Month: December 2007

We finally got around to watch SiCKO last night. It’s pretty scary to know that it could happen to any one of us at any given time. I was especially sick of the part where a little girl died because she was denied treatment from Kaiser, a hospital/insurance company that relentlessly markets how the company is all about the “heart” in its ads in California. But on the contrary, among almost all of the stories circulated among friends here who are insured by Kaiser, it’s probably one of the worst hospital system and insurance company around.

And yet nobody is going to do anything about it because most U.S. politicians are in the pockets of the insurance and drug companies anyway. Having seen SiCKO and listened to this NPR interview I last blogged about, it’s pretty clear that whenever big corporations have too much influence in the policy making process for the well fare of the general public, it’s probably never a good idea. I mean, why would a big company have any kind of genuine interest in the well being of the general public when all it cares about (and mandated by law to do) is to return max profit to the shareholders!?

But I digress. I am not even a citizen here… Caring this much about something I have no influence over and can get no benefits from is probably unhealthy…

One last thing I want to point out is how well spoken and points well addressed by a former Member of British Parliament Tony Benn about this issue.

Contrasting the way he speaks with most of how American politicians speak (except maybe Obama), it’s almost like night and day… British politicians have this graceful and charming way of putting issues in a language that is pleasant to listen to and reflects their intelligence and sophistication on the matters. I especially find Geroge W. Bush’s speeches distasteful and blunt (and in unpolished) to listen to because they always seem to be dumbed down and make no sense at all!

But again, I digress.