Alright my Brothers And Sisters, the word has come down, and I doubt if many, if any of us are surprised. Once again the public option has been sacrificed, in the hopes of getting enough votes to pass Some kind of health care reform bill. And I can hear the sounds of outrage and betrayal from the ones out there who have more hope than sense. And I'm sure that there will be renewed calls to kill the bill etc. Well you know what? It’s time to look to a new source for inspiration about how Progressives should proceed.
Athletes.
Yep you heard me right. Athletes
I mean let's face it, athletes are kind of by the very nature of what they do, not real bright. They play in the rain, the snow, the blistering heat. They play their hearts out even when they are down by such a vast margin that they have seemingly no hope of winning. Hell they play hurt. And I don't just mean stitch in your side, stubbed your toe hurt. These dumb mother fuckers play with concussions, and broken bones. But they do not quit. They do not wait until conditions are just perfect to play. They do not stop playing when Everything seems against them. They Just Don’t Stop!
And that's what Progressives need to start doing. We need to reserve talk of bill killing for those times that there is absolutely nothing to be gained from a bill passing. Most of the time we are going to have to accept that pretty much every bill that is created is not going to go far enough, be Progressive enough to suit us. And that's fine, there's nothing wrong with that. But what we need to do is support the most Progressive bills we can find, even if it is only one percent Progressive. And then when it’s passed we keep the pressure on to make it better.
Believe me, I understand how awful the final bill is likely to be. And I'm not dismissing the possibility that in the end we will still need to mobilize to get it killed depending on what other concessions Democrats make to the Regressives. But if we advocate for the final bill to die, we need to understand that means that we start all the way back at the beginning. It's not going to be easier next time. In fact it will be harder next time, because nothing fails like failure. And frankly as awful as the final bill might be, right now there is one powerful reason to support it.
THE REPUBLICANTS WANT IT DEAD!
I mean seriously, think about it for a moment. Now everyone with eyes to see knows that Democrats are largely in the hip pocket of the corporations. The much hated individual mandate proves that. But if Democrats are in the hip pocket well Republicants are deep in the crotch, working the shaft and cradling the balls.
Democrats for all their sins and failings do want to see exclusions for pre existing conditions ended, they do want ceilings on fees, they do want an end to coverage caps and gaps. But because they are in bed with corporations they want to entice the insurance companies into going along by offering them up a juicy gift. Us. Well it sucks, to be sure. But consider the alternative.
The Republicants Don't Give A FLYING FUCK about us. You see they don't want an individual mandate, not because they care about the people not being burdened but because they don't care, Period! Because they don't want there to be Any Reform At All! Limits on rates? They don't want them! An end to the use of preexisting conditions to deny coverage? They don't want it! An end to annual or yearly caps on coverage? They don't want it! Plus they'd be more than thrilled to dismantle Medicare and Medicaid. And if they get their way, we will be left with nothing. Understand that. We won't be left with a crappy and imperfect bill. We won't be left with weak reforms that we have to bust our asses to improve. No, we will be left with JACK SHIT! If the Republicants have their way.
There's a great moment in Star Trek Three: The Search For Spock that is apropos. Captain Kirk has rigged the Enterprise to self destruct and transported down to a top secret experimental planet known as Genesis. The Klingon Commander Kruge has discovered this and has been taunted by Kirk into beaming him up. Kirk tries to get Kruge to beam up Spock who has been freshly re-incarnated without his essence. Kruge says no, and Kirk asks why, and Kruge responds simply. "Because you wish it."
Well when asked why you still support Health Care Reform simply say, "because The Republicans Want To Kill It."
Keep The Faith My Brothers And Sisters!
(This article originally appeared at The One About...)