On Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court handed President Barack Obama a major victory when it, in effect, validated the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act, commonly called Obamacare.
In summary, the Court ruled by a narrow 5-4 margin that the centerpiece of the law, the "individual mandate" requiring every American to have health insurance by 2014, was constitutional as a tax, though it was not allowed under the Constitution's Commerce Clause. The ruling has the effect of allowing the government to continue with the implementation of the law.
As expected, reaction to the court's ruling was decidedly mixed. Democrats hailed the ruling as a victory for every American without health care. On the other side of the aisle, Republicans have made it a rallying point, and will try to use it to oust Obama in November.
I must admit that I don't have all the facts about Obama's health care bill. Like most Americans, I have heard only snippets of what the legislation actually does. What I have heard, I like, specifically prohibiting insurance companies from denying consumers because of pre-existing conditions and allowing parents to keep their children on their policies longer. I like the fact that Obama had the courage to touch the proverbial "third rail" of health care. Whether you agree with his solution or not, at least he had the courage to think outside the box and try something different. The one thing I think we all can agree on is that the system, as it currently exists, isn't working.
In light of the Court's ruling and the reaction to it, I believe the time is right to ask the question: What is the ultimate solution to our nation's health care woes?
At one time, I thought universal (government-run) health care was the answer. I'm no longer so certain of that, but I do believe government DOES have a role to play. I'd like to see government set price caps on what it costs to go to the doctor. As it now stands, only those with a certain income, or those with damn good insurance, can afford to see their family physician regularly for so-called "preventive care." The end result, as we've seen, is people clogging emergency rooms so they can be seen for simple sinus infections. Or people who have become seriously ill because they have waited so long to seek help because they couldn't afford a doctor's visit. That's criminal.
I'd also like to see government set some price caps on the cost of prescription drugs. Right now, it can cost hundreds of dollars a month for people to get needed medications for conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or even birth control. While it might be argued that some are paying the price for years of bad life choices, it's also true that many of these conditions are genetic. And does it really matter why someone needs the medicine? Every American has a right to a decent quality of life. They shouldn't be denied that because the cost of their medication is out of their reach.
Perhaps what I'd like to see most of all is the adoption of an amendment to the Constitution. It would read: "Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to each senator and representative in Congress." Then, use that new amendment to strip them of their "golden parachute" lifetime health care that is so much better than what is available to the average citizen. Use it to strip them of their lifetime pensions that are equal to their full salary when they left office.
That's part of the problem on health care, and many other issues. Our elected representatives are so far removed from the realities faced by average Americans, they have no hope of understanding the problems created by the laws they've passed. Right now, they have no real incentive to pass meaningful health care reform. And why should they? They, and their families are provided for until they die.
Now, imagine what would happen if they were forced to find health insurance on their own while still in office, without the "golden parachute," and without the promise of a cushy lifetime pension. I bet they would begin to see the problem pretty quickly. And I bet they would work hard to find a real, workable solution.
I believe access to affordable health care is a constitutional right (We are guaranteed the rights to LIFE, liberty and pursuit of happiness). And while it's true that the Affordable Health Care Act has some major problems, I believe it is a small step in the right direction. I can only hope that our lawmakers won't rest on their laurels or worse, restore the status quo. Obama has opened the door to a national dialogue on health care. It's a conversation that's long overdue.
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
A nation of bullies
A couple of weeks ago, I saw something on YouTube that truly disturbed me. The video, titled "Making the bus monitor cry," showed a group of seventh-graders in Rochester, N.Y., verbally attacking the 68-year-old bus monitor on the last day of school. What I saw went well beyond simple harassment or bullying. This group of kids called her fat. They called her poor, suggesting that she got her purse out of a Dumpster. They poked and prodded her. One bully even suggested that her children should kill themselves because she was so disgusting. This to a woman who had already lost one child to suicide. The whole thing made me angry. It made me sick.
In response to the attack, a couple of the bullies have since written letters of apology. One parent apologized in person for his child's awful behavior. And thousands of Americans have donated money to help the bus monitor retire, or take a dream vacation. At last count, more than $650,000 had been raised. While these are nice gestures, I believe the incident raises some serious questions about what kind of nation we are becoming. Are we becoming a nation of bullies?
I admit it. I was bullied as a kid. Being a kid with a disability (I have cerebral palsy), and being someone who always cared more about academics than partying or going out, I suppose it was inevitable. It was hard to endure the insults and the teasing. It was difficult to ignore the taunts and the attempts to lure me into fights. I felt powerless to stop it, and many afternoons I went home crying. But you know what? As bad as it was, I NEVER had someone threaten to stab me. I NEVER had anyone suggest that my parents should kill themselves because I was so disgusting. What happened to that bus monitor was borderline criminal. It went well beyond what can reasonably considered normal, even for immature seventh-graders.
So what should we do about it? What should we do to make sure this never happens again? What should we do to ensure we aren't raising a generation of sociopaths?
The first thing I would do is teach this, and future, generations that every action has a consequence. In this case, I would make each of the bullies face the consequences of his actions head-on. It's nice that a couple of the kids wrote letters of apology. It's nice that one parent saw fit to apologize for his child's behavior. But it's not enough. Letters and third-party apologies allow the bullies to remain detached from the consequences of their actions. So have each child meet with the bus monitor alone. Have him apologize to her personally and offer an explanation for his behavior. Have him listen to his victim explain the impact his taunts had on her. And if she asks for any kind of restitution, make him give it, no questions asked.
The second thing I would do is limit children's exposure to TV, movies,video games and the Internet. There have been studies for years that have shown consistently that exposing children to too much violence too early desensitizes them to that violence and makes them less compassionate. This incident would seem to bear that out. I'm not saying that children should be banned from these things altogether. But parents, at the very least, should pay close attention to the ratings on the TV shows and movies they allow their children to see and on the video games they buy for them. They should install Net Nanny software on every computer in the house and check browsing histories often. In short, parents need to be parents. Set limits on what is acceptable in your house, then stick to it.
As for what the school system should do, I believe the bullies should be suspended for a lengthy sentence at the beginning of the next school year, perhaps even expelled. School systems across the nation should have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to bullying, and these boys need to be made an example of.
The sad truth is, it's probably too late for these boys to learn the compassion and the respect for others they so clearly lack. Those are lessons that should have been taught at their parents' knee from the time they could talk. The good news is, it's not too late to return to teaching those values. This video clearly shows what happens when we abandon them. The question is, are we smart enough to learn that lesson?
In response to the attack, a couple of the bullies have since written letters of apology. One parent apologized in person for his child's awful behavior. And thousands of Americans have donated money to help the bus monitor retire, or take a dream vacation. At last count, more than $650,000 had been raised. While these are nice gestures, I believe the incident raises some serious questions about what kind of nation we are becoming. Are we becoming a nation of bullies?
I admit it. I was bullied as a kid. Being a kid with a disability (I have cerebral palsy), and being someone who always cared more about academics than partying or going out, I suppose it was inevitable. It was hard to endure the insults and the teasing. It was difficult to ignore the taunts and the attempts to lure me into fights. I felt powerless to stop it, and many afternoons I went home crying. But you know what? As bad as it was, I NEVER had someone threaten to stab me. I NEVER had anyone suggest that my parents should kill themselves because I was so disgusting. What happened to that bus monitor was borderline criminal. It went well beyond what can reasonably considered normal, even for immature seventh-graders.
So what should we do about it? What should we do to make sure this never happens again? What should we do to ensure we aren't raising a generation of sociopaths?
The first thing I would do is teach this, and future, generations that every action has a consequence. In this case, I would make each of the bullies face the consequences of his actions head-on. It's nice that a couple of the kids wrote letters of apology. It's nice that one parent saw fit to apologize for his child's behavior. But it's not enough. Letters and third-party apologies allow the bullies to remain detached from the consequences of their actions. So have each child meet with the bus monitor alone. Have him apologize to her personally and offer an explanation for his behavior. Have him listen to his victim explain the impact his taunts had on her. And if she asks for any kind of restitution, make him give it, no questions asked.
The second thing I would do is limit children's exposure to TV, movies,video games and the Internet. There have been studies for years that have shown consistently that exposing children to too much violence too early desensitizes them to that violence and makes them less compassionate. This incident would seem to bear that out. I'm not saying that children should be banned from these things altogether. But parents, at the very least, should pay close attention to the ratings on the TV shows and movies they allow their children to see and on the video games they buy for them. They should install Net Nanny software on every computer in the house and check browsing histories often. In short, parents need to be parents. Set limits on what is acceptable in your house, then stick to it.
As for what the school system should do, I believe the bullies should be suspended for a lengthy sentence at the beginning of the next school year, perhaps even expelled. School systems across the nation should have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to bullying, and these boys need to be made an example of.
The sad truth is, it's probably too late for these boys to learn the compassion and the respect for others they so clearly lack. Those are lessons that should have been taught at their parents' knee from the time they could talk. The good news is, it's not too late to return to teaching those values. This video clearly shows what happens when we abandon them. The question is, are we smart enough to learn that lesson?
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