A Poison By Any Other Name Is Still A Poison

I seldom write commentaries related to specific politics...

I believe in integrity...of consistency of behavior related to a foundational set of tenants...but this one hit me hard the other day!

Every American is aware of...President Obama signing into law the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010.”

This is not an article touting the benefits of the act or its potential dangers…we’ll leave that to the politicians…

What hit me was the name!

A History Channel moment…

Way back when…men found women with dilated pupils attractive…

Although there may be some interesting psychological discussions about that attraction…this is not about that…

About the same time they found that one of the first symptoms of nightshade poisoning was dilated pupils!  In small quantities the people ingesting poison nightshade exhibited this alluring trait!  Although it sounds diabolical...poison nightshade became a cosmetic drug!

Women were smarter than men thought and wouldn’t take it just to dilate their pupils…until some genius renamed it belladonna!  The interpretation of the word is "beautiful woman"…the reality was that it was belladonna was still poison nightshade! 

However, the name change had the desired effects....because a new name conveyed the message that what was in it was new and harmless too!  Women began taking belladonna (what they were led to believe was a substitute for nightshade) without realizing that it was still the same poison.  

Many died or were physically impaired by this simple medieval marketing ploy.

Fast Forward to the 21^st Century…

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will be systematically implemented over the next 10 years.  In 2014 is when the majority of this will hit…even this is a political delay tactic…but we’ll leave this in the hands of the politicians…

The name bothers me…it looks and smells like the poison nightshade conspiracy of the middle ages!

I am not a conspiracy theorist and believe that most so-called conspiracies are the result of paranoia...

I do not want it to come off like I believe that it will lead to the death of America…we’ll leave that to the politicians…who now have to implement it...

It is the words used…”Protection” and “Affordable” bother me.  They are "marketing words" used to make this more appealing to a public that might not wish to ingest the poison that it may contain...these are words that elicit emotions...rather than convey a definitive meaning...

I really would like to know who crafted that name…this person should be put on equal ground with the person who came up with the name belladonna! 

Why am I making such a big deal about this?  It is because things like this reek of deception and dishonesty.  A move to appeal to a mass of people who do not have the time or the ability to read the ingredients of what they are being forced to consume...   

Our politicians are well meaning and although they may aspire to provide “protection” at “affordable” rates…it sounds like a late night commercial by some fly-by-night insurance company…or one of those emails that you get from Nigeria saying that they have 13 million US dollars in a bank account for you.

Call a horse a horse.  Call an apple an apple. A Congressional Act by what it is...

If this is an Act that someone is proud of...call it by the name of the person who sponsored it...if it is truly a legacy...then...

Let’s call this the The President's Citizen Healthcare Act or something that it really is.  It will go down in history...Let's not forget where it came from...

I am tired of marketing…straight-talk is what the American Citizens want and deserve…regardless of political affiliation...let’s hold our politicians to their pledges!  I continue to trust our leaders...  They can step up and put their name on it...  It is their right and obligation...  When you put your name on something...it forces you to a new level of responsibility and performance...  I do not know of any sane person that wants his name to go down in history for a failure...

Enough Said!  


What do you think?