A holiday reminder that reform is a process, not a goal: Turning the "ugly duckling" of this HC bill into a swan, in 2010 and beyond

Happy holidays, everyone! As the new year arrives, here's an astute set of posts from Daily Kos diarist Norbrook, underscoring the need to set aside disagreements about the current state of the health care bill and look toward continuing the fight to pass and improve this historic piece of legislation -- not just in the Senate-House conference it's currently about to face, but afterwards, in the years and decades to come. 

He cites by way of example the Clean Water Act of 1972, which initially exempted agricultural and industrial runoff (leaving what, exactly?!) -- and, along with the Clean Air Act of 1963, became the foundation of all future environmental protection legislation. Oh, and the latter bill, in its original enacted form? Well, it didn't contain any mechanisms for active enforcement or punishment of its strictures; that came later, in subsequent extensions. 

Both his posts -- the first, Damn, That's an Ugly Baby! and its followup, All Swans Start Out as Ugly Ducklings -- are worth reading, as reminders that every journey starts out with a single step...and we can't let ourselves slow down now. (Or kick off our shoes and go home, for that matter.)

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