What do Obama care and the Sochi Olympics have in common? On the surface you would think nothing at all, however you’d be mistaken. In fact there are many commonalities between Obama care and the Sochi Olympics, and their foundation is government control.
It was at roll out when Americans learned that Obama care’s website was a complete disaster. Despite the taxpayer cost of over $500 million to develop the website, it’s fraught with problems, not the least of which is a complete lack of security. Experts warn that anyone who puts their private information into the site is risking the loss of all of their personal information. In addition the site has no back end able to transmit data to confirm payments were made, nor can it give anyone who signs up assurance that they will in fact be insured when they show up at a doctor’s office. New failures pop up each day, but President Obama and Democrats call them glitches, and “all is well”. Reality check – big government doesn’t work.
At the start of the Olympics we are all just now learning of the problems in Sochi. Despite assurances from Putin that “all is well”, people are getting surprised when checking into rooms. Some when told that they are still under construction. Some rooms have no water. Some visitors are told not to allow the water to touch their faces because of its dangerous contents. Many rooms were missing combinations of furniture, curtains, light bulbs, TVs and shower curtains. Locals were told to surrender their pillows to athletes whose rooms didn’t have one. Hotel lobbies are missing as are floors.
It’s been interesting so far to see the fawning coverage given to Putin, and Sochi by Bob Costas and NBC. I guess the mainstream media has so much practice spinning for big government progressives in America that it’s a natural transition to praise a full-blown totalitarian.
Another link is traffic. Very few tourists are showing up to actually see the Olympics so far. Many are likely scared away by the threat of terrorism, just like very few previously uninsured Americans are signing up for Obama care. Many of them are likely afraid of the threat of personal data theft.
Sadly, both the ACA (not just the website) and Sochi are well over budget. The Sochi Games cost Russia an estimated $51B, the most expensive games in history. Obama care will cost U.S. taxpayers over double its original estimate of $900B over ten years, and that doesn’t account for the increased cost to Americans of insurance plans, co-pays and deductibles.
The lack of preparation of the Obama care website, it’s roll-out and the entire so called “Affordable Care Act”, for that matter, and the Sochi Olympics have another common feature: they were the by products of massive, intrusive government. In the case of Sochi, it’s Putin, an ex-KGB officer who wants to return Russia to its former glory. He’s is an authoritarian, a communist “once KGB-always KGB”, and it’s clear to see that despite the fall of the Iron Curtain, the failures of the old communist system are still in effect. In the case of Obama care it’s an unprecedented level of massive, intrusive government led by Barack Obama and the Democrats intent on expanding the role and power of our government. Don’t forget that Obama care gave the federal government control of over 20% of the US economy. Government’s gain is liberty’s loss.
Hopefully, the athletes at the winter Olympics won’t be distracted from achieving their dreams, despite the situation in Sochi. Sadly for America, the reality of Obama care is quite different for it’s doomed to fail. The Law was fundamentally flawed, rushed through in the dead of night without a single Republican vote. It’s real objective is to fail SLOWLY and move the USA into a government controlled and dictatorial health care system. One major difference between the Olympics and the “Unaffordable Care Act” does bear highlighting though: the Olympics will end in a few weeks, but to stop Obama care, we must repeal it!