I’ve never had to be admitted to the hospital. (Excuse me a sec while I search for a hunk of wood to knock on.)
I realize how remarkable that is considering my advanced age and history of treating my body more like a Shriner’s temple than the Lord’s temple..but, aside from a physical every two or three years and a few prescriptions to control blood pressure, I’m in reasonably good shape. (Hey, round is a shape.)
The point is, other than watching the cost of health care soar through the stratosphere over the years, I hadn’t quite grasped the concept that the need for radical health care reform in this country was at such a crisis stage because it didn’t appear to apply to me.
Linda and I have always had health insurance coverage through our jobs and expect to be covered by Medicare when the time comes because we’ve already paid for it.
But, while we were out for a nice drive on a beautiful sunny spring Sunday, our representatives in congress were putting in a long stormy weekend at the U.S Capitol yelling at each other, pointing fingers and twisting arms over passage of the so-called Obamacare plan that..depending on who you choose to believe.. will finally make health care available and affordable for all Americans…or be the end of life as we know it on this planet.
I’ll leave it up to the political observers to referee blog debates on this sensitive subject because I, frankly, don’t have the foggiest idea of what effect this sweeping health care reform program is going to have on the welfare of this country and its people.
I do know it’s already facing a pant-load of legal challenges.(Oh, goodie, let the lawyers get their grubby little mitts involved and snag it up in the court system for a few decades.)
It’s also possible that the bill could be repealed by Republicans who suddenly find themselves in Washington sitting in the congressional seats of Democrats whose vote on health care got them ousted by the folks back home in the mid-term elections.
I voted for Barrack Obama because, after the disappointment of George W., I was ready for the kind of changes he was talking about: an end to the economic recession, a way out of the war in Iraq and Osama bin Laden’s head on a platter. Well, most experts do agree that the economy is doing better..as is my measly stock portfolio.
We do have an exit strategy from Iraq but are dug even deeper in Afghanistan still trying to flush out terrorists and send them home to Allah while the head terrorist continues to magically elude capture or a G.I.,s M-16 bullet between his eyes.
I hadn’t figured that health care reform, while important, would be such a high priority in the Obama administration and a line in the sand defining his presidency. I would have much preferred that line be a plan for achieving a robust economy again and bringing an end to the financial hemorrhaging caused by funding a two front war against enemies who don’t play by the same rules. Solve those problems and financing health care reform would be a piece of cake.
Instead, though, health care has caused a Grand Canyon size chasm between Republicans and Democrats..so vast that I doubt we’ll see much agreement on any meaningful legislation for a long time..just more fist pounding and name calling.
That may be great subject matter for smarmy political pundits like Glenn Beck or Bill Maher..but it leaves the rest of us feeling out in the cold..shortchanged and just tired of all the yelling.