ANOTHER VIEW: Rowdy protests hurt debate

As a rule, giving politicians a piece of your mind now and then is a good idea. Occasionally, elected officials need to be reminded who’s in charge. But don’t confuse the rowdy protests in the health care reform forums with the fine American tradition of talking back to those who wield political power.

In forum after forum around the country, members of Congress have been shouted down, cursed out and forced to cancel town hall meetings on health care reform because of bully tactics by opponents of health care proposals.

This doesn’t promote debate and the exchange of ideas. Rather, it promotes fear and intimidation — similar to the Cuban government’s goon squads, the so-called repudiation brigades.

Last week, protesters showed up at a forum in Tampa, Fla., by Democratic Rep. Kathy Castor, who had barely begun her opening remarks before the protests erupted. She had to be escorted out before any real discussion could take place. Another protest by a group described as rowdy and rude greeted staffers of Rep. Ron Klein on Wednesday in Lighthouse Point, Fla.

Much the same has happened elsewhere, with the protests taking on the character of anti-administration rallies and much of the venom directed at President Obama himself. One protester at a forum held by Rep. John Dingell of Michigan carried a poster of the president with a Hitler-like mustache. Such outrageous tactics were used against President Bush in protests about the war on terror.

Certainly, the frustration and anger of some members of the public should not be taken lightly, nor should general concerns about health-care reform. The costs are staggering, the details are confusing and most Americans still can’t see what’s in it for them in the various reform proposals.

But staging raucous protests and drowning out real discussion is no way to win the argument. It only leads to more argument.

Some of the disruptions, without doubt, are politically motivated and orchestrated by organized opponents of reform. Conservatives for Patients’ Rights and Americans for Prosperity have been linked to some of the public outcries.

Genuine grass-roots opposition is discredited when the forums turn into shouting matches designed to embarrass public officials and tarnish the reform effort.

The anger of protesters at some of these forums is fueled not by the content of health care reform proposals but by disinformation, the hallmark of an orchestrated campaign.

The reform proposals in Congress do not mandate euthanasia for the elderly — a favorite tale of health care foes — nor will the government force everyone into a public insurance program.

Instead, the plan being worked out in the Senate Finance Committee — ground zero for health care reform in Congress — calls for universal coverage and, possibly, a so-called “public option” to compete with private insurance companies for those who want it. The outlines of the package — nothing is certain yet — estimate that costs will amount to some $900 billion over 10 years that would be fully paid by a variety of revenue-raising techniques. That includes a tax on health insurers that offer high-cost plans.

Everyone would be required to get insurance, and federal subsidies would be offered to those who can’t afford the premiums.

If you see something you don’t like, let your congressperson know. Write a letter or send an e-mail. Listen in on a teleconference or attend a public forum. Ask questions and demand answers. Find out what the options are.

Urge your elected representative to support reform — or not — but give others a chance to speak and be heard. That’s the American way.
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This editorial appeared Monday in the Miami Herald. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.