Are the angry protests at all these town hall meetings part of an organized conspiracy funded by the health care lobbyists or a real, honest-to-God grassroots campaign that reflects honest American anger over the out-of-control cost of medical care and the general state of things today?
A bit of both, I think.
The protests, no doubt, started because some fatcat lobbyists in Washington paid a consulting firm to organize a phony "grassroots" effort to stop Obama’s health care reform.
But the organized effort also sparked simmering anger in the populace and things got out of hand.
Members of Congress and President Barack Obama face an angry, divided nation that is tired of rhetoric and empty promises. Add old-fashioned prejudice to that mix and you’ve got a recipe for angry crowds wherever you go.
Some, like the illiterate loon who got in Sen. Arlen Specter’s face at a recent town hall meeting are driven by misinformation and political propaganda generated by opponents of reform but many others are simply pissed-off ordinary citizens who can pay their health insurance bills and want help in finding a way out of this mess.
Sadly, as always happens in politics, even in Obamaland, the reality of health care reform is a far cry from what was promised and what is being said.
Obama the change politicians quickly morphed into Obama the deal-making President who cut back-room pacts with health care lobbyists who wanted the concept of health care reform gutted.
They got their way and Obama’s flip-flops just add fuel to the voter anger fire. As the true cost of the bastardized plan grows, the chance for any real reform shrinks.
All we have left is yet another flawed piece of legislation crafted by committee, compromise and political payoffs.
When reform becomes just more of the same, the people see through the charade and anger erupts. It doesn’t help when liars like Sarah Palin spread crap about "death panels" that don’t exist but when you take a hard look at the health care compromise that is emerging you see it is possible for America’s older population to get lost in the mix.
Political professionals tell candidates they should never, ever, mess with any proposal that negatively impacts America’s seniors. The old folks vote and they most of the time they vote with their anger.
But they aren’t the only ones who are pissed. Anger controls the health care debate now and very little constructive ever comes out of anything when people get mad.
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