Results tagged “Mr. Bill Goes to Washington” from Bill's Words

Health care reform is on the way, for better or worse. And I never got a decent amount of time to go to Washington as I had intended. (Yeah, yeah, road to somewhere paved etc., I know.) Sigh.

It dawned on me that I’ve made some very general statements about “the healthcare bill,” but (a) I don’t know jack about what it’s really called or “where” it is in the legislative process and (b) I haven’t read the 1000+ pages of the bill myself.

So, for your and my reading pleasure this weekend, I give you:

H.R.3200 - America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009.

If you want to see it in a slightly more interesting format, check out the bill at OpenCongress.org, which has some really interesting features, including the ability to comment on each line of the darned thing.

I’ll have some thoughts on Monday, I’m sure, after I plow my way through this thing.

After I published this rather lengthy entry on so-called healthcare “reform”, I expected the usual comments, i.e., none.

However, I got two comments back, one from my dad, one from my mom. And Mom was disappointed in some of my choice of language. Sigh.

Between them, though, they had some really good ideas. But while Dad, ever the engineer, focused on solutions and root causes, Mom, ever the Dean of Students, focused on how to deliver my opinions to my elected representatives, in person.

I had never thought of that. No, really, I had never thought to try to convey my opinion to my elected officials, face-to-face. And why not? Why should “big business” get all the face time? Why should only the rich and famous be heard? Aren’t my opinions (and yours) just as valid, just as important as anybody else’s?

Why, yes, they are!

So with this entry, I begin a new series entitled, appropriately enough, Mr. Bill Goes to Washington. I’ll chronicle every step of the way from figuring out whom I wish to see to making contact to making travel arrangements.

I hope.

Now, remember that this isn’t a full-time job for me. I have one of those “full-time job” things, and it’s not quite enough to pay all the bills as it is. So don’t get impatient. Don’t expect to see a new posting every day (two per week might be all I can get out on the matter). Hang in there with me, and know that I’m very passionate about this issue, and whether you agree or disagree with my opinion, I hope to entertain you, at the very least, and enlighten you as an added bonus.

So, until the next entry, insert clever tagline here.

I need more than just a clue. I need several clues.

First, I need to know who my representatives are. Second, I need to know what is in that monstrous piece of heathcare legislation.

And being a webslinger extraordinaire, I thought the best place to start would be Google.

But… that’s too easy. And I’m too much of a geek just to let… In order for me to be able to plow through The Monster, I’d have to have it with me 24/7, and that meant iPhone.

http://www.sunlightlabs.com/contests/appsforamerica/apps/