It turns out that the entrenched special interests are still stronger than all of us put together. The divide and conquer and fearmongering strategy still distracts us and misinforms. The big pharma and insurers are still in the driver's seat. SO discourgaing. I am worried for all my friends and family in the usa and worried for myself if I ever have a chance to move back home.

Everyone keeps saying we should be happy with this bill as a starting point. But it seems to me it too little too late. I don't mean to be pessimistic but living in a place where healthcare is provided and provided easily and affordably I just don't understand why we can't put people first.

I read a great piece in the New Yorker, just an editorial that basically made the case that if we get rid of the pre-existing conditions then we really don't need private insurers at all since they make all their money in the gambling game of risk assesment. Overweight older people higher risk- charge more... young healthy 20 something less risk charge less. If you get rid of this cruel profiteering on people's health and provide better preventitive care, better food education and design a system where healthcare is based on making people healthy not making billions in profits then we really do not need the insurance industry at all. But watching people freak out over government health care has been sobering and sad. I don't get the disconnect. the USA is 37th in the world in healthcare and still people say we can't change the system because our healthcare is the BEST dammit and if we let the government get involved in helping to care for people we won't be the best anymore... What the hell can we do in the face of such delusional lack of logic?

I hope this bill is a forward flag in the ground as my friend told me last week. But I am concerned that it is just more settling for less than we need. Time will tell.