How Obama has handled the massive problems is EXACTLY how Republicans would've handled them (and how BushCheney was handling them). Obama's not governing as he had promised or as a real Democrat would have.
The real shame is that Obama could have been a transcendent president, good for both business AND the People. Had he delivered on the campaign promises that he implied, theCHANGE with strong progressive policies, he could have solved just about all of the problems Obama found himself facing, left to him by BushCheney.
Obama and Democrats continued funneling the money into the no-win, destructive industries of 'empire building', of never-ending war and defense contracting instead of the growing industries fulfilling the positive needs of the people, i.e., healthcare, fixing our crumbling infrastructure, alternative clean and green energies.
Just on the healthcare, the massive job creation possibilities were lost when the real reform proposed by single payer universal healthcare advocates was eliminated from even getting a seat at the table, and Obama chose to preserve an anachronistic and failed insurance industry and employer-provided system for medical care (which is actually government-sanctioned racketeering).
The 'job creation'-reform that survived in the healthcare legislation was billions spent on the Patriot Act-like invasion of citizens' privacy and the outsourcing of jobs that's involved with putting medical records on the internet -- All for a system that doesn't control costs and doesn't deliver medical treatment to everyone (not even those who think they're going to get it).
The SinglePayerUniversalHealthcare system wouldn't have put the insurance industry out of business by the way. It would've been a two-tiered system: Basic coverage for everyone and boutique coverage for those willing to pay for it. So nobody had to worry about poor Big Insurance and Pharma -- There would have been work for all. Big Insurance and Pharma would just had to have made smarter gambles, with no taxpayer bailouts.
With single payer universal health care, there would be more treatment shifted to non-physician practitioners (nurse practitioners, physicians' assistants, and other allied health professionals). Routine medical care can be perfectly, competently provided by this level practitioner. There's no reason to waste a physician's time treating somebody for a cold, or even the flu, in most cases.
If universal health coverage were to become an official reality, we'd need to expand training programs for both MDs and non-MD providers (more jobs created in education) which, in the long run, would mean cheaper and more effective service, along with more jobs created.
It would be a good thing. But Obama chooses the dark side. The CORPORATE side. Every time.
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost
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