There is an L.A. Times op-ed today by Nelson Lichtenstein about "Obamacare's other plus." It's a good read, so please link over.
If it is done right, the Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. Obamacare) may well promise uninsured Americans a lot more than cheap, reliable medical care. It can also open the door to the democratic empowerment of millions of poor people, who are often alienated from much of the nation's civic life, by strengthening the organizations that give them a voice. [...]
But confusion, fear and ignorance among millions of potential beneficiaries can still doom the reform... Obamacare's success depends on maximum possible participation.
Lichtenstein then warns of an Affordable Care Act implosion if that doesn't happen.
And here comes the part where it becomes obvious why those on the right resent Obamacare so much. I mean other than their hatred of President Obama, not-rich people, and not-white people:
And here is where Obamacare's peril turns into a promise of enormous social and political benefit. As the poor, alienated and fearful realize that tangible benefits can be won through their neighborhood clinic, civic group or local trade union, and are drawn into civic life and grass-roots action, these organizations that are essential to the health reform's implementation will be strengthened as agents ofcivic engagement and citizen mobilization.
This is not a case of creating more voters who will support Obama because of Obamacare. This is a 21st century example of Alexis de Tocqueville's 19th century observation that the health of American democracy depends on the vibrancy of numerous voluntary organizations.
Which must be one of the reasons we are still hearing that Paul Ryan thinks he can get Obamacare repealed.
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