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My Sudden Trip to Hell

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Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#141

Post by close04 »

sixplusone wrote: post #137
close04 wrote: post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nothing is for free so benevolence is out of the question. Payment comes in many forms. When a dictator on the other side of the world needs a "democracy" shot, or a country needs some additional sanctions for national security, the fact that European countries offer support makes the difference between greed/aggression and a "righteousness".

A surgeon gets paid to cure my illness ... therefore he can't be kind or have good will toward me? How about a non-volunteer firefighter risking his life?

Benevolence is performing kind, charitable acts, from a desire to do good. It implies that you do not ask or expect payment in return. And it would intrinsically apply to people, not countries. A fireman might help you regardless of being paid or anything other than the desire to do good. But international diplomacy and politics leave no room for benevolence.

You're saying all the US leadership chain (the people with the authority so decide strategy) agreed to spend billions extra just as a charitable act for another continent. The only way I can take the best interpretation of this is to assume you're joking.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#142

Post by madaxe_again »

magic_beans wrote: post #133
madaxe_again wrote: post #10

I was going to say “I recall when I had sepsis in my teens”, but the truth of it is that I don’t - there’s a six week hole in my memory, that skips straight from lying in a pool of blood and puss on the floor of the kitchen at school, having a mop thrust in my face, to lying in a bed in hospital with tubes snaking out of me. The weird thing is, despite being unconscious for over a month, I woke up feeling like I hadn…

> It grew until I couldn’t fit trousers over my leg Good lord, your school let the thing grow on you without sending you to the doctor!? That's unbelievable negligence!

Oh, my entire leg inflated from the knee down - ended up thicker than my thigh and was agonising to touch.

Negligence was kinda the name of the game at British boarding schools until the late 90’s, and probably still is - “the parents will never believe it” works 99% of the time.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#143

Post by didbsivdf »

aantix wrote: post #93
Ididntdothis wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The doctors’ and hospital administrators’ sports cars aren’t cheap either.

Neither are their 500K student loans nor their delayed work opportunities until 35.

Hating on a Dr. for having a nice car is BS, but what you mention are failures of America.

Only America trains their Dr. until they’re 35, while having them do nothing towards their medical degree in their undergrad.

Only America saddles then with $500k in debt.

Remove both barriers, and presumably you’d have market forces push more ppl to the profession reducing wages.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#144

Post by sixplusone »

close04 wrote: post #141
sixplusone wrote: post #137

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A surgeon gets paid to cure my illness ... therefore he can't be kind or have good will toward me? How about a non-volunteer firefighter risking his life?

Benevolence is performing kind, charitable acts, from a desire to do good. It implies that you do not ask or expect payment in return. And it would intrinsically apply to people, not countries. A fireman might help you regardless of being paid or anything other than the desire to do good. But international diplomacy and politics leave no room for benevolence. You're saying all the US leadership chain (the people with…

Benevolence does not imply anything about payment, but the interest in another's well-being.

http://www.importanceofphilosophy.com/Ethics_Benevolence.htm...

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#145

Post by [deleted] »

merpnderp wrote: post #72
corry wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don't want to spark a healthcare debate, but want to mention that I bet NONE of the non-US readers on HN would have given a single thought about the costs involved if this was happening in their countries. It's wild to me that the potential financial impact of this was part of the picture for many of the US people reading it (especially the startup founders who are probably without insurance right now, and this would…

Before the ACA, I contracted, and only carried catastrophic coverage on myself. I had no coverage until my yearly bills reached $5k, but that was also my max out of pocket. My insurance ran $63/month - which was ridiculously cheap and the worst I could ever be "ruined" was $5k. Keep in mind I live in the backwoods of a small state in the US and could have a catscan in an hour, an MRI tomorrow, would likely only wait…

[deleted]

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#146

Post by aantix »

didbsivdf wrote: post #143
aantix wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Neither are their 500K student loans nor their delayed work opportunities until 35.

Hating on a Dr. for having a nice car is BS, but what you mention are failures of America. Only America trains their Dr. until they’re 35, while having them do nothing towards their medical degree in their undergrad. Only America saddles then with $500k in debt. Remove both barriers, and presumably you’d have market forces push more ppl to the profession reducing wages.

"Remove both barriers"

How do you train a neurosurgeon? That level of specialization comes from maybe a few hundred in the U.S. With that level of scarcity (and demand), their time is going to be priced accordingly.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#147

Post by mnm1 »

twoquestions wrote: post #42

Considering the bills for a condition like this, I'd be wondering if it's even worth it to go to the doctor. My life isn't worth the destitution visited on everyone I know necessary to keep me alive, and I can't imagine the moral calculus his family had to go through. I'm glad this guy could get the care needed to survive, and I wish him the very best in his recovery.

What? Go to the ER, save your life, then declare bankruptcy. That's the American way. What destitution on everyone you know? I don't understand what you mean. You think your family would be happier with you dead instead of bankrupt?

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#148

Post by mnm1 »

jwr wrote: post #82
corry wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Don't want to spark a healthcare debate, but want to mention that I bet NONE of the non-US readers on HN would have given a single thought about the costs involved if this was happening in their countries. It's wild to me that the potential financial impact of this was part of the picture for many of the US people reading it (especially the startup founders who are probably without insurance right now, and this would…

I am from Europe and I can confirm that nobody would even consider the "costs involved". It's just not something you think about. I am puzzled by why the richest nation in the world prefers to spend 3.1 billions of dollars on arming Israel, or spend $700 billion military budget (even though its territory isn't being threatened in any way), rather than provide universal healtcare and education to its citizens, who liv…

Last poll I checked, universal healthcare is supported by over 70% of Americans. We want it. We don't have a democracy to get it. It's that simple. A country where the person who gets the most votes doesn't win is not a democracy. And that's just the start of why it's not.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#149

Post by jwr »

sixplusone wrote: post #124
jwr wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am from Europe and I can confirm that nobody would even consider the "costs involved". It's just not something you think about. I am puzzled by why the richest nation in the world prefers to spend 3.1 billions of dollars on arming Israel, or spend $700 billion military budget (even though its territory isn't being threatened in any way), rather than provide universal healtcare and education to its citizens, who liv…

> even though its territory isn't being threatened in any way It isn't threatened because of its powerful military; also why Europeans can spend all that money on healthcare instead of defense: a benevolent democracy to provide safety. Not to mention it stokes the richest economy and innovation.

> It isn't threatened because of its powerful military

Seriously? You'd expect an invasion from Canada, or Mexico?

I am not against a powerful military, but it seems the US has gone way beyond that and mostly projects its force around the world, with poor results to show for everyone including the US.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#150

Post by mnm1 »

refurb wrote: post #106
corry wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's Canadian I believe; so while I'm not sure how his care in NYC would be billed, I think it would be still covered by OHIP (the public health insurance in Ontario Canada) or maybe travel insurance. Certainly all the care he received in Toronto would have been covered, assuming he's Canadian.

Generally OHIP does not cover medical care outside of Canada.[1] Apparently they'll cover $400 CDN per day of US hospital stay, so probably less than 4%. I sure hope he had travel insurance. Likely did as most companies offer it for employment travel. [1] https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/medical-emergencies-i...

So what? He's Canadian. Good luck to the debt collectors trying to collect that.
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