Opinion Forum

Petition: Stopping Obamacare

July 26th, 2009

So far, nearly three-quarters of a million people have signed an online petition designed to let our Congress know that they (we) don’t want a government-controlled/government-run health care system.

We have seen what happens to every government social program (e.g., social security) — they go broke because the Congress has no idea what the words “trust fund” mean. We have seen and heard the horror stories created by the national health care systems in Canada and Britain. We don’t need to emulate systems like that, but now our legislators are proposing a system that will do just that — it will force insurance (their insurance) down our throats, increase everyone’s financial burden, put thousands of people in hospice-care situations, and, in general, take away control of our own health care decisions.

Our current health care system is not broken and doesn’t need to be trashed and replaced. The current system has some problems — no doubt about that — but most of the problems have either been caused by the U.S. government’s meddling and/or could easily be fixed with some sensible legislation.

The online petition specifies some basics for any health care legislation:

— Choice: The right of individuals to choose their own doctor and health insurance provider based on their own individual and family needs
— Access: Patient-centered, not government-centered health care.
— Fairness: Fair taxation (and tax breaks) for individuals who buy their own insurance.
— Responsibility: Individual control over health care decisions and portability of insurance.

This petition, admittedly, does not say everything we as individuals want to say, but it sends a sure signal to Congress that we don’t want Canadian or British health care — we want health care that is controlled by a patient and his or her physician.

If we can get Congress to (1) trash that abominable, bureaucratic mess that is working its way through the legislature, (2) start listening to their constituents instead of the Obama-controlled robots that are in charge, and (3) understand that the government is the real problem, we might get some intelligent health care reform.

Please sign the petition! Go to: http://freeourhealthcarenow.com.

(This article was also posted at My View from the Center.)

Articles written by Harvey Grund
Tags: health care, Obamacare, petition
Categories: News, Politics | Comments (4) | Home

4 Responses to “Petition: Stopping Obamacare”

Brian | July 26th, 2009 at 5:20 pm

Harvey, what it the government’s constitutional authority for legislation on this matter?

Tom | July 26th, 2009 at 7:14 pm

Brian, just to throw in my two cents, I expect that there’ll be no answer to that question because no one in Washington takes it seriously. In addition, few citizens these days know enough to even ask.

I expect most would say, if they deigned to answer, that the authority rests in the general welfare clause, the interstate commerce clause, or the Fourteenth Amendment (somehow), or a combination of two or three of these. There are counter-arguments, of course — the Founders intended, and stated, that the general welfare clause was meant to apply to action Congress was otherwise authorized to take; the interstate commerce clause has already been stretched beyond reason, but this is a step too far; and the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees of equal protection of the laws and due process can be just as well used against the power to legislate on health care. In any case, it won’t make any difference because few people care about the argument.

Brian | July 29th, 2009 at 5:48 pm

I am reminded of a quote from our 4th president when I contemplate much of what the federal government now does with our money:

“I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents.”

Never mind that he actually wrote the constitution, and many of the Federalist Papers as well.

If “the people” actually want all of this extra-constitutional stuff, then let’s amend the constitution. Otherwise, we need to just stop pretending that we have a constitutional republic…a limited government. It is obvious even to the village idiot that the constitution doesn’t limit its power, and if the constitution does not, then what does? They’ve always been a bunch of thieves (politicians), but they’ve now made an art form of it.

Harvey | July 29th, 2009 at 9:37 pm

Brian,

Completely agree; its just depressing that it seems to be out of control and what’s done will most likely never be undone — not, at least, without a revolution (of sorts).