CPJ member Dan O'Rourke writes a regular column for the Dunkirk Observer.  The following, "Who Lost China? Who Lost Health Care?," was published January 28, 2010.  See the link for Dan's previous columns under CPJ News/Opinion on the left side of the screen.

In 1949-50 the political question of the day was “Who lost China?” Mao and the Communists had defeated Chiang Kai-Shek in the Chinese Civil War. Overnight China, an ally in the war against Japan had become a communist enemy. Senator Joseph McCarthy in a finger-pointing crusade blamed communist sympathizers. McCarthy’s demagogic witch-hunts ruined political, academic and journalistic careers and blacklisted many. It was not America’s finest hour.

Historians’ analysis of China’s “loss” has recognized the complexities of Chinese politics, the military weakness and personal arrogance of Chiang Kai-Shek, and the un-American excesses of McCarthyism.  Eventually in 1974, the Senate censured Senator McCarthy. Chiang Kai-Shek retreated to Taiwan, whose economy subsequently -- and ironically -- prospered.  Finally, President Richard Nixon visited China in 1972 and broke down cold war barriers. History had many surprises.

China’s shift to Communism was the convergence of many historical influences. No one “lost” it. The question before us today: “Who lost health care?” is domestic.  Like the “loss” of China, however, the debate is nasty and the answer complex.

The biggest losers in the loss of health care, however, are people like Mark Windsor. Uninsured with life-threatening diseases, Mark was 27 when surgeons removed a chondrosarcoma tumor, a rare bone cancer, from his neck. He thought he was cured.  Years later he left his job with its company-paid health insurance to pursue his dream of becoming a photographer. He never thought the cancer would return. It did. He was uninsurable. He died recently at the age of 53.

Who, however, is responsible that health care reform is not becoming law? No one person is. There is lots of blame to go around. Here’s a partial list.

It’s the fault of President Barack Obama who failed to take leadership on this historic legislation, which was to be his signature achievement.  He waited too long, was too vague on what he wanted, and much too deferential to Congress. 

It’s the fault of the congressional Republicans who saw defeating health care reform as denying Obama a political victory. They were more concerned with scoring political points than in fixing a health system that everyone admits is broken.

It’s the fault of the congressional Democrats who avoided any tort reform that would reduce medical malpractice lawsuits and doctors’ defensive over-prescribing. 

It’s the fault of Majority Leader Harry Reid who to ensure 60 votes and avoid a filibuster negotiated pork-laden deals with Senators Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Mary Landrieu of Louisiana.

It’s the fault of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi whose approach to the house version of the bill was unashamedly partisan.

It’s the fault of Senator Joseph Lieberman who every week had different reasons for opposing the senate version of the bill.  He seemed more interested in being in the spotlight than shedding light on the legislation.

It’s the fault of a deceptive advertising campaign of the pharmaceutical and insurance industries that spent millions to raises fears in the minds of the already insured and the elderly.

Ultimately, however, the failure to reform health care is the fault of the arcane rules of the Senate. Presently, a 41-member minority party can block legislation by filibuster. Why does the Senate need a supermajority on every piece of meaningful legislation? Filibusters are strangling the Senate of the United States.

Even the threat of a filibuster can lead to outlandish bribes like those to Senators Nelson and Landrieu.  Moreover, the filibuster is not in the constitution; it is simply a senate rule. The Senate has modified this rule before.  It is time to do it again.

Opponents of health care reform have criticized public health care as being socialist, totalitarian even communist. At best those claims are a stretch.  At worst they are dishonest. Are our public highways socialist? Are public schools totalitarian?  Is public transportation un-American?

Moreover, doesn’t the government administer Medicare, Medicaid and VA’s health care for veterans?  Are these publicly managed health systems communistic?  Of course not, and in comparison to private insurance companies, they are not inefficient. They do not pay out billions for lobbyists, for PR advertising and in political contributions for election campaigns. There's certainly a valid debate here on cost and coverage, but that debate is not about Marxist communism -- or death panels.

Those disappointed with the limitations of a health care bill should remember some history. Like the debate on the “loss” of China, it is full of surprises. When Social Security first became law in 1935, it had no provisions for farm workers, for government employees, for domestic help, for many teachers and social workers. Even then it was criticized as discriminatory on the basis of race and gender.  Congress, however, passed it and the Supreme Court upheld it. Social Security turned out to be historic legislation.  Over the years Congress would gradually add those segments of the workforce it initially excluded. Inevitably, the same evolution awaits an imperfect health care bill -- if indeed there ever will be one.

But the bottom line on health care is that billions of dollars are involved at every level of the insurance system -- and people and corporations hate losing money.

Many like Mark Windsor and Janell Smith, however, have lost more than money.  Janell was an anorexic to whom, according to her parents’ attorney, her insurance company did not provide adequate treatment. Janell was hospitalized weighing 63 pounds!  She was gaining strength and weight with nourishment from a feeding tube. Her health insurance, however, did not want to continue this treatment. The results were tragic. Janell went home despondent and took her own life -- another needless death that health care reform could have prevented.

If we could put politics aside -- and we can’t -- where is our national compassion for the Janells and Marks in our affluent and prosperous nation?

Lois Gibbs, founder of the Center for Health, Environment and Justice, is the keynote speaker for SUNY Fredonia's 2009-2010 Convocation theme, "Public Service: Challenges and Opportunities."  She will speak at SUNY Fredonia's Rosch Recital Hall on Thursday April 22 at 2:30 pm. 

Lois Gibbs has been recognized extensively for her critical role in the grassroots environmental justice movement. Her involvement in environmental causes began in 1978 when she discovered that her 7-year-old son's elementary school in Niagara Falls, New York was built on a toxic waste dump. Subsequent investigation revealed that her entire neighborhood, Love Canal, had been built on top of this dump. With no prior experience in community activism, Gibbs organized her neighbors and formed the Love Canal Homeowners Association.

The Dunkirk-Fredonia Center for Peace and Justice will next meet on Thursday March 25 at 7:30 pm at Growing with Music/Thrifty Reader Bookstore (Barlow's Mill), located at 369 West Main St., Fredonia.  (It is one mile from downtown Fredonia, past Farrell's Chrysler Car Dealership.  Traveling from Fredonia to Brocton, it is on the right side of West Main.)

All are welcome.

"War Is Not the Answer" signs from the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) are available from Caitlin O'Reilly.  The FCNL asks for a $5.00 donation to defray the shipping costs of the signs.  Caitlin will be happy to deliver.  To see a photo of the sign, visit http://www.fcnl.org/forms/forms.php?type=wina.  Caitlin's contact information is 716.366.2074 or cait.riley.music@gmail.com.

The Religious Freedom Peace Tax Fund bill, H.R. 1921, submitted to Congress by John Lewis in April, 2007, is soon to be submitted again.

When enacted, this law will restore the rights of citizens whose conscience does not permit physical or financial participation in all war. Federal taxes of designated conscientious objectors will be placed in a non-military trust fund, enabling these citizens to be free from spiritual bondage, increasing federal revenue, and restoring the balance of government between collective security and non-interference in an individual's free exercise of belief.

Write to Rep Higgins or Rep Massa, since neither of them are among the 45 co-sponsors of the bill.  Your personal letter could be from the perspective of a conscientious objector and/or a supporter of civil liberties.    Your letter could also become a letter to the editor for the Observer or the papers in Massa's district.

For more information and two sample letters, go to the website of The National Campaign for a Peace Tax Fund (NCPTF), based in Washington, D.C., a not-for-profit organization which advocates for passage of the Religious Freedom Peace Tax Fund Bill:    http://www.peacetaxfund.org


Addresses:

Rep. Brian Higgins: 27th District (Chautauqua and most of Erie county)
431 Cannon HOB
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: 202-225-3306


Rep. Eric Massa: 29th District (Cattaraugus, Allegany, Steuben,
Chemung, Schyler, Yates, Ontario, Southern Monroe counties)
1208 Longworth HOB
Washington, DC 20515

Phone: (202) 225-3161

For upcoming Western New York Peace Center events (based in Buffalo), see: 

http://wnypeace.org/join/events.php

CPJ member Dan O'Rourke submitted the following letter to the Buffalo News, which was published in the March 4, 2008 issue:

Dear Editor,

Congratulations to the Buffalo News (2/25/08) and to Charity Vogel  for her courage in spotlighting the horrors female inmates suffer in our prisons.

I hope the Buffalo News will continue to shed light on the treatment  of the incarcerated. I once worked in prisons and know the difficult job correction officers have, but I also know that they, like all  with controlling authority over others, are tempted to abuse that  authority. Like some educators, clergy, psychologists and doctors,  some guards delude themselves into believing they can misuse those in  their care for their own purpose and pleasure.  In a horrible  perversion, they can debase and abuse those they are meant to protect  and help.

Senator Hubert Humphrey once said that the quality of a society "is  measured by how it treats those in the dawn of life, in the dusk of  life, and most importantly in the shadow of life.” These women are in  the shadows of life. What does their treatment say about the quality  of our society?

 Daniel O’Rourke
8002 Frisbee Road
Casadaga, NY 14718
595-2704

DFCPJ has supported the work of Dr. Tom Potts, a dentist who has volunteered for many years to help the poor in Chiapas, Mexico.  In October 2006, he and Dr. Bill Jungles gave a presentation at a DFCPJ meeting about the dental clinic in Chiapas.   The following was received from Dr. Potts on December 22, 2007:

Chiapas Dental Clinic Update

The Latin American Solidarity Committee (a task force of the Western New York Peace Center) has been operating a dental clinic in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico for the last 20 years.  In the beginning the clinic served primarily emergency needs, with the majority of services oriented toward the treatment of infections and extractions.  Subsequently, we have enlarged our services and now deliver a full complement of restorative services (fillings).

This year about 75% of our services have been oriented toward saving teeth rather  than extractions.  This represents a major change in the nature of the services and an improvement in our ability to deliver a higher quality of health to this impoverished community.  This year also was the first time that we have provided for root canal treatments, and this was only possible because of the X-ray machine installed in 2005 by one of your members (Bill Stock).

A Mexican dentist is at the clinic on Saturdays throughout the year, while I am there for five days a week usually for the months of November and February.  However, this year we plan to start helping a clinic in El Sauce, Nicaragua in February, and for that reason I'll only be in Chiapas for a week.

The clinic in Nicaragua is currently only doing extractions, so we hope to accomplish some improvements in the equipment and services there as well.  This work is only possible because of the generous donations to the Dental Clinic Project by many individuals and groups like the Dunkirk-Fredonia Peace and Justice Center.   Thanks again for your generous help!

Elia Mihou, Executive Director of the Western New York Peace Center since August, was featured in the Tuesday November 20 issue of the Buffalo News.   For the next few days, it can be read at no charge by going to http://buffalonews.com and clicking on the Archives link. 

Three truckloads of materials and $500 were donated during the CPJ's July 2007 Nicarauguan Appeal.   Each year, CPJ organizes a collection to help the impoverished people of the Central American country.  This effort is led by Ann Marie Zon, a Catholic social worker who spends several months each year at a mission in Nicaragua.  Thanks to all who donated!

CPJ is donating $140 to Rural Ministry in honor of the organization's 40th anniversary.    

Headquartered in Dunkirk, Rural Ministry has provided the basic needs of food, clothing, and shelter to the less fortunate and those in crisis situations.  Some have lost jobs, some face personal crises, some have come to harvest crops but do not find work, some are subjects of abuse, neglect, government reductions, or deteriorating health.   See http://www.ccrm.netsync.net/ for more information

Each year, DFCPJ collects items and funds to help the poor in Nicaragua, coordinating with the leadership of Ann Marie Zon, a Catholic social worker who works several months of the year at a mission in Nicaraugua.  (DFCPJ will again have  a drive this July.)  The following is from a recent note Ann Marie wrote to DFCPJ, thanking the group for its help:

My Dear-Most Faithful Friends,

You are so very much a part of Nicaragua and our efforts for the people there.  To be honest, you are most important to our projects - our work. 

We put the sum total of the funds you collected into digging wells - getting water for mission settlements that do not have the luxury of having water close at hand.

You can't even come close to imagining what this has done for the three areas - for all those people.  For them, it is like being given a gift that never ends.  We are presently installing the pumps so the projects are complete!

Thank you again and again.  We can only ask Our Lord, who used water in so many of His miracles, to bless each and all of you for every drop you've offered to  others.

--Ann Marie Zon

At its May 28 meeting, CPJ decided to contribute $100 to Church World Service for its effort to help those suffering from the genocidal crisis in Darfur, Sudan. 

Recently, CPJ donated $100 to the Agnes Safe House in Jamestown, which provides a safe haven for women who are affected by violence.

In conjunction with their recent week-long effort to raise awareness about the crisis in Darfur, students at SUNY Fredonia raised funds to benefit Doctors Without Borders.  In March, CPJ donated $25 to this cause. 

On Sunday January 28, Daniel O'Rourke was the guest speaker at the service of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Northern Chautauqua in Fredonia.  The title of Dan's presentation was "Peace is Relationships," a variation on Louise Diamond's insight that peace is connections.  Among others, Dan cites Eckhart Tolle, the author of The Power of Now, who said that if the present collective madness continues, it is unlikely that our planet will survive another hundred years. >> Read the entire text of Dan's speech, "Peace is Relationships".

At the January 11, 2007 CPJ meeting, members voted to donate $50 to Iraq Veterans Against the War, and $100 to the scholarship fund of the Dunkirk-Fredonia branch of the NAACP, in commemoration of Martin Luther King's birthday.