All Videos Tagged govt (Connections Groups) - Connections Groups

New Rules - Since when does everything have to be about profit?

2009-07-26T16:58:47.402Z

Funny. According to a Time poll... Jon Stewart of the Daily Show has replaced Walter Cronkite as the most "trusted newscaster" in America. Ironic since his show is satire.

http://www.timepolls.com/hppolls/archive/poll_results_417.html

And Bill Maher... another smart, funny, "tell it like it is" guy.

On Friday's Real Time with Bill Maher, Bill noted that "not everything in America has to make a profit." That's true, after all we don't care if police or fire stations make a profit, do we?

WARNING: Bill uses the "F" word in here. If you don't like profanity, even in your humor, don't watch.

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Why America Won't Get the Healthcare we Need

2009-05-26T05:06:48.071Z

As Obama Hosts Summit on Healthcare, Marginalized Advocates Ask Why Single Payer Is Ignored

President Obama hosted a White House summit Thursday on reforming healthcare. While President Obama said every idea must be considered, the idea of creating a single-payer national health insurance program appears to have already been rejected. We speak to Harpers senior editor Luke Mitchell, author of the article Sick in the Head: Why America Wont Get the Health-Care System It Needs.

Single Payer Health Care - WHY?

2009-05-26T04:57:20.780Z

HR 676: "Still the One"

by Tim Foley
Change.org Blog
January 17, 2009

The top vote getter among health care ideas in Change.org’s Ideas for Change competition was “Free Single-Payer Health Care for All.” This no doubt is cause for joy for many of you who frequent this page. Weekends have become something of a “Policy Spotlight” for me, with an extensive look at the VA system and the Wyden-Bennett plan over the past couple of weekends. This weekend, I’m focusing on HR 676 — the “Expanded and Improved Medicare for All Act” or, more popularly, the “United States National Health Insurance Act.” It’s probably going to be reintroduced into the House of Representatives in March, when it will once again take its place as the most viable path to a single-payer system that covers every American with quality care—no premiums, no deductibles and no co-pays.

Many of you who are health care activists will recognize it by bill number alone You’ve been toiling in the vineyards for its passage for years now. So rather than give a standard write-up of the bill, I’m going to post on it three times this weekend: “The Good,” why both the policy and the bill supporting it make so much sense and inspire so much loyalty among health care advocates; “The Bad,” those areas of the bill that could figuratively use a fresh coat of paint to reflect the different circumstances of today compared to when the bill was first written 4 years ago; and “The Ugly” — the purely political calculations (regardless of sound policy) that do or do not make it a palatable option.

The Good

So these are my 5 reasons why HR 676 is, in the words of Shania Twain, “still the one.”

1.) 8 of the 10 best health care systems in the world have single-payer

If you look at the World Health Organization’s 2000 rankings of the top 10 countries in terms of health outcomes — you’re not going to see us. Ditto for the top 25 countries. You’ll find us at 37th — just above Slovenia and Cuba. But if you look at the top 10, 8 have public, single-payer systems where the government collects higher taxes and guarantees quality health care to all of its citizens. The remaining two have huge percentages of the population in a public program as well.

MORE:
> http://www.pnhp.org/news/2009/january/hr_676_still_the_o.php

Single Payer Health Care explained...

2009-05-15T15:11:23.255Z

Elizabeth Kucinich, wife of Congressman Dennis Kucinich, explains how the single payer health care system would work.

Unfortunately "single payer" is NOT on the table under Obama.... however we can work TOWARD it if we keep going.

Elizabeth says... HR-676 is really the policy that will stop this nonsense debate that goes on in Congress all the time. Its just disgusting what goes on in the presidential campaign (this was taped when Dennis was running for President) ....with all the other candidates. They try to spin that they are for universal healthcare. But what they are really for is for the for-profit system to remain in control. So you can continue to pay premiums co-payments and deductibles, with the option of the for-profit insurance companies not to cover you, and if you can't afford the premiums co-payments and deductibles, it's ok the government will subsidize you. Well whop-tee-do. Then you get more of your tax dollars going into the the for profit system, it doesn't put caps on that, it doesn't keep the expenses down, it raises it up, and again we start to bankrupt goverment. These are policies for people who don't want to see government working for people. I wan't to see a government that represents people."

What do other people say...?

1) "My GAWD! We can't have a non-profit health care system designed to help people instead of making lots and lots of money! That's socialism and will lead a totalitarian police state!

Just like they have in China! And Cuba! And Canada. And the UK. And Germany, France, Australia, Japan, Taiwan, Israel, Peru, India, New Zealand, Spain, Italy, Singapore, Brazil, Costa Rica, Uruguay, Georgia, Greece, Ireland, Luxombourg, The Netherlands, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Malta..."

2) "Please google John Russell and read about Single Payer... Single Payer is a MUST for the American economy. The insurance industry "buys" its security through their corporate lobbyists.

Single Payer as Elizabeth says here IS NOT Socialized Medicine. The Right Wing propagandists act constantly to MISINFORM their base on this point.

We need this sort of truth spoken to CONSERVATIVES because they will buy in with us IF THEY HEAR THE TRUTH! Thanks Mrs. Kucinich!"

3) "Physicians like me understand the importance of keeping corporate interests out of healthcare decisions.

If you have EVER had to fight your insurance company for the simplest of treatments, of you have EVER been frustrated by the high cost of your insurance plan or the level of out-of-pocket expenses for treatment or prescription drugs, then you WILL benefit from single-payer healthcare. Any government-run plan would have much more transparency than corporate profiteers currently allow."

4) "22,000 people die in the U.S. every year due to a lack of health insurance." This is seven times the number of victims that perished in the 9/11 tragedy.

Dr. Margaret Flowers, one of the eight arrested, added in the press release: "Health insurance administrators are practicing medicine without a license. The result is the suffering and death of thousands of patients for the sake of private profit. The private insurance industry has a solid grip on patients, providers and legislators. It is time to stand up and declare that health care is a human right."

Health Care Reform - What do YOU think?

2009-05-12T18:18:23.298Z

What do you think we should do with Health Care in this country?

Here is a dramatic video that show how our government is owned and controlled by big business... and in particular, the health care industry.

Health care is not only costing lives... it costs jobs as companies take more and more jobs overseas due to rising costs of health care benefits.

VIDEO: Friends, there are rare moments of clarity when we the people can see
through the veil of illusion designed to condition us into docile
inaction. For that reason this may be the MOST important alert we
will ever send.

There was such a moment this week, when Senator Max Baucus, chairman
of the Senate Finance Committee, having already preemptively excluded
any participation of a credible spokesperson for single payer health
care, laughingly joked "we need more police", when one qualified doctor and lawyer after another stood up to protest their exclusion from the debate.

Comments from the "Real News Network" on this video... "How many police does it take to silence the voice of the people?

That's a question a despot might ask in a totalitarian police state. But this week the Senate Finance Committee thought it was a hilarious joke as they ejected one brave activist after another, for protesting that not even one spokesperson for single payer health care was being allowed to sit at the hearing table. Yes, Senator Max Baucus (MT), who had preemptively declared that consideration of a single payer option was off the table, actually joked "We need more police." [1:58 on video] And the rest of the Senate panel just laughed their heads off.

Senator Chuck Grassley (IA), the ranking Republican, not to be outdone in his contempt for the people, then asked if there was "somewhere they can watch it on television [2:05 on video]," which elicted additional hearty guffaws. Yes, what a wonderful entertaining show that would be, the spectacle of the will of the people being excluded while corporate special interests, like butchers, carve up our pocketbooks and our bodies.

It's time for the U.S. Senate to get the message that we the people are not just a joke to be laughed off. Why is it that not ONE senator on that committee has the integrity to stand up for a even handed debate of health care issues? Why should any of them be elected to public office ever again?

Want to send your personal message to all your government representatives?"

Copy and paste this into your browser:
>> http://www.peaceteam.net/action/pnum982.php

Comment: Does anyone care that we live in a police state? Senator Backus wants more police. He apparently fails to appreciate that he was elected to represent the people and not the corporate interests. Nothing in our constitution entitles corporations or lobbying organizations such as the Business Roundtable to representation by Congress.

Comment: Money is a failed system. Insurance is an evil scam which is destroying America ( U.S.A. ). The single-payer option is "not on the table" because the insurance industry would collapse if it were on the table.

Comment: I'm a 24 year old line cook and because of the recession, I now have no health care.

Comment: Canadian conservatives used the same kind of fear mongering when Tommy Douglas rose to power, we understand you guys are a little late to pick up good ideas (like the metric system lol) but this concerns peoples lives. Then again, what do nation states care for the lives of their citizens?

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