On the eve of the bill's passage, I bet quite a few people feel as I do ......

[Stinky The Clown]

I'm glad the bill will pass. I am squarely in the "better than nothing" camp. Some people will be helped by this. I also think some will be hurt by it, but not as many as the rhetoric would imply.

I, personally, will not be helped very much by this. The good stuff will kick in too far down the road for us current geezers.

I also don't hate Obama, as some have suggested. That is not to say that I am not profoundly disappointed. I truly believe that a massive swell of public support was with him when he took office. That could have been parlayed into a a real reform of health CARE, not consumer protection for mandated buyers of a for profit product that actually doesn't help or add value. Anyway, had he used his popularity when it was at the highest point it will ever be, he could have been not only an historic president, but one who was truly transformative.

Instead, he is probably destined to just be 44.

So yeah, I'm glad we're getting something.

I'm really glad we beat back the moronic rhetoric of the right. We could have done it a lot easier with better leadership, but it appears we will probably squeak by.

But on Monday, I will be no better off - or worse off - than I am today.

It didn't have to be that way.




And I don't think my general sense of things is materially different from a lot of other people.

[louis-t]

1. It proves that lies and loud rhetoric don't always win.

It made a lot of people realize how the crazies have taken over the republic party.

[mfcorey1]

2. We need to view this as the beginning of reform in health care....

and health insurance in this country. It cannot be the immediate answer to years of abuse by health care providers and insurance companies. Think of the amount of time that has passed since there has been any significant change. All efforts have been defeated by those who always succumb to the vast amount of monies influenced by lobbyists.

[HereSince1628]

8. True, but maybe like a gold claim.

The big easy nuggets usually get picked up first, in the end it's panning for gold dust in played out creeks.

Lots more effort for less return. Not that each ounce isn't real gold.

[eleny]

3. K&R

[CountAllVotes]

4. Teabagger idiots, etc.

Have guaranteed President Obama's reelection. Sorry to break the news to you! :D

[Stinky The Clown]

12. I never said one term, now did I?

:)

[Motown_Johnny]

5. If someone you care about will be better off shouldn't that be enough ?

I do think your general sense of things is different from most people.

Some of us are still not asking what our country can do for us but what we can do for our country.


I'm sorry if the changes in this bill won't come fast enough for you. If we had passed the Clinton reform you might be better off now than you are. I won't be see any direct benefits from this bill either but the indirect benefits are incalculable.

[CountAllVotes]

7. it will help some people I know

i.e. adults with pre-existing conditions that cannot buy any insurance. *ding ding ding*

:dem:

[Raejeanowl]

6. Disappointed Here, Too

It would be easy to say I half-expected a less than transformative result, even as I hoped for more.

Let me instead suggest that some of us might now better appreciate the juggernaut H. Clinton took on some years ago-and her for attempting it as First Lady.

So...what is the next step?

[Warpy]

9. I won't be any better off on Monday

but six months from whenever the final bill is signed, I'll be able to get health insurance for the first time since 1987.

I'll only have to pay through the nose for a few short years before I get Medicare.

In the meantime, I won't have to leave the country if they are unable to keep me off the rolls because I had the bad taste to get sick.

I will also be able to fix the things that are wrong with my house as well as my body if I don't have to save every dime for disasters.

So yes, this bill will improve my life considerably, if only for a few years.

That doesn't mean I will stop trying to unseat Blue Dogs by contributing to their primary opponents. It doesn't mean I'll stop rewarding men like Wiener and Grayson for trying to bring us all a public option, preferably expanded Medicare.

It will just mean I'll have my life back for the first time in twenty three years.

[bain_sidhe]

10. Pretty much the same, except...

I am likely to be worse off, due to the excise tax.

Also profoundly disappointed in Obama - not because he didn't fight, but because he did, but ONLY for the things that hurt working people (the excise tax is the biggie here), or help the already wealthy and corporations (no drug importing, no employer mandate, not ending the anti-trust exemption, for a few biggies).

Showed me which side he's really on. It's not mine. That said, he's better than a republican, and this bill IS better than nothing. People I know WILL be helped by it. So, I guess my overall sentiment is :shrug: Ok, good on ya.

[Stinky The Clown]

13. Word around campus is that the excise tax thing is substantially deflated in the bill as it ......

..... will be voted upon.

But who knows. Lots of blather and few hard facts. Lots of people citing quotes that suit their argument, but no real knowledge.

[asdjrocky]

11. Profoundly disappointed.

That describes me perfectly.

[spanone]

14. k&r....

[SPedigrees]

15. I will be better off. Altho I'm but a few years from Medicare eligibility

this bill will prevent hubby and I from having a claim denied due to PEC and going into medical bankruptcy should we require expensive treatment in this late stage of our lives. That sense of impending dread being lifted is worth its weight in gold.

And for those millions who will be saved from certain death and bankruptcy, this bill is priceless.

[jannyk]

16. Totally Agree. k&r ( +1)

[Greyhound]

17. Stinky,do ,me a favor and watch as this "reform" unfolds what happens

as people look for a way out, an alternative to the corporate parasites. This bill has had every obvious option stripped, even the vaunted "exchange" is prohibited from actually competing with them.

Ignore what they say, watch what they do.

[Dinger]

18. K & R. Trying To Get This In Positive Territory

:)

[a kennedy]

19. I'm with you Dinger.....

:hi: :dem: :patriot: