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Don’t worry… the Nanny State will make it all better. * It’s been a while since I’ve taken a swipe at The Chosen One. Besides, it’s Monday and I’m feeling snarky.   (73 votes) |
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45 Responses to “ObamaCare”
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umm … wait a minute …
That’s and _anti_Obamacare vehicle … broken down.
Seems to me it’s sending the message that those opposed to Obamacare are the ones in need of assistance.
Sorry. Just couldn’t help tweaking you. Keep up the good work.
Actually, I don’t think it’s broken down. It’s being trailered behind a large dualy pickup. Probably because it’s not plated and legal to drive. Maybe only for parades, etc.
Good point.
Nice trailer, too.
Not realistic, the Kenyan would have it flying around the country in its’ own 747 like him and Moochelle.
Hows that for snark?
I prefer to call it “RomneyCare”. I’m from Massachusetts. Romney is who pushed this until the Dems took it over, then he immediately was 100% against it.
Racist and not funny. It’s sad to see what kind of abusive “humor” Republican assholes come up with these days.
Racist? How is it racist?
Oh… wait… Anything criticizing a black man MUST be racist, right? Because we can’t criticize him on the (nonexistent) merits of his administration.
Feh. What a fuckwit.
O.K. Nick Dude
From this point on, if you have 3 or more women posing as a beautiful bevy of nude chicks, at least one needs to be black! Otherwise, you are a raceist! I can’t wait to see your reaction!
I think it is because the vehicle is of a non-Caucasian color!
Amen, Nick.
My usual response to this:
I’m not racist. I love Obama’s well-spoken black half. It’s his white-European socialist half I can’t stand.
Nobody forces you to read his stories or visit this site. Your free to leave at anytime and not return.
Because if you dont like what Obama is doing you just HAVE TO be a racist. Real forward thinking.
The only sad part is (and this ought to fire your ass up) is that it’s not already filled with liberal shitheads who want to tell me what to do – regardless of what I think.
Sort of like how the EPA has told oil companies that they have to put in this biofuel additive (even though a court already ruled against them) and the damn thing DOESN’T EXIST in commercial quantities.
BOOBIES! (There, I feel better – that, and I live in a state where liberals aren’t welcome.)
As a Brit I really don’t see what the fuss is, you either pay for your health care through your taxes or through your insurance. Either way you pay (probably too much) and looking around the world the quality of the healthcare is pretty much similar under both systems and the various combined system.
I guess it’s one of those “two nations separated by a single language” things.
> single language
Not this time. To me, it’s a matter of a shitload of people not understanding what they’re looking at, a matter of people thinking of healthcare as something insurable, and a matter of healthcare as profit center. Everyone’s health declines as they age, it’s not an area for “insurance”. It should not be a profit center, as making money off the blood and suffering of others should be on a break-even basis. And people see RomneyCare as somehow “socialist” but Medicare/Medicaid are not??!?
The problem (in the USA) is that we don’t HAVE a health care system. We have insurance for those that can afford it, and Emergency Medical Care for anyone else, where a single visit can bankrupt someone. The US has been dropping in health statistics for some time, but while the Republicans don’t like ‘Obamacare’, they’ve provided no alternatives (other than Rommneycare, that is).
By the way, is this the new “Smarky Monday” segment?
Take a look at the Florida Governor in this article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/04/opinion/krugman-mooching-off-medicare.html?nl=opinion&emc=edit_ty_20130304&_r=0
When I see reports that a bed in a hospital can cost $8,000 a day for example then I know that health care in hospitals is no longer about the patient’s health but about the profits they can make.
The Libertarian response: The powers of the Federal Government are spelled out in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution. “The Congress shall have power …”. The 10th Amendment goes further, saying that all powers not granted to the Federal government, or prohibited to the States, are reserved to the States, or to the people.
And yet, the vast majority of the current Federal Leviathan consists of the Federal Government doing things it’s not supposed to be able to do. Among those things, of course, is the right to meddle with my health insurance. See also the right of the Feds to stack poor people into fucked up housing, or to pay my hillbilly kinfolk not to grow soybeans this year, ad nauseam.
‘Romneycare’, on the other hand, was a perfect example of one state, Massachusetts, using its delegated power to impose a health insurance regime while the other States chose a different way of doing things. In an ideal world, that might even be called prototyping – see how the Massachusetts experiment works over a period of time, and then modify it for use in another state.
Ah, yes, Libertarianism. The political view that was obsolete by the beginning of the 19th century, and hopelessly inadequate to face the problems of the 21st.
You are correct – there are a lot of things the Federal Government does that are not explicitly granted in the Constitution. At one time every state had their own banking system. The idea of a Federal banking system was outrageous. Individual banks could print their own currency. Of course, the value of that currency extended as far as the reputation of the bank. That was barely workable when the majority of the population lived and died within 30 miles of where they were born. In an age where you can have breakfast in Miami and dinner in Seattle, that becomes impractical.
The war of 1812 demonstrated an isolationist foreign policy was unworkable, yet we now have Libertarians in Congress advocating isolating ourselves from the rest of the world.
Try this for snarky. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/04/opinion/krugman-mooching-off-medicare.html?nl=opinion&emc=edit_ty_20130304&_r=0
If breast enhancement was included in the healthcare bill, it would be immensely more popular. Just saying…
Can we get back to posting boobies, please? Kthbai.
I’m curious. What exactly is it about providing some basic level of health care to everyone that people object to?
And while we’re at it, how about providing some basic level of housing for everyone? And then basic level of food. Anyone who can’t afford it will be paid for, cradle to grave, by those of us who can, and run and administered by the same bean counting federal government bureaucratic nannies in club fed who have proven themselves such models of efficiency, accountability, high customer service, and compassion for the average citizen everywhere else. After all, health care, housing, food, and even employment are all guarantees promised to us under the Constitution of the U.S. (or was that the U.S.S.R.? Ah well, never mind, The distinction is becoming more moot every day!)
I have long advocated this. Everyone is entitled to basic housing, food, clothing, medical care, and education. And everyone has the right to work to get more than the basic level of these.
Basic housing is 4 ft wide, 8 ft long, and 8 ft wide with a 39″ x 84″ (twin size) foam pad for a bed. No kitchen, no bathroom, and darn little privacy.
Basic food is a balanced diet of 1000 calories per day.
Basic clothing is one jump suit every 2 months.
Basic medical care is inoculations against any communicable diseases, as well as first aid for any injuries.
Education is guaranteed until you reach the age of 16, or beyond if you maintain at least a B average.
Children reside with their parents until they reach the age of 16, but do not confer larger living space – that has to be earned by working.
Works for me Sounds about right, cold water flat. considering my living area for a long time was suppose to be 54 sq ft. Sometimes it was canvas and sometimes ply wood, with communal shower and I did get all my inoculations free, especially when going over seas. I enjoyed it but they said i got to old and no longer could do it, but they did say they will plant me for free. So life hasn’t been all that bad.
Sure, if we want to resort to “reductio ad absurdum” arguments, why don’t we just get rid of Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, police, fire and other emergency services too? Anything that costs money. The entire country is on your own.
Oh, because SOME things are worth paying a little bit for. OK, so once we’ve established that, why is it that you draw the line at providing basic healthcare for everyone? No one is advocating providing everything for everyone so don’t bother trying to use that as your argument. What I want to know is what you object to about providing universal healthcare.
Most opponents of Obama-care do not believe we should get rid of these things, but Medicare, Medicaid,and Social Security do need massive reforms to keep from going broke. Police and Fire services are the established duties of government to provide their citizens in all societies. As to why I object to providing universal healthcare? Because to be blunt, we can’t afford it! Not under the currently proposed solutions. Everything proposed under the socialist model has been tried before in other countries and not worked, but once implemented can’t be dismantled.It has become a drain on the economy. The only place where socialized medicine has even halfway worked is in Canada and that’s only because when folks get fed up with waiting in lines, they cross the border to the USA to get their care. The argument is constantly being made for socialist solutions “Why can’t we at least try it?” Well I’d be willing to try any such solutions if I could be guaranteed that it could be realistically evaluated and if it turned out to not be making things better, we could undo it and go back to the old system before trying something new. But instead the solution to the problems created by a government agency trying to fix things is always to give it more money or to add another government agency on top of it. Case in point, if every government dollar spent on trying to alleviate poverty were actually distributed to the poor, then every man, woman, and child who were classified as being in poverty would be receiving over $30,000 a year. And these are the ones you want to be in charge of redistributing my health care dollars. And in the end, nothing proposed under Obama-care does anything to reduce the cost of health care, only to find new ways to pay for it. As long as people don’t care what their healthcare costs, only what they personally have to pay for it, the price tag will go up. Originally everyone was responsible for paying for their own health care. Then during WWII the government meddled in the law of supply and demand with a severe shortage of labor during the war effort by freezing wages. To compete for workers, companies provided fringe benefits like in house company doctors for workers and their families. After WWII that had become the norm but companies couldn’t continue to support the cost. Insurance companies got into the business of providing payment for employees healthcare making it profitable by providing it in bulk and in being able to chose what care they would approve. Demand for services went up, competition for services went down. Result, prices rose. Now no one can afford good health care unless its provided at group rates through their insurance companies, and federal regulations such as prohibiting insurers from providing coverage across state lines to compete with one another or allowing non employer based groups to combine and negotiate for group rates only add to the problem. Moving from third party payer to single payer will not solve the problem it will only exacerbate it, because the only way Government can make healthcare affordable is to ration it.
That’s such a short-term viewpoint. Let’s save a couple of bucks today even though we’ll have to pay two or three times that much sometime down the road because many of the people who can’t afford to get healthcare today are going to wind up with serious illnesses and conditions that require emergency care. And then, when they can’t pay for that either, it’ll result in premiums going up even that much more for the everyone so that health insurance companies can pay for hospitals to run their emergency centers.
But at least you’ll have that extra ten bucks now so you won’t have to wait until next month to buy that new set of titanium golf clubs with the non-slip grips.
So Nick, who pays YOUR health care premiums??
I used to have a Health Saving Account until Obamacare outlawed it. I went to the doctor and hospital when I knew I was going to have a procedure and ask how much the procedure would cost if I paid cash. A $32,000 procedure (thru insurance) was reduced to $2300! I did the same with the anesthesiologist and was reduced in price by almost 90%. I have already spoken to my doctor and hospital in case I have a heart attack and have their prices guaranteed in writing for 2 years.
So enough of this silliness, BRING ON THE BOOBIES!!!!!!
Duh! Ok, let me explain why it is racist:
1. It is a ‘pace car’ – says it right in the picture.
2. Only time you need a pace car is when you are racing.
3. Since it has to do with racing it must be racist . . . like if you want one of them thar fancy flame retarded suits them formula 1 racists wear. . .
(Oh come on, it’s a joke.)
Pretty good one, too. Took me a moment to get it, and that makes it better.
Sorry it’s far too early in the weak for my brain to be up to speed.
But what has any of this to do with Jose Mourinho?
I know I’m kinda late to the party and a Canadian to boot, but government administered healthcare
1. Medicare
2. Medicaid
3. The VA
and all poll higher than both parties combined.
As a lefty, I would argue that Obamacare doen’t do enough to control costs. Optimistically, the insurance companies acting as a cartel of sorts might be able to reduce the cost of healthcare but
http://healthland.time.com/2013/02/20/bitter-pill-why-medical-bills-are-killing-us/
$18.00 for a diabetes test strip is insane and hospitals cannot claim that they have to charge this to compensate for unpaid bills and simultaneously argue against the expansion of the insured population. When the US pays the most for healthcare per capita and as a percentage of GDP and more on the military than the next the nine countries combined. How is it not obvious that this is unsustainable and driving the deficit and long term debt?
Single payer = medicare for all. Try telling Grandma that she must give up her medicare to satisfy intellectual purity or veterans with the VA. When it comes right down to it people hate socialism but love socialized healthcare by any other name.
Plus Nick, I know you’re a libertarian at heart but I honestly don’t recall any snarkiness aimed at the political right or the GOP. C’mon theres got to something that’s raised your ire and I’m curious as to what chuffs you about the GOP since I could give you my personal list about the left.
OK should’ve looked harder…. not a Bush, Palin, McCain or Rumsfeld fan. Only one hit on Cheney though, I think he is sorely under-represented.
I await your punishment, hopefully to be inflicted slowly by a couple of MET-Art models. Carisha maybe?
Bottom line- NO ONE has a right to anything which must be provided by somebody else. That creates an involuntary duty for that somebody else to provide said item or service. Which is, at best, the definition of serfdom.
For over a century in America, we’ve been conflating the concept of rights with the benefits and priviliges of residing in a social structure (most of the rest of the world never separated the two).
Since the end of WWII, we’ve been interfering with the market forces that would naturally keep medical care in line (at least, to a much greater extent than we’ve been interfering elsewhere). And the only response to the greater inefficiencies and out of control costs that result- is to further insulate the system from market disciplines!
As for “the US pays the most for healthcare per capita and as a percentage of GDP”: a) we get the most from our healthcare system; we can afford it; b) we are practically the last remaining source for practical innovation in the field; c) we are subsidizing the pharmacology of the rest of the world (DON’T EVEN get me started on subsidizing the security of the free world!) Our for profit drug industry provides the life saving advances, and governments the world over “negotiate” at-cost or lower prices for drugs in their country with the implication- and sometimes the outright threat- of, “Give us the price we want, or we’ll just ‘license’ one of our cronies to make it here.”; d) WE are the destination of last resort for procedures unobtainable elsewhere- usually because methods of non-market rationing mean the waiting list is long enough to imperil the patient.
You’re Freaking Welcome!
>NO ONE has a right to anything which must be provided by somebody else.
Of course they do. It’s called “living in a civilized society”. We all benefit from things that are (or have been) paid for by somebody else. Emergency services, roads, communication infrastructure, entertainment. Some of these items I have paid for (or at least contributed toward), some of them were paid for by others.
To a large extent, healthcare companies are to blame for the out of control spiraling of healthcare costs. As others here have observed, the actual cost of a procedure is significantly less than what a health insurance company is billed (on the order of 1/10). In order to assure that they get paid the maximum amount for a procedure, the care provider grossly inflates the amount billed.
Think about it, if you’re willing to pay $1000 for something and I only ask for $500, I get $500. But, if I ask for $2000, I get $1000. Maybe if I ask for $5000, you’ll look at that and think “hmmm, maybe the cost of that procedure is going up, I guess we can pay $1500 for it instead of $1000.” That’s what drives the “usual and customary charges” narrative. All of a sudden, what should cost $500 is being billed at $5000 just to drive up the “usual and customary charge” to maximize the collection from the deepest pockets.
Nick, the POD keeps sending me to the mobile version. I’m using Firefox 19, but I also got the same results with Chrome.
Is this an in-progress problem or is it a bug?
From the UK here, but…Is it just me or do others see the Obamacare truck as looking ominously like a hearse? Some advert. Just asking, just saying.
Umm, that’s the point. It has the international “Do Not!” red circle with a slash in it. It’s political satire. Of a weak sort.
Everyone is so intent on the helping the poor, kill the rich thing. The middle class is such things as doctors and nurses and they are being forced out of business. Two dental offices in my town have closed because of Obamacare. A few docs are looking at having to do the same with the new taxes. The fed added a new tax on everything from hip replacement joints to sutures and gloves. Of course many docs see that insurance is going to have a harder time approving thing that will cost more, people cant pay more and people cant get get the cheaper cash deals anymore.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/05/us-usa-tax-irs-idUSBRE8B41GW20121205
No. There’s little interest in “kill the rich.” Most want them to pay their fair share–and since the rich pay taxes at a substantially lower rate than the poor or middle class (although the working poor do get a decent break), many want taxes to increase.
“Two dental offices in my town have closed because of Obamacare.” That’s what they said–are they going to admit to giving poor quality are or being bad business people? Blame Obamacare and get sympathy.
Six Feed Under was a great show, charmed on the other hand..