Good I agree lets implement everything including a public option and universal coverage for all, which this bill does not do but gets closer to, effective immeadatelly.

Who is everyone in Washington working for? It seems that the urgency is based on some performance review soon to come and failure to meet the health care goal and its companion feature the global warming goal seems to carry some negative consequences. Is it possible that the entire senate and house “ayes” stand to have a fatter paycheck? Who really benefits from this legislation? Do you know?

Are the beneficiaries in the US or are they foreign countries or both? I assume that those who voted for Pres BO and those who voted against Pres BO are in the same boat. We aren’t the beneficiaries. I also assumed that the purpose of the health care legislation was to boost the death rate as a means of cutting costs. 200,000 isn’t hardly enough. We need people who are old, infirm, poor, and unemployable to move on tot he next level. The legislation is for the benefit of those who will survive it.

Enuff. This is beyond my ability to think about it further.”

Brother Larry! You? Falling for GOP spin? Well I never! I know your party is supposed to suddenly be the valiant defenders of Medicare (after trying to destroy it since its inception.) But of course the facts are, this half-a-trillion is complete WASTE and FRAUD. If this is some big brother cleaning up this waste and fraud, well, all I can say is it must be a good big brother (not the bad one) and I’m glad I voted for him, and I’m glad he’s fiscally responsible and honest, and I’m glad he’s not waiting four years to clean house!

But if you don’t know what we’re talking about by “Republican obstruction,” you REALLY haven’t been watching the news. I didn’t think I needed to get into detail. They are trying every trick in the book including things that have never been done before, just to SLOW DOWN the inevitable passage of this modest package of reforms. It was Cornyn the other day who said they’re going to “obstruct it till hell freezes over and they’re skating on the ice.” They even went so far as to attempt to filibuster a defense appropriations bill, JUST to slow down health reform. So… I don’t know what channel you watch, I’m sure even FOX has been celebrating the amazing feats of obstruction your “herd: has been engaging in.

The GOP-ers I hate most are the ones who wasted America’s time pretending to be reasonable – Grassley, Snowejob. Half a year went by as they strung Baucus along in Gang of Six meetups knowing full well they’d never vote for anything. And the supposedly pro-choice but anti-public-option Snowe and Collins could have jumped on board when Nelson was being a pain over abortion, but they also were only playing at being reasonable.

The GOP is worse – not even any pretense over the concern for the general welfare of the populace.

The democrats OWN this period of time. What happens or does not happen is the result of THEM and their actions.

Are you admitting that we have a loose bulb in the Democratic side of the US Senate?

Since the GOP is powerless to stop anything, the Democrats own any delays in toto. Now, if you want to say that the Dems are fearful of a voter backlash, that I’d agree with.

In any case, the Dems “reform” is going to result in higher premiums for everyone (their goal) by mandating more coverage. (Someone has to pay for it. The libs need to wipe the sleep from their eyes, grow up, and recognize that government handouts have costs that must be paid for, that our government is insolvent, and that all this borrowing and spending will ultimately be paid for with devastating consequences

You go ALL THE WAY BACK TO MARCH 2008 to show that corporatists have used the term against liberals!

I used it myself, REGULARLY, in 2005 and 2006, and tried my best to popularize it, so that people would think twice about supposed grass-roots groups spouting propaganda from the insurance companies that paid for their advertising.

And sure enough, the earliest known use of the term, from the fertile mind of Texas Democrat Lloyd “You’re no Jack Kennedy” Bentsen:

US Senator Lloyd Bentsen, believed to have coined the term, was quoted by the Washington Post in 1985 using it to describe a “mountain of cards and letters” sent to his Senate office to promote insurance industry interests, which Bentsen dismissed as “generated mail.”

Game, and match!

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/mar2008/db20080314_121054.htm