I like this interview between Larry O'Donnell (former advisor to Bill Clinton, former co-producer of The West Wing [as well as actor portraying the father of Jed Bartlet], and son of JFK advisor Ken O'Donnell who Kevin Costner played in Thirteen Days, a movie about the Cuban Missle Crisis) and, on the other side, Katy Abram (protester at a town hall … Read More
This Is What Passes For A Reasonable Conservative These Days
Ramesh Ponnuru at The Corner: Jonathan Cohn complains that "health-care reform" is being "swiftboated." I think the parallel holds up. A mixture of true, false, and partly-true-but-hyperbolic claims are being made against a liberal cause, and liberals are for the most part using the false criticisms to avoid dealing with the valid ones. They're also ignoring the falsehoods and bullying … Read More
Quote Of The Day
From Reddit: So let me get this straight: liberals protest war; conservatives protest health care. Ok. Just wanted to be clear.
You Want “Death Panels”? We Got Your Death Panels Right Here!
Death Panel 1: A group of bureaucrats take away a woman's fibromyalgia medication because it would be too expensive to cover, leaving her in the lurch to the possibility of horrible nerve pain. Exhibit A Death Panel 2: A miscarriage? According to the bureaucrats in charge of your health care, miscarriages can be considered 'elective abortions' and if its your body, … Read More
Sarah Palin Adds Commentary About “Death Panels” [Update: Palin Supported The Same Provisions She Now Decries As “Euthanasia”]
Just before midnight last night, Sarah Palin posted a "note" on her Facebook page, apparently in response to Obama's comments about "death panels", a phrase that Sarah herself introduced into this increasingly-insane health care debate. What's interesting about Sarah's note is that it cites legislation, contains footnotes, and makes a cogent (albeit wrong) argument. No references to the military, or … Read More
Photo Of The Day
I love this photo. It was taken at the NH protest when Obama held his town hall in Portsmouth. Click on it to embiggen. Now, obviously the guy in the middle is having fun at the expense of the others. But his sign ("We have NO idea what we're talking about", with arrows pointing to the protesters) really touches on … Read More
Hawking Responds
Stephen Hawking responds to the editorial statement that if he were a citizen of Great Britain (which he is), his life would be considered worthless by the National Health Service and he wouldn't be alive: "I wouldn't be here today if it were not for the NHS. I have received a large amount of high-quality treatment without which I would … Read More
One More Scene From A Town Hall Meeting
Obama has a town hall meeting in Portsmouth New Hampshire today, and the nuts are out in full force. Get this: MSNBC this morning caught a live shot of a man with a gun in a holster. No, he is not a law enforcement person; he's one of the protesters. And the sign he's carrying? It's got that famous Jefferson … Read More
Scenes From Yesterday’s (and Today’s) Town Hall Protests
And up in Alaska… And earlier today, at Spector's rally in Pennsylvania… And here's how Fox News' Megyn Kelly interpreted what you just saw: "And there you have it. An extraordinary showing out of Pennsylvania. As we watched for the past hour non-stop, an informed, articulate, and very concerned group of American people take their questions directly to their elected … Read More
“Death Panels” Are NOT A Myth
I stand corrected. "Death panels", the kind of thing Sarah Palin was warning us about with Obama's health care reform, actually do exist. Here's Southern Beale's response to Palin: You, dear lady, are an idiot. In your free market wonderland everyone somehow manages to get healthcare, even those who are poor or live in isolated areas, though the poor and … Read More
Health Care Punditry Of The Day
From Investor's Business Daily, we find this gem. The editorial starts out by lamenting that Obama's health care plan will transform us into what they have in Great Britain: The controlling of medical costs in countries such as Britain through rationing, and the health consequences thereof are legendary. The stories of people dying on a waiting list or being denied … Read More
White House Rolls Out Website Debunking Health Care Myths
Read it here. Here's a video from that website, addressing the "deather" issue: Nice to see a little pushback. Sadly, I don't think it will change many people's minds. Those who are opposed health care reform do it, I believe, because it is coming from Obama. So they're not likely to believe a website coming from Obama. They'll believe Glenn … Read More
Health Care Opponent Asking For Donations For His Health Care (Subtitle: Beat Me In St. Louis)
Last week, there was a nasty incident where a rightwing opponent of health care reform named Kenneth Gladney was supposedly injured by SEIU members at a town hall meeting in St. Louis. You can watch the video. Gladney was clearly pulled to the ground during the fracas. But just as clearly, he bounced back up quickly, and is seen walking around soon … Read More
Palin Makes Sense (Sort Of) In Her Follow-up Facebook Post
Hey, I can give credit where credit is due. Here's what she wrote yesterday: "There are many disturbing details in the current bill that Washington is trying to rush through Congress, but we must stick to a discussion of the issues and not get sidetracked by tactics that can be accused of leading to intimidation or harassment….. Such tactics diminish … Read More