Sicko diagnoses our sick political system

What is it to be “sick”?   According to Merriam-Webster, there are two definitions:

1 : affected with disease or ill health
2 : spiritually or morally unsound or corrupt

This afternoon I viewed “Sicko.”  I was one of the many audience members at the theater who applauded at the film’s conclusion.  Sicko will serve provoke much-needed discussion regarding the American health care system.  Sicko invokes the second definition of “sick” as well.  My hope is that Sicko will also provoke desperately needed conversation, as well as substantive changes, to the American political system, where money acts as a virus and where the equivalent of white blood cells–the Media–has long gone into hibernation. 

I am not optimistic about any self-instigated change in the American political system, but perhaps Sicko will provoke the media to start digging into the millions of health care injustices in America.  These compelling stories are there for the taking.  Perhaps these many cases where health care is being unfairly denied to Americans will at least occasionally start showing up on the front pages of America’s newspapers.  Before Sicko was released, the undeniable fact that America is having a health care crisis was not considered newsworthy by the corporate media.  Nor has any real healthcare conversation occurred in this country since Hillary Clinton was bludgeoned into silence on the issue thanks to more than $100 million spent by healthcare corporations more than 10 years ago.

Our political system is wretchedly sick.  Moore makes this clear when he …

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Post-script to bureaucracy, now-found documents and health insurance. . .

For those of you who waded through my post of last week about my day trekking through the federal bureaucracy on a quest for documents, I have two things to add. First, thanks for taking the time to wade. Second, I got an update from my friend. Remember those records…

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Attention Sickness

Marty Kaplan describes the symptoms and gives a name to "the very real nausea that culture (to use a kind word for it) can cause":  Attention Sickness.  First the BIG THING was ANNA NICOLE. Then it was WAR FUNDING. Then it was SANJAYA, and vote-for-the-worst sadism. Then it was CANCER, and…

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That other disasterous war: the “War on Drugs”

This documentary by Penn and Teller characterizes the "War on Drugs" as "The new prohibition."   The documentary is a no-holds-barred presentation that includes some coarse language.   Here is Part II and here is Part III. The statistics are compelling.  Alcohol causes 50,000 deaths per year.  Tobacco causes 440,000 deaths per…

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Iraq is STILL a domestic issue: a story about children dying of cancer

From now on, whenever you see any article that talks about the US budget being "tight," it means that money has been stolen from some worthy cause by George W. Bush, who diverted those precious tax dollars to pursue what is turning out to be one of the biggest financial…

Continue ReadingIraq is STILL a domestic issue: a story about children dying of cancer