Opting out of the health care conspiracy

In his final interview before his death, Italian filmmaker Pier Paolo Pasolini argued, "We are particularly pleased with conspiracies because they relieve us of the weight of having to deal with the truth head on."

That quote carries a good deal of relevance today, particularly when it comes to political discourse in America and Oklahoma.

Each week, Fox News' Glenn Beck trots out his chalkboard to explain precisely how slippery slopes work, even at the expense of logic. For Beck and the American conservative movement as it stands currently, President Obama's attempt to reform the nation's health care system using a blend of private and public sector solutions is proof positive that Comrade Obama intends to march the country into the doldrums of socialism (or, communism or fascism. Take your pick with this bunch, as they're apparently interchangeable these days).

This fall, Oklahoma voters take the polls to vote on a ballot initiative to "opt out" of the historic health care reform legislation passed by Congress and signed into law by the president.

Oklahoma Rep. Mary Fallin voted against the legislation in lock step with Congressional Republicans, arguing that the legislation would lead to higher taxes on the state's small businesses and higher premiums for Oklahoma families.

Fallin hopes to ride the current conservative angst regarding the health care bill to victory this fall when she leaves the U.S. House to run for Oklahoma governor.

Just as national Republicans used gay marriage to successfully energize their base in key swing states in the 2004 presidential election, Republicans have now placed "opt out" initiatives on ballots across the country in the hopes that demoralized conservative voters do what they didn't do in 2006 and 2008: get out the vote.

Just last week, Oklahoma State Rep. Mike Ritze (R-Broken Arrow) took the pages of the Oklahoma Gazette to argue that Oklahoma must opt out of the legislation.

Some gems: "Recent federal health care legislation threatens to squash the rights of Oklahomans, drive up the cost of health care, and limit already weak-access to health care providers in the state," argues Ritze.

And, the always-reliable right wing talking point, "it is likely Obamacare will leave Oklahoma with just as many uninsured citizens, fewer doctors, reduced access to care and higher costs that strangle economic growth and discourage the creation of small business."

"It is likely" is a key phrase here as it essentially absolves Ritze, Fallin and the like from actually doing their homework and helping to ensure that Oklahoma's uninsured get the coverage (and access to it) that they deserve.

Nearly 600,000 Oklahomans are uninsured of the 3.3 million that live here.

And, what do Fallin and Ritze say to those people or the senior citizens who've struggled to make up the "Donut Hole" in their prescription drug payments?

"There's a conservative, common sense approach to health care," Ritze writes.

Oh yeah? I wonder how many senior citizens disapprove of the first $250 check they received from the federal government after the passage of the health care bill to actually help them pay for their prescriptions. (Or, must we frighten them further with tales of death panels and the like?)

I wonder how many small businesses with less than 50 employees who will receive a tax credit to help provide their employees with health insurance will complain when they're on stronger financial ground.

I wonder how many parents are relieved that, effective immediately, children younger than 19 with preexisting conditions will no longer be denied coverage solely on the basis of that condition. Or, how many parents struggling in the worst economic recession since the Depression were relieved to know their children can remain on their plans until age 26?

Oklahoma Republicans (and Democrats) must face these numbers, these statistics, these hard truths if they want our trust instead of playing on our anxieties in these hard times.

We can linger in childish demagoguery and foolish conspiracy theories or we can move forward.

I vote the latter.

I hope the rest of Oklahoma does the same this fall.

(If you're interested in learning precisely what the bill means for you, check out this site: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/health-care-reform/)