> One of the big problems with health care in this country is that people don't > take responsibility for their own health. They eat lousy food. Or should I say > "over eat"? In the process they consume excessive amounts of fat and sugar. > They get no exercise. They become diabetic. Their arteries get clogged up > and they have heart attacks and strokes. They develop cancer. Then they > demand that the medical system go to any lengths to keep them alive. Who > ends up paying the bill? >
that's the price of having universal healthcare. I'm fairly sure that in countries that have it, the overwhelming majority of people are happy to pay the price for the benefits it brings, one of which is the satisfaction of knowing you live in a civilised society that doesn't abandon the needy, however their need was caused. I support this principle wholeheartedly, and not just because I'm a really nice guy - enlightened self-interest comes into it. I have benefited from the system in times when I've been solely responsible for my injuries. In addition to that, it removes a burden which would otherwise fall on doctors. It's the responsibility of doctors in a well-ordered society to treat people based on clinical need, not on value judgments about the cause of the need (or on people's ability to pay). > Never expected to get into this kind of discussion on this list. But all in all, as > long as it's gone on and as many people who have participated, to this late > interloper it seems, for the radical differences of opinion, to have gone on > pretty civilly. we don't like to get over-excited in case it triggers an apoplectic infarction. Bob -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
