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Post by ronturner on Oct 15, 2013 13:16:19 GMT 1
If, (When) the value of your pension and savings crash this week, take a moment to watch this and see how the Republican Party have rigged the voting system in the US parliament. (These are the people that want to export their democracy to "lesser" nations.) www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Jd-iaYLO1ART |
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Post by johnoakes on Oct 16, 2013 7:48:23 GMT 1
The difficulty for the yanks is they have a socialist president who wants to overtax the hard working to subsidise the lazy and feckless.Just as Greece,Spain and to some extent we did during the 13 wasted Blair years.
We all know the consequences -it gets loads of votes from the idle who get the handouts paid for by the industrious and keeps the government in power but at the cost of the nation----and impoverishing those who work by banging up their taxes.
I feel most sorry for those working people who DO put aside money to support their families and do without the booze and drugs .
Taking the fight to the socialists is the only ploy left.
I have many American friends and contacts and they are determined to fight this president until they breathe their last.
he has talked a good fight and hasn't even closed down Guetanimo Bay--one of his key flag waving promises to his own supporters.
Taxed enough already--I know how they feel.
US its time for a change
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Post by ronturner on Oct 17, 2013 9:01:27 GMT 1
Socialism does not exist in the USA. There are degrees of capitalism.
Socialism is the kind of thing you find in Europe, in places like UK and France. (And Sweden, one of the most prosperous countries in the world per head of population.)
Whereas, not a friend of Obama, what he is fighting for in one respect, I fully support. This is to establish a basic level of health care for all citizens. He was elected on this platform by a good majority.
What he wants, is for all citizens to have access to the same level of health care as he gets. "After all you pay for what I get, so why not you."
The wealthy can buy any kind of care they need.
The very poor have access to free basic service. They patch you up and send you home. No aftercare. No follow up. No hope of getting planned surgery such as hip replacement, or prostrate work, or anything like that, unless you can find a charity to help you out.
The mentally ill cannot get care on their private health policies, so they go out, buy guns a shoot a dozen people, instead of being medicated.
For the vast majority of working and middle class people,medical care is tied to your job. No job, no insurance, no care: not for your family either. This is one way that wages and working conditions are kept low. The fear of losing your job is real. In Florida, a Republican state, they have a "right to work law", which actually means a right for employers to sack you instantly for no good reason. The law is sold as an individual's right to quit and go to a new job, but actually, it works for the employers more effectively.
Employers in the USA have a choice as to the care they buy for you, regardless of your particular needs. It is this fundamental point, the right to use your employer's allocation of funds for you to buy, in the open market, the health care that suits you and your family. There is nothing socialist about that. Quite the opposite.
Right now, if you were a teacher in Florida, you would not have had a salary rise for four years, in fact in 2013 your salary would have been diminished by 3.5% and your employer will have cut his contribution to your retirement fund by 50%. Added to this your health plan will have been cut so that essential medicines which you need for your child have to be paid out of your own pocket to the tune of about $100 dollars per month, and when your husband loses his job you just have to pray that he does not fall ill.
You might have a friend who fell ill with cancer, a professional worker who earned a good salary, paid good level of taxes all her life, and who thankfully took out every kind of insurance possible in case of such eventuality, and thus was well covered. And yet, having reached the pay-out ceiling is having to rely on family and friends to raise funds by whatever means to pay for essential physiotherapy and medicines.
Finally, as a former manager of two factories in the North Carolina, I can testify to the way in which ordinary workers are exploited by this health care threat. I tried to change things, but was not successful.
It is not being a socialist to want these changes. It is one law on which Obama will not shift and it is this one thing that the Republicans have chosen to fight. For this reason alone, I say Bravo to him.
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Post by liverpoolman1 on Oct 17, 2013 9:52:04 GMT 1
Thank you , ronturner. Having briefly worked in America I was always on tenterhooks in case I fell ill. Fortunately I was home when i had my heart attack. I shudder to think what would have happened if I had been in the States. You have put the case for our NHS very clearly and I trust that John Oakes reads it and inwardly digests it. Some people think the US example could not happen here. Don't you believe it; it is on its way if we don't wake up. Having supported the capitalist system all my life I am shocked at what this government is doing to our valued NHS. The caring NHS service as we know it will not survive two terms of this government.
Final thought for John Oakes - don't rubbish a system which cares for everyone irrespective of their means. It is known as compassion.
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Post by ronturner on Oct 17, 2013 13:35:05 GMT 1
It was not my intention to make a case for the NHS, which is indeed good, but can be improved.
Additionally Brits should not be afraid of some privatisation in the NHS. In France we have an excellent health service, one of the best in the world and often compared favourably with the excellent service ( if you can afford it..or are insured..) in the USA
Its true, it cost more, the state only pays about 70% of my bills and rest is paid by a top up insurance. (My wife and I pay 1400€ per year total for the two of us.) However if I was a low earner, or afflicted by something major, such as cancer the state takes over full responsibility but without a reduction of service.
A key difference here is that many services are privately operated.
When your doctor gives you a prescription for something such as a visit to a cardiologist, physiotherapist, a day call by a nurse, blood tests mammograms, X-ray, MRI scan....all these kind of things, its your choice as to where you go to have that service delivered. This is one of the things that keeps the costs competitive and gives a more immediate access to treatment. Makes a difference. Access to any a service, without immediate payment, depends upon production of your photo-id health card. This not only ensures that free loaders are kept out, but also enables France to Invoice UK for the treatment we get. (EU intra state health care laws.)
Whatever the system, when it comes to healthcare, just be grateful that we live in a European type domain, and not the American one.
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Post by johnoakes on Oct 18, 2013 8:30:55 GMT 1
Oh Liverpoolman your political rant is based on what?I didn't slag off the NHS at any time--learn to read and inwardly digest the things I have written and not your own imaginings.
I don't like the US medical system but believe that the industrious working classes should not be leeched dry to support the idle and feckless--now THAT is compassion.
People should take some responsibility for their actions and not rely on the taxpayer to constantly bale them out.
Is that so wrong?
A safety net is always necessary for the unfortunate and we can all end up there and such a scheme should be the goal and funded by the taxpayer---not featherbedding those who won't contribute.
Like Ron I am part of the French experience in health care and it isn't perfect but I do prefer it to both the US and British system.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 18, 2013 9:25:27 GMT 1
When I was working in Washington about 30 years ago, three of us went out for a meal one night in the centre of the city. One of the guys fell as we walked off the 'curb' and onto the road. His ankle was badly twisted/broken, he clearly couldn't walk, so we called 911 from a street phone. Being Brits, none of us had our insurance details with us, so when the first ambulance turned up, they refused to take him. Another also refused, but said he would call the county service which was nominally free. About 20 minutes later an ambulance turned up and our colleague was loaded into the back. On the way to the hospital, the paramedics told us that we would be going to a bad part of town, "where there aren't many white folks." There was not one white person in the hospital and we were treated with a good deal of suspicion, both by the staff and others waiting for treatment, simply because they could not understand what 'wealthy' white folks would be doing in a place like that - in effect that we were getting something for nothing when we shouldn't. In fact our colleague had to pay $50 for his treatment, mainly to cover the cost of dressings, plus a $50 deposit on the crutches. They sorted out our colleague's ankle (it was a severe sprain), but they would not let us leave the hospital until the hotel in which we were staying sent a taxi for us, because it was so dangerous. It was an object lesson in just how thin the line is in the US when it comes to medical attention. Our US colleagues had little sympathy for us (not that we were expecting any!), but were amazed when we explained what would have happened if the same thing had happened to them in the UK. There are a number of companies in the US who would love to get their hands on the NHS and given the Americanisation of the UK in recent years (the education system is a case in point), I would not be surprised if, within the next ten years, we end up with a system similar to that of the US. The US has some very good systems in place(being able to turn right on red if it's clear being one of them  , but we always seem to copy their worst examples. |
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Post by johnoakes on Oct 18, 2013 12:41:12 GMT 1
Why was it so dangerous?
Surely the locals would not have attacked you for being strangers?--in the capital city of such a great nation?
Must have been like Tower hamlets.--yes we do seem to import the worst of the US.
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Post by jake3 on Oct 18, 2013 18:17:46 GMT 1
My daughter lived in Texas for a while and was not able to get on her american husbands insurance for various reasons, when she became pregnant with our grand daughter she had to leave her home and return back to the uk. The cost of having the baby in the states would have been $12000 without complications, as it happens our daughter was was seriously ill for 6 weeks after the birth and is still reciving medical help now over 12months later.
She has a condition that will never go away and may result in extended stays in hospital, all I can say is thank god for the NHS and to the staff and consultants at THE ROYAL. Had she stayed in the states I would now probablly have my house up for sale to pay the bills, no matter what you think of OBAMA health care for everyone and not just the ones who can afford it is morally right.
I am in DALLAS in December and you can bet your life that I will have as much travel health insurance as I can get.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 18, 2013 19:33:05 GMT 1
I'm assuming that your tongue was very firmly in your cheek when you typed that, John  |
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Post by thetexpat on Oct 18, 2013 22:38:50 GMT 1
I'm assuming that your tongue was very firmly in your cheek when you typed that, John FYI, has one of the highest crime rates in the whole country! 'Twould appear johnoakes must be a great believer in fiction as his view of the colonies and their embedded 'processes', that are based upon the ' old' British Parliamentary System as any yank will tell you, is truly that of the ' GOPhers  ' political party! He may also like to know that this same political party bankrolled by 'Big Pharm', 'Big Ag', etc. whose upper echelons don't give a damn about those 'below' them! Just check on the situation as it relates to medical insurance and pensions (which are going the way of the Dodo!)! liverpoolman1's comments are only TOO TRUE! To enlighten I had back surgery last year (2012) to correct(!) surgery performed in 2010. The end result was I went Full Code for 19mins before being 'paddled' ' back to Earth'. Including all associated procedures, etc. the bill came to just under $310,000.00! Fortunately I, and the Mem, are insured with partial compliments of my former employer whose 'promised' retiree coverage has now expired! I'd like y'all to picture the expanding 'pool' of retirees, many of whom were 'dumped' during the recent financial debacle, who are not yet Medicare/Medicaid eligible (65yrs+) through no fault of their own! They are the ones who have to select between life's basics and any medication they may TRULY NEED! NOW, I AM NOT A SUPPORTER OF EITHER POLITICAL PARTY! I WISH THERE WAS A THIRD PARTY to lend competition and credibility to the current incompetent incumbents (especially the likes of Cruz  of the Texas GOPher party!)! BTW, the HOUSTON CHRONICLE endorsed him and has now basically apologised to its readers for this gross error on their part! johnoakes also said: Don't hold your breathe, the American medical system may be overwhelmed ! |
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Post by johnoakes on Oct 19, 2013 8:14:41 GMT 1
Keep it light gents--I am no supporter of the US system but detest the Obama myth as do many Americans--all smoke and mirrors
A bit like all self seeking politicians.
His raising to sainthood calls into question the gullability of sections of the public.
And any attack on his policies and highlighting of his failed promises causes a witch hunt against the objectors.
And yes my comments on the safety of ordinary people simply walking about their own business in Washington WAS tongue in cheek.LOL
Thankfully Obama will soon be a memory as his term in office is coming to an end--not soon enough for my working class American friends who detest him with a passion.
Still that's politics--it can be rather divisive.LOL
Better stick to football at least that makes sense
There have been loads of comments re being sick in the US--simple solution--either don't go or take out the necessary cover--as for working there--NO THANKS--its high pay and low taxes have never appealed and the pitfalls are horrendous.
SO I am no supporter of the US system--support a safety net for the unfortunate--don't like to be overtaxed by wasteful politicians and find lawlessness in US cities frightening and would never wish to go there.Just hope it does not come to the UK.
Hope that prevents the misinterpretation of my beliefs by those too careless to read.
It would seem trailer trash hate Obama--as my US mates say --but the nightmare has a sell by date.LOL
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Post by ronturner on Oct 19, 2013 8:39:07 GMT 1
......but the nightmare has a sell by date....
Thankfully, the same applies to Francois Holland and hopefully to David Cameron too; the promises of the former being worth nothing and of the latter being only 22.4% of their stated value.
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Post by johnoakes on Oct 19, 2013 19:53:50 GMT 1
Its unfair to be unkind to Francois Holland--the last thing he needs is us expats putting the boot in LOL
.My e mails are full of critisizm of his antics and Canteloup slaughters him on the TV.Poor s%% is just over promoted and incompetent--more to be pitied than punished--
Guignol(Mr Punch-) is the kindest thing that he is called.
Still Valls is popular and may hope to be the next president after deporting all the Roma;LOL Marine Le Pen must laugh herself to sleep at night.
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Post by thetexpat on Oct 19, 2013 20:03:08 GMT 1
I'd like to add one 'small' point, nay THREE(3) LETTERS, regarding "--all smoke and mirrors" that hits, and continues to hit, us all on both sides of the 'pond'! These 3 LETTERS were introduced to 'The World' by the US Administration that preceeded the current Administration! Those letters triggered several occurrences that continue to kill many people, military and civilian alike, to this day! W M D
Pretty deadly "-- smoke and mirrors" eh?
I believe one could categorise this as the G W BUSH MYTH ?!
And just as small 'aide memoire'  ,
I AM NOT A SUPPORTER OF EITHER POLITICAL PARTY!
I WISH THERE WAS A THIRD PARTY to lend competition and credibility to the current incompetent incumbents (especially the likes of Cruz of the Texas GOPher party!)!
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, but we always seem to copy their worst examples. 
' political party! He may also like to know that this same political party bankrolled by 'Big Pharm', 'Big Ag', etc. whose upper echelons don't give a damn about those 'below' them! Just check on the situation as it relates to medical insurance and pensions (which are going the way of the Dodo!)!
of the Texas GOPher party!)! 
,