Dirty Little Secret - Universal Healthcare? Social Security?
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Stumble ThisThe US Comptroller, the government's top accountant, says the US is risking total bankruptcy if trends continue on 60 minutes segment. The nation incurring a massive debt on the next generation with its present policies. In 30 years time, the US will only have enough money to pay the interest on its debt, with no money for the military.
All of the other Nations with universal health care systems are not on the verge of Bankruptcy. We are... In fact we owe them money because our own Federal reserve can't even print enough money for this government to spend. We have problems to fix before we create more for future generations
Health care, Social Security, Medicaid, David Walker, 60 minutes,
All of the other Nations with universal health care systems are not on the verge of Bankruptcy. We are... In fact we owe them money because our own Federal reserve can't even print enough money for this government to spend. We have problems to fix before we create more for future generations
Health care, Social Security, Medicaid, David Walker, 60 minutes,
no, it's always framed such that programs that benefit the majority have to be cut, but never touch the things that benefit the ultra rich. Somehow, every other country on the planet pays less for heath care, and a very large number of them have much better health. Maybe if the Govt. wasn't in the pocket of the heath industry, we wouldn't all suffer for the exorbitant profits of a few executives.
(Watched Sicko yesterday)
There's no doubt we're in some deep financial trouble though, we've got to cut something. Health care needs a total rebuild, too many middlemen in the process who want a cut of the profits but produce and offer nothing in themselves. The only way they can support themselves is to deprive the clients, goal seems to be to reduce costs by denying claims rather than to find a better way to serve the client.
A good example is this spiel by Ben Cohen http://www.videosift.com/video/US-Defense-Budget-Explained-with-OREO-Cookies-Flash-ver
I do believe most doctors can handle paying $15K a year (or less) for insurance. Sure seems like alot until you figure how much doctors make.
THe reason health care costs so much is because of uninsured and underinsured people having to default on their bills. When they do that, the cost is moved along to anyone else who CAN pay or has insurance. That's simple business economics and any health care institute that is profit-based (most are) will work that way. UNtil everyone in the US is insured, health care will continue to skyrocket.
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/16076312/the_great_iraq_swindle/print
http://cbo.gov/ftpdocs/85xx/doc8565/08-23-Update07.pdf
Page 17 is highly related to this video.
... available right on the front page, of course, at http://cbo.gov/ , where they also have a nice 'Frequently Requested' hyperlink section.
Make your own campaign commercial that in some way explains his positions. It may not turn out as popular or interesting as a 60 minutes story, but it would be honest.
Actually he didn't say that, the reporter trying to paraphrase whatever impressions he had reported that as what the guy said. Since he was just sitting there talking to us I'd rather have had it in context and in his own words myself. The Pentagon is such a huge part of our discretionary spending that it would have to have some impact.
I'd agree that it's no solution in itself, but there's still no reason that we should be spending as much on this crap as the rest of the world combined. Throw in a little waste here, a couple trillion missing from the Pentagon there, and soon we're talking real money
Oh, FYI, the US does not spend more than the rest of the world combined on it's military. Just the next 5 countries.
From globalissues.org
The 15 countries with the highest spending account for 84 per cent of the total;
The USA is responsible for 48 per cent of the world total, distantly followed by the UK, France, Japan and China with 4–5 per cent each.
http://www.globalissues.org/Geopolitics/ArmsTrade/Spending.asp
Now I don't know where you get your numbers but mine didn't just get pulled out of a hat, I used the term because it fit. 48% of the world total is about as much as the rest combined as I stated, and even if they overstate it, which is possible, we're still the biggest spender with NO nation or organized group of them to challenge us. The biggest behind us are mostly on our side.
Here's the real trick to this. We spend X trillions every year. We can only afford to maintain these Bush deficit spending by robbing the social security and medicare funds. See, the baby boomers for the most part already paid into the system approximately what they will take out. (Not really, but if it was wisely invested.. it would have grown to cover the population bubble)
What happens it that there is no money being invested. It's like your company 401k, but instead of investing it they spent it on R&D every year, and when people retire they just take it out of the corporate profits. Well eventually if the company stops growing, or everyone quits, there will be no money to put back into the 401k plans.
Literally, right now, your social security is being spent in Iraq. It's being spent on missle defense systems. It's being spent on predator drones. It's being spent on Enron and corporate welfare and federal pension guarantees.
Mostly, your retirement social security and medicare is being stolen from you everytime companies "restructure" and lay people off and collect tax write-offs to move jobs overseas. It's being stolen from you and paid into corporate stocks and investor programs. And guess what the solution is???
Raise retirement eligible age to 70, then 75, then 80. You will be working at Walmart until you die. Because otherwise you will be destitute, unless you have your own 401k that saved up enough.
Go read the history and the point of Social Security in the first place. We are going to have millions of impoverished homeless old people left to rot in state run (Halliburton contracts) institutions.
Buy stock in cat food companies!
Here's wikipedia: