Healthy to run the race or Drag me to the finish line

An early Public School

My formative years were during the 60′s and 70′s, it was an exciting time to be young. I remember going to baseball games with my father to cheer on the Washington Senators, being proud of the Washington Redskins as they won their first Super Bowl, watching basketball championships between the Lakers and Knicks and of course watching Cassius Clay, then later Mohammad Ali, dazzle the sports world with his inside the ring theatrics.

I played little baseball. I was schooled in the competitive philosophy that it was important to win. The excitement of making a team was like winning a lottery to many of my friends. It was a good thing to just make the team, despite little hope of playing in the “big games” because you weren’t “that good”, in the end you were part of a winning team. Even kids living in my neighborhood were my mortal enemy during the little league season, all because they were on the other team. Other than making sport of each other for a bit after the season was over our attentions moved on to the next seasonal distraction.

Politics, at times, feels like a sporting competition to me. A new political sporting season can occur at any time. The event that currently dominates is this season’s political/social debate that focuses on a national healthcare strategy. This isn’t the first such competition…er… uh… debate. The last time our political parties squared off on national healthcare was in the early 1990′s.

In one corner the “Democrats Socialist Agenda Government Controlled Healthcare At Rich Folks Expense Team”, and in the other corner the “Republicans Wrapped In The Flag Protector of All That Is Good and Holy Sole Defender of Free Markets In Defense of The Rich Folks Team.”

The names have changed a bit but the teams largely wear the same colors as the last time. Those in favor of what we now call The Public Option won some early points by proclaiming they weren’t going to negatively effect the existing healthcare of the common people (…most of you reading this now), while those opposed invoked the terms “Socialism” and “Death Panels” to retaliate in an effort to swing public sentiment against some form of national healthcare.

Curiously, now that the dust is settling a bit, we find that both sides made claims that are so far removed from the truth we don’t know who to cheer for.

For example, one of the proposals on the table would have had the result of large and small companies opting to pay government imposed penalties rather than continue to contribute to their employees medical coverage. A neutral government agency concluded that on their own, after analyzing that particular plan. Another example is the suggestion the government would have death panels, whose only purpose in the machine was to unjustly “kill off” the God fearing citizens of our country, all because they decide their life ” simply cost too much to maintain.” Examination of the plan clearly exposed the failure of that claim too. How soon we forget that insurance companies actually do this on a daily basis and consider the possibility of a law suit a calculated risk they are willing to take.

This all brings me to the point of my discussion. Republicans have used the term “Socialism” with great effect at guiding a negative dialog regarding national healthcare. Our immediate association with socialism is all negative. Despite the fact that socialism had it’s roots some 300 years ago in a France Christian movement (…not a Catholic movement, it was one organized by a local French believer named Pierre Leroux), it’s modern day connotation is that of a political system that endeavored to remove incentives for people to excel because they couldn’t keep what they’d earned. That isn’t how socialism worked in the French movement, but it did have that impact in it’s modern experience. I won’t even begin to detail the impact of socialism that is faith-base verses socialism absent of faith, perhaps another time.

Without really realizing it, Americans came to terms with limited socialist ideals a very long time ago, though we don’t refer to them as socialist. We embrace publicly funded education for example. As a country we believed we could aspire to a higher level of excellence if everyone could read, write and do arithmetic. In fact, as a country we expanded the concept to colleges too. Another example, we embrace publicly funded interstate highways. To this day no one would argue the value of that national strategy, yet it is managed and maintained with public money.

So the question of a national healthcare strategy that is publicly funded shouldn’t suffer under the baggage of a political movement that was poisoned from the outset. It’s the equivalent of saying that Christianity is forever bad because of the Spanish Inquisition, or that Germany must forever hang it’s head in shame because of Hilter.

I submit to you, since we are a country governed by freely elected representatives, any publicly funded healthcare strategy implemented will never be “socialist.” It may be good or even bad legislation, but socialist, never! It was not a socialist movement that caused Canada to implement it’s national healthcare plan, it was a conviction, much like publicly funded education, that the citizens of the country were better served by having easy healthcare than not.

Perhaps the best way to understand this discussion is by asking the question,

If we returned all education taxes back to the tax payers and told them they had to purchase education for their families from now on, would you conclude the poor and middle class suddenly had “better options” in a free market system?

I believe our country is better served with a publicly funded healthcare system than not. I believe we craft laws that protect us from even the appearance of panels that decide the relevance of a procedure. I believe we crafts laws to protect the sanctity of life. I believe we can do this for less than what our country, as a whole, is paying now. I believe we are a more excellent country for making the effort to do so. In this sporting event we can all win!

Thanks for reading this far.

Empowerment of “The Walk Away”

School yard fight

I was born in the shadow of our nation’s capital. Growing up in the Washington DC area it was a common event to drive passed the White House and the Capital buildings. Like so many people who grow up in an area with a huge tourist industry, my family never did the ‘tourist’ thing. To this day I’ve never toured the White House or any other buildings used to govern our country. My early school field trips took care of visits to the Smithsonian, the Museum of National Art and the Washington Post however, so I’m not completely bankrupt of local sophistication regarding the area.

It will come as no surprise that my locale was a hot bed of racial tension during my childhood. The year my father died was the same year Martin Luther King and Robert F. Kennedy were assassinated, it was a year of riots, and even more change in my family due to my father’s unexpected death. I was not alone in figuring out my place all of this, my brother, just 18 months my senior was my closest friend and ally.

The year was 1968, I was nearly through fourth grade, and after a winter of being kept inside all the kids were excited to see spring arrive. Warmer weather led to exciting games of kick-ball, running around in the school yard and swinging about on the school’s playground equipment.

It’s also a time when the boys determine to correct ‘pecking order’ mistakes inflicted by a their teacher during the winter. Teachers have been known to make terrible mistakes in that regard.

With the exception of scuffles with my brother (he always cleaned my clock) I managed to stay clear of school yard challenges, off the radar of the bullies was easy when you were the class clown. Bullies loved the irreverent nature of my comedy. As the third child in a family with four kids, I was the peacemaker. That was my job. So being light hearted, and a jester was hard-wired in me from my earliest memories. On that fateful spring day I learned, to my shock, that humor could now save me from the angry advances of a smaller boy with a bone to pick.

“Kevin”, as I’ll call him, was in the ‘other’ fourth grade class, and to this day I could not tell you what his issue with me was, but an issue he had. In fact, one day Kevin sought me out and challenged me to a fight. He began to push me around, call me names, and generally try to egg me on. Finally, the little welterweight took a swipe at me and the hair on my back stood on end, I was suddenly all in! More pushing and shoving ensued, angry words were exchanged and we agreed to meet after school at the end of the ball field, far out of the watchful eyes of the teachers.

Since I walk home in the direction of the meeting spot I figured if no one was there I would continue on my way. Fat chance of that, quite a crowd from school had heard about this event and arrived with Kevin to watch. I went over to the crowd hoping it would defuse, regardless of my saber rattling, I don’t like to fight. Kevin didn’t waste any time in starting the dance that late afternoon, fists up, moving about the ring that had been created by the crowd, and me a bit off balance from the enthusiasm of the mob for a good beat down.

Nervously I raised my fists, falling into a very poor imitation of Cassius Clay. “Float like I butterfly, sting like a bee” isn’t easy on grass as I soon discovered. Kevin tried to throw a few well signaled round house punches hoping to end this ordeal as quickly as it started, to his dismay, I had plenty of time to “shuffle” out of his path. I moved closer and launched my counter punches with the precision of a second grade school girl bitch slapping her younger brother. Kevin would have no part of this and decided to take this fight to a new level, thus, he charged me! Head down, running straight for me, he tried to tackle me to the ground. Now, Kevin was smaller than me and I was small for my age so you can imagine what a comedy this would have looked like.

We wrestled to the ground and in short order I was on top of Kevin, arms pinned under my knees and I hit him once in the face. He started to cry, more from embarrassment than from the strength of my blow. I saw no purpose in continuing and shouted at him, “Do you give?”

“No!” he said, now fighting back more tears. Kevin continued his struggle to free himself. Just then I heard the unmistakable voice of my brother as he made his was through the crowd, “Hit ‘em! Hit’em Tim! Pound him good!” My brother had a different sense of justice then I.

After a couple more light punches to Kevin’s chest, harmless but meant to show my dominance, I asked him once again, “You give?”

And by this time Kev’ apparently had enough. My brother urged me to continue the beat down, for my part I was only too happy to claim victory without bloodshed and head home. Kevin had another strategy, as I let him up, he took another well timed poke at me hoping to change his fortunes. I pulled him back down, reasserted my dominance by pinning his arms under my knees and yelled at him, “Hey, I won, you gave!”

I faked the motions to punch him, each time he winched. Again I insisted, “I won, you gave?”

My brother said I was nuts and should give him a good beating. Still, I have no taste for this stuff and wanted it to end.

Kevin played out his failed strategy two more times before I decided to end it for good. I let him off the ground without freeing his arms from my grasp, shoving him to the other side of the make-shift ring. He stumbled to the ground as he back peddled ending up on his butt. I pointed my finger at him and said, “I beat you, you lost.”

Kevin got up proclaiming he wasn’t finished with me yet, all while lifting his fists for another go ’round. I turned and walked away.

Home for me was just down the small hill, across a parking and into the apartment on the first floor. My brother joined me still confused why I didn’t finish what Kevin had started. I told him I didn’t like hurting him, it was clear I could beat him. The only point left to make was “The Walk Away.”

I think the times that define us most as kids are moments of clarity, when we choose our own path in the face of crowds, or even brothers, urging us to a course of action we have no conviction about.

Kevin didn’t bother me any more, I can only assume he moved on to another “pecking order” correction.

As for me, I discovered the empowerment of “The Walk Away.” I knew I could stand my ground if necessary, but equally understood that walking away can be a even stronger message.

What is it that empowers you?

Thanks for reading this far.

The only thing between you and your doctor…

Surgeons in a hospital, it's it public or private?

Every time I hear the tv and radio heads discuss the current national healthcare legislation, both sides of the political aisle are overstating the real information. This isn’t the plan for us, it stinks. But this shouldn’t be the end of the discussion on SOME OF SORT strategy either.

I hear the mantra, “I don’t want anyone between me and my doctor!” and think of all the free market health policies that are highly restrictive. When there is a question of the viability of a particular procedure in your time of crisis you have to trust an insurance company review board to approve the continued coverage to keep you alive. Movies have been made about their bottom-line. Further, all policies have life-time limits of coverage (some amazingly low), and schedules of how much they are willing to pay hospitals and doctors for nearly every type of medical condition. If you are wealthy, none of this really matter, you can self-insure.

What is so great about our current system?

The current system costs to much, we all agree with that. The current system isn’t really a “free” market system since insurance companies can’t compete across state lines. The current system doesn’t accept new customers with pre-existing conditions, tough luck if you get sick BEFORE you can afford the insurance. The current system is class oriented too, meaning if you can afford the platinum policies you get the private rooms and best treament (others are relegating to second class status.) In fact, you get to be first in-line too. The current system allows people to sue doctors and hospitals to the point many are loathe to suggest the agressive, often the best procedures, for fear of ending up in court if they don’t work.

It’s a lie to say Americans don’t go to Canada for treatment, presuming this is evidence of their inferior system. Canada doesn’t have a system that even ALLOWS outsiders to show up and get treatment. It’s a lie to say Americans don’t go anywhere else for treatment too, we do. We go to nice hospitals in Mexico, Costa Rica, Brazil and Southeast Asia (to name a few) for inexpensive treatment (by comparison to the US costs) when we get turned down by insurance companies for coverage here.

Recently we heard of Farah Fawcett’s amazing struggle to survive. Were you aware she spent two years in German getting treatment she couldn’t get state-side?

So tell me, what is so great about our current system?

Henry Ford didn’t invent the car, but he found a way to make it affordable to common folks. He tried and failed two times before figuring the assembly line concept out. But even his cars had hard rubber wheels, not like the ones of today.

We didn’t invent national healthcare, but I’m sure we can build a better one. A system that will guarantee the sanctity of life through laws, not left to “Dead Boards” to decide.

The right system will still provide a seat at the table for insurance companies too. They can provide the additional coverages for those who want additional protection for being unable to work while sick, or for medications, dental care, eye glasses and more.

I don’t like the proposed system, in fact it scares me the more I find out about it, but my desire for change in this regard is growing.

Thanks for reading this far.