If Obama was at 41%, you'd be talking about impeachment...
LAME~~~~
The ground swell of support for protesters against health care is growing, whereas Obama's support is shrinking...it's all about momentum.
If Obama was at 41%, you'd be talking about impeachment...
Not really.
It's lame to brag about a 41% rating. That's actually a poll I might have posted...
I think the point is that it isn't the 'racist mob' that people like Krugman project them to be.
In my opinion I bet those who hold unfavorable opinions of them are in one of two camps....
1) People who don't approve the tactics
2) People who consume to much Obama-aid
The most solid point Krugman made was about how nearly everyone said they didn't want government involved in healthcare, but about half of those people admitted to being on Medicare. The point, of course, is that people who are on Medicare but don't realize that it's a government run health insurance plan aren't there because they disagree with POLICY. They don't disagree on substance, so this isn't about speaking truth to power, free speech, or making your voice heard. This is about people being woefully mislead - being told by House Republicans that old people are going to be put down and that care is going to get rationed and that some bureaucrat is going to stand between you and your doctor.
didn't obama say cuts to medicare were required to implement his plan?
I have no problem with protests or dissent. The tactics have definitely been out-of-bounds, however, and I'm amazed at the lengths to which some on here (not you) have gone to try to excuse or defend them.
And this is not to say that there haven't been times in the past when groups on the left haven't shouted people down, or issued death threats, or otherwise tried to intimidate.
I don't care who is doing it; it is not how a democracy works, imo. I prefer vigorous debate, with competing ideas. That's not really what we're seeing here.
And the disinformation campaign is unlike anything else I have seen in recent years. I don't know how anyone can get a real sense of what the plan is, anymore; the exaggerations & outright lies about it are completely ridiculous.
1) I agree, I think the extent that the protesters are going to is over the top. Protesting is one thing, trying to drown out opposing views is not cool... no matter who is doing it.
2) The reason no one can tell what the bill is really all about is largely due to the fact that there are about 6 bills floating around out there. That said, I do agree that some of the disinformation is pathetically over the top. Very similar to the bullshit that occurred when Social Security was up for reform. The scare tactics employed by both sides are not beneficial to society.
didn't obama say cuts to medicare were required to implement his plan?
How about we clean up all the fraud and waste to Medicare and Medicaid. Implement meaningful Tort reform BEFORE adding more debt to the healthcare industry???
Believe it or not, I supported privatizing Social Security.
SS & healthcare are going to kill us, unless bold, smart action is taken.
For healthcare we need to:
1) reign in costs on healthcare - this can only be done after we break down the average hospital bill/medical bill and find out why costs are skyrocketing. We need to end the practice of endless tests that are done for CYA purposes.... which means we need tort reform.
2) improve preventive medicine
3) encourage healthy eating and exercise.
4) Alternative energy. Pollution is obviously a detriment to health. By pushing forward an alt/clean energy platfrom we can help reduce healthcare costs.
For social security:
1) Adjust the age of availability of SS by changes in average life expectancy every five years.
2) Privatize: This does NOT mean everything has to go into the stock market. It means that each individual has their own account and we end the bullshit practice of robbing peter to pay paul. There will be a shortfall during the boomers retirement due to lack of planning for the past 4 decades. That is a short fall we have to deal with one way or another. Issue the bonds to cover the costs and we will have to tighten the budget elsewhere to make up for it.
3) Allow individuals the option to invest in a market index with a portion of their assets should they choose.
My guess is no. My guess is whatever he said is being grossly misrepresented by you.
First of all, there's very little fraud and waste in Medicare. It's a very well run, very efficient program. Private health insurance doesn't come CLOSE. If you want to clean up inefficiencies that cost you money, start with the private health insurance companies.
As for Tort reform, if you're talking about capping malpractice payouts just look at Texas. There's a county in Texas who did this recently. And you know what? They still have among the most expensive healthcare in the frikking country. It's a total red herring.
We're starting with HEALTH INSURANCE. Get used to it. You're getting a public option. You know what? The world's not going to end. It's going to get much better in fact.
How about we clean up all the fraud and waste to Medicare and Medicaid. Implement meaningful Tort reform BEFORE adding more debt to the healthcare industry???
It's truly weird how much of that I agree with. I only feel okay saying this because Darla is gone, and this thread will likely be way down the page by Monday.
There are too many emotional, knee-jerk reactions in both debates. I couldn't agree more about healthcare costs. The trend is ridiculous, and I don't doubt that anyone who has to pay a premium - whether through work or on their own - has seen it in a big way. For those who don't have insurance & have to pay their own costs, fuhgettaboutit.
Also totally agree on preventative/diet (I would love to see a comparison chart of the top 10 or 20 medical conditions, and how much they cost to treat in the 1st month vs. after 6 months or a year). You know I'm down w/ alt energy.
As for SS, I don't understand the people who are fine with it "as is," and thought a lot of the left had a knee-jerk about both Bush proposing it and about the buzzword "privatization." I'm a middle-aged fellow, and there is no one my age or younger who thinks SS is going to be there when they retire. So why not privatize? We all see this huge disaster on the horizon, and we know it's there & will 100% be there unless something is changed, and yet nothing gets done.