Displaying 31 To 57 Of 57 Comments Is this the definition of cognitive dissonance? You are absolutely correct re the fraud problem. Here’s the point I was trying to make, though. (And I need to say that when I write “free” I mean after the fact, as I realize “free” is supported by taxes.) BTW, fraud is evident everywhere in the world, and it is a bogus argument against something, as the continued goal of all is to limit it, knowing it can’t be eliminated entirely. Humans are clever. Medicare is about as far removed from “free” as one can get. We pay into the system when we work, and we pay premiums when we partake, we pay residuals the program doesn’t cover, and we often purchase private insurance to cover the differences. Is it better than private? Absolutely. You won’t get an argument out of me there. Socialized medicine, be it the European model, Canadian, or any of a number of worldwide programs, generally provides for comprehensive coverage at little to no cost to the recipient. That’s because everyone working pays into the system, and the tax structure is (universally) designed to tap into the wealthiest members of that society. This is the inherent failure of our Medicare system. It does the opposite. These models offer us the framework to restructure our healthcare system, without having to start from square one. I do not support the private health insurance industry. It’s oxymoronic. It’s designed to fail the individual. It is anathema to a healthy society. Etc, etc. When you include the millions of healthy persons in a national healthcare program (revenue), the cost of administration is lowered. When that system only includes the aged and sick, the costs become excessive and wasteful. Another argument FOR nationalized medicine. So I hope I’ve explained why I am also opposed to single payer in the Medicare format, notwithstanding it’s the best we have. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 12:50 pm Well said! » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 12:31 pm Just another thought: It sounds like you don’t so much resent paying into Social Security as you resent the fact you may not be able to take advantage of your tax payments. Do I read you right? In addition, plenty of people CANNOT handle their healthcare needs. That’s why we’re having this debate. To claim otherwise is disingenuous. Your comments suggest you’re really young. Care to elaborate? » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 12:16 pm Most of the failures of the government programs you cite were brought about via a Republican congress and executive, who adopted the trickle-down philosophy of Milton Freidman; a philosophy proven to be fatally flawed. Don’t get me wrong, lots of Democrats on the pile, too. Combine that miserable economic plan with malfeasance as concerns tapping Medicare funds, and you have at least one of the reasons the fund was seriously depleted. The solution is an increased tax burden on the wealthier element of our population, something that every stable economy in the world employs. The fact that the U.S. has an unstable economy is evidence of our inability to do the right thing to correct the problem. Trickle-down is the ploy of the aristocrat, and has nothing to do with stabilizing a society. You express concern about paying more taxes. Here’s a math problem for you. Pay 15% of your gross earnings towards a government-run healthcare program. Say, you earn 50K a year. That’s $7.5K in healthcare taxes. It’s a lot of money, but it still leaves you with 42.5K gross. Now imagine you’ve just suffered a major medical emergency costing tens of thousands of dollars to remedy. Which do you think is the better plan for your circumstances? $7.5K spread out over a year, or the cost though private insurance for an annual deductible plus 20% or the residual? Add to that the pharmaceutical. What happens if this emergency isn’t the only one you suffer that year? Are you getting the picture? Only someone who failed Arithmetic 101 can’t grasp the difference. America lags so far behind other industrial nations concerning healthcare, it’s not even a legitimate discussion. And that is because of our PRIVATE insurance industry, NOT the government programs. Criticisms of our healthcare costs have zero to do with the government. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 12:11 pm I’m confused. I have asked you to lay out your position. To date, you’ve not done so. Here’s another opportunity to give us something to think about. I’m open to your viewpoint – share it (and I don’t mean this piddly-assed crap). What do you mean when you say less government? » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 11:50 am Like what you write, Nellie! The problem I have with “over time” is that the (real) time span is often generational. That is not acceptable. This is America. We don’t move mountains except one pebble at a time. That has to change! The opportunity to glean from the existing models is there for the taking. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel to call whatever plan is devised, an American plan, because the American plan would incorporate the best of that which is already available and in operation. This is almost a no-brainer, except that the motivation needs to come from an individual source, rather than a group; someone with the gift of gab, able to keep the vision simple and comprehensive. It’s what we lack today. Vision. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 11:42 am How bloody true is that? If I wanted the HP experience, I’d go there. I want to engage with people (like you) who are of the same bent, but of a slight twist. BTW, thanks for addressing my other opinion. Much appreciated. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 11:24 am You’ve made your point ad nauseum, so what exactly do you mean when you say less government? Lay it out in list format if you like, but lay it out nonetheless, and we can discuss it. Obviously, I/we have a different viewpoint, but your position will at least be a starting point. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 11:21 am Pepe: Should we get a room? 😉 » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 11:15 am Apparently, no deal. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 11:14 am Ha ha ha ha! You mean, knickers in a twist? Ha ha! I’ve never heard panties in a bunch. I enjoyed that! (UK edu-ma-cated.) » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 11:06 am You’ve come to the wrong place if you think you’re gonna obfuscate the issue by browbeating. You’d better come up with some facts to support your position, or you’re gonna find yourself in the round file PDQ. The people on this site eat your kind for breakfast. Please respond – I can’t wait to kick your Khyber. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 10:59 am Keven has already stated that he just had a BM, and he feels better because of it. I suspect he also “enjoyed” it. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 10:55 am May I jump in here? I think the movement is a case of birds of a feather… » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 10:48 am Remember the other day when we had that great expos » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 10:46 am Well, I didn’t MEAN anything, except that your posts have laid out your position fairly well. And it is misinformation to equate Canada’s system with any American version of single payer, based upon the current model. Our version of single payer is an insult to the ideal. I’ll rephrase my original, it IS NOT a start in the right direction. It is capitulation and will stymie change for a very long time, as we Americans slip into complacency mode because something we become content with modest improvement. Whatever happened to vision? That’s all it ever takes – someone with vision. We do not have a single representative capable of dreaming of a better way for us. (I enjoy your posts, so this is just a difference of opinion.) 🙂 » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 10:41 am I’m sorry you feel that way, Pepe, though I’m not surprised, having read your many comments. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 10:20 am I recognize that, and I suppose that’s where I’m coming from. I advocate an utter collapse of the system, because you’re insinuation is correct; it’s the only way real change will occur. I won’t live long enough, but someday the enigmatic United States will join the REAL world and our progeny will wonder what took us so long. BTW, I wasn’t trying to garner support as much as express my Point Of View on the issue. I expect severe criticism. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 10:17 am I want to say something about healthcare reform that has not been addressed as far as I have read. It has to do with the “best” we can come up with in the United States to provide preventative health care for our citizens. Compared to other forward-thinking countries, the U.S. is abysmally backward in its approach to the HC issue. My criticism is directed towards Medicare and the residual costs associated with that program. Many, myself included, have been clamoring for a single-payer program based upon our current Medicare model, because it represents the best option being debated at present. But it’s a lousy option at best, and it’s a loser insofar as it’s a bureaucratic nightmare. Medicare is still expensive! There is no way around that fact. We pay for it up front, and we pay for what’s left over in the end. Those unable to come up with secondary insurance coverage or the amount of the residual, are forced to apply for Medicaid, which also requires strict income restrictions and/or deductibles. That, in my opinion, represents a failure on the part of progressives to recognize the inadequacies of Medicare. IMHO government-sponsored healthcare should be free. There, I’ve said it. Free or at least near zero cost. Yeah, yeah, I know, the burden, of course, is paid through taxation, which makes it anything but free. Nevertheless, those countries who offer every citizen the right to free healthcare seem to have reasoned that a healthy population is a productive population. The benefits are indisputable. In every measure, free healthcare equates to a healthier society. Our system is on the other end of the scale. That is unacceptable. I’ve decided, for myself, to embrace 100% health care coverage, and to stop supporting the public option (in any form) or single payer as we know it today. I am not interested in debating whether one thing or another is politically possible. I’m interested in the right direction, not in a something-is-better-than-nothing direction. As a progressive, I consider any other solution to be an utter cop-out. » Posted By LITU On November 5, 2009 @ 9:56 am The Failed History of Conservatism in America Page 17, primarily anti-humanitarianism is the crux of the matter. Horrible bloody people in my opinion. » Posted By LITU On November 2, 2009 @ 7:25 am Yes, thank you. We’ve pretty much covered the matter. I read your article and realized there would be a lot of duplication. I have to go back and find it, but my favorite article had to do with the aristocracy of conservatism. How lazy is that?! 🙂 » Posted By LITU On November 2, 2009 @ 6:28 am http://polaris.gseis.ucla.edu/pagre/conservatism.html My favorite answer to that question. » Posted By LITU On November 1, 2009 @ 8:17 pm HuffNo Friday – Topic of the Night – Which Way Afghanistan? Mirrors my sentiments. » Posted By LITU On November 6, 2009 @ 6:05 pm One can only hope that the western negotiators appreciate the business savvy of the warlords when they sit down to spell out for them how it’s gonna be. I think this fundamental factor will ultimately undermine any effort to modernize or westernize these independent people. After all, they have all the time in the world. Profits must be up from this year’s bumper crop. The infidels are losing support. The West will give them money and things in exchange for faux-promises and will leave. Then life will go on for the warlords and the millions who follow them. How else can it be? By and large, these people (Afghans) don’t want what the West has to offer. These leaders are businessmen, tried and true. » Posted By LITU On November 6, 2009 @ 6:03 pm Healthcare Reform Update: Historic Move by the House of Representatves Thank you for the welcome. » Posted By LITU On October 30, 2009 @ 5:54 pm IMHO those persons are better suited to the Daily Kos, whose purpose in life is to promote the Democratic Party, and NOT a progressive ideal. » Posted By LITU On October 30, 2009 @ 11:28 am This is my first posted comment on this site, and may I say that I am SO-O-O glad someone on HuffPo suggested it. I note that many of the contributors are people I fanned. How can that be other than a good thing?! Anyway, instead of reinventing the wheel, I thought I’d just paste my previous comment in hopes that it will generate some dialogue. At the risk of flogging a dead horse, Jon Stewart had it exactly right the other night. We , that would be progressives not willing to acquiesce, want a government/Medicare-style Single Payer healthcare system, and view the public option as a compromised work-in-progress. If a public option does manage to pass, those provisions that prevent coverage abuses won’t have much weight if targeted individuals, the uninsured millions, can’t afford the blinkin’ coverage. This, to me, appears to be part of the crux of the matter. No matter how many protections are written into the Bill, from the perspective of the lower-middle-class and below, they remain unattainable by virtue of the cost of subscription to a “forced” employer-based plan. The proposed penalty of 2.5% for the non-compliant would seem to apply to this demographic. Inevitably, Medicaid will absorb the people on the bubble as this Bill doesn’t seem to leave many alternatives. There are a lot of people, though, who don’t want to be government-managed but are caught in the trap. Maybe this is a surreptitious, indirect way of moving the country towards single payer. I’d go along with that. On the other hand, and to complicate my viewpoint, those protections in the proposed Bill represent critical advances in coverage protection for the existing base. There’s no denying that. This is the only part of the bill that makes the something-is-better-than-nothing argument meaningful IMHO. » Posted By LITU On October 30, 2009 @ 11:19 amComments Posted By LITU
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