Monsters Under Our Bed
March 30, 2010 6 Comments
Fear is a great way to motivate people. People who are afraid don’t stop to ask questions or even wonder if their fears are rational. In the wake of 9/11, we were sealing our windows and doors, stocking our basements with water, canned foods and batteries. We feared that letters containing an “unknown white substance” might show up in our mailboxes.
A few months ago, round the clock news coverage of H1N1 fanned the flames of fear. In the 90′s, killer bees were destined to take over North America. SARS, Bird Flu, Osama bin Laden, Balloon Boy…2012, illegal immigrants, Y2K.
Now, ObamaCare.
The fear that is being generated by politicians and the media is being done so intentionally, by people who have an agenda. They want people to be afraid because people who are afraid don’t stop to ask questions. They don’t wonder if their fears are rational. It started with rumors of Death Panels, now the passage of the Health Care Reform Bill will surely bring about Armageddon, unless, of course, the Mayans get to it first.
I don’t claim to have all the answers for the Health Care Debate but it is my opinion that health care should not be a privilege of the rich. Every American citizen deserves the right to good health, without the fear of being bankrupt by illness or disease.
Instead of our elected officials perpetuating fear about the impending demise of our country in an attempt to rally their base for an upcoming election, why not work on solving the problems? Instead of fighting blindly against party lines, why not work together for the greater good of the country?
It is more politically safe to fight against something than it is to take a stand for what is right and it seems to me that that is exactly what the Republican Party has been doing ever since the election of Barack Obama. They are not interested in doing what is difficult and challenging. They are more interested in their upcoming election, of fighting against rather than working together, regardless of political affiliation.
When those elections come around, I hope the people will realize they are being manipulated by fear; fear that is only in the interest of a political future, not the interest of the American future.
It isn’t only the politicians who have an interest in keeping you afraid. The media also benefits from your fear. Fear keeps you glued to the television, waiting for the latest update. The more fear, the more viewers tuning in, the more advertising revenue they are able to generate. Everyone has an interest in keeping you afraid, so ask yourself:
Are you afraid because there is something to be afraid of, or are you scared because that is how you are being programmed?
I encourage honest, open dialogue about this topic, however, I reserve the right to restrict any comments that are not intellectual or which blatantly attack another person for their political views or opinions. Thank you for your discretion.
About Steven
You forgot west nile virus :P
Seriously though, I am glad you bring this up. I’m still on the fence with the whole issue but overall am glad that something is happening. Nothing is more disheartening than politicians arguing and coming away with nothing to show for it. I’m looking forward to there being even more explanation as to what will change in the near future. I don’t like the idea of being made to have insurance but I do feel everyone should be able to afford it. I don’t have insurance now and have been without it for something like 5 years. So I guess, for me, whatever ends up happening, it has got to be better than what it is now. Right…?
(Also nice point you made with the way the media perpetuates fear. So much for clear and unbiased news.)
I definitely agree with the point that Sheena made about making insurance mandatory, but feeling that everyone should be able to afford it. There are so many people in this country who don’t have insurance who cannot afford even regular checkups. I think because there are so many different opinions around the country, there are people that are going to agree with the health plan, and people that are going to disagree with it. But the one thing we have to give Obama credit for is doing something so early in his Presidency that past Presidents have not been able to accomplish in their entire presidency, such as Bill Clinton – in 8 years.
Great article Steve! As always, your blog is full of great opinions, advice and writing talent.
If this is a perfect world, having health care for every single person would be terrific! However, we do not live in a perfect world. It’s not as easy as black and white. Nobody is saying that the poor do not deserve health care. The people protesting national health care are not elitists, racist, or unsympathetic. There are two sides to the story. I hear arguments on both sides ~ each make persuasive points. Regardless of what happens, there will be winners and losers.
@Jersey Mom: I agree that there are always two sides to every story, not only the Health Care debate. I, too, hear them. I have talked with people from Spain and Germany where they have had socialized health care and both of the people I talked to told me that the system was far from perfect. There are problems. There are bound to be problems with our system in the US. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to work together to resolve the problems and create a system that will benefit the American people.
What I dislike most about this debate is that the dialogue which has been taking place is more about creating fear in the hearts and minds of the American people. Our politicians should leave it to Hollywood to scare us with their horror films. Our leaders should be educating us about the issues, as they see them, not trying to scare the shit out of us.
The media has a responsibility to report the news in an unbiased and factual manner…they don’t. The media plays just as large a role in perpetuating the fear as do our politicians. When I want a perspective on current events in the United States, I have to rely on foreign news services which report the facts. No talking heads, no expert opinions…just facts. Who, what, when, where. Our news programs are entertainment programs. Between our celebrity news stories we get 30 second clips of sound bites and we form an opinion on an issue based on the limited information we are given.
I just think it is time we stopped being scared and form our opinions based on factual information. Not an opinion from Rush Limbaugh, or threats of “Armageddon” or from Jon Stewart.
This isn’t about Health Care or Republicans (even though I chose this topic to discuss my point), it is about demanding honesty from the people who we expect to be honest. It is about expecting unbiased news from media. Most of all, it is about stepping back and wondering what we are really so afraid of and whether we are reacting out of fear and if we are, how to recognize and change that aspect of our lives.
Fear controls us and I hope to discuss this further in a future post. I promise next time I will leave the Republicans alone. :)
While this obviously is a rather broad subject with many facets, one of the concerns I have is obesity. I don’t know why, but within a year of my 35th biethday, I gained a whopping 65 pounds and a few more over the next few years. I didn’t make any major changes to my diet except I added milk, which I recently un-added as it did not seem to be doing me any good at all. I actually have started losing weight finally.
I bring this up for two reasons. One is that I recognize that no matter how many free doctor visits a person has, they may just be too heavy and. . . My second point. . . No health care legislation is going to necessarily fix that. I have seen my doctor for regular check ups since the weight gain. I asked if she could help me lose the weight and she said no because they can no longer afford the malpractice insurance to offer weight management programs to their patients. EXCUSE ME. My own GP cannot legally afford to assist me medically with a newly acquired weight problem?! I don’t care if you are democrat, republican, plebian, vulcan or whatever. I think most people would agree that there is something so messed up about a system that prevents health care providers from offering treatment that will likely stave off later in life, obesity related issues like diabetes, heart disease (number one killer of women in the US), hypertension, or stroke. If you ask me, the allopathic system has been so disease-care oriented for so long that I doubt very seriously any legislation will make any real headway. But no one asked me, so for now I’ll just stick to my soy milk and spend a little more time on my bike — no thanks to my doctor.
Kellie: First, thanks for sharing your story! I agree 100% that our system is not healthcare but, like you said, disease care. It is absurd that your doctor refuses to treat you and it is even more absurd that it is due to being unable to afford malpractice insurance. I’ve never heard of such a thing and I find it disgusting. Our doctors have a responsibility to help their patients and I cannot understand why they would even STAND to tolerate another company dictating their professional responsibilities.
I am fortunate to have good health and though I am no doctor, I do believe in some very simple diet practices that could help you with your situation. I am not one who follows trendy diets but I would suggest that you check out the following book, which I think explains overall health and diet fairly well, The Eat Clean Diet by Tosca Reno. Much of what is included in the book comes down to common sense, though it has helped me realize that much of what I eat and even things I thought were healthy, simply are not good for us. It offers some simple recipes (I haven’t made one I didn’t like yet!!!).
Good luck with your journey and I hope that my suggestion can help you!