Serious Politicals Discussions and stuff

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

While universal healthcare may be cost prohibitive, a cap on awards given in healtcare lawsuits, the importation of inexpensive phamaceuticals from overseas followed by a forced reduction in insurance rates might be a nice solution to some of our health care woes.

[Spriggan]

Also another problem with universal health care is something Canada's has, which is the goverment there is very slow on paying the bills so the doctors/hospitals take those up there with private health care over public, wich results in increadbly long waiting times for those that need it.

The main reason I'm against it is because you know that the goverment is going to horribaly missmanage it, no govement could do it right.  So less then 50% of the govement would alocate to it would actualy goto health care costs.  As for paying for it, we could easly pay for a medicare plan if the govement cut out all the pork and special intrests benifits, it's freaking insane what percentage of our taxes goto those.  In 2003, we spent 22 billon dollars on things like how cow farts affect the ozone and studing the habbits of gay native americans.  
Fun site for you political junkies like myself http://www.cagw.org/site/PageServer

But then again I'm a guy who beleaves that the govement should provied the bare nessacitys, ie defence, economic stability, law & order (dang I love that show) and the freedoms to ensure life liberty and the persute of happyness.

[House of Mustard]

Are there any good examples of nations where free healthcare actually works?  Canada's a pretty rotten example (I knew a guy who had to wait eight months to get an MRI on his knee -- something that you'd only have to wait three or four weeks for here).

It works pretty good in Sweden, from what I gather, but their tax rate is pushing 65% of total income.  If you're willing to live with that, I'd be fairly surprised.

And Gorgon, unfortunately overspeculation is not a problem we can blame on the government (and therefore fix).  Overspeculation is caused by individuals (or companies) spending money they don't have (buying on margin).  Until the general populace can learn to stop gambling, we're going to have overspeculation.

[The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers]

Finland has a system that appears to work decently at first, but there's a growing discontent and there is a growing movement to re-privatize health care.

I mean, we complain a lot about taxes here in the US, but those nutty Europeans find weird stuff to tax. A tax on TVs? What? Just to own one? Not to purchase? That's weird. Supposedly it's for the signal. Except that once the signal is broadcast, it's out there, and doesn't cost anything to receive. Unless it's cable, which means you're already paying a subscription. Then there's people like me, who own a TV but don't use cable AND don't receive broadcast. My TV is used for NOTHING besides viewing Video tapes and DVDs. Yet in FInland I'd still be taxed for it. I'm happy to vacation there for a week or so in the summer, but I couldn't ever live there.

[Entsuropi]

Here all brits pay a TV liscencing tax, that goes towards the BBC. Since a lot of people don't like the BBC, and watch only sky digital, that makes them rather irate.

[House of Mustard]

See, I would happily pay a TV tax if we got something akin to the BBC.  I really like the concept of a major news network that doesn't have to affilate itself with sponsors (other than the gov't -- still, the BBC doesn't seem too biased toward the government either).

Then again, a Brit would know better.

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

hmm there was a huge scandal that ended up getting a lot of folks at the BBC fired lately, namely for saying that the government exaggerated the WMD evidence in Iraq.
Dont know how true your statement is anymore.

[Entsuropi]

The BBC is notoriously leftie now. It spent the entire war moaning about it, and saying things like, "An american has died. This is the worst possible news for bush...". It got turned off on our aircraft carrier because the troops got pissed off with it.

They got fired for exaggerating the exaggerations of the Government. We british never seem to do things the easy way.

[House of Mustard]

Here's something interesting that I read today:  We hear constantly what a terrible thing the Patriot Act is.  However, of the 17,000 official complaints filed against the federal government, only 17 were for abuses of the Patriot Act, and none of the claims were made by US citizens.  Also, none of the claims have been proved yet to be real abuse.  Interesting.

[GorgonlaVacaTremendo]

very interesting indeed...

[Mad Dr Jeffe]

A law doesn't have to used often to be a bad law.

[House of Mustard]

That's true.  I just find it interesting that it's such a major subject of controversy, despite the fact that there have been no proven cases of abuse.

It seems like people are wasting a whole lot of time talking about something that has yet caused no damage, when they could be discussing more pressing issues.

[Onion of Death]

I think it's because most people know complaining to the government is pretty useless. It's not like they really care about the people.

[GorgonlaVacaTremendo]

I don't think that that is necisarrily true, especially here.  I don't think it's that the government doesn't care about out opinions, mostly because their jobs depend on it, but it's that they care about their own opinion more, and figure they can justify it when election day comes rolling around.

[Entsuropi]

Uh, yeah. Well done for noting part of the point of being a leader. IE, doing it your way, not everyone elses way.