It's not surprising that so many people in that video clip don't know that Obamacare is a nickname for the Affordable Care Act. Most of the people that they catch off guard on camera with this man on the street schtick don't know who their representatives are in Congress, either. Or who Louis Armstrong is, or what Cinco de Mayo means, or lots of other stuff that's fairly basic and slap-your-forehead ridiculous and yes, embarassing. That's the joke, right? Stupid people say the craziest things! You watch it and think, no wonder the rest of the world thinks Americans are idiots and then you move on to whatever is next.
What's especially disturbing -- and yes, cringe-worthy -- about this video is that clearly, the subjects express a dislike for Obamacare because of their patent dislike of Obama, yet they fully support the Affordable Care Act. One of them even went so far as to say that Obamacare is socialism. (Impressive, right?) All of it smells racist to me, but then again, I suppose this is what happens when most of the country gets their misinformation from Fox News or some other neo-conservative Republican aggregate. Unfortunately, fear-mongering is big business and simply flat-out believing what you're told never goes out of style.
Once in the not to distant future when everyone in this country has healthcare, once wellness becomes a part of the fabric of our ordinary lives and seeing a doctor for a serious illness isn't something that has to bankrupt you, once everyone realizes that Obamacare is the Affordable Care Act, we will all collectively wonder how we ever went this long without this plan -- and why anyone would think to oppose it.
Think of it -- getting ongoing medical attention for a potentially serious illness won't mean financial ruin. Its almost inconceivable, really. And then you look at healthcare in places like Europe and Scandanavia, and realize it's a first world dream come true.
I was a sick American in Dresden recently. It was wonderful. If you'd like to read all about it, click here.
