What Socialized Medicine is really like

What socialized medicine is really like

Posted: September 18, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Joseph Farah

© 2007
Question: Do you know why so many Americans are ready to give up a little bit more of their freedom and see a little bit less of their paycheck every week for a nationalized health care program?

Answer: Because most Americans have not yet experienced the horrors of socialized medicine first hand.

That's why.

That's the only reason.

But, in this global village we keep hearing about, it is getting more difficult to hide the shortcomings of what will soon become known in this country as HillaryCare.

In England, for instance, it is not at all unusual for patients to be denied needed surgery because they refuse or are unable to quit smoking.

(Column continues below)


Last week, we heard about the case of former builder John Nuttal, 57, who broke his ankle in three places two years ago. He has endured constant pain since, because doctors refuse to surgically rebuild the ankle because Nuttal can't or won't quit smoking.

Instead, doctors affiliated with the national health program prescribe him daily doses of morphine.

"I have begged them to operate but they won't," says Nuttal. "I have tried my hardest to give up smoking but I can't. I want to warn other smokers. We have paid our national insurance stamps all our lives and now we are being shut out."

It's cruel. It's barbaric. It's ridiculous beyond words. And it is exactly what will happen here some day if we don't wise up and recognize we are giving away our freedom every time we accept another government program to "make out lives better."

How would you like to be Mr. Nuttal?

How would you like to live in a country where you are denied needed medical care because of bureaucratic red tape or shortages or rationing?

You might ask: What does smoking have to do with a broken ankle?

Doctors actually make the case that smoking has a very big influence on the outcome of this kind of foot surgery and that the healing process might be hindered significantly in a smoker.

So what?

Does that mean the patient must suffer in torment? What are the healing chances if surgery is not performed?

Get ready for this in the U.S. beginning in 2009 if Congress believes you voted for nationalized health care in the next election. This will be Hillary Clinton's No. 1 issue â?? and probably, after Iraq, the biggest issue for those running for Congress.

What's it going to be for you?

Do you want to live in a nanny-state where decisions about your welfare and your lifestyle are made by government bureaucrats?

Or do you want to preserve what's left of freedom in this country â?? maybe even expand it as our brave ancestors did?

Time is running out.

Right now, political inertia is pushing us closer and closer toward nationalized, socialized medicine in this country. It's not just Democrats supporting it anymore; Republicans are tripping over themselves to show how compassionate they are, too.

Let me ask you this: Do you think the way Mr. Nuttal is being treated is an example of compassion?

This is not an aberration by the way. This is the rule in places where government decides who gets medical treatment and what kind and where and when and why.

This is where we're headed, and there is nothing even remotely compassionate about it. It represents a power grab by government. Government is supposed to be your servant, but with moves like this, it will become your master.

Decide now. The choice is clear â?? freedom or servitude.

though all of the attempts to warn the population about the dangers of socialized anything are laudable, i'm afraid that those warnings only fall on deaf ears. even though socialist policies fail time and again, we keep on believing that next time they will get it right. our culture has become so steeped in the cult of entitlement and so deluded by an inflated version of basic human rights that the public is more than willing to buy into the false notion of the altruistic nature of "big brother". the more we bitch and moan about the inefficiency and corruption of government, the more we seem to be willing to place our future in the hands of this band of political animals. it's an odd paradox, born of the childish belief that good always triumphs over evil and the cavalry will come storming over the hill just in the nick of time to save the day.

the fiascos of social security and public schooling have done nothing to dissuade us from our innocent foolishness and we march steadily onward toward our enslavement. ever hopeful, we place more and more power in the hands of that mercenary crew of washington insiders and seem honestly surprised when they politely bend us over and reenact the prison rape scene from some b-movie. even those who constantly rail against the abuses of power that run rampant on capitol hill seem to be willing to hand over their children's future to that pack of power hungry thieves and dirty old men. the wolves have become sheep and the sheepdogs (to use your analogy from another thread) have all gone rabid.

is it all a sign of america in decline? the entrepreneurial spirit that the us has thrown in the world's face is definitely failing. individuality is given only mocking respect and group-think seems to be the order of the day. like preschoolers at day care, we all stand in line and wait patiently for our milk and cookies. we place our trust in the benevolence of the machine even as we decry the inequities that it has created.


:beatdeadhorse:

At the very least there should be govt hospitals like the VA but for everyone. Not everyone would be required to go to these hospitals....just the ones that can't afford the private hospitals. I think that would be a better idea than putting the govt in charge of everything. Kind of a compromise.

all I got outta that was FREE healthcare wasn't convenient enough for one man who was too selfish to do what his doctors tell him. Okay so a little beyond that..maybe it is inconvenient for a minority of people. Smokers are at greater risk healthwise in just about any situation, especailly surgery. Just for example a smoker's thin blood is a danger during surgery for obvious reasons among others. I don't care what reasons you have for attacking socialized healthcare but if you honestly believe it will be worse than 45 MILLION AMERICANS without ANY form of healthcare..well then your brain needs to be examined.. cause as a doctor I am living that which is my worst nightmare.

Stay high

Well said!

You hit that right on the head man! Laissez-faire capitalism rules!!! I shouldn't have to pay for someone else's problems. We've all got them, I don't need anyone elses.

Clinton isn't advocating socialized medicine,she wants mandatory employer funded health care.Just like the mayor of san francisco is going to do.I think it has the potential to be a workable system.Every business owner has to fund there employees health care.That makes it a level playing field.Every business will have raise the price of there products to pay for the increased costs.And then hopefully the government will be able to provide a basic coverage for the unemployed.

Or maybe we can just use the 80 million a day we're spending in Iraq to develop a national healthcare program in which any American citizen can get the healthcare that they need? I rely upon self diagnosis and determining if what I have is worth me having to pay ridiculous health expenses, and aside from that, my teeth are incredibly messed up, why? Because we cannot afford the insurance premiums. Gotta love America, they're shitting our tax dollars away to what THEY WANT, not what WE NEED. Like this stupid fucking war, we could put high school students through college if we weren't spending 80 million a day in Iraq...

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Originally Posted by Markass

Or maybe we can just use the 80 million a day we're spending in Iraq to develop a national healthcare program in which any American citizen can get the healthcare that they need? I rely upon self diagnosis and determining if what I have is worth me having to pay ridiculous health expenses, and aside from that, my teeth are incredibly messed up, why? Because we cannot afford the insurance premiums. Gotta love America, they're shitting our tax dollars away to what THEY WANT, not what WE NEED. Like this stupid fucking war, we could put high school students through college if we weren't spending 80 million a day in Iraq...

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yeah honestly..you could resolve hunger, extreme poverty, higher education expenses, and healthcare with the pull of a plug in Iraq. Why should we fight for the rights of others when our own people can't even eat. fuck this.

Stay high

Why not just quit smoking? Its the smokers and fat asses that keep the premiums high to begin with. Like auto insurance it should give perks for those who are in shape and penalize the "bad drivers".

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zimzum

Why not just quit smoking? Its the smokers and fat asses that keep the premiums high to begin with. Like auto insurance it should give perks for those who are in shape and penalize the "bad drivers".

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Becuase if you head down that path eventually you get to DNA typeing. And then that means if you have a heredtary disease they get to charge you more or even say we can't provide you with health care coverage. I can't imagine anyone advocating that. I'll bet that if they used dna typing for all cancers on all AMericans you would find over 90% of the people have an inherited gene for some sort of cancer.Its a fact right now.If you live long enough you will get cancer.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zimzum

Why not just quit smoking? Its the smokers and fat asses that keep the premiums high to begin with. Like auto insurance it should give perks for those who are in shape and penalize the "bad drivers".

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Simpler just to call it a pre-existing condition and don't cover anyone who seems likely to need insurance. Been doing that for years.

Socialized medicine is better than no health care at all.At least i know i can go to the doctor and not have to worry about how much is this going to cost me.I can go get surgery and not have to take a second morgage on my home to pay for it.When my kids get sick they can go to a doctor.Sure some smokers get picked on but smokers all over the world are being treated like leapers,you cant smoke here you cant smoke there but i think thats good even though im a smoker it makes the next generation think twice about this disgusting habit that kills.Anyway socialized medicine works and it has been working for centuries all over the world.

At first, I felt sorry for the guy and continued my hatred for our government, but on second thought, these smokers need to start smoking weed instead of tobacco.. maybe it's too expensive? Ok a 3rd thought: legalize marijuana. :thumbsup:

The only issue with socialized medecine is the MONEY.Its always about the money.If we went with socialized medecine alot of companies would loose a lot of maney.

Your so right about the money. If we did away with the medical insurance industry and the criminal HMOs, we could well afford socialized medical, Hell, if we stopped the Iraq war, we could give everyone in the hospitals private rooms with room service. We could even take care of the children that live on our streets, and feed and house the people in the poorest neighborhoods, towns and cities. CEOs have been reaping in the coin from this war, time to turn the tables on them.

Its not like there's not enough money in this country decent health care. I would be in favor of a flat tax in this country.
Income: Tax:
100,000 30%
250,000 50%
1,000,000 80%
over a million 90%.
Anybody making less than 30,000 a year 0% tax.

I'm sure that would fly with middle class America and the upper class eh?

if i get sick im screwed i have no insurance and cant afford the high cost

my father just got a triple bypass and it took american doctors about 2 yrs to do it and it was a major artery off the heart that was over 99% cloged, not only that they wanted to put a stint in there, what dumb ass shit

our healthcare is a joke in america and thats why 1/6 of americans like myself that are legal cannot afford or get help

Quote:

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Originally Posted by killerweed420

Its not like there's not enough money in this country decent health care. I would be in favor of a flat tax in this country.
Income: Tax:
100,000 30%
250,000 50%
1,000,000 80%
over a million 90%.
Anybody making less than 30,000 a year 0% tax.

I'm sure that would fly with middle class America and the upper class eh?

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What you are describing isn't a flat tax. It's a progressive income tax system, which is what we have. It's straight out of the Communist Manifesto. A flat tax system would have everyone paying the same percentage rate. This would be better than what we have, but not as good as the Fair Tax system, which would be a national sales tax with considerations for low-income people. Rather than put a link in I'll just say that you can find out more by searching "Fair Tax".

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Iguana

A flat tax system would have everyone paying the same percentage rate. This would be better than what we have

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Better for who? The vast majority of people would have their taxes jump radically, while a few extremely wealthy people would have them drop.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Torog

doctors affiliated with the national health program prescribe him daily doses of morphine.

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Now I REALLY want national heath care.