Common Sense

Common sense itself would tell you that everything the Republicans are saying about the health care debate is lies. I have already written about how they are actually scared of competition. They are afraid that private health insurers can’t compete with a government supported plan (their fear is valid but their arguments are weak). But nowadays we are hearing lies about the bills that just by using common sense, one would easily realize that they are not true.

The goal of all politicians should be to advance the needs and desires of the public. I think we can all agree that the vast majority of legislatures actually vote according to what will best keep their seats in Congress instead of what their constituents actually need or want (usually/hopefully these coincide). Everything they do seems to be geared towards re-election and often this means keeping the status quo. So let’s take that hypothesis of how things are actually viewed by Congress and apply it to the “death panel” controversy. Obviously the words “death panel” do not appear anywhere in any version of any bill, but neither does the premise behind the fear mongering words. If the Democrats and their bills, enacted a policy that actually did line up the elderly and disabled and deemed them unworthy of receiving care, they would be ensuring their own political demise. That would be the very opposite of what everyone does agree on, that politicians act to protect their own seats (and their party’s). Democrats would be ensuring a Republican majority for generations to come.

Unlike the private industry, the people actually have the power to hold representatives accountable. People on the Right love to tout using the power of the market to solve problems; however, the mere fact that we are having a health care debate means this theory has some major flaws. Elections are the ultimate measure of holding decision makers accountable. Legislatures would lose their seats in the very next election if they were to enact something as vile and evil as what the right-wing is accusing the Democrats are writing into the bill. Every decision and initiative the Democrats are writing into their bills is most likely overwhelmingly governed by ensuring they do not upset the current quality of health care in this nation. There are fears being spread about seniors not only being “put to death” but that care will be rationed (even though it already is by private insurers) and lines so long you won’t be able to see a doctor for months. These are very concrete fears, which is why common sense should tell you that they probably won’t happen! The health care reformers aren’t so stupid to diminish health care quality to the majority of the country so as to provide it to the smaller faction who currently needs it. If there is a significant and noticeable decrease in health care quality of any kind to the majority of the current health care holders in America, political heads will role. Politicians know this and will do everything in their power to ensure they don’t upset their masters. At least that is what common sense is telling me.