The Should-Be Most Hated Man in America

Idealism

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Sun Dec-07-08 06:21 PM
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The Should-Be Most Hated Man in America

The vitriol against George Bush is well-deserved, of course. But I bet many of you don't realize who has royally screwed this country over more than even our delusion President: William "Bill" Kristol.

Bill Kristol has been a Republican strategist for many years and has headed numerous conservative think tanks. He founded the Project for the Next American Century (PNAC) and was chairman of the New Citizenship Project. In 1993, he chaired the conservative Project for the Republican Future, whose founding charter was to literally "kill" the Clinton Health Care initiative (not amend).

Joseph A. Palermo, of HuffPo writes:

I would like to remind people that in 1993 William Kristol circulated an influential memo arguing that any and all health care proposals coming out of the Clinton Administration should be opposed "sight unseen." He couldn't be bothered by honestly assessing the merits of the Clinton health care plan, he wanted the Republicans to just crush it to stop the Democrats from attaining any victory.

This op-ed, from a New York Times Columnist, quotes Kristol's famous policy memo's word for word:

The potential for Republican defection is a new thing. Conservatives have long recognized — and worked hard to prevent — the danger of a breakdown in party discipline. In 1993, William Kristol, then chairman of the Project for the Republican Future, orchestrated the defeat of the Clintons’ health care plan. In an influential memo, Mr. Kristol wrote: “Any Republican urge to negotiate a ‘least bad’ compromise with the Democrats, and thereby gain momentary public credit for helping the president ‘do something’ about health care, should also be resisted. ...The plan should not be amended; it should be erased.”

So what does this matter, that he damned Clinton's Universal Health Care? Clinton's health care plan was compulsive, which would greatly increase our domestic industries chances of competing with foreign workers who may get paid less per hour. Health care alone contributes $1500 to the cost of a Big Three vehicle, according to Kenneth Thomas.

http://articles.latimes.com/2005/dec/31/business/fi-autos31"> Here's a snippet from the LA Times:

The Big Three’s production cost in the U.S., including the cost of supporting retirees, is about $75 an hour per worker, according to a recent Canadian Auto Workers Union study. For foreign automakers with plants in the U.S. – without the same retiree costs – the average is $60 to $65 an hour, the study found.

Consider that for a second, thats 20% less per worker per hour the Big Three would have to pay IF ONLY WE HAD HEALTH CARE!

Lets look at it from a personal standpoint. Heres some information from the National Coalition for Health care

Since 2000, employment-based health insurance premiums have increased 100 percent, compared to cumulative inflation of 24 percent and cumulative wage growth of 21 percent during the same period.

Workers are now paying $1,400 more in premiums annually for family coverage than they did in 2000.

The annual premium that a health insurer charges an employer for a health plan covering a family of four averaged $12,100 in 2007. Workers contributed nearly $3,300, or 10 percent more than they did in 2006. The annual premiums for family coverage significantly eclipsed the gross earnings for a full-time, minimum-wage worker ($10,712).

Here are two of the worst stats for healthcare...

It is estimated that 50% of all personal bankruptcies occur because of medical expenses.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust, premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance in the United States have been rising four times faster on average than workers’ earnings since 2000.

The United States spends about 20% of our GDP on health care between discretionary and mandatory spending. Health care spending accounted for 10.9 percent of the GDP in Switzerland, 10.7 percent in Germany, 9.7 percent in Canada and 9.5 percent in France, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

That is a 10% difference of our GDP, in US spending that amounts to saving over $1.5 trillion per year. Think of the extra money we would ALL have, the less stress, less bankruptcies, and *gasp* even higher business profits.

Now for part two: If you were inquisitive, perhaps you have meandered over to the PNAC website. You might read some of the statements posted on that site. Heres a snippet that basically sums up what PNAC is about:

American leadership is good both for America and for the world; and that such leadership requires military strength, diplomatic energy and commitment to moral principle.

America has a vital role in maintaining peace and security in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. If we shirk our responsibilities, we invite challenges to our fundamental interests.

Sound familiar, Bush Doctrine? Pre-emptive warfare to justify genocide is a summation of what I have read pertaining to PNAC. Kristol is nothing short of a warmongering neocon in the pocket of the Defense sector. If you've ever read his opinion columns in the NY Times, he has called for more military spending several times, and "fighting along with U.S. soldiers and marines in Iraq" means we should get into a war with Russia.

Billy Kristol should be the most hated man in America for cutting down what was our best hope at universal coverage and his cheerleading for the Iraq war, but he rarely gets a mention. I hope this will be rectified soon, the man is a political whore-- willing to do anything so that his friends retain power and get rich while screwing Americans out of life,liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.