comparison, especially as regards individual liberty, capitalism (or what is left of it), the expense of any government-run system, and the affect that universal healthcare will have on the availability of treatment to certain segments of society that are deemed ‘unproductive’ to the elitists.

They have lived all of their adult lives under the system they have now -- or one close to it -- and they really have not attempted to compare it to a system based on freedom-of-choice and free enterprise. What they have learned over the past few days has been something of an eye-opening education -- especially at today’s town hall meeting where they witnessed firsthand the fact that my husband and I are by no means alone in our anger, disgust and determination to see that this abomination does not become law.

~ joanie

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much for filling us in on the town hall with Specter. I don't imagine it was easy even sitting in the same room with the traitor.

3timesalady said...

Joanie, were those Acorn people at your meeting or was that another PA town hall?

John Cooper said...

I wondered the same thing, but after researching it, Joanie attended a different one. Joanie wrote (above) that she attended the town hall in Lebanon on the 12th, and the ACORN people showed up at the town hall in Kittanning the following day.

I'm kind of glad. It wouldn't have been good to see a photo of her and her companions flipping ACORN the bird plastered all over the Internet. (Not that they would have done that, of course...big grin)

Donald Heffner said...

I thoroughly enjoyed your editorial in today's Lancaster Sunday News and I will be stopping by this web log often to read more!

I am proud to know that you live in my area!

Philip Masterson said...

I wish your Lancaster Sunday News article were as comprehensive as this “Healthcare Reform: Lies, Corruption and Hunger for Power” is. But I guess you had to stay under their word limit. I hope a lot of people who read that article follow the url provided and come here to read “the rest of the story.”

I was also at Specter’s circus in Lebanon. Did you read Gil Stuart’s account of it in this morning’s News? I usually don’t read his column but I read it this morning and it infuriated me reading that he saw the audience as “shrieking outrage....shoving and people jamming their fingers in Specter’s face ....desperation ....hatred.”

I saw none of that. Almost everyone who questioned him was polite and calm. Almost all questioners thanked him for coming. I don’t know what meeting Stuart attended! It certainly wasn’t the one in Lebanon!

Thank you, Joanie, for your editorial and for this web log. I will read it regularly.

David Stoltzfus said...

I enjoyed reading your Lancaster Sunday News editorial and enjoyed reading this one even more. As the fellow above said, it has much more information.

The wife and I went to Specter's
"show" in Lebanon also. Gil Stuart's description of it in this morning's paper showed his usual bias. He is a liberal shill always.

I like your blog and I'll be back. ;)

Anonymous said...

Good ideas! Good writing!

Cal Reedy said...

One of the things I noticed at the town hall meeting in Lebanon was that almost all of the people who were there against the bill came empty handed. Almost all of the people who came to support the bill had professionally printed signs and buttons, and yet we're the "organized mob."

The media have been bought and paid for by the DNC.

Cal Reedy said...

P.S. Yours is an excellent column!

another Lancastrian said...

Awesome work! Editorial and blog are bull's eye writing. Gilbert Stuart isn't worth the ink to print his column each week.

Anonymous said...

Hi Joanie,
I scanned your article and sent it to a friend of mine. She suggested
sending it to each member of congress. I agree!
C. C.
Paradise, PA

John Cooper said...

Joanie got an editorial published? Link, please.

Bob Hoffert said...

I didn't know we had another Claire Wolfe here in Lancaster County. Way to go kid!!!!!

Bob Hoffert said...

PS. I'm from Bird-in-Hand, PA and proud to call you neighbor. ;)

Bob Hoffert said...

You can't get to Joanie's editorial online unless you are subscriber to the Sunday News. Only parts of the paper are available to non-subscribers, but Joanie's editorial was just a condensed version of this column, so it's all contained here, and more.

You need a password to link to the editorial pages.

Rick F. said...

Link to pdf of Joanie's editorial

Casey Bunderson said...

I have sent a copy of this column to my PA congressman (Altmire) and to Sens. Specter and Casey. I don't expect anything from any of them (they're all useless), but thanks for the great read- here and in the News.

John Cooper said...

Thanks Rick F ;-)

joanie said...

Sincere apologies for not responding to the many excellent comments here recently. Will do so just as soon as time allows.

In the meantime, want to share a recent experience with you all:

As I mentioned in a post above, we have friends from England visiting us for three weeks. On Friday we took them to Philadelphia to visit Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell and several other historic sites.

We took several tours of the historic buildings in the area. During a tour of Congress Hall, our tour guide, a U.S. Park Ranger, informed the tour that, shortly after the revolution, many deliberations occurred in the ‘upper chamber’ senate room (in which we were then standing), including the decisions, in the 1790s, to create the Bank of the U.S. and the Federal Reserve.

Another U.S. Ranger tour guide, taking us through the west wing of Independence Hall, in the Great Essentials Exhibit, while instructing us regarding copies of the original Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, and Constitution (these copies are actually older than the ‘originals’ in the Nationals Archives in D.C., since they were printed before the ‘original’ documents were signed), stated, ‘The Articles of Confederation granted the states supreme and sovereign powers, and then the Constitution flipped that upside down, making the federal government the supreme power in the land, and the states subservient to it.

After both comments, Rick and I looked at each other in utter disbelief, but we noticed no one else in the tour questioning what had been told to them. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't heard it with my own ears.

We did not have an opportunity to approach either of the rangers, since many other people crowded around them to ask questions, and we were on a tight schedule, but I certainly intend to write a letter to the superintendent of Independence National Historic Park about the disinformation being disseminated by their tour guides at Independence Mall.

Tomorrow we are headed to D.C. I would imagine there will be something(s) eye-opening there to report as well. :(

Again, many thanks for the excellent comments here! I will respond to them all soon.

~ joanie

Anonymous said...

Your editorial was a blessing--and to think it was on the same page as Stuart's lies!

Lou Barakos said...

CNN online has a scathing article today on Specter's "performance" at the town hall you went to, Joanie. I'm surprised. Maybe even CNN is waking up!

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/08/18/zickar.town.hall.anger/index.html

Anonymous said...

Specter vs. Sestak on Public Option

Carol Kauffman said...

White House May Push Through Healthcare Without Republicans [and in spite of massive pulic outcry]

Anonymous said...

Here is an excellent commentary by Lloyd Marcus, a black conservative entertainer:

I am on the email list of a dear black friend of 20 years. He is a minister, writer and professor. He has mentored and advised me with great wisdom on numerous occasions. With me being a black conservative Republican and he a Democrat, we avoid talking politics. Since the election of Obama, my friend will talk about nothing else. He is in Baltimore. I'm in Florida. Every time he calls me, he turns the conversation into trashing all who oppose Obama's agenda. Thank God for caller ID.

I received a mass email from my friend in which he vilifies the Christian community for not chastising ministers who speak against Obama and for not attacking Sarah Palin. He said the Republicans used Palin as their "attack dog against Obama." He said watching a McCain/Palin rally was like watching a KKK lynch mob and he personally heard the crowds yelling, "kill him," referring to Obama. Folks, my dear friend is a liar.

In 2008, I traveled the U.S. attending forty rallies on the national "Stop Obama Tour" with Our Country Deserves Better PAC. Not once, did I hear any violent or racist comments. Seeing through his smooth speeches and charisma, people were simply terrified of what was to come with an Obama victory.

Behind all of my friend's intellectual yada, yada, yada, festers a deep hatred for the rich and white people. In a conversation, he said with great glee that Obama was going to "reign in Wall Street" and CEO's salaries should be limited to $500,000 per year. I thought, "Who the heck are you to dictate how much someone should be permitted to earn. This is America. The sky's the limit."

Anger caused me to write a passionate reply to my friend's hate filled email. I stated numerous reasons why Obama's agenda and the health care bills are wrong for America.

Included was abortion. Fifty percent of black babies are aborted. (BlackGenocide.org) Also, Obama voted three times against protecting babies who survive an abortion. So, how does my black minister friend justify supporting Obama. And why does he consider anyone opposing Obama's policies non Christian, racist or an Uncle Tom if you are black?

Ready to hit "reply all," I remembered the White House requested all emails against ObamaCare be forwarded to them. I thought, why give them more ammo to attempt to shut me up? The folks on my friend's liberal email list are all infected will Obama Brainlock Syndrome. They do not want to know the truth. In the current climate set by our "I'm gonna make you a Health Care offer you can't refuse" president, I could be setting myself up for physical attacks.

Many sincere white Americans thought by electing a black president America could never again be characterized as a "racist country." Shamefully, this characterless administration betrayed Obama voters by exploiting race, using it as a tool to implement their far left agenda. If you don't agree with everything Obama wants, you must be a racist. Rather than the election of America's first black president bringing the races together, Obama's administration is tearing us apart. They will continue to play the tired, old and tattered geriatric "race card" as long as it is effective.

Folks, please, please, please do not fall for it. The stakes are far too high. Boldly speak the truth and stand up for what you know in your hearts to be right for America. Obama wants to redistribute wealth, punish achievers, decide who lives or dies and control as much of our lives as possible. It is just that simple. His must be stopped. Do not allow yourselves to be manipulated and intimidated for fear of being called "racist."

Ironically, "Black Racism" has blinded my long time friend as well as many other black Americans from seeing beyond Obama's skin color. MLK would not be proud.

You're a Racist: The Unlimate Emotional Intimidation

DaveBurkett said...

Historical Examples of Erroneous Health Care Cost Estimates; Don't Trust Those Government Forecasts

Roger Borden said...

Did you hear David Letterman compare the town hall protestors to the Taliban?

I don't watch him anymore (haven't for years), and anyone who does needs to have his head examined. Even if you're not a liberal, you should resent him stepping over the line between "talk show host" and political commentator.

Sergei said...

Excellent (excerpt from post by anonymous earlier here)

Shamefully, this characterless administration betrayed Obama voters by exploiting race, using it as a tool to implement their far left agenda. If you don't agree with everything Obama wants, you must be a racist. Rather than the election of America's first black president bringing the races together, Obama's administration is tearing us apart. They will continue to play the tired, old and tattered geriatric "race card" as long as it is effective.

Sergei said...

That is sick about the so-called "US Park Rangers" trying to sell false leftist propaganda on the Federal Reserve.

I have found US Park Rangers good for one thing---giving parking tickets.

Anonymous said...

I would advise anyone here to think twice before criticizing Obama, the man of seven Time magazine covers since his election.

Helene Stanton said...

Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly, liberal Democrats have to accuse their opponents of racism.

Sergei said...

DaveBurkett said...

Too bad there's no known cure for advanced fascism.


Yes there is, Dave.

Anonymous said...

Entertainment industry giant Janine Garofalo said:
.
"tea parties are about hating a black man."

Victor Jory said...

Janeane Garofalo bombs in Britain, walks off stage when no one laughs

http://www.ihatethemedia.com/janeane-garofalo-bombs-in-britain

Janeane Garofalo cut short her Saturday afternoon set in Latitude’s comedy tent because of the poor reception she was given by the audience.
Garofalo was due perform for half an hour, but left the stage after less than ten minutes when her routine about post-9/11 security checks at airports met with stony silence.

John Cooper said...

Tom Price of Georgia has introduced H.R.3400 - a Republican alternative to the disastrous Democrat bill. It contains tort reform.

Read it at http://thomas.loc.gov

DaveBurkett said...

Joanie, I'll be interested to hear your English friends' opinions of what is happening here politically once they leave and you have some time to write!

Doug Kauffman said...

Joanie, I came here last weekend after reading your LSN editorial and have been back a couple of times to read more of your earlier writing. Your style of writing is so clear and common sense driven that I wish you could be a national columnist.

Thank you for all the work you put in here. I will be a regular reader from now on!

Doug Kauffman
Terre Hill, PA

Anonymous said...

"Thank you for all the work you put in here. I will be a regular reader from now on!"

I concur. Keep on keepin' on!

C. Witmer
New Holland, PA

Anonymous said...

Paul Krugman 2007: Obamacare Can "Evolve" into a Single-Payer System

Anonymous said...

I may be a late bloomer but I saw for the first time on TV last night a rabidly pro-healthcare-reform ad sponsored by AARP. I knew they had been skirting the issue of endorsement up until now, but this ad was blatantly pro-administration and pro-Congress in the "healthcare reform" agenda.

It just goes to show you can't judge a book by its cover. AARP doesn't give a friggin damn about "retired people." They give a damn about being on the right side of the power structure.

Anonymous said...

Bury government healthcare with Ted Kennedy.

Sergei said...

I understand Ted Kennedy wanted a special provision put in his Health Care bill for drunken drivers and their victims.

Martha said...

Any here aware of the movement to have Mary Jo Kopechne buried next to Teddy Kennedy at Arlington Cemetary?

Barry up the road said...

Joanie,

This is a letter I sent to Senators Specter and Casey and Representative Joe Pitts. I can only hope that it has meaning for them.

Dear Senator Specter,

I write to you today to express my concern for the direction our country is headed.

This great country has for many years been moving toward a form of Socialism or Fascism with the complicity of one administration after another, both Republican and Democrat. The Senate and the House of Representatives have, in my opinion, ignored the Constitution time and time again and allowed government to intrude in citizen’s lives in myriad ways never intended by our Founding Fathers.

The current debate about Universal Health Care has brought the matter to the forefront of public discussion, although most of the pundits and politicians focus narrowly on the health care issue alone. This argument is much larger than health care. This is a fight for our very way of life! It is a struggle to decide if we will continue to live in freedom or submit to the oppressive hand of an all powerful government.

Senator Specter, I urge you to speak out forcefully and often against the continued growth of government and the ever more intrusive nature of that monster.

You have no right sir to steal my money in order to give it to someone else so that they can buy a new car. You have no right sir to steal my money to provide for someone else’s medical care. And you were not elected so that you would steal someone else’s money to help me. I could go on in this vein for many pages but I think you get the idea.

Senator Specter, every day that goes by that you fail to speak out forcefully against this administration ensconcing a self avowed communist as a senior advisor to the President of the United States, or a man who embraces sterilization of the public because he believes we have no inherent right to procreate is named the “Science Czar”, or the government takeover of General Motors and Chrysler, or the CEO of General Electric sitting as an advisor to the President at the same time that his company is making billions of dollars on government contracts, is another day that you enable the administration to wreak havoc on us.

The latest projection for the federal deficit is a staggering nine trillion dollars. One trillion seconds ago Jesus Christ was walking this earth. These numbers are almost incomprehensible and they are certainly not sustainable.

This administration is destroying our economy! I believe it is by design so that the government can ride in on a white horse and “save the day” and then we will all be under the harsh heel of government. You must speak out forcefully and often against the destruction of our freedom and liberty!

I implore you sir to return to the people the power which has been usurped by the federal government. Speak out against the rampant growth of government and return to the states the powers granted them by the Constitution. Speak out against the installation of anti-American persons as Presidential advisors. Speak out against the investigation and weakening of the CIA.

The American people have been awakened. I fear those of you in Washington fail to see the passion as real. You do so at your own peril. The people are beginning to stand up and soon they will say, NO MORE!! We want our country back.

Respectfully Yours,

KathyMlynczak said...

An excellent letter, Barry. I suspect that it will fall on deaf ears in two of the three recipients, but you're doing what you can!

John Cooper said...

Great letter Barry! You're exactly right about Obmamcare bringing the issue to a head. It's been a long series of abuses: TARP, Porkulus, Cap n'Tax, and now Obamacare. This has to be stopped, then rolled back in 2010.

Allow me to put in a plug for $10 for Tark. Here's a letter I wrote to some friends about it:
~~~~~
Many of us have been bitching about having a Soviet-style medical care system rammed down our collective throats. Personally, I've attended two Tea Parties and two other protests at the offices of my U.S. Representative, Heath Shuler. I've also written my Senators, not that it will do any good; They're not listening to "evil-mongers", as Harry Reid called us protesters.

But here's something concrete we can all do to stop socialized medicine in it's tracks and keep America free. Best of all it only costs $10 on your credit card. I spent that much at Burger King today for two meals.

Danny Tarkanian is running for Speaker Harry Reid's Senate seat next year. He's already way ahead in the polls. Since tar and feathers have gone out of style, let's help get Harry Reid out of there the non-violent way.

John Cooper said...

I just now received this E-mail from the Danny Tarkanian campaign. At the risk of spamming Joanie's blog:
~~~~~
Dear John,

I am writing to thank you for your contribution to our shared cause, and to ask you to forward this email to your contact list so we can continue the success of the now-viral "Ten Bucks for Tark" fundraising program started by our friend Hugh Hewitt. We already have 5000 nationwide TeamTark members, and we want to expand that to 10,000 right away to send Harry Reid a message.

What you have started through your support is a movement - a movement to bring conservative values back to our country and to rid ourselves of centralized, socialized control of every aspect of our society. This is the America Harry Reid wants, and it is our responsibility to stop him.

Reid wants a public option that puts government in control of your health care. He wants the taxpayers to fund government bailouts of entire industries so that the government can hire and fire CEO's. He is the principal architect of Washington's plan to indebt you, your children, and your grandchildren to his big government plans to the extent of $9 trillion dollars this decade alone.

We are at a crossroads of history, and our very freedom as Americans is at stake. Your contributions are a sign that you are willing to join this epic battle against Senator Reid and what he stands for. And I am ready and willing to lead.

Please take the following steps right now - before you close this email.

1. Forward it to your entire email list so your friends and family can read my these words themselves, and ask them to contribute their own "Ten Bucks for Tark" at www.tark2010.org

2. Sign up for our alerts at www.tark2010.org so we can include you in our Nationwide Rapid Response System.

You will also be pleased to learn that Sarah Palin's father, Chuck Heath, has agreed to campaign for me in Nevada. We are rallying the nation to our cause. I am deeply grateful that you are with us.

With Blessings and Warm Wishes,

Danny Tarkanian
Tarkanian for Senate

Anonymous said...

I just sent Tarkanian ten bucks. What a letter!

S Mast said...

Joanie,

In case you didn't see this letter to the editor in this Sunday's Lancaster News (they'r still responding 2 weeks later!):

God bless Joan ____ and her "In My Opinion" column (August 16th). Her comments and insight into the craziness about health care control were a breath of fresh air. I only hope and pray (because I am still desperately clinging to my religion) that Obama has actually awakened a sleeping giant in the American people, and they don't get lulled back to sleep. It's time for the American people to wake up our elected "leaders" and "representatives." Right now they are neither.

D. F.
East Lampeter Township


I like his reference to "desperately clinging to my religion" (Part of Obama's put down of small town Americans during the campaign).

S. Mast
Manheim Township, PA

Sergei said...

I wonder if they will drive Ted Kennedy's funeral limo over the Chappaquidick bridge.

Euro-American Scum said...

John Cooper said...

I just now received this E-mail from the Danny Tarkanian campaign.


This wouldn't happen to be the son of Jerry Tarkanian, the former UNLV basketball coach, would it? If so, what jurisdiction is he running in? He and my daughter spent some time together back in the olden, golden Las Vegas days. After that, we all lost touch with him.

Is it the same person? And can you link me to his website if he has one? (Also at the risk of spamming Joanie's blog. Sorry.)

John Cooper said...

Mr. Scum--

Yes, that's him. http://www.dannytarkanian.org/

Best--