The debased and trivial dialog on health care is a direct product of some major health insurers and other health interests employing those who specialize in debased and trivial dialog - the lobbying firms mentioned.
Do the leaders of these corporations actually think that they can sway public opinion with behavior that most find offensive? Have they completely given up on negotiating a piece of the health care market from the Obama administration? Have they reached a level of incompetence where their corporate governance starts to look like depraved indifference?
The tactics of disrupting town hall meetings is very strange and extremely risky. This is about all the companies have left, other than the normal legalized bribery through campaign donations.  It's all the more surprising that they're calling on lobbying groups that came up with the failed Tea Bagging events. Why would this effort be any more effective or end any differently?
What industry leaders know but won't admit is this -- they've already lost the battle. A credible argument for single payer health is being made. Within the coalition supporting expanded health care, the clearest message comes from the single payer, nationalized health care faction.  While it has been a struggle to put single payer and universal health care on the table, the idea has broad public support. Private health insurance may not go away this year but it's on the way out. The "industry" will be finished in the near to mid term.
What is the response from the insurance industry? Denigrate the dialog. Disrupt meetings with consistently rude behavior. Massively misrepresent the facts and analysis on the overall program of universal health care. Most stunning, the out of control disruptors present violent images aimed at the representatives they're trying to persuade. It's a pathetic display of the very worst leadership imaginable. As a result, it justifies the very worst interpretations of the motives and actions of these companies.
Who would trust these health insurance companies with their medical care and that of their families?
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