So Tired of This Nonsense...

I can't even begin to describe how sick and tired I am of the personal nastiness being directed at the office of the President of the U.S. Just this morning I was subjected to photos on someone's iPhone of a black, dept. store manikin, dressed up in hospital scrubs, being abused next to a sign about "Obama care." This guy thought it was the most hilarious thing he'd ever seen and couldn't wait to show it around to everyone. Not only completely disrespectful of our President, but absolute racist crap to boot, and nobody around here said a damn thing about it.

Or how about the posts of several "friends of a friend" on Facebook who were going off about how Pres. Obama is trying to DESTROY THE CONSTITUTION (their caps, not mine) because he, wait for it... plans to accept the Nobel Prize.

Welcome to good, old patriotic Texas. We hope you enjoy your stay... :P

QotD for 25 Sept., 2009

Concerning the disparity of drug prices in the U.S. vs. other countries:

Dividing up the world economy into individual markets to benefit only businesses and not consumers is a big BS sandwich. They [Big Pharma] argue for their freedom to manufacture it in Mexico but want to deny you the freedom to purchase it from Mexico through political means. I do not understand how so many Americans walk around believing this is actually in their best interests and support these people by calling them "Free Marketers", which they most definitely are not. They are Selective Protectionists supporting economic and political protections for themselves but not the rest of us.---Anonymous, in the comment thread of Off My Meds on the Real Live Preacher blog

Stirring the Pot

Great Googly Moogly! A status update I posted on my Facebook page is getting more comment action than anything I've ever posted here :D So I'm gonna try and leech off of it...

"I believe that no one should die because they can't afford health care, and no one should go broke because they get sick."

Discuss.

How Low Can They Go ?

There's been a lot of misinformation flung about RE: health care reform, but this really takes the cake:

In a "poll" mailed to supporters, the RNC is actually suggesting that health insurance reform is a Democratic plot to deny health care to Republicans using voter registration data: Documents Obtained Show GOP Tricks

Geez Louise! And the sad thing is, there are people out there who'll believe this and start shouting about it at Congressional "town hall" meetings :P

What's it gonna take to get a rational discussion of health care reform started ?!

Everyone Rations Health Care

If we have any hope of a rational discussion on health care reform in the U.S., we need to get past the lies and the spin being flung about with such great abandon. Here's a big one: "Socialized" medicine, a misnomer in its own right applied to current attempts at reform in the U.S., will cause health care rationing.

Here's the truth - every country rations health care. Every. one. The difference is that the U.S. uses a criteria different from every, other First World country. We don't base it on medical effectiveness, or any, other sort of good science.

No, we de facto ration based on how wealthy you are. If you can afford it, the sky's the limit. If not, well....you get rationing. And the poorer you are, the more your access is rationed.

So can we please ditch the "rationing" shibboleth ? and have both a rational and heartfelt discussion about whether this is the direction in which we want our society to evolve ?

QotD for 20 Aug., 2009

This debate over health care goes to the heart of who we are as a people. I believe that nobody in America should be denied basic health care because he or she lacks health insurance. --- Pres. Barack Obama

Further in his appeal to faith-based groups to spread the truth about health care reform, the President urged listeners to reject misinformation about his plans, noting, "There are some folks out there who are, frankly, bearing false witness."

And yet self-professed Christians continue to lie about "death panels" and other outrageous nonsense. To say nothing about ignoring our Lord's injunction to care for the sick (and the hungry, and the orphans, and the needy,...).

Hey conservatives, news flash - "I got mine, screw you" can in no way be justified as a Biblical stance.

Update: When confronted by yet another ridiculous claim at a townhall meeting from a right-wing shill, Rep. Allen Boyd (D-Florida) responded, "When someone sends you something on the Internet that sounds crazy, how about just checking it a little bit?" Golly, ya think ?!

CNN's Health Care Fact Check site.