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COMPLETELY ABOLISH MEDICARE IMMEDIATELY.
Here’s a finding from a recent Pew poll:
People under age 30 are divided in their views of both capitalism and socialism. But to Americans age 65 and older, socialism is clearly a negative (72%), not a positive (13%), term.
And…
By contrast, socialism is a far more divisive word, with wide differences of opinion along racial, generational, socioeconomic and political lines. Fully nine-in-ten conservative Republicans (90%) view socialism negatively, while nearly six-in-ten liberal Democrats (59%) react positively.
Guess what, you rightwing geriatric hypocrites? MEDICARE IS SOCIALISM! You wanna get rid of socialism in the US? FINE. We’ll just re-institute it, and a better, single payer, universal version of it, once all you bastards are dead and out of the way (and an immediate abolition of Medicare should expedite that process immensely.)
We see that your plan is for us to pay for your medical care until you live to some ripe old age, but you want it slowly phased out so that we’ll be left high and dry in our old age. How ’bout FUCK THAT.
We might be the most leftist, PC, touch-feely generation in almost a hundred years, but we do still have a functioning survival instinct. And this is war. And we weren’t the ones who declared it.
I say, completely end all Medicare now and slowly phase it back in over the coming decades. That sounds like a much more rational strategy for us and our posterity.
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I’m kinda joking, of course. But there has to be some way to get it through these people’s heads that their whole generation has declared war on the younger. And maybe we do need to grow some balls/ovaries and stop being so damn nice all the time.
16 Comments
I just realised that, in all seriousness, slowly phasing out medicare and diverting the funds to setting up an exact emulation of something like the UK’s NHS might be one of the more realistic ways of making it happen.
You’d want to start by diverting medicare funds to setting up things like gov owned lab diagnostic services, oncology clinics, and MRI and CT scan services. Then primary care docs or NPs who are paid a salary from the gov and just expected to see a reasonable # of patients a day.
That is unless someone comes up with a Autodoc first. There in development or by now already being produced MRI and CY scanners that can be rolled into a doctors office and at least one company that is in the process of developing a Lab-on-a-chip to to CBC and other tests.
CY scanners -> CT scanners
Nice rant, not sure about the process of eliminating medicare/other social nets, but it will all be taken from us anyways at this rate.
Unless it all collapses, or the masses rebel en masse.
Rcc’d.
Most people are basically lefties, if they are decent human beings. The problem is that many don’t realize it. They self-identify as right wingers in many cases. They react to socialism in a pavlovian way. The Left has been too apologetic and weak for decades. Who is going to be persuasive when they apologize constantly for their point of view?
I KNOW most “tea baggers” actually want to tax the rich, support medicare and social security, etc.
This drives me nuts!
Geriatric tea partiers are a merry band of lefties, but they don’t know it!
Gah!
What would happen if the truth/message of “Medicare is SOCIALISM!” was thrown in their face?
Or if a message like “If you’re on Medicare, you’re a socialist/communist!” or “Real Patriots don’t use Medicare!”
Or “Patriots against Medicare.”
And if they don’t end their unpatriotic ways…
“Young people for the abolition of Medicare.”
“Since you want us to be screwed, right back atcha!”
I mourn the death of the family doc. We all, in my family, see one Family Doctor. He’s great. It was also a Family Doc that delivered my oldest baby.
Nurse Practitioners are replacing fam docs. And yes, they will take orders from PC’s (computer programs).
In fact, since we’re turning into liber-dystopia, we don’t even need NP’s.
I have mixed feelings about all of this.
As an uninsured person with epilepsy and many other health issues (many of which would never have happened if I lived in any other developed country) I’m just pissed off.
And on the other hand I like the idea of getting to see a NP for $50.
And on the other, other hand I wish I could see a real MD, even tho I can’t afford it.
So, I really don’t know what I think. I mostly am just pissed off that I can’t even have a bank account because of medical bills. I’m infuriated over being stuck.
I knew what you meant. It’s all good.
:)
At some point “we” have to respond. Yes?
The older folks are saying “YOU have to care for US via taxes, but we’re going to make sure you, yourselves are screwed”.
Or am I grossly misunderstanding the scenario?
Also, civil liberties?
“In my time, secret police were frowned upon, and a trial by peer was valued. But fuck you youngens!”
Among the older folks we have Bill Moyers, Scarecrow, and a few others. The rest….I dunno. A vast majority of them? Didn’t give a shit about SS or healthcare till they needed it.
I am this.close to saying “fuckém”. Really.
Seriously.
Also, I really, really wish this was a forum (preferably vBulletin) and not this stupid blog format.
People can actually learn things over the years in and at forums. The same can’t be said with formats like these. There’s something magical about “bumping”"a 3 year old thread on a v bulletin forum when a past prediction comes though. That format is just wonderful like that.
Anyway…
I puffy heart fdl. You guys and twws are my people.
“The older folks are saying “YOU have to care for US via taxes, but we’re going to make sure you, yourselves are screwed”.
That’s not what I’m saying at 67. Or my brother in law who is forgoing retirement at 73 so he can subsidize his children and grand children who are suffering in this economy.
Those who would keep us divided are pushing this meme. Old people are rich and selfish and are to blame for everything wrong with the world. What about two year olds with all the screaming and shitting and never contributing a single dime?
That’s not what I’m saying, either.
Divide the generations, huh, because older people are so selfish and have it so good. Just ask the ones bagging groceries. They’re so selfish they’re only keeping a portion of their check, instead of giving the whole thing to their kids.
The problem is these people equate socialism with communism/dictatorship. I’ve asked people railing against socialism to define it. After the blank stare that’s the answer I get. These people are against something they can’t even define.
My next project is getting them to define exactly what a “conservative” is. My guess is these people, again, are for something they can’t verbalize.
I think the problems we have is that the word, “socialism” has been used as a tactic. People have not really studied the economic policies of socialism and take what the right wing spills out in the hate policies as the truth.
As a matter of fact, there are more people in the US participating in a socialist program than they even know. Most rural families get their electricity from and Electric Co-operative. Hundreds of insurance groups began as co-operatives as well, such as the Farmer’s Insurance, etc.
Socialism is prevelant in Churches, however the right would never want you to understand these facts.
WC,
Only 13% of your age group views “socialism” favorably. Very close to one in 10. This is the cohort that wants to preserve social security for “current beneficiaries” but doesn’t mind the idea of phasing it out over time.
I don’t want to keep “us” divided. But there aren’t a lot of us in that demographic. And really, as I thought I made clear, I was being hyperbolic. I just don’t know how to communicate to people that if you like programs like social security and want older people to be able to get health care, YOU LIKE SOCIALISM!
I agree, but how do we fix that?
Jokingly advocating for the immediate abolition of Medicare is the best way I can think of.