Send this link to your lawmakers

[alfredo]

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07102009/watch2.html

There's a transcript too

[The River]

1. Thanks

K&R

[alfredo]

2. Thanks. Be sure to e-mail it to friends and family

[The River]

3. Looks Like Our Freeper Members

are using the unrecommend feature. nice

[alfredo]

7. It doesn't matter to me if I make it to the greatest page. Let em unrec

if it give them their jollys.

[spanone]

4. k&r....

[spartan61]

5. Bill Moyers Journal

To Everyone:

Unfortunately, I missed Bill Moyers Journal last night. I did do some investigating to find out when it will be shown again in my area. I will be able to see it on Sunday (July 12) at 2:00. From everything I have heard, it is a must see, so I'm writing this to remind you all to check your listings for the rebroadcast in your area. If you can't find it, here is the link so you can read the transcript from the program. The dialogue is between Bill Moyers and Wendall Potter, a former CIGNA executive, who left the company and is blowing the whistle on how the insurance companies pay millions of dollars to lobbyists to influence Congress, on both sides of the aisle, to oppose public healthcare. The insurance companies do not want competition.

It is up to all of us to call, write, e-mail, etc. our "representatives" and remind them who they are suppose to represent. Read the transcript, rent "Sicko," and GET ANGRY!! Tell them it will not be business as usual.

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07102009/watch2.html

[alfredo]

8. Buy Sicko and pass it on to friends.

[spanone]

6. kick

[HCE SuiGeneris]

9. k&r

[JimWis]

10. Thanks so much for this post.

[Luminous Animal]

11. I was just going to post a new topic on this.

I wish your title was more illuminating.

It is a fantastic Bill Moyers interview with Wendell Potter an ex-executive (head of PR) of Cigna Health. He was in charge of disinformation and relates (among other things) the campaign to discredit Michael Moore and SiCKO.

BILL MOYERS: You were also involved in the campaign by the industry to discredit Michael Moore and his film "Sicko" in 2007. In that film Moore went to several countries around the world, and reported that their health care system was better than our health care system, in particular, Canada and England. Take a look at this.

....

WENDELL POTTER: I thought that he hit the nail on the head with his movie. But the industry, from the moment that the industry learned that Michael Moore was taking on the health care industry, it was really concerned.

BILL MOYERS: What were they afraid of?

WENDELL POTTER: They were afraid that people would believe Michael Moore.

BILL MOYERS: We obtained a copy of the game plan that was adopted by the industry's trade association, AHIP. And it spells out the industry strategies in gold letters. It says, "Highlight horror stories of government-run systems." What was that about?

WENDELL POTTER: The industry has always tried to make Americans think that government-run systems are the worst thing that could possibly happen to them, that if you even consider that, you're heading down on the slippery slope towards socialism. So they have used scare tactics for years and years and years, to keep that from happening. If there were a broader program like our Medicare program, it could potentially reduce the profits of these big companies. So that is their biggest concern.

BILL MOYERS: And there was a political strategy. "Position Sicko as a threat to Democrats' larger agenda." What does that mean?

WENDELL POTTER: That means that part of the effort to discredit this film was to use lobbyists and their own staff to go onto Capitol Hill and say, "Look, you don't want to believe this movie. You don't want to talk about it. You don't want to endorse it. And if you do, we can make things tough for you."

BILL MOYERS: How?

WENDELL POTTER: By running ads, commercials in your home district when you're running for reelection, not contributing to your campaigns again, or contributing to your competitor.

BILL MOYERS: This is fascinating. You know, "Build awareness among centrist Democratic policy organizations--"

WENDELL POTTER: Right.

BILL MOYERS: "--including the Democratic Leadership Council."

And more, much much more...
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07102009/transcript2.html

[Luminous Animal]

12. Kick for Michael Moore being right!

[alfredo]

13. Unlike the reichwingers, he actually researches his subjects.

[spanone]

14. kick

[Luminous Animal]

15. Kick to expose our bought off congresscritters.

Yes, Baucus, I am looking at you!

BILL MOYERS: Why is the industry so powerful on both sides of the aisle?

WENDELL POTTER: Well, money and relationships, ideology. The relationships-- an insurance company can hire and does hire many different lobbying firms. And they hire firms that are predominantly Republican and predominantly Democrat. And they do this because they know they need to reach influential members of Congress like Max Baucus. So there are people who used to work for Max Baucus who are in lobbying firms or on the staff of companies like Cigna or the association itself.

BILL MOYERS: Yeah, I just read the other day, in THE WASHINGTON POST, that Max Baucus's staff met with a group of lobbyists. Two of them had been Baucus's former chiefs of staff.

WENDELL POTTER:

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07102009/transcript2.html

[alfredo]

16. Shame on them for turning against us.

[handmade34]

17. will do and thanks

Bill Moyers is such a positive force for so many great causes. Wendall Potter is great in this interview and explains what I believe to be so true.
Just as the people that make the rules we live by, are so far removed from realities, he explains, "I had a great job...I was insulated. I didn't really see what was going on. I saw the data. I knew that 47 million people were uninsured, but I didn't put faces with that number...You think about the numbers, and whether or not you're going to meet Wall Street's expectations...you don't really think that you're talking about and dealing with real human beings..."

Somehow the people who make our laws and rules should experience the different worlds that people face so that they can come from a place of true understanding.

[cali]

18. Thanks, it was a great show. I won't be sending it to my reps, though.

Why? I'm quite sure they're aware of it, and anyway, they're all on the right side of the debate and don't need convincing.

[alfredo]

20. Lucky you. I have McConnell and Bunning. Ben Chandler is a blue dog

but I think he will be OK.

[Luminous Animal]

21. I'm just guessing but if you are in California,

Feinstein has given little indication that she is on the right side of the debate.

[me b zola]

19. I missed it last night and was going to watch today

I normally don't send things to my rw mil because I don't want to her send her batty stuff to me, but for this I will.

[alfredo]

22. I sent it out to some right wingers on my list. As yet, no reply.