I’ve got a confession to make. Sunday night (after work) I took time away from everything that I have to do to watch the Health Care vote. When it finally passed just after 11:30 (or sometime close to that) I actually cried.
I’m not easily brought to tears, but this debate has brought me there twice. The first time was when it was “decided” that this issue was dead because Scott Brown was elected. All the “smart” people were saying that it should be tabled and that the Democrats would have to try to take it up again later. I was heartbroken again. I’ve noted here on a few occasions why I wanted this bill to pass and when it really seemed that it was going nowhere I was lost.
Prior to Sunday I reserved emotions on this subject. I was not going to get my hopes up again. Then the final vote happened. I was sitting by myself in the living room– my Networking text book in front of me and my computer turned off– listening half-heartedly to C-Span. Then Nancy Pelosi pounded her gavel and declared the measure adopted.
Relief. Pride. A childish sense of victory.
I came into my office so I could log on to Twitter and poke at teabaggers– except my computer was turned off. So I didn’t do that. I just went back into the living room and sat down. Now what? What’s going to happen with this precious reconciliation bill that everyone just loves1.
Yesterday I took a few minutes to watch the President sign the bill into law. Again I didn’t mark the time on my Twitter feed. Maybe I should have, but I was too busy watching. The speeches don’t move me at this point, but dayum, the action of making this bill finally a law was just awesome. Beautiful.
I can’t explain to anyone what it feels like to be on the winning side this time. I’m so used to being a loser when it comes to politics2 and fully expected the Republicans to squash this thing like an ugly bug. But they failed and the teabagged failed and the cursed firebaggers failed. People like me, who will actually benefit from this bill and who see this as a foot in the door to nationalized medicine, won.
Which, I admit, I haven’t paid much attention to as yet. [↩]
Dennis, I may yet forgive you for your little “dance”. We’ll see. [↩]
I’m Happy
I’ve got a confession to make. Sunday night (after work) I took time away from everything that I have to do to watch the Health Care vote. When it finally passed just after 11:30 (or sometime close to that) I actually cried.
I’m not easily brought to tears, but this debate has brought me there twice. The first time was when it was “decided” that this issue was dead because Scott Brown was elected. All the “smart” people were saying that it should be tabled and that the Democrats would have to try to take it up again later. I was heartbroken again. I’ve noted here on a few occasions why I wanted this bill to pass and when it really seemed that it was going nowhere I was lost.
Prior to Sunday I reserved emotions on this subject. I was not going to get my hopes up again. Then the final vote happened. I was sitting by myself in the living room– my Networking text book in front of me and my computer turned off– listening half-heartedly to C-Span. Then Nancy Pelosi pounded her gavel and declared the measure adopted.
Relief. Pride. A childish sense of victory.
I came into my office so I could log on to Twitter and poke at teabaggers– except my computer was turned off. So I didn’t do that. I just went back into the living room and sat down. Now what? What’s going to happen with this precious reconciliation bill that everyone just loves1.
Yesterday I took a few minutes to watch the President sign the bill into law. Again I didn’t mark the time on my Twitter feed. Maybe I should have, but I was too busy watching. The speeches don’t move me at this point, but dayum, the action of making this bill finally a law was just awesome. Beautiful.
I can’t explain to anyone what it feels like to be on the winning side this time. I’m so used to being a loser when it comes to politics2 and fully expected the Republicans to squash this thing like an ugly bug. But they failed and the teabagged failed and the cursed firebaggers failed. People like me, who will actually benefit from this bill and who see this as a foot in the door to nationalized medicine, won.
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