A Government Bought And Paid For.

I cannot believe the arrogance of the insurance lobby. I just saw an advertisement opposing health care reform. Sixty percent of the public favors a public insurance option yet the insurance industry actually listed and showed pictures of the senators who are blocking it. The Insurance companies are touting those senators as heroes. This is, in fact, a list of the insurance industry’s employees of the year. All of those senators are bought and paid for. They are not representing you; they are representing a very powerful special interest. Here is a hint for you. The insurance companies are not your friends. Those companies want to make as much money as possible. They want to provide their top executives with exorbitant bonuses, salaries and perks, and they do not care how many of you die or are forced into bankruptcy because you cannot afford health care. The advertisement I am referring to is a boast. The insurance industry is actually bragging about their ability to buy your government. If you are not outraged by this, you should be!

Everyone seems to be talking about voter disaffection and anger. Well, the voters should be angry, but they should take the time to find out who is to blame. I suggest to you that a good place to start is with the insurance industry’s list of employees of the year. Start with Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, Blanch Lincoln of Arkansas, Ben Nelson of Nebraska, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, and every senator who belongs to the Republican Party. Get on your computer and send them e-mails, tell your friends about them, and make damn sure that you vote against them when they come up for re-election. Let the word go out that you will no longer tolerate elected officials who represent the special interests rather than you. If you do not make an effort to take your government back, you have no one but yourself to blame.

I know many of you are saying there are other things that make you angrier than our broken health care system. I know you are upset about the sluggish economy and high unemployment. I know that the economy and unemployment have a more immediate impact on you unless you get sick, and that you want the economy and employment to be the priority. Unfortunately, the Republican Party is no longer the Grand Old Party. Instead it has degenerated into the party of DOB, which stands for Deny, Obstruct, and Blame. The Republicans are denying that it was their failed policies and the ineptitude of the Bush administration that caused the economy to collapse, and they are using the filibuster to prevent the government from dealing with the crises. The Republicans are hoping that you will forget about the gridlock that they and the blue dog Democrats are creating, and that you will blame the Democratic Party for not solving the problems the Republicans created. In this regard, health care reform is the opening battle in your war to take back your government and make it responsive to your needs. If you let the insurance industry win this battle, the Republicans and the blue dogs will be emboldened. The Republicans already plan to use the filibuster against any effort to further stimulate the economy or provide jobs.

You must make your stand now! The banks are hoping that the Republicans and blue dog Democrats can thwart meaningful reforms that will force them to get back into the business of providing loans to homeowners and small businesses rather than speculating on ventures that involve greater risks and greater potential profits. Investment firms are hoping they can still pass off the losses resulting from risky behavior to the small investors while providing their executives with obscene golden parachutes. Big businesses are hoping they can continue to outsource jobs to places with cheaper labor. The Republicans and special interests are hoping you will join the lunatic conventions called tea parties. They are counting on you losing your focus and joining the dupes who do not have the brains to recognize the real issues. The Republicans do not think you are smart enough to realize that they are to blame for the inability to pass meaningful legislation, and that you will vote against Democratic incumbents simply because they are incumbents. Do not let them get away with this. Direct your anger where it will do some good. You have the ability to determine who is representing you and who is representing the special interests. The ones representing the special interests are making that all too easy by opposing the public option. Now is the time to draw the line in the sand. Now is the time to let the blue dogs know that the threat of joining a filibuster to thwart the will of their party and a majority of their constituents will be punished. Now is the time to let the Republicans know that becoming the party of DOB will result in becoming an irrelevant party that will not have enough elected members to keep the senate from functioning! Do not wait until they defeat the next vital reform or program with a filibuster, make them hear you now!