I was listening to Mike Malloy tonight on AM 1090 Seattle

[tavalon]

He was explaining in very lucid terms why we need to just use reconciliation for the health "reform" bill. While it was cogent and well presented, I have a bit of a different view. Here's a copy of the letter I sent him at his website:

Mike:

I had forgotten how much I like your delivery. You calmly lay out a case that can be damning in its quiet simplicity. That said, I noticed a place tonight where we differ. You were trying to tell the Democrats how to achieve an actually good health care reform bill - through reconciliation. It is a beautiful thought and it is especially nice to imagine the Democrats no longer destroying their flagship initiative in the lake of compromise - no more kissing Lieberman's ass, nor begging Olympia Snowe for that one little "bipartisan" vote. It was simply common sense except that I think it was built on a false premise.

Let's do a quick walk down memory lane to set up my point of view. When the Democrats were a minority party, they ranted and raved and got us to sign this petition and that petition and they even took one of those petitions up to the White House gate. They held hearings in basements with their microphones unceremoniously shut off. They told us that they were our party, the party of the common man and they showed us that they were fighting for us and would prevail if only for the GOP, otherwise known as The Man. The Man was keeping them from helping the common man, but boy were they trying!!!

They told us it would be so different, so much better, if we would help them become the majority party. So we did. We made them the majority in the House and the Senate and the White House. And they desperately want us not to mention reconciliation and such, because it exposes their game. It's really the same game as before. They tell us they need a supermajority and because of obstructionists in the Republican party, they had to compromise so much on the "Health Insurance Reform" (remember when the wording changed from health care reform to health insurance reform? Slick) They told us this was the best "reform" they could get because we just don't have the 60 votes in the Senate. The Man is keeping them from helping the common man, but boy are they trying!!!

So you see, it's becoming ever more clear that we're being gamed. They kiss Lieberman's ass and they beg Snowe because it's part of the Dog And Pony Show. They have no interest in actually helping the common man and they have a huge interest in looking like they are trying to help the common man. They hope we think it's the same thing.

More and more liberals are catching on to the game. We don't care to be gamed. Well, I certainly know I don't!

I think the push to either sit it out or vote third party stems from our anger at being played.

Sincerely,

tavalon

[H2O Man]

1. Very interesting.

Recommended.

[tavalon]

3. I really hope I'm wrong and that the Democrats just aren't very good at politics

and especially confrontational politics. But my gut says this is three card Monty and they think we're fresh rubes right off of the farm.

[Mira]

2. K&R

[tavalon]

4. Thanks!

[Missy Vixen]

5. Off to the greatest page with you

It's Kabuki. It's all about fundraising.

It's especially all about "I got mine, now you can go to hell."

Howard Dean said it better than I ever could have -- November's going to be a huge wake-up call for President Obama and the Democrats, IMHO.

[tavalon]

6. Even Howard Dean gets that we've been gamed

He admits that even though Obama is a good President, he hasn't been the change agent we were led to believe he was.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/01/16/us/politics/AP-US-Angry-America-Analysis.html?_r=1