A little political humor.
shadowcat
Atlanta suburb
A man goes into the hospital for a vasectomy.
Before the procedure a very attractive nurse comes in and takes his vitals, then tells him to take all of his clothes off. When he is fully undressed she instructs him to lie down on the table.The man obeys. The nurse then takes all of her clothes off and climbs on top and has her way with him.
Upon the completion of the act the man catches his breath and asks what that was all about. The nurse informs the patient that studies
have shown that before a vasectomy if the man has an ejaculation, he will be more relaxed and that the cord is easier for the surgeon
to locate and sever, thereby making the surgery safer, more efficient and quicker.
The nurse then wheels the patient to the operating room.
While they are going down the hall the patient looks through a window to the right and sees six men in a room masturbating.
Curious, the man asks," What are they doing in there"? The nurse responds, " They're preparing for vasectomies too,
but you have Blue Cross, and they have Obama Care."
Before the procedure a very attractive nurse comes in and takes his vitals, then tells him to take all of his clothes off. When he is fully undressed she instructs him to lie down on the table.The man obeys. The nurse then takes all of her clothes off and climbs on top and has her way with him.
Upon the completion of the act the man catches his breath and asks what that was all about. The nurse informs the patient that studies
have shown that before a vasectomy if the man has an ejaculation, he will be more relaxed and that the cord is easier for the surgeon
to locate and sever, thereby making the surgery safer, more efficient and quicker.
The nurse then wheels the patient to the operating room.
While they are going down the hall the patient looks through a window to the right and sees six men in a room masturbating.
Curious, the man asks," What are they doing in there"? The nurse responds, " They're preparing for vasectomies too,
but you have Blue Cross, and they have Obama Care."
43 comments
HAHAHAHAHAHA! That's even funnier than shadowcat's joke! Good one, dude!
Scary, ain't it.
I'm old enough to remember that joke when it was new, but I like the obamacare update.
@jester214: "Gawker they absolutely need young healthy people to sign up or it won't work. I'm not sure that was the "purpose" but it's the reality."
It's the business model of ALL INSURANCE, homeowners, auto, health, etc.
In order for private insurers to make $$ for their investors they must spread risk around, meaning some people holding insurance may not need to make a claim over the period for which they paid the premium. That's the reason for the individual mandate: to have enough participants paying in allowing insurers [theoretically] to set lower premiums.
You already participate in this risk-spread system by buying BCBS. Don't like it -- then don't buy health/auto insurance. My state requires all drivers to have minimum insurance. Some refuse and the rest of us MUST [state law] add uninsured motorist coverage to our auto policies. Either way insurers aren't left with uninsured risk.
Originally, Affordable Care Act was to include a public[ally] funded option. When it was abandoned and ACA was based only on using private insurers that required the individual mandate.
Some people hate mandates. Motorcyclists fume over state laws requiring wearing a helmet. Head injuries as a result of some motorcycle accidents affect more than the rider because taxpayers end up paying the underinsured riders medical bills or disability payments, etc.
I'm all for riders having the right to refuse to wear a helmet as long as they sign a legally binding waiver saying no public/taxpayer monies are to be used in their care, etc. You make a choice, YOU alone pay the consequences.
Our own plan at work is now slightly worse and this is blamed on ObamaCare, but only by hair, so I'm fine with that if means everyone in the country is covered.
It is what it is: a cobbled together system that arose of of compromises necessary to get it passed. I have a hard time getting that excited over it. But assertions like ol' Dallas' are a just a wee bit over the top. 'Cos we all know that typical congressional staffers...we know the come from backgrounds where they don't have health insurance. Indeed, I would be not at all shocked if -- to a person -- none had ever visited a doctor in their lives!
In fact, I heard that BigTuna is actually a congressional staffer. He doles out the medical care in the form of rumatiz medicine fro his granny's still!
I'll let gmd speak for himself why he says it is fascist.
Since the ACA knows they can't induce these people to buy in and cover the high risk people who will likely purchase, they have to try and coerce them.
If you don't want homeowners insurance, rent. If you don't want car insurance, walk. Those are choices people are allowed to make, or perhaps WERE allowed to make.
Fascism, on the other hand, especially as practiced by Nazi Germany, typically allows (ostensibly) private ownership of the means of production, but the government mandates how that production occurs, directing what may be produced, or how much it will cost, etc. The ACA is more the latter than the former.
So is it fascism for the FDA to close down my mushroom plant just 'cos they gots the maggots. I mean this is a capitalist country...why SHOULDN'T I be allowed to sell 'shrooms with XXXtra maggots. ZOMG the fascists are coming to get me!
Regardless of whether the ACA is good or bad policy it isn't qualitatively different from plenty of other policies that are longstanding and many of which are good policy...unless you dig buying your 'shrooms and finding that they are actually 'shrooms 'n maggots that is.
Simply looking up a few factoids 'bout Nazi Germany doesn't mean any parallel you notice is Nazism. You do realize the real problem with the Nazis, don't you?
Oh, and the whole genocide and attacking their neighbors thing. But those mustaches were really FUCKED UP!!!
I guess it must be fascism that the government forces Ford and GM to make cars with working brakes.
Great joke, BTW. But I think only the insurance policies that John McCain wanted to tax might include a hot fuck with your vasectomy.
My parents never had insurance when I was a child, rather they paid the doctor, usually in cash as he left our home after the HOUSE CALL! Worked pretty damn good!
This idea that people deserve medical care is a goddamn joke. Some of you guys argue about smoking bans...Well, do you feel that someone who smokes deserves the same priority to get health care as someone who never smokes? If not, then let's look at obesity, poor life choices, addictions, gender, genetics, and other reasons to prioritize who gets the medical care.
My general opposition to the ACA is that it isn't going to be able to work. You can't get enough young people paying into a system to take care of the older people (Look at social security and how fucked up that is). It'll drive us into further debt to maintain which will hurt the economy, which means more people wont be able to pay into the system and there we have a downward spiral.
We haven't always provided healthcare through insurance or other systems. Doctors provided their services to those who could pay and some even donated their time and skills to help those who couldn't afford their services. But it is a fucking service...not some obligation that because you study medicine you have to give it away to every person that comes along. I'm not unsympathetic to those who can't afford health care...but I'm not going to be forced to be charitable because someone else thinks I should. I have my own money issues and do my damnedest to make sure I to have to depend on charity. I am supposed to be a free man in a free country and that means I have the freedom to succeed or to fail. I have no claims on others to help me out if I fuck up or a goddamned meteor lands on my head.
/rant
They ALREADY get healthCARE on our dime. Check out any ER and see how many have insurance. Idiots go there for a F*$#%ing cold! What they don't have is insurance. Read my post above yours.
Well yeah, technically. It's certainly not capitalism, and it doesn't fit the definition of socialism, so what would you call it.
Mind you, that doesn't necessarily mean that I approve or disapprove of the practice.
Fascism implies a concentration of power in a dictator. I know you might say Obama is moving closer to being the said dictator, and I do agree with that to some extent, e.g. NSA spying and other abuses of power, but ObamaCare did pass both the Senate and House, so calling it "fascist" is definitely a stretch, IMO. It's either the work of a Democracy you don't agree with, or elected bodies and a judiciary in a Republic that is violating its own constitution.
Imposing standards on production that can't be controlled by the markets, or can't be controlled without serious/lethal consequences, isn't fascist.
Is it sometimes a blurry line? Sure.
Already I know a lot of people have seen significantly higher premiums and deductibles for the coming year. A family member told me there monthly premiums more than tripled for 2014 despite them never having used the insurance since they bought it.
Though I doubt they'll qualify given their specifics. Though admittedly I don't know the requirements.
But even so, Obama said ACA would reduce premiums for people who already had insurance. For 2014 it doesn't look like that's going to be the case for a lot of people.
Imposing standards on production that can't be controlled by the markets, or can't be controlled without serious/lethal consequences, isn't fascist"
Hmm..you do realize you just made the case for government intervention in health care, don't you? It is actually kind of difficult to suss out what you think about the issue, but I think we've settled the issue of fascism. Unless you are implying that lack of access to health care NEVER has serious/lethal consequences.
After all...what is the worst that can happen from eating shrooms 'n maggots? Them maggots be a good source o' protein. But still, I understand that it is so much worse than a chronic health condition you can't get treated 'cos it was a pre-existing condition.
Governments can and should take actions ensure that goods and services are fit for the general purpose for which they are sold. That means they should ensure that there is a very limited number of maggots in the 'shrooms (minor issue in the scheme of things), very small amounts of cadmium (at most) in your kids silly putty, and that the breaks on your car work properly. All good things. All fascist by your definition. But if you had to do the caveat emptor thing to the point where you personally checked all that stuff when you bought stuff society wouldn't function.
The issue is that "fascist" is a pergorative. It implies an overly intrusive and dictatorial imposition of rules. The problem is that a rule you find overly intrusive may be viewed as necessary and desirable (i.e., fascist by your definition) may be viewed as necessary and desirable by the majority. Consider my maggot 'shrooms. What's the harm? To my knowledge that case isn't associated with a health issue. It is just kind of gross. If the USDA lifted the rule we'd quit eating maggoty brands (if some companies imposed self regulation), give up on the 'shrooms, or get used to crunchy, crunchy maggots.
But enough Americans dislike the maggots that the government imposes the "fascist" rule.
And the Republican Party will take credit for universal health care. (And I don't find the distinction between insurance and care compelling. Lack of insurance places limits on the type of care you have access to in the modern world, so they are inextricably intertwined).
@comradezipman. thank you so much for reminding us that fascism is good and thank you for making the trains run on time. btw may i ask where those trains are going or should i just get on and stfu?