March 23, 2010 8:03 AM

Let me tell you about my country

The long, intense, and divisive debate over health care reform is about to cross it’s first Rubicon. From where I sit, this is a good thing…and long overdue. The debate has had the effect of forcing me to think about a lot of things, most notably about my country: where it is, what it’s doing, and what I want it to look like. I’m only one person, of course, but being that this is my sandbox, I’m going to ask you to indulge me as I throw some sand around.

I was ecstatic that health care reform is poised to become a reality. It’s been a long time coming, and while it’s not everything I’d hoped for, it’s certainly several steps in the right direction. To my way of thinking, nothing short of a single-payer system is acceptable. That still seems a goal that may well be a ways down the road, given all the various loud and well-financed voices arrayed against the idea. At the very least, I strongly believe that we have a responsibility to ensure that we guarantee quality, affordable health care to ALL Americans. The end result may not pass ideological muster with me, but if all American have access to health care, if no American is denied health care due to a lack of money, then I’ll be happy.

Beyond health care, there is so much that I believe that we’re capable of. Somehow, though, we seem to be willing to settle for falling short in so many areas. What am I referring to? Well, let me tell you what my America looks like….

MY AMERICA is a place where all, regardless of the contents of one’s bank account, has access to quality, affordable health care. No one’s health care “worthiness” is evaluated based on their ability to pay. Health care- particulary preventative care- is guaranteed to all, because it’s seen as a RIGHT, not a privilege available to those with the ability to pay for it. Life or death- or even simple preventative care- cannot be an equation evaluated in terms of dollars and sense, not in a country that can conduct and fully fund concurrent wars halfway around the world. My America recognizes that health care is a right, not evidence of creeping Socialism. (My America can actually define “Socialism”.)

MY AMERICA is a place where learning is a value, cherished as the ticket to a brighter future for all Americans. Leaders and parents recognize that the only way America will dominate the future as we have the past is if we ensure that ALL children have access to a quality education. Like health care, access to education cannot be a function of the contents of one’s bank account. How many opportunities will we waste if we deny children an education because of a lack of money. Of all the responsibilities incumbent upon our generation, I can think of few more important that preparing our children to compete in an increasingly competitive global economy.

MY AMERICA recognizes that the modern iteration of the Golden Rule is a travesty and a recipe for social unrest that has done much to create our current poisonous public discourse. “He Who Has The Gold Makes The Rules” is a recipe for corruption and evil. When CEOs make untold millions for driving companies into the ground, and when stock prices are propped up on the shoulders of workers, something is horribly amiss. While I understand the concept of meritocracy, our economic system has devolved into one of economic noblesse oblige. This glass ceiling excludes not only women, but also the vast majority of those who work hard to support themselves and their families. Greed is NOT good…and yet that lesson remains unlearned despite the depth of this recession.

MY AMERICA welcomes the world. It doesn’t tolerate illegal aliens merely and only because they’re useful to us. It doesn’t consent to a system that allows illegal aliens to mow our lawns, collect our garbage, and build our roads and homes while despising and marginalizing them once their usefulness to us has diminished. My America doesn’t use people up and cast them aside; it recognizes that there is an implied responsibility to assist those who make our lives easier in so many ways. My America welcomes and rewards those who come here, work hard, and make a positive contribution.

MY AMERICA tolerates and appreciates differences- in ideas, creeds, beliefs, and lifestyles. It understands that America is more than the sum of its parts, and it recognizes and acknowledges our “melting pot” history. My America doesn’t spit on those it disagrees with. It doesn’t shout racial slurs at those whose skin color happens not to be White. It’s doesn’t scream homophobic epithets at those who happen to live and love differently from the majority. It doesn’t scream. It doesn’t carrying signs comparing our President to Hitler. It doesn’t compare health care reform to Socialism. My America actually knows what Socialism is, and it recognizes that reforming our health care system has nothing to do with Socialism. My America understands that government involvement in our health care system is not a new concept…Medicare, anyone??

MY AMERICA accepts and understands that no one has the right to poison the public debate through anger, vitriol, lies, and propaganda. It knows that truth isn’t a commodity available to the highest bidder. It sees through demagoguery. It dismisses those who view Americans as empty vessels waiting to be filled with whatever hateful message will carry the day and serve those with enough money to purchase power and access. My America THINKS.

MY AMERICA is an open, welcoming, affirming, and tolerant place. Sadly, I’m still looking for my America…and I fear that I will neither find it nor live to see it.

WE DESERVE BETTER.

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on March 23, 2010 8:03 AM.

Well, they do spend a lot of time naked in dressing rooms was the previous entry in this blog.

Your tax dollars at work...sort of.... is the next entry in this blog.

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