Choking On The American Flag

Herr D, heromachine.com, all rights reserved. "Diplomacy."

It's about time I ask a really obvious question. Am I missing something? My June 22 blog entry mentioned some interesting points about Obamacare that Shelob hasn't uncovered in the news ANYWHERE.
Right now, please, if I have misprogrammed Shelob's search features or not let her roam enough, comment and tell me I'm to blame.
Herr D has been kind enough to point out that I do seem to misunderstand things from time to time. But really. How could something seem THAT obvious when every news agency in the world has missed it?

Perhaps unspoken agreement or species memory blockage?

Um. Well, Shelob, so far we can detect the only [redact] done by anybody, and it has nothing to do with this. Unspoken agreements can cause a lot of problems for an outsider--but I see no evidence of that either? Start a secondary search for hidden traditions.

In the meantime, let me be painfully clear. Obamacare needs work, just like any other brand-new thing. Frequently on the news people are crying out to completely revoke it or leave it alone. Frequently people claim Obamacare has made things a lot better or worse for vaguely referenced groups of people. NO ONE IS TALKING ABOUT HOW BRAVE IT WAS TO BE THE FIRST TO FORCE A CHANGE THAT NO ONE ELSE DARED TOUCH. NO ONE IS TALKING ABOUT HOW THEY WISHED OBAMA HAD FULFILLED THE PROMISE OF CHANGE IN A DIFFERENT WAY. NO ONE IS TALKING ABOUT HOW TO MAKE OBAMACARE BETTER. NO ONE IS BRINGING UP EXAMPLES OF HOW BAD THE REGULAR INSURANCE COMPANIES ARE STILL RUNNING. NO ONE IS CLAIMING THAT THE PROBLEMS OF INSURANCE DIDN'T NEED TO BE SOLVED.
Shelob? What was that comparison you made?

Bait and switch. Unlawful estimation. Unfair billing practices. Fraud.

Right. Scrolling through the complaints Shelob brought me, I noticed that thousands of patients have attempted legal actions and been told that certain things are usual and customary and therefore not actionable. Apparently it is perfectly fine for a customer to spend multiple hours on the phone trying to find out whether they can afford a procedure or a plan, only to be incorrectly and incompletely informed. Then the bills come. It is actually legal, in some cases, for an insurance company to promise a plan at one rate and deliver another for reasons that they are not obligated to warn the policyholder of. Then they can bill the policyholder a different amount without warning.

So, an entire industry is above certain laws? I'm just guessing that Obamacare isn't ENOUGH of a change, and that it is so painfully overdue that people are blind to it's potential. Why wasn't it done ages ago? I understand that American government is in the housing business--

Low-income and military housing.

--food--

Farm subsidies and military support.

--clothes and transportation--

Military uniforms and Army cargo trucking by subcontract.

--gambling--

State-run lotteries.

--sex licensing--

Marriage licensing and government clinics sponsoring contraception nationwide and prostitution licensing in Nevada.

--mind-altering substances--

The ABC stores in Virginia. Licensing fees for alcohol and now marijuana in various jurisdictions.

--so what EXACTLY is so bad about letting the government run an insurance program? I mean, really, what's next? Will dat bad ol' Unca Sam start training barbers? [gurgling laughter]

Hairy? American military requires certain haircuts usually performed in-house.

[choking noise]. . . what? I was kidding. Wow. Do they hurt?

Quotation, 1965: "Billy and me watched as they shaved the heads of about a hundred hippies. They wailed a lot about losing their long hair, and one guy fell over when he got up sayin' his balance was off." Spelling corrected.

Yeesh. I wouldn't think it's any of the government's business whether I was even married. Cutting off pieces? Go vote, people; you guys need to do some more overhauling. [neuralink ends abruptly]