Emotions and Health Reform Law

A metaphysical brothel of emotions.

Arthur Koestler (1905-1983), Darkness at Noon

And so each venture

Is a new beginning, a raid on the inarticulate

With shabby equipment always deteriorating

In the general mess of imprecision of feeling

Undisciplined squads of emotion.

T.S. Eliot (1888-1965), The Quartet

ObamaCare has unleashed emotional waves– raw tides of partisanship – over national health reform. These emotions are impossible to articulate precisely. But they are there. They are powerful. They are pervasive. And they are sometimes ugly. This is not an attempt to explain these emotions, but to simply list the issues around which they swirl.

1. The unilateral clandestine passage of ObamaCare, its incomprehensible complexities, uncertainties, and consequences

2. The balance of political power between the federal government and the states

3. The redistribution of health benefits between the lower and middle classes

4. The burden of federal regulations on physicians with subsequent losses of autonomy

5. The costs of reform, higher taxes, and growing deficits

6. The ideological conflicts between the President and the Congress

7. Government competence to manage health care and implement technological solutions

8. Misunderstanding and popularity of Health Law among Americans

9. The meaning and significance of stonewalling of government scandals

10. Role of government and free markets in reforming and delivering health care.

11. Everybody must have an ObamaCare approved health plan, whether you like it or need it or not.