THE HEALTH CARE CARNIVAL OF DESPAIR:

• First, House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) and the Republicans DEMANDED that the current Democrats’ health care bill be posted online for 72 hours prior to the vote.  Boehner quickly, and sheepishly, backed down when asked if the GOP would do likewise with their bill.  The problem: they had no bill.  They’d been claiming for over six months that they had their own plan…but had produced nothing.  Zip.  Bubkus.  Even conservative economists start voicing their concerns: without a GOP alternative bill…they look REALLY bad, especially going into the 2010 and 2012 elections.  On CNN, Boehner gets even more defensive…when cornered, the best he can offer is that they have “eight or nine ideas about how to make our current health care system better.“
• Then…a miracle:  the GOP announces it will be releasing its own health care reform bill.  Now, remember the stimulus debate?  Remember how the Democrats had a plan and the Republicans didn’t?  Remember how the Republicans then made themselves look even WORSE, by claiming they had a plan…and it turned out to be just a flimsy political statement with no numbers, no data, no specifics?  Well…they surely wouldn’t make that mistake again…oh wait, I guess they did.  Their “triumphant” alternative to the Democrats’ health care bill?  It doesn’t force insurance companies to insure people with pre-existing conditions (something the GOP has claimed to support), it wouldn’t provide insurance to a SINGLE one of the FORTY MILLION uninsured people in this country, and…wait for it…it costs MORE than the Democrats’ plan.  Wow…less benefit…more cost…way to show us all that you’ve really embraced the whole “fiscal conservatism and responsibility” thing.
• Now, if you’re like me, you might well ask: With the soaring price of health care, the number of uninsured, and the number of people dying because they are uninsured…why would the GOP put out a plan that fails to address ANY of these problems?  The answer: They don’t admit to the problems…or they simply don’t care.  Representative Steve King (R-IA) was asked how many people in his district were uninsured and could only mutter, “My district…The people in my district are calling for freedom.“  House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) said that the recent, full endorsement of the Democrats’ plan by the AARP and the AMA doesn’t mean anything to him or the other Republicans.  That’s right: The largest groups representing seniors and doctors, groups that almost always lean heavily conservative and have usually opposed health reform in the past…they back the bill, and it’s meaningless to Cantor and the GOP.  Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) showed he didn’t care AT ALL when he said earlier this week that he doesn’t see what the problem is…because “everyone can show up at the hospital.“  Jim…those emergency room visits by the uninsured are one of the number one financial drains on the system, and if you were paying ANY attention, you’d know that:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZIr6w1_AVU

THE POLITICIZATION OF…WELL…EVERYTHING:

• Have you noticed? It seems that the GOP/RNC/FOX are willing to politicize anything?  Shamelessly…and in a way that, if the Democrats did so, they would certainly be positively livid?  A few very current examples follow…
• Yesterday, something truly awful happened.  At Fort Hood, Texas, a soldier went on a shooting spree. When the dust settled, thirteen people lost their lives…thirty-one people were wounded…many more would be emotionally scarred…and conservatives, well, they saw the usual opportunity to make political hay from the tragedy.  It started with cries of “terrorism,” even from some GOP members. Then when they found out the shooter was a soldier, a Muslim soldier, their cries changed to “domestic terrorism!“  World Net Daily‘s Jerome Corsi, renowned for creating conspiracy theories out of thin air with no regard for reality, quickly claimed that the shooter, Nidal Malik Hasan, had ADVISED Barack Obama.  Turns out that Hasan only attended a seminar as an audience member, that was held by a task force that advises Obama…but that’s close enough for Corsi.  Fox & Friends explored the idea of whether or not there should be “special screenings” for Muslims that serve in the military, and Gretchen Carlson floated the idea that if not for “political correctness” towards Muslims, Hasan might have been stopped.  This should sound familiar…conservatives often use “anti-political correctness” arguments to justify racial profiling and other discriminatory tactics used against “non-white, non-Christian” Americans.  Today, I already spotted conservative friends parroting this talking point on Facebook…condemning the supposed “pc mentality” that they hold truly responsible for the killings.  It was Geraldo Rivera that stepped in to point out that it was more likely “government bureaucracy” and not “political correctness.”  Comment: you know your talk show is more than a little flaky…when GERALDO RIVERA is serving as the “voice of reason.“  Interesting side note: the military also appears to have trouble keeping biker and street gang members out…not because of “pc” OR “bureaucracy“…but because they are so desperate for new recruits.
• Want to know what happens when you’re enough of a jackass to politicize rape?  Senator David Vitter (R-LA) was one of the GOP senators to vote against Senator Al Franken’s recent bill, that would force government contractors to allow their employees to report rape or harassment.  Here’s what happened when Vitter runs into a victim of rape:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6YZ1wP1978

• How do you politicize the stimulus package?  Well first…you call it “socialism” and say you’ll refuse to accept it in your state.  Then, of course, you accept it.  Then you travel amongst your constituents, taking credit for all the jobs and programs that it creates/saves.  Then…you pronounce the plan a “failure” and apply third-grade level math to the numbers to “prove” your point.  For example, the latest GOP “numbers“…subtract some of the benefits created by the stimulus from the total cost of the bill…and they claim the amount left over is the “shortfall.”  The problem with this, besides the obvious over-simplification…the cost of plan is divided over ten years, but they are only subtracting ONE year’s worth of benefits.  As one writer put it, “it’s as if the 10-year cost of George W. Bush’s big tax cuts were compared with the benefits to the economy that only accrued during the first year.“
• Swine Flu?  Ready for “politicization,” if you ask the Republicans.  Representative Joe “You Lie” Wilson (R-SC) recently attempted to blame the shortage of H1N1 vaccines on President Obama (all experts cite supply problems).  Perhaps Joe forgot: He voted against vaccine funding.  Why is he so upset now…when he obviously didn’t think it was too important back when they were voting for the funding?  Oh yeah…his wife has Swine Flu. It’s the two things you guys NEVER seem to understand, Joe:  First, it is always better to spend some money up front to PREVENT something from happening…than it is to pay a lot of money and tears AFTER it has already happened.  Second, that thing you don’t want to help “the other guy” with, because it’ll never happen to you?  Yes, it can happen to you.
• Remember the census worker who was found hanged?  The conservative officials of that county, rather than admit that the violent, anti-census rhetoric of some GOP legislators and FOX News may have claimed an actual victim…are still treating the case as if it might be a suicide.  That’s right, instead of admitting that some goofball got swept up in the anti-government incitement of Representative Michele Bachmann (R-MN) and Glenn Beck…they’re saying that this poor guy probably stripped naked, carved “FED” on his own chest, duct-taped his hands, and hanged himself in a public area.
• She was the GOP’s darling.  When Carrie PreJean lost the Miss America pageant, after answering that she did not support gay marriage, conservatives shouted “political correctness at work!“  They invited her to speak at conservative fundraisers, Republican events, and other gatherings…and she would regale them with tears and nonsensical statements about her First Amendment rights being violated (ummm…Carrie…the government never stopped you from saying ANYTHING).  But now…it’s amazing how one little SEX TAPE, and you’re just not the spokesperson they were looking for anymore.  It’s so hard to maintain the appearance of holding the high ground…well, especially with all the affairs…oh, and the hooker scandals…oh, yeah, and don’t forget the little boys, and the airport bathrooms….oh, heh, and getting caught in the cemetery with a hooker AND sex toys.
• I’ll keep this brief: Want to know how best to politicize health care reform?  Ask Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT).  He tried to put an amendment into the health care legislation, that would force insurance to treat medical treatment and “Christian Science prayer treatments“…EQUALLY.  Some have said that this would violate the “Separation of Church and State.“  Duh.

THE RECENT ELECTION…EVERYBODY WANTS TO TELL YOU WHAT IT MEANT:

• Did you even know there were elections this week?  If you did, it was because the media certainly wanted you to get into all the “drama” they generated about them.  I’ll provide the short version: Two governors races…one with a wildly unpopular Democrat who is rich, tied to Wall Street, and who failed to make good on promises of tax cuts.  The other governor race…Virginia: Enough said.  There were also two state legislative races, one in a New York district that has voted Republican for more than one hundred years, and the other race in California.  Now if you listened to conservative/liberal/moderate media…these races would tell EXACTLY how American feels about President Obama, Republicans, and Democrats.  Well…not really.  Read on.
• THE RESULTS:  The Republican candidate beat the unpopular/rich/Goldman Sachs Democrat for the New Jersey governorship.  The Republican beat the Democrat for the governorship of Virginia, for obvious reasons involving, well, Virginia.  The Democratic candidate won the California legislative seat, and the Democratic candidate won the seat in the highly conservative New York district.   Oh yeah…and Mayor Michael Bloomberg managed to buy back his office as mayor…but few people cared.  In truth, only one of these races, the New York legislative race, even involves ANYTHING worth talking about.  So what did the “liberal” media report:  headlines everywhere reported a “Republican Sweep,” and proclaimed this a sign of the “disillusionment of voters” with the president.  Stop…roll back the tape…what was that? Is the media so desperate to create sensationalism and conflict…that they would proclaim the GOP “reborn, revitalized, and ready to rumble,” based on THESE election results?  Jon Stewart of The Daily Show tackled the issue of the media’s coverage:

• As I said, the New York legislative race was the one that was at all “revealing.”  The short and sweet: GOP offers up a candidate, endorsed by House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH), and the Democrats do likewise (but the Democrats know they have NO change of winning the seat).  Sarah Palin, and the “wing-nut brigade,” throw their support behind an “Conservative Party” goofball who adores Glenn Beck (even calls him a “mentor”), and who doesn’t even live in the district.  Rush Limbaugh accuses the GOP candidate of committing “widespread bestiality.“  Boehner and other Republicans hedge on whether they now support THEIR candidate, or the conservative goofball.  The Republican candidate…she gets disgusted by her own party, and throws her support behind the Democratic candidate…who then wins the election.  Some say the current attempts by conservative purists to oust ANY Republican candidates who are at all moderate, or even simply reasonable…is a mistake.  At least, looking at these results…they appear to be correct.
• If there is one thing Republicans SHOULD know by now…it’s that they can’t look to RNC chairman Michael Steele for sound guidance.  After the elections, Steele first proclaimed that there are NO ideological divisions within the Republican Party (which we clearly know now to be false)…THEN, Steele calls the results of the elections evidence that the GOP is now “transcendent“…THEN Steele admits that all the intra-party fighting (which he said did exist) was “stupid” and that it was causing them to “screw” themselves.  Steele would find out what it is like to be truly screwed, when he was interviewed on Morning Joe alongside Lawrence O’Donnell…who congratulated him on leading his “party to a disastrous loss:“

www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcYuJX-hzQo

Hopefully we’ll be back to more regular, consistent posting next week.  Have a great weekend.

1) An anti-Obama email, or satirical column (a column poking fun at the people who love to attack Obama, using an obviously exaggerated bogus claim) appears.

2) A well-known (but often dubious) right-wing blog reports the claim from the email or satire as if it were fact.

3) Conservative radio personalities, columnists, and bloggers go absolutely hyperactive in spreading the false story.

4) Mainstream media outlets (usually FOX News) repeat the false claim.

5) Millions of people hear the claim and spread it through their own emails/social networking.

6) The retractions…apologies…never come…or come too late to have any hope of undoing the damage done.

The current example (thank you, J, for bringing this to my attention): A humor blog ran a piece, purporting to have obtained a copy of Obama’s Columbia thesis.  In the piece, the author claims that a Time Magazine reporter unearthed the document, and that it contained considerable criticism of the Founding Fathers, and the Constitution.  A blogger at Pajamas Media, Michael Ledeen, who is also a contributing editor for the National Review Online…took the bait, unable to resist so-called “proof” that the president held contempt for the Constitution and its authors.  Soon, the item was also carried on American Thinker, and comments began to appear on Twitter.  It would not be long before Rush Limbaugh picked up the story, and ranted about it on his radio show…and as millions of people were misinformed, the number of Americans exposed to this lie growing every hour, it was perhaps inevitable that it would eventually appear on the FOX Nation website.  Then NPR.  Then US News.  Then CS Monitor.  Even after the story was proven false, and meager apologies had been offered…Lou Dobbs of CNN STILL decided to run with the story.

All because some who think they deserve to be viewed as journalists…didn’t bother to verify that a story was true before reporting it.

Of course…if we wait for retractions from the right-wing, we’d better not hold our breath.  Rush went so far as to admit that the story wasn’t true, but then hedged that he’s sure that what he reported falsely…is what Obama is actually thinking.  Michael Ledeen, who in many ways bears the brunt of the responsibility for this situation…shied away from a sincere apology, saying essentially that this is all Obama’s fault for not not making his actual thesis available for scrutiny.

Why is this so important?

As I’ve mentioned before, Mark Twain once said, “a lie can travel halfway around the world, while the truth is putting on its shoes.“  And remember…Twain said this well before the advent of cable new networks, email, and the internet.  Now, irresponsibility on the part of the media has far more serious implications.  If a lie is told…so many more will hear it.  This raises the importance of three things: First, the members of the press and the media need to be EXTRA certain that what they are reporting is the truth.  Second, the members of the media and the press, if they do report a story that is not true, must inform the public QUICKLY and THOROUGHLY….REPEATEDLY, if necessary.  Third, there MUST be a form of accountability for those who do not adhere to the first two items I have mentioned.

Do you see the problem now? The third item, the accountability…does not exist.  And because it does not exist, the first two…are not consistently adhered to.  A lot of attention has been paid to the White House’s recent criticism of FOX News.  Many have spoken/written in support of the criticism.  FOX News, and its conservative allies, have attempted to push back, citing that they still hold themselves to be “fair and balanced.”  Even Representative Eric Cantor (R-VA) has stepped forward, calling for the President to apologize to FOX News for questioning its credibility.

Really? Take a quick look at the sheer volume of incidents reported on Media Matters, incidents where FOX was grossly incorrect, unforgivably partisan, and hopelessly biased.  Don’t like that site? Try a search of all the “FOX News-related” items on Politifact.  Go ahead…take a quick look around the internet, at all the sites that do little more than report on the inconsistencies in FOX’s reporting.  Now try to find some similar results for CNN…or ABC…or CBS…or NBC…or MSNBC…you will find nothing comparable in terms of volume or severity.

So…good for the White House…glad they said something…but you know what?  It’s not enough.  We should be doing more than simply criticizing outlets like FOX.  If I say something false and damaging about another person, depending on the circumstances I may be open to charges of libel, slander, or defamation of character.  If that’s the case, then why can an organization go on television, radio, or the internet…and say something damaging, and heard/read by millions…and there are no consequences.  Thomas Jefferson once wrote, “whenever the people are well-informed, they can be trusted with their own government; that, whenever things get so far wrong as to attract their notice, they may be relied on to set them to rights.“  If we accept this as true, shouldn’t there be some penalty for making the people “poorly-informed?“  The FCC fines a broadcaster if they say certain “four-letter words” on the air…but they can speak the most spurious and damaging lies, without retraction, and not be fined a single penny.  And until this changes, organizations like FOX can continue claim to be “news,” and “balanced,” and “fair“…when nothing could be further from the truth.

THE HEALTH CARE REFORM CARNIVAL OF DESPAIR:

• It’s no big surprise that the proposed cuts to Medicare have raised a few eyebrows.  Proponents state that the cuts involve only the elimination of waste, and will not affect the benefits and services provided.  Opponents suggest that this is merely a dishonest feint…and once the cuts are passed, Medicare/Medicaid recipients will suffer the cost of reduced benefits.  While the issue is certainly debatable…the one thing that insurance companies should probably do, is to STAY OUT OF IT.  An investigation has been launched into insurance giant, Humana (known for some controversial behavior in the past)…and the letters that Humana sent to Medicare Advantage policy holders, asking them to contact their representatives and express their disapproval of the cuts.  The letter claim, “millions of seniors and disabled individuals could lose many of the important benefits and services that make Medicare Advantage health plans so valuable.“  While the claim itself is certainly dubious…it also appears to be in clear violation of the laws that restrict the ways that Humana is allowed to communicate with policy holders.  Charges are pending…and may result in serious fines for Humana.
• Speaking of “scare tactic” mailings, a letter sent out by the Senate Republicans (using the vague sounding “U.S. Senate Health Care Task Force” as a “pseudonym”) strays even further into the realm of inaccuracy and impropriety.  The letter claims…that the new system will discriminate against citizens an deny treatment based on the basis of race and age: “Are you concerned that health care rationing could lead to: 23. Denial of treatment in cases where the patient’s prospects are deemed not good?  24. A “lottery” system of determining who will get priority treatment?  25. A “quota” system which would determine who would determine who would get treatment on the basis of race or age?“  It gets worse…the letter also implies that the government will be able to “• Pick who is “eligible” for certain medical procedures? • Pick your doctor for you? • Restrict certain medical procedures on the basis of age? • Put strict price controls on medicine and drugs? • Penalize you for choosing to see a private doctor • Seriously undermine private health care insurers who currently serve tens of millions of Americans?“  So much for debating the bills on their actual merits…
• The Republicans?  Besides adding hundreds of amendments to the “Baucus Bill,” ranging from the counterproductive to the deranged…they have proposed no alternative solutions to the Democrats’ plan(s).  At a recent town hall meeting, Representative Eric Cantor (R-VA) listened to a woman named Patricia Churchill describe a family member who has tumors in her stomach, needs immediate surgery, and has no insurance.  Cantor’s response…was that she should look for an “existing government program“…or charity.  Nice.
• The same Eric Cantor took part in a bipartisan forum on health care with Representative Robert Scott (D-VA), and faced repeated questioning about about how the GOP would plan to reform health care reform in our country, if not through a public option or the Democrats’ other proposals.  The answer: well, the GOP doesn’t really have a “detailed plan“…but Cantor suggested that the Republicans and Democrats should work together where they agree.  Not really changing the image of the “party of NO,” are we, Eric?
• Of course, it’s easiest for the GOP to realize that people aren’t buying the lies and scare tactics anymore…when they are openly laughed at during town halls:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsX2HMSvZkY

• It’s hard to defend the insurance companies, especially when new articles are being run everyday, exposing their varied and  nefarious practices.  Like this one…which details how these companies deny policies to people with “pre-existing conditions.“  Of course, for the insurance companies, “pre-existing conditions” includes acne, hemorrhoids, pregnancy, or being a firefighter or policeman.  Despite all this…the GOP is rushing to the defense of the industry, claiming that Obama and the Democrats are attempting to “muzzle” the insurance giants…because some Democrats (most notably and surprisingly, Senator Max Baucus) have criticized Humana (see item above) for using TAXPAYER-SUBSIDIZED mailings to SCARE SENIORS into opposing reform efforts.  Republicans are claiming that the criticism of Humana is simply part of an effort to keep information from seniors…no, guys…it’s an effort to keep taxpayer money from being spent by an insurance company to send out self-serving MISINFORMATION to seniors.
• File Under D for Duh: Of course, it can’t really be mentioned enough…but the overwhelming majority of people want health care reform and support the public option.  So for the GOP…there are obvious political consequences for running a campaign of opposition, misinformation, and defense of a corrupt industry.  Here’s how the numbers are looking.
• Of course, who but Will Ferrell could such a wonderful job of pointing out exactly how INANE it is to defend unethical behavior on the part of insurance giants:

CLIMATE CHANGE REFORM…THE WATER’S RISING:

• CBS and Politico made a mistake.  They cited a $1761 per household tax that would be associated with a new Climate Bill…the only problem was:  there was no such bill before Congress.  Immediately, the Treasury Department, the Congressional Budget Office, and other groups pointed out this error and both publications retracted the item.  Which of course…prompted Republicans to start citing the number to scare people away from supporting Climate Reform, and near-instantaneously, the right-wing media started using the bogus estimate as well.  Brad Johnson of ThinkProgress, outlined this “disinformation process” as follows:

“STEP ONE: “News” generated by right-wing think tank.

STEP TWO: Right-wing print journalists write “breaking news” story.

STEP THREE: Promoted by Drudge, story repeated endlessly on right-wing blogs, Twitter, and talk radio.

STEP FOUR: Republican politicians, right-wing think tanks, and polluter front groups release statements of shock and outrage.

STEP FIVE: On Fox News, Glenn Beck calls President Obama a liar/socialist/Marxist/communist/fascist/racist.“

FINANCIAL REFORM -- PUTTING A LEASH ON THE BULL:

• Let me get this straight: we are currently in a recession…because companies that were “too big to fail“…did.  And they failed because companies in the arenas of banking, lending, investing, and real estate engaged in wildly speculative (sometimes illegal) behavior and created financial instruments of dubious worth, and proceeded to trade these instruments as if they were Topps baseball cards.  The reason they were able to do this…is because the safeguards and regulations put in place over the years have been gradually whittled away by both Democrats and Republicans attempting to appease their corporate overlords.  So the solution is to put safeguards and regulations back in place, right?  Well of course…predictably, Republicans call this “government interference in the free market.“  What may surprise you…is that some Democrats don’t support the current Financial Reform plan, either.
• Arianna Huffington proposes a unique solution:  the representatives making the critical decisions regarding financial reform…should watch Michael Moore’s new movie.  She argues that one can’t watch the film, seeing the REAL injustices performed by profiteers run amok…seeing the REAL faces of the people who’ve had their lives affected by unfettered greed and amoral business practices…seeing some of the REAL and truly ridiculous steps taken to address the problem…without walking away and saying: “we have to do something REAL about this.“

NATIONAL SECURITY -- GHOSTS OF THE PAST:

• I have criticized the Obama administration for over-utilizing the “state secrets” defense in much the same way as their predecessors.  Well…Obama is doing something about that.  Starting October 1st, new restrictions will go into place, which clearly define when the “state secrets” defense may be used by the government to withhold information from courts of law.  The restrictions are much stricter than in the past…and certainly represent a step towards the increased “transparency” that Obama promised.
• One Step Forward, One Step Back: How come every time I am able to report that Obama is overruling/removing a Bush-era policy…I find out that he is also retaining another?  While claiming that the law should be rewritten to require more in the way of warrants…Obama is pushing Congress to extend the “surveillance” provisions of the Patriot Act, perhaps the most misnamed act in American History, given its circumvention of Constitutional protections, most particularly in the realm of the Rule of Law.  We’ll see: if this allowance is given with strict new subpoena and warrant restrictions…it may bring the idea back into the good graces of some civil libertarians.

GAY RIGHTS -- ARE THEY EVER GOING TO GET ANY?

• Back when Iowa legalized same-sex marriage, I told a few more-than-a-little-surprised friends how I thought it happened.  Iowans may be conservative….but in my experience (I have lots of family there), they are the ultimate pragmatists…they only care about what they KNOW is important (which is mostly determined by what actually affects their lives), and aren’t easily distracted by “sensationalized issues” and “hot-button debates.”  This notion was only reinforced by a recent poll, which shows that on the subject of gay marriage…92% of the people in Iowa say it “doesn’t really affect their lives,” and…that is why most of them don’t oppose gay marriage’s legalization.  If only more people would exercise this kind of “practical rationality.”

CZARS AND ACORN -- CONSPIRACY TIME-WASTERS OF THE MONTH:

• We’ve talked some about the baseless “czar conspiracy,” based on Obama’s use of well-established advisory positions, held by people with little or no policy-making power and authority.  Well…just to show HOW ridiculous the conspiracy theorists really are, an advisor who served under Reagan and Bush Sr. points out that these positions are ENTIRELY legitimate…the Constitution EXPLICITLY permits the President to fill these posts…and this practice is FAR from new.
• In reaction to the recent scandal involving ACORN, the community agency that serves to sign up voters amongst underrepresented and often impoverished constituencies, Obama has declared his support for an investigation…Governor Jindal of Louisiana and Governor Pawlenty have called for all state funding to the agency to be cut (despite the fact that neither state PROVIDES any funding to ACORN)…and a bipartisan bill has been drafted to prevent companies that have been “charged with breaking federal or state election laws, lobbying disclosure laws, campaign finance laws or filing fraudulent paperwork with any federal or state agency” from receiving government funding.  Only one little problem:  the bill as currently worded…would prevent almost all of the military/defense industry from being funded, also.  Ooops…

AFGHANISTAN…WHAT ARE WE TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH?

• The Pentagon:  We need more troops or we’ll lose this thing.  The White House:  When can we stop sending troops?  The Pentagon:  As soon as we’ve got the Afghan army and police up to snuff.  The White House:  How long will that take?  If you read Ann Jones’ firsthand account of the state of the Afghan security forces…the answer is clearly “forever.”

That’s it…all caught up from last week.  We’ll be back to our “regular format” starting tomorrow…