I enjoy politics because I like the idea of working together to make the world a better place. Sometimes I like to think about what that place would look like, and daydream about my own personal version of utopia. I imagine living in a nice middle class neighborhood where everybody gets a decent education, quality affordable healthcare, a living wage, good public transportation, a clean environment and everybody gets along with each other more or less. Yeah I know it sounds kinda sappy, but I'm willing to bet a lot of you have a vision of what a more perfect world would look like.
The other day I went to a healthcare town hall meeting in my area, and as I was observing some of the tea party people doing their thing, and it got me thinking. What does their personal version of utopia look like? What is their end game?
Rep. David Wu was holding the meeting in a large room at a local hospital. When I got to the meeting place there was a huge crowd of people outside and one of the security people told me that the hall had been full over two and a half hours before the event started. Even though it was pretty clear that I wasn't going to get in, I stuck around to get a look at the crowd and take some pictures.
The pro reformers vastly outnumbered the tea party people, after all this is "The People's Republic of Portland", but there was still a vocal minority of them around and they were not happy. One of the first tea party people I saw had a big handwritten sign and was shaking his fist in the air.
He was telling everyone who would listen that everyone in the government was " A bunch of crooks". Indeed he seemed to be protesting not only the heathcare plan, but the very existence of a government at all. This deep distrust and disdain for government seemed to be a theme with them.
Is this what their version of utopia would be like? Do they really want a world where there is no government and the amount of social order you are entitled to is limited to what you can pay for?
As I moved through the crowd I ran in to another man who was in a heated argument with a couple of pro reform people.
He was arguing that there was no way that we could possibly insure everybody because we don't have enough doctors and he didn't want to wait for treatments and that we would have rationing. I thought to myself that I would gladly wait a few extra days to see a doctor if it meant one of the 18,000 people who die every year for a lack of insurance could live. His argument was one that I would hear over and over from the anti reform activists. It boils down to "I've got mine, screw you!" As I walked away from him I wondered if this was part of his vision of the future, a world where everybody is out for themselves and has no regard or empathy for anyone else.
At this point I came upon a couple of younger guys. One of them was arguing with someone that he liked his insurance just fine and he could pay for it just fine because he "didn't have an Iphone". Apparently he thought the uninsured are just lazy and irresponsibly spending their money on Iphones instead of health insurance. It amazed me that it never seemed to occur to him that his circumstances could change any day and he could find himself sick and without insurance in the bat of an eye. He and his friends were holding signs that said " I Hope Obama Fails".
Is this the kind of world they want? Do they really want a world where those that don't look and think like them are only worthy of failure? I admit, I never liked Bush that much, but even at my worst I never hoped that he would be a failure. I always hoped that things would work out, no matter how much I doubted they would.
Some of the protesters seemed very concerned that if healthcare passes someone might get something for free. In their utopia will they leave the poor, homeless and immigrants to die in the streets if they get sick or injured?
I saw one guy carrying around a handmade sign that simply said "The 9-12 Project".
Why do they seem almost nostalgic for that day? I remember that day as being one of the most depressing and hollow days of my life, yet they seem to long for it. In their perfect world is every day like 9-12?
So what does it all add up to? As near as I can tell they want a world where they live in a closed off, heavily armed and secured gated community with people who look and think just like them. In this world everything would be privatized and nothing free or communal. There would be no police, fire dept., schools, or parks available to anyone that couldn't pay for them, and there would be no social contract to provide for the poor, sick, disabled, or elderly.
Have they really thought this through? Even if you became the richest most powerful person in this tea party world would it really be a good place to live? Would you and your family really have a good life? I'm sure the teapeople want the same things out of life that a lot of us do. I'm sure they love their families and have done good things in their lives. But it disturbs me how selfish and devoid of empathy they can be.
The thing that comforted me the most was looking out at the much larger crowd of pro reform people gathered there. If they were any indication, the tea party people aren't going to get to decide what our future looks like.