I like the idea of free-at-the-point-of-use healthcare, and if you want to call that a right, that’s fine with me, too.  In the world of Tea Party-affliated Republican senator Rand Paul, that means I’m the sort of person who’d support turning up at a physician’s door with the police, and forcing that physician (and all the necessary support staff) to work for free.  Which means I support slavery.

Don’t believe me?  Watch him in action here…*

I particularly like the look on the face of the person sitting behind him; she seems to be trying to work out whether she’s dozed off and is dreaming all that.

In all seriousness, though: if there’re any American readers of this blog, could you let me know something?  I understand that there’re arguments to be made against public health care, or even the watered-down Obamacare stuff.  (Let’s not worry about whether they’re good arguments for the moment: it’s enough that there are arguments at all.)  But how is it that this kind of preposterous claim can be made, apparently with a straight face, by the opponents of a public option?  Is it a kind of political kamikaze?  I mean: Paul can’t expect to be believed… can he?

*One day, I’ll work out how to embed videos into this thing.  It’s only 80 seconds or so, though.  H/T ThinkProgress.