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reform

On My Last Weekend, Or, Wanna Save A Few Trillion On Health Care?

by: fake consultant

Sun Jul 24, 2011 at 09:56:46 AM EDT

So I disappeared for a full week, right in the middle of what should have been a busy writing schedule, and I have to claim some "personal days" to cover the time we missed here at the blog - but it won't be time entirely wasted.

Instead, I'm going to jump into my own personal life for today's story, and I'm going to do it so that we can stimulate some thinking about where we really need to go to if we ever hope to make some sense out of the crazy way we deliver health care in this country.

Since this appears to be the weekend that a lot of decisions are either going to be made about the future of our "social safety net"...or they wont; we're entirely unsure...let's talk about how it actually works for a lot of us - and how it could work a lot better.

There's More... :: (1 Comments, 1303 words in story)

On Honoring A Legacy, Or John Edwards, We Need To Talk

by: fake consultant

Thu Dec 16, 2010 at 06:03:56 AM EST

So it has come to pass that Elizabeth Edwards has died.

Despite having more things thrown at her than anyone I've ever had the chance to support in my entire political life, she managed to represent, in her very presence, a sense of grace and kindness and concern for those who were looking to have a better life than the one they had now, and I don't know that I could ever live up to the quiet courage she showed as her life came to an end.

And, bless her heart, it appears that she took the time to make sure that her kids knew her, and that she helped them put away enough "past" to, hopefully, ease some of the pain of the future.

But now the time has come to look beyond death, and, John...that's why I want to talk to you today.

There's More... :: (3 Comments, 937 words in story)

On Assigning Blame, Or, "So, You Think I'm Retarded?"

by: fake consultant

Sun Feb 28, 2010 at 12:53:46 PM EST

LANGUAGE WARNING: Today’s story is uncharacteristically blunt, and from this moment forward we will be using lots of inappropriate language in making our points.

Gentle Reader, you have been officially...warned.

With that in mind, if you take offense when confronted with language strong enough to knock a fuckin’ buzzard off a shitwagon, please stop reading now.

It is by now fairly well known that Rahm Emanuel, President Obama’s White House Chief of Staff, had a bit of a blow-up with liberals who were ready to start running ads against “blue dog” Democrats who were working very hard to shut down the health care reform effort.

Now we’re not gonna get in the middle of that argument today; instead, since we’re finally getting a chance to talk, I figured me and Rahm could get a few other things out of the way that have been on everyone’s mind for the past year or so.

There's More... :: (1 Comments, 1395 words in story)

On Health Care, Vegas-Style, Or, Figure It Out In The Ambulance, Chump

by: fake consultant

Wed Feb 10, 2010 at 04:24:20 AM EST

I was supposed to begin the long-delayed series of PTSD stories I’ve been planning, but before we begin, I need to tell y’all about something that just happened in my house.

For us it wasn’t a matter of life or death, but it is the kind of story that explains, perfectly, why we need to reform the health care system we have today—and for that matter, it’s also a great explanation of why a single-payer system would be a giant step forward for everyone in this country, whether you’re insured today or not.

It’s also hilarious and sad and frustrating, all at the same time—which makes today’s story a pretty good allegory for the current American way of doing health care.

So follow along, have a good laugh…and at the same time, take a minute to consider what could be, and how much less irritating things should be.

There's More... :: (1 Comments, 769 words in story)

On Learning To Love Homegrown, Or, Baucus' Fundraising Considered

by: fake consultant

Fri Oct 09, 2009 at 05:49:55 AM EDT

So we are now finding out the answers to some of our questions about which members of Congress actually represent We, the People...and which ones represent, Them, the Corporate Masters.

We have seen a Democratic Senator propose a policy that would put people in jail for not buying health insurance and a Democratic President who has taken numerous public beatings from those on the left side of the fence for his inability to ram something through a group of people...and yes, folks, the entendre was intentional.

But most of all, we’ve been asking ourselves: “why would Democratic Members of Congress who will eventually want us to vote for them vote against something that nearly all voting Democrats are inclined to vote for?”

Today’s conversation attempts to answer that question by looking at exactly how money and influence flow through a key politician, Montana’s Senator Max Baucus—and in doing so, we examine some ugly political realities that have to be resolved before we can hope to convince certain Members of Congress to vote for what their constituents actually want when it really counts.

There's More... :: (1 Comments, 1075 words in story)

On Fighting The Madness, Or, Send This To A Deather

by: fake consultant

Sun Sep 06, 2009 at 03:20:26 AM EDT

We are coming down to the home stretch on healthcare, and we have seen the results of the first couple of rounds of crazy that have been sent forth in an effort to stop the process.

In addition to the Town Halls, opponents are flooding the email inboxes of America’s “low information” voters with no end of lies. Those emails are getting passed around and around and around, and by now some of them have probably appeared in your inbox.

But it’s summer...and who has time to respond to this stuff?

Well, guess what, Gentle Reader: I’ve already done the hard work for you.

Today’s story is an email response that you can send right back to your “inbox friends”. It’s a reminder of some of the frustrations that we all share in this country and some explanations of what’s being proposed...and a few words about socialism, to boot.

So get out there and copy and paste and forward and reply, and let’s see if we can’t fight the madness, one email at a time.

There's More... :: (1 Comments, 2047 words in story)

On Disarmament, Or, How Congressman Larsen Made A "Town Hall" Work

by: fake consultant

Sat Aug 15, 2009 at 22:41:33 PM EDT

We’ve all been hearing the “Town Hall Meeting” stories the past few days, and the images presented have been of gatherings where you might see some current or former official “death panel” for the benefit of the crowd, where the few people who shout the loudest bully the rest into silence, and where threats of physical intimidation are part of the debate.

I attended one of these meetings, and based on what I saw I’m here to tell you that it is possible to hold an event that features none of the images previously described.

Instead, what I say was an event where people asked their questions, the Congressman answered—and from time to time the angry members of the audience got their shout on, too...but not in a way that was able to ever take control of the venue.

There were helpful lessons that can be applied by others who want to have these meetings, and today’s conversation examines what can be done to make them work for you, too.

There's More... :: (1 Comments, 1373 words in story)

My Op-Ed and More on the Dillon Plan

by: John Freeman

Mon Jul 27, 2009 at 14:31:43 PM EDT

(Again, when did we become satisfied with a future that was worse for people? - promoted by Eric B.)

Cross-posted at JohnFreeman.org

This morning, my op-ed on Andy Dillon’s health care proposal appeared in the LSJ. I’ve pasted it below. But I would like to add a few things.

There’s a reason that you see some Republicans, like Mike Cox and Mike Bishop, supporting Dillon’s plan. The plan is a retread of a proposal by Michigan Senate Republicans in 2005. The Free Press points out that Senate Democrats were vocally opposed to it. They were right to do so. The plan was bad for Michigan then, and it’s bad for Michigan now.

MichLib's Eric B. is point-on when he says this plan is “building a future based on making things worse for people.” A future constructed by winning a race to the bottom is no future at all. This is true not only of benefits for teachers, but for the economy in general. There are some who say that in order to compete for business, we’ve got to slash benefits, cut back on environmental protections, reduce wages, and scale back regulations. That’s an outdated way of thinking.

The number one thing businesses look for is a high quality-of-life -- that means world-class schools with great teachers, a 21st century infrastructure, pristine natural resources, and affordable high-quality healthcare. If we really want to transform Michigan, making sure we have a high quality of life is the way to do it. The Dillon plan will do nothing to make it happen.

Here’s my editorial from the LSJ:

There's More... :: (1 Comments, 538 words in story)

Who should primary Dingell? --Hieftje, Kolb, or Rivers? Vote

by: David Boyle

Mon Sep 10, 2007 at 02:25:58 AM EDT

I see John Dingell and his wife Debbie seem to be adamant on the early primary that violates DNC rules, and, curiously enough, would also probably help Hillary, the candidate Debbie (who is sort of close with General Motors) favors, I believe. (And a candidate, moreover, who hasn't attacked auto industry failure on global warming like Obama has.)
Well, who should give Michigan the chance of having a new congressperson, and congressperson's wife, in the 15th District?

Suggest your own, but here are three options:

1) John Hieftje, Democratic mayor of Ann Arbor;

2) Chris Kolb, former Democratic state representative from Ann Arbor (53rd District);

3) Lynn Rivers, former Democratic congresswoman, who ran against Dingell in 2002.

I know the three above are a little heavy on the western side of the district, but feel free to suggest others from Dearborn or wherever.

Michigan doesn't need a rulebreaking early primary, it needs a reformed auto industry, and a serious turnover in its Democratic (and Republican) leaders. Unless you feel that Michigan Democratic leadership really is the best possible leadership available...

Discuss :: (13 Comments)

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