From today's New York Times:

"We do not believe that it is possible to create a government plan that could operate on a level playing field," read a letter to the Senate from Karen M. Ignagni, president of America’s Health Insurance Plans, and Scott P. Serota, president of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. "Regardless of how it is initially structured, a government plan would use its built-in advantages to take over the health insurance market."

That is, of course, the hope of single-payer advocates. Pres Obama says, pish, not the case:

“If private insurers say that the marketplace provides the best quality health care, if they tell us that they’re offering a good deal, then why is it that the government — which they say can’t run anything — suddenly is going to drive them out of business?” Mr. Obama said. "That’s not logical."

Meanwhile, Sen Baucus — who receives more money from the health-related industries than anyone else in the Senate — is part of a group that is suggesting employers who do not offer affordable health insurance plans pay half the Medicare costs for low-income employees. I fail to see how this can solve anything other than the existence of companies which hire low-income employees while offering unaffordable insurance plans. The problem never has been the affordability of insurance; the problem is the incredible cost of anything that requires more than the bandaid you buy and apply yourself.

I've been trying to understand this particular part of our economic crisis with as open a mind as possible. I'm trying to separate myself from a pre-defined goal -- the public option -- to concentrate on what is needed at the end of the process: affordable health care. Not insurance; care. The one thing that stands out, the one thing that dominates my thoughts in this regard, is the one thing only the public option addresses: profit. As long as a system includes profit-taking, especially on the scale demanded by a corporation, there will be costs that can be avoided.

A public-option has no need to make a profit. That gives it an advantage in this marketplace. If the corporations cannot do better than that, why the hel should they continue to exist? Unless they have a god-given right to profit of the illness of Americans and a constitutionally protected right to be protected from better systems of health care.

I think not.