Macron wins

Expect no response from me. Your name now has a check mark in the IGNORE block.

 

Lame.

 

Oh! We do disagree. It saddens me to read anyone call the 'American Dream's a lie. I've always thought the concept to be uplifting. Do you think of religion as the opiate of the masses?

 

I agree with everyone who disagrees with you here; on healthcare, transportation, the environment, security, education, ad nauseam, US has distances to go compared to many places - and doesn't because of the uniquely stupid reasons.
However, with all being said, the "American dream" part has truth to it. As an immigrant, I would not wish to live anywhere else. Even if I'd advise NEW immigrants to go to places with functional immigration systems (Canada, NZ, Australia) instead; immigration PROCESS here is broken.

 

American dream is no lie. But there are a lot of toxic aspects under this concept.

 

Feature, not bug. Thank you.

 

The health system in the USA is plain broken. We spend the most per person on health care yet our health care results are ranked 37th. That is super pathetic. There are many people that cannot afford healthcare in the USA. The price of medicine like insulin, etc.

 

Careful, Bill! You're right all the way and the stats back you up - but every time I say this, I get jumped on by Americans who have a bit of money, who think their system is the greatest and ours is the hated, dreaded "socialism." The U.S. is the only developed country not to have single-payer medical insurance.

And we manage to get other things you mentioned right, too. I remember Bernie Sanders leading a group of people over the border to Canada, to purchase insulin for their needs.

Maybe Mr. Fout might be able to tell us why the US lags behind every other developed country in this regard - and "shithole" Canada, where I live - does not. And yes - I'll admit it, readily. The architect of our original system was a Socialist, the Premier of Saskatchewan, Tommy Douglas. Yes - a ...Socialist. What of it? Long after his death, there was a poll to elect "The Greatest Canadian." The late Hon. Mr. Douglas was chosen, for his role in Health Care.

 

The place where USA healthcare can be reasonably argued to be at least world class is for filthy rich folks. If one can afford the best hospitals, doctors and care then the USA is a great place to get that cutting edge operation. Which is a favorite talking point when some multi-billionaire sheik or oligarch comes to the USA for their operation. The folks trying to defend our broken healthcare system love to point out this one example they have. Meanwhile our average life span, prenatal healthcare, drug costs are relatively abysmal.

As Steve points out, the other area where we may come out better is services can usually be scheduled pretty quickly. Of course, that assumes one can afford to pay or has great medical insurance that pays for those services.

 

"If you ain't got the do-re-mi..."

 

But if you DO, the U.S. is a pretty pleasant place to live.

Incidently, we're going to be actively competing for those wretched immigrants in the near future. We should be meeting those young people in Cd. Juarez with green cards and smiles of welcome. We aren't yet but we will be. Oh, yes, we will be in maybe fifty years. Maybe less. And we will be fighting over them with everyone else from Canada to China.

 

Maybe she will go away now.

 

You have me perplexed this time. What sour grapes are you referring to? I am not bitter about anything. I am in the infancy of planning a back yard vineyard at my new house. My first attempt at my old house was a total failure. Did not yield any grapes at all. There are so many individual transportation options for those out cars: bicycles, mopeds , motorcycles, scooters, an such. Then there's getting a ride from a friend. Nationalized medicine sucks. I get up early everyday and thank God for my miracles. Of which there are many. Americans are the kindest most generous people on earth and the United States is beautiful. Yes. Every other nation is a shit hole.

I did not set any she or her to ignore.

 

Demographics really IS destiny.

 

That's true anywhere. But it takes more of it in America. The divide is just so astonishingly wide.

 

Will YOU, maybe?

 

deleted -j

 

I really agree with this. I want to see universal health care coverage. No matter what system we use to achieve it, or even if we don't, there will not be perfection everywhere for everyone. I think it depends on what poison we're willing to take.

I just think that a country that pays about twice what any other country pays for health care, doesn't have universal coverage, and has middling outcomes overall can do better. But it starts with a very basic notion: do you think health care is a societal right, or is it another if-you-can-afford-it commodity?