We've stayed out of the recent debate (actually, we've stayed out of all recent debates, if our Blogger activity is anything to go by). The "will they, won't they" media vultures circling around SCOTUS are all very tiring - though not as exhausting as several hundred million uninformed plebs in this country suddenly deciding that they are qualified constitutional scholars.
But watching the proceedings has caused us to reflect on everything that has brought us to this point. Curiously, we aren't too worried about losing the fight over the individual mandate. Call us fickle, but after two long years spent defending a health care plan crafted by the Republicans, only to be called fascist murdering commie goat rapists, our enthusiasm has soured.
It is, we admit, a bit odd that no one on the right has kenned to the fact that defeating the individual mandate makes reforming employer health care impossible, on the margins rather increasing the chances for Medicare-for-all. And, one imagines they'll say, for jackbooted socialists to goose-step through the National Mall, if we consider the in-no-way-totally-unreasonable reaction this is likely to excite in Republicans.
Goose-stepping socialists? There we go mixing our metaphors.
But such is life. It's a thankless business. We've yet to get so much as a tip of the hat from Senate Republicans, who've had the enjoyable experience of watching the Democrats pass their health care bill while slandering them every step of the way. I have yet to find a single Republican willing to engage with me on this point. You really should try it sometime. Say, "Isn't this plan the one Bob Dole suggested in the early 90s, and indeed passed by Mitt Romney in Massachusetts?" and they'll wander off on a hazy tangent. I am ever amazed by the human capacity to simply ignore facts that are inconvenient to the argument they're trying to make.
You want to know what the last two years have been like? It's like paying for a fabulously expensive buffet with a friend and having this exchange:
US: Let's have Thai food.But of course, it's even worse than that. Because before you can eat your sandwich, you have to attend town hall meetings to defend your sandwich-eating plan while Republicans tell the press that grape jelly creates death panels for old people, and that sandwiches take longer to make in Canada, and of course it's not enough to want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, because first you have to convince a supermajority of your friends to drive down to the buffet so they can help you overturn a Republican filibuster of a procedural motion that would finally allow you to order it from the waiter.
Republicans: No. Thai food is too spicy for us.
Us: Ok. How about Indian?
Republicans: Indian food didn't work for Britain. We want peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches.
Us: Really? We just spent $50 to get in here. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches sounds like a pretty serious misallocation of resources. Can't we eat something better?
Republicans (crossly): No.
Us: For the love of . . . Please.
Republicans: NO!
Us (defeated): Fine. Have it your way. We'll have sandwiches.
Republicans: Sandwiches are socialist.
American politics, people. So horrible you really couldn't make it up.
