I was going to wait a few days before checking settled winger reaction to the SCOTUS holding the Affordable Care Act constitutional. The big theme emerged immediately and had oozed even into FB postings of moderate sorts by this morning.
Pic note: the clown art is adapted from an image at allaboutclowns.com. It did not seem to claim rights, but that's a fun site and it has some nice art.
The clown parade of pundits has been chanting variations on the easily refuted broccoli argument from the bench by Justice Scalia and iterated in the dissenting opinion. The double-hitting gist is that requiring all Americans who can afford it to have health insurance instead of sticking the larger public with their bills when they need treatment is a gateway. It will lead to the government or even independent agencies (and by extension companies) forcing citizens to buy products or pay fees for failure to do so.
Some winger bloggers and commentators are even tossing up straw men, like if you don't bowl a certain number of strings a year to support your local alley, you might have to pay a license fee.
As absurd as Scalia's petulant rant was (not much improved in the lengthy dissent yesterday), Dems have to deal with this. Even such asinine, illogical statements already have a life like the early and late birther arguments. I suspect that plain folk who did not follow the case, did not originally understand the ACA and did not read the nearly 200 page ruling went with the sensational and simple when it appeared. This gives talking points like musing on weather.
It won't hurt for Dems to point out the simple, but in this contrast true, example of say driving licenses or auto insurance. They may not like to pay fees for those or have to pass a test and get a license, but they have to. That's government mandated personal responsibility where it's needed.
Moreover though, this insidious meme needs quick and lasting response. We can't stop those who hate all things progressive, all things Obama, all things equitable from ranting. However, framing this honestly and simply is necessary and starting immediately.
1 comment:
You'll have to find a much, much better example to use than that of automobile insurance- that one is so easily refuted. One does NOT have to buy automobile insurance to live in the United States. In fact, tens of millions of Americans do not have automobile insurance because they do not have automobiles. Ditto drivers licenses. There is absolutely no government mandate requiring you to have either one unless you go driving.
The health insurance, on the other hand, you must have just to exist within our boundaries. If you're alive, and in the US, you must buy- you're not even allowed to self-insure, like you can with automobile insurance... Bill Gates could buy and sell most insurance companies, but he will have to buy a policy like anyone else.
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