Comments on: Wishing For Waterloo

By: Connie Manis

Connie Manis — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 22:53:07 +0000

Great article, and many thanks for taking the time to publish it; I’m positive other readers benefited too. It really opened my eyes for some new conclusions that I hadn’t thought of before.

By: Gary Duell

Gary Duell — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:10:13 +0000

Mr. Teague, nothing Congress does is “forever”. And if I’m in a canoe that’s coming close to a hundred foot waterfall, I want someone with me who realizes we need to paddle like hell. Not someone who says, “Oh, be careful! Don’t paddle too hard. You might get me wet.”
HR3200 isn’t even done yet. But I hope it is as big and complex and expensive and rapidly implemented as it needs to be because in short order we will actually begin saving billions of dollars. The Congressional Budget Office doesn’t look at gross cost/benefit in its analysis. The alternative is going over the waterfall.
Until the right wing lie machine kicked in, 3/4 of Americans wanted this “animal”.

By: Jim Teague

Jim Teague — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:31:18 +0000

I always look forward to reading your Editors Edge piece. I enjoy your writing style and your excellent wordsmithing skills. As always, the above article was well written and you posed a number of provocative questions that were clearly designed to stimulate thinking.

Recognizing that the piece was an editorial and not an attempt to document arguments for or against elements of the President’s bill for health care reform, I found it dogmatic in its universal support for an enormous piece of legislation that at a minimum will permanently alter how all of us access and pay for health care services…forever.

I do not wish to be witness to a Presidential Waterloo. I want, and the country needs for this president to be enormously successful in his attempt to right a severely listing economy, implement a plan to balance a spiraling budget deficit and reduce long term federal debt, pull us out of an unwinable war and restore world wide confidence in a shattered and teetering capitalist system. What we do not need is another new, broad sweeping, hastily drafted, unmanageable, stratospherically expensive experiment in social engineering that will increase the tax burden on the 40% of the population that actually pay federal income taxes.
If conscientious and civilly responsible citizens ever had an issue to voice their opinion about, this is one of them. Should they do it in a responsible and well mannered way? Of course. But only if the proponents of this bill are really willing to give all persons an equal audience and actually digest the input they are given rather than attempting to force feed the entire animal down the throats of an unwilling public.

By: R.W.

R.W. — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 14:29:50 +0000

Steve, thank you for your courageous editorial. I am a Brokerage General Agent and depend, for my livelihood, on business from insurance brokers- some of whom may have been the authors of a few of the “withering letters and emails” you received. I often feel disappointed in myself for not standing up more publicly for certain beliefs I hold including a conviction that health care reform is critical to our well-being as a society and as a national economy. Instead, I generally keep a tight smile and a closed mouth. I am greatly encouraged, however, that you have spoken up from your position at The National Underwriter and I have to think that at least some of your readers will see the sense in what you are saying. Thank you, again.

By: Gary Duell

Gary Duell — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 23:35:04 +0000

Read HR3200 for yourself “HRD”. It’s at http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h3200/text and lots of other places online.
As I stated in my earlier post, there are no “Death Panels”. That is false. It is not true. I’ve read it. If you find other wise, please cut and paste it right here.
How do you know we “have the best health care in the world”? Compared to what? According to what criteria? Is it because we rank 37th in life expectancy and infant mortality? Is it because we spend 1 1/2 time more per person than the next costly industrialized country?
I’m delighted you mention the Mayo Clinic which is a non-profit, “socialistic” facility. Just read their mission and values at http://www.mayoclinic.org/about/missionvalues.html
Their doctors have chosen service over profit. They’re salaried. They have agreed to “Operate in a manner intended not to create wealth but to provide a financial return sufficient for present and future needs”. That’s not capitalism, buddy.

By: HRD

HRD — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:24:50 +0000

We have the best health care in the world. I am fortunate to live just 100 miles from Rochester, Mn and my doctors at the Mayo Clinic see patients from around the globe. These folks could go anywhere in the word, they choose the United States. In the US today no person is denied care (by law), regardless of payment or lack of it, 85% of us have health insurance. Outside of what it costs and how payments are handled, what is being “fixed”? The welfare of patients trumps all, peoples needs are being met. Every time the political pendulum swings to the left these causes are dusted off and pushed with little regard as to the actual need. I am astonished that there is a distinct lack of disclosure regarding the merits of the proposals, instead politicians, including our president, talk about how people have comunicated scare tactics to the public and have it all wrong-that there will be no “death panels” and costs will not go up. Instead of pointing out inaccuracies in others, why not enlighten us all with a point by point outline of what is being proposed and how and why it will be better than what we currently have. I don’t think they know what this bill contains (who writes these anyway?), its a “pig in a poke” support it blindly or you are unamerican-really? I think unamerican would be to follow blindly. It’s not about health care reform its about health insurance reform. I believe Americans will demand that congress perform triage on our issues and that this one be reconsidered as our national priority. The White House recently projected our national debt and it wasn’t pretty and it didn’t include any cost for this proposal, if it had chances of anything passing would dwindle. The presidents approval rating sits at 50% down from 69% I believe people realize that this “forward regardless” attitude hurts us and divides or country.

By: Gary Duell

Gary Duell — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 01:55:39 +0000

It is deeply disconcerting to witness such juvenile, ignorant and vituperative attacks from my peers. And someone really uses a bubble head like Sarah Palin as a source of information?? Are you guys actually giving financial advice to sentient beings? That’s utterly terrifying.
But, on the other hand, I’m delighted that a large group of my peers weighed in respectfully and thoughtfully. Good for you!
I have read HR3200 in its entirety. Twice. Some sections many times. If any of the above critics had even looked at it they would notice all the white space. If HR3200 were printed just like National Underwriter it would be less than 200 pages. I cut & pasted it into a Word doc. so I know. Just shrinking the huge margins down to one inch reduced the pages to 429. So let’s stop the “phone book size” criticism. There is no excuse for anyone to not read this bill. If your Senator and/or Representative tells you it’s too big to read, then they don’t belong in Congress.
Mr. Crowl above wanted an explanation of Sec. 1233, which supposedly contains some ominous provisions. Since nobody who is criticizing it appears to actually have read it, let me give you my opinion: It doesn’t mandate putting grandma to death. It doesn’t even suggest that. It does require that information be made available to her regarding alternative treatments, feeding tubes, medication, etc. It’s called an Advance Directive, which you all should be recommending to all of your clients anyway! The purpose of this provision is to ensure that everyone’s final wishes are honored that we’re not subjected to the indignity of over-the-top medical heroism. Period. Palin’s interpretation is obtuse and irrelevant.
I say this with complete seriousness: regardless of how health insurance profits are affected, we as professionals should be willing to consider any and all alternatives which promise to be beneficial to our living, breathing clients. I have plenty else to do. I would be more than happy to give up selling health insurance if that’s what it comes down to.

By: Timothy Rennich

Timothy Rennich — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 15:41:22 +0000

I cannot help but comment on your editorial. You say if anything merits serious discussion, making changes to a business that is equivalent to 1/6 of the US GDP is that topic. You then go on to blast resistance to the Obama takeover of healthcare as mob violence.
In July 2009 the word was ‘we must pass this plan prior to the Aug recess’, so by the end of the month. So much for thoughtful, serious discussion. And now the comeback to criticism of the plan is ‘there really is no plan, so all the scuttle about what it might mean to US citizens is just a disinformation campaign by mobsters and right wing kooks.
So the plan has to pass by July 31, even though there is no plan, but wait, there seems to be a 1000 plus page document somewhere that no one has read but must be voted on and enacted into law immediately. Thoughtful, serious approach to taking over 1/6 of the US economy?
I have been contacting my congressmen repeatedly on this, have attended a town hall meeting for the first time ever and I am not a mobster nor has anyone instructed me to do this. This whole process has a bad smell to it and unfortunately your editorial makes me tend to believe you’re carrying water for the folks trying to ram this through without any debate. As for encouraging “frightened” congressman to hide from constituents, I am guessing that will only lead to more mob mentality. Say what you want about mobsters, they know when they are getting the shaft and being ignored.
Finally, your local reps have been after me to join the local branch. I used to be a member but quit when the locals running it seemed to use if for their own ends and means. I am close to rejoining but when it looks and feels like the national de facto leader is a lap dog for the current powers that be, I see no reason to support it financially.
Respectfully, but using the same tone as your editorial.
Serving the ND mobocracy since 1991…

By: Larry Mirel

Larry Mirel — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 15:37:59 +0000

Thanks for your excellent and courageous editorial. You have put your finger on the right issue. How can we have a serious debate on the very important subject of health insurance reform in the face of irrational and largely irrelevant rage? Unfortunately there are cynical people out there stoking and maneuvering that blind anger for their own political purposes. Shame on them, especially those who know or should know better.

By: Gregg Slape

Gregg Slape — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 15:36:57 +0000

Steve: you have judged correctly, if you have been paying attention, there is something far sicker than our health care system. What is sicker, if you’re paying attention, is the concerted effort of this administration to overtly take control of most every part of our lives, spend us into poverty as a nation, and for most in this administration to be indignant at the notion most of the general populace doesn’t want any of this. As one of the lines in a popular C&W song says, “what part of no don’t you understand?” Our leaders are not concerned about you and me and what we want and what’s best for us and the country as a whole.
Our health care system is not broken. Does it need some adjustments, absolutely? Does it need some reform, possibly? Does it need to be done in 45 days and given to a pathetic, gullible public? No I’m sure, hence the backlash. What’s the hurry?
When moving something as large as this is as part of our GDP, just as an airplane pilot or Captain of an ocean going vessel, course corrections are made in “small increments”. I would suggest they take this advice sooner rather than later.