Michael Moore's "SiCKO"

I thought it was an excellent film, and I think Michael Moore is great.

I would go so far to say, that in some respects, the U.S. may no longer be the best place to live. Maybe still the best place to live overall, but in government-monopoly education, corporation-controlled medical/insurance rip-off industry and such, we seem to be slipping behind. How can our medical care be the best, when most of us can't even afford it? Do we even have the fastest internet anymore?, since greedy telephone corporations refuse to run fiber optics to our homes, and claim "unfair competition" when people try to upgrade around them.

This abuse from greedy unaccountable corporations has got to stop! How can we hold corporations more accountable to the public that they ought to be serving? Watch the DVD, "the corporation" to get an eye-opener over what has gone wrong, with many corporations. Corporations are about the most undemocratic institution around, because even common stockholders are denied their stock-proportional votes. Corporate meetings are held at places far away and inconvenient, similar to a charge against King George I think in the Declaration of Independence, and so most all important economic decisions are made by rich elite power-monger who own much of the stock, who don't even live in the real world of the working poor. CEOs are like "kings" who can't be fired, because while they didn't build the company, and often care little about it, they happen to hold much of the voting stock.

I haven't seen it yet. Should I buy it?

Michael Moore is a lunatic it seems, but I have to give him credit, for delving into topics that better, more reasonable, conservatives act like they are afraid to touch, "with a ten-foot pole." Somebody's got to talk about these things.

It's amusing that you think it ever was or that such a 'best' place even exists. Best for you, maybe.

And us.

The US no longer heads any serious quality of life global index as has been discussed before.

Before you say anything, the UK performs even worse given our GDP status.

Tell me about it. Although we tend to get shot rather less!

In the US it is best to be rich or poor if you get sick. The rich can afford the best care in the world. The poor can walk into an ER and there are laws that they must be treated. They may even get referred to some prestigious doctor of some major school of medicine through the General hospital of whatever city you find yourself in.

I am a middle class young man with no assets, a shit job and live with my parents.

I would not go to general hospital as I hate hospitals and the downside there is you have to wait.

But maybe i should have.

Looks like I proabbly tore my anterior criciate ligament in my knee.

Not sure yet,
it has been a month.

Fucking HMO

They gave me crutches a leg brace and a bottle of Vicodin. and a paper saying I had a possible sprain.

"Come back in two weeks if it is not better"

Two weeks later I see primary doctor
who refers me to specialist...urgent now...

Orthopedic guy calls in morning I can come in a group anytime before 10 am.

Knee injuries are seen en masse

He tells me he thinks I "injured" my center ligament

Referred for MRI.

2 weeks go by

I still can't walk.

Very uninterested nurse makes conversation,,

"what did you do"

I tell story

she is barely listening

At the end she was like

"What is it that you said you did?"

I asked if it was bad,
they said I need to wait for the doctor

Still waiting.

I shouldn't talk too much shit...I am hoping they can make me walk again.

I just saw this movie online. Most of it was good until he got to the part where he went to Cuba. They do the most to help third world nations because their doctors are forced to do medical labor for 2 years in other poor countries.

The Cuban people (what would be middle class people in the US) do not have enough to eat and do not have access to medications like he is being told.

A doctor in Cuba makes less than an employee working in a McDonald's in the U.S.

The only people who make money in Cuba are the hookers who depend on tourists.

If you take a nations wealth and pay away from them you can have free health care too.

Another glaring error is when he asks the French couple how much they make in a month. He then conveniently forgets to ask how much they pay in taxes.

I do like the Canadian, French and British health care system better than ours.

In the US most families are one catastrophic illness away from becoming broke or homeless.

This movie did open my eyes, I did not know that other countries had such a great system for insuring all their citizens.

I don't know if I want to do the dozens behind Moore's approach, but it's certainly my most favorite documentary because I can relate to this. There was only one period that I can recall having had health insurance aside from what my dad's military stuff did for me as a child. I was a college employee (e.g. teaching assistant) and you have a health insurance benefit. I never got around to using it because I wasn't sick, but it was nice to know that I could get to a hospital if I needed to do so. I never really used my benefits, just a "student" status to acquire dental care. I shelled out $200 for a couple of procedures, and I could pay it off bit by bit.

But, I think people are quick to forget what it's like to live without insurance. You hear anecdotal horror stories about illegal immigrants using emergency room services and, when the bill comes, they are nowhere to be found. And if you're without insurance, you know that you have to go to the ER because you don't have a choice, and you'd like to just cry when the bill does show up. It's exorbitant, and if you're already living from check to check, the extra money just doesn't appear from thin air. I'm thankful because I've never had -- knock on wood -- to deal with a broken bone or serious injury. But even if I need to visit an Urgent Care center, it's easy to rack up a couple hundred dollar bill. Health insurance, as expensive as it is and inaccessible for a lot of people, can bring so much security.

Today, I was driving home and a deer hit my car. It could have been A LOT worse for me, and if it had, injuries and all, I'd have to wait it out, tough it out, deal with the pain.

I would be a hell of a lot more willing to fork over taxes for universalized insurance. I'll get much more out of it than being "terrorism-free," whatever the fuck that means. And I think if Washington really sat down with the budget and crunched the number, the United States could easily do some subsidizing and it wouldn't cause nearly as much devastation. It's just a propangandist rejection based on the views of the enough-well-off who don't have to live on the edge like the rest of us. What a crock. Let's trade shoes and see if you feel differently.