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2009
Soap Box Archives I don't think most of you folks know this but my son, known around the office as Charlie, Jr. or LCD, for "Little CD", has been editing my soapbox columns for quite a while now and if I may say so, he has done an excellent job. Due to being about a thousand times more proficient on a computer than his daddy, he does quite a bit of research for my articles and keeps me much more accurate than I'd ever be on my own. He also has a flair for writing, and like his dad he's a very opinionated person and I think some of the things he says deserve to be heard. So we are starting a new feature here on the soapbox page. From time to time we will have a piece written by my son as an extra to the main soapbox. Hope you enjoy his first attempt. Charlie Daniels Obamacare: Pathway to Socialized Medicine? A lot has been said about health care reform (or is it health insurance reform now?) Things keep changing so quickly, that it's hard to tell what is what. One day a public option is the only option, then it's a co-op, then it's a public option again that Democrats tell us will absolutely NOT lead to socialized medicine -a single-payer health care system. Of course we need to reform the U.S. health care system. We need to lower costs, but not at the expense of a system which has provided miraculous breakthroughs and innovations over the years, and not at the expense of a system that foreigners come to when their own country's government-run systems fails them, and it often does. Recently the Canadian Medical Association said that the Canadian Universal Health Care System "is imploding," "not sustainable," and that Canadians aren't getting quality health care. In fact, the president of the CMA says that private health care could be what Canada needs to fix their health care woes. What a radical idea! Wow, that's… just the opposite of what our President and most Democratic members of Congress are saying. But obviously The White House knows what they're doing better than the Canucks do… and I'm sure Obama's teleprompter will tell us so. Our neighbor to the North's government-run health care system is quickly falling apart, and their system covers Canada's population of approximately 34 million people, only about 10% of the U.S. population. If Canada's single-payer system is "imploding" trying to cover 34 million, how do you think the U.S.A. will do trying to cover over 307 million? I know there are people out there thinking "But what Obama is proposing isn't single-payer! It's just a "public option" to compete with private insurance!" That's what he's saying now. Obama recently stated, "I have not said I was a single-payer supporter because frankly we have had a employer-employer based system in this country with private insurers," but he said just the opposite in 2003 when he was speaking to AFL-CIO, "I happen to be a proponent of single-payer, universal health care plan." "'Everybody in, nobody out,' a single-payer heath care plan, universal health care plan, that's what I'd like to see…" Now the same people who where thinking I was distorting what Obama is proposing are saying, "But that was a long time ago! Obama doesn't want to get rid of private health care!" Again… that's what he's saying now in 2009, but WAAAAAAAY back in March of 2007 -a month after he announced his candidacy for President- he said, "My commitment is to make sure that we've got universal health care for all Americans by the end of my first term as President. I would hope that we can set up a system that allows those who can go through their employer to access a federal system or a state pool of some sort, but I don't think we're going to be able to eliminate employer coverage immediately. There's going to be potentially some transition process. I can envision a decade out or 15 years out or 20 years out." Obama didn't say he changed his mind. He adamantly stated that he hasn't said he supported a single-payer system, which isn't true. If you don't believe what I'm telling you, look it up, Google it, watch the videos on YouTube… see for yourself. So why would Obama lie? Why would he tell us that he just wants the public option to increase competition? There is already plenty of completion in the health care market. Could it be because, as he's told us before, he still supports single-payer and sees the public option as the best pathway to achieve it? That's what Barney Frank hopes will happen. He recently said that he was a proponent of single-payer health care. Frank said, "I think that if we get a good public option it could lead to single-payer, and that is the best way to reach single-payer." "I think the best way we're going to get single-payer, the only way, is to have a public option and demonstrate the strength of its power." This was before he questioned which planet one of his constituents spends most of her time on at a recent town hall meeting, and compared having a conversation with her to arguing with a dining room table. So, Barney Frank has laid it out there for us, and our President has flip flopped on health care so much that it would make John Kerry proud. It's not hard to see that that Obama feels as Barney Frank does, and knows that a public option is the best way to achieve total universal government-controlled single-payer health care. New York Congressman, Eric Massa, is so adamant about adopting a single-payer system that he would be willing to fly in the face of all of his constituents, and vote against their wishes, if necessary, if he thought it was in their best interest. So much for representative government. Voters in Massa's district can expect to see round the clock commercials from his opponents in the 2010 elections constantly reminding them of his statements. The White House, and Congress think they know what's best for us, even if it's not good enough for them. Very few in Congress have stood up and said that they would be willing to go into the proposed system. President Obama cites the United States Postal Service's competition with FedEx and UPS as proof that there is room for government to compete with private insurance companies, in fact he said that compared to the two delivery companies, it was "the post office that was always having problems." Thank you, President Obama. If that isn't one of the best arguments AGAINST government-run health care, I don't know what is. The post office is running at a 7 billion dollar deficit and considering cutting back on delivery days, the soon ending "cash for clunkers" program blew through 1 billion dollars in a week, and Congress rushed to approve an extra 2 billion, but many car dealerships still haven't received their reimbursements. Social Security and Medicare are heading towards bankruptcy, but somehow they want us to believe they're going to get health care right. In the words of Ronald Reagan, "Government is not the solution to our problems. Government is the problem." There are plenty of solutions to our health care problems… tort reform, health savings accounts, tax cuts are but a few, but massive government involvement is not the answer. Obamacare will destroy the quality of our health care in this country. Employer-based insurance will be unloaded by businesses trying to save money, and it will be a slippery slope to Barney Frank's vision of a single-payer system, which will require rationing of health care, turning over your health decisions to the government and all the pitfalls that go along with it. A perfect example of what is coming down the pike is the case of cancer patient, Barbra Wagner. She was a part of Oregon's state health care plan, and in 2008 her doctor prescribed a new medication to slow the growth of her lung cancer. The state's plan denied her claim for the expensive medication, BUT the plan would cover a doctor-assisted suicide. In the end, the company that produced the drug offered to give her the medication she so desperately needed for free. The Democrats are attempting to manipulate you into supporting this plan and some are flat out lying to you in hopes you're too naïve to find out the truth. Don't listen to what everything the White House is telling you is not in the bill. Read it for yourself. Most of us don't have time to read a 1,000-page bill, but there are plenty of places online that break down the most troubling sections for you. Do the research, write down the sections which have been the subject of the most scrutiny at town hall meetings, look them up for yourself, and if you feel so inclined, attend one of the many town halls on health care and politely, but firmly state your case. The Democrats may label you a domestic terrorist for being informed and stating your concerns, but the alternative is much worse. Let's make a stand, America. Charlie Daniels, Jr.
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