Fierce Moral Urgency

So, yet again yesterday, our President decided to hold a mini sales pitch, er... press conference, to sell his Health Care Reform. This comes after ABC's fawning 2 hour coverage, and after earlier this week all 3 major networks gave him the time to talk about it. I guess it's a good thing it's summer, and most programs on TV are re-runs. At least he won't be pissing off the average American Idol fan by pre-empting their show. (Yes, remember all those "stimulus" news conferences?)

Let's face it, the President is a darn good salesman. He sold the American Public his campaign, and they bought it. And not long after he won the election, he sold his Stimulus Plan, and manage to drum up enough support in the polls that Congress passed it. It also appears to have worked for Cap and Trade, but then, most people didn't support that. Congress voted for it anyway.

So with 60% of Americans not feeling an urgency to increase the deficit with another government run social program, President Obama is taking to the television airwaves and pitching this program too. With a fierce moral urgency.

Is this the same fierce moral urgency that led to a 787 billion dollar stimulus plan that was going to keep unemployment at 8% or lower? We keep hearing we have to do something now or it's going to get worse. But when we did do something "now" without having even read the full extent of what we were doing, things got much worse than they would have if we had left it alone. Once again, a bill is being rushed through Congress (like Stimulus I and II and Cap and Trade), no one will really get a chance to read it or understand everything that is in it, and we are doing it because it has to be done NOW.

You'll have to excuse me while I shake my head in disbelief.

I think most people forget that the Government isn't in the business of making money. If you doubt me, look at the US Postal Service and Amtrak, two Government Organizations that are Hemorrhaging money faster than GM and Chrysler before we bailed them out. The Government only has 1 source of income - the taxpayer. So every bill that is passed is going to require the taxpayer to pony up money to cover the expenses.

787 billion dollar Stimulus? That's right open your wallet (and btw, please don't talk to me about my "tax cut" that I was informed by my own employer that I would have to pay back come tax time next year).

Rising Energey Cost due to Cap and Trade? Open your wallet (because you know those companies will pass that tax hike right on down to you)

Universal Health Coverage? Get out your wallet.

And don't bother asking for that "transparancey" that we were promised. As of yet, not a single bill from Congress has been opened up to the American Public to read for 5 days before being signed into law. Not one. We still don't have any clue what was in the Stimulus, Cap and Trade, and I'm sure we won't know what is in the Health Care Bill. Which by the way, has a really interesting name: QUACAA. Yes, prononced Caca.

Must have been a psychological slight by Congress.

I'm not against Health Care Reform. I'm against Health Care Reform that is going to cost trillions of dollars, going God-knows-where, and is run by a government that makes hand washing laundry look like the most effective thing in the world. Let's find a way to reform health care via the free market. Let's work together (which is not happening, in case you didn't notice - no Republicans in Congress voted for the Stimulus, only 8 voted for Cap and Trade, and I don't think many are planning to vote for the Health Care Bill - there's your "healing the great divide in the country"). There has to be something we can do without just approving some unknown bill that's modeled after other failed systems, right?

But there is that "fierce moral urgency" thing....