BETTER OPPOSITION, PLEASE…. Rep. Paul Broun, a right-wing Republican from Georgia, spoke from the House floor this afternoon, to explore his opposition to a public option in health care reform. He concluded that a public plan would kill Americans:
“…and that’s exactly what’s going on in Canada and Great Britain today. They don’t have the appreciation of life, as we do in our society, evidently. And, um. Dr. Roe, a lot of people are gonna die, this program of ‘government option’ is being touted as being this panacea, the savior of allowing people to have quality health care at an affordable price—is gonna kill people.”
Washington Monthly: Better Opposition Please
Wow. “They don’t have the appreciation of life, as we do in our society, evidently.” Um, what?
How would Rep. Paul Broun of Georgia explain the fact that Canada ranks ninth for life-expectency at 80.7 years, the UK ranks 23’d at 79.4 years, while our best-in-the-world health care country, the US, ranks 41st at 78.2 years? Or that the United States does not even make the top 25 list for “Lowest infant mortality”?
How do people that stupid tie their shoes without help? How do they get elected to anything?
NOTES:
- Statistics from The Economist Pocket World in Figures, 2009 ed.
- I have a 2008 ed. Pocket World in Figures to give away. First person to email me a US address, I’ll drop it in the mail to you. It’s an awesome compendium of statistics about, well, the World. My email address is george dot wiman at gmail dot com.
- We should really be looking at the health care system in a little country I never heard of called “Andorra”. They’re #1 in life expectancy and they have a really cool name.
- H/T to Dana at En Tequila Es Verdad for link
He likely has velcro on his shoes… if he even wears shoes at all.
These people simply parrot what they’ve been told, and it never even occurs to them to actually, you know, *think*. Besides, he has his health care coverage for life, together with an inflation-linked pension, so why should he care about the mere people whose interests he is supposed to represent, when those nice special-interests groups give him so much money?
The truly astonishing thing is that most of those he represents will almost certainly vote for him again.
Getting elected, I can see that cause politicians lie. Staying elected? That’s what’ll cause the head to explode.
Stupid people get elected because the electorate is stupid.
Q.E.D.
“No man ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people.”
P.T. Barnum?
Georga,
afaik, Andorra is so small (2 kms across) that the only hospitals are in neighbouring spain and france. Thus the number of people who die IN ANDORRA is low
The andorra stats will likely only show natural causes sudden deaths ??? Ditto births of course…
A whole country smaller than my town? Damn. I thought Andorra was the planet Darth Vader blew up to freak out Princess Leia.
Yeah, with our Great Lakes, fjords (yeah, we got ‘em in Labrador,) granite shield and enough bodies of water IN ONTARIO ALONE to embarrass MInnesota, Niagara escarpment, prairies that produce most of the world’s uranium, potash and seeds for Dijon mustrad, Rockies that are more gorgeous than (…never mind,) Sea to Sky Lotus land, banking system that didn’t get hopelessly entangled in cute mortgage tricks … we sure are sour on life. Bring on the slurpies, creepy BK character and King of Pop … and cure our depression.