sparrow13
Cathlete
Hey All,
With all the talk of health care on the boards I thought I would share my experience at a Health Care Town Hall meeting tonight. Senator Joe Courtney (D-CT) was the guest. I've never had too much of an issue with him (I disagree with a number of his positions but he's a champion of the small farmer. He has always refused taxpayer-funded health care as a congressman, and pays for his own.) I'm on his mailing list and was glad to get the chance to hear him speak on this issue. The crowd appreciated that he only spoke briefly and then opened the floor for discussion.
First off, can I just say it was hotter than hell, the microphones were sketchy, the room was too small for the 300+ people who showed up - some of us were literally hanging onto posts and sitting on windowsills - and I loved every minute of it. How amazing to see so many people getting involved, on both sides! The energy in the room was just intoxicating. Yes, I am a democracy-in-action geek.
The crowd was really good too. There was an undercurrent of tension in the room - which was not helped by the crushing heat - but I think most people really wanted to just have the discussion, not turn the thing into a shouting match. The majority of questions and comments were intelligent and respectful, though of course with the usual cheering and clapping when people thought someone had a particularly good point. I confused everyone around me by clapping whenever a good point was made, regardless of who said it or what side they were on Most of the questions revolved around issues of cost and medical choice. No one in the room seemed particularly thrilled with insurance companies. A lot of people told stories of not being able to switch carriers because of continuing illness. Also there were a number of doctors and nurses in the crowd. The ones that spoke were pretty much evenly split on the issue. Senator Courtney did a great job of answering all questions. He was calm, prepared and knowledgeable on the issues.
Of course there were also a few knuckleheads. One guy kept shouting out "What happens when it fails!" when other people had the floor, and another guy tried to go the route of accusing all those in the room who were opposed of being "plants" bussed in from other locations, on some sort of right-wing payroll or some such nonsense. Senator Courtney put a stop to that fairly quickly: he basically said "Look, I've been all over the state doing tons of these meetings, talking with 100s of people, and everyone of them has been sincere in their convictions. Let's ignore the wacky media reports and focus on what's important." Round of applause for Senator Courtney from the room. Round of applause again when someone finally told the "shouter" to shut up. Only one person brought up the "kill granny" silliness. Senator Courtney had the excellent response of "Do you really believe I would vote for something like that?" only he said it better.
There was also a lot of talk about the Constitution. My Libertarian heart supports the strict Constitutionalists but my practical self longs to point out to them that our government went Constitutionally off-book somewhere around the Jefferson Administration. It's not a new occurrence and people need to work with the realities of the situation. Sure, fight for your rights - I do - but understand that the federal government isn't simply going to pull out of our lives. It's just not going to happen. Health care reform *is* coming, so better to work within the current parameters and win some of what you want than to lose everything because you kept your head in the clouds and refused to deal with what IS. Just my opinion.
I came out believing pretty much what I went in with: insurance is desperately in need of reform, and I think it's shameful that so many go bankrupt from medical bills. On the other hand, government is notoriously wasteful and inefficient and I just can't believe that costs won't spin out of control on this thing really quickly. But listening to others speak (from both sides) made me consider things I hadn't before, which IMO is always a good thing. All in all it was a fantastic experience. If there is one near you I recommend going.
Sorry so long!
With all the talk of health care on the boards I thought I would share my experience at a Health Care Town Hall meeting tonight. Senator Joe Courtney (D-CT) was the guest. I've never had too much of an issue with him (I disagree with a number of his positions but he's a champion of the small farmer. He has always refused taxpayer-funded health care as a congressman, and pays for his own.) I'm on his mailing list and was glad to get the chance to hear him speak on this issue. The crowd appreciated that he only spoke briefly and then opened the floor for discussion.
First off, can I just say it was hotter than hell, the microphones were sketchy, the room was too small for the 300+ people who showed up - some of us were literally hanging onto posts and sitting on windowsills - and I loved every minute of it. How amazing to see so many people getting involved, on both sides! The energy in the room was just intoxicating. Yes, I am a democracy-in-action geek.
The crowd was really good too. There was an undercurrent of tension in the room - which was not helped by the crushing heat - but I think most people really wanted to just have the discussion, not turn the thing into a shouting match. The majority of questions and comments were intelligent and respectful, though of course with the usual cheering and clapping when people thought someone had a particularly good point. I confused everyone around me by clapping whenever a good point was made, regardless of who said it or what side they were on
Most of the questions revolved around issues of cost and medical choice. No one in the room seemed particularly thrilled with insurance companies. A lot of people told stories of not being able to switch carriers because of continuing illness. Also there were a number of doctors and nurses in the crowd. The ones that spoke were pretty much evenly split on the issue. Senator Courtney did a great job of answering all questions. He was calm, prepared and knowledgeable on the issues. Of course there were also a few knuckleheads. One guy kept shouting out "What happens when it fails!" when other people had the floor, and another guy tried to go the route of accusing all those in the room who were opposed of being "plants" bussed in from other locations, on some sort of right-wing payroll or some such nonsense. Senator Courtney put a stop to that fairly quickly: he basically said "Look, I've been all over the state doing tons of these meetings, talking with 100s of people, and everyone of them has been sincere in their convictions. Let's ignore the wacky media reports and focus on what's important." Round of applause for Senator Courtney from the room. Round of applause again when someone finally told the "shouter" to shut up. Only one person brought up the "kill granny" silliness. Senator Courtney had the excellent response of "Do you really believe I would vote for something like that?" only he said it better.
There was also a lot of talk about the Constitution. My Libertarian heart supports the strict Constitutionalists but my practical self longs to point out to them that our government went Constitutionally off-book somewhere around the Jefferson Administration. It's not a new occurrence and people need to work with the realities of the situation. Sure, fight for your rights - I do - but understand that the federal government isn't simply going to pull out of our lives. It's just not going to happen. Health care reform *is* coming, so better to work within the current parameters and win some of what you want than to lose everything because you kept your head in the clouds and refused to deal with what IS. Just my opinion.
I came out believing pretty much what I went in with: insurance is desperately in need of reform, and I think it's shameful that so many go bankrupt from medical bills. On the other hand, government is notoriously wasteful and inefficient and I just can't believe that costs won't spin out of control on this thing really quickly. But listening to others speak (from both sides) made me consider things I hadn't before, which IMO is always a good thing. All in all it was a fantastic experience. If there is one near you I recommend going.
Sorry so long!
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