Down the rabbit hole with Pence, Dole & Daschle on This Week

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

(the following is NOT verbatim, it's my reconstruction of the subtext of some very bizarre points made by Bob Dole, Tom Daschle and Mike Pence that just occurred on This Week )

DOLE - I say we give these bastards 5 more years to clean up their act! And then it's trigger time!
(Me - That's right - they need MORE time to kill us off and pick our pockets)

PENCE-How can anyone say that people can keep their private insurance that they like if there is a public option? Any business person worth their salt will want to put all their people on it!

(Me -So you're saying it would be a responsible decision by any smart business person to try to get out from under the crushing healthcare costs they bear currently, inhibiting job growth and making us less competitive?)

DASCHLE - You don't understand Mike. We have designed the level playing field public option that will provide absolutely no benefit over private plans! There will be no advantage for anyone who wants to join it!

(Me - So you admit it will be exactly the same crap provided in the same manner with the same costs? That you designed it specifically NOT to set competitive benchmarks for the industry although that's how it's always sold?

************************************************************************************************************************************

Maxine Walters did a great job being the lone representative for sane people. Her points:

There will be no bi-partisan plan because Republicans will not vote for anything and we might have to use reconciliation.

[underpants]

1. Did George Will make some assinine baseball reference?

or is he off this week?

[Sebastian Doyle]

4. The right wing Disney corporation probably fired him

For saying it was time to end the occupation of Afghanistan.

(actually, I didn't watch the show, so I have no idea. But would it really surprise anyone if a corporate media company DID fire someone - even a conservative - for questioning the war machine in any capacity?)

[Overseas]

2. I hate legislators talking about making things fair for insurance companies.

The insurance companies have never made things fair for us.

Furthermore, legislators kept insurance companies in power the last time-- OVER 15 YEARS AGO-- that Democrats tried to pass national health insurance. They told us to leave things up to the wisdom of the free (cash dominated) market. They could do things better.

And where are we now? In a fair, happy situation? Not at all. The private insurers have failed miserably to prove their case.

Private insurers have had their uneven playing field for decades now. They've reaped billions in profits and have millions left over to pay right wing bullies to skew the debate by whipping up dangerous fear and hatred in vulnerable populations, even convincing Medicare recipients to storm town halls against government interference in healthcare.

Private insurers never made things fair and even for us. Millions more are uninsured. Millions more are bankrupt from medical bills.

[WCGreen]

5. The thing is, the Insurance Companies are not operating under free market

pressure.

The end user, the patient, has no real power over what he wants for health care, especially those who are receiving Health Care Insurance through their employer. In that case, it is the Human Resource Department that is making the decisions for the people who are also, BTW, under pressure from the Operating Department to keep costs down.

How is that free enterprise for the end user?

How is a person able to get a choice if his company decides to switch plans all of a sudden?

The employee is supposed to go out and search for another job that offers the Health Care Benefits they want?

There is no free market solution to our problem.

[Overseas]

6. In the USA "free market" means freely dominated by cash.

If you've got the money, you're free to control the national dialogue and buy off all the politicians.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

7. Really great point.

I was with a company that switched health plans almost yearly, the employees had NO say.

It would make more sense if an individual were allowed to select the best plan for themselves and their family from an exchange which included a public option as one of the choices, and then an employer could pay their portion of the costs of whatever plan you picked to the exchange itself. The employer would contribute, it would still be a benny, but you would have control. That would be a lot better.

[watrwefitinfor]

3. It may not be ver batim, but you sure waded through all that horse shit

to give a concise and accurate version of what they spouted.

Thanks.

Wat

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

8. Fascinated by the unrec(s) since I basically was just being caustic about

2 Repubs, and a lobbyist for United Health, oh excuse me, a "resource" for United Health.

I was quite complimentary about the only one acting like a Democrat serving the public interest, and that would be Maxine Walters.

[IndianaGreen]

9. If it hadn't dawn on you by now why the unrec system sucks so much

it will never will.