My daughter reminds me that today is the first day the Affordable Care Act and millions of people who have not been able to get health insurance can now go see a doctor. Yay! Can we have a moment to acknowledge this victory before the complainers from all corners come out to rehash their trouble with the law. I have a relative who waited four years and suffers, with now most likely irreparable nerve damage, because she could not get the treatment she needed before this law was enacted.
Millions of others have similar stories that, unfortunately, just do not matter to the those who never have to worry about health insurance coverage. Until they lose their job or get divorced or come down with a catastrophic illness and then the shoe is on the other foot. The "them versus us" thought process is very much alive when thinking about providing health care for all. Even when "us becomes them" we are not a very generous group. I have been reading a book entitled "Less than Human" written by David Livingstone Smith (2012 St Martin's Press) and in this book he looks into the fine details of how the alienation of peoples began. It is a topic broad and deep and Smith discusses the overall history and philosophy of justifying dehumanization. Smith also talks about the concept of genocide during war and sites examples past and present. It is a fascinating book and sad, but for me and this blog, puts into perspective the idea of the "great chain of being". That being the concept philosophical and religious thinkers thought of which link in ranking order essence of beings from the lowliest form of being all the way up to God. It helped me place into a modern way of thinking all the hate I have been hearing surrounding the discussion of this new health care law we celebrate today.
Where do people fit in along this chain and is it possible that some groups (tribes) have decided that they are higher up on the chain than others (perhaps the poor, women, people of color or homosexuals) which justifies to them bad or vicious behavior. I think about this and it reminds me of the story in the Bible of the Tower of Babel. Babel is Hebrew for the English word "confusion". In this story, which takes place between the stories of Noah's Ark and the flood and the Story of Abraham, the people of Babel all speak the same language and all believe that that they are as good as God and want to build a tower for themselves to be as high as God. God sees this and changes the people so they cannot speak the same language and since they cannot speak to one another they disperse through out the world and the tower cannot be built.
I understand that God was protecting his turf but in the confusion of not being able to communicate the people spend their energy competing with each other rather than competing with God. Maybe that was God's purpose but it sure did not help his people learn to accept one another. On the other hand if we accept one another unconditionally, then there may be no need for God and that might have been the plan, as well. This theory does not work for those who do not believe in a higher power. To them I suggest that if we all got along peacefully we would have nothing to complain about. That may not be such a bad thing, either. Whatever your belief system is I hope you stay healthy and enjoy your new freedom of health. And if you can try to be nicer to your neighbor that wouldn't hurt either. Happy New Year 2014!
