What has society come to? - Clubhouse

The Road Runner

15/07/2005 at 19:06

BBC News

Any time you moan and whinge about the NHS, think about this man - he was so crippled by medical debt, he felt the only way to get out of it was to shoot someone in order to get the attention he needed!

Womble

15/07/2005 at 19:17

And how many posties do we know on the forum.........?

The Road Runner

15/07/2005 at 23:20

ermmm, one or two.....

still, its not about the fact that it was a postie, it couldve been anyone, his next door neighbour, someone at the hozzie.....

miles to go

15/07/2005 at 23:33

Hardly "society".

Sellville Georgia is probably somewhere we would find it difficult to comment on.

Every minute someone somewhere is doing something stupid.

Pete Sherri

15/07/2005 at 23:39

I'm a postie!

Well, manager now.

And still at work.

Talk about shooting the messenger!

Barnsley Runner

15/07/2005 at 23:43

Why did he have to shoot him 7 times and leave him in hosptial? If the crime is shooting a federal employee why not just shoot him once in the lower leg so he'll recvoer fully and quickly?

K***head

The Road Runner

15/07/2005 at 23:58

Thats exactly what i was thinking br

miles to go

16/07/2005 at 00:08

Hardly an indictment of society though, the fact that an unbalanced individual has acted irrationally?

Anyway, as it five minutes past midnight it's obviously Harry Potter's fault.

The Road Runner

16/07/2005 at 00:34

"the fact that an unbalanced individual has acted irrationally?"

But is it totally irrational? If you were faced with living on the streets because of mounting medical debt due to a debilatating illness, and you had the option of spending that time in a jail where you would have your illness tended to by the state, where you would be fed, lie on a bed, have a roof over your head - is that irrational?

This is one thing I have never understood with American society, the whole medical insurance thing - in the first instance, there are quite a few people who can't afford the insurance, also, there are those who can afford the basic insurance, but after a specified timespan of illness, that elapses, or it doesn't cover every illness, etc, etc.

I just think that US hospitals should have at least a basic duty of care to treat everyone regardless of the insurance. Why not do it like in the UK, and pay for hospitals through taxes?

Monique

pirate

16/07/2005 at 09:39

The whole purpose of government in the US is based on different principals, we in Europe see government as a force to protect the population and provide a safety net for the disadvantaged. In America the government is there to protect the rights of the individual and that includes their right not to be taxed.

miles to go

16/07/2005 at 10:27

Joseph Heller in Good as Gold said that the US was better for the rich and Russia was better for the poor. there eceonomy does not have the safety net we take for granted.

Clinton attempted healthcare reforms but didnt succeed for a variety of reasons. Many democrats are in favour of universal healtcare for the reasons you have given. On the whole the American people dont want to pay for it (although they're ok with the defense budget).

The EU constitution threw up similr questions. The French left thought the constitution too UK/US flavoured, too free market. The right thought it continued 'social' europe.

Here in the UK, it seems that we are moving even more toward the US in many ways.

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