Scare-Mongering

The New York Times posted an editorial in its September 27, 2009 edition titled “Medicare Scar -Mongering” (click here) that addressed the hypocrisy and rhetoric of the Republican leadership, which has thirty percent of the general public believing that the Medicare Program and it participants would be worse off under the Democrats’ plan for health care reform. It is obvious the author wanted the elderly Medicare participants to get the truth about the proposed health plan. While this group was one primary target, a message was sent to both parties. The author called the Republican leaders out for creating fear by twisting the truth and spreading false information. The editorial also challenged the Democrats to step it up and mount a strategic message inclusive of the true benefits that their proposed health care plan will have for Medicare participants. The editorial pointed out benefits like improved coverage for drugs, waved deductibles for some preventive care and expanded eligibility as examples of improvement Medicare participants could expect to see in the Democrats’ plan.

The author supported his argument of Republican deception by pointing out, “this is the same party that in the past tried to pare back Medicare and has repeatedly denounced the kind of single-payer system that is at the heart of Medicare and its popularity.” The editorialist continued to voice his frustration with the Republican Party posturing as wolves in sheep’s clothing by bringing to the reader’s attention that over the years Congress has allowed overpayment in services of enrolled Medicare participants to subsidize private plans. I agree with the position presented in this editorial and I feel the data include in the editorial, along with pointing out the vein the Republican leadership has their IV in, and makes a strong and compelling argument that they have sounded a false alarm.

Ugliness Is Not New

In Mike Lux's article “Calhoun Conservatism Raises Its Ugly Head” (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-lux/calhoun-conservatism-rais_b_283480.html) he points out that what we are seeing today in the behavior and attitudes of modern conservatives, like the outburst from Congressman Joe Wilson in nothing new. Lux rolls the clock back on politics in America and takes his readers back in time to 1780 where men like John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina, debated the state rights over the federal government.
Calhoun argued that states should have the right to come and go into and out of the Union as they pleased. Calhoun also debated states rights to nullify any laws with which they disagreed. This well known Congress man from South Carolina was violently opposed to the concept of democracy and augured that civil liberties should be at the discretion of the states and was ready to start a Civil War to defend his position.
I would recommend the class read this article. It follows and reinforces key learning objectives of the course. The article reminds us that the outburst by Joe Wilson was not the worst thing that a congressman from South Carolina has done on the floor of the Senate. This article left me wandering - are we the United, States of America?

Read the article here.