The Difference Between Obamacare, and Socialized Medicine

By Douglas V. Gibbs

Senator Angus King, an independent senator from Maine who caucuses with the Democrats, said on Fox News that "There's no such thing as Obamacare."  And technically, the senator is correct.

Here's how the conversation went:

"Two points if I may, sir," said Fox host Chris Wallace. "One, then why is Harry Reid saying he's not going to allow a vote on the fixes? And, two, speak directly and briefly, becase we're about to run out of time, to Senator Barrasso's comment that a lot of doctors, a lot of hospitals are being excluded by what Obamacare is offering."

"Now, now that's a big -- There is no such thing as Obamacare. You can't sign up for Obamacare. You sign up for an Anthem policy or an Aetna policy or a WellPoint policy. It's private insurance," said King.
Obamacare, in other words, is not a plan.  The law is there to increase federal government regulation of the insurance industry, but the private industry remains intact.  What people are signing up for is private insurance, and they are participating in a private insurance industry as we had before, with the only difference being that the Affordable Care Act places stricter regulatory controls over that industry.  After all, we have been told, the greedy fat cats of the insurance industry can't be trusted, and the federal government must rein them in and make sure they act in a manner allowed by government.

Therein lies the truth that people just can't seem to recognize.

Senator King is correct.  Obamacare is not a plan.  The healthcare law is not "single-payer," though that may be the goal.  The democrats, and liberal allies like Senator King, shy away from calling Obamacare "socialized medicine," or "universal healthcare," because they know that the American people shy away from anything that resembles communism, socialism, or the government takeover of any private sector industry.  To seize control in such a manner is too much in line with what Karl Marx would approve of, and the democrats want you to believe they are nothing like the communists of the defunct Soviet Union, or the socialists of failed European states.  And this is not the first time socialists have done what they could to convince everyone that they are not communists, or the kind of government that would seize through government takeover any private industry.

There is a style of government that is not technically about government seizure of industries, but instead uses heavy regulation to control private industries, so that the effect is the same as communism, but technically, the private industries remain in existence, though under heavy regulatory control.  This style of government was popular in many countries in the past, and extreme versions of it still exists in some third-world countries.

The movement I refer to is a collectivist system, where community is emphasized as being more important than individuality.  Everyone must work for the betterment of the group, of the community, and the nation.  The people are a part of a group, sharing responsibility, and understanding that individuality is greedy, and focuses too much of selfish desires.  A common symbol for this collectivist government system is a bundle of sticks, or a bundle of rods, and the leaders of these movements are normally publicly idolized in propaganda as the nation's savior.

Among the original symbols of this movement of community organization, and heavy regulatory control over private entities, was an ancient Imperial Roman symbol of power carried by lictors in front of magistrates; a bundle of sticks featuring an axe, indicating the power over life and death, and surely the obvious connection of people's health.  Other similar symbols used identified the leagues that were a part of the movement, and were used as symbols of strength through unity.

The movement Obamacare closely resembles also has a history of using racial division, and nationalism (love of government) to rally support, as well as using pageantry, elaborate symbolism, deceptive propaganda, and mass rallies to attempt to sway opinion.

Obamacare is indeed not the socialized medicine the democrats hope to eventually attain.  It is not technically a socialist program guided by the government seizure of the healthcare system in America.  It is a law that allows the private insurance industry to continue its existence, but under such heavy regulation that the effect of government controlled healthcare is still a reality.  Heavy regulation of private industry by bundling the private sector under intense government oversight while still allowing the private sector to continue to exist was a system of government popularized by Italy, and Germany, and has emerged in a minor role in other countries, as well.  It is not technically communism, though it is socialist in nature.  You know it better as fascism.

So, Senator King is right.  Technically, a socialist government healthcare program called Obamacare does not exist.  Instead, Obamacare is a law, and heavily regulatory law that is being manipulated at will by the whims of the executive, and one that more closely resembles fascism, than it does communism.

That makes Barack Obama, and those that support Obamacare, fascists.

-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary

Senator: There's No Such Thing As Obamacare - The Weekly Standard

Fascist symbolism - Wikipedia

Fascio - Wikipedia