Language games: "reform"
A comment I made on another blog :
Beware of the word "reform."
Social Security "reform" means cutting benefits for your grandparents, your parents and you, or privatizing the program by handing control of those taxes over to Wall Street.
Medicare "reform" means eliminating Medicare for ordinary people by turning it into a voucher program for buying private insurance.
"Entitlement 'reform'" -- both terms deserve air quotes of their own -- means making recipients of Social Security and Medicare get fewer benefits in the future and pay more themselves. It also means ignoring the law and pretending that the taxes collected expressly and specifically for Social Security and Medicare may be used for other purposes more to the liking of the Beltway establishment.
Tort "reform" means making it extremely difficult for you or your family to get redress or fair compensation for death or injuries caused by defective products. (It means protecting poor defenseless corporations and their platoons of Ivy League-educated Big Firm defense lawyers against the unstoppable force of a storefront plaintiff's lawyer.)
Malpractice "reform" means making it virtually impossible for you or your family to get redress or fair compensation for death or injuries caused by negligent medical practice. (It means protecting poor defenseless doctors and their platoons
of insurance-funded Ivy League-educated Big Firm defense lawyers against the unstoppable force of a storefront plaintiff's lawyer.)
Tax "reform" means reducing progressive tax rates, eliminating taxes on income from investments and even the wealthiest estates so the wealthy will pay a lower share of the nation's tax liability and you will pay a higher share.
When you hear the word "reform," at least when it is uttered by a Republican, a Business Roundtable suit or a Washington pundit, you can be sure it does not mean anything that will help you in any way whatsoever. It does not mean anything that will help the country. It will not help the economy. It means nothing more nor less than protecting the wealthy and screwing you. Period. End of story. It's time for the rest of us -- the 99.9 per cent -- to tell the "reformers" to sit down, stop lying and shut up.
Beware of the word "reform."
Social Security "reform" means cutting benefits for your grandparents, your parents and you, or privatizing the program by handing control of those taxes over to Wall Street.
Medicare "reform" means eliminating Medicare for ordinary people by turning it into a voucher program for buying private insurance.
"Entitlement 'reform'" -- both terms deserve air quotes of their own -- means making recipients of Social Security and Medicare get fewer benefits in the future and pay more themselves. It also means ignoring the law and pretending that the taxes collected expressly and specifically for Social Security and Medicare may be used for other purposes more to the liking of the Beltway establishment.
Tort "reform" means making it extremely difficult for you or your family to get redress or fair compensation for death or injuries caused by defective products. (It means protecting poor defenseless corporations and their platoons of Ivy League-educated Big Firm defense lawyers against the unstoppable force of a storefront plaintiff's lawyer.)
Malpractice "reform" means making it virtually impossible for you or your family to get redress or fair compensation for death or injuries caused by negligent medical practice. (It means protecting poor defenseless doctors and their platoons
of insurance-funded Ivy League-educated Big Firm defense lawyers against the unstoppable force of a storefront plaintiff's lawyer.)
Tax "reform" means reducing progressive tax rates, eliminating taxes on income from investments and even the wealthiest estates so the wealthy will pay a lower share of the nation's tax liability and you will pay a higher share.
When you hear the word "reform," at least when it is uttered by a Republican, a Business Roundtable suit or a Washington pundit, you can be sure it does not mean anything that will help you in any way whatsoever. It does not mean anything that will help the country. It will not help the economy. It means nothing more nor less than protecting the wealthy and screwing you. Period. End of story. It's time for the rest of us -- the 99.9 per cent -- to tell the "reformers" to sit down, stop lying and shut up.
posted by KISSWeb | 2:18 PM
2 Comments:
Awesome calling of the hand of the Rethuglican Schtik.
Love this! You really should send this to Newsweek's "my Turn" and to the Herald and Tribune.
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