The healthcare debate has been going on for a little while now. A lot of opinions have come out of it, but I’m not here to tell you about my own politically-biased views.
I’m here to tell you why the healthcare debate is less of an exchange of ideas and more of an “us vs. them” scenario.
There are some people who are strongly for the Obama healthcare reform plan and some who are opposed to it. Others don’t even care.
Those who are undecided aren’t the ones speaking up at town hall meetings like the one we had on campus on Monday, Aug. 31. The most outspoken are those from the politically extreme left or right.
There’s the problem. Once politics are thrown into the mix, it quickly becomes an exchange of, “You’re wrong!” instead of, “What if we take this into account?”
If I were undecided about Obama’s reform plan, I would probably get sick of both bickering sides and stop listening altogether.
Many of the people at the town hall meetings are just throwing around their sometimes-supported thoughts. Some of the ideas and arguments are irrelevant.
I think the cause of this is the extensive exposure people have had to it in such a short amount of time.
For example, one of my friends recently said he was disappointed the IUS Common Experience program was focusing on healthcare this semester. He said he was sick of hearing about it.
Are we tired of the debate already?
Most people have barely had time to consider their own personal views. There hasn’t been nearly enough time for a fair and balanced exchange of ideas.
To make matters worse, there isn’t enough pure, unbiased information reaching the masses. There are many inaccuracies out there, on both sides of the table.
The truth is we haven’t had enough time to digest all the information about healthcare.
This is why people flock to their respective political bandwagon. It’s quick and easy to just go along with it.
I truly believe most people are either for or against the reform plan just because of the political party they identify with. They won’t say they are joining the bandwagon, but I guarantee you they could reference at least one person in their party who feels like they do.
No matter what your political identity is, could you honestly call yourself an expert on healthcare, one of the biggest money-making industries in the country?
Healthcare is a business, one that makes a lot of money.
We’re looking for a reason to fight each other. Once again, it comes down to Democrats vs. Republicans. We’re not solving the real problem.
It’s like if you gave two mathematicians a problem they couldn’t possibly solve. Both would come up with an answer of some sort, even if it doesn’t work all the time. Then one would say his equation is the best and demean the other’s equation, even though both are flawed.
Then again, I sometimes feel like the public’s opinions don’t even matter to most politicians.
I’m not picking out any in particular, but they have their own agenda. Listening to their constituents is just a means to an end.
Whoever thinks this is a pure democracy is naive. The representatives don’t always represent everyone.
To be fair, I’m ranting. Getting back to the healthcare problem, the public has gotten too much, too fast.
If we’re already sick of debating the idea, we’re going to just give up on the idea of changing healthcare and just go with whatever. It’s a lazy way to go.
That’s the way we sometimes are as a society. We move on from one thing to another, faster and faster.
I don’t think we devote enough time and patience to the important issues we face as a country. It’s a problem. We’re giving up and not getting enough done.
We need meaningful debates, not angry town hall meetings. The health of a nation depends on it.
By JOSEPH DEVER
Editor
jwdever@ius.edu