tough crowd?
from the new york times, monday september 21:
"Mr. Obama is not usually one to avoid high-risk interviews or dodge hostile crowds. He was the first sitting president to appear on “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno,” ... "
so leno is now a "high-risk interview" or has a "hostile crowd"? now that's funny.
the above quote was in a story regarding obama's record 5 sunday am interviews pushing his healthcare agenda. most of the interviewers tossed softball questions. kudos, however, to george stephanopoulos. he tried to challenge the president about the "tax" under the house and senate plans for people who are able to afford insurance but choose not to get it. as you can imagine, this is a problem because obama promised to raise no taxes of any kind for those making under $250,000 a year. here's another good analysis of it. it's almost as confusing as clinton's definition of "is." basically, it's not a tax because he says it's not? even though the bill says it is and the irs would be the ones collecting it? as pointed out in the ap piece, of course the tax issue is already moot with the passage of schip which raised tobacco taxes and predominantly affects those making less than a quarter mil. and as a refresher, i'm getting tired of the car insurance analogy. we can opt out of paying car insurance by not having a car--a way of life many people in this country live. the only way to opt out of a health insurance "tax" is by not making any money or being low-income which isn't exactly a motivating policy.
2 comments:
So, what is your personal opinion, working in the health-care field? Do you think people should be required to carry health insurance?
I wasn't convinced initially, but then about two years ago our niece's boyfriend, who is in his early 20s, got drunk and dove into a swimming pool at a party. Now he is a quadraplegic. He would have had health coverage through his job with the state of TN, but he was too cheap to pay for it -- thought he was young and invincible. So now Kentucky Medicaid is responsible for picking up the tab. He was young, healthy and could have easily afforded insurance -- it wouldn't have been a financial strain. I feel sure his insurance would have covered better treatment at the Shepherd Center or Patricia Neal or somewhere, as well, which he doesn't have under Medicaid. So that got me thinking more about these issues a while back. I hate to be this way, but it also irks me to be hit up all the time for "fundraisers" for his "medical bills." Especially when I see so many people in my job who really didn't have the choice to carry insurance.
Sorry to ramble on your blog.
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