“Die Quickly” by T. Edwin Perry
Let me start off by apologizing for not being able to address this topic before today. I would have preferred to have published this yesterday, but life got in the way. Sorry about that.
So, let’s talk about Alan Grayson, shall we? For those who don’t know, he is serving in the House of Representatives for the 8th District of Florida, which includes parts of Orange, Lake and Marion Counties. He’s a Democrat, and has served in Congress since January of 2009. He had run for his party’s nomination for the same office against the same opponent in 2006, and only won the nomination from his party in this current bid for the office as a result of “mud-slinging” campaign ads against Charlie Stuart. But, he soundly defeated the incumbent Republican candidate for the office, who violated his own VOLUNTARY term limits promise, so his opponent was a scumbag, too.
Alan Grayson is a lawyer, a Harvard Graduate, and has made a point of going after “whistleblower” cases of companies that have allegedly made profits as a result of the War in Iraq. Except for the past 9 months, Alan Grayson has not ever served in a political office, but his career has started off with a bang. He questioned the Federal Reserve Vice-Chairman about the TARP program, introduced a “Pay for Performance” law for bonuses to be paid from companies receiving TARP funds due to the public outrage from the bonuses paid by AIG, and he has voted consistently with his party on bills.
Most recently, for those who haven’t been paying attention, he used the same “mud-slinging” campaign tactics that earned him his Party’s nomination for the job to attack Republicans on the House Floor. His argument is that “The Republican Health Care Plan is this: Don’t get sick, and if you do get sick, Die Quickly.” (I’ve heard the audio: This is not an exact quote, but it gets the message across.)
Now, some people are outraged by these comments, particularly Republicans. OK, I can see that. And some people are comparing these comments to the outburst by Representative Joe Wilson during the President’s address to Congress (“You Lie!”), even though Joe Wilson didn’t use professionally prepared posters as a visual aid. And, much as Democrats demanded an apology from Wilson, Republicans are doing the same from Grayson, and Grayson is being supported by the Democrats just as Wilson was supported by the Republicans.
So, what’s my opinion about all of this? Simple: It’s BULLSHIT! That’s it: Bullshit. (For those who may find this word distasteful, I apologize, but it’s the most accurate word I could find to describe my response.)
Firstly, I believe it’s an attempt by Grayson to get in the spotlight to further his political career. Joe Wilson became a household name the day after the President’s speech, and Grayson wants that notoriety for himself. Pure and simple advertising, if you ask me.
Second, Grayson knows that some Republicans have touted the potential of “Death Panels” as a result of health care rationing under a nationwide “single-payer” Government-Run health plan, which is an extreme conclusion of the plans being presented, and not one that I espouse. The “Death Panel” argument infers that Democrats want people to die. Grayson’s claim is to make it seem like the Republicans want people to die. It’s a clear attempt at political deflection.
Third, Grayson apparently likes to hear himself speak. I couldn’t find a transcript posted of the rest of his speech, so I’m fairly certain that it contained nothing of merit. Otherwise, he would have posted the speech himself online so people could know HIS position on healthcare reform. Instead, he’s run the circuit on the liberally-biased news stations (CNN, etc), essentially repeating this claim over and over again to the imaginary applause of the “studio audience.”
Look, I’ve said this before numerous times, and I’ll say it again: our healthcare system isn’t perfect, and it needs some reform to make it more affordable. However, I do not agree with the Government’s proposals because, as presented, they do not FIX the existing problems, so much as expand Government bureaucracy and involvement in the private lives of its citizens. But the name-calling, mud-slinging, misdirection and misinformation HAS GOT TO STOP! Everyone in Congress just seems to be jockeying for their next election campaign, and we’ve had enough of that.
So here’s my response about Grayson and his “Die Quickly” comment: IGNORE HIM. It’s inconsequential. Yes, it’s inflammatory, but, in the end, it will be no more significant than saying that John Kerry looks like Frankenstein, Barney Frank sounds like Daffy Duck, Joe Wilson has Tourette’s or George W. Bush is an Idiot. By focusing on his comment, you give him EXACTLY what he wants: PUBLICITY.
Now, to Congress, I have this to say: SHUT THE PIE HOLE and GET TO WORK! Stop wasting our time with schoolyard name-calling and bullying, and do something productive with your time. Give us, your constituents, the DETAILS of the ACTUAL PLANS and let us ADVISE YOU in return of our opinions. Allow there to be a dialogue to actually fix these problems and move on from there.
Anything less is BULLSHIT!
The most outrageous part though was comparing our healthcare system to the Holocaust. This whoe episode is the inflammatory and dangerous retoric that Nancy Pelosi was complaining about a couple of weeks ago.
Where are her complaints now?
You are correct about the danger of the rehetoric. Personally, I believe, however, that the zeal in covering his insults by the media will only serve to propel him further in the Government. When it comes time for re-election, most people won’t remember WHY they remember his name: just that they do, and that may be enough to keep him in office. Personally, as a Floridian, I consider him to be an embarrassment. The things that I’m embarrassed by, and there really aren’t many, I tend to keep hidden away, not publicized in the media. As a result, I’d rather ignore him than promote him. That’s just my point of view.
Maybe, maybe not… Here’s the thing… The far-lefts are going to vote (D) every time… The far-rights are going to vote (R) every time… The 50% in the middle are either not going to vote at all or they’re going to vote based on what they hear in the last 12 weeks leading up to the election… So, if he gets enough of a negative response now that it actually required a public apology (or even lead to a censure), at *worst* it would provide an opponent with campaign fodder… At best, it would have him packing up his desk now…