Can't see the forest for the trees
I was just reading a BusinessWeek article, The Wal-Mart Sisterhood, in the second floor library at home, and when a quote from one of the sisters jumped off the page, grabbed me by the throat and tried to kill me.
On the original quote that pissed me off: here's a woman knocking universal health care, when it was designed for the likes of her -- lower income people, who simply cannot afford the basics. In the world, the US remains the only wealthy country without universal health care. That's right, the other wealthy nations are fucking stupid to have implemented universal health care, Mrs. Brouillet. The US is the only rich country that has figured out what the rest don't know -- that taking care of the poor and down trodden is a waste of time. When your plummeting standard of living boots you out of the middle class, perhaps you will reconsider the merits of universal health care. In wealthy nations, health care should be a universal right, not an option available to those that can afford it.
The stupidity of the quote really got to me -- and the stupid outnumbers the smart. Let me be clear: I'm not implying that smart = educated. I've met a lot of educated people who couldn't generate a spark between their ears -- even if when struck by lightning. Stupid people are not necessarily uneducated -- they're stupid because they don't know when they don't know. They don't know they're ignorant, and they make no effort to form an informed opinion. These are people who specialize in viewing the world through the light of their flickering bulb that should have been replaced a long time ago. These stupid people are the ones who voted for George Bush, not once, but twice, because he spoke to them. These are the same people that profess their adoration of John McCain -- because he's such an everyday guy -- and can't stand Obama, because he's so uppity -- so smart -- and damn well shows it every time he opens his mouth. Yes, stupid people will vote for the dumb guy just because they don't want to vote for someone they recognize as being smarter than they are.
Gaaa! Stupid people shouldn't be allowed to vote.
Update: May 17, 2008
As she finished shopping at a Wal-Mart on the outskirts of Charlotte, N.C., with two of her four daughters in tow, Jennifer Brouillet, a 36-year-old teacher's aide who voted twice for Bush, says she won't consider either Democrat. She's put off by their plans for universal health care. "I'm afraid we're going to turn into Canada. I don't want to end up in a line, waiting six months to get a procedure," Brouillet says. Besides, she asks: "How are they going to pay for it?"Backstory: the article is about the lower-middle class women of America, their influence in the coming US election -- and their courting by both the Democrats and Republicans. To fit into this demographic, these women have to duck under the following bar:
Some 41% of frequent Wal-Mart shoppers have incomes below $35,000, vs. 25% of the population at large. They're less educated than their neighbors: 31% of U.S. voters have a high school education or less, vs. 39% for Wal-Mart Women. Wal-Mart Women also tend to be more suburban or rural and are likely to live in the South. Many are culturally conservative and religious — key reasons a majority backed Bush.For some, especially a couple quoted in the article and are actually commenting on the BusniessWeek website, they had to hit their head multiple times on the bar before realizing they needed to duck.
On the original quote that pissed me off: here's a woman knocking universal health care, when it was designed for the likes of her -- lower income people, who simply cannot afford the basics. In the world, the US remains the only wealthy country without universal health care. That's right, the other wealthy nations are fucking stupid to have implemented universal health care, Mrs. Brouillet. The US is the only rich country that has figured out what the rest don't know -- that taking care of the poor and down trodden is a waste of time. When your plummeting standard of living boots you out of the middle class, perhaps you will reconsider the merits of universal health care. In wealthy nations, health care should be a universal right, not an option available to those that can afford it.
The stupidity of the quote really got to me -- and the stupid outnumbers the smart. Let me be clear: I'm not implying that smart = educated. I've met a lot of educated people who couldn't generate a spark between their ears -- even if when struck by lightning. Stupid people are not necessarily uneducated -- they're stupid because they don't know when they don't know. They don't know they're ignorant, and they make no effort to form an informed opinion. These are people who specialize in viewing the world through the light of their flickering bulb that should have been replaced a long time ago. These stupid people are the ones who voted for George Bush, not once, but twice, because he spoke to them. These are the same people that profess their adoration of John McCain -- because he's such an everyday guy -- and can't stand Obama, because he's so uppity -- so smart -- and damn well shows it every time he opens his mouth. Yes, stupid people will vote for the dumb guy just because they don't want to vote for someone they recognize as being smarter than they are.
Gaaa! Stupid people shouldn't be allowed to vote.
Update: May 17, 2008
Just read Mythbusting Canadian Health Care -- Part I on the Campaign for America's Future site. It should be a must read for stupid Americans ... and the smart ones who are looking for a way of shutting up those who are afraid of universal health care. The myths exposed:
- Canada's health care system is "socialized medicine." -- False.
- Doctors are hurt financially by single-payer health care. -- True and False.
- Wait times in Canada are horrendous. -- True and False.
- You have to wait forever to get a family doctor. -- False for the vast majority of Canadians, but True for a few.
- You don't get to choose your own doctor. -- Scurrilously False.
- Canada's care plan only covers the basics. You're still on your own for any extras, including prescription drugs. And you still have to pay for it. -- True.
- Canadian drugs are not the same. -- More preposterious bogosity.
- Publicly-funded programs will inevitably lead to rationed health care, particularly for the elderly. -- False. And bogglingly so.People won't be responsible for their own health if they're not being forced to pay for the consequences. -- False.
- This all sounds great -- but the taxes to cover it are just unaffordable. And besides, isn't the system in bad financial shape? -- False and True.
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