The Republicans are very, very good...

...at at least one thing: scaring the bejesus out of people. You have to give them that much. Bush and Cheney made an eight-year career out of essentially telling the public that the bad guys were out to get America and that only they could keep us safe. They were so good at it, in fact, that most people seemed to forget that the worst terror attack in American history happened on their watch. Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.

There was also No doubt that Saddam Hussein has Weapons of Mass Destruction, and We don't want the smoking gun to come in the shape of a mushroom cloud. That was right before they launched the Iraq War--a war of choice--that has resulted in the deaths of more Americans than the attacks on 9/11. To paraphrase Grouch Marx, Who are you going to believe, us or those pesky U. N. inspectors?

Now they are scaring the public in regard to health care reform. Whether their motivation comes from genuine anti-government ideology, indebtedness to the private insurance industry, or just a good old-fashioned desire to thwart the opposition and regain power, they have done a masterful job of scaring people. First it was those Golden Oldies from yesteryear: It's a government takeover of the health care system! and You don't want a government bureaucrat to come between you and your doctor! Then came the latest in misinformation: Obamacare will create "death panels!" and 100 million Americans will be forced into a public plan! Next thing you know, people are bringing guns to town hall meetings and biting other people's pinkies off.

You've gotta hand it to 'em; they're good at what they do.

I mention this because the president is scheduled to speak before Congress on Wednesday night in regard to health care reform. Although he has a reputation for speaking in a reasoned, professorial manner, I wish he'd take a page from the GOP playbook and start scaring people a little. But unlike the Republicans, I wish he'd scare people with the truth. All along he's said that if you like your current health plan, under reform, you'll get to keep it. What I'd really like to hear him say is, If you like your current health plan, without reform, you probably won't be able to keep it, because the current system is unsustainable. And what I'd like to hear him tell Congress is, If you don't pass a good bill, you will probably be turned out of office like the Democrats were in 1994.

Reasoned arguments are great, but as the Republicans have demonstrated time and again, fear is the best motivator of all.