Joe Wilson's Web War
I'll be the first to admit it. Until two-thirds of the way into President Barack Obama's health care reform speech in front of a joint session of Congress, I didn't know who the hell Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) was. And, I'll take cash bets that others outside his district in South Cacalaca were just like me.
The defining moment in his national identity came in the minutes after this:
The reaction was immediate and visceral. A friend of mine summed it up succinctly:
"Watching the GOP tonight reminded me of how I imagined the the old southern jury in the book, To Kill A Mockingbird. Straight cocky frat boy disdain, catcalling during the speech from the Commander in Chief...shameful," typed Stanley Scott on my Facebook status.
He was right. In the beginning of the above video clip you hear the GOP wing of Congress laughing at Obama's admission that the kinks aren't worked out in the health care reform bill. Through their collective scoffs, the irony wasn't missed that the kinks exist solely because the GOP is fighting substantive reform with every insurance and health care lobbying dollar tooth-and-nail.
Like I said, the Twitterverse and Facebook Nation reaction was swift and fierce. Immediately upon checking in, Wilson's telephone numbers were statused and re-tweeted. His Twitter page and Web site reportedly crashed. Rick Sanchez, CNN's social media anchor, gladly jumped on the reaction and CNN published a story about it this morning. Wilson, who is running for re-election (um, he phucked that one up but good!) rapidly noticed his misstep giving this lukewarm and vapid apology:
"This evening I let my emotions get the best of me when listening tothe President's remarks regarding the coverage of illegal immigrants in the health care bill," he said. "While I disagree with the President's statement, my comments were inappropriate and regrettable. I extend sincere apologies to the President for this lack of civility."
This screenshot from MSNBC shows how incredulous his outburst. Look at those faces:
Those expressions sum Wilson's behavior up perfectly. It was uncalled for and the dignity of the Presidency has never been disrespected like this even when our former POTUS sent thousands of troops to fight an unwarranted and vengeful war. It happened because POTUS Obama is black and the GOP is scared. It's latent racism, plain and simple.
The GOP fear and acrimony aside, don't lose track of the real issue. This country needs health care reform. Insurance companies shouldn't be able to decide who lives or dies by their decision to pay a claim. Everyone deserves health care and in the richest nation, we can afford to do it. I don't believe otherwise. An insurance company's decision to withdraw coverage because of an omission irrelevant to the insured's current condition thus causing the unexpectedly uninsured to stop or delay treatment resulting in death due to said insurance company's failure to cover is, at best, manslaughter. Maybe even negligent homicide because the insurance company had to know the premeditated act of withdrawing coverage would result in death. The GOP wants a death panel? There it is, folks. Right in their insurance lobbying backyards. Think about the hypocrisy of that one.
This is not the time to get caught up in the GOP's latent predjudice. It's time to stop insurance and health care industry bureaucrats from running death panels and making billions over the graves of average Americans. The fact that the health care industry is one-sixth of our economy should frighten and disgust you. The time has come to support real change.
"We did not come here to fear the future, we came here to shape it," President Obama during last night's speech.
I concur. All the rest, Wilson and his Web war, are just red herrings.
The defining moment in his national identity came in the minutes after this:
The reaction was immediate and visceral. A friend of mine summed it up succinctly:
"Watching the GOP tonight reminded me of how I imagined the the old southern jury in the book, To Kill A Mockingbird. Straight cocky frat boy disdain, catcalling during the speech from the Commander in Chief...shameful," typed Stanley Scott on my Facebook status.
He was right. In the beginning of the above video clip you hear the GOP wing of Congress laughing at Obama's admission that the kinks aren't worked out in the health care reform bill. Through their collective scoffs, the irony wasn't missed that the kinks exist solely because the GOP is fighting substantive reform with every insurance and health care lobbying dollar tooth-and-nail.
Like I said, the Twitterverse and Facebook Nation reaction was swift and fierce. Immediately upon checking in, Wilson's telephone numbers were statused and re-tweeted. His Twitter page and Web site reportedly crashed. Rick Sanchez, CNN's social media anchor, gladly jumped on the reaction and CNN published a story about it this morning. Wilson, who is running for re-election (um, he phucked that one up but good!) rapidly noticed his misstep giving this lukewarm and vapid apology:
"This evening I let my emotions get the best of me when listening tothe President's remarks regarding the coverage of illegal immigrants in the health care bill," he said. "While I disagree with the President's statement, my comments were inappropriate and regrettable. I extend sincere apologies to the President for this lack of civility."
This screenshot from MSNBC shows how incredulous his outburst. Look at those faces:
Those expressions sum Wilson's behavior up perfectly. It was uncalled for and the dignity of the Presidency has never been disrespected like this even when our former POTUS sent thousands of troops to fight an unwarranted and vengeful war. It happened because POTUS Obama is black and the GOP is scared. It's latent racism, plain and simple.
The GOP fear and acrimony aside, don't lose track of the real issue. This country needs health care reform. Insurance companies shouldn't be able to decide who lives or dies by their decision to pay a claim. Everyone deserves health care and in the richest nation, we can afford to do it. I don't believe otherwise. An insurance company's decision to withdraw coverage because of an omission irrelevant to the insured's current condition thus causing the unexpectedly uninsured to stop or delay treatment resulting in death due to said insurance company's failure to cover is, at best, manslaughter. Maybe even negligent homicide because the insurance company had to know the premeditated act of withdrawing coverage would result in death. The GOP wants a death panel? There it is, folks. Right in their insurance lobbying backyards. Think about the hypocrisy of that one.
This is not the time to get caught up in the GOP's latent predjudice. It's time to stop insurance and health care industry bureaucrats from running death panels and making billions over the graves of average Americans. The fact that the health care industry is one-sixth of our economy should frighten and disgust you. The time has come to support real change.
"We did not come here to fear the future, we came here to shape it," President Obama during last night's speech.
I concur. All the rest, Wilson and his Web war, are just red herrings.
Posted by LoisLane at Thursday, September 10, 2009 11:25 AM 
Categories: Black Power,Under Current
Tags: twitter POTUS speech apology obama Wilson You Lie Joe death panels GOP health care reform
Categories: Black Power,Under Current
Tags: twitter POTUS speech apology obama Wilson You Lie Joe death panels GOP health care reform
Joe the Plumber, you are just another average "Joe."
Reply to this
I read today that first we had, 'Joe the Plumber' now we have 'Joe the Idiot.' Tis funny to watch the GOP rationalize his egregious behavior.
Thanks for stopping by and leaving the first comment! I hope you return.
Reply to this