Luigi Mangione became something of a folk hero when he shot and killed Brian Thompson, CEO of United Healthcare last year. United Healthcare is one of the country’s largest health insurance providers in America. They have been under increased criticism due to accusations of delaying and denying treatment to those they insure under Medicare Advantage plans, in particular. The company took in $281 billion in revenue in 2023 which reflected a profit of $21 billion. At the time, they insured about 49 million Americans which means they made a profit of roughly $430 per every person they insured. Pretty nice gig!
This is exactly why the MAGA Republicans (wealthy MAGA Republicans) are pushing to privatize so much of what is now run by the government – money! Ironically, the blue collar and evangelical MAGA Republicans who so fervently support Trump and his ‘anti-woke’ agenda will bear a lot of the brunt of this privatization. They have been so convinced that ‘wokeness’ and immigrants are the biggest problems this country faces, they are completely oblivious to the rug being pulled right out from under them. That is, of course, part of the Trump, Musk, Vance plan. Distract people and then screw them before they know what happened to them.
Why privatize Medicare – because it will make some people very, very rich. Why privatize Social Security – because it will make some people very, very rich. Why privatize Veterans Affairs – because it will make some people very, very rich. Why privatize the National Park System – because it will make some people very, very rich. Why privatize the air traffic control system – because it will make some people very, very rich. Why privatize much of the education system – because it will make some people very, very rich (and allow politicians to control the curricula). Are you seeing a theme here? The MAGA movement is not about Making America Great Again – it’s about maintaining control and making a few people very, very rich.
If Trump and his MAGA toadies were really interested in Making America Great Again they would focus on real issues facing Americans and the country’s crumbling, outdated infrastructure, and broken healthcare system. For example, how many high-speed trains exist in America? Exactly zero! Who is the largest operator of high-speed rail systems – China. If anyone has ever ridden on the high-speed rail systems in Europe, you have to ask yourself, “why can’t we do this”? The simple answer is greed. The wealthy don’t need or want high speed trains because they have their private jets so to them, spending money on such things is a ‘waste.’
Every other industrialized nation in the world has figured out how to deliver high quality healthcare to all their citizens. Most Americans would agree the system in this country is very broken. America has the highest maternal mortality rate of any of our peer countries. That is shameful. The cost of a college education in other countries is a fraction of the cost here or is totally free. They have figured out how to do it – why can’t we?
The bottom line is simply that ‘woke’ is not the problem in the country. DEI is not a problem in this country. Widespread voter fraud is not a problem in this country. Waste, fraud and abuse are not the problem in this country. The biggest problem facing this country is a plain old-fashioned sundae of greed topped with a huge dollop of ignorance. Grab a spoon and dig in!
