Sunday, November 17, 2013

Niners and Health Care - Not a Good Mix!

My mother told me recently that the only reason she voted for Obama for president was because McCain had chosen Palin as his VP choice and I absolutely understand that reasoning. I can remember people flipping out over that woman, touting her as a possible presidential candidate and literally going Ga Ga over her and I was shocked.

I understand that people who have supported the president are now feeling very defensive and sad because of the debacle his Signature Legislation has become - the Affordable Care Act was done with all the good intentions on the planet and the road to hell is paved with just that - but I cannot fathom the way so many of them will rush to defend him even now.

Look, I have no doubt this man wants to be a good man. Many good people think they are doing women a favor by supporting legal abortion in all forms or no-fault divorce laws. Lots of good people think people like me, survivors of both, are religious fanatics who want to 'take rights away' from other women. Ok. I get it. I get that you think women NEED legal abortion and that Obama is a good man.

What I don't get is why, when someone like me says that this piece of legislation has caused tons of problems, I am asked stupid questions like why I want to deny health care to the poor or why I am a racist.

So here is the deal:

1. I am tired of people who never read the legislation or have nothing to do with putting any of it into action criticize me for having an opinion that differs from their opinion.

2. If you believe that people should not be denied health insurance do to a pre-existing condition or that 26 year old men and women need to be on their mom and dad's health insurance, then why did you not support changes in the law that would allow THAT?

3. Why don't you think people are able to make their own decisions about what they want to buy, the level of coverage they want and how they want to manage their own lives?

Maybe I am just a mean old woman. I have been incredibly stupid as a young one and to my surprise stupid hurt. When I hurt enough I stopped doing stupid things. I got help from my family but not without being told I was being stupid and that they were tired of me being just that - stupid. Eventually, I had to learn to take care of myself. I made some decisions to live with my mom so I could be close to my nephew and niece, not because I cannot live on my own. I accept the downside of that decision as well as the upside of that decision. Nothing is ever perfect and I think I have had a pretty good life so far.

I am now worried that I will lose my health care because my employer will decide to force me into the exchange. I am also afraid that I will not be able to afford health care for the first time in my life because of this stupid law.

Not only is it a real fear, it is one that makes me wonder why I even bother trying. I am exhausted with trying to get ahead, to be a productive member of society, to stand on my own two feet.

I trust that God has my back and I am sure that everything will work out. Besides, why worry about stuff that hasn't happened yet, right? I can plan and put money aside for the future and I am a little saving squirrel that is for sure but when all is said and done my life is in the Hands of God.

Besides, the Niners just scored.

Life is ok!

1 comment:

Robert said...

I actually don’t know what kind of man the President wants to be. In the past (35yr ago) I made assumptions, such as “well, if he was elected President, than he must be a good man, or wants to be a good man.” My past 35 or more years of experience has demonstrated that this assumption is flawed. An example of what I mean by “flawed” can be illustrated by looking at what the Soviet Union’s idea of peace was in the 20th century, namely the destruction of all non-socialist states; peace equals complete elimination of competing systems by any means necessary. In other words, I have no idea what the President is thinking in an absolute sense, but I suspect it’s not what I am thinking. Best not to assume anything when you are talking about what is in the heart of a man, one way or the other.

I was also accused of being a racist in 2008 and beyond. Their argument was weak, and I suspect that it was a projection of their own middle class guilt-delusion. There were those in the Program that expressed pity for my inability to see the truth, and some who accused me of spiritual malaise by not “getting on board” with the legislation of the century. Some of these people were spiritual directors I had chosen. Thank goodness this occurred, for I suspect that I could not buy this experience if I tried.

There is this pervasive idea that disagreement equal hate, that criticism means that the criticized is somehow “bad.” If I oppose an idea that could “help millions of people” then by extension, I must hate those people and wish to do them harm. It is a tactic that is used to bully people into conformism by the threat of banishment, shaming, or outright stigmatization. So no, you are not a mean old woman. You are a wonderful child of God, using reason and love to communicate with those who are full of fear.