The Monday after the House of Representatives passed the Senate’s health care reform bill, I drove 10 hours across rural America. During this time, on my way from New Mexico to Kansas, I was astounded by the aggressive and combative rhetoric spoken against the government and health reform by every single conservative commentator. While scanning the radio stations, the same comments were made over and over again: “Democrats are all socialists; we need to sue to the government; this is unconstitutional; America is in grave danger; our liberties have been taken away; we need to fight for our freedom; this is an attack on all Americans.”

Over and over again, conservative commentators were repeating the same phrases, similar to the hypnotic tapes seen on movies where the hypnotist repeats the same phrase again and again until the person listening begins to believe it — “We are under attack; we are under attack; we are under attack. Americans need to fight back; Americans need to fight back; Americans need to fight back.”

I then woke up from the conservative hypnosis and asked myself, “Wait, do we really need to fight back or should we instead celebrate this historical victory for American citizens against corporate greed?”

This is when I looked back on the last year and realized conservative commentators and politicians no longer seem to stand for the protection of American’s rights and conservative values, but instead have sold their souls, so to speak, to corporate America — private insurance companies. The same companies making billions of dollars in profits by denying people with the cancer treatment needed to give them a chance at life, claiming, “It is an experimental procedure and therefore not covered under your policy.”

The health bill passed by the House does not include a public option or fund most forms of abortion, plus it provides for the formation of health care co-ops — all aspects of health reform promoted by the conservative congress members. So why are they so angry when their own proposals were passed? Why did not a single one of them vote for the bill?

Yes, it did pass sweeping regulation of private insurance companies, including preventing denial of coverage for pre-existing conditions and the capping of premiums, which will allow for citizens to purchase affordable, reliable and fair private health insurance. The conservative commentators on the air seemed to hate this idea; they said it was unconstitutional and socialist.

Yes, the bill did close Medicare loopholes that will make coverage more affordable for the elderly. It did allow for more people to be eligible for Medicaid, and it will increase the number of Americans with health insurance by millions.

Yet, not a single conservative commentator on the radio during my drive made any mention of these benefits. Could it be that these conservatives care more about the effect regulation will have on the profitability of private insurance companies than they do about the health care of the American people?

After listening to all their rhetoric, reviewing all their propositions and looking at their actions, this is the only logical explanation. If this is not true, then the only other logical theory would be that conservative politicians have become so hungry for power they will sacrifice the well-being of the American citizens in order to make the opposition party appear as a failure and un-American in order to win the upcoming elections.

They will slander an entire political party — almost 50 percent of Americans who claim to be progressive — risk more Americans dying or going bankrupt due to denial of coverage by their insurance companies, and obstruct every bill proposed by Democrats in Congress no matter how beneficial to Americans simply to make themselves appear stronger. What is wrong with this picture? What has become of the conservative party in America?

Everyone knows that uninsured Americans end up displacing the cost of their health care onto tax payers and also onto Americans who do carry insurance. This is a well agreed-upon fact. The way to fix this is to make sure that everyone has insurance through a mandate. Although, a mandate will only work if fair, affordable insurance is offered.

The health care bill, through regulation of private insurance and government tax subsidies, provides fair, affordable insurance and can, in turn, mandate health coverage for all Americans, saving tax payers money and decreasing the cost of health care for everyone.

Yet, not a single conservative commentator spoke of this and the benefits to our society. The only thing repeated on every talk show was how unconstitutional mandating health care is and that it is an attack on our civil liberties. I wonder why?

Our country has lots of mandates, ones that make our society stronger and our people better: a mandate for all children to attend kindergarten through 12th grade, a mandate for all people to have a driver’s license in order to drive, a mandate that we fill out a federal census every 10 years, a mandate to not drink and drive, mandate to wear a seat belt … the list goes on. I never heard a single commentator or conservative politician claiming that those mandates are unconstitutional.

Corporate America is not interested in our well-being, is not interested in providing the treatment for your cancer or covering the care for your child’s illness. Have the conservatives of the far right — the commentators and politicians — become the new voice for corporate America under the guise of conservative values and patriotism? Have they become a wolf in sheep’s clothing?

Listen to them closely; examine what they are actually saying versus what they actually do. Educate yourself — don’t rely on the commentators, stand up for your intelligence and take back your ability to think for yourself. Turn off the radio and TV talk shows and wake up from the hypnosis, then take a look around. We are all Americans, we all care for each other and our nation, work hard for our country and cherish our values of equality and justice for all. We are greater than a political party, greater than corporate wealth, and greater than election year fodder. We are the citizens of the greatest country in the world.

Are you ready to stand up for your self-worth again? I am.

Mary West is a graduate of veterinary medicine from Iowa State University.