4 ms·

When I read things like this, it makes me so glad I live in the UK and don't have to endure any of this free market bullshit when it comes to health. The system

by quasque 14y ago

When I read things like this, it makes me so glad I live in the UK and don't have to endure any of this free market bullshit when it comes to health. The system you describe is just so chillingly brutal and callous.

javert 14y ago
No, the system you describe is chillingly brutal and callous. It is your system that is done at the point of a gun, not mine.
- quasque 14y ago
  I don't think one could conceive a metaphor more archetypal of the US than "done at the point of a gun" -- but what do you mean by that, in terms of the UK health system?
  - javert 14y ago
    "Done at the point of a gun" means that you're being forced to do it. If you say "no," they take what they want anyway, and lock you up.
    - quasque 14y ago
      Doing what? Being forced to pay taxes? That happens in every country and is surely a more general complaint, if it is indeed one at all.
      - purplelobster 14y ago
        Don't bother, libertarianism is like a religion to these people.
qohen 14y ago
Unlike the UK's ever-so-compassionate National Health Service: "Hospitals Letting Patients Die to Save Money" [0] "Top doctor's chilling claim: The NHS kills off 130,000 elderly patients every year" [1] "I wanted to burn down the hospital that let my husband die like a battery hen: MP's heartbreaking account of NHS neglect" [2] Of course, unlike the wicked free market, the NHS would never put financial considerations ahead of providing care: "Nine out of 10 NHS Trusts are 'rationing operations' " [3] And, what wonderful care the NHS provides: "NHS death rates four times higher than US" [4] And, it's great how the NHS protects patient data: "NHS lost track of 1.8m patient records in a year with sensitive information found in public bin and for sale on the internet" [5] And there is so much more that could be said... [6]. [0] http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9385674/Hospitals-letting-patients-die-to-save-money.html http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9385674/Hospita... [1] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2161869/Top-doctors-chilling-claim-The-NHS-kills-130-000-elderly-patients-year.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2161869/Top-doctors-... [2] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2244912/Ann-Clwyd-MPs-heartbreaking-account-NHS-neglect-husband-Owen-Roberts.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2244912/Ann-Clwyd-MP... [3] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2161489/Nine-10-NHS-Trusts-rationing-operations.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2161489/Nine-10-NH... [4] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-195277/NHS-death-rates-times-higher-US.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-195277/NHS-death-r... [5] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2224580/NHS-lost-track-1-8m-patient-records-year-sensitive-information-public-bus-sale-internet.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2224580/NHS-lost-t... [6] https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Adailymail.co.uk+NHS https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Adailymail.co.uk+NHS
- quasque 14y ago
  The NHS is not perfect (as some of your tales of woe cherry-picked from right-wing newspapers suggest), but its core mission is essentially that of compassion and fairness: to provide medical care to each member of the population regardless of their financial circumstances. Any health care system that does not aspire to that ideal is by its very nature horrendously biased against the poor. (By the way, you should be more careful with the articles you choose to believe. For example, the research cited in the one titled "NHS death rates four times higher than US" did not show any such thing - it was a comparison between one UK and one US hospital, on a relatively tiny cohort of 1000 patients, showing a mere 7.5% difference in post-operative death rate. It is ridiculous to extrapolate this data to the entire health care systems of two countries. This is typical of Daily Mail spin on such research - you'd be much better off not citing that newspaper at all due to its inherent bias against the NHS.)
- CountSessine 14y ago
  Are you really sure that you want to cite "The Daily Hate"?

by quasque 14y ago

javert 14y ago

No, the system you describe is chillingly brutal and callous. It is your system that is done at the point of a gun, not mine.

quasque 14y ago
I don't think one could conceive a metaphor more archetypal of the US than "done at the point of a gun" -- but what do you mean by that, in terms of the UK health system?
- javert 14y ago
  "Done at the point of a gun" means that you're being forced to do it. If you say "no," they take what they want anyway, and lock you up.
  - quasque 14y ago
    Doing what? Being forced to pay taxes? That happens in every country and is surely a more general complaint, if it is indeed one at all.
    - purplelobster 14y ago
      Don't bother, libertarianism is like a religion to these people.

qohen 14y ago

Unlike the UK's ever-so-compassionate National Health Service: "Hospitals Letting Patients Die to Save Money" [0] "Top doctor's chilling claim: The NHS kills off 130,000 elderly patients every year" [1] "I wanted to burn down the hospital that let my husband die like a battery hen: MP's heartbreaking account of NHS neglect" [2] Of course, unlike the wicked free market, the NHS would never put financial considerations ahead of providing care: "Nine out of 10 NHS Trusts are 'rationing operations' " [3] And, what wonderful care the NHS provides: "NHS death rates four times higher than US" [4] And, it's great how the NHS protects patient data: "NHS lost track of 1.8m patient records in a year with sensitive information found in public bin and for sale on the internet" [5] And there is so much more that could be said... [6]. [0] http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9385674/Hospitals-letting-patients-die-to-save-money.html http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9385674/Hospita... [1] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2161869/Top-doctors-chilling-claim-The-NHS-kills-130-000-elderly-patients-year.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2161869/Top-doctors-... [2] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2244912/Ann-Clwyd-MPs-heartbreaking-account-NHS-neglect-husband-Owen-Roberts.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2244912/Ann-Clwyd-MP... [3] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2161489/Nine-10-NHS-Trusts-rationing-operations.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2161489/Nine-10-NH... [4] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-195277/NHS-death-rates-times-higher-US.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-195277/NHS-death-r... [5] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2224580/NHS-lost-track-1-8m-patient-records-year-sensitive-information-public-bus-sale-internet.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2224580/NHS-lost-t... [6] https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Adailymail.co.uk+NHS https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Adailymail.co.uk+NHS

quasque 14y ago
The NHS is not perfect (as some of your tales of woe cherry-picked from right-wing newspapers suggest), but its core mission is essentially that of compassion and fairness: to provide medical care to each member of the population regardless of their financial circumstances. Any health care system that does not aspire to that ideal is by its very nature horrendously biased against the poor. (By the way, you should be more careful with the articles you choose to believe. For example, the research cited in the one titled "NHS death rates four times higher than US" did not show any such thing - it was a comparison between one UK and one US hospital, on a relatively tiny cohort of 1000 patients, showing a mere 7.5% difference in post-operative death rate. It is ridiculous to extrapolate this data to the entire health care systems of two countries. This is typical of Daily Mail spin on such research - you'd be much better off not citing that newspaper at all due to its inherent bias against the NHS.)
CountSessine 14y ago
Are you really sure that you want to cite "The Daily Hate"?