Liberal vs Conservative

[Petertherock]

Originally Posted by waccamatt

I don't think many people are advocating that the government "run" healthcare. The concern is that there are so many people in this country without insurance that need to be covered and there needs to be some sort of national insurance plan to cover those unable to afford insurance.

You do know that almost all the people who don't have health insurance are young people that feel they don't need it. I pay about $25 every 2 weeks for my health insurance from my employer. Care to guess how a sub-standard government run health care plan would cost me? A lot more than that!

There are people that don't have health insurance...but most places also have programs for people without health insurance. Before I had my job I was without health insurance. The hospital where I live has a free care program. Based on income, all my medical care was free.

It sounds nice to say only the people who don't have insurance should be covered by the government...and in principle I could agree with this...the problem is...the 2 jack-asses running for the jackass party presidential nomination don't have a plan. One has "hope" for a plan and the other wants a massive government take over of health care.

[waccamatt]

Originally Posted by Petertherock

You do know that almost all the people who don't have health insurance are young people that feel they don't need it. I pay about $25 every 2 weeks for my health insurance from my employer. Care to guess how a sub-standard government run health care plan would cost me? A lot more than that!

There are people that don't have health insurance...but most places also have programs for people without health insurance. Before I had my job I was without health insurance. The hospital where I live has a free care program. Based on income, all my medical care was free.

It sounds nice to say only the people who don't have insurance should be covered by the government...and in principle I could agree with this...the problem is...the 2 jack-asses running for the jackass party presidential nomination don't have a plan. One has "hope" for a plan and the other wants a massive government take over of health care.

Have you ever seen the type of care people receive that don't have insurance? It is unequivocally substandard.

[sandlapper]

I work in healthcare and there is no magic bullet that is going to make things great. It is gonna be ugly no matter what is done. The thing that most people tend to overlook is that healthcare is a non-issue until something tragic happens to them or a family member (when those sick-leave, and short-term disability days run dry). Most healthy people such as those of us who are actually healthy enough to post on this forum healthcare is typically a non-issue. We see a NP/PA/ or physician get some scripts and it's back to our normal routine. That is usually the extent of inconvienience we have to deal with. The biggest problem with healthcare is its cost to take care of the sickest of people out there. Who usually become this way because they don't have primary healthcare options (somebody to say hey if you eat crap for twenty years you are gonna die from heart disease). Think about how much it would cost to run a state supported fitness and education center, laws requiring employers to allow 1 hour out of the day for exercise, limiting the number of Mc Donald's allowed to open within a mile radius of a high-school, (granted these will not change everybodies mind about preventing life debilitating disease but it at least offers options for responsible people in the community to do something about there life, I would rather see my tax money go toward that than giving a new lung or liver to a 5 pack per day smoker, or alcoholic who is gonna go out drinking again to celebrate there new liver)... versus a triple by-pass surgery, heart transplant, or years of dialysis treatments. Who is really breaking the bank in those situations? Again private insurance is fine until you become an expense and you are told that you will no longer be covered (Again I have very little faith in the private sector, they typically exist to turn a profit that's it). Though luck you should have stayed healthy right? Well your options now are basically state supported institution where guess what you are then forced to pass the savings on to the (and everybody loves it) taxpayer (medicaid) if and only if you qualify, because somebodies gotta pay for this patients heart transplant right. In the mean time it leaves quite a few people left holding the finacial bag of healthcare which many won't be able to see. I could go on but I don't have the time.

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by ShanaP

This thread makes me feel a lot better about our upcoming move to Columbia.

We're Jewish and have encountered a lot of opposition from people in Houston - the 4th largest city in the U.S. - so I was worried this would be a major issue in a smaller town. In our subdivision, many people wouldn't let their kids play with my 8 year old daughter after they found out we're Jewish.

This post really surprises me. I'm not questioning your honesty, and I feel very badly that you've had this terrible experience. It's just that I'm disturbed to read that people wouldn't allow their children to play with a Jewish girl in a city like Houston. (or any city for that matter)

I realize that 50,000 Jews in a city with over 2 million people isn't a lot, but Houston probably has a larger Jewish population than Columbia and Greenville combined. There are numerous synagogues, a Kabbalah Center, and the State Regional Headquarters for Chabad-Lubavitch is in Houston. There's a Jewish Community Center in Houston. There's even a Holocaust Museum in Houston. The Southwest Region of the Anti-Defamation League is in Houston.

The reason I know all of this is because I always check out the Jewish community before moving to a city. I almost moved to Austin, but the property taxes were off the charts. (Ya gotta love Kinky Friedman, however!) Anyway, everything I read about Texas was just the opposite of what you wrote but, as I said, I was considering Austin more than Houston.

I don't live in Columbia, but you might want to contact the Columbia Jewish Federation for information if you have concerns. Just a suggestion.

[justNancy]

I just want to add that I forgot I started this thread! Oy! Sometimes I sign on and just go to the last comment or page. I should go back and read all the comments before posting, but I'm sure we all do it.