Last week I spoke with a young woman who works for a large non-profit company in Dallas.
She graduated from the University of Missouri and earned a masters degree from the University of Texas at Dallas.
Her current job is a seasonal, part-time position.
She is looking for a full-time job.
But today, she does not have the benefit of health insurance.
She cannot afford it.
I thought of her when I received the link to this piece on the so-called "public option."
Watch it and tell me what you think?
8 comments:
Well, I started my day with a laugh this morning when I heard Robert Reich say that the government would not subsidize the public option or set the rules. Who is he kidding?
The truth is, Robert is a socialist or worse. He is the one who wants the stimulus money spread among the poor, women and minorities, not on the fact that someone actually knows about building bridges, etc. Personally, I want the bridge I drive across to be built by the best qualified person possible, even if he happens to be a white male who majored in engineering.
He said once, "We need to honor our teams more, our aggressive and maverick geniuses less." Not unlike the Cuban model, a nice picture of Fidel goes on the top cane-cutting team and any Bill Gates are sent off on an inner-tube to Key West.
Wow, Chris. Do you ever stop for a moment to think about WHAT someone says instead of WHO is saying it? It seems arguments ad hominem simply spring forth reflexively from your fingertips.
I find what Reich says to be interesting. In some ways it sounds too simple and good to be true. I do wonder if the gov't could resist using its potentially overwhelming influence (size, scale, power) to change the rules of the game. But, then again, I guess we already do some of this with Medicaid and Medicare and private insurance has no problem flourishing. If this is the way things go, I hope he's right.
Ken
Dallas
I would simply remind Chris that Robert Reich is a former Secretary of Labor and now teaches at a top tier university. Chris, on the other hand, posts comments on blogs...
You can disagree with Reich all you want. But do not think he is in any way a lightweight. He is a thoughtful, substantive thinker.
Chances are that the young lady with a graduate degree from UTD perhaps made the wrong choice in her major. Social Sciences and Liberal Arts degrees are not the paths to take. This doesn't help her health insurance issue, but degree choices have consequences.
Anom 1:43
Sometimes teachers at top tier universities are among the worst kind.
I invite you to read some of his statements and some of his U-Tube comments.
Anon 3:40, are you actually saying that health benefits should be tied to one's career or education choices? Can you really be serious? Is health care something we should be able to expect to be available at a reasonable cost? Or is it a commodity limited only to those who can afford it? I find your commnet unbelievable!
Anon 8:44 - I'm not sure why you find that comment so unbelievable. That is, by in large, simply the system we now have. Simply stating the fact that degree choices have consequences is perhaps descriptive, and not necessarily prescriptive.
what one does professionally should have no impact on whether or not one can access appropriate health care.
health care should not be regarded as a market commodity matter, but a human right, especially in a place like the US.
when you describe our current reality, you can't then turn and shift blame to the one in need of care. te focus needs to be on our broken, greedy, materialistic system that favors the rich over the poor at every turn.
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