The thoughts I recently shared about the American medical system elicited interesting responses from a couple of respected friends. Sounds like getting old in Germany might be a bad idea if you want good access to medical care. As well, many countries lack something like the Americans with Disabilities Act, which forced businesses to make accommodations for handicapped people’s access. Ramps, elevators, electric door openers, special toilet facilities. My friends Pat and Jack who participate in the American Medicare system seem to be really happy with it, although as Jack recently noted, some medical facilities aren’t available to him. Seems that wealthy Canadians who Winter in Arizona clog up the local “for profit” medical facilities, paying for procedures that their own nationalized healthcare either won’t provide or else they find themelves at the back of a very long line. Wealthy Mexicans come to America for procedures too. I learned in 2015 that Scripps Green Cancer Center in La Jolla, California offers a 40% discount to patients paying cash rather than using health insurance. Likely Canadians bring suitcases full of cash and get the same sorts of discounts from the likes of The Mayo Clinic. Good for them. The relationship between the medical system and the health insurance system in America is one of the biggest problems with our system.
It would seem that the COVID-19 pandemic has been a wakeup call to the American medical system. Ridiculous and archaic laws regarding doctors practicing across state lines. Telemedicine is rapidly becoming a common way to seek medical help. Hope you bought Zoom and Teledoc stock! With any luck the American medical system will be forced to continue modernizing and hopefully competition or patients will drive positive change including lower costs.
The American capitalist system is all about competition, except when it isn’t. Raisin growers in California have their own cartel to prop prices up. Lots of businesses and industries get subsidized. The government props up the housing real-estate market. Fortunately or not, the Iridium satellite communications system has been propped up by the US Department of Defense. We love having satellite communications using our Iridium Go, but the email and texting apps are absolute junk and the service seems quite expensive. Elon Musk promises to solve this problem within a couple of years with his own satellite constellation, including smaller cheaper hardware and faster cheaper service. Elon is big on promises and doesn’t always deliver, but I wouldn’t bet against him. Sure wish Space-X stock was publicly traded.
Ever eat industrial waste? Did your mom fry chicken with Crisco or feed you margarine instead of butter? It’s amazing how marketing and bad science can get us to put total crap into our bodies. Remember when eggs were bad for you? Ignoring the recommendations of mainstream nutritional authorities in America is probably a great idea, and instead eat your meat and veg like grandma always said. The English have marmite, and the Aussies vegemite. Sludge from a brewing operation of some sort. Americans would probably have turned that into cattle feed, but because I married an English girl I have learned to really like marmite on buttered toast. It’s an acquired taste.
John, that big red blob way down South of us is likely something brewing up from the Southern Ocean. Our own available forecasting products include 24, 48 and 72-hour prog charts for the South Pacific as well as the Predictwind subscription products. Have a look with your high-speed internet and let me know if something is coming to smite us. Thanks. We’ve had enough of that for a spell. . .
Got an attitude or some intel to share? Love to hear from you: email text only to WDG9444@SAILMAIL.COM.
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