Each Day Already is a Challenge

Sicko

Grrr. I made an entry then hit the wrong key and I lost it.

Anyway...

No, I have not seen the whole movie. But I have seen quite a few clips and enough interviews with Michael Moore to know that I will. And soon.

I understand that Larry King interviewed Michael Moore last night and that he wasn't very respectful of his guest. Supposedly he treated him as if he had to do the interview, not as if it was a topic of interest to Larry.

And supposedly afterward there was another show where the Republicans responded to the movie.

I've been a Republican for years, but this just could be an issue that changes that.

I was told that one stupid Republican said that we - I guess Americans who are for universal health care - need to wake up and realize that health care is not a right.

As one who suffers a chronic illness and who has seen numerous people not being treated or being mistreated because of financial issues, them's fighting words. The not-so-nice part of me (yes, I do have one, considering - as Budroe says I have a belly button) wants that Republican to be without health care himself for once in his life and to find out what millions of Americans face every day. Or to have coverage and have to fight with the insurance company to cover something that should be covered.

I like the not yet candidate Fred Thompson, but one of his first blog entries is all about how we cannot have universal health care and how our health care system is set up to be and should remain part of our capitalist system. Grrr. His blog also mentions that the people who live in countries where health care is part of the tax system have to wait for years to get elective surgeries.

I really have not come across anyone in Europe or Canada who would trade their system for ours. Have you?????

When I lived in Florida, I met hundreds of Canadians. Snowbirds we called them. They knew to the day how many days they could spend wintering in Florida before they had to go back home...just so they could keep their Canadian health coverage. Not one of the ones I met wanted our health care system. They didn't complain about having to wait weeks or months or years for treatments. In fact, if you asked them about that they claimed it wasn't so. So why do the Republicans insist on bringing this up?

People in other countries live longer. There are probably two reasons for that.
1) Everyone can get preventive care as well as care when they are sick.
2) They don't have to worry about how they will afford to be cared for if they are sick.

Unfortunately, I really don't know how they will fix our system. Right now, doctors get rich. Pharmaceutical companies get rich. Insurance companies get rich. They would not like having the opportunity to get and stay rich taken away from them. And they have lots and lots of lobbyists who wine and dine our congressmen/women. (Who of course don't have to worry about health care themselves, since they have a whole program set up just for them.)

I read somewhere where it would take an uprising or a "Boston tea party-like" happening to get the attention of those who can begin to change this for us. And you know...I don't think Americans are up to that anymore.

Nope. We're comfortable with what we have. We believe what people tell us - about how the people in Europe and Canada have it so badly with their health system. We might watch this new Michael Moore movie and get riled temporarily. But we'll be back to being silent as soon as the hoop-la is over.