Requiem for Reality

The other day a friend of mine posted an email purported to be sent to the Presidents office in response to recent Health-care changes. After reading the article I posted a response in order to, perhaps, have people look at things from a different perspective. Here is the exchange in it's entirety.

Wall Photos
Pictured is a young physician by the name of Dr. Roger Starner Jones. His short two-paragraph lett...er to the White House accurately puts the blame on a "Culture Crisis" instead of a "Health Care Crisis"..

It's worth a quick read:


Dear Mr. President:
During my shift in the Emergency Room last night, I had the pleasure of evaluating a patient whose smile revealed an expensive shiny gold tooth, whose body was adorned with a wide assortment of elaborate and costly tattoos, who wore a very expensive brand of tennis shoes and who chatted on a new cellular telephone equipped with a popular R&B ringtone.


While glancing over her patient chart, I happened to notice that her payer status was listed as "Medicaid"! During my examination of her, the patient informed me that she smokes more than one pack of cigarettes every day, eats only at fast-food take-outs, and somehow still has money to buy pretzels and beer. And, you and our Congress expect me to pay for this woman's health care? I contend that our nation's "health care crisis" is not the result of a shortage of quality hospitals, doctors or nurses. Rather, it is the result of a "crisis of culture" a culture in which it is perfectly acceptable to spend money on luxuries and vices while refusing to take care of one's self or, heaven forbid, purchase health insurance. It is a culture based in the irresponsible credo that "I can do whatever I want to because someone else will always take care of me". Once you fix this "culture crisis" that rewards irresponsibility and dependency, you'll be amazed at how quickly our nation's health care difficulties will disappear.

Respectfully,
ROGER STARNER JONES, MD
If you agree...pass it on.

My response:

http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/starner.asp

Excellent point. I think the Clarion ledger also make an interesting counter argument.

Their Response:

I read that article DeMarcus and I think that an interesting counter argument was presented but in my opinion (this is aimed at the article, not you) when it comes to it, I think it has come down to the point where we do have to look at ind...ividual choices of people. I think that that goes across the board, priorities have to be made by everyone. If you go shopping for clothes and just "wants" you better have the money to pay your rent and other bills. If you choose to go to get fast food rather than taking the extra ten minutes to go to the store and shop from the produce section which happens to be the cheapest section in the store and make your own meals that provide an excellent nutritional benefit there shouldn't be a surprise when you start feeling unhealthy and your organs start to fail because you have supplied them with inadequate nutrients. If you have the money for cigarettes, fast food and all the WANTS before the needs and before you hand in your application to a fast food restaurant (which there is ALWAYS a "looking for help" sign) you shouldn't reap the benefits of what hard working citizens provide you with. Medicaid is a state and federally funded system that is to aid the low income part of our population but it is instead abused by more than half of its recipients. They may be low-income but when people chose to not help themselves AT ALL there is a problem. When an emergency call is placed and the location happens to be run down and visibly not properly maintained but there is a new Tahoe parked outside and a new TV inside there is a problem. When I go to the grocery store and I see an individual that is paying with an EBT card/food stamps but has their order divided because they are going to pay for their pop, candy and everything else that isn't covered by their stamps separately there is a problem there too. The majority of our low-income assistant programs are abused in our country and there needs to be a resolve.
Do we provide everyone with health care regardless of their background? What if they are the regular life-time drunk LFD brings in 3+ times a week or the person that CHOOSES to continue to procreate even though they don't have enough money to feed themselves alone? While I don't believe in abstinence only education programs, if you cannot afford contraception items, DON'T HAVE SEX. I believe there should be a system that makes health care accessible for people who DO NOT abuse their help being provided. If you are having a hard time providing for yourself and actively try to better your situation in anyway you can you deserve health care. If you are the unfortunate victim of this terrible economy or if you have sustained an injury that is prohibiting you to do the job you once did you deserve care. Educating oneself is not cheap but in regards to financial aid and community colleges, education is accessible and do able and tuition is generally easier to pay for when you are granted federal aid. No one should have to go without but not trying, not doing and abusing shouldn't get you health care that myself along with everyone else that works is paying for. There needs to be a reform for our current system.

My SUUUUPER LONG RESPONSE:

Phew! Ok that was a lot to read, but I'll try to respond to each point the best that I can. Let me just say off the bat that I am in no way right or left. I am simply calling it like it is, by the numbers, while attempting to look at the la...rger picture.

" If you choose to go to get fast food rather than taking the extra ten minutes to go to the store and shop from the produce section which happens to be the cheapest section in the store and make your own meals that provide an excellent nutritional benefit there shouldn't be a surprise when you start feeling unhealthy and your organs start to fail because you have supplied them with inadequate nutrients."

I agree with this for the most part, however, plainly stated, eating healthier costs substantially more money than eating unhealthy. It is sad but true. There are remedies to this problem in the near future, but at the current junction, this is where we stand. Individuals who receive assistance in food purchasing (food stamps etc..) have a limited amount allotted based on their means determination. Consider if you will you have 2 children that live with you. You have been allotted $300 per month for food. Would you rather spend the $300 at the whole foods store (better living etc..) where you can eat healthily for a week. Or spend your money on the Dollar menu or cheap, preservative filled foods from a less than reputable grocery store, where your family can eat for 3 or 4 weeks? Not that I condone eating these things, but when money is tight, food is food.

" If you have the money for cigarettes, fast food and all the WANTS before the needs and before you hand in your application to a fast food restaurant (which there is ALWAYS a "looking for help" sign) you shouldn't reap the benefits of what hard working citizens provide you with."

This statement is my current biggest gripe with the citizens today. A job is a job yes! But under employment is as bad if not worse than unemployment. You no doubt know the difficulties of making ends meet on your current wages, and I surmise that those are at least $5.00 an hour over those working at fast food restaurants. Realistically these menial jobs are fine to get on your feet, or for teenagers, but a person with a family would find it difficult to survive on this paycheck alone. However I do agree with the cigarettes portion. Priorities need to be re-established in that case.

"Medicaid is a state and federally funded system that is to aid the low income part of our population but it is instead abused by more than half of its recipients. "

I'd like to take this statement as fact, but I am having a difficult time finding corresponding stats. That is not to say this is not true, but I would like to see numbers. To dovetail on that, the media would have us believe such statements to be true. Often times the news outlets sensationalize stats or take them out of context in order to procure ratings. There are outliers to every federally and state funded system out there, but to say this is the norm, I think (at least until I see numbers) is a gross misrepresentation.

‎"They may be low-income but when people chose to not help themselves AT ALL there is a problem. When an emergency call is placed and the location happens to be run down and visibly not properly maintained but there is a new Tahoe parked ou...tside and a new TV inside there is a problem."

Could not agree more. Again though are we saying that this is the norm, or that these are the outliers (albeit they have a large number)? Remember what you and I see at the hospital may reflect these trends more often than not, but the United States has a large population. Even if everyone in the city of Lansing behaved in this manner it would still only represent a small potion of the entire beneficiaries.

"When I go to the grocery store and I see an individual that is paying with an EBT card/food stamps but has their order divided because they are going to pay for their pop, candy and everything else that isn't covered by their stamps separately there is a problem there too."

Agreed, and this is why I believe it should be mandatory to have classes and education on how one chooses to purchase food items. Soda and kool-aide are not viable solutions to problems nor are they healthy alternatives. I suppose the counter argument would be, but are we going to say that the impoverished don't deserve the same creature comforts that you and I have?

" The majority of our low-income assistant programs are abused in our country and there needs to be a resolve."

Every system is abused. There is no perfect system. The extent to how it is abused is different depending on what media outlet you subscribe to. There are millions of hard working individuals who struggle every day but are not equipped with the proper tools or access to the resources to succeed. Coupled with that is the unfortunate reality that is our society, in that, not every one can be successful. Everyone is entitled to pursue happiness, but only those who are in the right place at the right time with the right amount of education and connections are usually those who do. This is coming from a person who WAS homeless. I had an opportunity at my age, to join the USAF and from there I had the proper tools. But what about those who are much older? Who despite their efforts fell on hard times? Do we say they don't work hard enough? Or that they should know better?

"Do we provide everyone with health care regardless of their background? What if they are the regular life-time drunk LFD brings in 3+ times a week "

For me this is a humanistic thing. I believe that every human, regardless of race, color, creed, national country of origin, or lifestyle choice should be allowed, at the very least, to live healthily. Many people do decide to cast their lives aside for alcohol or drug addiction, but are we supposed to be the ones to judge? Imagine if this person was your loved one. Do you cut them off and pretend they don't exist or do you do everything in your power to help your fellow American? As much as I disliked certain individuals who partook in the health system freely, I believe that where the constitution states "Life, Liberty, & the pursuit of happiness" were entitled to life...even at the most basic level.

" Educating oneself is not cheap but in regards to financial aid and community colleges, education is accessible and do able and tuition is generally easier to pay for when you are granted federal aid."

I didn't respond to the portions in between this statement and the last because I agreed completely. Here however, I have to disagree. In fact I believe this is where our nation needs to begin to rebuild in order to fix the types of problems we've discussed. Education is not accessible, nor is federal aide a viable option or solution. For many (such as myself) federal aide offers little to no assistance. The government offers loans but at whatever interest rate they think is necessary. In the end you're left with a debt load that you hope your job will cover, if or when you get a job with your education. On top of all this people are dealing with their immediate problems of bill payments and food attainment. Bill collectors do not want to hear, "I promise I'll pay my lights when I'm done with school and get a good job."

The point of this whole thing is just as the Clarion Ledger stated. "We are all in this together". I feel as if American citizens have lost their sense of brotherhood and replaced it with a sense of entitlement. Instead of finding a solution to the problems we face Democrats & Republicans point the finger at each other and then we blame the victim for his current situation. In most other industrialized nations universal systems of health-care and education have worked and blossomed. I would like to write more but I'm not sure if FB will even be able to post all of this. None of this is meant to be taken personally. I just feel like the direction we as a young generation are going is going to lead us into a separatist nation where we have no middle class, and the poor are everywhere you turn.

This was more or less posted here so that others can comment and discuss this in a field where they would have less scrutiny and more characters.