Wednesday, August 26, 2009

A Trip with Mr Peabody and Teddy

As fellow connoisseurs of 60's Saturday morning television may recall, Mr Peabody was the canine-genius behind the WayBack Machine. Along with his trusted (if dim) sidekick Sherman, he would gallivant back in time to keep us on the straight-and-narrow.
Imagine, if you will, Mr P setting the dial to 1971. Still in his first term, President Richard Nixon proposes sweeping health care reforms, including "a mandate, which would require that employers cover their workers, with a Medicaid-like program for poor families, which all Americans would be able to join by paying sliding-scale premiums based on their income."
Mr P and his pal look on in shock as a young Senator Ted Kennedy, all dried off now, moves to block that legislation, which could have helped us avoid many, if not most, of the health care problems we face today.
Troubled and confused, the intrepid pair flash forward almost 40 years, popping directly into the Senate Visitor's Gallery, where they are stunned to see that same Nor'eastern Senator pushing passionately for... wait for it ... employer mandates and increased government spending to insure more people.
Finally regaining his voice (if not his credulity), the determined doggy whispers "it's deja vu all over again!"
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