Summer's gone, school's back in. Holidays are around the bend. Yet change is on its inexorable path, waiting for no one. You've made an enormous impact, and the finish line for one historic change, health care reform, is in sight! Can you help make it the change you want to see?
You've all made thousands of calls, gotten your neighbors to sign tens of thousands declarations, you've sent thousands of emails. What did you achieve? For one, Sen. Maria Cantwell went from "no comment" on the public option, to public support for the public option. Sen. Patty Murray and many of our Representatives are also on board. Four of five committees have voted on a bill - and that has never, ever happened before.
Do you want to make sure they stand strong? The biggest hurdle is right up ahead. We expect the final of five committees, the Finance Committee, to vote on Tuesday. It could take a little longer - that seems to happen pretty often, right? But next is the full Senate and full House, then they have to reconcile their bills, then it's the final vote to send it to President Obama to sign.
You can imagine the bill you want will be signed. Go ahead. Imagine.
Then send this link out to everyone you know. Please.
今天是你的生日我的祖国Today is your birthday my motherland,China!
We need volunteers to help out at our Central Washington state fair booth in Yakima, Washington especially September 25 to October 2, 2009. The times available change very quickly but they will be between 11 am to 10 or 11 pm. You and your friend will each receive a FREE fair pass for each four hours volunteer time. So go to http://tinyurl.com/VOLUNTEErforYakimaDemocrats and click on the evens like to RSVP you and your friend NOW... Yakima County Democrats are now on Twitter at http;//www.twitter.com/ycdemocratsSo come follow us for all kind of fun information that you just can not live without.
Thanks Randall (509.654.9740 or 509.210.2701) or questions e-mail: ycdemocrats@q.com
I would like to thank the guests that showed up at our humble home last night, bringing gifts, food, plum wine and plum grappa...YUM! Stephanie Shellabarger, Lois and Steve Webster, Nicola Yarbrough, Joan Rosati , Daniel Herman who rushed home from work and my son Sean O'Brien who even managed to do his homework. We had a blast and the speech was amazing. Put it simply...I love my president and everything he is willing and does stand for. Namely we the people. On facebook, Traci Kelly of Equal Time Radio posted a Link about Rep Joe Wilson who heckled President Obama:
http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/09/10/obama-speech-disrupter-a-health-industry-darling/
Were we all not shocked by that? President Obama is always such a cool cucumber that is it very surprising when people are rude and even obnoxious about him. It is such a strange thing. My husband who is very quiet and humble himself said about Wilson "how do we fire that guy?" we need to get him out. At the time it felt like what he was doing was not only rude but illegal...
We sat through many speech of President Bush and he was not heckled. Democrats I believe as a rule are more polite.
The link that Traci submitted on Facebook points out that Rep Joe Wilson was paid thousands and thousands of dollars by the insurance industry as well as others. It is simply sickening. We see him as a "purchased" disrupter. Bought and paid for by the industries and not the people he is elected to help and protect. It makes us sick, except we cannot get sick because we cannot afford our health insurance premiums as a small contractor, self-employed.
Go Barack!
We know some progressives are upset because we will not have single payor option and immediately...but we recognize we want evolution and not revolution and President Obama is making headway, especially we hope into the hearts of middle America who have been the victims of fear mongering by people like Representative Joe Wilson.
Keeping Americans well and healthy should be considered a patriotic duty. A healthy and well America is a strong America. Please spread the word about Joe Wilson.
If we do not get a public option, we will pay billions of dollars in subsidies to private insurers only. 80% of people with no health insurance work, and rightfully, they will get subsidies.
Wrongfully, all that subsidy money paid with your taxes will go to private insurers, and pay for not only health care, but also for:
- Salaries of $20-$25 million for private insurance CEOs
- Perks like private jets, bonuses, and stock shares often worth over $100 million for those CEOs
No government employee gets millions of dollars a year, and perks and stock shares worth over $100 million.
. Your firefighter, police, highway patrol do not make $25 million a year.
. Your congressmen don’t make $25 million a year.
. Your President of the United States does not make $25 million/year.
. Your Medicare, VA and Medicaid bureaucrats do not make $25 million/year.
Bremerton for Health Care Reform:
Time to talk to neighbors, 1-to-1 again! Gather the troops and meet us Saturday, August 22nd at 10 a.m. to canvas the area around Evergreen Park. We will have a script, homemade clipboards, and a list of Independent voters. We’ll start with a quick training/review, and walk the neighborhood in pairs, to gather from 50-100 signed declarations from voters in favor of health care reform with a strong public option.
RSVP here:
http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/gpfcdf
Remember, we are the change we’ve been waiting for. The anti-health reform lobby is going strong, even though it is still a minority. It’s time we help demonstrate what most voters really want: reform, now, with a strong public option! Bring comfortable shoes, bottled water, a smile and a friend!
August 15, 2009
Dear Senator John McCain,
My name is Nelson Monastrial. I am a veteran who served in the Navy for 20 years. Thanks to the assistance from Veterans Administration, I am now a registered nurse and have been practicing for almost four years. I am originally from the Philippines.
I do not reside in Arizona but I am an American and that is why I am writing to you. You were my presidential candidate in 2000. I was at your rally one cold, drizzly evening in Bremerton in 2000. Unfortunately, a better candidate lost in that primary, and America and the American people suffered the consequence. However, in 2008, I supported and voted for Senator Obama. I believe, this time, the better candidate won.
I am getting very concerned with the lack of serious and meaningful engagement from the Republican Party. Of course, either the vacuum in the leadership or the current undefined leadership structure contributes to this. While the subject line says health care, the main purpose of my letter is to appeal to you to once again, with determined fervor, assume that leadership post, and be the rational voice of the Republican Party.
It is understandable for commentators to spin and misinform. But it is very frustrating, and dangerous in my opinion, when Mr. Grassley, a senior ranking Republican senator, makes remark like “pulling the plug on grandma.” Senator McCain, I hope that you agree that we need a healthcare reform. I hope that you can direct the Republican Party engage in a meaningful discussion regarding this issue.
I subscribe to your campaign slogan “Country First,” and I also hope that you mean it. Lastly, I applaud your daughter Meghan for standing up to the extremists in your party.
Sincerely yours,
Nelson Monastrial
To, President- Barack Obama Sir & Vice Prasident - Joe Biden Sir White House 101 Washington DC
**************************************************************************************Congratulations - Grate Festivel Shri Krishna Janmasthami ***** God Bliss You******************************************************************************************
Dear Madam, Hearty congratulations from Sumant Prasad and his family. Vice President & President honeble & your family are give grate festivel Shri Krishna Janmasthami of congratulations. Today grate festivel Shri Krishna Janmasthami in India. I hope me future in life to successfully with I pray to god for your success in upcoming future. Thanks & Regarding
SUMANT PRASADSociological Uttar Pradesh, INDIAID: sumantmeera@yahoo.co.in
if i may, a rebuttal. it feels like the election again . . .
this is how liberals paint big corporations--evil! yes, i believe in reform as i do pay insurance premiums for my families healthcare. but the way this administration is trying to rush through this legislation is wrong. consider the way these politicians rushed through the stimulus/spending bill without even reading all the writings on the bill was just plain stupid. the democrats and very few republicans who signed in to this won't accept the truth that the billions of dollars were just plain reckless spending that won't stimulate the economy. i have an open mind and i see when people are just blindly obedient to this president. they think that what he says is commandment from up high. economics 101 says if you don't have the money, don't spend beyond your means. this is what this administration is doing. yes, we can print more money but they don't have any value. my youngest child who has not earned a penny from working is already indebted because of what this administration is doing. the old talking point "i inherited the deficit" is getting old. every presidency had caused deficits to rise during his term. the point is, let's control it before it becomes unmanageable. trim the fat. stop these porks each politicians put in the bills.
after the great depression, regulatory safety checks were put in place to prevent another financial disaster. those checks were weakened overtime, and under george bush admistration, corporations were basically allowed to run amuck. well, maybe a little exaggerated. well, guess what? but of course, there are some who deny that we are in an economic crisis. now, obama is in a really difficult spot, there are these companies that are too big to fail; people who were responsible for the economic collapse need to stay and fix it because they are the one who understand it; to stimulate the economy, he needs to spend money the country does not have, but if he does not do anything, the economy is guaranteed to sink further; and things like that. of course, he can always cut tax for the rich, and i can wait for the trickle down. realize though that this is what we've already done. go to war and cut tax, brilliant! don't you think that that is worst than spending money that you don't have?
obama took over the presidency but didn't just inherited a deficit. he inherited a really f#&cked up country. obama hasn't been in office a year, bush had eight years to screw the country up, and i have news for you, he sure did a good job. one way to reduce the defict is to cook the book. if we don't include the iraq war expenses or don't fund medicare prescription drug, sure, we can have a somewhat balanced budget or a smaller deficit. it's like magic.
sure, we can talk about pork barrel spending or earmark but corporate welfare is a much bigger fish.
i agree that if we don't do anything to improve our current healtcare system (including denying healthcare to illegal aliens), we are maintaining the status quo. however, completely overhauling it to socialized it is again in the word of obama, would be "acting stupidly." should i pay into this "new" system that will include federal money going to abortion on demand? no way! i want obama to succeed because this is my country as well. but if his "change" is pushing this country to become a socialist/nanny state where the government will run my life and decisions and freedom, then i will speak out and criticize the actions. i won't sit idle and say he is doing the right thing for this country.
watching this so-called grassroot movement that is disrupting townhall meetings, there's a lot of them who look like medicare eligible. i wonder if they are willing to give up that socialized healthcare benefit? and those members of congress who oppose government-run healthcare, you think they'll be willing to give up their socialized healthcare benefit? makes me wonder even more, if it's good enough for them, why can't it be good enough for me? oh, i have to disclose, i'm under another socialized healthcare system. i'm a veteran.
heck, our constitution i swore to protect and defend is slowly being destroyed by the liberals. the constitution was founded with the idea of limited government so that big daddy won't infringe on our individual liberties. now, the government has its hands on about everything with the new plan to socialize medicine after taking over car businesses, insurance and banks. when is this going to stop? only if we, reasonable people, start speaking out. let's us remove our loyalty to pary or politics. we should take the power back to us. these politicians in washington think we are a bunch of ignorant people. they have become arrogant. they have forgotten they work for us and not the other way around. those who don't deserve to be representing us must be remove from their thrones and put there people who truly care about America and Americans. We are all Americans. Neither whites, black, asians, latinos, etc. i hate it when certain ethnic groups still use the race card. why do they use racial profiling as an excuse? none of these people living today have experienced slavery and yet when they speak as if they were there some centuries before.
i'm assuming that this is in reference to the recent arrest of a black harvard professor by a white police officer. the professor overreacted. the office acted stupidly. but funny you mentioned the constitution, i hope that when i start yelling in my own house that i don't get arrested. oh, did i mention that the officer filed a false police report? by the way, i'm pretty sure that george bush was the one who raped our constitution. here are some subtle clues, torture, due process and wiretaps.
in the beginning of the primary, obama wasn't my candidate because i felt that america is not ready for a black president. but what a pleasant surprise. i completely agree with you that there are some who exploit and over use the victim card. obama's speeches on race actually calls them out, and he stresses personal accountability and responsibility.
with all the commotion against obama, i'm not saying that you are, or am i talking in general term, but there is a big segment of the republicans/conservatives in which race is a factor. you would be very naive if you don't see it. i talked to one who flatly said that she doesn't like obama because he's black. and that is one too many.
one more thing, i think that there are still some people who are still alive today who lived through the civil right struggle and segregation, that wasn't some centuries ago. i, myself had some unpleasant experiences because of my race. amazing, isn't it? i applied to university of washington's nursing school in mid 1990. i was not accepted but was offered to apply again as a minority. i didn't. i felt that if i'm not good enough as a regular applicant, then i'm not. but i'm one of the fortunate ones, i'm thriving, just like you and the obama's, and the millions of others. and that's what makes america great, in spite of the sometimes uneven playing field, opportunity and the occasional overcompensation for past sins abound.
take care. god bless us.
let's say i'm from outer space, from the planet reason. landed on earth, just randomly. don't know anything about earth, don't know anything about humans, no clue what is going on here. then i was exposed to multiple gatherings, discussions, and debates regarding healthcare reform, and was asked to take sides. i don't have any idea what healthcare reform is. so i'm just going to base whom i'm siding with by how people on both sides behave. who do you think i'm siding with? remember, i'm from the planet reason.
and now, i bring you keith olbermann - http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/#32277034. he's back with a vengeance. don't miss the other segments, it'll give you the whole picture. then i challenge you to be that person from outer space.
i saw the episode yesterday just before going to work. and i can't wait to get home this morning so i can share this with you.
i don't really know the specifics in the reform bill, i guess one can read it in its entirety. but here's what i know, our healthcare system is broke. ideally, we'll find a perfect solution to fix it. but realistically, a perfect solution might be very difficult to find. now, are we going to let change/progress be the victim of perfection? because doing nothing is not an option. doing nothing is a lose-lose situation. well, i'll take that back, insurance industry is the winner if we don't do anything.
i don't think that illegal immigrants have been included in any of the equation as far as coverage or benefits, but i'm sure that they'll find a way to take advantage of the system, they're doing it now. also, we are already paying for the uninsured, illegal immigrant or not.
i mentioned that the insurance industry wins if we don't do anything, some don't even acknowledge that there is a problem, of course. but what is the insurance industry afraid of about public option. what is a little competition? that is what capitalism is all about in the first place, right?
i just think that there are things that shouldn't be for profit, and healthcare is one of them. but sure, we can still make money in healthcare but if we are spending outrageous amount and a good chunk of that is not healthcare related, and fraud and waste, there is something seriously wrong, and is not sustainable.
it's not only the repulican legislatures opposing the reform bill but a good number of democrats, it's politics as usual. but for you and me, and a great majority of americans, politics as usual is not, and is never, good enough. we need healthcare reform.
-----Original Message----- Subject: RE: This What MEDICARE Has Come To? I fully understood your message. However, what I cannot understand is why undocumented aliens were and are able to get benefits from medicare. Now this administration is inclined to give health insurance coverage to this people that makes the premium so expensive that is no longer affordable to ordinary working Americans. Ever since I came to America I've paid my taxes due to the gov't all these years but never depended on the gov't for any benefits. I've worked hard (double jobs) to earn an honest and decent income; whereas most of these people work on under-the-table-pay and never pay taxes. I've always believe that people recieved benefits because they have contributed to the system... not sucking the law-abiding Americans bone-dry. This is really unfair to Americans who have lost their jobs, lost their homes through foreclosures, and whose families are now out of health insurance coverage, too, because they've lost their jobs. I have not fully read the contents of the pending Bill yet, but it is all over broadcast and print media that this Obama Administration is inclined to providing health coverage to ALL twelve million illegal aliens. Other people, too, have other concerns of interest...coverage for Baby Boomers (including me) and Seniors. I just hope we will not be drag into our graveyard thru euthanasia, because we've been deprived, curtailed, controlled and/or reduced of health coverage to accommodate these illegal aliens. God Bless AMERICA..!
this is actually very funny. however, as a healthcare professional, in this particular fictional situation, the problem is not with medicare, but specific to st. agnes laboratory and to those who obtained and sent the specimens. and by the way, if testing for alzheimer's or hiv, your provider requires a biopsy, you may want to find another provider.
but let me address a valid issue here, would you like to pay for unnecessary duplicate expensive test? particularly, if you don't have health insurance and paying out of your own pocket. and if you have insurance, are you able to maintain your healthcare coverage that you need? not to mention being able to keep your insurance. and what happens when you lose your insurance?
i was actually in a get-together last night, and was talking to a retired nurse. she said that her husband had a hip replacement paid for by medicare, all $53,000. one interesting thing she said, and her husband was there and agreeable. she said that there should be some co-pay with that expense. one thing we wondered about, how much cheaper that procedure be if unrelated cost is eliminated?
congress is taking a summer break, our representatives will go back to their own respective districts and talk to their constituents about healthcare reform. please be informed! tv commercials don't count.
i am for healthcare reform. i am for universal coverage. i am for public option. i am for single payer. if we are spending six times more on healthcare than everybody else in the world, we expect to have the best healthcare system but we don't, and we're not even close to the top.
i believe that healthcare is a right, just like education. what else can be better for a country than smart and healthy citizens. sure, there are a lot of people concerned about obama extending the reach of government. and the bureaucracy, but i don't think it's about big or small government, it's about effective government. effective government can be an oxymoron, and i agree, particularly the previous administration. but i strongly believe that it's not politics as usual with obama, and as a result, we'll have a better and effective government.
if only america can have a beer summit. well, i'm not advocating for alcohol consumption.
-----Original Message-----
Subject: This What MEDICARE Has Come To? This medicare problem..... must be revamped and reformed. Hope husbands similarly situated can't find their way home. Husbands, it's a big sacrifice..!!! Medicare is no good..!!!
MEDICARE IN A NUTSHELLThe phone rings and the lady of the house answers, 'Hello.''Mrs. Sanders, please.' 'Speaking.' 'Mrs. Sanders, this is Doctor James at Saint Agnes Laboratory. When your husband's doctor sent his biopsy to the lab last week, a biopsy from another Mr.Sanders arrived as well. We are now uncertain which one belongs to your husband. Frankly, either way the results are not too good.' 'What do you mean?' Mrs. Sanders asks nervously. 'Well, one of the specimens tested positive for Alzheimer's and the other one tested positive for HIV. We can't tell which is which.' 'That's dreadful! Can you do the test again?' questioned Mrs.. Sanders. 'Normally we can, but Medicare will only pay for these expensive tests once and once only.' 'Well, what am I supposed to do now?' 'The folks at Medicare recommend that you drop your husband off somewhere in the middle of town. If he finds his way home, don't sleep with him.'
I've seen our health care system up close over the past year.
I'm fortunate to have the finest medical care in the world. But I've seen far too many people unable to obtain the care they need because they can't afford it.
That's wrong. It's got to change, and it's about to change.
We're fighting for legislation in Congress to fix our broken health care system. Under President Obama's leadership, Republicans and Democrats are working together to write a bill that will guarantee good care at long last to everyone who needs it.
But we'll need strong nationwide support to produce the 60 Senate votes that will probably be required to avoid a filibuster and actually pass the bill. I need your support. Please sign our petition for quality, affordable health care for every American:
http://www.democraticmajority.com/healthcare
Our legislation includes five major provisions:We give Americans better choices for health insurance. We follow a simple principle: If you like the coverage you have now, you can keep it. If you don't like your current coverage, our bill offers new and more affordable options. We'll negotiate with insurance companies to keep costs low, make it illegal for companies to deny coverage because of pre-existing conditions, and give Americans the option to enroll in a public insurance program.
We reduce the cost of health care. We'll crack down on fraud and abuse, and we'll reduce red tape to keep costs down. We also make sure doctors use the most effective therapies to treat illnesses, so patients aren't paying extra for treatments that don't work.
We put new emphasis on prevention. The best way to treat a disease is to prevent it from ever striking, or to catch it at an early stage. By giving every American access to affordable health care, we'll enable millions of people to be screened for diabetes, heart disease, cancer and depression.
We bring more help to the elderly and the disabled. We make it easier for these Americans to live independently. We help pay for home upgrades such as wheelchair ramps, and for regular home care to enable people to live in their own homes, not nursing homes.
Finally, we develop a better health workforce, delivering modern and responsive care. We invest in doctors, nurses, and other health professionals to meet the needs of patients more effectively for years to come.These changes won't be easy to enact -- but we can't afford to wait, and we can't afford to fail.
Show your support for health reform that will benefit all our citizens, reduce the financial burdens on our nation's people and businesses, and put our health care industry on a strong and sustainable basis for the future:
I'll be working hard to pass this bill in the weeks ahead, and I hope you'll be there with me.
Thank you so much for the very real difference you can make in achieving this great goal we share.
Sincerely,
Senator Edward M. Kennedy
