Socialized Medicine @ MindSay 
Not Everything in America Has to Make a Profit
"The problem with President Obama's
health care plan isn't socialism, it's capitalism."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New Rule:
Not Everything in America Has to Make a Profit
by Bill Maher Host of HBO's
"Real Time with Bill Maher"
Posted: July 23, 2009 11:56 PM
How about this for a New Rule:
Not everything in America has to make a profit.
It used to be that there were some services
and institutions so vital to our nation that they
were exempt from market pressures.
Some things we just didn't do for money.
The United States always defined capitalism,
but it didn't used to define us.
But now it's becoming all that we are.
Did you know, for example, that there was a time
when being called a "war profiteer" was a bad thing?
But now our war zones are dominated by private
contractors and mercenaries who work for corporations.
There are more private contractors in Iraq
than American troops, and we pay them
generous salaries to do jobs the troops
used to do for themselves - - like laundry.
War is not supposed to turn a profit,
but our wars have become boondoggles
= for weapons manufacturers and
connected civilian contractors.
Prisons used to be a non-profit business, too
. And for good reason -
- who the hell wants to own a prison?
By definition you're going to
have trouble with the tenants.
But now prisons are big business
A company called the Corrections Corporation of America
is on the New York Stock Exchange, which is convenient
since that's where all the real crime is happening anyway.
The CCA and similar corporations actually lobby Congress
for stiffer sentencing laws so they can lock more people up
and make more money.
That's why America has the world's largest prison population -
- because actually rehabilitating people would have a negative
impact on the bottom line.
Television news is another area that used
to be roped off from the profit motive.
When Walter Cronkite died last week,
it was odd to see news anchor after news anchor
talking about how much better the news coverage
was back in Cronkite's day.
I thought, "Gee, if only you were in a
position to do something about it."
But maybe they aren't.
Because unlike in Cronkite's day,
today's news has to make a profit
like all the other divisions in a
media conglomerate.
That's why it wasn't surprising to see the CBS Evening News
broadcast live from the Staples Center for two nights this month,
just in case Michael Jackson came back to life and sold
Iran nuclear weapons.
In Uncle Walter's time, the news division was a loss leader.
Making money was the job of The Beverly Hillbillies.
And now that we have reporters moving to Alaska
to hang out with the Palin family, the news is The Beverly Hillbillies.
And finally, there's health care
It wasn't that long ago that when a kid broke
his leg playing stickball, his parents took him
to the local Catholic hospital, the nun put a
thermometer in his mouth, the doctor slapped
some plaster on his ankle and you were done.
The bill was $1.50, plus you got to keep the thermometer.
But like everything else that's good and noble in life,
some Wall Street wizard decided that hospitals
could be big business, so now they're run by
some bean counters in a corporate plaza in Charlotte.
In the U.S. today, three giant for-profit conglomerates
own close to 600 hospitals and other health care facilities.
They're not hospitals anymore; they're Jiffy Lubes with bedpans.
America's largest hospital chain, HCA, was founded by the
family of Bill Frist, who perfectly represents the Republican
attitude toward health care: it's not a right, it's a racket.
The more people who get sick and need medicine,
the higher their profit margins.
Which is why they're always pushing the Jell-O.
Because medicine is now for-profit we have
things like "recision," where insurance companies
hire people to figure out ways to deny you coverage
when you get sick, even though you've been paying
into your plan for years.
When did the profit motive become the only reason to do anything?
When did that become the new patriotism?
Ask not what you could do for your country,
ask what's in it for Blue Cross/Blue Shield.
If conservatives get to call universal health care
"socialized medicine," I get to call private health care
"soulless vampires making money off human pain."
The problem with President Obama's health
care plan isn't socialism, it's capitalism.
And if medicine is for profit, and war, and the news,
and the penal system, my question is: what's wrong
with firemen? Why don't they charge?
They must be commies.
Oh my God! That explains the red trucks!
-20- fin
Why do people keep saying "socialized medicine" like it's a bad thing?
Socialized anything is a bad thing right?
Public schools,
Law Enforcement,
Fire Departments,
Libraries,
Military ,
socialized roads too?!...
When you're dying, any medicine is better than no medicine.
And the healthcare insurance system the U.S. has now has
built-in incentives to provide no medicine
Here's a hint insurance companies:
If you don't want me to support socialized medicine,
don't deny my legitimate claim. but then again If they
paid your claim, how would the shareholders profit?
Won't someone think of the shareholders and executives?
Years and years of brain-washing to associate that
"This is the greatest country in the world" opinion)
equals "Everything we do is right."
Unfortunately, the more I get involved and the more
I self-educate, obviously, I KNOW the further from
the truth this really is.
The current Congressional health plan seems to
be good enough for the Congressmen, though
they are fighting to keep us commoners
off their health care plan.
I've read stories claiming that the cost of administration
of all this fucked up mess is more than enough to pay f
or healthcare for everyone.
Thats all! All and sorry Ive been enjoying
a wonderful world outdoors this summer
but I have been reading your mind... say!
health care plan isn't socialism, it's capitalism."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ New Rule:
Not Everything in America Has to Make a Profit
by Bill Maher Host of HBO's
"Real Time with Bill Maher"
Posted: July 23, 2009 11:56 PM
How about this for a New Rule:
Not everything in America has to make a profit.
It used to be that there were some services
and institutions so vital to our nation that they
were exempt from market pressures.
Some things we just didn't do for money.
The United States always defined capitalism,
but it didn't used to define us.
But now it's becoming all that we are.
Did you know, for example, that there was a time
when being called a "war profiteer" was a bad thing?
But now our war zones are dominated by private
contractors and mercenaries who work for corporations.
There are more private contractors in Iraq
than American troops, and we pay them
generous salaries to do jobs the troops
used to do for themselves - - like laundry.
War is not supposed to turn a profit,
but our wars have become boondoggles
= for weapons manufacturers and
connected civilian contractors.
Prisons used to be a non-profit business, too
. And for good reason -
- who the hell wants to own a prison?
By definition you're going to
have trouble with the tenants.
But now prisons are big business
A company called the Corrections Corporation of America
is on the New York Stock Exchange, which is convenient
since that's where all the real crime is happening anyway.
The CCA and similar corporations actually lobby Congress
for stiffer sentencing laws so they can lock more people up
and make more money.
That's why America has the world's largest prison population -
- because actually rehabilitating people would have a negative
impact on the bottom line.
Television news is another area that used
to be roped off from the profit motive.
When Walter Cronkite died last week,
it was odd to see news anchor after news anchor
talking about how much better the news coverage
was back in Cronkite's day.
I thought, "Gee, if only you were in a
position to do something about it."
But maybe they aren't.
Because unlike in Cronkite's day,
today's news has to make a profit
like all the other divisions in a
media conglomerate.
That's why it wasn't surprising to see the CBS Evening News
broadcast live from the Staples Center for two nights this month,
just in case Michael Jackson came back to life and sold
Iran nuclear weapons.
In Uncle Walter's time, the news division was a loss leader.
Making money was the job of The Beverly Hillbillies.
And now that we have reporters moving to Alaska
to hang out with the Palin family, the news is The Beverly Hillbillies.
And finally, there's health care
It wasn't that long ago that when a kid broke
his leg playing stickball, his parents took him
to the local Catholic hospital, the nun put a
thermometer in his mouth, the doctor slapped
some plaster on his ankle and you were done.
The bill was $1.50, plus you got to keep the thermometer.
But like everything else that's good and noble in life,
some Wall Street wizard decided that hospitals
could be big business, so now they're run by
some bean counters in a corporate plaza in Charlotte.
In the U.S. today, three giant for-profit conglomerates
own close to 600 hospitals and other health care facilities.
They're not hospitals anymore; they're Jiffy Lubes with bedpans.
America's largest hospital chain, HCA, was founded by the
family of Bill Frist, who perfectly represents the Republican
attitude toward health care: it's not a right, it's a racket.
The more people who get sick and need medicine,
the higher their profit margins.
Which is why they're always pushing the Jell-O.
Because medicine is now for-profit we have
things like "recision," where insurance companies
hire people to figure out ways to deny you coverage
when you get sick, even though you've been paying
into your plan for years.
When did the profit motive become the only reason to do anything?
When did that become the new patriotism?
Ask not what you could do for your country,
ask what's in it for Blue Cross/Blue Shield.
If conservatives get to call universal health care
"socialized medicine," I get to call private health care
"soulless vampires making money off human pain."
The problem with President Obama's health
care plan isn't socialism, it's capitalism.
And if medicine is for profit, and war, and the news,
and the penal system, my question is: what's wrong
with firemen? Why don't they charge?
They must be commies.
Oh my God! That explains the red trucks!
-20- fin
Why do people keep saying "socialized medicine" like it's a bad thing?
Socialized anything is a bad thing right?
Public schools,
Law Enforcement,
Fire Departments,
Libraries,
Military ,
socialized roads too?!...
When you're dying, any medicine is better than no medicine.
And the healthcare insurance system the U.S. has now has
built-in incentives to provide no medicine
Here's a hint insurance companies:
If you don't want me to support socialized medicine,
don't deny my legitimate claim. but then again If they
paid your claim, how would the shareholders profit?
Won't someone think of the shareholders and executives?
Years and years of brain-washing to associate that
"This is the greatest country in the world" opinion)
equals "Everything we do is right."
Unfortunately, the more I get involved and the more
I self-educate, obviously, I KNOW the further from
the truth this really is.
The current Congressional health plan seems to
be good enough for the Congressmen, though
they are fighting to keep us commoners
off their health care plan.
I've read stories claiming that the cost of administration
of all this fucked up mess is more than enough to pay f
or healthcare for everyone.
Thats all! All and sorry Ive been enjoying
a wonderful world outdoors this summer
but I have been reading your mind... say!
A Question Conservatives Can't Answer (Socialized Medicine)
If universal healthcare is so terrible in the first world, industrialized nations that institute them, then why aren't there ground swell, grassroots movements to vote these systems out?
The only movements that are trying to get rid of such systems are the made up of the same people who are trying to stop it from coming to the United States, which happen to be made up of rich, white, corporate executives.
Why is that, conservatives?
The only movements that are trying to get rid of such systems are the made up of the same people who are trying to stop it from coming to the United States, which happen to be made up of rich, white, corporate executives.
Why is that, conservatives?
Why Don't We Think Universal Health Care is Necessary?
There is a lot of sentiment in this country against free national health care. Pundits like to point out how long people wait in lines in socialized countries like Canada and England. They like to pretend that there's nothing wrong with the system we have now that kills 18,000 people a year simply because they don't have enough money to afford the exorbitant prices of hospital care. The insurance racket has drove these prices up so high that no normal citizen can even hope to afford them.
According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality http://www.ahrq.gov , the average hospital stay is 5 days with an average cost of $17,300. The most expensive hospital stay is infant respiratory distress, which can cost up to $90,000. Can anyone honestly say that these prices reflect a free market based on supply and demand? Isn't it more honest to admit they are more likely an indicator of racketeering? That's why if you want medical care in this country, you need insurance.
Since insurance companies have deep pockets, this leads to over-billing on the part of the hospitals. Most of us have heard of doctors that charge your insurance company for a whole box of syringes whenever he uses one. It's not entirely the doctor's fault either. Doctors often face malpractice litigation that, while sometimes legitimate, is often cooked up by greedy patients, who likely are in debt due to medical bills. It's a vicious circle of people making bad decisions that keeps medical care out of reach of 15% of the American population.
The results only confirm the grim reality: the United States is among the lowest-ranked nations in the developed world in a variety of health categories that include life expectancy and infant mortality rates. To anyone who isn't sticking their head in the sand, the system simply, doesn't, work.
There is something strange in the attitude of most Americans I see. They don't seem to think that everyone having access to necessary health care is something we need. It's as if they want to be thrown out of the hospital to die at home because the surgery they need was deemed "experimental" by their insurance company who refused to pay for it. Cable News pundits like to talk about the evils of "some government bureaucrat deciding what medicine you can take and what doctor you can see." Why the hell don't they complain when it's the same situation, except the bureaucrat is replaced with an insurance adjuster with a rubber signature stamp? Why would they rather have their health care decisions made by a company who puts profits above patients instead of a government run by officials who are elected by the people?
Imagine if the government decided to get rid of public education, the interstate system, or the post office and left it to private industry? There would be a revolt. Yet, for some reason, no one seems to think that everyone having access to necessary medical care (e.g. staying alive) is as important as being able to send a package for $3.95.
According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality http://www.ahrq.gov , the average hospital stay is 5 days with an average cost of $17,300. The most expensive hospital stay is infant respiratory distress, which can cost up to $90,000. Can anyone honestly say that these prices reflect a free market based on supply and demand? Isn't it more honest to admit they are more likely an indicator of racketeering? That's why if you want medical care in this country, you need insurance.
Since insurance companies have deep pockets, this leads to over-billing on the part of the hospitals. Most of us have heard of doctors that charge your insurance company for a whole box of syringes whenever he uses one. It's not entirely the doctor's fault either. Doctors often face malpractice litigation that, while sometimes legitimate, is often cooked up by greedy patients, who likely are in debt due to medical bills. It's a vicious circle of people making bad decisions that keeps medical care out of reach of 15% of the American population.
The results only confirm the grim reality: the United States is among the lowest-ranked nations in the developed world in a variety of health categories that include life expectancy and infant mortality rates. To anyone who isn't sticking their head in the sand, the system simply, doesn't, work.
There is something strange in the attitude of most Americans I see. They don't seem to think that everyone having access to necessary health care is something we need. It's as if they want to be thrown out of the hospital to die at home because the surgery they need was deemed "experimental" by their insurance company who refused to pay for it. Cable News pundits like to talk about the evils of "some government bureaucrat deciding what medicine you can take and what doctor you can see." Why the hell don't they complain when it's the same situation, except the bureaucrat is replaced with an insurance adjuster with a rubber signature stamp? Why would they rather have their health care decisions made by a company who puts profits above patients instead of a government run by officials who are elected by the people?
Imagine if the government decided to get rid of public education, the interstate system, or the post office and left it to private industry? There would be a revolt. Yet, for some reason, no one seems to think that everyone having access to necessary medical care (e.g. staying alive) is as important as being able to send a package for $3.95.
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