As Ms. Thomas and Cockburn correctly note, if the US were to withdraw its forces from Afghanistan and Iraq, then there would certainly be enough money to support and sustain a single payer system in this country as well as cutting the military budget by at least 20 per cent. But according to Obama, the idea of single payer is considered to be too "radical" which, of course ignores the fact, as T.R. Reid points out in his most excellent book The Healing of America, that what this country needs is something radical to be done to the abysmal state of health care in this country. Reid writes in his book that Taiwan and Switzerland changed their ways of providing health care to its citizens by implementing a universal health care system in their countries with the result being that their citizens now have, as opposed to before, their basic health care needs met. If those countries,as well as others, could alter their systems, then the United States can to, that is if they actually desire to curb the for profit system of the insurance companies in this country.

Healthcare not Warfare.

I wish the duplicity of those in power could be seen by most americans. Clearly, no public option and/or a phony version of it will be the end result. You can be sure that Obama has already made the deal with those corporations that feel threatened by the option he promised as a canidate for president. In short, the truth behind the public option is that corporations do not want competition to underscore their death hold on american health care. Money and greed is what drives the health care industry. Caring for people and the quality of their lives is truely secondary in their minds. When corporations dictate public policy, we call that fascism. Anyone who has worked in the corporate world knows the agenda of "take no prisoners" as a motif for corporate monopoly and power. What really is on the line here is whether americans have any say about their lives period. In truth, they don't, only the elite of this country determine the reality for the rest of us. What has been put to us as american citizens is quite simply, "hog, root or die." The expression that was cultivated during the 19th Century regarding Indian American resistance to cultural terrorism.

This is what the media used to be about. Simple, direct communication of the truth to the public. This is an amazing women. I've never read anything by her that isn't full of clear thinking and common sense. Thank you Helen.

The bland, meaningless version of INSURANCE reform that may end up being passed will have Obama's footprint all over it. This is his failure and he will own it outright in 2012 when the uber-fascists march back into the Oval torture chamber, with Karl Rove holding the door.

Obama's plan is nothing but another giveaway to Big Insurance and Pharma and everyone knows it. Even the pallid, anemic public option is thrown out the window. The best outcome would be if no bill at all passes, satisfying the Repugs and showing the country exactly what Congress is made of: corporate loot. Because if the Obama-Baucus fiasco passes, it will be worse than the charade we now suffer under.

With no bill, maybe some uprising with teeth can occur, when Americans finally act out on their frustration and rage instead of watching more "Dancing with the Stars" and American Idiot "reality" shows. I'm investing in pitchfork and torch futures.

Obama continues to amaze me. President Carter speaks out on racism in defense of Obama and Obama throws him over the bridge, just as he did with his pastor of two decades. But Obama has nothing but soft and sweet words for the Republicans who are really trying to screw him. Wow, what a man!

Obama continues to amaze me. President Carter speaks out on racism in defense of Obama and Obama throws him over the bridge, just as he did with his pastor of two decades. But Obama has nothing but soft and sweet words for the Republicans who are really trying to screw him. Wow, what a man!

I just emailed my Representative [Rick Larson] and my Senators [Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell] telling them I will actively campaign against any Democrat who does not actively seek and support and vote for SINGLE PAYER health insurance. If we all do it [and mean it] it might make a difference. Might. If that means Repubs take it over again in the next election, does it matter, when the Dems are acting like Repubs?

MichaelC

With all due respect to Helen Thomas and Jimmy Carter (two people I love to read), the animosity in the health care debate is not about Obama's elitism, his dark skin color, or about a greater move towards socialism. It is a growing recognition that our federal government is just grossly overstretched and as a result cannot perform its basic tasks. The opening shot was 9/11 when the trillions spent (and another $1.3 trillion "unaccounted for") "Defense" Department could not protect America. The turning point was Katrina, when government just let those people rot in a flooding disaster it created. The final straw was the current (and overgrowing) bailouts.

Most statists (and I know 'cause I was one of them) believe that if we can just get "our people" or "our man" into elected office, everything will be o.k.; they'll direct government spending to the proper areas and all will be o.k. But this is sort of a democracy and it is quid pro quo: I'll support your government spending if you support my government spending--with the Federal Reserve there to dilute our money's value to provide more dollars. Thus, we have bailouts, wars, massive corporate welfare (dwarfing welfare to poor individuals, etc. The spending just never stops. And unfortunately, the government spending isn't making the average woman's/man's life better. We all know that the government has been spending more than it takes in for years. The question is when will be begin to pay the back taxes for all the spending already done?

That's why we are at the beginnings of a libertarian revolution.

PS: I agree we should healthcare for all; but we must cut government spending in every other area to do it. What do you think is the likelihood of that?

Is there any way we can say this to Congress and The President?

“Never Mind! You've shown that you haven't the vision, guts or compassion to tackle this terrible crisis afflicting our nation. You are un-phased by American Companies’ inability to compete globally because the poison pill of health care costs are buried into the wholesale price of every manufactured product we make (and by the way are absent from those of our main competitors). You are un-concerned by the sheer weight of the poll numbers that have American citizen support for Reform and a Public Plan well above that of a mere majority. And worst, you've shown you have no compassion for the 44,000+ Americans who a new Harvard Study indicates will DIE for want of care.

All you can manage to come up with is something that enriches the already obscenely rich insurance companies and their ethically challenged senior management, fails to control the spiraling costs of care and medicine, fails to cover everyone, and succeeds only in being a worse health care system than the one we already have. Most onerous of all however is you are actually considering making this plan that is inferior to the malfunctioning one we have currently ... mandatory.”

Is there any way we can we say, thanks but no thanks to these amoral jokers?

“Forget it. We'd rather go back to the system we had, bad as it was because at least it wasn't mandatory.

Seriously. It’s really OK Guys. Take a break. Go on recess. We don’t need you on this. You are little to no good to us. We vote. We respond to polls. We write to our representatives.

And you? You ignore it all and offer your obedience to those dark powers with deep pockets that are gradually taking over this country and have long since captured your souls.

So, drop this will you please? You are making things worse not better.

We'll handle this ourselves since you have shown your complete inability to rise to this situation.

BTW here’s our plan:

We plan to fire all of you! In 2010. In 2012.
We plan to Re-elect NO incumbents (Except Alan Grayson!!!)
NO Democrats. NO Republicans. NO Independents.
Instead we will FIRE EVERYBODY!

We will get out the vote in 2010 and fire everybody.

We'll Vote NONE OF THE ABOVE.”

Sure we may get all unknowns. But how much worse can they be for us than the current "leadership?"'

I’m serious. These idiots need a wake-up call! Or the electoral equivalent of a 2x4 beside the head!

George C. Brown - As things stand now, I'd be very well pleased just to get a Health Reform plan with (to quote the President) "a robust Public Option". A Single Payer Plan would be best, but maybe the first step with a robust public option would get us headed in the right direction.

As for folks calling the Single Payer Plan "socialism", call it what you will, if it works let's do it, and forget about the insurance and big pharma moguls - - they've already stolen enough of our hard-earned wages to last more than any of their lifetimes - - and just let them try to take it with them!

Helen's article "Scare Tactics", despite it's rambling Cockburn reference, ended with the right idea: "we need health care reform that will leave no one behind!

We face (at least) three related problems under the HC umbrella: (1) the causes of our 30-year history of escalating of health care costs(which drive insurance premiums), (2) our profit-driven health insurance industry, and (3) the lack of a comprehensive system in our society of assuring everyone of necessary health care.

The answers to the first are complex and ultimately will require the feared intervention of government to get under control, if that is even possible. Even with Obama's deep commitment, anything he does gets a partison response which continues to work against the common good.

The second requires some aggressiveness against the deeply rooted insurance industry, which feigns to be concerned about HC costs -- let's face it: bottom line, they pay most claims, try to save money by denying health care payments wherever they legally can (internally they refer to a customer's claim payment as a "loss"), and continue to raise premiums to assure themselves of profits. They manipulate data and classify people into "cells" so that they can charge premiums by "risk" level -- hence, those who need it most pay higher, often unaffordable, premiums. (Or are silently discriminated against by self-insured employers.) For private insurance to do its job, it needs to level the premiums regardless of age, sex, health history, and never deny a legitimate claim. But the government would have to "interfere" to achieve such a program.

Third, to use Helen's words, we must find a way to "leave no one behind." If we can't force employers (by "interfering") to pay for HC insurance (assuming they should), if we can't find a way for uninsurerd people (especially "high risk") to afford insurance premiums, we must find a means to care for our people. Some way, somehow! We are the government. We need to step in with a means to fill the gap. Hence, the public option. What other dependable, reliable and workable answers are out there? A "public option" is just that -- an option for those who want or need it -- and indirectly a source of pressure on the private insurance industry to clean up its act.

Finally, in this case the partison response of the Republican party (to which I belong) is deplorable and destructive. My own state senator, James Risch, in a recent mass email referred to this threatened "takeover" of the federal government several times within his few paragraphs -- the most inflammable word he could probably use to discredit Obama's program. Instead, he recommended that we "Start over; Go slow," etc., while millions suffer and die. This blindness is what keeps us from making any significant progress.

When this Republican voted for Obama, it was, in large part, because I sensed that he believed what he said and had the passion, intelligence objectivity to effect solutions to the HC problem. THIS IS NOT A PARTISON ISSUE! Republican or Democrat, we cannot afford to leave one person behind.

It is bad enough when an idiot like W. throws mud in your face, but it is overwhelming when someone you trusted with all your heart buries you under a mountain of mud. That is what Obama has done. I am more disgusted with him than I ever was with Bush, the Joker. I knew what we were getting when he was enthroned by the Supremes in 2000. I was never shocked at what he did to this country. I was, however, anxious and truly hopeful when Obama emerged as our candidate for the presidency in 2008. Today, however, I feel completely duped by the slimy Chicago Pol who was, in fact, a conservative republican in donkey clothing.

Yes, it would be better if there were no healthcare bill as opposed to the insurancecare Obama has fashioned for us bumpkins, the American people. We are being set up as supporters for the new oligarchic government. Along with paying taxes for the ersatz government Obama "heads", we will be paying premiums for the actual government running this country and our lives. Forget the malarkey about the "Founding Fathers" dream for our nation. That no longer exists. The Constitution is a phony document that is held up whenever our "leader" wants us to think he is running the country. That piece of paper is nothing more than that--a piece of paper. Corporate By-Laws have replaced the constitution. Pay special attention to who is guiding the House and Senate as to how to vote and what bills to pass--Rahm Emanuel, the head lobbyist for the Corporate States of Americon.

Until we get rid of all these liars and money-hungry thieves in 2010, 2012, and beyond, we're dead meat and Obama is laughing up his sleeve at the con job he pulled on the voters on November 4, 2008.

"The president also is trying to talk softly about health-care reform in hopes that Republicans in Congress will support a reform bill.

Forget it, Mr. President. The Republicans are not going to give you an inch. That also goes for the so-called blue-dog Democrats, who are really Republicans at heart."

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I think this is about a little bit more than politics. For the Repugs and the Blue Dawgs, it's all about the hundreds of thousands of dollars they're putting in their pockets courtesy of Big Pharma and the insurance companies - nothing more, nothing less. For the idiots that follow them, it's all about racism and hatred and they don't care about the fact that they're cutting their noses to spite their faces if, at the end, their tactics make Obama's efforts fail and, thus, show...well, whatever it is that they think that shows.