"And so I've been a little amused over the past couple of days where people have been having these rallies about taxes, taxes, you would think they'd be saying, 'Thank you!'" President Obama mocks tax protestors in a talk on April 15, 2010 (video)
In 18th century France, the French government nearly bankrupted itself paying for foreign wars. Massive national debt, inflation, high unemployment, onerous taxes, and widespread famine made life a misery for the common people. Aristocrats flaunted their wealth while the poor struggled with malnutrition. Bread prices were so high that the starving couldn’t afford it. The French queen’s response: “Let them eat cake.”
Déjà vu
At an April 15th Miami fundraiser, President Obama (D) ridiculed tax protestors for daring to disagree with him. Wealthy, connected donors laughed along with the President at those silly people who don’t like having their money seized for the President’s vision (video).
The President didn’t even pretend to listen to those he supposedly serves, instead he mocked any who chose to exercise their right to freedom of expression. Obama isn’t the first President to make obvious the disconnection between average people and those who rule over them in America:
- Bill Clinton (D) had cars towed from “Presidential parking zones” instantly created when police posted temporary “No Parking” signs wherever Clinton traveled in a city. Already parked? You’re still paying for the tow. One night 157 cars were towed when Clinton attended a fundraiser in Brooklyn.[1]
- While both Rs and Ds favor free speech cages for those who oppose their views, GWB (R) made an institution of the cages.[2]
Our politicians do not hold those they supposedly serve in high esteem.
The Same Old Con
“…government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” From Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address
The “government of the people” became the “government over the people” long ago. Misdirected Rs say it happened with Ds in power, while misguided Ds say it happened with Rs at the helm. Whatever your view, there should be no doubt that any who dare disagree with the executive are stepped on, ridiculed, and ultimately not tolerated.[3]
Speaking at the University of Michigan commencement in May, President Obama criticized those who believe government is the problem (video), and his beguiled audience laughed with him at the silly citizens who disagree with his healthcare re-form:
“But what troubles me is when I hear people say that all of government is inherently bad. One of my favorite signs during the health care debate was somebody who said, “Keep Your Government Hands Out Of My Medicare” -- (laughter) -- which is essentially saying “Keep Government Out Of My Government-Run Health Care Plan.” (Laughter.)”[4]
Government-Run Healthcare is Always Unhealthy
This past year politicians were so desperate for healthcare re-form because federal involvement in healthcare in the form of Medicare is such a disaster.[5] On August 11, 2009, while in Portsmouth, N.H. to drum up support for healthcare re-form legislation, President Obama acknowledged Medicare's problems:
"Our deficit will continue to grow because Medicare and Medicaid are on an unsustainable path. Medicare is slated to go into the red in about eight to 10 years. I don't know if people are aware of that. If I was a senior citizen, the thing I'd be worried about right now is Medicare starts running out of money because we haven't done anything to make sure that we're getting a good bang for our buck when it comes to health care."[6]
Now with even more federal control of healthcare, President Obama says he has saved America from a great crisis. Yet he never explains why giving even more control to those who put us “on an unsustainable path” is a panacea and not a prescription for an even bigger disaster.
You can hold any view as long as it is pro-government[7]
Our politicians live as modern-day Kings and Queens, yet they perpetuate the lie that we citizens are the government and not merely litter bearers for their royal persons. During his May commencement speech, President Obama reiterated the myth that “government is us”:
“When our government is spoken of as some menacing, threatening foreign entity, it ignores the fact that in our democracy, government is us. We, the people -- (applause.) We, the people, hold in our hands the power to choose our leaders and change our laws, and shape our own destiny.”[8]
“Shape our own destiny”? That’s why Obama’s laughing. We do not shape our own destiny. Our destiny is shaped for us by the federal government. The tea party advocates Obama mocks, don’t want more public healthcare, yet will be forced to pay for it just the same. Meanwhile the President and his tittering supporters can have another slice of cake and enjoy the entertainment.
Turn a Deaf Ear
Obama told graduating students that they should seek out opposing views, something he patronizingly did with the April 15th tax protestors:
"It may make your blood boil. Your mind may not be changed. But the practice of listening to opposing views is essential for effective citizenship."
Listen to other points of view unless the people expressing those views think taxes are too high, the federal government is too big, and those ruling are as out of touch with everyday Americans as the French queen who suggested the poor eat cake.
If others dare to believe government is the problem, first belittle them, then ignore them (video), and finally threaten them.
“The government of the people, by the people, for the people?” Ask yourself: "Which people?"
_______________________
[1] “Cars Get Towed When Clinton Visits,” By Deb Riechmann
Associated Press, Friday, Feb. 11, 2000, (Accessed at http://www.mail-archive.com/ctrl@listserv.aol.com/msg35597.html and http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1876&dat=20000212&id=ad0pAAAAIBAJ&sjid=3c8EAAAAIBAJ&pg=1660,2115875 on May 9, 2010).
[2] “Bush Zones Go National,” Jim Hightower, The Nation, July 29, 2004, (Accessed at http://www.thenation.com/article/bush-zones-go-national?page=0,0 on May 9, 2010).
[3] “Federal agency warns of radicals on right,” By Audrey Hudson and Eli Lake, April 14, 2009, Washington Times, (Accessed at http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/apr/14/federal-agency-warns-of-radicals-on-right/ on May 9, 2010).
[4] “Remarks by the President at University of Michigan Spring Commencement,” Big House, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, May 01, 2010, (Accessed at http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-university-michigan-spring-commencement on May 9, 2010).
[5] Medicare, a federal health "insurance" program for all Americans aged 65 and over. Medicare is paid for with payroll taxes of 2.9% on wages and has been around since 1965. It's not really an insurance program as people pay up front with Medicare taxes for 10 or more years and expect to spend the money later after age 65. It should be an excellent indicator of how well federal government health insurance works. How's it doing?
There are currently $89 trillion in unfunded Medicare liabilities, and the Obama administration is trying to change the types of treatment received by the elderly by cutting Medicare payments for cancer and heart patient doctors and encouraging more preventive care.
[6] “Remarks by the President in Health Insurance Reform Town Hall,” Portsmouth High School, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, August 11, 2009, (Accessed at http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Remarks-by-the-President-at-Town-Hall-on-Health-Insurance-Reform-in-Portsmouth-New-Hampshire/ on May 9, 2010).
Later, during the same appearance in N.H., in a reverse bait and switch, when President Obama wanted people who complain about socialism in healthcare to realize that Medicare is government-run health care insurance, Obama tells them it's a good thing:
"And so I do think it's important for particularly seniors who currently receive Medicare to understand that if we're able to get something right like Medicare, then there should be a little more confidence that maybe the government can have a role -- not the dominant role, but a role -- in making sure the people are treated fairly when it comes to insurance."
So in the same talk, one minute President Obama said Medicare is not a good program, but later listeners were not supposed to conclude that the federal government wasn’t doing a good job with it, that the federal government had gotten it right. Instead citizens were supposed to support President Obama's call for even more federal involvement.
Is it any wonder people aren’t convinced?
[7] “Bill Clinton on Violence and Government: A Lethal Hypocrisy,” By James Bovard, (Accessed at http://jimbovard.com/blog/2010/04/20/bill-clintons-lethal-hypocrisy-on-government-violence/ on May 9, 2010).
“Yesterday, on the fifteenth anniversary of the attack on the federal office building in Oklahoma City, former President Bill Clinton had an op-ed in the New York Times headlined: “Violence is Unacceptable in a Democracy.” The article settles any doubts about whether Clinton was one of the most talented demagogues of modern times.
“Casting a net of collective guilt over much of the 48 contiguous states, Clinton announced that the 1995 bombing was the fault of people who believed ‘that the greatest threat to American freedom is our government, and that public servants do not protect our freedoms, but abuse them.’ People who distrusted government helped echo ideas which somehow persuaded ‘deeply alienated and disconnected Americans’ to carry out the attack.
“In other words, people who harshly criticize the government are guilty of - or at least complicit in - mass murder.”
…
“Clinton declared that ‘we do not have the right to resort to violence — or the threat of violence — when we don’t get our way.’
“Unless you’re the government.”
[8] “Remarks by the President at University of Michigan Spring Commencement,” ibid.
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