i met a couple raygun democrats. obamacare will bring them back in droves.

[mopinko]

this is a post i put up in pets regarding a parrot i am planning to adopt. but it definitely is a story about why obamacare needs to succeed. the everyday sadness and wasted lives have to stop.

if you want the context, read this thread, but really, i think you will get it.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/116114406#post7

well, i met the birdies. very interesting, and crushingly sad.

Last edited Thu Dec 12, 2013, 10:43 AM - Edit history (1)

i had suspected from my conversations that they were rural, "redneck" folks, but with big hearts. she was trying so hard to find the right home, and had had a steady stream of the sort of people who should never own a parrot.
this is a blended family, folks in their mid-40's, his kids gone, her kid and their kid at home. her kid has mental health issues, 14, adhd.
mom was born with cerebral palsy, on disability. dad fell 40' on the job and is running out of benefits. (tho ladder falls are supposed to be covered by workers comp, but..) he just lost his healthcare.

so, i walk into the little tract house, neat and the walls lined with thomas kincaids. maury on the tube.
the little family room is dominated by cages that are 1 1/2 and 2 times a generous cage for a grey. there are so many toys, you have to look for the birds.
i didn't chase after the birds, just sat and talked, listened to their story. eventually i reached into the bag i brought and pulled out some peanuts.
now, the young timneh has to go. sooner than later. they are strained to the point that they fear he might get sick, and they will be dead. this is the wife's bird.
there is also a 20+ yo congo that may have to go before they move in with the folks. they feared they would never find anyone to take him, because he is a "woman hating biter". my real mission in visiting was to see if there was any truth to that. i have heard it many, many times. it is rarely true.
and of course, it is not in this case, either. the cranky old man stepped up for me, sat on my knee and ate a peanut. mom and dad caught flies in their mouths.

these are totally spoiled birds. both are rescues, as were their dogs, and with both disabled, pets and teevee are their life. it kills me to think they have to give this up. and over health care.

so, they decide i am the one. shockingly even the one to take the congo if he has to go.

i need to finish some projects around here before i can take him, and we are planning a trip in early january. so, i had asked if they would keep him that long, and they said they could. he wouldn't be that big of an addition to the menagerie, but i was looking forward finding a replacement zoo keeper without worrying about parrots.

i think they were sort of surprised when i told they they should keep them as long as they could. they are coming to a good home, but nothing like they one they are leaving.


so, throughout the conversation, i dreaded any mention of politics. but it was pretty amazing how quickly it was diffused when i knocked down their obamacare talking points. this was the crux of their problems, and they were terrified it would get worse. but they hadn't even checked into it. they were just going to accept the fee, because they were certain they couldn't afford the premiums. i assured them that in their situation there was a good chance it would cost nothing.
they were also worried about mental health parity, but had no idea about the guarantees already in place due to the aca. they both admitted that they did not pay close enough attention. not sure how much they believed me, but between that and the birds, i walked in on 2 stressed out people, and left 2 very relieved people behind.

tis the season.

[maddezmom]

1. ....

[raging moderate]

2. Please, any Dem. Congress or White House staff, make it so.

If we ever needed some people to bust their guts and their brains making something happen, this is it, folks. This is crunch time. Oh, please, please, please, please, please....

[Berlum]

3. "The RepuliWankers played us for suckers. Damn it. We won't get fooled again" - Reagan Demos

[Dawgs]

4. They sound typical of most ignorant Americans.

They are easily manipulated and will continue to vote for the GOP.

Not sure how learning more about the ACA will change them.

[ljm2002]

5. "Not sure how learning more about the ACA will change them."...

...I think the point is, once they learn they can get health insurance for less, and they see and make use of the benefits of the ACA, that will change them. They will see that the fear-mongering from Republicans and the lackey press is just that, fear-mongering and lies. They will resent that they were lied to. And they will want to keep the beneficial program. And, they will know where the program came from: Democrats, not Republicans. After all, it has been successfully branded as "Obamacare"... In the long run, this branding will be to our benefit and to the detriment of the Republican party. Which is, of course, poetic justice, since they originally tried to use the term as a smear.

Anyway, all of us should try and gently prod people towards seeing what they can get through Obamacare. While there are some people who will lose out -- and I for one am not happy about that -- there are many, many more who will benefit.

Hopefully Vermont's experiment with single-payer will go well, and other states will begin to follow suit. If Congress won't do it, it's up to the states to git 'er done.

[mopinko]

9. really, the look on their faces was priceless.

i will be talking to them, and am dying to know if they investigate.

[Dawgs]

10. I think you're missing my point.

Yes, they may give credit to Democrats for something they like, but as soon as GOP messaging gets to them on everything else they will forget about the ACA and continue to vote for Republicans. It happens all of the time.

Just look at how quickly the favorability numbers have changed for Congress since the end of the shutdown.

Many Americans are ignorant, lazy, and ill informed. They continue to vote against their best interests time and time again.

It's sad but true.

[ljm2002]

12. Well yes, the GOP messaging is a problem...

...because it is focused and relentless. They really do know how to "catapult the propaganda".

On the other hand, you say that "Many Americans are ignorant, lazy, and ill informed." That is true as far as it goes. However, the primary reason so many Americans are ignorant and ill informed is they (we) are the most propagandized population in history. And the reason they are lazy about political matters is (a) the aforesaid propaganda, which allows them to get their opinions pre-canned; (b) the churches, which are propaganda arms for the GOP; and (c) many of them are stressed and working 2 and 3 jobs to get by.

Once people see real benefits from a program that was demonized, then many of them will start to wake up a little bit. I have noticed over the years, people who seem "stupid" or "ignorant", people who you wouldn't think could add 2+2, when something affects their own paycheck, all of a sudden they can do complex calculations and they know exactly, to the penny, what they should be seeing in their paycheck -- accounting for taxes, FICA, overtime rates, etc. etc. The GOP counts on the ignorance and of course they foster it. The Democrats do that also, just to a lesser extent, because they still have some residual sympathy for the middle class and even the downtrodden on occasion.

We'll see. I believe as Obamacare begins to take effect, and more and more people really can get affordable coverage, the tide will turn. You are certainly correct that the GOP barrage of propaganda and misinformation will continue, and we will need to continue fighting it. I am confident we can do so.

[Dawgs]

14. I hope you're right. I try to be optimistic, but it's hard.

I keep expecting the numbers to shift dramatically because of demographics, but for some reason they don't.

The results from the poll 'who is better for the economy?' continue to blow me away. Republicans still continue to beat Democrats, even after the great recession that started just six years ago.

Maybe this is why I'm pessimistic about the ACA making any real difference.

[ljm2002]

15. I hear you...

...there are so many pressing issues, with global climate overriding all the rest of our concerns. If we don't effectively address that, and fast, the rest of it is irrelevant anyway. So I do vacillate between hope and despair. But just on the issue of Obamacare (I prefer that to ACA as I like the branding) -- on just that issue, I think there is a lot of room for improvement in the political climate.

[Dawgs]

16. Agree 100%.

Climate is number one issue.

Obamacare is my preferred branding as well.

I think there is some room for improvement on political climate, just not as much as we need.

[mopinko]

22. certainly possible, but there is also this-

they met a flesh and blood chicago democrat obama lover, and i didn't have horns.

[haele]

6. I hope you actually did convinced them to take a look at the ACA plans.

It always hurts me to think of all the people like that who have been brought up to be marginalized working prey for con-men and class enforcers.

"Trust your pastor and your betters around you, because life is very confusing and they have the best interests of the local community at heart and the experience to help you prosper like they did..." Sets up otherwise busy, simple, basically decent people to be toys for bullys and other predators who make money off keeping them emotionally and financially uncertain and fearful.

That couple is of an age where they can remember their parents, at the same age they are during the 1980's and 90's, were probably doing better then than they are now, and are horribly confused as to why they aren't able to live like their parents could manage.


Haele

[mopinko]

18. it was heartbreaking.

and they thought they were headed for happy street when they found each other. he had a good construction job. they had an adorable little girl.

ugh. just ugh, ugh, ugh.

i will talk to them more, and will nudge the best i can.

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. If you end up adopting, ask what is fed to them

Favorite treats, and congratulations dad. You just adopted a young child that will never, ever grow up.

I got the feeling they will find what you told them to be true and perhaps you will not end up adopting.

Oh and yes, mine are spoiled rotten.

[mopinko]

8. um, that's mom. but i got the full run down.

long list of what they would and wouldn't eat. they are spoiled. eggs for breakfast, bits of everything that anyone eats.

nothing would make me happier that to have those babies stay right where they are.
except maybe for obama to get the credit.

[nadinbrzezinski]

11. Will be hard but cut down on the eggs

Cholesterol, that is from my vet. Why eggs are a rare treat, which is true for the humans too.

Mine have eggos for breakfast. Nope, home made will not do. We have tried.

And congrats mom.

[mopinko]

17. i know. except

i do have chickens, so they would be extra healthy eggs. one eats only people food and one eats most pellets. both will get transition omelets until they get healthy habits.
the food here at my little farm is mostly quite healthy.

thanks.

[nadinbrzezinski]

20. I buy mine straight from the farm

and they do taste different from the ones at the supermarket. So I know. We still follow heart healthy guidelines, and we mostly have eggs not too often.

I have the genes though, so that does not help. (I mean the bad genes)

[mopinko]

21. ya, me too.

ditto all that. i eat very few of my own eggs. my son the vegetarian used to eat a few a day, but he worked it all off. he moved, tho.
sell a lot of eggs to the neighbors. it's good pr, but it also puts a value on the farm.

eta here is a video on from the siglink of one of my eggs.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=673937549294594&set=vb.410796658942019&type=3&theater

[greatauntoftriplets]

13. Well done!

[NYC_SKP]

19. Oh, I think you're right about that!

Scared to death, that's why they've been fighting it so hard.

Love it.

K/R

[Grateful for Hope]

23. Kick.

Excellent post!