The Dems are truly a disaster at this point. They are eating each other alive. And it is really fun to watch. Now if this monstrosity can finally be killed off, maybe they can sit down and include the Republicans and work on a bill which will bring about some real reform and not wreck the whole system.

Well, Anon, the Senate Democrats HAVE included the Republicans in work to craft a bill. Unfortunately for most of us, the Republicans only want this bill to fail. That it is failing so spectacularly is just an added bonus to those who prefer business interests to those who prefer humans’ interests.
Waiting for Republicans to come up with ideas for this bill? We’ve already seen what their “ideas” are; pretty much business as usual, with less protections for people, if possible.
So we’ll go with our current insanity, and every year, those who believe we have a wonderful system will sacrifice the equivalent of 11 sets of 9/11 victims to the gods of “healthcare”. I only hope that one of those isn’t among your family or friends. I’ve already lost a sweet sister-in-law to the current system.

cx, I’m truly sorry that you lost your sister-in-law. I just lost my sister after a short battle with cancer. She fought hard and had excellent medical care. A system like what the Dems want would likely have afforded her much less care.
But I have to disagree with you. The Republicans have been shut out by Harry Reid et al. That is, according to all Republicans, unless you have information that I do not have…that Republicans have actually been part of the negotiations.
As to business as usual, the video in this post seems to accuse the prez of being the one wanting to move forward with business as usual and being in the pockets of big insurance and pharma.

cx, I’m truly sorry that you lost your sister-in-law. I just lost my sister after a short battle with cancer. She fought hard and had excellent medical care. A system like what the Dems want would likely have afforded her much less care.
But I have to disagree with you. The Republicans have been shut out by Harry Reid et al. That is, according to all Republicans, unless you have information that I do not have…that Republicans have actually been part of the negotiations.
As to business as usual, the video in this post seems to accuse the prez of being the one wanting to move forward with business as usual and being in the pockets of big insurance and pharma.

Sorry about the double post. This comment system needs reform.

If both the Left and Right are P.O.’d, then Obama is doing exactly what he should be doing. My feeling is that immaturity and unrealistic expectations are the primary reason for the Left’s sudden disillusionment. Ed Schulz may be a decent human being, but his politics are ridiculous.
If health care reform fails, as well it might, I will still give Obama credit for trying something so important and having the belief in our Democratic process and the guts to let it play out.
His lessening popularity in the polls is understandable. There was no where to go but down, given the adulation and hero-worship, while, in the real world, leadership is hard. Especially in this economy.

I personally believe that Obama IS a sell-out. As a progressive I have watched him veer steadily to the right ever since he became President. His increase in the number of troops, his keeping of the more draconian laws from the Bush adminstration, etc.
But this health care bill is an abomination! It is a total sell out to the insurance industry! They will rake in billions more and people who can’t afford insurance are going to be forced to buy it under penalty of law. Excuse me but this is insane. I have given up on Obama and will vote for the Green party from now on.

Well, Anon, my sister-in-law got no effective health care for her tumor. But that’s what happens when you don’t have a lot of money, and don’t have health insurance.
And that’s been OK for much too long for too many people in our country. She was just one of around 3,000 people that month, just like every month since, who died to the benefit of the health care insurance industry. That, as you might know, is the system that the Republicans have supported faithfully for years. And Democrats have been trying to fix for well over a decade.
As far as Republicans wanting to “help”, go read their plan for health care reform. It reads like what we have now. Or go look at what the Republicans passed during the decade we had a Republican Congress, or what the Republicans passed during the six years of our most recent Republican Presidency and Republican Congress.
I’ll stick with the view that Republicans don’t want to heal our country, because they do nothing to make it happen.

cx said:
“As far as Republicans wanting to “help”, go read their plan for health care reform. It reads like what we have now. Or go look at what the Republicans passed during the decade we had a Republican Congress, or what the Republicans passed during the six years of our most recent Republican Presidency and Republican Congress.”
I could not agree more. The Republicans had plenty of opportunities to do something about health care reform. Instead, they sat on their hands. They will never, never do anything. I was disillusioned with the Democratic Party after decades as a Democrat, and so I signed up for the Republican Party, partly in memory of my father, who was a Republican back when it was still “the party of adults.”
It took me only a couple of years as a registered Republican to realize that there is no hope. After the past 8 years, 6 of which saw a Republican majority in both Houses of Congress and the Presidency, I’ve realized that the Republican leadership has learned nothing, zilch, nada from their mistakes. They haven’t changed their positions one iota, and didn’t live up to their “principles” when they had the chance. There may be individual members of the GOP who have their good points, but, taken as a whole, they stink.

Alicia, I tend to agree with you about the failures of the Republicans, even as I admit I have voted for them in every election since I was young and stupid and cast my very first vote for Jimmy Carter. I’ve repented for voting for the worst president in modern history…until Obama.
But, the Democrats are significantly worse. And, third party candidates have been a waste of a vote. I am a conservative first. Many Rs have abandoned conservatism and have disappointed though. Bush was in many ways not a conservative, though I agreed with many other things he did. But fiscally he was not. But the alternatives to Bush were far worse. Just look at the lunatic Gore and see what a disaster he would have been.
The current Ds are truly a disaster. For my views of the constitution and government, they are the perfect bad storm. If they do ram this legislation through, I think we will see a seismic shift and many of them will be booted. I’m still looking for true conservatives to lead.

you won’t find them in the republican party… they no longer exist.
and as a lifelong independent who has always had an ear to politics, you couldn’t be more wrong on the current congress. it is most definitely the republicans who can’t govern. they’re real good at lying and spreading misinformation for pure political gain, despite the will of their constituents, but they have zero solutions.
the democrats in congress are a diverse group, one that more closely reflects the makeup of this country… it’s natural that they would have the disagreements that they are having. what is unfortunate is that the republican party (all 40 in the senate) represent only a small fraction of the makeup of the country, and a radical fascist one at that. if they more closely reflected their constituents, there would be a good portion who supported current legislation.
al gore would have been a blessing over the disaster that bush rained down upon this country (starting with the terrorist attack under bush’s watch).