In Opposition to the Health Care Bill

Tonight history was made when the Health Care bill passed on the House Floor, 219-212. Call me a closet conservative but I am very against the bill and here's why:

1. The government doesn't have the money for it
With our national debt in the trillions, the United States government is in no shape in providing universal health care. Supporters of the bill cite that countries such as Holland and Australia have a similar system. However, the debt in these countries aren't as high as the US. In addition, these other countries do not face the same issues we do and not as extreme. Personally, I think this money (if it exists) can be put into better use like education reform, research, and technological innovations, moving our country forward.

2. Higher taxes
One of the greatest concerns of the bill is the higher taxes that people have to pay. These taxes will affect all people on the income spectrum. This bill only benefits a small percentage of Americans who are uninsured and hurting many hard working middle-class Americans with insurance. I am not calling anyone out as lazy but it is simply not fair for those who worked hard for their insurance. Nancy Pelosi in her closing remarks stated that this is groundbreaking change, similar to the Social Security Act. In my opinion, the Social Security Act led to detrimental consequences and the consequences of this bill are that of the Social Security Act on steroids.

3. Mandated insurance?
Health care is not an inalienable right and not everyone wants health care insurance in their lives. Thus, having the government mandating that you need health care is just wrong. Who is to say what you can and can not have? I am a staunch believer in individual choice and free society, as these ideologies promote able citizens. Supporters of the bill exemplifies a group of elitists deciding what is right for individuals, limiting citizens ability to choose.

4. People taking advantage of the system
As soon as the bill passed, I called my parents up letting them know the news. Their initial response was of outrage, mostly because of higher taxes. My mom went on ranting about how people in Chinatown clinics take advantage of Medicare and Medicaid without really needing it. As outlandish as her example may be, she proves a point. How do you determine who is really sick and who is taking advantage of the system? Although I would like to believe their are good people out there, people take advantage of what is free. As time progresses, corruption of the health system will take place, limiting its quality.

Beware the Ides of March

Unless you go to one of few select universities, March is the longest month for many people, with no breaks or long weekends. Thus, the creation of many random holidays, including Pi Day and National Potato Chip Day last Sunday and St. Patrick's Day tomorrow. Yesterday was the Ides of March. No, it is not really a "holiday" but I feel a need to write about my night for it is the right amount of absurdity for a blog.

I met up with a friend to see "Next to Normal" on Broadway. We got there at the 6PM for the lottery only to face over 100 tourists and gay men as our competition for the 26 front two row seats that were available. We didn't win the lottery but we got partial view seats as "lottery losers," which we were very happy with because this was our third time trying to get tickets. The show was amazing despite Alice Ripley and Aaron Tveit's absence. I was tearing up throughout the entire second act but was comforted to hear so many people sniffling besides me.

After the show, we had dinner. My friend's parents gave us a call and said they were in the city and can pick us up in about half an hour. This was 11:15PM. Since the restaurant was closing, they were very much ready to kick us out but in a friendly way. We decided to wait at Parson's nearby Fashion Building, home of Project Runway. As we walked down the street, I witnessed stressed out men in suits walking disorderly down the street. Who were these men? Surely, accountants. In fact, that is exactly what my friend's parents were doing- trying to get their taxes in before 12AM deadline. As we waited in Parson's lounge, my friend received frantic phone calls from her parents about postage stamps because they apparently don't sell stamps at the post office after hours. When they finally picked us up at 12:15AM, they told us horrific stories of people at the post office. Picture hundreds of Manhattan businessmen trying to get their forms postmarked on time- it can get pretty scary.

March 15th is always a frantic day for New Yorkers. Whether you are trying to win lottery tickets for a Broadway musical or trying to get your taxes on time, chaos ensues. Well maybe it is just like any other day in the city.