LIBERADIO(!)

True words on the battle (yes, it is a battle) for healthcare reform from Maria Brewer, chairperson of the Sumner County Democratic Party:

When did Americans decide that policing our city is a public good, but affordable treatment when you are sick is not; that schools are a public investment in our society’s future, but preventive medical care for you when you need it is not. Streets and stop lights and crosswalks are part of what makes our city run, and woe unto the mayor who doesn’t get the potholes filled, but as for access to simple affordable health care? Forget about it. It is as if “the government” is code for black helicopters and a “one world order” of tyranny, euros and lattes for all! No, my conspiracy-impaired friends: the government is us. And We the People, charged with the responsibility of being citizens, hold the power to protect ourselves from unwise policies, unfettered profit taking, and unhinged lies….

The truth is that scary lies are often believed because they carry an essential kernel of truth. Sarah Palin’s Death Panels are real, they already exist and they are at work right now, for anyone who already has insurance. But the real death panels are not in the government, nor will they be. They are at the insurance companies. A healthy person paying a premium is profit. A sick person needing care is loss. Rest assured that should you or any loved one be diagnosed with a deadly disease, a panel will be convened. But not of doctors and nurses and those capable of administering the fantastic healing powers of modern medicine that the US is world-famous for. No, on that panel will sit the people for whom you are nothing more than a money making machine who has stopped being profitable, looking out for their bottom line.