Friday, August 07, 2009

Health Care Reform Prostestors Revealed

His face was splashed all over the media and Youtube as one of the first so-called "health care reform protesters." He's the manifestly undereducated guy who admits,"I don't have sophisticated language" and then simultaneously refused to let House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer speak while calling him a "liar."

He later told a credulous local TV reporter he went to the meeting being held by another local congressman about a new transportation bill just "to ask... if he was planning a town hall meeting regarding healthcare reform during the August recess."

So who is this guy? More to the point, what kind of health care does he have?

His name is Don Jeror. He is a right-winger who, last April, organized one of those bizarre, unfocused "tea party" anti-tax gatherings. He claims "my group" (get that -- 'my group') "consists of me, five women over the age of 60, and one young African American woman... ."

No one seems to have noticed, but Jeror is wearing a U.S. Air Force cap. It's the kind popular with a lot of retired U.S.A.F. veterans. We see them all the time around the Pensacola area.

What that suggests, of course, is that Don Jeror has for himself and his dependents the very best health care in the United States: Veterans Administration health benefits. Totally managed by the federal government. Totally free.

"Socialist," some would say. "No, just sensible," we would reply.

Jeror has no need to work at a shitty job just to keep his health insurance. He will never be notified that his new medical problem is excluded from coverage because of "prior conditions." He has no reason to fear having his health insurance summarily canceled if he really gets sick. He and his doctor will never have to wait on "approval" for some medical procedure from an anonymous corporate flunky for some private insurance company.

Come to that, "his" group of five women includes at least four "over the age of 60." Soon enough, all of them will have the second-best health care in the nation (if they don't already). We mean, of course, Medicare.

Again, run by the federal government. Again, no "prior exclusions" nonsense. No "change your job and lose your benefits" confusion. No waiting for prior approval from some faceless voice on the phone before you get that surgery your doctor recommends.

So, why is it that Don Jeror and "his" little group of older women, who enjoy such great health care benefits themselves, want to deny them to the rest of us? Is it a selfish, reverse Robin Hood syndrome? Is it some twisted reasoning that says, "me get, you don't"? Is it ignorance? Is it partisan politics? Is it "I'm against whatever Obama is for?" Is it racism?

Whatever the answer may be, you can be sure of one thing: Don Jeror and his grandmother groupies aren't going to be changing their own health care benefits any time soon. They like it just fine for themselves. They just don't want you to have any, too.

30 comments:

Anonymous said...

Have you ever spoken a word to the man himself? Have you ever sat down and personally listened to a non edited interview, no? read a book, build a house of cards, find something else occupy your time rather than writing blogs about people you have no connection with.

Anonymous said...

It is unacceptable to claim that veterans that served their country honorably have "free" healthcare. This man earned his care by putting his country first.

Les said...

You asked why is it that Don Jeror is enjoying such great health care benefits himself? I believe you answered your own question – he proudly wears the hat of a retired Air Force veteran. You also eloquently point out that, “Jeror has no need to work at a shitty job just to keep his health insurance.”
Don spent his adult life in the far flung reaches of the dangerous world defending our right to express an opposing view - not just his right to object to being robbed, but everyone’s. Having spent more Christmas’ away from his wife and kids than he spent here at home, he may argue his job may have seemed ‘shitty’ on occasion. When he was being shot at it may have seemed even shittier still.
So, the bottom line is that Don earned his health care coverage – he not only worked very hard in a demanding and critical calling for his coverage. The facts may not fit your thesis, but he paid for it. If the bulk of the ‘uninsured’ people took some notes from Don’s work ethic example, they might learn about self-responsibility and also enjoy the privilege of being able to pay for their coverage.

whitecollargreenspaceguy said...

During his Saturday Radio Address, President Obama called for innovation to help us dig ourselves out of the recession. The proposal below could be on of the most innovate ideas since the advent of "interghangeable part" during the Industral Revolution. If I told you there was a way to instantaneously double the gas mileage of all vehicles in the U.S. you would call me crazy. However, this simple concept would have the same effect on all of the office space in America, by cutting in half its cost in financial and environmental terms.
Stay tuned for an earth-shaking paradigm shift that could save jobs, universal health care, and the environment
The Information Age finally talks to its older brother,the Industrial Revolution.
Interchangeable parts in a virtual world.
The Federal Government (GSA) lived through the end of the Industrial Revolution and at the beginning of the White Collar Era. We have grown up during the Information Age which morphed into the Digital Age that we are in right now. We seemed to have forgotten the basic concept that made the Industrial Revolution one of the most important events in human history. "Interchangeable parts." Sure our software and hardware take advantage of this concept, but what about our brick and mortar, our great investment in land, buildings, and interior space. In order to achieve mass production and manufacture a profitable product, Henry Ford and others made capital investments in factories with assembly lines. The industrial revolution would not have been successful if they only used these expensive investments 8 hours a day for five days a week. They greatly reduced their ongoing overhead by operating three shifts a day and some shifts on weekends. Almost all office space now is used by workers only about 9 hours a day five days a week. Most of the processing and storage of documents needed by our agency's technicians exist in an electronic environment. Within the next five to ten years more than 50% of the work done by federal agencies will be in an electronic environment including work from phone calls and internet sites. Most agencies have nationwide integrated telecommunications networks which have the ability to route calls on demand to a multitude of different offices nationwide. These services are already available outside normal business hours and could be expanded to 24/7.
I suggest that we phase in a program to utilize the under-used space we already paid for by beginning second and third shifts in many of our offices. We no longer have thousands of paper forms, documents, and files to store in each office since they are electronic. The second and third shifts could on answer the 800 number phone calls, work on electronic claims files, disability claims, and applications and post-adjudicative work received from our internet portals. The time is now for this sea change in this white collar paradigm:.
We could help create jobs for a new industry for retro-fitting billions of square feet of empty buildings to three-shift office space. Why waste our money on thousands of new buildings and destroy even more land when we already have the space.
Globally, we would be setting an example for hundreds of other government and non-government organizations and millions of private businesses. Were they to follow suit the savings could be in the trillions of dollars. By facilitating this simple yet bold paradigm shift we could create jobs, speed up the availability of universal health coverage, and help save the environment

This is doable and
it is a win-win-win:
for the environment
for the uninsured
for the unemployed
whitecollargreenspaceguy@hotmail.com
Innovation can save the earth

Anonymous said...

He is not a right winger but a register democrat.. get ur facts right before u speak ur ideology BS.. Spin it more blogger

Anonymous said...

Its a claim that veterans that served their country honorably have "free" health care. He caring his country

___________________
victor
Getting a Payday advance is just a few steps away

panicbean said...

Want good health care?

Join the military or go to work for the government. See, socialized medicine does work.

My husband is retired military and we are covered by Tricare, which I love. But at age 65 we are switched over to Medicare.....which is still socialized medicine.

Most of you missed the point of this post. It is about health care for all, not just those who serve in the military or happen to work for the government.

Our health care system is broke, and families are going bankrupt and losing their homes because of medical bills. Is this really sustainable? No, nor should it be.

Oh, and Victor, buy an ad already.

Anonymous said...

No panicbean, you've missed the point. If you want healthcare, earn it. There is no such thing as free healthcare.


And, you don't just "happen" to work for the government. When you work in govt, you elect to take a job that has limited upside potential (no matter how hard you work, you'll never earn $1M) but provides steady salary and benefits. When you join the military, you agree to risk your life for your country in return for healthcare and retirement pay.


Military healthcare and government healthcare are earned benefits. And, medicare is provided to those who've paid into the system their entire working lives. It isn't a handout either.


The bottom line here is that no one gets free healthcare.

panicbean said...

Anon at 9:28 am

So let's hear your proposal as to how folks can 'earn it'. Since most small companies cannot afford to offer health care coverage, and the larger companies are increasingly putting the cost of the coverage they offer back on to the employee and pricing them out.

Just how do you propose that these folks earn their health care coverage? I am all ears, believe me.

Or is this the whole "pull yourself up by your own damn bootstraps" argument once again?

Anonymous said...

Its a claim that veterans that served their country honorably have "free" health care. He caring his country...
___________________
victor
Email Marketing Solutions

B. Lehman said...

People like Jeror give protesting a bad name. They are just bullies who roamed the playground as kids and never grew up intellectually or emotionally.

Anonymous said...

Whitecollargreen- Our jobs of medical transcriptionist are going to India.

Doctors dictate and because of time change can transmit and have transcribed in the morning and for less.


America has become the producer of nothing but social service programs and subsidies.

See Jeff Miller for details on sweet farm subsidies and see Mexico for your food?

Anonymous said...

Now the public is not welcome to Public Forums UNLESS they agree with the speakers.

why have public forums?

Why not just round everyone up that doesn't agree, pack them on a train and take them somewhere else where they will not be heard?


no, that won't work.

Spin it so everyone that disagrees with Obama's infinite wisdom is a Nutcase.

panicbean said...

"Why not just round everyone up that doesn't agree, pack them on a train and take them somewhere else where they will not be heard?"

Elections have consequequences, there is a new President in Washington, D.C.

The round ups ended on January 20, 2009.

Thankfully we have someone who actually wants to engage the American people instead of arresting them when they show up with a t-shirt or a bumper sticker that doesn't support his agenda.

Anonymous said...

They sure are working the press trying villify anyone questioning the agenda.


If this is attempt to be perceived as engaging.....


try again

panicbean said...

Say what?

Got a link or anything else to indicate what the hell it is you are trying to convey?

Anonymous said...

I found this joke -

"Thankfully we have someone who actually wants to engage the American people instead "






And now pass my plate of entitlements.


Gracias,
Pepe

panicbean said...

Dear Pepe;

Yes it is true, Obama is still black.

Sincerely.

pb

Anonymous said...

Dear Lori,

Please calm down. Everything is going to be okay.

Best regards

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