Wanted Healthcare, Got Endless War
By Mike Copass | PDA Blog Contributor
Norman Solomon, author of “War Made Easy” and “Made Love, Got War” said “Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) isn’t about hoisting a sail to the prevailing winds. PDA is about changing the way that the prevailing political winds are blowing.”
Norman Solomon, who is a key member of PDA’s “Healthcare, Not Warfare” campaign is right — and PDA is energizing the Democratic base to change the conversation, move the Democratic leadership away from open-ended war funding and towards sustainable objectives. PDA led progressive anti-war candidates to victory in 2006 and 2008 and will continue to be at the forefront of challenging the rationality of massive expenditures for weapons, surveillance, torture, and occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan.
At March 21 anti-war rally, I was approached by an Obama campaign “Organizing for America” (OFA) supporter to sign a pledge petition. OFA is harnessing grassroots Obama campaign energy to support the President’s new Budget — OFA focuses on supporting Obama’s budget priorities of Renewable Energy, affordable Healthcare, and Education. These are great ideas, new budgetary priorities and I couldn’t be more supportive. I want to see this President succeed in these objectives, and really bring Change, as he promised during his campaign. Let’s make that happen!
But I couldn’t help but feel a bit conflicted, as I reviewed Mitch Stewart’s call to support the President’s Budget. In that same President Obama Budget are padded countless billions of taxpayer dollars for permanent military bases in Iraq and Afghanistan, CIA “black sites” and rendition programs, contracts for corporations like Titan Corp (now L-3) the torture ‘outsourcers’ at Abu Graib and Bagram, for armaments like Boeing’s Future Combat Systems, depleted uranium projectiles, white phosphorus, Raytheon Paveway bombs, and even Homeland Security’s military-grade surveillance technology which is to used on the United States and its citizens (also supported by major Defense contractors, like Lockheed, Northrop-Grumman and SAIC, whose profits are up 21%).
All that in Obama’s Budget.
I support the Organizing for America project’s efforts to build support for healthcare, education, and renewable energy in the Congressional fight ahead — but hope that OFA takes a strong public stand on the trillions of dollars (estimated by Nobel-prize winning economists) which the ongoing wars, weapons, and occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq will cost, and how those spiraling expenses and debt incurred may foreclose any hopes of progressive initiatives.
So let’s really think about what we are supporting, if we uncritically pledge support to Obama’s budget. Imagine going door to door asking for public support for a budget which promises massive funding for:
- Constructing and maintaining 1000 U.S. military bases in foreign lands, built & wired by KBR, Bechtel, Halliburton
- Ongoing occupations of Iraq & Afghanistan, where between 3 and 6.6 million excess deaths are estimated post-invasion (nearing Holocaust numbers)
- Continuing unspeakable suffering visited on both US troops and to human beings around the planet
- illegal military operations and bombing in Pakistan
Would you pledge your support to that budget — even if it contained critical new education, healthcare & green-tech initiatives? How might you respond? How can we get this Democratic President, Democratic House, and Democratic Senate to confront and reverse the horrors of occupation, and to stop Wars Made Easy? If we truly want workable Healthcare, we may have to take a stand against endless Warfare.
Let’s be clear — we want to see the Democratic-majority government succeed in its laudable efforts. But let us not lulled into thinking that “support” translates into silence about war — for as Dr. Martin Luther King said, regarding a different conflict, “there comes a time when silence is betrayal.”
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For the next Metro San Diego Chapter PDA meeting on Thursday, April 16th, I am organizing two speakers to present two viewpoints about the Obama War Budget, one viewpoint in SUPPORT, and one CRITICAL.
After hearing the viewpoints, we will split into small working groups to draft resolutions either in support of, or challenging, the war and DoD expenditures of the public purse.
Contact me if you would to present the viewpoint in support, or against, President Barack Obama’s war budget and off-balance sheet expenditures related to the Iraq and Afghanistan occupations at california53@gmail.com. Time permitting, we may also draft a resolution regarding the President’s recently-announced planned expansion of the Afghanistan occupation and strikes on Pakistan.
I hope PDA chapters around California and the nation organizing similar actions and resolutions, in preparation for the State Democratic Convention and budget discussion in Congress.
Please contact me to find out more about participating.
Mike Copass
Progressive Democrats of America Metro San Diego
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I hope and pray the Progressives will not give up on singlepayer health care. What Obama is presenting is a regurgitate Mitt Romney Mass. plan which is bankrupting Massachusetts. We must stand firm with our doctors, nurses and health care professionals and demand single payer be presented fairly with the numbers of how many trillions we will save in this country. My friend was just diagnosed with cancer. She had it before but without health care for two years it has come back. Now she cannot even get a medicaid card and too young for medicare. There are hundreds of thousands out here who desperately need health care, but the Obama team (backed by the insurnance companies) who had to admit in the NYTimes last week, “they had been charging 3times more to poor”….these insurance company robber barons see the writing on the wall. We can win this if we stick together. Delaware has its own bill which is being introduced this week. The action is in the states. to get a copy go to: deformedvoters.org….just change the bill to suit your state. The homework is all done, and peerreviewed by the PNHP.org.
Use the inverted pyramid when writing blogs, it's journalism, not an essay. Don't waste time, begin with the most important info. – Paragraph 4, Sentence 2.
If we don't police ourselves, then the our weaknesses will be attacked by our opponents, and we will be defeated. A perfect government, like a perfect person, is not a powerful government, but one with no weakness.
Finally, the time has arrived to fix Americas Healthcare crisis, and Americas healthcare nightmare. Hundreds of thousands of you are killed needlessly every year by your healthcare delivery system in a rush to profit. And because of a rush to profit Hundreds of thousands more of you are needlessly dying from treatable illness that people in other developed and civilized countries don't DIE! from. Rich, middle class, and poor alike. Insured, and uninsured. Men, women, children, and babies.
Additionally, thousands more of you are driven into financial ruin, and bankruptcy just because you, or one of your loved ones got sick or injured. And all of this is happening at a time when America spends twice as much of it's GDP (Gross Domestic Productivity) on health care than any other country in the developed world. Individual Americans spend about ten times as much on health care as any other people in the developed world. This is a CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY. AND IT MUST END!
But before we can truly fix this healthcare crisis and disgrace, everyone needs to clearly understand what the problem is. And everyone needs to clearly understand the real enormity of the problem. The problem is that HEALTHCARE AND MEDICAL DELIVERY IN AMERICA IS SEVERELY CORRUPTED AND COMPROMISED BY GREED! AND THE PRIVATE FOR PROFIT MOTIVE. And it is corrupted, and compromised IN EVERY ASPECT, AND EVERY PLACE OF HEALTHCARE AND MEDICAL DELIVERY. Unfortunately for all Americans, compromised healthcare ALWAYS results in needless suffering, injury, disability, and or death. Which is exactly what is happening now in America in shocking numbers.
Health care is NOT! a private for profit business. Healthcare is an essential public service. Like police, and fire. And healthcare is also a human right! PRIVATE FOR PROFIT HEALTHCARE IS AN OXYMORON, AND AN IMMORAL AND UNETHICAL PERVERSION OF HEALTHCARE AND HUMAN RIGHTS.
So how do we fix this healthcare disgrace? I believe the fix for Americas healthcare disaster is essentially the same thing that every other developed country in the World has essentially done. “NOT FOR PROFIT, TAX PAYER SUPPORTED, SINGLE PAYER, AUTOMATIC, FREE UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE FOR ALL”. Essentially HR676 (enhanced, and improved medicare for all). Just like every other CIVILIZED! country in the developed World has. There is no other way to truly fix and reform our current disastrous healthcare delivery system.
All Universal health care systems work best when everyone participates. But I know that the healthcare lobby, and some politicians will try and undermine “Not For Profit, Tax payer supported, Single payer, Automatic, Free Universal Healthcare for all” by falsely claiming that it will limit your choice, and require you to participate.
So, I propose that everyone be included in the national plan unless they choose to opt out. If you opt out and need medical care the national plan will insure your provider that they will be reimbursed under the rules for members in the national plan. But those who opted out, and their insurer will be responsible for the FULL! cost to the national plan for providing your care if you or your private insurer fails to reimburse the provider or the national plan in a timely manor to at least the standards of the national plan.
Including reporting you to credit agencies, withholding of taxes, leans, and garnishment of wages for unpaid medical bills. Just like you have now under private for profit healthcare, and private for profit health insurance.
Further, people who opted out will be required to provide proof of financial responsibility for future illness or be required to participate in the national plan. And everyone with children will be required to participate in the national plan. Or provide proof of insurance coverage on each child to the standards of the national plan. It will be against the law to report anyone in the national plan to a credit agency for unpaid medical bills.
Frankly, only a dope would want to opt out of the national plan and opt to keep our current disastrous private for profit medical, and insurance plans. But they will be free to choose. The most important thing is that the vast majority of Americans that want the protection, benefits, and higher quality of a universal national plan have that choice.
You see, one of the most important aspects of a universal healthcare system is easy access, and patient protection. This is accomplished by having a single payer without a conflict of interest in patient care. And by having a payer who has the power to enforce minimum standards of excellence in healthcare delivery for everyone in the plan. This is much of what Medicare does now for senors. “Aeger Primo” (The patient comes first). Unfortunately in our healthcare system the patient comes last. We are just a peace of meat to them. Cash cows to be slaughtered for profit.
So this is IT! my fellow Americans, My fellow human beings, My fellow World Citizens. And my fellow Cyber Warriors.
The time has come. D day. H hour. HEALTHCARE REFORM THIS YEAR! Let no one stand in our way. Contact your representative and tell them you want “Not For Profit, Tax Payer Supported, Single Payer, Automatic, Free Universal healthcare for all. And tell them you want that choice now. Tell them you want President Obama's budget passed without delay. President Obama's budget is brilliant. And exactly what is needed now.
President Obama, and his allies will need all the support you can give them. The healthcare lobby will try to take out his people if they can, like they did with Tom Daschle and Nancy Killefer. And they will try to neutralize President Obama's popularity, and political power. Or they will try to take him down someway. Don't stand for it. If they attack him. Go after them ten times harder and remove them from office. We had an election. And you the people chose President Obama's leadership, and change agenda. Let no one in government disrespect the will of the American people and remain in office.
SPREAD THE WORD! And talk it up with your families, friends, and coworkers. Keep ratcheting up the pressure until there is a ROAR! across America for “NOT FOR PROFIT, TAX PAYER SUPPORTED, SINGLE PAYER, AUTOMATIC, FREE UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE FOR ALL”.
Let's get this healthcare reform done now my fellow Americans. This year. Take no prisoners.
God Bless All Of You
Jack Smith — Working Class
http://jacksmithworkingclass.blogspot.com/
(http://jacksmithworkingclass.blogspot.com/)
President Obama Lied about Haeth Care and War …there is No End in Sight to either Health Care or War …Only thing that Changed in Washington was DICTATOR with More LIES !!!!And lots more to come …watch and see …KUCINICH 2012*******
PS They already ahev a POLL out “Do you Regret Voting Obama ?” YES I DO !!!!
Hey PDA you have that ROLLING POLL ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE >>>ONE MILLION STRONG FOR The EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE ACT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!WHERE IN THE HECK IS OUR ROLLING HEALTH CARE NOW ?????HR676 LIVE ROLLING POLL JUST LIKE THAT ONE ??????
Well done, Mike. This is a time when issues need to be clarified and action taken. We need more than the appearance of reform. We need a substantive change of direction that is supported by a budget, which places health care above warfare.