Mandates will kill reform

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Sunday September 20, 2009 · 10:36 AM PDT

2009/09/20 · 10:36

Watching Obama on Snuffleupagus today dodging around the question of whether individual mandates are a tax or not had me squirming in my seat.

The whole idea of a mandate seems to me like political suicide. Regardless of whether it is or not, wingnuts will jump on it (Snuffles took his cue and ran with it) as a huge new tax increase, and the media (as it always does) will dutifully "report" on mandates under the right wing framing. The "public option" story is now buried under the woodshed, and the new 24 hour focus will be on mandates.

I understand the theory behind the shared risk pool, but the argument seems to fly in the face of logic, especially when Obama clumsily tries to compare it to auto insurance, a "mandate" that can be simply avoided by not owning a car. You can't simply choose to not get sick.

People in this country rebel against the idea of being "required" to do anything, much less spend money, even if it is shown to be good for them. A mandate will be political suicide among the "independents", whose support Obama badly needs to get reform passed.

If you think the furor over the public option was bad, it will be a whisper compared to the coming outrage over the indiviudal mandate.

MarkinNC

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Friday August 21, 2009 · 10:07 AM PDT

2009/08/21 · 10:07

I joined the many that have been incensed by Betsy McCaughey's "interview" on the Daily Show last night. A more potent example of the way opponents of health care reform will spin and obfuscate facts to drum up fear and opposition I haven't yet seen.

McCaughey certainly knows full well what the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative is, and how the paragraphs in HR 3200 discussing end of life measures are talking only about the VOLUNTARY data collection undertaken by this program.

Still I have to thank her and Jon, because amidst all the furor over "death panels" I hadn't seen anyone point to the exact legislative paragraphs that led to this "belief"

For the uninitiated, here's a good place to start

http://www.cms.hhs.gov/...

MarkinNC

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Monday July 20, 2009 · 11:22 AM PDT

2009/07/20 · 11:22

No it's not a typo.

It's increasingly obvious which side of the healthcare debate our corporately owned and run media comes down on.

Take a look at a few of the top news articles posted today regarding a Washington Post/ABC news poll today...

Los Angeles Times:
Public support for Obama on healthcare dips to 49%

Fox News:
Obamas public approval on Healthcare Reform slipping

Washington Post:
Obama's shrinking approval on healthcare

Boston Globe:
Obama under fire on healthcare

Reuters:
Support for Obama slips on healthcare

What the poll actually asked below the fold...

MarkinNC

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Sunday May 17, 2009 · 12:38 PM PDT

2009/05/17 · 12:38

First, let me unequivocally state that my own beliefs on this issue lie firmly with those who believe that

a) we should have never engaged in torture tactics
b) they don't work
c) those who authorized them need to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
d) those that actually engaged in performing them should not be allowed to continue in any position where prisoner interaction would be required.

I was also one of those who found themselves extremely disappointed with Obama's recent public positions on the issues.

Then earlier this week I noticed a CNN online poll that asked the question about whether the torture photos should be allowed to be released and was shocked at the 80% no response.

So today I spent some time at pollingreport.com

MarkinNC

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Wednesday September 06, 2006 · 9:21 PM PDT

2006/09/06 · 21:21

The Path to finding out who is behind the Path to 9/11 is a long an winding road through some scary places. Below is a summary of the facts that I've found so far.. although it seems like there is probably more digging to be done..

The film was tentatively titled "Untitled History Project" and from this came the name of the Production Company, UHP Productions. (you can confirm this via IMDB..)

Obviously even the tentative name given to this film during it's 2+ years of production illustrates that this film was intended to re-write the history of 9/11. Read More

The other shoe strikes back

MarkinNC

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Friday August 11, 2006 · 8:03 AM PDT

2006/08/11 · 08:03

On Wednesday, Dkos diarist Thereisnospoon compared the influence of internet bloggers and unpaid volunteers vs. the Beltway Democratic political machine in the Connecticut primary..

That's not David vs. Goliath. This isn't even the NBA champions versus a rec league team.That's more like an ant vs. my shoe.
And the shoe lost.

If anyone needed a reminder of how ant-like the blogs influence on public discourse can be, just tune in to any TV or radio station over the last couple of days. As the media giants shift into ATATT mode (All Terror All The Time), the actual news presented has been viewed through a decidedly Republican lens and slathered with Republican talking points and attacks against Democratic phantom "positions" without rebuttal or even critical questioning from the cheerleaders. Read More

Look, media F(*&#%%rs

MarkinNC

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Thursday June 22, 2006 · 3:42 PM PDT

2006/06/22 · 15:42

Did you ever notice that anytime a beltway pundit or politician gets annoyed with an argument and wants to quickly bat it down or dismiss it, they always start their reply with "LOOK", listen up..

LOOK, you idiots in the media desparately trying to find a way to disparage Markos. I don't give a damn who he knows, who he works for, who's in his "inner circle" and who's not, who he consults for and who he doesn't.. I don't care about these things because he has given me something far more important that I have never had in the last decade, a VOICE. Read More

What's going on with the Dollar?

MarkinNC

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Friday May 12, 2006 · 2:08 PM PDT

2006/05/12 · 14:08

I confess to being one who needs to search for a "Global Currency for Dummies" book while I'm Crashing Kos's Crashing the Gate party at Quail Books in Raleigh tonight.

But one of the lead stories on Yahoo laments that the dollar is in a pretty uinterruptible downward slide right now, despite supposedly favorable conditions.
http://news.yahoo.com/...
Read More

A silver lining

MarkinNC

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Sunday January 15, 2006 · 7:45 PM PST

2006/01/15 · 19:45

Surfing by Yahoo this evening I notice some interesting headlines.

Ney to Temporarily Cede House Panel Chair

Poll: Delay Losing Support in Own District

Cronkite: Time for US to Leave Iraq

Over at the Cleveland Plain Dealer, there's a nice faq about the Abramoff case which clearly lays out many of the points our side has been vociferously making.

What is the primary focus of Dkos talk today? Those "weak, spineless" Democrats. Read More

"I never heard the word bomb"

MarkinNC

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Thursday December 08, 2005 · 11:11 AM PST

2005/12/08 · 11:11

Yesterday, the 24 news channels were all aflutter with the killing of a passenger aboard American Airlines Flight 924.

All the headlines reported as fact that the man yelled "I have a bomb" and reached into his backpack before he was shot.

News cameras showed the man's luggage being blown up on the tarmac, as dozens of heavily armed agents milled around the plane.

CNN posts a Quick poll in which close to 75% of the respondents said having armed air marshals on planes makes them feel safer.

Welcome to America, post 9/11 hysteria style. Read More

Dean Scream Redux-with full transcript

MarkinNC

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Wednesday December 07, 2005 · 7:37 AM PST

2005/12/07 · 07:37

Sorry if I'm late to the party on this, but I've seen a few diaries already bemoaning Howard Dean's comments on some San Antonio morning show yesterday. I've also noticed the coordinated piling on of the noise machine on what appears to be a fiery new statement from him.. that we can't "win" the war in Iraq. The cacophony from the right has reached enough of a fever pitch that the top Google searches now for "Dean Iraq" yield a page of stories from all our favorite nemeses and more.. with headlines like

"Dean Iraq is Vietnam: Let's cut and Run" (courtesy Rush Limbaugh) Read More

Earle says 2 can play that game

MarkinNC

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Thursday November 03, 2005 · 11:03 AM PST

2005/11/03 · 11:03

Prosecutor Ronnie Earle has filed a motion to recuse the administrative judge B.B. Schraub in the Delay case. Schraub appointed Judge CW Duncan to hear Delay's motion to dismiss Democratic judge Bob Perkins, ostensibly for being a Democrat and giving $5,000 to various Democratic organizations over the last 5 years

http://www.law.com/... Read More

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Mandates will kill reform

PHYSICIAN QUALITY REPORTING INITIATIVE = Death Panels?

Read between the headlies

Investigating torture is not a winning political strategy

Who is behind the Path to 9/11?

The other shoe strikes back

Look, media F(*&#%%rs

What's going on with the Dollar?

A silver lining

"I never heard the word bomb"

Dean Scream Redux-with full transcript

Earle says 2 can play that game