Joe Lieberman’s Not-So-Shocking Anti-Reform Position

Of course none of us should stunned by Senator Joe Lieberman’s assertion that he intends to join the GOP in filibustering the debate on the floor. He doesn’t want to even allow the conversation to continue if the bill includes a public option, in any form. Connecticut is loaded with insurance and pharmaceutical companies and they are major contributors to his campaign fund. (Purdue Pharma [http://www.purduepharma.com/], ISP [http://online1.ispcorp.com/en-us/pages/default.aspx], and Aetna health insurance [http://www.aetna.com/]), all in the top ten. So it’s no surprise that this loser from New England is bucking the caucus and putting his wallet ahead of the American people. Now this from the Daily Koz [http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/10/28/797969/-Hadassah-Liebermans-Ties-to-the-Insurance-Industry], which points out that the lying senator’s wife Hadassah has been employed by Hill & Knowlton, the “legendary lobbying and PR firm hired her as a ‘senior counselor’ in its ‘health and pharmaceuticals practice.” This is the same lobbying firm that spent “... the past decade as a defendant in tobacco class-action lawsuits because of its role in propaganda disputing the deadly effects of smoking.” Why this opportunistic, self-centered, turncoat had been given any significance within the caucus in the first place was curious at best. Following his defeat in the Democratic primary, he shifted his party affiliation and ran as an independent and then campaigned for and endorsed John McCain. He was forgiven by Obama and given a prominent leadership role as a reward. Shame on the president for being so unforgiving and gullible in thinking that this coward would do anything but that which would benefit his own, personal interests. It’s time to put this fraud in his place, recognize his completely selfish motivations, and stop pretending that he has any interests whatsoever in moving this nation progressively forward.

Healthcare Reform

It’s the hottest debate in the nation these days. Most everyone has an opinion on it. But exactly how much of that opinion is based on facts seems to be the big question. The usual propagandist suspects loom all around us and if you ever get stuck in a conversation where one is screaming about wanting the government to keep its hands off of their Medicare, you’re likely talking with a ditto-head, or Fox Noise devotee. That pretty much sums up the opposition strategy in this debate. It’s not about bringing anything constructive or based in reality to the conversation, it’s about distracting and obstructing. Remember, the stated goal here of the GOP is to deliver Obama his “Waterloo”. So keep that in mind when you are chatting with the Murdoch Minions and recognize that it’s often difficult to have a constructive debate when the other person is (possibly even unintentionally) inserting fabrications into the discussions. You’ll spend most of your time debunking myths and/or educating your adversary that the government already runs Medicare and Medicaid, death panels were the creation of Sarah Palin and all in her head, the legislation is not being written in secret and hidden from the public, the reform will not provide insurance coverage to illegal aliens, and any number of other fictitious talking points delivered on a daily bases to the Fox Noise crowd.

Remember, it’s not an accident and it’s very difficult to bust through the relentless conditioning that these folks go through on a daily basis. So keep your expectations reasonably low and keep up the good fight and try to keep the debate in the real world.

No Secret Healthcare Legislation

While the debate for the much-needed healthcare reform goes on, so to does the distribution of propaganda from the right, whose only objective is to stifle debate and obstruct any progress whatsoever. One of the more popular myths being floated by the GOP News Network and the stable of radical right talking heads is this nonsense that legislation is being written in dark, clandestine rooms in the basement of the House and Senate, without deliberation and without public knowledge. You’ll hear the Bobbleheads say: “Obama promised to post this online” or “Obama promised transparency and now they are ramming this down our throats”. Of course none of this true and just presenting the facts to completely dispel these fabrications isn’t always good enough. When these folks start their day with Fox and Friends, go right into Beck-Limbaugh-Hannity radio land, slide right into Fox Noise at Night, and eat dinner while consuming Michael Savage, you’ll have a very difficult task deprogramming an entire day of the indoctrination. Stop your debate when your verbal opponent refuses to look at the reality that is right in front of them and recognize that they might not want to see it and realize that they can maintain their own little parallel universe without letting the real world intrude. The fact is that the legislation is and has been posted on the Internet since the beginning of this process. (http://finance.senate.gov/sitepages/legislation.htm, http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h3200/text, http://thomas.loc.gov/) When they continue to deny the reality, recognize that you are fighting a losing battle and no matter how much you try to insert facts into the debate, you are dealing with someone that is so brainwashed that they will not and cannot be saved. Move on and save your energy for another battle.