Stevieslaw: Ah, Freedom!

With the Republicans now in charge of rewriting the nation’s health care plans, we can be sure that the pedigreed goldfish of the people living at the top of the hill will have better access and better care than the infant born into the family living at the bottom of the hill. We accept that—that’s what it means to be a Republican today. It’s when that bunch starts talking about freedom that we all need to start paying attention. It usually means that they’ve found yet another way to separate you from your money.

Just the other day Mr. Ryan said about their health care plan, ““You get the freedom to do what you want and buy what you need.”

Americans will be free to receive tax credits and to pay into health savings accounts as part of the plan, and that is sure to work as well as releasing Americans from the freedom-killing burden of defined benefit retirement plans. Roughly 22% of American workers now say they will have enough money for retirement.

The sick tend to be a selfish bunch. Many of them believe that what is most preventing them from enjoying the freedoms the Ryans of the world tout is illness.

Here at Stevieslaw, we believe that universal health care through a Medicare-like system is a simple and sensible approach. And our intrepid reporter, Smokey Diamond, even knows how we can pay for it. She would call the new health care system, “Thundersecure 3”—the only missile capable of defending us from an alien invasion from Mars, and raise the Defense budget to cover the cost.

And, she notes, “raising the defense budget is something all of our elected representatives can do in their sleep.”