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OpEdNews Op Eds    H2'ed 9/13/11

The Republican Vision of Healthcare

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The other revealing moment last night immediately followed the Romney exchange. Wolf Blitzer asked Ron Paul a hypothetical situation of a 30 year old healthy man who decides to not purchase health insurance even though he has a good job because he figures he is healthy and why spend the money? Then of course he gets extremely ill that requires intensive treatment for six months -- who should pay? Here is the exchange:

 

PAUL: But what he should do is whatever he wants to do, and assume responsibility for himself. My advice to him would have a major medical policy, but not be forced --

BLITZER: But he doesn't have that. He doesn't have it, and he needs intensive care for six months. Who pays?

PAUL: That's what freedom is all about, taking your own risks. This whole idea that you have to prepare and take care of everybody --

(APPLAUSE)

BLITZER: But Congressman, are you saying that society should just let him die?

PAUL: No. I practiced medicine before we had Medicaid, in the early 1960s, when I got out of medical school. I practiced at Santa Rosa Hospital in San Antonio, and the churches took care of them. We never turned anybody away from the hospitals.

 

Once again a stark disconnect and heartless understanding of people. That is the GOP vision for taking care of the neediest in society. This sick and dying man should "take responsibility for himself." Freedom is all about "taking risks." This is nothing more than social Darwinism at work. The strong survive and the ill without insurance, well, they die. Thins out the herd. Notice that Blitzer tries to get him to see it from the position of a society but Paul reduces it to an individual level. He took a risk, now he dies. In the GOP vision for America, everything comes down to individual choice -- nothing is societal. Once again, social Darwinism at work. And the notion that the church is going to somehow take care of this man is completely inane. Maybe in the 1960s the costs of medicine allowed such, but not anymore. Once again a completely detached and heartless view of people. It was sad to see it coming from Paul, who otherwise had a strong night.

 

But perhaps the most disgusting moment came as Wolf Blitzer asked the question about whether society should just let this man die. The audience erupted with people shouting "yes!" That is the end result of tea party politics. When you convince people that their plight in life is always someone else's fault. That poor people are their mortal enemy and they are destroying America. You perform open heart surgery on a society and then walk away half way through because their insurance lapsed. But that's ok because in the GOP vision of healthcare in America you don't need a heart anymore. Obviously you do not need a brain. And the people who like to shout yes at the prospect of the death of someone else clearly are cowards with no courage. In modern day political America, we simply aren't in Kansas anymore. I just want to click my heels three times and go home"before it gets foreclosed that is.

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Anthony Wade, a contributing writer to opednews.com, is dedicated to educating the populace to the lies and abuses of the government. He is a 53-year-old independent writer from New York with political commentary articles seen on multiple (more...)
 

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