Five Rethug Myths About Medicare

Over at Buzzflash there's a list by editor Mark Karlin, Five Republican Myths About Medicare:

1. "Medicare is socialist" (often asserted by pre-Medicare age Tea Party members and the vestige of the John Birch Society right wing).
2. "Medicare is not run by the government, so it is not socialized" (sometimes claimed by Republican seniors, who then can argue against "socialized medicine" for the rest of Americans)
3. "Members of Congress receive the same benefits as Medicare recipients" (occasionally used by supporters of Paul Ryan's Medicare voucher program to "prove" that Republicans in Congress will receive the same care that they are proposing for seniors).
4. "Medicare is a waste of taxpayer dollars on the poor" (at times used by "poorly informed" Republicans, who don't know the difference between Medicare and Medicaid.)
5. "Medicare costs can only be reduced through a voucher program" (frequently used by advocates of Ryan's budget)

Be sure to check out the whole thing for Karlin's trenchant analysis and easy refutation of these myths.

The fact that they are so easily refuted leads me to believe that the people promulgating them are cynical politicians who will go to any lengths to dupe the American voting sheep public.

And that observation is my "No-Duh!" moment for today...