Lcrockett’s Blog

Back before Russia dumped the Soviet Union idea, I had a masseur who was from Moscow. He was an interesting character, to say the least. His name? Andrei. His background? The Moscow Circus.  He knew how to get rid of those fencing, as in sword fights, aches and pains of mine.  While he would work over my body we would have some of the most enlightening conversations.

I once asked him about the Soviet Union and its version of “socialism.” He laughed.  “America,” he would say, “doesn’t really understand socialism.” Hmm, I thought, what’s he trying to tell me? “You see,” he continued, “America thinks you can have a little bit of socialism. That’s like being a little bit pregnant.” He laughed as he rotated my ankle bringing relief to the muscles in my feet. “You of course cannot be a little bit pregnant. You either are or you aren’t.”

Andrei was correct. One is either pregnant or not pregnant. A nation either has socialism or it doesn’t.

In the hope that some of my readers get ticked at me, I place the argument before you that we turned socialist in the 1930’s when Social Security made its debut. We really joined the European style of governing when we brought in Medicare and Medicaid. And yes, I find it rather ironic that “conservatives” used the Medicare cuts issue as a talking point against Obamacare.

Cuts in Medicare? Oh horrors?  Hell no. Cut the entire program!  I mean talk about an entitlement, you have one, great big fat entitlement with Medicare. And it’s available to some of the wealthiest Americans out there.

To accept Medicare and not Obamacare is, to my way of thinking, intellectually corrupt. For what makes one type of government-run healthcare good and one bad? What is the difference? What makes a senior citizen more worthy than a young person? Could it be we really don’t want to pay for mom/pop/grandma/grandpa? That we want all Americans to foot the bill for longevity? How is that exempt from the term “socialist?”

When a woman is pregnant, she has inside her, a growing life. When you introduce and accept a specific government run program, you have a growing monster. Just like that woman cannot be a little pregnant, a people cannot be a little socialistic.  You either are or you aren’t.

We Americans traditionally are a generous people. We are innovative as well. Put the two together and an answer to the onerous cost of healthcare will be found. Turn the problem over to the citizens. Bright, energetic people who love a challenge can and will find a path that leads to more coverage for folks who find themselves in financial straights. Hey, we would all love to see our insurance premiums go down! But not this way. That thing that the congress just passed is dumb, dumb and dumber. Because like Medicare, it will only cost more than predicted.

At the same time, Medicare is not a sacred cow that is somehow exempt from the tag, “socialized medicine.” Medicare is controlled by the government. That, my friends, is as socialized as it gets. If you have a hard spot in your heart for the insurance companies, just think how Medicare gets insurances companies out of the job of having to provide affordable insurance for seniors. Medicare, like Social Security was created so that seniors could be independent. In truth, it has made them rely on government instead of their families. Social Security is the young paying for the old, so why not simply cut out the middle man, the government, and let families care for the seniors. Sure, it may mean grandpa has to sell his home and move in with his son. But is there something catastrophic in that? It is not independence for anyone when it’s the people’s money paying for it. For just as government controlled programs can be given, they can also be taken away.

Social conservatives like to bemoan the breakdown of America’s families. Do you know where it started? With social programs instituted by “well-meaning” politicians.  It is programs like SS and Medicare that opened the door to start us on our way to Obamacare. To close the door on Obamacare has to mean shutting tightly the door on all government run healthcare programs. All.

You cannot be a little bit pregnant.