Citizens get extremely affordable health care, and the populations here are the healthiest in the world. I see no sign of the long waits people like to talk about; I always get in directly when I need to see any doctor. The doctors all seem quite happy, so I see no sign of the supposed horrible discontent we are supposed to see in doctors when they don't get to make as much money as they want. I have had some semi-severe medical problems during the past two years, so I have had to go to doctors and to emergency rooms a number of times, and the reality as I see it here is nothing at all like the bleak picture conservatives are always trying to paint of a universal health care system. My systems administrator's wife just had a baby, and not only does the wife get six months off with pay, so does the husband. Their jobs are guaranteed. Personally, I think health care should be considered a basic human right.

The problem, Ed, is that very few people go in for preventative care due to costs, and therefore people regularly get into much worse trouble than they should because simple to solve issues turn into big or even deadly ones. Even those who pay tons of money for health care, like myself (more than $400 per month), don't go in for preventative care because even with insurance I end up paying way too much. Many of the poorest people in our country simply cannot afford any preventative care.

Yep

@Knight_Tour:

What do you think about the courts intervening in matters that are supposed to be left up to the Commander-in-Chief and the armed forces to decide; (i.e., Guantanamo Bay, etc.)?

I think that it is very disgusting that they are trying to give enemy combatant, non-U.S. citzens access to United States courts of law!!


Chess Fan

I think the 'Commander-in-Chief' is trying to redefine certain things to suit what he wants, such as calling this a 'war' when there is no state involved. When it is terrorists, I don't believe it can legitimately be defined as a war, so I don't believe he can do what he is doing for things like Guantanamo.

By the way, I left out a word in my previous post, in that, I think that it is very disgusting that they are trying to give enemy combatant, non-U.S. citizens access to United States Civilian courts of law.

Hmmmm...., terrorists can kill you just as dead as "official nation's soldiers" can.

Yes, this certainly IS a WAR against terrorism!


Chess Fan

There is a difference between a historically defined war and the way you are using war here. To me it would be more accurate to state that we are 'fighting against terrorism' or perhaps 'fighting a battle against terrorism', but a war is historically something between nation states or at least territories. War had a specific meaning to the writers of our Constitution, and I don't believe they would agree with Bush's interpretations.

Chess Fan, how would you feel if a friend or a loved one of yours got detained by the U.S.A Armed Forces because of some mix-up (perhaps they were visiting relatives in Afghanistan and got unintentionally caught up in something), then was kept without formal accusation or trial, without access to independent legal representation for months or even years?

This is what can happen when the judicial process is by-passed like it has been under the fig-leaf of the so-called war on terror. In a real war, armed forces of the enemy nation can be killed in warfare or captured and held as prisoners of war until the war is over. In the war against terror, who defines which people can be killed or held captive (and what is the definition) and who says when the war is over?

Agree Kevin, we are talking about basic human rights. Fortunately Obama, who is the likely next president as for now, wants to restore Habeas Corpus and obligations to the Geneva Convention regarding prisoners of war.

Obama gave a speech about foreign policy Tuesday, confirming a withdrawal of troops from Iraq. Big Oil won't like that. Here is an interesting videointerview Ex-CIA Ray McGovern on Obama\'s \'new world\'

This is being done, at least in my part of the world, through the introduction of Physicians Assistants.