When history calls

" When history calls, history calls."

That's what Senator Olympia Snowe, a Republican from Maine, said on explaining her decision to support Obama's health plan in the Senate Finance Committee. With that affirmative vote, Snowe became the first Republican to support the bill in any concrete form, but now there is speculation that even though there is now some bipartisanship attached to the bill, Snowe's support may only trigger more infighting among the Democrats--specifically between the moderates such as Max Baucus and liberals such as Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia, both of whom are also on the Senate Finance Committee.

I would call myself a thorough Democrat, and a left-leaning one at that, so it's disappointing to hear that now when the Dems enjoy a solid enough majority to really get some stuff done, they're too busy with factional struggles to capitalize.

But then I realize what should have been already obvious: not only is this inevitable, the debate is one of the reasons why the system is a good one. More specifically, the fact that there is a debate, both between the parties and within the Democratic party. If there was no debate, well then, we wouldn't be living in a democracy.

Still, I wish the whole process wasn't so damn slow. Bureaucracies suck that way, but the alternative would be what--a dictatorship? Ok, so debate and deliberation is good.

Now, that said, is anything actually going to change? Healthcare needs to be reformed, but when is it going to happen? History is calling, but will America in time?