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• 50 million Americans don't have healthcare (Sicko)
• In Haiti it costs $20,000 to treat a disease, whilst in America $6 million
• America spends the most on its healthcare (17% GDP), yet it has the lowest life expectancy (77.5) (Landmark reading)
• The new healthcare plan will FINE people for not having healthcare (Landmark reading)

Everything has been helpful in understanding what kind of a state America's healthcare system truely is in. Sicko, although terribly one sided put in into perspective for me. Seeing people who have lost everything really put it into perspective to me. How can a country that stands on being so civilised and 'free for all' stand for such injustice?

I think it would be interesting to explore how the healthcare system got in this situation initally and how it can get out of the mess. It would be nice to focus on something hopeful, as I find the subject of death everyday a bit depressing...

HW 25 - Response To Sicko

Investigating the corrupt healthcare system and the politicians that have allowed it to be this way was an enlightening and scary process.
We supposedly live in a country that is 'free for all' but yet the healthcare, is far from free. In one of the richest, capitalist countries in the world we still see 50 million Americans go without healthcare. In a privatised healthcare system where granting money for operations is seen as a 'loss' and the motto they work by is 'less care is more profit' how can we expect to get the care we deserve? Meanwhile a short step over the border into Canada it's a completely different story. Healthcare is free. Whilst in 'civilised' America you would have to decide which finger to keep after sawing them both off because you couldn't afford to keep them both, in Canada you would still have the priviledge of 5 fingers. Although America may be a leading superpower in the 21st century they operate under what seem quite frankly an outdated system. Step into a different country once again, Britain, and instead of having cigarettes sold in pharmacy, you actually have medicine sold. Although ignorantly we have not learnt that an industrialised system is for the better.

"$100 spent to defeat Hilarys health care plan"
"Like Canadians and Brits, the French live longer than we do."
"The life expectancy in the United States is 77.5 whilst the united Kingdom is 78.5, France 79.6 and Canada 80.2"

On one hand I completeley agree with what Moore is trying to argue, but as usual he does it in his one sided, persuasive, in your face way. Once again he has presented a very one sided argument that will persuade his mindless followers that everything is peachy and rosey when you have free healthcare. Although coming from a country with healthcare I will say that I think the American healthcare system is completley messed up, and quite frankly contradicts everything you stand for, I am not going to lie and say that everything works out when there is free healthcare. Moore convieniently left out that people were left dying on the table, waiting for surgery and the tedious waiting lists. But then I remind myself that Moore is a filmmaker, and at the end of the day, no one wants to see a boring film that agrees with both sides. People want to see action. And Moore wants to see money..

'Tuesdays with Morrie' by Mitch Albom (published by DoubleDay in 1997).

Tuesdays with Morrie follows the journey of a dying man,Morrie, and his student Mitch Albom. Through Morrie's unconventional approach to death Mitch gets fascinating insights, and wisdom from a man slowly sufferring a cripling disease.
In one of the initial chapters of the book Mitch rediscovers his old teacher as he's on the news. This was an important point for me as I feel the only comforting part in death is that it makes you realise how fragile life is, and thus appreciate everything that much more.

"And if you are ever going to have other people trust you, you must feel that you can trust them, too- even when you're in the dark. Even when you're falling." -pg 61
I loved this quote and brought it up many times in discussion. I found it so inspriational and inspiring that someone in a position such as this would still have so much wisdom and hope. Much like when your in a dark room you need to search for the light, you always need to have hope because if you don't have that, what do you have? I actually think this is one of my favourite quotes. This can be related to dying as if you do not have hope, the process will criple you not only physically, but mentally aswell.

"Mitch, I don't allow myself any more self-pity than that. A little each morning, a few tears, and that's all." pg 57
I think Morrie's approach to death is fascinating, and if everyone in the world thought like him we wouldn't have a stigma about death or dying, but embrace it. We might be scared deep down, but we would embrace the new experiences and insights that it had brought to our life.

"Love wins. Love always wins." pg 40
I just loved this quote, because to me, the true meaning of life is love.


Morrie's approach to dying does not demonstrate how the masses view death. He embraces it and does not wallow in self-pity like others. I found this so inspirational, and even though i'm not sure I would approach it the same way, I found it extremely interesting.

Comments

i had to print screen because apparently blogger doesnt like me...

HMW 21

1. The first thing that hit me was that the guest speaker had no insurance, as they were artists and self employed. Thus reslting in having to wait 11 months to gain the government health care that her family was entitled to. I found it enlightening though, that when her family eventually did gain the correct insurance, the nurses and medcine they recived could not have been better.

2. An aspect that made me sympathise with Ms Wood's story was that of time 'snowballing.' After my grandad was diagnosed two years seemed to fly by and you realise you can never have enough time with the ones you love.

3. As Wood told her story I sensed a medley of different emotion from denial of her husbands death and the nasty disease that took his like to shock of the diagnosis. I identified with everything she said, although I can't imagine the person I'd spent over two decades with not being there when I woke up everyday.

4. The 'honeymoon from death' which Wood talked about I was already familiar with me. You want to believe that your loved one will make a miraculous recovery and convince yourself that it will soon come. So you cling on to the slightest sign of recovery, and hope and pray with every inch of your body that it will go away and you will get better, but unfortunately, sometimes it's just another bump in the road.

5. Wood talked about seeking advice from a Buddhist monk about the afterlife and death. To me it seems like she was looking for an answer. I think it is simply human nature to want to understand and answer everything in life, and this is why people turn to religion. They want to believe that all their problems are part of some master plan, or that an all mighty being can simply fix them. I think this is where heaven comes into play. We don't want to believe the bleak, depressing reality of just laying 6 feet under when we die, as the idea of sitting a fluffy white cloud in heaven with everything we could ever want sounds so much better.
I believe in signs just like Wood, but I'm an agnostic. It would be lovely to believe that their is an idyllic place up in the sky where we all go when we die, but as my Grandma says, when something is too good to be true, it probably is. So I like to believe that my Grandad is still with me, he's still watching over me, and I still talk to him.

6. Wood described that she never used the word 'death' or 'dying' and although some may say that this is living in denial, others would argue that this is the way in which they wanted to deal with it. And rather than denying the truth, they rather put aside the depressing reality of death and decided rather to focus on the positive. Although I feel that we should face death and not be scared of it, I totally agree with embracing the positive in life and hoping for the best. Because at the end of the day if we don't have hope, what do we have?

After hearing the guest speakers story, a few questions came to mind.
- Is artificial life natural, and is it needed?
- Does religion help or hinder our ability to accept death?
- Is denial a bad thing, or does it keep hope alive?
- Why do we stick to the social norms because we agree with them or because its whats expected of us?

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In retrospect to following in our families footsteps, I feel as though my family has moulded my view on 'Illness and Dying' and society has shaped theirs.

The first experience with death I have come across was my Grandfathers death last year. As far as I know the normal social practices were followed. One main differnece being that my Grandma asked everyone to wear blue, instead of black. Blue was special to my Grandad as since a teenager he was an avid Cardiff bluebirds supporter. Seeing everyone coming to his funeral in the team strip or just a simple blue top really meant alot to me, as I knew my Grandad would have loved it.

I think that whatever the social practices may be you need to find what is meaningful and appropriate for you,because what does following the rules really mean if they go against everything you believe in? I think because we focus so ridigly on fitting into the social norms that we do not even question them, as we believe them to be 'normal.' We shouldn't feel confined or trapped in certain rituals, but flourish in differences and new experiences.