The Demise of Civility and Intelligence: New Forefront of Domestic Terrorism

Allow me to define my terms:

Ignorance - knowing a fact yet stubbornly refusing to acknowledge it, sometimes to the point where you say the opposite of what you know to be true.

Rudeness - bad manners. If you don't know what "manners" are, you're not ready to read this post. Come back after you have m-w.com'd "manners".

Ignorance and rudeness are now commonplace. Flailin' Palin's use of the phrase 'death panels' is an excellent example of ignorance. Joe "I'm Running for Governor of South Carolina, You Wait and See!" Wilson's shout-out of "You lie!" during the President's address is an excellent example of rudeness. Clearly my winky-girl Sarah can't read. We've known that for a while, though, haven't we? And Joe is ... well ... a-standin' up fer Amurikens, right? Right? Or did he have a flashback to 3rd grade when Sue Whitford told the teacher he copied off her spelling test? Hmmm...

In the past, ignorance and rudeness earned ostracism. Now, they earn campaign contributions (I can't wait for Flailin' Pa1in to run for something besides the bathroom!) and publicity. Seriously? Can't we do better than this?

Health Insurance Reform

The current "debate" is not about health care. Don't be fooled. The government can do little to affect surgical procedures, types of bandages, and protocols for sprained ankles. Science and research are the venues that affect health care. The current "debate" is about health insurance. Health insurance is the broken spoke in the wheel of health care, siphoning cash from a system that should pretty much be ruled by science and the intricate dance of supply and demand.

Health insurance drains away so much cash that becoming an insurance executive is like winning the lottery. Really. Literally, not figuratively. The sucking quagmire of insurance - from the premiums charged to the salaries paid - strip doctors of their duty to prescribe treatments and force financial ruin on the backs of the mostly middle-class people who struggle to buy policies and pay their bills.

Again, don't be fooled. Health insurance reform is needed; it may be costly, but the cost of doing nothing will exceed our ability to pay when the "premium notice" comes due.