401–410 of 536 posts
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That's what a government would be for. You vote neo-liberal, you get it... (I consider both the US democrats and republicans neo-liberal)
I think only the US consider the US Democrats as leftists.
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This applies to other things as well - retirement and education come to mind. Anecdote: my uncle and BIL are auto mechanics. One in the US, the other in Scotland. Similar lifestyles - both own homes, have mechanical hobbies (vintage cars for one, Harleys for the other) - typical working class lives. The uncle in the UK just has much less mental overhead when it comes to major life planning.
Many here will say that that's the cost of the freedom of choice and speech in the US.
You're going to say that we're the only ones in the world that has freedom?
Canada has freedom, Japan has freedom, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Australia, Belgium has freedom.
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It’s pretty common. I know that John Oliver is a bit of a “lightning rod,” for many folks, but he (or his staff, really) does his homework. He did a segment on it, some time ago: https://youtube.com/watch?v=Ezv8sdTLxKo
He’s a lightning rod only because some people get unnecessarily triggered by facts that don’t fit their world view.
You’re not supposed to shape your political views from entertainment.
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This shit is exactly the problem with capitalism and capitalists. I've seen as long as I've been alive, "Communism killed hundreds of millions!!!" breathless claims. When Capitalism kills, oh wait, it never does! Its always "bad individual choices", and never a review of the terrible for-profit system that caused it to begin with. > Making poor medical choices that prioritize your own well-being over the financial so…
He refused to go in an ambulance the first time. He could have refused the second ride. You can refuse transport or medical care at any time as long as you are able to make rational decisions. As an EMT if you're A&Ox4, alert to time, place, person and event, you make the choices. You do sign a release so we have proof we didn't abandon you, but you make the choice. If we move you without your approval, it's kidnappi…
I don't think the question is "Should ambulances be a thing?" though. It's a question of "Should someone in a situation where they need an ambulance have to balance the potentially life-threatening impact of saying no versus the potentially financially ruinous impact of saying yes?" The (fairly obvious) answer to that no one should be in that situation. It's horrible. Society should find a better way to pay for ambul…
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You can get an ambulance for only $150k? A transit van with a few options is already $75k.
I agree. That number is bullshit. I Googled about it. It looks like 350K to 600K USD. Also, there is wild variance in vehicle sizes and the equipment you choose to carry.
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There’s a thin line between satire, which can convince, and sneering, which can only turn off. John Oliver, unfortunately, does end up on the wrong side of it from time to time, and can (together with his core audience) be something of a bully when he does. I’d also be careful about his facts: they’re usually well-researched, but by the nature of the format he only ever presents those which fit his argument, and that…
The time for this debate was 100 years ago. Now only people who can't be convinced aren't convinced, so there's no point convincing. So why not make fun of them? There's no downside.
...except the populist right backlash, triggered in part by their resentment at coastal "elites" (think yuppies, not people who fly to davos annually) sneering at them.
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>But no one wants to fix it. US doctors are overpaid. US nurses are over paid. Dug companies. Admin. Lawyers. Everyone who makes the system work, and everyone who makes the system a mess are paid a fortune for it. 17% of GDP is healthcare. So between 1:10 and 2:10 people in this country are making more than they otherwise would (note I did not say wealthier) because the system is screwed up and hoovers up more of eve…
Earnings represented by GDP are not distributed evenly across a given population. That 17% of extra earnings goes to relatively few people in the States (I'm putting this very mildly, the concentration in reality is insanely lopsided).
The fact that that pie is not sliced evenly does not change the fact that is an integer multiple larger than it ought to be.
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>But no one wants to fix it. US doctors are overpaid. US nurses are over paid. Dug companies. Admin. Lawyers. Everyone who makes the system work, and everyone who makes the system a mess are paid a fortune for it. 17% of GDP is healthcare. So between 1:10 and 2:10 people in this country are making more than they otherwise would (note I did not say wealthier) because the system is screwed up and hoovers up more of eve…
Possibly reasonable point about labour supply ruined by an absurd analogy with slavery.
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> Only the US society seems to be unable to find a solution. Unwilling. It's absolutely feasible to find a solution, as seen everywhere else in the world.
only parts of the US are unwilling they happen to be in the Fortune 50, or top 10. serious, go look at the F500 list and see how many of the largest, meanest companies in the US (and world) world also happen to be healthcare if you wanna know why it's never gonna happen -- there is the list. they will spend more money than god on social media, bribes, and whatever else they need to keep the system the way it is
https://companiesmarketcap.com/
Mostly only pharmaceutical healthcare in the upper tiers of that, but these businesses still have market caps and net incomes literally one or two orders of magnitude separating them. Grouping top 10, 50, and 500 makes no sense.