Monday, May 08, 2017

An Orwellian Moment



Paul Krugman's analysis of Trumpcare is withering:

Even without a proper analysis, however, it’s clear that Trumpcare breaks every promise Republicans ever made about health. Deductibles will rise, not fall, as insurers are set free to offer lower-quality coverage. Premiums may fall for a handful of young, healthy, affluent people, but will rise and in many cases soar for those who are older (because age spreads will rise), sicker (because protection against discrimination based on medical history will be taken away), and poorer (because subsidies will go down).

Many people with pre-existing conditions will find insurance either completely unavailable or totally out of their financial reach.

And Medicaid will be cut back, with the damage worsening over time.

The really important thing, however, is not just to realize that Republicans are breaking their promises, but to realize that they are doing so with intent. This isn’t one of those cases where people try to do what they said they would, but fall short in the execution. This is an act of deliberate betrayal: Everything about Trumpcare is specifically designed to do exactly the opposite of what Trump, Paul Ryan and other Republicans said it would.

So why can they get away with it? Because they've done it before:

As for why they think they can get away with it: Well, isn’t recent history on their side? The general shape of what the G.O.P. would do to health care, for the white working class in particular, has long been obvious, yet many people who were sure to lose, bigly, voted Trump anyway.

Why shouldn’t Republicans believe they can convince those same voters that the terrible things that will happen if Trumpcare becomes law are somehow liberals’ fault?

It's abundantly clear that the United States is living in an Orwellian World:

What just happened on health care shouldn’t be treated as just another case of cynical political deal making. This was a Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength moment. And it may be the shape of things to come.

Donald Trump is your American Big Brother.

Image: Know Your Meme

12 comments:

Deacon Jester said...

Personally, I hope Trumpcare comes to full fruition in all it's brutality with all its attendant horrendous results. It's well past time that citizens of the USA experience on a personal level, directly and irrefutably attributable, the results they get when they vote for this party of political thugs.

Owen Gray said...

Fraud is a crime. And when you put a fraud in office, Deacon, you can't avoid paying a price.

rww said...

Fraud nay be a crime but if you are tried by a friendly jury/electorate the facts don't matter.

Owen Gray said...

That's just the problem, rww. Facts don't seem to matter any more.

Steve said...

I am a huge sci fi fan and we are now all living in a fantasy world. I think the Trump team is powered the same way. Their favorite movie ever is Independence day. " what do you expect us to do? We expect you to die and reduce the debt"

Lifeboat world, who lives, who dies, we are all on this cruise now.

Steve said...

Fraud, The Clinton Foundation may have a foundation built upon that same stone

Owen Gray said...

I've written before that the Clintons were far from clean, Steve. But with Clinton and Trump, you're dealing with false equivalences.

Anonymous said...

First Lady Clinton almost got a health-care plan for Americans, many years ago.
Before that she worked hard at getting access to education for disabled people.
She and her husband have devoted their entire lives to public service.
The Clinton family has a foundation which helps more people than other foundations created by other presidents.

The Clintons were not born rich like so many other presidents and candidates.
She is being judged on a weighted scale; with the thumb, if you will.

This writer has had it up to here and warn you that it's just not gonna fly anymore.

I will not listen quietly to those who judge, with such a harsh yardstick, the Clintons- especially Hillary- while the same people conveniently choose not to recall the damage done by the real enemies of the state.

Anonymous said...

I am amazed that within the Western world the electorate are electing or at least trying to leaders that would deny them their basic rights and freedoms.
Be it Trump or Brexit the electorate are stabbing themselves in their eye and for what?
There seems to be a general dissatisfaction with the status quo so why do we swing toward authoritarian government?
Can we no longer make decisions?

TB

Owen Gray said...

The inconvenient truth -- which Trump refuses to recognize -- is that Hilary won the popular vote by 3 million votes, lovingit. But because of the Electoral College, Trump's margin of victory was 150,000 votes.

Trump would not have accepted defeat so nobly.

Owen Gray said...

They seek simple answers to complex problems, TB. But the complex problems don't go away.

Anonymous said...

You are correct in that, Owen. Noble is the exact opposite of the words used by the majority of humanity, to describe The Trump Family Crime Cartel.

People that have rigged the system from time immemorial, along with the learned stupid, racist, misogynistic and depraved, as well as those whose desperation has clouded the last vestiges of reason- have determined 'they know what's best- so shut up and take it'...have fired us up. This is war.