Wednesday, November 4, 2009

on Maine.

before all my mo-bros get too depressed of the loss in Maine I think it's important to point out a few things...

the statistics are not 53% of people the citizens of Maine don't want gay people to be able to marry. It is 53% of the people who voted. There's still a lot of people who didn't bother to vote thinking this doesn't concern them. These people are waking up more and more and starting to realize how mean spirited christians and mormons really are.

Also remember that historically when a majority votes on the rights of minority and fails to give basic civil rights the majority is eventually overruled by law. It's why we fought the civil war for gods sake. What do you think the vote would have been if the people with slaves voted.. the people who wanted to fight for slaves voted.. and everyone who thought it didn't apply to them just abstained?

It's also important to note that in CA the governator has already signed off that CA will recognize same sex unions performed in other states. In other words we can BE married in CA we just can't GET married in CA. Can you picture a day when Iowa is the number one wedding destination? Iowa people. Iowa.

It's also just a matter of time before the christians are finally blamed for the legal costs that are crippling states that have to fight to continue to refuse rights to its citizens. Maybe this will lead to finally taxing churches. Or maybe this is the first step to moving the US out of the tyranny of religion.

I'm not suggesting we stop fighting. I'm merely suggesting that maybe what looks like a loss now is really the beginning of a significant change in fixing some of our cultural problems here in the states.

Health Care

Here are the culprits for the current healthcare problems as I see it.

Doctors
Drug companies
Government
Insurance companies
Consumers.

Here's my quick rundown of reason

Doctors become doctors for the money and prestige. Not all of them but when was the last time you found out someone was a doctor or dating a doctor and the first thing you thought was "what a giving person"?

More and more doctors are providing unneeded services just to keep a patient or to justify paying for equipment.

Drug Companies.

When was the last time a cure was found? Treatment makes more money than a cure.
The price between brand name drugs and generics can be as high as 500%.
Millions are poured into advertising so a consumer will ask for a specific drug.
Some will even pay your copay for you so that your insurance will be forced to pay hundreds more for what is essentially the same drug.

Government

For all the reasons Gov't fails in many areas. Listening to special interests groups etc.

Insurance companies.

billing procedures for doctors and hospitals is so complicated that medical billing has been noted as the fastest growing industry currently. Some medical practices have a staff of people billing that's the same size as the number of physicians adding 20-30% to the cost of treatment. And it's not treating anyone.



Consumers

Notice I said "consumer" and not the sick. There is a huge difference in the two. We've become people who demand treatment for things when we don't need treated for. If a Dr. refuses then she opens herself up to a lawsuit or loses a customer since it's easy enough to find a Dr who will prescribe anything you want.

We're seperated from the cost of what we're consuming. How much food would you buy at a grocery story if your employer paid for everything except a $20 copay?