I keep hearing we (citizens of the United States of America) live in the richest country in the world, that we live in the greatest country in the world, etc. We are the most arrogant of people, yet we have no reason to be arrogant. Consider that we have 47,000,000 Americans without health care insurance. FORTY-SEVEN MILLION. How can that be in the richest, greatest country in the world? Why are we even considering legislation that does not cover every single American? There is no excuse for this kind of behavior.
I am ashamed to see our elected officials fighting about giving the most basic of necessities – health care – to our citizens. We should all be ashamed that we have uninsured citizens living in the richest country in the world. We are the ONLY industrialized nation that does not provide health care to every single one of its citizens. In addition, Americans pay more than double the amount for health care of any other country, yet we do not receive anywhere near the best health care. In fact, the World Health Organization ranks the United States 37th right between Costa Rica and Slovenia.
If Congress doesn’t want to raise taxes on the wealthiest 1% of Americans, why not tax the insurance companies? They are the ones making the profit in the health care industry. We taxed cigarettes to pay for advertising against cigarettes. It seems reasonable to tax health insurance companies for the mess they have created. Better yet, why not make the Corporations pay taxes on the money they are sending out of the country in order to avoid paying taxes? According to a 2008 Senate report the United States loses an estimated $100 billion a year in tax revenue to tax havens in places like the Cayman Islands.
I would also like to know which of the richest 1% are complaining about a possible tax increase on the portion of their taxable income over a million dollars – not their income mind you, but their taxable income? I want names. Many people in that income bracket have publicly stated they do not mind the increase in taxes to help their fellow Americans (Bill Maher, President Clinton, President Carter, and Brad Pitt, to name a few). They said it on national television and in print. Where are the faces and names of the people opposed to helping their fellow human beings?
It is time for us to stand up for what is right again in this country. We should not even be considering legislation that does not cover every single American. It is time to get back to the America of the “Greatest Generation.” It is time to take care of our fellow human being. It is time for America to grow up.
At the same time Congress is wasting time with ridiculous resolutions (such as condemning what someone said or condemning another country’s policies) each month approximately half a million Americans are losing their jobs and with those jobs, their health care insurance. We the people want our government to REPRESENT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE - NOT THE HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY. Americans want our elected officials to stop wasting time and tax dollars on non-binding resolutions and demands for apologies and start focusing on things that matter.
If we are willing to spend trillions of dollars on war and hundreds of billions of dollars (and counting) to bail out corporations, we should be ashamed of ourselves if we do not cover every American citizen with this legislation aimed at reforming health care. What has happened to our priorities?