The fact that Dave doesn't understand why mandates are in the bill infuriates me. 

We want universal health insurance coverage in the United States. 

To get there we need to reform the insurance industry. 

Let's outlaw pre-existing conditions and rescission. 

Fine, but if you do that wouldn't people just wait until they are sick to buy insurance? 

Yes, so there must be an individual mandate. 

Is that fair to require people to purchase insurance?  What if they can't afford it?

We will provide subsidies and expand already existing programs to help people out.

Wow, that's going to cost  a lot of money.

We will pay for these reforms completely by reducing costs in Medicare and raising new taxes.  In fact this plan will save us $1.3 trillion dollars

And America becomes a country with universal health insurance coverage, and we get more coverage for less money?

Yup.

Let's do it.