Americans Split on Health Coverage, Obama down in Polls

[vicious796]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcclatchy/3272692

So it seems we're not the only ones debating how coverage should be done as well as who should be doing it.

Just as there's no broad agreement on how to overhaul health care, there's also no dominant voice in the debate.

Obama has the edge, as 26 percent said they trusted him most to expand care to the uninsured. The second most trusted voice, however, was doctors and other health care practitioners, named by 20 percent of Americans.

As for Obama himself:

The survey found the ranks of people who think the country is on the right track dropping to 40 percent, down 12 points since early June and the lowest since Obama took office in January.

As unemployment continues to rise, Americans who say the country' s on the wrong track jumped to 54 percent, a 12-point rise and the highest since Obama took office.

The number of Americans who approve of the way Obama is doing his job also dropped, to 57 percent, a 7-point decline from early June and the lowest of his presidency that McClatchy-Ipsos has recorded.

His biggest loss of support was among independents, whose approval decreased from 58 percent to 50 percent. However, he also lost ground among Democrats, down 5 points, and Republicans, down 3 points.

Notably, the total of Americans who "strongly" approve of Obama's job performance dropped 11 points in a month, to 29 percent, his lowest ever. Conversely, 22 percent said they strongly disapprove, up 6 points and the highest of his six months in office.

And for those of you who won't read the article but demand information on the polls:

METHODOLOGY:

These are some of the findings of a McClatchy-Ipsos poll conducted from last Thursday through Monday. For the survey, Ipsos interviewed a nationally representative, randomly selected sample of 1,007 adults. With a sample of this size, the results are considered accurate within 3.09 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire adult population in the U.S. been polled. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including coverage error and measurement error. These data were weighted to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the U.S. population according to U.S. Census figures. Respondents had the option to be interviewed in English or Spanish.

[nstgc]

I'm not being sarcastic, I really wander. Do you guys think Obama cares[...?]

[edit] ...about these polls in specific?

[mgz]

I'm not being sarcastic, I really wander. Do you guys think Obama cares[...?]

[edit] ...about these polls in specific?

yes because obama is americas chimp he will chase the banana known as public opinion

[nstgc]

I sure hope he will. More often then not I seem to criticise the public's opinion, saying its too "feel good" or "short sighted", but I have to agree this time. I know that the polls, at least these, show that Obama is still being supported in his healthcare decision, but they are falling, which is why I'm saying that I agree.

[vicious796]

Part of the problem is that it's way too hastey, slow it down chief.

"It took a year and a half for us to create the Medicare system. Now we're going to do the entire health care system in two weeks or six weeks," he said Tuesday on CBS's "The Early Show."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090721/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_health_care_overhaul

[kyanwan]

See - I'm all with reform, but it needs to be done with a scalpel - not a sledgehammer.   What they're doing is using the sledgehammer ... blindfolded.   Not all of the house read that bill - I'm willing to put money down on that.   Some in house, I even question their capability to understand the words in that bill.

Reforms should be done first on the highest direct costs to medical practitioners ( Malpractice insurance, lawsuits ) - then to the highest cost procedure ( Emergency Room care ) - after which, see what happens.

Then take additional steps as necessary.

[vicious796]

I'd put money on 75% of the house having their secretaries/interns read it and write them a brief summary.

[mrjpark]

The only problem I find with Obama is that he's an idealist and doesn't seem to understand what he's capable of and what he's not.  So far, he's grabbed more than he can chew and is having a lot of trouble swallowing it all at once.

[mgz]

my problem with obama is that instead of addressing the issue of healthcares costs at the moment he is working on a form of socialized health care.

Fixing the current system with restrictions on pricing would have much better results with much less tax burden IMO

[mrjpark]

I understand that he can't "fix" the economy.  But he took hundreds of billions of dollars and used that money to further his own agendas while telling everyone that it was to fix this economy.  Naturally some of it, like the money put into national defense, was to get other politicians to shut up and just pass the damn thing, but others like research in alternate fuel sources are very long-term projects.  Americans agreed to pass that budget under the belief that he would be trying to help them now, but instead he's trying to do everything he promised during his campaigns in his first year of presidency.  Let's face it, health care in America has been fucked for a long time.  I don't see the problem in putting it aside and focusing on the big picture first, and then trying to fix all the "little" (they're actually not little, just in perspective to a nation's economy) things after, regardless of what kind of health care he's trying to instill.  That's all I wanted to say.

[Jski]

I find that pepole have short attestations spans (I guess it dose not help when some one is feed info. all the time on what going on and the news networks make it out as if something going to happen ever day and when it dose not happen pepole are let down over and over) and things have to be done now and do not like to wait for it. Its going to take years to fix things, pepole are going to have to wait. Do you want it now and have lots of holes in it or do you want it to take time and be far better then just rushing?

[Semnae]

I'm not really going to consider Obama "down in the polls" until he's getting below 50%.  I suppose he's down in the polls compared to when he started, but the majority of Americans still love and support him.  People aren't as opposed to health care reform as it seems in the news, the opposition is just being extremely vocal.

http://www.pollster.com/polls/us/jobapproval-obama.php?xml=/flashcharts/content/xml/Obama44JobApproval.xml&choices=Approve,Disapprove&phone=&ivr=&internet=&mail=&smoothing=&from_date=&to_date=&min_pct=&max_pct=&grid=&points=&trends=&lines=

Part of the problem is that it's way too hastey, slow it down chief.

"It took a year and a half for us to create the Medicare system. Now we're going to do the entire health care system in two weeks or six weeks," he said Tuesday on CBS's "The Early Show."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090721/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_health_care_overhaul

Come on now, this has been in the works for six decades, not six weeks.

[Jski]

True it has been in the works for some time but each president changes how the fix is looked at. When it jumps from democrats to republican what work was done by one is reversed by the other kind of. I fall back to my idea that ever day we are giving info in such a way as if something is going to happen now so we have lost our ability to see too much farther then a few weeks.

[relic2279]

I'm posting this strictly for humor purposes since it's relevant. No idea who wrote it, but saw it and it made me laugh:


"I AM AN AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE

This morning I was awoken by my alarm clock powered by electricity generated by the public power monopoly regulated by the US department of energy. I then took a shower in the clean water provided by the municipal water utility. After that, I turned on the TV to one of the FCC regulated channels to see what the national weather service of the national oceanographic and atmospheric administration determined the weather was going to be like using satellites designed, built, and launched by the national aeronautics and space administration. I watched this while eating my breakfast of US department of agriculture inspected food and taking the drugs which have been determined as safe by the food and drug administration.

At the appropriate time as regulated by the US congress and kept accurate by the national institute of standards and technology and the US naval observatory, I get into my national highway traffic safety administration approved automobile and set out to work on the roads build by the local, state, and federal departments of transportation, possibly stopping to purchase additional fuel of a quality level determined by the environmental protection agency, using legal tender issed by the federal reserve bank. On the way out the door I deposit any mail I have to be sent out via the US postal service and drop the kids off at the public school.

After spending another day not being maimed or killed at work thanks to the workplace regulations imposed by the department of labor and the occupational safety and health administration, enjoying another two meals which again do not kill me because of the USDA, I drive my NHTSA car back home on the DOT roads, to ny house which has not burned down in my absence because of the state and local building codes and fire marshal's inspection, and which has not been plundered of all it's valuables thanks to the local police department.

I then log on to the internet which was developed by the defense advanced research projects administration and post on freerepublic.com and fox news forums about how SOCIALISM in medicine is BAD because the government can't do anything right."

[vicious796]

There's a big difference between slight moderation and total control. Do you think that the USDA inspects every single piece of grain that comes from the midwest? Do taxpayers fully fund the operation of the farms in the midwest?

Also, Sem, you must smoke some serious crack to think a 20% drop in the polls isn't "significant". Sure, he's at like 55% now... from 75%.

[kyanwan]

I'm posting this strictly for humor purposes since it's relevant. No idea who wrote it, but saw it and it made me laugh:


"I AM AN AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE

This morning I was awoken by my alarm clock powered by electricity generated by the public power monopoly regulated by the US department of energy. I then took a shower in the clean water provided by the municipal water utility. After that, I turned on the TV to one of the FCC regulated channels to see what the national weather service of the national oceanographic and atmospheric administration determined the weather was going to be like using satellites designed, built, and launched by the national aeronautics and space administration. I watched this while eating my breakfast of US department of agriculture inspected food and taking the drugs which have been determined as safe by the food and drug administration.

At the appropriate time as regulated by the US congress and kept accurate by the national institute of standards and technology and the US naval observatory, I get into my national highway traffic safety administration approved automobile and set out to work on the roads build by the local, state, and federal departments of transportation, possibly stopping to purchase additional fuel of a quality level determined by the environmental protection agency, using legal tender issed by the federal reserve bank. On the way out the door I deposit any mail I have to be sent out via the US postal service and drop the kids off at the public school.

After spending another day not being maimed or killed at work thanks to the workplace regulations imposed by the department of labor and the occupational safety and health administration, enjoying another two meals which again do not kill me because of the USDA, I drive my NHTSA car back home on the DOT roads, to ny house which has not burned down in my absence because of the state and local building codes and fire marshal's inspection, and which has not been plundered of all it's valuables thanks to the local police department.

I then log on to the internet which was developed by the defense advanced research projects administration and post on freerepublic.com and fox news forums about how SOCIALISM in medicine is BAD because the government can't do anything right."

Making sure people aren't killed on the job, on the road, or by their food and drink is one thing.

Dictating who should live and die based on their health, is a Hitler thing. 

[Semnae]

Also, Sem, you must smoke some serious crack to think a 20% drop in the polls isn't "significant". Sure, he's at like 55% now... from 75%.

Obama has been gradually declining in the polls since he first got elected.  It is significant, but what I'm saying is that this isn't something sudden as a result of Americans being divided on the new health coverage bill.

Dictating who should live and die based on their health, is a Hitler thing.  

And where is that in the bill?  Grandstanding much?

[queenmetroid]

I'm posting this strictly for humor purposes since it's relevant. No idea who wrote it, but saw it and it made me laugh:


"I AM AN AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE

This morning I was awoken by my alarm clock powered by electricity generated by the public power monopoly regulated by the US department of energy. I then took a shower in the clean water provided by the municipal water utility. After that, I turned on the TV to one of the FCC regulated channels to see what the national weather service of the national oceanographic and atmospheric administration determined the weather was going to be like using satellites designed, built, and launched by the national aeronautics and space administration. I watched this while eating my breakfast of US department of agriculture inspected food and taking the drugs which have been determined as safe by the food and drug administration.

At the appropriate time as regulated by the US congress and kept accurate by the national institute of standards and technology and the US naval observatory, I get into my national highway traffic safety administration approved automobile and set out to work on the roads build by the local, state, and federal departments of transportation, possibly stopping to purchase additional fuel of a quality level determined by the environmental protection agency, using legal tender issed by the federal reserve bank. On the way out the door I deposit any mail I have to be sent out via the US postal service and drop the kids off at the public school.

After spending another day not being maimed or killed at work thanks to the workplace regulations imposed by the department of labor and the occupational safety and health administration, enjoying another two meals which again do not kill me because of the USDA, I drive my NHTSA car back home on the DOT roads, to ny house which has not burned down in my absence because of the state and local building codes and fire marshal's inspection, and which has not been plundered of all it's valuables thanks to the local police department.

I then log on to the internet which was developed by the defense advanced research projects administration and post on freerepublic.com and fox news forums about how SOCIALISM in medicine is BAD because the government can't do anything right."

I'm sorry, but I'm calling you on part of this.
First of all. the state governments and private enterprises are mostly responsible for our power. The federal attempts at providing power have been fail (TVA). I'll grant you that the FDA is necessary. FCC? Yeah, that's useful. Federal Reserve is fail, and public school is epic fail on so many levels. The U.S. postal service loses money, and it'll be obsolete sooner or later. Fire and police are local state services, otherwise they wouldn't be efficient.

And the final thing: Who do you think made the internet great? People like us. Not the government.

And now, the government wants to restrict what you can do. Did you know that if you sign up for Cash for clunkers, you supposedly give the federal government the right to monitor what you do on the internet? I'm not sure how far that goes or whether I should be worried about it, so don't quote me on it. Also, flag@whitehouse.gov. That's Nazi/Soviet thinking right there. In case you haven't heard about it, you are encouraged to send in the names of people spreading "falsehoods" about Obama's healthcare plan.

Dictating who should live and die based on their health, is a Hitler thing. 

And where is that in the bill?  Grandstanding much?

That is the truth and everyone knows it. Look at Canada. The much lauded system has obscene wait times. Basically, what will happen is that the federal govenment will deny you care if you are over a certain age. They have to, because they cannot afford to pay for everyone. That's the way it is in Britain. If you are over a certain age, you don't get care. Simple as that. There's too many old people here for us young people to support. Under his plan, I will be taxed to nothing. Obama is on crack (read: lying through his teeth) when he says that everyone will get taken care of. The federal government will fail at a healthcare system. Plain and simple.

[relic2279]

I'm sorry, but I'm calling you on part of this.

Sorry. Nothing to call. I did say it was for 'strictly for humor purposes'.

The federal attempts at providing power have been fail (TVA). I'll grant you that the FDA is necessary. FCC? Yeah, that's useful. Federal Reserve is fail, and public school is epic fail on so many levels. The U.S. postal service loses money, and it'll be obsolete sooner or later. Fire and police are local state services, otherwise they wouldn't be efficient.

First off, I think your missing the point of the joke which is stated in the last sentence:
"because the government can't do anything right." Which obviously isn't the case.
But you listen 'some' right wingers, and it sounds like they'd prefer anarchy to anything done by the government. It's reminds me of young adults who just hate authority figures just because they're authority figures. It's a pretty ignorant stance.

Secondly, our schools are shit because republicans fight reform in that area, at least since Reagan. Probably a reason most in the academic market are democrats. Bush's 'no child left behind' solution was a real win. I personally think all education should be free or socialized including higher education.

Did you know that if you sign up for Cash for clunkers, you supposedly give the federal government the right to monitor what you do on the internet?

Got a source on that? No offense, but that sounds just a wee bit out of conspiracy land.

[queenmetroid]

I'm sorry, but I'm calling you on part of this.

Sorry. Nothing to call. I did say it was for 'strictly for humor purposes'.

Unfortunately, I see nothing funny about the current state of affairs in America. I'm a conservative, and I don't panic or run around screaming with the masses, but this socialism is unacceptable. And it's being imposed against the will of the people.

The federal attempts at providing power have been fail (TVA). I'll grant you that the FDA is necessary. FCC? Yeah, that's useful. Federal Reserve is fail, and public school is epic fail on so many levels. The U.S. postal service loses money, and it'll be obsolete sooner or later. Fire and police are local state services, otherwise they wouldn't be efficient.

First off, I think your missing the point of the joke which is stated in the last sentence:
"because the government can't do anything right." Which obviously isn't the case.
But you listen 'some' right wingers, and it sounds like they'd prefer anarchy to anything done by the government. It's reminds me of young adults who just hate authority figures just because they're authority figures. It's a pretty ignorant stance.

Secondly, our schools are shit because republicans fight reform in that area, at least since Reagan. Probably a reason most in the academic market are democrats. Bush's 'no child left behind' solution was a real win. I personally think all education should be free or socialized including higher education.

I'm not against authority, but I'm against the liberties that are being taken by Obama and his administration. As much crap as Bush did, this is from bad to worse. Wiretapping is nothing compared to the government taking control of pretty much every aspect of your life. which is what he intends to do. I'm allowed to get up in arms about anything and everything. It has nothing to do with resenting authority, it's I don't want to be held sway to what 51% thinks. These are life changing measures, and I don't like them. And public schools don't *really* work. They are based on the false assumption that everyone wants to learn. This is not anywhere near the truth. The fact of the matter is, public school will always suck until you make it optional. The people who don't want to learn won't and will disrupt those who do. Besides, they'll just end up on welfare anyway, so why do we even try?

Did you know that if you sign up for Cash for clunkers, you supposedly give the federal government the right to monitor what you do on the internet?

Got a source on that? No offense, but that sounds just a wee bit out of conspiracy land.

http://www.snopes.com/computer/internet/clunkers.asp

As soon as you log on, your computer becomes federal property. It seems hard to go wrong with that sort of wording. Now, granted, a lot of tech un-savvy people blew it out of proportion, but the fact remains. According to the people who run the program, it was a "poorly worded statement". I might let them go and give them the benefit of the doubt, but not with the government encouraging people to snitch on others,a nd on the White House website no less. This is bad. I don't like it, and Obama can smile and say "Oh, we just want to spread the truth." Liar. He doesn't, and he pretends I'm an idiot. How dare he.