antiquark
Derek Ross
This thread reminds me an article on Henry Fairly, who described republicans as:
"Narrow minded, book banning, truth censoring, mean spirited; ungenerous, envious, intolerant, afraid; chicken, bullying; trivially moral, falsely patriotic; family cheapening, flag cheapening, God cheapening; the common man, shallow, small, sanctimonious."
http://www.newsweek.com/id/202620/page/1
I'm not saying I agree with any of that, I'm just pointing out what other people said.
"Narrow minded, book banning, truth censoring, mean spirited; ungenerous, envious, intolerant, afraid; chicken, bullying; trivially moral, falsely patriotic; family cheapening, flag cheapening, God cheapening; the common man, shallow, small, sanctimonious."
http://www.newsweek.com/id/202620/page/1
I'm not saying I agree with any of that, I'm just pointing out what other people said.
The same place it comes from in other areas.
If I can buy term life from hundreds of companies all over the nation, why can't I buy health care the same way? Why? No one has yet explained in this thread why this makes sense.
What to take a stab at it, Mr. Satire?
Brad Bireley
Well-known
Can you find more up to date polls?
wgerrard
Mentor
gb hill
Mentor
Must of been during the time Reagan was govenor. California is broke now! I guess Califionia will send out more IOU's again this tax season while people are still waiting on their returns from 2009.
California is actually withholding more from people's paychecks, a free loan all the workers of California are giving to the state. Will they have enough money to pay it back?
Yes, and perhaps from a source that isn't advocating single payer?
If you were not, in fact, a satirical computer program, you would realize that term life insurance has costs to the company that are a number of orders of magnitude less than that of health insurance, and thus a far lower barrier to entry; and that it has lower margins, thus tends towards higher competition.
I'll give you one that a computer should be good at: explain using simple mathematics why utilities, complex computer software, and heavy rail (for example) tend towards monopoly. Then, find one of the humans (some--not all--of them are good at recognizing things that are similar and things that are different) and ask them whether health insurance has more in common with complex software, heavy rail, and the electric company... or term life insurance. The answer may be surprising to a computer program, which is better at recognizing simple but meaningless equivalencies (such as, say... just for example.... that "term life insurance" and "health insurance" have a word in common.
wgerrard
Mentor
The capitalism that Marx wanted to replace was essentially the capitalism of 19th century Britain, which was, in fact, pretty unfettered. If capitalism had not created a large impoverished and abused labor class, Das Kapital might never have been written.
alien8
Established
Those polls are up to date, all the way to July 2009, barely 4 months ago.
The questions aksed in the poll are very simple and straight forward. It should also be pointed out that the older polls are more representative of how the average citizen feels about single payer since they were taken prior to the recent right wing / libertarian media onslaught that has spread tons of baseless fud around the issue. And yet despite that, still more than half opt for a single payer system in the most recent poll, an option that is far to the left of what's actually on the table in the current bill. It seems most Americans know what's good for them after all.
Brad Bireley
Well-known
This is a matter of LAW not costs. Care to try again?
wgerrard
Mentor
Are you gonna be happy to write a $3000 check to cover a two-hour non-catastrophic out-patient hospital visit? Are you gonna be happy to write an $80,000 check to cover a non-catastrophic surgery and 5-night hospital stay?
Just to cite examples from my own experience.
No, I wouldn't in fact. Why don't you explain why an industry would tend towards monopoly within a state (as health insurance has) but not within an identical environment at the nation rather than state level?
Hint: You won't be able to, because it's an inane assertion.
There should always be competition in health care and in every other good and service. The more the better. Those that manage the best and offer good value and service are rewarded, and customers are rewarded as well with higher quality at minimum cost.
gb hill
Mentor
Doctors should volunteer their services & hospital beds should be on a first come first serve basis. Weed out all the insurance companies so there will be higher unemployment. Doesn't matter that competition in a health care system would create jobs. Make it totally free for everyone, including fence jumpers...Oh wait...we don't have a fence! Just print more money to pay for it all!...tax the filthy rich & those that run a business...that's the Obama way!
wgerrard
Mentor
Because conservatives in the legislature have made governing the state impossible. They're people like you, who believe in "personal responsibility".
gb hill
Mentor
Nah! lets just tax the hell out of everyone else to pay for it!
Yes, it is silly. Until you can demonstrate that there are a meaningful number of these people out there, it's a red herring that is only raised as a thinly-veiled version of "screw all y'all, especially if you're not the same race as me."
I think I'll go grab my thesis which is indirectly about why Republicans hate anyone who says the same things that Jesus said in Matthew 5-7, and enjoy a tasty bowl of the venison stew from a deer that I harvested, dressed, and butchered in order to avoid supporting factory farming.
Whoa, sorry, did I just blow up your convenient bull**** pigeonhole? Sorry!
I do not want, or need, my insurance to cover $3,000 events. Yes, I will be happy.
My out-of-pocket max is $5,000, so your example of the $80,000 bill would cost $5,000.
My out-of-pocket max is $5,000, so your example of the $80,000 bill would cost $5,000.