Today, President Obama’s signature legislation, the Affordable Care Act (aka “Obamacare”), turns two. Despite all the opposition shrieking and hair-tearing (“Government takeover!” “Death panels!” “Rationing!), the sky has not fallen and most people probably haven’t noticed any difference, although for those who benefit — like children with serious health issues who can’t be denied coverage and post-college young people who can stay on their parents policies until age 26 — it’s been huge.
Unfortunately, Ohio lieutenant governor Mary Taylor, who as director of the Department of Insurance was tasked with setting up the health care exchange required by the bill, isn’t doing any celebrating. She’s been dithering about getting to work on the exchange, and yesterday, a group of health-care advocates attempting to deliver petitions to her office urging her to get a move on, got the heave-ho, based on a bizarre technicality:
The petitioners were told their petition would only be accepted in the mail and that any rights for citizens to access a government office were null and void since the Dept. of Insurance is housed in a leased space. The protesters asked for a written policy and the police were called.
It’s not terribly comforting that our elected officials think citizens’ rights are “null and void” if they just move their desks into another building. — Anastasia Pantsios
This article appears in Mar 21-27, 2012.
All the far right need say when anything like this happens is 1) Call them names like stupid libtard, bleeding Heart Libtard or un-American Libtard..If they still occupy space tell them to: ‘Get a fucking job and go get your welfare check.’ If they still will not leave get some of your security goons to work them over a little. If this does not stop them from their chants, get their identification and report them to Grover Norquist and all of the people in government who signed the Norquist Pledge. They will put them on the republican party ‘shit list’ and will be harrassed for the rest of their life and be labeled a socialist and a commie and a no-good libtard.
Um…the most controversial parts of Obamacare won’t take effect till 2014…..
Well, they probably won’t at all, as it appears the legistaltion is unconstitutional……