People Are Pissed

Steve Benin at Washington Monthly has an amusing piece on the health-care debate with the following quote:

"People are pissed," [Grover] Norquist said. "They've been lied to."

The second commenter notes:

I was at a HC rally in Chicago yesterday. One lady in the opposition crowd has a sign asking if government run health care was so great why don't members of congress sign-up for it.

I really need to start archiving these "Keep your big-government hands off my medicare" quotes; they are hilarious... until you realize what they mean about the mentality of our electorate and elected officials.

On the plus side, basically three-quarters of those interviewed in a new CNN poll recognize that our current system is untenable. I assume that the remainder is composed of the "23 percenters," who can't imagine that God would allow shrub to err, and who would happily drink sewage- and cyanide-laced Kool Aid if Rush Limpdick told them it would defeat socialism.

74% - They would help me and my family (30%) or other families in the country (44%).
20% - They won't help anyone.

Do you think it is or is not necessary to make major structural changes in the nation's health care system in order to make sure that all Americans have health care insurance?

77% - necessary
21% - not necessary

Do you think it is or is not necessary to make major structural changes in the nation's health care system in order to reduce health care costs?

74% - necessary
23% - not necessary

(via BlueOregon)

Followup: "Art Laffer (why is he, of all people, on my TV?) asks what it will be like when the government runs Medicare and Medicaid." From Krugman's blog yesterday. (If you don't recognize the name Art Laffer, and why Krugman protests his presence on TV, the Laffer Curve provided the economic basis for Reaganomics)

Followup 2: Actually, here's the transcribed remark (from here, via Library Grape)... "If you like the Post Office and the Department of Motor Vehicles and you think they're run well, just wait till you see Medicare, Medicaid and health care done by the government."