There.   I said it.    And it’s something that’s been bugging me for a long time.

Our insurance system is broken.   People like myself, who have pre-existing conditions, will be unable to find insurance (except at the expense of bankruptcy) as soon as we leave our parents’ coverage.   Does anyone care what happens to us?   I think that deep down, every single American cares in some way.   No one thinks that people should die when someone else can save them.

And yet the United States House of Representatives just voted to repeal the health care bill.   I know that the repeal vote won’t pass the Senate, so I’m not really worried about losing my coverage.   What I am worried about is those who put principle above logic, and stand behind stupid campaign promises even when there is an obviously better solution (or even make those promises in the first place).

Let’s look at the auto industry.   Every so often, companies introduce new models, or redesign their existing models.   How many smart buyers go out and buy that first year product?   Not many.   And for good reason – it hasn’t been tested in the real world, and it’s bound to have flaws.   So what do they do instead?   They wait a year or two until the flaws have been ironed out, as updated models are released.

Case in point – most people who have owned or considered buying a Subaru from the late 90s, and even into the early-mid 2000s know of the innate flaws in the design of the head gasket, which cause it to leak around 100,000 miles.   So do people buy those?   Not if they can afford one of the newer models (2005 on), which have solved the head gasket problem.

So why are we going back to the drawing board again?   Why not pick and choose the good things in this bill, while replacing or removing the bad?   This would cause far less drama, and I don’t think anyone would argue that it would create a worse situation than we’re in now.

Because, like I said, no one believes that a person who needs treatment to survive should ever be left to die.

And that’s what should matter to us, not sticking to our word even though we know it’s wrong.

I know that some people out there may argue that the reason Republicans are voting for this bill is to save face, because they know it won’t pass.   But I’d argue this – why waste precious legislative time?   Why not just spend that time working on refining the bill?   Better yet, why not admit that while the bill has some positives – like protecting those with pre-existing conditions, it does need to be refined?   Publicly come together and admit that!   That way you look like humans with hearts, instead of robots with botox – showing no emotion, save anger.

No sane artist scraps an entire masterpiece because there are things that he/she wants to repaint.   Instead, they simply apply a second coat.   And that’s exactly what we should do here.

So Republicans and Democrats alike – get out your paintbrushes, not your torches and pitchforks.

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