I Have a Rule I Live By

I have a rule I have lived by my entire adult life - I don't make important decisions with a gun held to my head. If the great deal or the great job can't wait for me to carefully consider my decision, then by default, I pass it up. This has saved me from many a timeshare sales pitch, overpriced autos, unsuitable jobs, and bad investments.

Congress and the American people would do well to heed my rule in the face of the President's high pressure sales tactics. Our healthcare system is too important to radically change it in such a rush that we don't even have time to know what we're getting, much less consider whether we want it or not.

Further, Americans should ask themselves why the President and Nancy Pelosi want to do this in such a big hurry. Most of those high pressure salesmen I disappointed over the years had only one reason for giving me a deadline - they knew that if I had walked away from the emotion of the moment and studied the deal they were offering, I wouldn't have taken it.

I suspect the motivation is the same with health care. The President and his party know that, given time to understand and dispassionately consider their plan, most Americans would opt against it.