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What Can Working People do to Push the Public Option?
I just got an email from Tom Periello (D - VA), who BTW is not certain what he will back as far as legislation is concerned for Health Care Reform. He is having a "rally" next Tuesday from 8 am to 9 am about health care reform. I thought, okay, so who can go to that? Not me, since I have to be at work at 8 am. Will it be a bunch of Medicare recipients who have bitten the bullet of fear from the republicans, which is what I see on most of the tv and internet coverage; people who are comfortable and worried that their coverage will be compromised based on the "Death Panel" rhetoric from the far-right.
I started thinking, "What can we do?" A book-club member suggested printing out dollar-shaped flyers, and passing them out whenever you pay for anything: McDonald's, CVS, the bank, whatever: Print out a little flyer that says: "I support Universal Health Care Reform!"
....and whatever you might want to add. I think it is a great idea -- talk about grass-roots! I started doing it yesterday, and got some conversations going. For all of us who cannot go to rallies and stand up to be counted physically, why not pass out a message to all of those we deal with day to day?
The message continues that reform is losing steam. Show that it isn't true!
Any other ideas?
I started thinking, "What can we do?" A book-club member suggested printing out dollar-shaped flyers, and passing them out whenever you pay for anything: McDonald's, CVS, the bank, whatever: Print out a little flyer that says: "I support Universal Health Care Reform!"
....and whatever you might want to add. I think it is a great idea -- talk about grass-roots! I started doing it yesterday, and got some conversations going. For all of us who cannot go to rallies and stand up to be counted physically, why not pass out a message to all of those we deal with day to day?
The message continues that reform is losing steam. Show that it isn't true!
Any other ideas?
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We might be better off focusing on local politicians and local forms of media. Not many people go to those town meetings and the local news is only going to cover a snippet anyway. I've been taking every opportunity to tell politicians at the state level how fed up I am with the party's weakness on the issue.
And let's face it if this bill goes down, we may have our best shot pushing for reform through the states, well depending on your state, that works in MN probably not in TX. Who knows, we might find some local politician who'd just love to run for Congress or the Senate.
I fear that one thing we are up against long term is the interference of the national parties in state elections. They're trying to hand pick the candidates for Congress and we have to fight back against that because they don't give a damn if the candidates represent the people of the state. Never thought I'd be for states' rights but I think Congress is pretty much hopeless for the time being.
August 31, 2009 8:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Agree. But specifics, Bluebell.
Why not get the word out person to person -- the guy at CVS who only works part time and has no health insurance. Why not put a little piece of paper in his hand?
McDonalds - same thing -- The message getting out there is that people are afraid of the Public Option. It is being put out there on tv, etc. Why not refute it?
Why not educate? Why not ACT like a grass roots movement?
August 31, 2009 9:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree but it would be a lot easier if we had the movement in place. We're need an organized faction and/or party to be standing strong on these issues. We can't leave it up to the Democratic party alone. As near as I can tell the party's message is "Who me? Whoa no. Don't blame me."
September 1, 2009 5:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Great way to get a conversation going!
Not everyone over 65 is against healthcare reform, BTW. If there are 55% against, that still leaves 45% unaccounted for and a portion of that 55% is only weakly against it and can be convinced. I watched on a recent Saturday as the much younger folks at a farmer's market were skipping over the gray-haired folks as they were canvassing for signatures on a "support healthcare reform" petition. Ignoring a whole group of folks like this is a form of age profiling that none of us need to be doing.
That said, the word is out here in Missouri and older folks who support healthcare reform are showing up at these daytime events. Perhaps the same will be true in Virginia....
September 1, 2009 11:13 AM | Reply | Permalink
March for PUBLIC OPTION on September 13, 2009 in Washington D.C.. It's on a Sunday.
If you cannot go to Washington D.C., click on events to sign up to attend an event in your state. I signed up for the event in Austin, TX on that date from 12:00P.M. to 3:00PM.
http://www.marchforhealthcare.com/
September 1, 2009 1:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Someone in the building I work in went to the Periello event this morning. She said it was about 75% pro-reform, and 25% anti. She said the anti's were definitely the ones shouting things like, "Why should I pay for your insurance?" and "I don't want the government between me and my doctor."
Evidently not a word about giving free health care to illegal aliens (Oh, well -- the rally only lasted an hour, so there was only time for a few talking points). The Daily Progress (or as I call it, The Daily Disappointment) editorial page had 3 letters today. All 3 on health care reform #1 and #3 were anti.
The first was boiler-plate -- all the talking points with bullets, including "If we give 40 million people insurance, how long will I have to wait to see my doctor?"
The second one was pro-reform, and basically derided those who are so selfish that they don't want to give people health care because they don't want to share resources with "them." and also debunked the "socialism" label, relating policing, and fire protection to government-run, non-profit systems that work.
The last letter made me laugh. The guy wrote in that he was a former big honcho with a huge law firm in Florida, and he can tell us that competition is alive and well. Why? Because every insurance company came in with bids that were "pennies apart" for "his" employees.
I wrote a letter to the editor and I said that the big lawyer didn't know what he was talking about. When 5 companies give you bids that are pennies apart it isn't competition, it is PRICE FIXING! When companies compete, they compete with offering better services for the same price, or the same services for better prices.
Insurance companies have it just the way they want it. They have the healthiest part of the populace (those who work full-time) paying them tons of money. They don't WANT sick people! They don't want people who even work part-time, and so they don't compete for them.
I am handing out my fliers. You do what you want.
September 1, 2009 7:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
However you deliver the message, here is the message that needs to be delivered:
Having the public option as a powerful player in the market place will drive down health care costs and improve delivery for everybody, not just the people who make use of the public option themselves.
The people leading the fight against the public option are those with the most to lose from a change in the current expensive and inefficient system. They are working to protect their wallets by screwing the American consumer.
Americans are being nickeled and dimed to death, though hundreds of hidden costs, to pay the bill for the uninsured. The public option means an end to the drip, drip, drip.
Big Health is laughing at us. They have purchased a train, loaded it up with suckers, and are riding the sucker train all the way to the bank. Don't be a sucker! Fight for your own interests, not the interests of Big Health.
September 1, 2009 8:10 PM | Reply | Permalink
You are right. They are laughing at us, and that is why we need to go full throttle. We go down, we go down in flames, but not with a whimper. To those who talk about Reconciliation as being a problem because it would end in 5 years, I say, "Fine!" Let this be a 5 year experiment! In five years, if what the Democrats delivered, ie: Universal Health Care is so unpopular, then let the republicans vote it out.
That is a risk I am willing to take. It is one the republicans are terrified of. They know what every other country that provided health care to its entire populace learned -- people love it, and they know who did it.
I say, screw them, or more accurately; let them screw themselves, but ABSOLUTELY -- LET'S NOT SCREW OURSELVES OUT OF COWARDICE!
This is it! It is time to stand up!
Fired up? Ready to go?
Barack Obama, it is time for you to blow off those who hate you because you're black and because you care about people. We don't have that much time -- DO IT!
September 1, 2009 8:48 PM | Reply | Permalink