I hate politics and I hate the shameless schmucks that manipulate data and so-called conservatives who spew demagoguery pitting them against so-called liberals (whose major fault is a touching naivety) to produce distorted policies that serve a few special interests and leave the rest of us out in the cold.
And then I discovered Ron Paul.
That's Dr. Ron Paul.
MD.
Presidential candidate Ron Paul.
Congressman (Rep) Ron Paul. A conservative from Texas.
Easy now, not everyone from Texas is stupid, any more than legacies from Yale.
It turns out Ron Paul is very popular among bloggers and technophiles (perhaps characterized by respect for reason, a middle-of-the-road kind of libertarianism and actual practicality). Yes, he has a health platform, most of which actually makes sense. I actually like his voting record, despite the APHA rating him at 53%. Although a relatively poor rating, it is the highest among Republicans running for President. (I would argue that the APHA's view is too unfriendly to business and will require raising taxes too much.)
I find it interesting that NPR has taken notice, but the conservative mafia are savaging him at every turn. Not real conservatives, you understand, just the goons currently running the GOP. Here is a Fox news article describing the internecine wars, written by an intelligent, tolerant, conservative journalist. This struggle between the GOP leadership and a former Libertarian presidential candidate probably seals the deal; Ron Paul has no chance. But he probably has a better chance of influencing policy than Dr. Dean ever had 4 years ago.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Thanki you for your intellgent and kind post! It's refreshing to find more bloggers with an open mind to the awesome record and issue stances of Dr. Paul!!
Have a fantastic day!
It does seem that Ron Paul misplaced some of the 'GOP memos' regarding how to vote on certain legislation, meaning he didn't always vote in support of the White House agenda.
For that, I am intrigued.
I enjoy learning he voted:
YES - require Rx price negotiation for Medicare Part D
YES - allow Rx drug reimportation
NO - Medicare Prescription Drug Modernization Act of 2003
NO - subsidize private Medicare Advantage Rx plans
I disagree with:
YES - Association Health Insurance Plans
YES - Medical Savings Accounts
(both of which further erode health insurance coverage)
However, I really begin to squirm when I read he:
1) supports eliminating federal entitlement of Medicare
2) opposes abortion in all forms
3) opposes embryonic stem cell research
4) supports denying funding to 'sex ed' programs which teach anything beyond abstinance-only before marriage
5) opposes Family Planning funding in US Aid abroad
6) ironically supports physician-assisted suicide
8) supports withdrawing from United Nations
If only there were a presidential candidate who sees things exactly as I do. Sigh
I think you're right, there will never be a candidate that meets that final and most important criterion.
Can you accept an anti-choice candidate who otherwise makes sense? Dropping the Medicare entitlement brings us back to the notion of pitting children versus adults. I like HSA's and don't think they erode insurance. We'll never have 100% coverage, so they help plan for unexpected extra expenses.
Don't know what AHIPs are... I guess I'll have to look it up.
Post a Comment