Single Payer Heroes

Submitted by Connecticut Man1 on May 5, 2009 - 16:59

Via the National Nurses Movement at dKos:

Eight Healthcare Activists Arrested at Baucus Hearing

Is this a turning point in the single-payer debate?  Will the DC insiders be forced to listen to the public and healthcare activists--and not just big-money healthcare donors?

Both AP and Politico are reporting on the events at this morning's Senate Finance Committee, where brave healthcare activists, one after the other, stood up to protest the exclusion of single-payer reforms from the conversation.

CSPAN had the video up:

 

 

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carol white

May 5, 2009 - 18:25

Kudos to Connecticut Man not only for this find but for pinning Arlen Spector. Also to Michael Collins. I picked this blurb up from buzzflash. Seems like Spector is noy only opposed to EFCA and a public health option but he also wants Al Franken's senate seat to go to Coleman.

Arlen Specter: Norm Coleman Should Be Seated

icon gravatar.comwww.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/05/specter-norm-coleman-shou_...
sent by Fiore since 1 hour 31 minutes
Pennsylvania senator Arlen Specter has been showing his independence consistently since switching to the Democratic side of the aisle. But his latest display of unorthodox thinking is particularly eye-opening. In an interview with the New York Times Magazine, the newly minted Democrat said he thinks Republican Norm Coleman should win his Senate recount court battle against Al Franken in Minnesota.

carol

Connecticut Man1

May 5, 2009 - 22:04

a funny guy...

carol white

May 6, 2009 - 12:25

Specter is now saying he "misspoke" about Coleman vs Franken, in the interview and of course he believes that more Democrats should be elected. Hmmm! I think it was a case of "winking" see GH above.

carol

luaptifer

May 5, 2009 - 20:28

 But absent any views that didn't present prospects for corporate profiting, apparently.  

Yeah, civil disobedience seems very warranted, thanks for putting this piece up.

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"I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations which dare already to challenge our government in a trial of strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country." - Thomas Jefferson

Connecticut Man1

May 5, 2009 - 22:09

reporting to their government employees on what they have decided their millions of dollars have entitled them to.

Any guesses on how many politicians are preparing their retirements based on what they hope to give their corporate bosses in this health care reform?

luaptifer

May 5, 2009 - 23:33

 is a phrase I coined that floated about as well with GH as would the proverbial lead balloon.

But it came out on the 'spurt' of the moment, after seeing your video and, then, reading the gist of the dkos diary,"They're Going To Make A Mockery Of The Public Option!"

The new boss is pretty much the same as the old boss in too many cases, "we get to elect them but the bosses tell 'em how to govern us."

That means, no real single-payer option that's viable can be on the slate for a vote in Congress, when the time comes for a vote.  Therefore, why invite any single-payers to the roundtable to complicate the issues?  

That's the bottomline.  As Baucus said, "we need more cops," why the bosses haven't yet hired 'em is the question, isn't it?

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"I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations which dare already to challenge our government in a trial of strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country." - Thomas Jefferson

carol white

May 6, 2009 - 12:34

And said we need more of this kind of demonstration, and got an interesting reply it two emails that I will put together. The friend said the nurses groups were very active in supporting single-payer health insurance, and sent me some links to videos of other actions demanding health care reform. 

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Further research found the identities of the protesters.  Their identities and links to brief videos of their protests is on commondreams.org:

Russell Mokhiber,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5vhTtxad30

Margaret Flowers, MD & Katie Robbins
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zOShsL4UJo

Carol Paris, MD
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RdIUcrVxGwA

Mark Dudzic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1nl32aAh7M

Adam S
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I26EkvnjZuQ

Pat Salomon, MD & Kevin Zeese
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDHJH7W-ZEo
 

 
 

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I asked back if he was saying that the demonstrators at the hearings were nurses and he said:

"Not clear who all the demonstrators were.  One was a pediatrician. The national nurses organizing committee, however, has been most involved in publicizing the event and in advocating for direct action."
 

 

carol