2016 Elections

[Minimalist]

FOX would go birdshit.  They'd have an actual SOCIALIST to whine about!

[AFTT47]

Obamacare will run into trouble because it does nothing to contain rising costs while it promises subsidies Uncle Sugar will have to cough up. 

The problem with our health care system is we've put the foxes in charge of the chicken coup and are hoping they'll take care of the chickens out of the kindness of their hearts. Obamacare is like trying to regulate the foxes so they don't eat so many chickens. The solution is to get the foxes out of the chicken coup completely. 

One of the first things I learned in Organizational Behavior class in business school is "don't reward A and hope for B". This is a lesson we need to learn as we examine our system.

For profit companies will pursue profits. They're not bad for doing so. It's what they do, like water seeking the path of least resistance to flow to its own level. For profit health insurance companies increase profits by NOT taking care of sick people. Therefore, they can be expected to do anything to not take care of sick people. They'll try to knock sick people off their roles. They'll try to keep them off citing pre-existing conditions. They'll add to administrative costs making doctors jump through hoops to get compensation. They'll drag out payments as long as they can. They do these things because they make money doing them. The fault isn't theirs but ours for putting them in charge and hoping they'll act contrary to their nature. 

So not only are they a useless middle man, and such things always add to the costs to the consumer, but they have a vested interest to NOT do the job we hope they'll do. 

No wonder Americans pay the most and get the least with health care.

The solution is have the government run health care. It should be a community function, much like the military, fire departments and police force. 

I'd have given this ten kudos if I could.

This is something I wish people would get into their head. There are few things which are good in their pure form. I would argue that capitalism is generally good. It generates more wealth than any other system and it benefits everyone to some degree. But some things, by their very nature, should NOT be run for profit. Health insurance is definitely one of them. Huge conflicts of interest. Maybe that's true of any type of insurance but we're talking about people's survival here. It's morally insane to mix healthcare with cut-throat capitalism. It doesn't even seem to make good business sense. We're getting very bad value for our money compared to other countries.

The Affordable Health Care Act is a bridge to government health care - just like Don't Ask, Don't Tell was a bridge to true equality in the military. It was simply too big a leap to take all at once. Too much inertia against it.

[Minimalist]

Case in point.  See what these fine, upstanding, all-amurrican, insurance companies are pulling in California.

http://www.rawstory.com/2015/04/new-cali...alth-care/

New Calif. bill would stop insurers from stripping injured workers of their health care

In one case featured by ProPublica and NPR, Travelers Insurance withdrew the home health aide provided to Joel Ramirez, a paralyzed warehouse worker, leaving him with no one to help him transfer out of his wheelchair or clean up after soiling himself.

Capitalism is not benign.  Strenuously regulated and controlled it functions well but left to its own devices it leads to monopolism and corruption.  And the rich motherfuckers and the politicians they have purchased want more of that.

[DeistPaladin]

Winston Churchill once said "democracy is the worst form of government except for all the others."

I interpret this bit of quintessential British wit to be an acknowledgement that democracy isn't a perfect system of government and it needs constant fine tuning and public vigilance to continuously work toward a less corrupt and more just society. Just because you live in a democracy doesn't mean all is well.

I would paraphrase him by saying capitalism is the worst form of economics except for all the others. 

[Hatshepsut]

....There just isn't enough time/money/manpower to hand-hold the democratic base to the polls, ....

Who said the Demos have to be led by hand to the voting booth? This Demo doesn't!

[Mudhammam]

Anyone else supremely pleased that Bernie Sanders announced his presidential bid? He's someone I could support, and even if you don't think he'll win, he's going to make the debate far more compelling.

[Minimalist]

Bernie's a good man.  He'll make for an interesting discussion.  Hillary needs someone to keep her sharp.

[Mudhammam]

Bernie's a good man.  He'll make for an interesting discussion.  Hillary needs someone to keep her sharp.

Indeed. Fuck Hillary. I love that Bernie came out of the gate saying that somebody needs to take on the billionaire class. Unfortunately, I take him as the only candidate that can say that with a straight face.

[Minimalist]

Yeah- Fuck Hillary- until the choice is her or some republicunt scumbag.  Then it is no problem at all.

[Saxmoof]

Anyone else supremely pleased that Bernie Sanders announced his presidential bid? He's someone I could support, and even if you don't think he'll win, he's going to make the debate far more compelling.

If Sanders can make the case to people that might not be aware that citizens united has fundamentally broken US politics then there's no way he doesn't give Hillary at least a good run. He has a huge advantage which is that he's the only one that can really make that case, as far as i know he gets most of his campaign contributions from unions