Friday, May 13, 2011

Slavery and the Politics of Meaning.



In response to the universal health care debate Rand Paul said "With regard to the idea of whether you have a right to health care, you have to realize what that implies. It's not an abstraction. I’m a physician. That means you have a right to come to my house and conscript me. It means you believe in slavery."








Dear Rand. I humbly disagree, the politics of health care aside, it is an abstraction, the lack of freedom to do what you want is NOT the same as coercion, torture, rape and violence. And subsequently, in the land of the free and the brave you can quit your job as doctor, and you can become anything, even a politician. There are 27 million people in very real slavery today, 27 million men women and children who fear for their very lives. Please find another word to make your point!


10 comments:

  1. Americans sure love their dramatic words and playing the victim. Sometimes when I have my facilities and I think straight, if I am in a "woe is me" mode, I go read the Compassion blog. very quick way to realise how little my trials are in light of my brothers' and sisters'. and other times my friends have to tell me to man up. :)

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  2. the faces the girl in the bg makes are so funny

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  3. You are so right Annabelle. Nothing like a little perspective from across the pond somewhere to keep us grounded in reality.Thanks for saying so. And her faces are pretty funny, hadn't noticed, ha.

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  4. hey do you have any resources to share regarding the issue of trafficking (books, sites, articles, etc?). I think you can email me from my profile page if that's preferable to a long train of off-topic comments.

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  5. Annabelle...I will email you tomorrow night after work.

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  6. Annabelle...I sent you an email. Hope to the right place....

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  7. Oh and one more link...

    http://www.notforsalecampaign.org/about/slavery/

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  8. I sent it to your gmail address...let me know friend.

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  9. thank you much! the other one should work, not sure what happened there.

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