It just doesn’t get any kookier than this: 52% of Americans believe that the heretofore unscanned Obama Pelosi health care plan has been poorly handled by the political class and will lead to higher deficits. They don’t like it, and some of them are daring to express themselves about it when they’re not being beaten down by racist thugs.
Dissent used to be patriotic back when it meant losing a war, if that’s what it took to damage a president. Now according to the Speaker of the House and her party’s majority leader, it is “Un-American.” Only one-third of the US Senate can change hands in an election year, but every congressman has to face the music biennially. In between sneering at people who dare to disagree while purchasing for themselves additional luxury private jets – global warming is for the little people – and blitzing trillion dollars burdens on our children for pork-laden recovery schemes it’s almost like Pelosi is sprinting back towards being House minority leader.
Clearly it’s a role for which she is better suited.
Update: Ron Hart sees the humor in it -
If Obama has his way, his health care plan will be funded by his Treasury chief who did not pay his taxes, overseen by his Surgeon General who is obese, signed by a president who smokes and financed by a country that is just about broke. What possibly could go wrong?
Perhaps she can convene an inquisitorial panel on these nefarious influences that seem to be everywhere and anywhere – she could even call such a panel “The House Committee on Un-American Activities”?
I am at least glad however that we can agree that it is possible that one’s political actions can make one “unAmerican” – a label I have been tempted to use when describing those of my fellow citizens who cheerlead those who are cheerleading those who already had or were seeking to kill Americans (see http://www.zombietime.com/hall_of_shame/ for that lost time of innocence once upon a time when dissent rather than conformity was the highest form of patriotism – at least no one can accuse these protestors of being too well dressed…). So in that sense at least we are coming together…
God how I loathe these people. 2010 can’t get here fast enough.
Double Dittos on loathing these people and I’ll also add their despicable ideas and philosophies.
To be fair, the “un-American” comment was directed at those who disrupt meetings and generally attempt to shout down all discussion. Of course, those folks that are doing that are simply following a template that was amply demonstrated during the previous adminsitration, but it still bears mentioning.
That said, if I was on the lookout for distinctly undemocratic and un-American behavior in this “national debate,” I don’t know that I would look much further than the failed attempt to get this boondoggle passed before the August break, the intent of which was to completely moot any meaningful debate before it could even get started.
Or, I’d take a hard look at the negotiations going on behind closed doors between healthcare industry interested insiders and the “most transparent White House” evah!
And, of course, there’s the data gathering arm of Obama’s Army requesting notice of any disinformation (aka: it doesn’t match our narrative) be sent to a whitehouse.gov email address. That’s not too cool.
There’s enough to raise concern here without recontextualizing the self-serving bloviations of Ms. Pelosi.
the ones shouting down the opposition are her own supporters, the very same ones that physically beat up those who oppose Obapelosi policies.
Can the resurrection of HUAC be far off? These people have no shame.
I’ve spent most of my adult life in sales. It is amazing to me that the administration and its allies on the hill have so little comprehension of some of the time tested principles of how to win someone over to your point of view, which after all is what sales is all about.
In no particular order I’d characterize these as:
1) Listen to the customer to understand their concerns.
2) Answer any ojections in a manner that demonstrates not only an appreciation and understanding of the objection but explains in clear language the customer can comprehend why your product or service provides a solution that solves the problem.
3) Listen to the customer and ask if they have any other concerns, if so go to step one, if not continue.
4) Ask the customer for their support (ask for the order). If they will not provide it (order the product) repeat step 1, if they will shut up as you have done your job.
I’ve never seen a successful sales approach that includes insulting the customer, questioning their intelligence, and, in general, treating them like shit.
So I find it no wonder that this is going over like a lead balloon. Of course, all the preceding sales steps assume you actually have a product that can do what you claim. If you don’t then, while I don’t subscribe to them, you might need to adopt less straight-forward and more ethically challenged approaches.
That may provide some clue as to the tactics employed (including the age old snake-oil salesman approach of demanding that you must “act now or else” that becomes less and less successful given examination of the underlying “facts” claimed) by the Administration, et al.
The long term toxic effects will only be determined come November 2010. I hope the electorate’s attention rises to the challenge.
[...] Gateway Pundit, Pundit & Pundette, Dennis the Peasant, AmSpecBlog, The Caucus, GayPatriot, Neptunus Lex, Sister Toldjah, Cato @ Liberty, Freedom’s Lighthouse, Shot in the Dark, The Campaign Spot, [...]
Pelosi Obama and crowd are not “selling”–they’re “telling”. Obama says he inherited a mess, which he’s willing to clean up, but “I don’t want to hear any talking” from those who created the mess. No dialogue necessary or wanted. To which I say BS! and Kiss My Grits!
I’ll be happy to lend the Pelosi posse a pair of track shoes so they can sprint their way back to the minority.
At least the folks who are acting so “un-American” aren’t paying people to push their agenda. Sorry I can’t do the nice linky thing: http://www.redstate.com/absentee/2009/08/09/lets-talk-astroturf/
@daveg: They’re forced to scream & holler to get the attention of the legislator with a microphone and it makes them very angry when he talks all around a question that’s been asked.
Too true Miss B. And when one of their constituents does speak up about wanting to know what their respresentative’s position on the issue of healthcare is – they get this.
Really watch the video. Because this is the truth of these town hall meetings – not what Pelosi and her cadre of swamp dwellers want the public to believe.
They are despicable in every way. 2010 is coming…
If we are un-American, then what are we? We need a name.
People opposed to abortion didn’t like the term “anti-abortion”, so they became “pro-life”. People in favor of abortion didn’t the term “pro-abortion”, so they became “pro-choice”.
I don’t like the term un-American, but I haven’t come up with a new name yet. Pro-freedom comes to mind as one possibility.
How about: “MED-UP”
Majority Engaged in Dialog; Understandably Pissed.
[...] Story, Perfunction, Pundit & Pundette, Dennis the Peasant, The Strata-Sphere, Michelle Malkin, Neptunus Lex, AmSpecBlog, Sister Toldjah, Cato @ Liberty, The Next Right, TPMDC, GayPatriot, Freedom’s [...]
My professional diagnosis is that Pelosi’s got a mighty big bezoar, she just can’t digest. How do ya’ spell relief?
[...] Story, Perfunction, Pundit & Pundette, Dennis the Peasant, The Strata-Sphere, Michelle Malkin, Neptunus Lex, AmSpecBlog, Sister Toldjah, Cato @ Liberty, The Next Right, TPMDC, GayPatriot, Freedom’s [...]
This is all Bush/Cheney’s fault.
And ASM – how ’bout pro-ABTIMELY?
(Anybody But This Idiotic Maniacal
Egotistical Loser of the Year)
Yep, I’m proud to be Pro-ABTIMELY. Nah, we gotta come up with something better, more disresepctful, more “dis-informational” that will lead to us getting reported to the White House.
G-Man,
We can do what Breda did, and just report ourselves.
http://thebredafallacy.blogspot.com/2009/08/my-permanent-record.html
ASM826
ASM826 … You ask what we can call ourselves, we rebellious citizens of today’s America under Obama. How about the New Freedom Committee? Freedom from harassment, freedom from oppressive Big Government, Freedom from the actions of the Busybody Brigade, Freedom to seek smaller government controls, and most of all, freedom to make our own decisions about our own lives?
Sound good?
Marianne
Hi Marianne,
Glad to see you’re back; the people over at Maggie’s Farm were concerned about you… me too.
I like your first sentence as a name: Rebellious Citizens of (today’s) America (under) Obama. RCA-O. Of course we could always fall back on AARP (Armed and Really Pissed), but that’s taken.
Having been in sales all of my life as well, I agree with Mike Myers: “They’re not selling, they’re TELLING.” Freedom is what it’s all about, isn’t it! It’s all about our Constitutional rights so how about “Constitutional Freedoms Coalition”?
Running a health care system, determining who gets what care when and for how much, is not the domain of federal government. Does the term “Health Choices Commissioner” send chills down your spine? One who would be in charge of a new bureaucracy regulating basically all health insurance in America. The only medical choices I’m interested in are the ones I make in consultation with my doctor and family. Not a government commissioner who, with tight budgets, could be Dr. Death.
Hi Peter … I just got a call from one of the Maggiesfarmers this afternoon — bless him. My verdommpt internet provider has not been providing Maggies for a month now, and I’ve made the Big Decision to stop networking with my husband’s computer and get my own modem and a direct connection to the internet, so I can access Maggies and Lex any time I want, like lightning. The linemen are coming to connect me to the cable box on Monday the 17th. And this better work, or I’m going to have to hire some muscle, grab my Gadsden flag and march on comcast headquarters. My husband says, when I get stirred up, I’m ‘terrible in my wrath,’ so they better watch out.
Marianne ‘the mobster’
Miss M&M,
My wife’s beach store has a t-shirt that I need to send to you:
“Watch Out – I’m not as sweet as I used to be”
Marianne,
Glad to see you’re back!
My wife had a problem with our shared DSL network ages ago. The DSL modem would happily connect me to the internet but not her. I run a PC and she runs a Mac. The only way to get it to work after I connected and disconnected was to physically unplug the rotten little DSL modem, unplug the router, unplug my computer from the router, wait for a minute, plug back in the worthless DSL modem and wait until all the lights went green, plug back in the router and have her connect to the internet. Worked every time!
I remember explaining the process to her (she was very angry at the time) as I was walking from Terminal A to Terminal D at O’Hare airport. I was half a mile underground and my cell phone handled every furious word which I thought was remarkable and couldn’t help myself from remarking on it time and again as I waited for the modem to reconfigure.
It boiled down to a basic incompatibility between the PC network connection and Mac network connections. I never had any problem logging on after or while she was logged onto the network but it just buggered the Mac no end when it went the other way.
There was no cure for the DSL modem. We terminated that with extreme prejudice (well, she did) and went to a CABLE modem and after that all our problems went away. Welcome back to the information snooper highway.
So happy to hear of your return, Marianne! I like it: Marianne the Mobster, stirring up real-time chaos wherever she writes.
Welcome back… we missed you!