I'm Canadian. I'm not even American. But I care because my generation, Generation Jones, born between 1955 and 1965, is pivotal in the upcoming US elections. Basically, if you're 55 or younger, you need to protect yourself in terms of your vote. Because your medicare just won't be there if you don't.
Or you could just never get sick or have an accident. Ever.
Please share, tweet, blog , embed this video from Youtube; it's the Big Untold Story of the 2012. Election.
Find out more at JonesClick.
our pensions are not going to be there either...we are the F**cked Jones generation.
ReplyDeleteWe miss out on everything. And there's so many of us!
DeletePlease bear with me because I'm still 'new' to all the political hoopla - as in only the last 5 years, sporadically - And I'm also just barely 30, so have only taken life seriously (started thinking I may not be immortal & invincible afterall) for about as long...and it's all a bit overwhelming, for me to look at objectively without just taking a side & running with it 100%, because really I just don't work that way.
ReplyDeleteReally, I thought by now people would have taken their heads out of the toilet & seen the broader picture by now, apparently some want to see what's at the end of the porcelain rainbow...
So I have questions...but no clue yet how to articulate them, well, so just bear with me & maybe someone can answer them or know what I'm saying...
1 - How 'horrible' is the Canadian or Western European universal health care system in terms of
a) being able to see specialists when needed?
b) doctors & specialists pay?
c) cost to taxpayers?
2 - How is it any different than the way it all happens in the US other than the cost to individuals, instead of spread out across the broad spectrum?
I know, not the best articulation on my part, but as a lower-income family my family, of four, just for basic medical coverage would have to pay almost half our monthly income just for insurance premiums. That does not include deductibles or co-pays or services just not covered by basic insurance, which is pretty much anything that isn't a normal check up, that as a cash paying patient equals, for my mostly very healthy, family, maybe a whole week's paycheck, every year, instead of 6 months. Once deductibles & co-pays are added in you're looking at 14 months worth of paychecks each calendar year, with a decent number of things just not covered...well, covered now, unless "Obamacare" is overturned, then they're back to not being covered, in which case my whole family is just fucked anyways.
DeleteThen there are instances that a friend of mine very recently just encountered. Her 23 year old, unemployed, thus uninsured, son was standing on the side of the road when a truck whipped around the corner at a high rate of speed, and hit him. Shattered his left left. The driver never stopped. Thankfully another motorist saw the boy laying in the road, bleeding to death, called 911, was taken to the hospital. Family was notified on the way to the Emergency Room & were there waiting by the time the ambulance arrived. The family was forced to fork over $400 before they would do the surgery that would save his life/leg. He was in surgery for at least 16 hours having his leg rebuilt & the bleeding all stopped. Six breaks in just the one leg, then four days in the hospital. This reckless jerk cost this boy at least a year of his life while he heals & goes through therapies and not only that but also at minimum $100,000 in medical costs.
I'm sorry to unload, but the whole "system" of healthcase in this country is totally FUCKED UP. Ensured to make sure that if you can't afford to be healthy then you're forced to just suck it up and die while forever being in debt and that debt is passed onto your children.
Was pretty sure at some point in my Bible studies it was commanded the weak, poor, sick, children, elderly, etc were to be cared for...not left to their own devices. I hate HATE how these asswipes want to impose their Christianity beliefs on a diverse nation of people and yet fail to live up to those beliefs themselves.
Yes, people, go out & vote & vote SMARTLY. Use your brain & look past just one or two little issues in the grand scheme of things. If universal health care is going to mean a 5% raise in your taxes, but you're paying 50% of your income for health insurance, deductibles, etc then WHAT THE FUCK! Do you REALLY prefer 50% over 5%? So what if it may benefit someone else? Do you REALLY use all that money that you pay your insurance company on your current health care? What if when you die you've paid that insurance company $1,000,000 but you only used $5,000 of it in your life time, is your health insurance company going to refund your family back that money that you didn't use? No, it's not.
*stepping off my soapbox* I have cakes to get baked.
Stephi, first I'd like to say I'm so sorry about your friend's son. That is HORRIBLE.
DeleteYour words here spell it out loud and clear - the people (the real actual people) don't feel cared for. Please feel free to soapbox here anytime.
I love you by the way.
Over here in the UK, they (meaning the Conservative Stealth-Grinches) are dismantling our National Health Service. Makes you feel needed when your government shows concern for your health and well being. Shows what happens when the electorate starts believing in the irrefutable necessity of the political pendulum. OK we're bored the good guy, let's see what the man in the black hat has to offer? Don't do it! And don't spoil your vote just because you suddenly realised that they're both wearing hats, you ninny
ReplyDeleteOh dear I don't know what came over me, must be the rarified atmosphere up here on top of the soapbox...
And I only came here to say how much I enjoyed the funny cartoon bits and when are we going to see animation like this?
Good point there - why is it that people think they should swing so hard...is democracy a fail? We vote and then sit back and don't help with the change. People do need to be more engaged, more involved. People make the change; not the governments they elect.
Deletewe don't need to extend medicare, we need to revise the health care system. Escape Fire has been documenting a lot of this https://www.facebook.com/escapefire
ReplyDeleteIn Canada we need to protect and improve our medicare.
DeleteIn Canada we spend half as much per capita as the US and everyone is covered. Imagine what our system spent as much per capita. Most of the issues that we gripe about would be gone, and we'd still have universal health care.
DeleteImagine...
Delete