Catch-22: The Obama Version


Did you ever read Joseph Heller's novel, Catch-22? If not, you've missed a funny, great read. Published in 1961, the setting is the latter stages of WWII, where "Catch-22" is a double-bind, no-win military rule, illustrated by fighter pilots pleading insanity and asking to be grounded due to the dangerous nature of their missions. Clearly demonstrating that they understand the gravity of their situation, these pilots are judged to be obviously sane, and so therefore they can't be grounded due to insanity; on the other hand, any pilots willing to fly more missions are obviously crazy, and so therefore they will immediately be grounded. Catch-22: the perfect illustration of bureaucratic absurdity.

Flash forward to September, 2009. Last week in his speech to the Joint Session of Congress, President Obama told us that his health care plan would not spend one dime on illegal immigrants. That statement provoked the infamous "You Lie" shout-out from Joe Wilson, since at the time there was no provision in the House version of the bill for any sort of oversight about who is legal or illegal and receiving health care. Evidently this "loophole" was quickly fixed with some sort of language sleight-of-hand, and now everyone is happy--right?

Well, it would seem that Obama just couldn't quite leave well enough alone on this issue of health care for illegal immigrants. On Wednesday, in yet another speech, given in yet another town outside of Washington, D.C.--who knows where, who can keep up with the relentless ubiquitousness of this guy--Obama said again that his health care plan won't cover illegal immigrants. But then he goes on to say that since immigrants can't receive government care if they're illegal, then that's all the more reason to legalize the 12 million or 15 or 30 million or whatever the number is of illegal immigrants who are now in the country--and who in the future will obviously flow over the southern border in hoardes and droves--who wouldn't?--to get free gold-plated Cadillac health care, paid for by U.S. citizens. Don't want to pay for illegals? No problem--we'll just give everybody a free pass and make them all legal. Then we can pay for them all. And our children can pay for them all. And our grandchildren can pay for them all until they have grandchildren. Catch-22! Wow, just simply wow.