Tuesday, September 27, 2005
adequate health care for all...
Our discussions this week in class have centered around what constitutes "equal access" to adequate healthcare in the United States, and the perceptions of who is more or less deserving of health care.
It's interesting to hear people actually espouse the view that healthcare is tied to how much you work, indicating that they have bought into the idea that some people are more or less deserving than others...in short, you get the healthcare you deserve.
As a people, as United States citizens, we are culturally Designed to be fiercely independent. We pay for and work for what we want, on our own, without assistance. To be sure, their is some merit to this. But the reality is this: anything can happen on our life journey. We could end up destitute, we could, by a matter of fate and personal mistakes, end up with a DUI which could cause a black mark on our record forever. This stigma, or any stigma like it, can cause us to have problems finding work, and therefore, be a part of that class called the "working poor." The working poor live in substandard housing, and receive substandard, if any, health care.
So what, then, is the argument against a national healthcare system that is all inclusive? The argument stems from how we are designed as Americans, as fiercely independent people who don't want to "pay for someone else's" health care. This attitude causes class disparity. That disparity is increasing, as the population of underprivileged citizens increases. In addition, our Puritan work ethic economic mentality falls directly in line with this ideology, causing us to have the hidden feeling that those who have a stigma on their record of any sort, are less deserving than others.
Is this ethical? Is this right? Are there people on this planet that do not deserve adequate health care and a hot meal?
Thursday, September 15, 2005
registration...
I've registered for Primitive and Folk Medicine. I've gone to the campus bookstore to price the books, and they aren't too expensive, which is nice. I'm really looking forward to school starting, it's one of the best things about fall.
