Squeaker in the House

My hat's off to Rep. Harry Mitchell (D-AZ) for displaying the political courage necessary to help put the Affordable Health Care Act over the top in the House of Representatives last Saturday night.

Rep. Mitchell is that rarest of figures in the Washington political establishment: a man who stands for what is right and what is needed by our nation — not what is politically safe in his district and seems most expedient to his own reelection chances.

I realize that you didn't cast your vote in the health care reform debate to make me happy, Rep. Mitchell, but you did that and achieved something else, besides: You made me proud of one of my elected representatives in Congress.

Now, if we could only get Senators Kyl and McCain to rise to the same standards.

Foxes in the Henhouse: Time for Change

Okay, maybe it's just my opinion. But, to me, expanding healthcare to all Americans by increasing the influence of the same insurance monoliths and pharmaceutical giants responsible for our current broken system is like entrusting a henhouse to a pack of even fatter foxes.

That's why I hope you'll check out the link below and connect with the single-most sensible, telling "truth-to-power" voice in the U.S. Senate, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

Please take a moment to sign his petition to enact real comprehensive health care reform and provide a single-payer, not-for-profit Medicare model for all Americans.

And please do it now. Because Bernie Sanders is right (and the only thing about him that's B.S. is his initials): The time for real, fundamental change is now.

But it won't happen if we don't make sure that all our voices are heard.