Anyone who has read this blog before knows that since last summer I have focused on the mandate as the core evil in the various incarnations of the Democratic restructuring of the health care system.
So much else that is wrong in the current bill set for vote today stems from the mandate, including the use of the IRS as enforcement agent and the sharing with the IRS of the details of our health care coverage.
More important than the details of this bill, the mandate destroys one of the last bastions of individual autonomy in this society.
Randy Barnett, a law professor at Georgetown, summarizes the problem today in The Washington Post:
But the individual mandate extends the commerce clause’s power beyond economic activity, to economic inactivity. That is unprecedented. While Congress has used its taxing power to fund Social Security and Medicare, never before has it used its commerce power to mandate that an individual person engage in an economic transaction with a private company. Regulating the auto industry or paying “cash for clunkers” is one thing; making everyone buy a Chevy is quite another. Even during World War II, the federal government did not mandate that individual citizens purchase war bonds.
If you choose to drive a car, then maybe you can be made to buy insurance against the possibility of inflicting harm on others. But making you buy insurance merely because you are alive is a claim of power from which many Americans instinctively shrink.
It truly amazes me that the left-wing of the Democratic Party, which foams at the mouth at the thought that the NSA might intercept a phone call from someone in the U.S. to a known al–Qaeda operative in Pakistan, is so willing to hand over to the government the power to control the most personal aspect of our lives.
What if Barack Obama were not President, and Democrats did not control Congress. Would liberals be so willing to give the federal government this sweeping power?
The answer to that question is so plainly obvious that it should give pause even to those so infected with Obamamania that they have lost the ability to reason.
Liberals shouldn’t wish too hard for the mandate, because they just may get it. Freedom, once relinquished, is very hard to get back.
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Related Posts:
Will Obamacare Lead To A New “Anti-Fascist” Coalition?
Taxing Your Mere Existence
IRS The New Health Care Enforcer
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Comments
"What if Barack Obama were not President, and Democrats did not control Congress. Would liberals be so willing to give the federal government this sweeping power?"
Yes, in my opinion.
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=107&session;=1&vote;=00371
It probably will not have sunk in with most Americans just what is at stake until this weekend when so many informative articles (like this good one) have appeared that summarize the situation not just handle it piece meal as we have had to do during the progress of the bills through House and Senate.
To tie up all the lose ends – that is what this article does. I hope it is not too late. From what I have read, it is not. Aside from blogging, perhaps being more vocal in our own lives with our own friends will help. Also becoming more active on the local leve which is, after all where the Tea Party lives and grows.
Well said.
Linked.
A wonderful summary of what we've been through, where we are, and what we face in the future.
I don't think we are "so willingly relinquish(ing)" our freedom, but indeed the Liberal Leftists in Congress are. No only will they suffer in November, but they will have enraged the citizenry against the Democrats for decades to come.
There is still hope. However, slightly OT, Stupak is doing it again – last-minute "we've cut a deal, and now I'm satisfied" just like he did in November. See – we don't forget! The Left just doesn't seem to get it – we SEE THROUGH YOU completely.
Has that been Stupak's and Liar Nancy's plan all along – string the Conservatives along, then scr*w them last-minute? Indeed, it WILL be hard to get back our freedom from these statists, but we will NOT quit! Kill. The. Bill. November IS coming – not soon enough!
It's not just the US that will lose today – it's the hope that will be killed off around the world that the US stands for things no other country does.
I don't think they would, even though their outrage about wiretapping was feigned. They don't stand for anything. They only stand against.
Today, they stand against the American people, especially the unborn.
Liberals are children. Leftists are savage children. For most of American history, in the household arrangement of our political life, these children have been consigned to their proper role in the family hierarchy. But that arrangement has recently and radically changed. We now have to reckon with the fact the children are in charge. We are living out a "Lord of the Flies" epoch in America. I pray it is shorter than most epochs, and that we survive it.
The problem is that we have lost control of our education system. From pre-school through college young adults are taught the ideals of socialism. They are not taught about the sacrifices of freedom. They know little of our country's history, how our government works, the balance of power, nor truth, justice and the American way.
A lack of factual knowledge in world history, combined with a media that has no journalistic integrity, leaves them accepting of socialist ideals that take away their freedoms. They do not understand the sacrifice. They do not understand that socialism has brought nothing but pain and suffering to every society that has experimented with it. They do not know. No one has told them.
When I posted 'The Morons That Voted For Obama' http://wp.me/pLGBN-aU , my intent was not to focus on, nor blame, the people in the videos, but to relate to others that it is time to educate the masses. Stand up and be heard.
If people do not know and understand the evils of socialism, you cannot blame them for being accepting of it. After all, if it was a bad thing wouldn't the nicely dressed people on television tell them so.
The Democrats bring to mind the Book "Lord of the Flies". Children that no longer have to play by the rules(socialism on steroids). Now, today we wait for the boulder to fall. November will be very busy at the polls.
"the mandate destroys one of the last bastions of individual autonomy in this society"
That is its purpose. They aren't fighting so incredibly hard for this bill because they really believe it will improve health care in this country. They're fighting for it because they want power.
As far as Pelosi and company are concerned, even if they lose re-election over this, if they win, power will have been transferred to the place where it belongs: In government hands, rather than the people's.
Don't give it up. It's only hard to get back if we believe it's hard to get back. You guys are acting like this is a physical invasion, complete with armies. This is a wanna-be socialist coup. They don't have armies. We have the first and second Amendments. We outnumber them vastly.
And you guys are wringing your hands.
Shame, shame.
It is not hard to get back if you guys stop the handwringing.
You act like we're facing a Nazi invasion. In reality, we have 59 people in the Senate and what, 257 people in the House deciding to turn America into a socialist country.
We have the first amendment, so they've lost the debate. We have the second Amendment and a largely conservative military, so martial law will be a serious problem for them.
We outnumber them GREATLY. They won last time because a bunch of us stayed home (i didn't), and some bought OBama's centrist tripe.
Now we're engaged. And we're gonna win BIG in 2010 and 2012. Then we teach these would-be tinpot dictators a SEVERE lesson in humility and what happens to those who threaten Americans' freedom.
We will force the republicans to do it. Put half the pressure on the GOP that we did on the DEMs over deathcare, and they'll fold like a cheap suitcase. and we get what we want.
It is not about privacy, or healthcare or "social justice" it is about power, control, and guaranteeing one party's dominance for generations.
Imagine your nation being a form of Britain's system,except the dominant party has none of the civility of the Brits. They will be harsh, even brutal if threatened. The only thing stopping them from crushing us is a number's game.
We have more guns. But healthcare will solve that, as they punish people who own them with higher fees and premiums. You watch. At Redstate there is a lot of conversation. Some of it I'm posting at my website today. But the point is this. They are not playing by the rules and will break any contract, any agreement, any promise to get what they want. Them on top, you on the bottom.
There are moments in history where nations falter. We have arrived at one of those moments.
http://truthandcommonsense.com/2010/03/21/a-small-moment-in-personal-history-my-sixth-hundredth-post-on-the-day-of-the-healthcare-vote/
Those who relinquish freedom for temporary security deserve neither security nor freedom.
So, archer52, will you allow them to? Or will you roll over and beg for a treat?
I spent yesterday at the Tucson Davis-Montham Air Show. While I know many of the people there are generally disengaged, I have to feel there are many of them like me that won't take this tyranny sitting down. If this passes, there will be a constitutional crisis the likes of which the leftists in this country cannot imagine. If this doesn't pass there still will be political bloodshed this fall for anyone who entertained the thought of this madness.
Even if we lose this battle today (as it appears we will), stay strong, stay resolute. We cannot surrender for we must win the war. We don't have any other options but to continue on to victory.
Remember the devastating losses our young and under-resourced army had before Valley Forge.
We must not let Nancy and her defiant "gavel walk" today demoralize us.
On to November!
If there is a silver lining to this mess perhaps it is that many have been forced to realize that our elected politicians' loyalties are inside the Beltway and not within their own Districts. Barney Frank represents districts that voted over 70% for Scott Brown ie: we don't want this Health Care bill. So after voting him into office term after term, overlooking his ethics problems and other issues he decided to thank us all by punching us all square in the stomach and spitting in our faces. That scene is being played out all across this country.
apronius said… March 21, 2010 12:50 PM
"It is not hard to get back … Put half the pressure on the GOP that we did on the DEMs … and they'll fold like a cheap suitcase."
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Bold words, and they sure sound good. But at least half of the GOPers believe in big government and nanny-state-ism (despite the necessary posturing-for-conservative-voters). They'll say whatever is expedient in order to get elected; then they work for 3-1/2 years on Progressive-leaning legislation; and the final 6 months is taken up by the requisite pre-election pantomime for conservative consumption.
As we have seen, a LOT of damage can occur in a mere 14 months. How do we keep the lying liars from getting elected in the first place? None of 'em has a tattoo on his forehead saying "Don't trust this man".
How many people REALLY have the time to look over Congress's shoulders EVERY DAMN DAY? We have jobs to do (or to look for) and families to take care of, yards to weed, cars to take to the shop & get back again…. y'know, the busy-ness of life. And yet, we now know we can't trust ANY of these lying liars that we've elected to actually put the country's interests first.
That could wind up being the biggest fallout of the Obama Administration: our Ruling Elites, Left and Right, may have lost the public's trust. What happens to "Government by consent of the governed" if citizens feel "politicians just want to vote perks to the guys who offer the best bribes, and 'We-The-People' matter only to the extent that we pay, and keep paying, and are taxed more and pay more, to keep their wallets fat and their egos fatter."
"None of 'em has a tattoo on his forehead saying "Don't trust this man"."
For God's sake, they said they were Democrats, what more do you need to know in order not to trust them
There is no question that liberals would be only too happy to vote for the same bill if GOP was in power. For one thing, GOP is just as socialist (remember Bush's "compassionate conservatism"?). For another, they (the liberals) are still in power one way or the other even with a Republican president. They control the universities and the media, for one thing. But third and most important, this bill is a part of their strategy of getting into power forever. Of course they would support it, maybe especially so if GOP held majorities, because it would be a good way to end those majorities.
If you want to rein in every Senators and Congress, I have a solution. Have each State and it's voters decide and vote for their salaries every 4 years. Remove their benefits, have them pay for their own health insurance, transportation and staffing. Each member of Congress and the Senate will personally report to their respective Governors and their constituents every Monday and Thursday in open town hall meetings. To make it stick, all the possessions of any lawmaker as well as any elected official will be placed on a lien until the end of his or term or sold by the people.
I've written this on my blog today. Sorry for the style – English is a second language to me.
I want my country back!
It seems like the ultra-liberals have been able to bribe and coerce enough congress-scumbags to pass the Obamacare. And as I said before, there would be hell to pay for this monstrosity. Obamacare is the very definition of unlimited government – the threat of which was forwarned by the Founding Fathers more than two centuries ago. The federal government, which is up to its neck in debt and unfunded liabilities, decided to launch the biggest entitlement of all times – the medical care for all. The spending on this new entitlement will surely dwarf many if not most of Federal programs and will make the bankruptcy of federal and state governments inevitable. The time of reckoning is at hand, brothers and sisters. Obamacare is the last breath of the liberal order – and it’s time to take back America from the thieves.
All patriots of this nation must stand together and fight back. United we will win! There is no blue or red America anymore – there are only those that believe in America the beautiful, America the free, America the shining city on the hill – and those that believe in welfare socialism and government tyranny. Today, we fight not only for our personal well-being – but for the dignity and honor of this country, for the right to look into the eyes of our children and say – we defended this nation from the perils of socialism. In November 2010, we will answer the crucial questions of our times – are American people worthy of the efforts of the Founding Fathers? Will American people have to right to proudly say “We are Americans” – or they will forever live in infamy and indignity of welfare socialism?
I am glad that the Democratic Party passed the Rubicon. From now on, there is no coming back for the liberal elites, no talk for compromise and middle-ground. Today, it is abundantly clear that we either will live in Obama-America or America that our Founding Father envisioned. You cannot have both.
The November elections will be the most important elections in our lifetime. If you don’t vote for America in November – you don’t deserve to be called an American.
Written by a Russian immigrant who loves America and who loves freedom.
Nonny
Mouse
Good name, 'mouse'. Yeah, they're bold words, backed by bold action. Donating. Getting informed. Making calls. Volunteering for Scott Brown. Oh yeah, did I mention I'm in college and have two full time jobs?
If liberty is important enough, you keep track.
It's your weak minded, lazy attitude that has gotten us where we are.
Did you ever consider (when you weren't working on your lawn or whatever) that it only takes a small, committed class of people to do this? To inform the others, to set the apparatus up for them, to get things moving? This is what the libs have done for years.
And they're doing pretty good.
If you wanna join us, welcome aboard. If you wanna wring your hands, do it in silence, and don't bring the others down.
HyphenatedAmerican
Spasibo! And welcome to the fight.
I study political science, and I am currently working on a plan to effect victory in 2010 and 2012. I want to work with other courageous, motivated and patriotic Americans, to exchange ideas, to plot a path to victory and to see that victory become reality!
Thanks for your courage at this time. Keep it up and inspire others. Let me know. Anyone else here who is interested in seriously working toward an American victory in 2010 and 2012, please leave a message here, and we can arrange something.
It's not just the US that will lose today – it's the hope that will be killed off around the world that the US stands for things no other country does.
That sounds so heartbreakingly sad, but really — why would the end of exclusions for pre-existing conditions, recissions, etc. make people elsewhere in the world lose hope, and lose hope of what? Why would the individual mandate, which exists, for example, in Japan's health care system, mark the United States as an evil country?
And even accepting your premise — that the United States is diminished because of HCR — then what is your Plan B country? Where would you gladly move to to avoid US-style healthcare reform?
"It truly amazes me that the left-wing of the Democratic Party, which foams at the mouth at the thought that the NSA might intercept a phone call from someone in the U.S. to a known al-Qaeda operative in Pakistan, …."
Ten bux says they wouldn't have even mentioned it if Obama had ordered it instead of Dubya.
Yes, they are THAT partisan.
Just a quick thought; since the bill grants the Federal Gov't, in the body of the IRS, the task of determining personal health care choices, can't it all be chucked with Roe v. Wade?
The so-called legal rationale for it was "privacy", as embodied in the doctor-patient relationship; wouldn't that hold here, too?