Thanks Tay Tay - this is wonderful! Senator Kerry Stakes Out Ground As a D-E-M-O-C-R-A-T…
Posted by Tay Tay
July 31st, 2006 @ 7:05 pm
By now you have heard or read about Senator Kerry’s speech at Faneuil Hall today. I was there in the back of the Hall, struggling to find a network to let me live-blog something out of the place, but it was not to be. These are some thoughts that I had while listening to the Senator speak:
Senator Kerry stakes out ground as a D-E-M-O-C-R-A-T…
Senator Kerry was preceeded to the podium by two speakers, Thomas Farrington, who, like Kerry himself, is a prostrate cancer survivor and by the Senator’s youngest daughter, Vanessa Kerry, who is one year away from her medical degree. Mr. Farrington pointed out the particular problems that African-American men have in getting medical treatment because of the cost and because of institutional problems in the delivery of preventive care to minority communities in America. He spoke of working with Kerry on getting help for minority men in getting treatment for this disease. Mr. Farrington pointed out that he, as a black male, has a far greater chance of getting and ultimately dying of this curable disease simply because he is African-American.
Farrington’s remarks were not chosen at random. If I was to use any phrase to describe Senator Kerry’s remarks today it would be Democratic. (Large D.) The Senator spoke pointedly about the problems that low income people have in affording health care. He pointedly mentioned that the delivery of health care in poor and minority community is far worse than it is in middle or upper class areas. In other words, the good Senator spoke as a Democrat. As he did in his speech about Iraq, he claimed a moral high ground and spoke of health care not as a privilege that should be afforded some people, but as a right that all Americans should have at birth.
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http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=3762