Falling prey to endless populism

[htpcl.livejournal.com]

Kalispera, filoi mou! Good evening, fellers!

First of all, as you know, for atmosphere play this in a separate tab: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDN0UlKYwt0

GEIA SOU!

Well, seems like Greece is heading toward a new election on June 17. The leaders of the parties who reject the rescue plan of the Holy Trinity (IMF, EU, ECB) successfully torpedoed every possible chance for a compromise solution and scratched off the work of their predecessors, the mainstream PASOK and New Democracy party, plus the tiny Democratic Left, which seemed somewhat willing to help for the creation of a stable government, but that proved too little, too late. Curiously, the two big absentees from the whole game were the neo-Stalinist Communist Party (KKE) and the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party (XA). So what we've got is a curious situation where the political landscape is now dominated by two opposite radical formations (the populist left-wing SYRIZA party, and the national-conservative Independent Greeks party (ANEL)), but still not the most radical of them all (i.e. two lesser evils). So typically Greek, lol!

( It seems things will be getting from bad to worse south of the Rhodopes )

Opinion based on opinion (another T-P Passion Play): Oh, and Healthcare!

[rick-day.livejournal.com]

A way to rationalize the cost based arguments for and against The Dreaded Single Payer Plan©: 
( a premium is the same as a tax: money from my pocket, to others )

Note his last comment. No matter what kind of private insured system there is, there will always be uninsured whose costs has to be paid by someone, typically us through high premiums. A premium is just like a tax. To my wallet, there is no difference. No amount of GOP whiny shrillness will drown out that simple fact. And this morals based society is not going to let too many people die for lack of basic care. Endgame: maintain the status quo with non sequitur rhetoric about TAXPAYER ENABLING OF THE LAZY.

I feel access to health care in a society that can technologically provide it (and health care only, draw no parallels with me on this one) is a fundamental right. I want my employees to have health care. But we can't afford it (see above). We would simply labor cost ourselves out of existence. How DARE the GOP spout pro-business doublespeak. Supporting the Obamacare program is helping small business and families. Much more than any trickle downs every GOP politician insists will be the result of repealing 'unwanted' aspects of the program.

I don't claim to know all the facts and figures and arguments with tax charts and Bruceisms. I am just telling you from my practical business experience business needs this program. American's need this program. Either in its current form, or modified. the cost of the healthcare business is not going to change direction, and that is not a good direction to go.

Premium or tax. If you want healthcare with less administrative, and more R&D and preventative programs do you think the premium based system is the answer, or the tax supported system? Maybe some of both?

Now for the obligatory factual visual thingie. This time it is a collection of the most commonly used terms when discussing 'healthcare' on the internet.


 Note the word insurance is bigger than the word people.

And that is a problem.