Posted on 06/25/2007 4:16:14 AM PDT by theothercheek
Michael Moore's "Sicko," a polemical rant on universal healthcare falsely advertised as a documentary, is causing Dem presidential hopefuls nothing but headaches and heartburn, reports the Los Angeles Times:
[U]nlike Al Gore's film on global warming, which helped rally support on an equally controversial problem, "Sicko" is creating an awkward situation for the leading Democratic presidential candidates.
Rejecting Moore's prescription on healthcare could alienate liberal activists, who will play a big role in choosing the party's next standard-bearer. However, his proposal — wiping out private health insurance and replacing it with a massive federal program — could be political poison with the larger electorate. …
Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois and former Sen. John Edwards of South Carolina [sic] all have staked out positions sharply at odds with Moore's approach. But none of them is eager to have that fact dragged into the spotlight. …
"Sicko" agitates for dismantling the insurance industry, regulating pharmaceutical companies up the wazoo, and adopting a Canadian-style socialized healthcare delivery system. Moore hopes his healthcare cure will gain traction amongst voters after "Sicko’s" general release June 29.
An inconvenient truth that "Sicko" will not tell you: Canadians who have the financial means to pay out-of-pocket for American-style healthcare, prefer to come here rather than be subjected to health-threatening waits for specialists who are all-too-often recruited from second-tier medical schools in third-world countries. For instance, The Mayo Clinic (which has branches in Rochester, MN, Jacksonville, FL, and Scottsdale/Phoenix, AZ) serves an international clientele.
Given his girth, The Stiletto is laying odds that within 10 to 15 years Moore will suffer a major cardiovascular event – probably a myocardial or cerebral infarct – and will gratefully avail himself of the best U.S. medical care that his somewhat considerable fortune can buy. You can bet he won’t be going to Canada or to Cuba for treatment and rehab.
[Editorial Note: Several years ago, The Stiletto was vacationing in Norway with two friends. We were all injured when the bus we were riding in Oslo collided with a car. One friend suffered cuts and bruises, one fractured her forearm and The Stiletto thought she might have cracked a rib or two. Police took us to a nearby hospital, where we found out that our money was no good. No, we weren’t going to get free healthcare. We were going to get NO healthcare. You see, X-ray films, plaster for casts and other medical supplies are strictly rationed. The hospital had a set number of X-ray films, for instance, and could not get restocked if they ran out before December 31st of that year (it was the end of June). The ER did not want to "waste" any of their medical supplies on tourists – even though we would pay cash on the barrelhead – because their own citizens might have to go without by the end of the year. The Stiletto nearly caused an international incident to get her friend’s arm casted. She never did get her ribs X-rayed; turned out they were badly bruised but not broken. She received no painkillers or other treatment. That’s socialized medicine in a nutshell.]
within 10 to 15 years Moore will suffer a major cardiovascular event
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I dont wish Michael any bad luck,but it would be good if the nation could find out who he will use for his care.
We really dont want to wait 10 years to find out so I hope it happens soon. Merely for beneficial and scientific reasons you understand.
http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=9886
June 12th, 2007 1:25 pm
Sicko’s Cuba trip was legal, says Moore
Michael Moore yesterday lashed out at US authorities for investigating the Cuban chapter of his Sicko, Moore’s healthcare exposé which opened in Cannes last month. The documentary features footage of Moore travelling to Cuba with September 11 aid workers.
During a press conference in New York, the Fahrenheit 9/11 director said the US Treasury’s investigation, which is looking into whether Moore broke a 45-year-old US trade embargo on Cuba, is “a form of harassment”.
“We are going to fight this and we are going to be very aggressive to find who is behind this,” said Moore.
The trip was legal because it was a “journalistic endeavour”, authorised under the embargo law, argued Moore’s lawyer. “This is not about Cuba and it is not about whether you like Castro or not,” said David Boies. “This is about freedom of the press and an attempt to discriminate against Michael Moore’s journalism.” At the centre of the storm is a 15-minute section of Sicko, a film on the problems of the US healthcare system, which shows Moore attempting to reach the Guantanamo Bay detention camp to make the point that suspected al-Qaida detainees were getting better health-care treatment than three ailing September 11 rescue workers onboard with him. The director then goes to Cuba to seek treatment for the workers and to film Cuba’s healthcare system. Moore said he was “concerned about what the Bush administration might do over the next couple of weeks. “I would have thought they would have waited until long after the film had been released to go after me,” he said, adding that he sent a copy of the film to Canada to prevent possible attempts by US authorities to seize the film.
Asked whether the controversy was conveniently well-timed to tie in with the release of the film, due in the US on June 29, Moore answered: “(producers) Bob and Harvey (Weinstein) actually did call Mr Bush and ask him to start investigating me. “I knew they were tight with the Clintons, but this showed the amount of influence these men have. All in this room should fear them,” he said.
On a more serious note, Moore said that they didn’t ask for the controversy. “We were going to open this movie very quietly,” he said. “We’re not talking here about a movie or the opening or promotion of a movie. We’re talking about an individual being threatened and I take that very seriously.”
Well, given what passes for journalism today his film is being called a documentary so if there’s a loophole in the embargo, then I guess it’s big enough for him to fit in in (Ha!). But what about those other folks who went with him and allowed themselves to become anti-American propaganda tools on foreign soil - plus one of them reportedly returned to Cuba without Moore for follow-up treatment.
I hope none of them get away with it.
Let them demand that the Demonrats pledge to scrap our system and give everyone 3rd world medicaid and double taxes to pay for it.
That would scare the voters enough to keep the Rats out of office.
“I dont wish Michael any bad luck,but it would be good if the nation could find out who he will use for his care.”
Given his vitriol, Mr. Moore might have a problem finding a doctor who would treat him or a hospital that would admit him.
anyone who advocates any socialist remedy for a perceived problem should be required to give up all of his assets, present earnings and future earnings and that of his spouse, in perpetuity, for the benefit of mankind. in that way, one could “put his money where his mouth is” instead of playing the intellectually superior moron who feels that he should be the G-d in everyone’s life.
Funny how Moore overlooked the biggest problem in our system - lawyers.
I have a friend from Australia. His father was diagnosed with stomach cancer. The solution offered by the socialized care system in Australia was to schedule him for surgery - 6 months from the date of diagnosis. He would most certainly have died and/or become inoperable in that period. He flew to the US, paid for surgery and is still alive 10 years later and could arguably be declared cured.
I'd like to see Moore do a film about this real American scandal -- the government funded and supported public housing projects which had unworking heating systems and elevators and which were infested with drugs, prostitution, rape, and murder.
I don’t know about that. Doctors supposedly live by the Hippocratic Oath and Moore certainly meets the scientific definition of a hippo.
Norway has another tier of private health care which does take cash - I guess no one told the Stiletto about it.
Moore certainly meets the scientific definition of a hippo.
LOL!~~~snort~~~
But, then I would send him to Cuba or Canada for treatment.
There is no way he can go to a US Hospital. he knows how he will be portrayed. he will have his fat a$$ put on a plane to Cuba.
IMO the title “SICKO” ,best describes the films Producer-Director.
Could it be possible that the nearest hospital was a public hospital rather than a private hospital? What kind of socialized medicine is this anyway when some animals are more equal than others if they can pay? It sounds just like the US system except that the government is the health insurer rather than private companies, which means everyone pays higher taxes.
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