Cook County: Bleeding Like a Stuck Pig

Cook County is very, very sick. Ironically, it's the socialized health care that is the main cause of the syndrome that is bleeding it to death. Democrats have been controlling Cook County for decades. Democrats are bleeding it, sucking everything out like a full jar of leeches on a hemoraghic patient. Note to the open minded free thinkers out there: Stop voting for "Democrats" just because they call themselves Democrats. Todd Stroger is a Democrat. Mayor Daley is a Democrat. Rod Blagojevich is a Democrat. Do you like the way they've handled your money? Are you looking forward to their proposed tax hikes? The Chicago Tribune today featured an excellent summary of the critically ill Cook County, even if it is somewhat overly optimistic. The Trib seems to think that the politicians - you know, David Fagus, Todd Stroger, the rest of the Gang - actually want to fix the problems. Let's be blunt: They are at once too stupid to be able to fix it, and too crooked (as the Trib hints) to want to fix it. They have too much power to hold on to, too much power to lose. The pigs are at the trough, folks, and they really don't want to leave it. FIRST, STABILIZE THE PATIENT Chicago Tribune, October 26, 2007 Patronage and empire-building have so harmed Cook County's delivery of health care to poor citizens that it may take years to repair the damage. The decades of abuse and neglect trace straight to the offices of the County Board president and a generation of board members -- local pols who have no business managing an $800-million-a-year health system. The Bureau of Health debacle is so severe that the most urgent question isn't how to fix it: First, someone needs to stabilize the patient. That means pushing aside the Cook County politicians and introducing new oversight. County Commissioner Larry Suffredin, in league with an ad hoc coalition called the Emergency Network to Save Cook County Health Services, proposes an independent interim board of trustees. That would rescue management of the health system from county government's disastrous rule for at least three years. FULL COMMENTARY...