Let's be glad -- and get back to work

In this morning's New York Times, David Leonhardt provides a nice insight into the direction the health care reform leads us:

For all the political and economic uncertainties about health reform, at least one thing seems clear: The bill that President Obama signed on Tuesday is the federal government’s biggest attack on economic inequality since inequality began rising more than three decades ago

I sure hope he's right that we've finally reached a turning point toward more equity.

Meanwhile, Matt Yglesias, liberal policy blogger, offered this in response to the passing of health care reform.

But over time, I think American politics will come to look quite different and we’ll look back on this day as a turning point. The crux of the matter is that progressive efforts to expand the size of the welfare state are basically done. There are big items still on the progressive agenda. But they don’t really involve substantial new expenditures.

No, no, no, no -- that can't be. Not when parts of U.S. cities still "house" their poor and crazy residents like this:


That is my neighbor's home.

This country is too rich to allow people to live in this sort of squalor. If passing this bill proves anything, it is that we can do better. Let's get on with it.