Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Stick to the Facts

I was criticized for being too subjective in my last post, so I want to bring up a fact. I find this next point both alarming and completely infuriating. As we all know (unless you've been living under a rock), many Americans, on both sides of the issue, have gotten out to town hall meetings in recent weeks to offer their representatives their opinions about healthcare reform. Representative Eric Massa (D-NY) recently had this to say about voting for a bill that mandates a single payer:

"I will vote adamantly against the interests of my district. I will vote against their opinion if I actually believe it will help them."


Does anyone else find this completely enraging? We elect officials in this country to represent us in Washington. They are not supposed to come home and represent Washington to us. If more representatives echo his sentiment, I think this is very dangerous for our country. Our government was founded by the people, for the people. Thomas Jefferson stated explicitly in the Declaration of Independence that the purpose of a government is to serve the people, and when it ceases to, the people have a RESPONSIBILITY to change the government. The audacity of Massa is truly disturbing. There are representatives in this country who will risk losing reelection in order to push an agenda that their constituents do not approve of. This is not democracy in the sense that it was meant for the United States of America.


Now, for the opinion part: I believe we should all fight this sentiment to the greatest extent we can. The government is supposed to carry out the will of the people. I am insulted by statements such as the one Massa made and remarks made by Barney Frank at his recent town hall meeting. The insinuation that they know better than the average American about issues that directly affect Americans is flat out wrong. Perhaps in certain cases it is necessary for the government to push change, but I do not believe health care reform is one of them. These issues surrounding healthcare are near and dear to the heart of every American, and people are worried by the blatant disregard with which they are being treated by their supposed representatives. I would urge anyone who feels misrepresented by his or her Congressman, Senator, or President to get these people out of office at the earliest possible time. Do not reelect those who disenfranchise you. Vote for candidates who will accurately represent you, and if they don't, don't vote for them again. Take this very seriously - we have reached a critical point in American history, and every voting American has the power to put America back on the track it was created on.






1 comment:

  1. I was just sitting here thinking the very same thing! WOW!!!

    ReplyDelete