"Keep the guvmint out of my medicare!": Insurance Lobby Organizes Elderly Hecklers

turns out, that lady is a Lyndon LaRouche supporter, a member of the U.S. Labor party and 7 time democrat party candidate.

"Protesters had greeted attendees of the meeting, organized by the Democratic Town Committee of Dartmouth, by distributing pamphlets criticizing Frank's push for reform and Obama's plan. Images of Obama as Hitler were visible on several of the pamphlets seen in videos of the event. Some protesters held posters that read, "It's the economy stupid, stop the spending," the Associated Press reported.

Ray Medeiros, chairman of the Dartmouth Democratic Party, said the pamphlets came from LaRouche supporters, and that the woman who ticked off Frank was one of about 20 who came to the meeting. Brock Cordiero, the regional chair of the Massachusetts GOP, said Brown was passing out pamphlets from a table with a LaRouche PAC banner on it before the town hall meeting and that he and Medeiros spent a fair bit of time during the meeting trying to contain the disruptions the LaRouche supporters were causing. "They were there to cause problems," he said.

Cordiero, concerned attendees might mistake LaRouche supporters for Republicans, said he went out of his way at the meeting to repudiate the Hitler-Obama imagery in remarks to Frank. "I saw media reports there was Republican booing and jeering," said Cordiero Thursday. "That's not the case."

To those who interrupted Frank's remarks during the event, the congressman from Massachusetts jabbed, "Disruption never helps your cause. ... It just looks like you're afraid to have rational discussion."

 

no worse than the democrats who had bush portrayed as hitler.. and who can forget michael moore.. let's just make up a bunch of stuff and call it a documentary

 

my intent isn't to justify one bad behavior with another, it doesn't. But only to shed some light that it's not one sided.

 

Hey America;

the NHS rocks
your system sucks

hope this helps

-John

 

Don't get me started....Bowling For Columbine was painful to watch.. Except maybe the Marylin Manson part, the rest was erratic as hell.

Oh and I love how people blame the wrong people for economic downturns. And has no one pointed out that stimulus plans = fail? We tried it back in the 30s, it failed...Ironically Hitler's plan worked out, and he made a really powerful Germany. If any of the presidents were actually like Hitler, we wouldn't be so poor.

 

I think Anthony Weiner is my new hero. This is a great video clip from Joe Scarborough's show:

 

Although I hate Scarborough. This is awesome, Weiner is indeed an intelligent person.

 

Where are these "facts" such as no R&D and not being able to go to a preferred hospital stated?

 

Also with the NHS you can choose which hospital you want to go for treatments, and as long as the hospital isn't full or w/e then its your choice.

As well as all this money spent on research, there are also a lot of charities like cancer research UK (there are a LOT of charities, the have high street shops over here selling donated items given to them by the public), i don't know what the situations like over in the US, but charity wise we have a lot, and spend a lot on them. Not to mension Children in Need and Comic Relief that both seem to happen once a year and take over bbc one (although we have Sports Relief sometimes too). Although these arent strictly medical, (although a lot gets spent on medical aid) they take over BBC1 for a full night, and in 2008 children in need raised £20,991,216 raised by the end of its broadcast.

So it seems most of the extra money going into these health insurance companies from my perspective, is going to line there own pockets and not helping out those who need it. America still seems to have the wild west mentality of everyman for himself and if you find the gold its yours and no one elses, yes its a land of great oppotunity but its the 21st century, surely some of these people with more money than they can ever spend on themselves who just sit on it getting interested and investing it to make more money until they die at which point there spoilt children and 25 year old wive squable over who's money it is so they can spend it all can give a little more tax to help out the poor, hell they don't even need to, just the rich smucks who run the insurance companies need to find a new profession and stop trying to destroy a political debate and all hope of change for the better (yes, i am from northern england, my grandad did fight in a war and work down the mines and play in a brass band, and i love the health system we have in this country).

Yes both sides on this arguement probably employed underhand tactics at some time or another, and rigth now we are only focusing on those on the right who are trying to stop this perticular debate, but as far as i can see from this side of the pond, theres no disadvantages from adoping a UK style system (althought thats not even on the table over there), or cheaper health insurance for all, the arguements about medical research and choice are bull plop, either think of better arguements or flame me.

/end rant.

 

here's a good overlay, and it's factual not some guy putting his opinion on it.. we are not europe- it takes on average 800 million, close to a billion, to develop a new drug.. you can see our r&d is alot like software, 17 billion was spent on r&d in 2005 alone and they invest more than 5 times more in r&d than an average manufacturing firm

these are numbers you can't match with nhs.. plus r&d on drugs for a rare condition- we can kiss that goodbye under government.. I know you guys are happy with what you have- but again it's not the same level.. people who want to put it up there, that's nice but it's not true!

http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/76xx/doc7615/10-02-DrugR-D.pdf

 

I don't know how much money is spent by the US on drugs but the NHS spent £10.6 billion on drugs in 07-08. I don't get your argument that drug r&d would stop because you have a socialist health care. The drugs are bought on the open market just the same and the drug companies are free to charge what they like for them and are free to research what ever treatments they like the only difference is the NHS is one of the largest singe drug purchasers in the world so they get some volume discount.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7737027.stm

 

I concede to you that you spend more (i never contested that) and that rare and DIFFICULT TO CURE conditions, of which im sure there are a lot, would get a lot less attention over here than over there where insurance compainies could charge megadollars to people who needed the treatment to make a profit from producing it (then that company has a full 20 years of exclusivity to make there money back + profits under patient laws) and that doesn't happen over here.

Surely though your own government can fund research as part of its change to health care, pharmaceutical companies will still get profits and fund research anyway, without the insurance middle men being in the way taking a cut, they might even make more money as it won't only be the rich that will be able to afford these treatments, but everybody who needs them.

 

Question: is there anyone in this thread that opposes a socialist health system in the US?

 

In the US the fire and police are basically socialised anyways. So why not healthcare?

 

Healthcare is already partially socialized in the US. I am opposed to the further socialization of it and would undo the existing socialist policies.

 

Why?

 

I too would like to know.

 

I believe that the free market capitalist system has served this country in every facet of our society much better than our attempts at socialism. We have examples of fully socialized medicine in the states (Mass, Hawaii, Tenn) and it has not accomplished any of the subscribed goals. To me it simply comes down to a matter of choice.

If you can make socialism work in your society, that's great. I see no evidence that Americans can. Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security are all on the brink of becoming bankrupt and they just released that our 10year deficit went from $7.1Trillion to $9Trillion. Our government has zero dicipline when it comes to spending money and running large programs. The cars for clunkers program recently done was a simple rebate program that bloomed from $1Billion to $3 Billion and only 10% of the money has been paid out after 30 days when it was promised in 10 days. Car dealerships have been running programs like that for decades and have it down to a science. Our postal service is now broke and the president is holding up private company competitors like FedEx and UPS as heroes.

It's not so much that I think socialism is wrong, I don't have any faith in a US central federal government to run anything that has a private market application, successfully.

What I don't get is why it bothers my friends in the EU so much that we don't want socialism. Our rejection of it is not a rejection of the people that adopt it. What difference does it make if we adopt it or not?

That's why I like our federalist system, states can adopt these policies if they wish, many do, and allows others to make their choice. California has an economy the size of some EU countries so there is no reason why they couldn't adopt it policy for policy.

 

What bothers me is when i see people without medical care anywhere on the planet, especially in industrialised places like the US that spend much more than anyone else in health care and have a health care system that is inferior to the one in Cuba.

Question: Would you prefer a free market alternative to your military, law and fireman services? Why? Why not?

 

Took the words right out of my mouth.