Health Care Bill - Geek Style 2

"U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 7. All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other Bills."

So how can there be a Senate version of the proposed Health Care (insurance) Reform Bill? Because they are playing games with parliamentary rules, that's why. They just take an existing House bill, gut it, and insert whatever they want into it. This trick is as old as the country probably. Just one of many beefs that I have with the process; and yes, I do have a degree in this.

Here is the text in the current Senate bill where this shell game gets played:

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES—111th Cong., 1st Sess.

H. R. 3590

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to modify
the first-time homebuyers credit in the case of members
of the Armed Forces and certain other Federal employees,
and for other purposes.

Referred to the Committee on ____ and ordered to be printed

Ordered to lie on the table and to be printed

AMENDMENT IN THE NATURE OF A SUBSTITUTE intended
to be proposed by Mr. REID (for himself, Mr. BAUCUS,
Mr. DODD, and Mr. HARKIN) _____

Viz:
1 Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following:
[text of bill]

Now I don't know what is so hard about reading these things, assuming that this is the actual bill and not the "plain text version" touted by Sen. Thomas Carper (D.-Del.), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, who claimed that he wouldn't (or couldn't) read the bill before voting on it.

Sure there are a bunch of cross-references to other laws (but that's what libraries are for -- you look them up) and a bunch of self references (paragraph ii, part b), but it's no harder than a programming language where you first:

1) define the variables and functions, and then
2) reference the variables from the main program or sub.

I mean, honestly, if you're not smart enough to read and understand the laws you're voting on, then maybe we need to vote in somebody who can. I'm reading it, and other than needing a few clarifications on what the impact of

‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—The following provisions of
this title shall apply to a grant made under this section to the same extent and in the same manner as such provisions apply to allotments made under section 502(c):"

means, I don't think it's too hard to follow. You just have to follow each thought to its logical extension (that's the real work). I know what the words mean, the question is what would that really DO to people, markets, actual services in the real world?

Bottom line: if you can program (or read) in any G3 or G4 language, scripting language, or macro language, then you are probably smarter than your average Congressman.