Steve Sees "Sicko" And Actually Likes It

Okay... even though I am heartless Republican with fake morals and inconsistent allegiance to a "God", I think people should go see this movie and be a judge yourself. Besides how can you refute "liberal evidence" without hearing it.

The result of the movie is rather shocking.

Some spoilers...

They start with this old man who sliced off the top of two fingers on a table saw. Without insurance one would cost $60K and the other would cost $12K to repair. Needless to say he chose the $12K one. I was totally skeptical at this point. One being, if you can't have both why repair one? It was just the tips of his fingers. Two, the table saw he showed us was 30 plus years old with no rip fence, no blade guard AND he admitted to cutting through a knot in the wood. Three rookie moves. He obviously HAD NO IDEA on how to use the saw properly but that is not what Michael Moore picked apart. It was the only instance in the entire movie, except for the guy who tried to cross Abbey Road, walking on his hands and dislocating his shoulder where the person being hurt was more guilty than the doctor's office. Stupid is as stupid does.

The other one that got me was the lady with the infant with 104 degree temperature. As a member of Kaiser myself, Kaiser has a "plan" when your infant gets that temperature and you would learn this in the baby classes they offer for free. And when you call Kaiser and "you think you have a medical emergency" they tell you to call 911 or to go to the nearest hospital. A lady took her sick child to the nearest hospital and once the hospital contacted Kaiser, Kaiser denied payment in the emergency room and kicked the lady and child out and the child died. Well... In this case, I believe it wasn't a insurance issue. It was stupidity and though this lady lost her child I am totally sure she is rich beyond her wildest dreams. That is if this lady's story is as true as Moore stages it for him. If the lady is following an instruction that Kaiser leaves on their phone system, end of story... The other hospital should have treated the kid. The REAL problem I think though: The lady was black. I don't think we treat people of color very well in this country. And that is not a Republican issue, it is an American issue.

The other part that scared me is my recent health issues. I have a feeling I am a drain on Kaiser's resources with my MRI's and CT Scans and copious amounts of medicine. I am sure what I am taking is like $1000 a bottle or something. The scary part is if I try to leave Kaiser for a better deal or because I moved or if I wanted to get a second opinion and see what I really have going on. That is scary shit! According to Michael Moore's movie.

Some more parts where he compares Canada's, England's and France's medical systems to our own is a bit of movie magic but truthfully is a bit disheartening when you think about ours. Some facts Moore leaves behind:

• America has a military presence in Europe, ready to defend against first, Communism taking over from the East and now Terrorism from countries like Iran and Syria. Granted we went into Iraq (and really could have been out if we used more bombs) when Iran poses a greater threat but still we have a presence in that part of the world. Case in point, our bases in Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic.
• America spends more not only defending it's country but defending the world. Our nose is everywhere for good or bad. We are supporting Taiwan, South Korea, countries in Africa, Israel. We defend the seas, the air and the planet from most threats (sans Darfur). We are not just defending America. That shit costs money.
• As a percent of GNP we don't actually give in much aid as other other countries and you can find countless charts where America looks like it doesn't give shit. But if you added in military presence to keep up the flow of trade (and oil) throughout the world, we spend more than anyone.

In all, I think we helped countries like Great Britain and France get where they are because we helped them get back going after WWII. No one helped us, but no one devastated our country with bombs and murder. We stopped that war. And then we fought and stopped the Cold War. And we got the world through the oil crisis in the 1970's. And now we are taking on the brunt of terrorism (outside of Iraq too). No wonder we do not have the funds for health care and all the perks that France has. Moore leaves all this out just to say, "Hey, those countries have free medical care and we don't". Maybe we could do it and maybe we could do it right, but we cannot speculate on what we don't have and how it will effect this country.

I have been listening to the Reagan Diaries on my iPod in the evenings. One of the things Reagan says countless times in his diaries is how Congress was controlled by the Democrats for 45 years and they still could not put together a balanced budget. Reagan spent all that money on defense yes but he also attempted to balance the budget at the same time. Makes you wonder.

Lastly, Moore talks about all the free perks all of these countries get, including Cuba. Yet, we still pay $9.00 to see his movie. If it was such a radical and important issue, why charge us? And instead of picking on the system, a man with his power and money should do more about it. But we'll continue to see his movies because it makes us feel better. Sicko is as good as Bowling for Columbine and way better than Fahrenheit 911