I have been dismayed at the disregard for rational, democratic forums to discuss policy. Instead, tactics of fear and anger and inciting mob rage have been employed with the stated purpose of "stamping out the facists who want to take over the world". There have been violent images like the one here with Congressman Kratovil hanged in effigy. Really? Honestly?
While pedaling on a stationary bicycle, I was forced to watch CNN - Lou Dobbs. I was shocked when he reported "national satisfaction", "life expectancy", "national income tax percentage" and "GDP allocation to healthcare expenditure". The numbers were shocking - Canadian citizens are taxed less than USA citizens. Satisfaction of government-run healthcare systems throughout the industrialized world match or beat US satisfaction (except for Switzerland). Life expectancies of all industrialized countries reported were higher than US.
And yet, with this empirical data, further supported by 10s of millions uninsured with little or no access here in the US, government systems already in place and working with very good satisfaction (Medicare par example), the opponents of the bipartisan plan for healthcare reform state, " WE DO NOT WANT TO HAVE A SYSTEM WITH GOVERNMENT ABORTIONS"! He then went on to say, "...GOVERNMENT SPONSORED DEATH PANELS"...
He also explained that he doesn't incite the undemocratic screaming, fear-mongering, mob mentality protests but rather, "provides information of when, where and what". And then there is my favourite from my pal, Palin, who told a host of people, "my son would be dead" when discussing a system in which a government would have a role...
Look, I am a Canadian, and I can see the positives and negatives in a system as implemented there - and surprisingly, the government hasn't given anyone mind-altering drugs to enrich and sustain support...hmmm....but I am going to pass this conversation on to my friend, KaLynne. She is a physician who is more adept legislatively than I, and who has recently given a Grand Rounds on this very subject...Healthcare Reform. Look forward to her discussions here.
P.S.
Kalynne informed me this morning that in a conservative periodical, there was a claim that in Britian, people like Stephen Hawking would be dead - that he wouldn't have received any care. Brilliantly, he responded in an editorial, "I am British and have received top of the line interventions...." I guess their bed-time story of death and massacre inflicted on the people by the government was more of a tall tale?
4 comments:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/06/AR2009080603854.html
Hi Emily. Thanks for the link...but it is no longer available - can you either find it elsewhere or comment on it? Thanks!
Okay, let's give this one a try:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/06/AR2009080603854.html?referrer=emailarticle
Basically, he points out some disingenuous accounting figures, as well as the wacko fear-mongering with the "end of life counseling" (which is obviously going to be about euthanasia, right?) and the supposed government take-over that will commence on passage of the reforms.
there is a fundamental difference in thinking and culture between the US and Canada or anyother idustrialized nation. Another example are banks. Canadian banks are strong, longstanding pillars of the economic community. Whereas in the US they are fractured, weak and anything but strong. Politics in the US is quite different as well. They system is much bigger, and much more corrupt. US healthcare is malfuntioning and most realize they need a change. But they do not and should not trust the government to run healthcare. Why don't you look into the military healthcare system in the US and you can see their history. What needs to be controlled are the businesses who are charging too much for their services and would greatly benefit is they did not have to pay for employee healthcare. In the US you follow the money.
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