USA news & politics

[AlRums]

Spending the week with a bunch of Germans, Swiss, Italians, and Spaniards.

All of them to a man and woman were complaining about healthcare except for those living in Switzerland. Apparently the Swiss have a fully privatized model that is universal in that every single person is required to purchase insurance.

As for the rest of the Europeans, I heard the same variation of this quote: "What's the point of universal healthcare if it takes 6-9 months to see a specialist."

The American system sucks. It's a miss-mass of universal and private. But I've never met a single American who had to wait more than a few weeks to see a specialist.

You do realise this is garbage. You can, and people do, always pay to jump the queue and insurance for private medical care is always available.

Personally, rugby injury dislocated clavicle requiring pinning in 1987. On the table within 72 hours. Four months in hospital 6 months in plaster body cast. Cost to me £0

2012, small cancerous growth on my nose. From diagnosis to surgery 48 hours. £0

2020 cataracts diagnosed to surgery 4 weeks, non urgent, £0

2020 diagnosed with diabetes type 2, since then due to chronic illnesses I have been prescribed a total of 7 daily medications for various ailments all at prescriptions costs of £0. Now I am over 60 I don't pay for prescriptions anyway.

At least here I can get proper medical care, not always quickly, but at least I won't have to go without because I don't have enough money.

The US has an entire multi billion dollar industry that does nothing but "negotiate" drugs costs between insurers and pharmaceutical companies. The only people that beat the costs of these is Joe Public.

Spare me any sanctimonious twaddle about our health systems. Our people are cared for, whereas you are quite prepared to abandon anyone who can't pay

The US health system is not there to benefit anyone other than shareholders

 

[General Melchett]

Weird, he seemed ok with Starmer doing it. After Starmer ran it past him first.

Like Fentanyl it's just another (irrelevant) lever to try to get a better trade deal. The art of the deal.

 

[AlRums]

The orange-utan's total foreign policy is to threaten everyone who doesn't bend the knee, tow his line.

Sooner or later others will turn against the monster wotsit and he will be dead in the water and the US can rejoin the real world.

Hopefully he'll get reigned in next year

 

[Saintjay]

The orange-utan's total foreign policy is to threaten everyone who doesn't bend the knee, tow his line.

Sooner or later others will turn against the monster wotsit and he will be dead in the water and the US can rejoin the real world.

Starmer won't he's an invertebrate. In all fairness Canada and Carney are in a stronger position.

The only time it changes is when the US hold another election.

 

[McTallshort]

Starmer won't he's an invertebrate. In all fairness Canada and Carney are in a stronger position.

The only time it changes is when the US hold another election.

It's definitely personal between Trump and Carney.

 

[Which Tyler]

You do realise this is garbage.

Of course he doesn't.
He's an uniformed American spouting off in order to signal to people who agree with him, and get a rise out of those who don't.

Knowing stuff is dangerously woke and commie


We all know that yes, 6-9 month waiting lists exist. We also know that that's for elective stuff where time isn't all that important (eg hip replacements on someone who is independently mobile)

 

[ncurd]

We all know that yes, 6-9 month waiting lists exist. We also know that that's for elective stuff where time isn't all that important (eg hip replacements on someone who is independently mobile)

Also we know under the previous Labour government that those waiting times were significantly reduced.

 

[Which Tyler]

Also we know under the previous Labour government that those waiting times were significantly reduced.

Yup - we all know that we had 15 years of tory rule - with at least one of the health secretaries literally writing a book about how to kill the NHS via a death-of-a-thousand-cuts.
We also know that Brexit and Covid both happened within that 15 year period.

Hopefully, we also know that it's going to take more than 1 year of a labour government hamstrung by promises they made before seeing the books, to correct 15 years of deliberate sabotage.

 

[Saintjay]

Dr's strikes and the RCN likely to follow will vastly help

 

[ncurd]

Dr's strikes and the RCN lively to follow will vastly help

Kind of a legacy issue from the Tories once they get a taste of it they are far more likely to do it again.

 

[Welsh Exile]

Yup - we all know that we had 15 years of tory rule - with at least one of the health secretaries literally writing a book about how to kill the NHS via a death-of-a-thousand-cuts.
We also know that Brexit and Covid both happened within that 15 year period.

Hopefully, we also know that it's going to take more than 1 year of a labour government hamstrung by promises they made before seeing the books, to correct 15 years of deliberate sabotage.

I do laugh that basically since the Welsh gave the UK the NHS the Tories have to pretend to support it.

 

[Ragey Erasmus]

I had been hoping the EU would show a little spine when it came to the tariffs and begin to dispel the image of Europe being utterly spineless on the world stage but nope, they caved in too. The EU has as much trade leverage as the USA or China, but had absolutely zero spine in anything.

As usual all the talk of being tough was just that, talk.

 

[ncurd]

I had been hoping the EU would show a little spine when it came to the tariffs and begin to dispel the image of Europe being utterly spineless on the world stage but nope, they caved in too. The EU has as much trade leverage as the USA or China, but had absolutely zero spine in anything.

As usual all the talk of being tough was just that, talk.

Its not about spine though one country has decided to **** its economy and in turn others too. You either stand up or do damage limitation.

 

[ChicagoKid]

https://archive.is/SQTqk

 

[ChicagoKid]

Dr's strikes and the RCN likely to follow will vastly help

Your doctors make less than our nurses. And our doctors make 3x-4x than your doctors.

Good luck holding onto those people as Australia and the US dangle the carrot.

 

[dirty harry]

I had been hoping the EU would show a little spine when it came to the tariffs and begin to dispel the image of Europe being utterly spineless on the world stage but nope, they caved in too. The EU has as much trade leverage as the USA or China, but had absolutely zero spine in anything.

As usual all the talk of being tough was just that, talk.

The Germans are incredulous by the EU negotiations, and rumour has it Von Der Leyan is in a real precarious position.

The quote coming out of Germany alone, and im talking credible people, not the hyperbole of the Orban types, or even Merz flip flop...

Germany is ******!!!

 

[ChicagoKid]

The Germans are incredulous by the EU negotiations, and rumour has it Von Der Leyan is in a real precarious position.

The quote coming out of Germany alone, and im talking credible people, not the hyperbole of the Orban types, or even Merz flip flop...

Germany is ******!!!

Ragey is wrong again. The EU had minimal leverage. That’s why they folded.

Make a deal and survive or deal with Vance in 2028 and get rocked.

 

[Saintjay]

The Germans are incredulous by the EU negotiations, and rumour has it Von Der Leyan is in a real precarious position.

The quote coming out of Germany alone, and im talking credible people, not the hyperbole of the Orban types, or even Merz flip flop...

Germany is ******!!!

As far as I know it was the German car industry that forced through the deal.

 

[ChicagoKid]

As far as I know it was the German car industry that forced through the deal.

They are made the scapegoat because everyone needs someone to blame.

Europe has no options.

 

[AlRums]

Your doctors make less than our nurses. And our doctors make 3x-4x than your doctors.

Good luck holding onto those people as Australia and the US dangle the carrot.

Always about the dollar with you isn't it?

Done people do things without money signs behind everything except Americans

I have yet to meet a poor doctor in this country (once established)