The Last Word (not really)

Been thinking a bit more about the health care issue and I wanted to add my comment here. Feel free to add yours as well.

I think it helps to talk in less generalized terms and more in personal experience.

I was one of the uninsured for multiple times during my life. One time was for about five years as I was going to college. I went to college early...I got to leave high school when I was only sixteen to enter a university. During the time it took me to get my undergrad degree and some of my first graduate degree I was totally uninsured. My mother...as I have mentioned...is severely mentally ill so she didn't work and had no health insurance to give me. At that time I was working two jobs...one was a minimum wage bakery job where I got up at four in the morning so I could get there by five to open the store. In between times I took my full load of classes and then worked another job at the university library....also for minimum wage. Of course it is a given that my two jobs did not grant me health insurance. During that time I just never went to the doctor. Good thing for me that I was never sick!

I wouldn't consider myself to be a slacker...I was just...out of luck. And so are many many other folks in this country.

Imagine if you lost your job right now. Or perhaps you are are in between jobs or contracts and in between times you or your loved one gets cancer, or diabetes, or multiple sclerosis. Insurance companies won't want to pick you up. It happens everyday.

We think of this anonymous "poor" person who is uninsured as the lazy bum...sitting around drinking beers...not responsible for themselves and wanting a hand out. Many of the poor are actually children, who through no fault of their own, have no health insurance. They are real people. And we...the land of wealth and opportunity...allows this to happen.

I am going to go out on a long limb here and talk about those taxes we pay. I can't even tell you what this war in Iraq is costing us in terms of lives and money. You are paying taxes...you always pay taxes...isn't it time you paid for something you actually want and believe in?

Just a thought....

Sometimes I think about if I had my MS back then....well...oh well.

The Debate Club

Well my dear friends...since we did so very well with our little "discussion" about depression, perhaps we can try a more formal debate. Feel free to get on your soapbox and say what you feel but do refrain from personal attacks and expressions of disrespect or I will have to open a can of whoop ass on ya!

One topic I have been pondering lately is one of health care. This is especially pertinent now because of the political atmosphere and it is personally pertinent to me because this year I know I will have this dang disease, Multiple Sclerosis, for the rest of my life.

I will pose some questions here and then a pose the issue for debate.

1. Is healthcare a big issue for you and will it be a deciding factor for who you vote for? (in the US)

2. Define Universal Healthcare as you understand it. If you live in a country other than the U.S. please tell us how your healthcare system works and if you like it or not.

3. Do you feel the current system of healthcare in the United States is working? If not, what would you like to see done to change it?

and lastly for debate...

Are you for or against a universal healthcare system for us in the United States? Why or why not?