Harry Reid is Wrong on History and Wrong on Health Reform

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Dismiss this paid lobbyist out-of-hand as she represents just another rightwing policy think tank trying to obstruct heathcare reform. Bernard gets paid to be dishonest to help defeat congress' effort to reign in the most expensive healthcare in the world delivering the worst healthcare of all the industrial countries. This lobbyist obviously is proud to the US' high infant mortality rate, 17th in the world, below Cuba and Hungary.
Pure and simple fearmongering, here emotionally targeting women, follows the conservative tactics of the IWF anti-feminism campaign to undermine any reform conservatives dislike. The same crowd financing many of the astroturf tea parties is financing the IWF to be obstructionists as well.

Frank of VA 3:20PM December 31, 2009

Harry Reid is a doofus first class. He wouldn't know health care reform if it bit him in his skinny dumb ass. He and the idiot Pelosi should be the first two to face the death panel.

allen of MS 12:49PM December 20, 2009

Perhaps the other writer from Wisconsin should look at what happens to prices when government interjects known standards of payment for services rendered. We end up with $200.00 hammers and $1700.00 toilet seats. You want good health care?
Require those proposing the legislation to be enrolled in the same policy that you and I would receive in terms of health care.
Require retirement plans for those who serve in government to receive the same social security benefits as Joe Public receives. Not the golden parachutes they now have.
Make it a felony offence punishable by prison if they leave government service to work for a company that lobbied them to create legislation.
Bar laywers from being allowed to serve as Representatives or Senators.
One more thing.... term limits!

Jeff of WI 9:22PM December 15, 2009

Ms. Bernard should feel free to expose her breast tissue to all the radiation that she wants, but she should be aware that radiation is a known carcinogen. No one has ever claimed that mammograms cure or even prevent cancer. In fact they actually present a risk for causing it.

bridle of NC 5:37PM December 09, 2009

Perhaps MS, Bernard needs to look at her history a bit as well! The task force that reported on the changes needed in mammograms was appointed by the past president and has nothing to do with the current health care discussion. The Obama administration has firmly said that they will not follow these recommendations. It is obvious who she is speaking for and it is not all of us who are paying beyond our means to have health insurance and then there are many who are not even as fortunate to be able to afford to buy it. She needs to look more carefully at what has happened to health insurance costs and health costs without any changes. She is dead wrong and I mean dead wrong!

TLindahl of WI 4:53PM December 09, 2009

for giving voice to Ms. Bernard's views. I don't watch MSNBC news anymore because they are so overwhelmingly progressive and biased in their reporting. So I'm not familiar with Ms. Bernard or her political views. But whether she's a Dem or a Repub, makes no difference to me after reading her view on healthcare and Harry Reid. I Agree!!! Here's to hoping she's willing to defend the lives of the unborn and elderly as well.

Donna of TX 11:39AM December 09, 2009

As Ms. Bernard wrote, Reid must go back to grammar school for refresher history. It was republican Lincoln who freed the slaves. It was republican administration who even militarily enforced black civil rights for about 30 years after the civil war. It was under republican administrations that the anti slavery and civil rights amendments were passed.
It was the democrats of the south who were the pro slavery party, and against civil rights. Many democrats voted against the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Robert Byrd, dean of democrats, was former kkk member, as was justice Hugo Black, appointed by saint FDR, Black being the justice who began the misinterpretation of the First Amendment to restrict religious liberty, and establish the religion of secularism

gaudete of MA 7:47AM December 09, 2009

To know that the Dems. that control Congress DON'T care what you want or what you think ??
Despite poll numbers and Townhalls this past summer, proving their bills, as proposed, are NOT what the majority want, they're going to pass them anyway.
Do what I plan to do, show them at every ballot box in the future, how I feel about them & their choices and actions.
Expect 2010 to be brutal.

rannan3 of IA 7:44AM December 09, 2009

we don't have the bill now and the death rate among AA are much higher. this argument makes no sense. the system we have now fails, so lets keep it???? the uninsured and underinsured should be left to suffer because they don't have the $$$ you have. brilliant deduction.
subsidies for the poor are in the bill and the selling of private insurance across state lines, please read the bills before you write as if these are your ideas. gov health care actually works our seniors enjoy longer lives with it, even before medicare advantage.
I agree Reid's comparisons are off the mark, but your reasonings just don't ring true either. the doctor and patient have final say in each of the bills. maybe if you read them you would see nothing would come between patient and doctor.

Carl of MN 7:23AM December 09, 2009

Sorry, but this article is worse that misguided. I appreciate that Michelle does not want a bureaucrat between her and her doctor, but unless she is able to pay for all those procedures and checkups out of her own bank account, she has an insurance company between her and her doctor right now.
The for-profit insurance company is much more likely to refuse her mammograms than a government bureaucrat is.
Here's why:
A study shows mammograms are not clearly effective, healthwise, when weighing the complications of removing lumps unnecessarily vs removing the life-threatening ones. You can be sure the insurance companies will jump at the chance to deny mammograms (when the spotlight of health reform is no longer on them). The bureacrat she refers to is actually a panel of medical experts making their recommendations that Congress accepts or rejects in total. If enough people like her raise a ruckus, the for-vote system will provide the mammograms while the for-profit system definitely will not.
And in fact she describes such a ruckus and how they backed away from it.
Don't be fooled. Insurance companies are between you and your doctor right now, and they don't care about you. They care about your payments and costs... only.

lebec of CA 7:14AM December 09, 2009