T.R. Reid Explains the 4 Basic Health Care Models (And Max Baucus is Listening!)

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Sunday November 23, 2008 · 10:41 AM PST

2008/11/23 · 10:41

Author T.R. Reid studied world health care systems for his PBS documentary Sick Around the World.

In an excerpt from his upcoming book, he explains that there are four basic models of health care in use around the world, and how they compare to the US "system".

These four models should be fairly easy for Americans to understand because we have elements of all of them in our fragmented national health care apparatus. When it comes to treating veterans, we're Britain or Cuba. For Americans over the age of 65 on Medicare, we're Canada. For working Americans who get insurance on the job, we're Germany.

For the 15 percent of the population who have no health insurance, the United States is Cambodia or Burkina Faso or rural India...

The United States is unlike every other country because it maintains so many separate systems for separate classes of people. All the other countries have settled on one model for everybody. This is much simpler than the U.S. system; it's fairer and cheaper, too.

steveGA

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Monday November 03, 2008 · 11:28 PM PST

2008/11/03 · 23:28

Apparently Mika Brzezinski is buying into the "Palin was mishandled" narrative hook, line, and sinker. Tonight on Race for the White House, she actually had this scary exchange with McCain Senior Advisor Nicole Wallace.

MIKA:

"I want to ask you about Sarah Palin. She was quite amazing today. I was watching her in Lakewood, Ohio, performing umm, beautifully, really - masterfully - and really growing, amidst a great deal of challenge, some it fair and some of it unfair from the media."

"I wonder how she feels, and how you feel about how the campaign has handled her. Do you think she was overcoached? Was the Katie Couric interview a mistake? Was the clothing thing a mistake?"

The Katie Couric interview was a "mistake"? Are you kidding me? It was the fault of Palin's handlers that they didn't shield her even MORE from the press? This woman is running for Vice President of the United States of America and you are blaming her handlers for letting her sit for an interview on the CBS Evening News? What planet are you from Mika? Are you really related to Zbig? Seriously?

Unbelivably, the madness continued...

steveGA

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Friday October 03, 2008 · 11:48 PM PDT

2008/10/03 · 23:48

Tonight on Hardball Chris Matthews has been hammering on Palin's debate performance throughout the show. His outrage at the way she is being graded on a curve while running for the second highest office in the land finally reached a boiling point near the end of the show, and he let loose with a classic rant!

Here's the video, with transcript below:

steveGA

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Wednesday October 01, 2008 · 9:27 PM PDT

2008/10/01 · 21:27

I realize Gwen Ifill is currently under attack for allegedly being biased in favor of Obama. However if you watched the 2004 debate she didn't exactly come across as pro-Kerry. In fact her performance was roundly blasted on this site.

In 2004 Ifill's performance was criticized on multiple fronts. She was accused of:

* Asking leading questions

* Losing control of the debate

* Distracting from the candidates themselves

* Incorporating opposition talking points into the phrasing of her questions

I really hope she doesn't give a similar performance on Thursday night. Below are some details from 2004 to refresh your memory.

steveGA

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Thursday September 25, 2008 · 2:39 AM PDT

2008/09/25 · 02:39

A new WSJ/NBC poll finds only 40% of surveyed voters believe Sarah Palin is qualified to be President, compared with 64% who believe Joe Biden is qualified.

Questions about Palin's qualifications are no doubt being amplified by the fact that John McCain is 72 years old, and actuarial tables tell us a man of his age has a 1 in 7 chance of dying within the next 4 years.

Now Laura Bush has stated the obvious - Palin lacks foreign policy experience. Meanwhile, Palin's performance in her only 3 interviews has raised alarm bells, even the one with friendly Fox News.

Voters should also ask whether Palin is even qualified for Vice President. Remember, our current VP once made snap decisions to shoot down passenger airplanes.

steveGA

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Wednesday September 17, 2008 · 9:20 PM PDT

2008/09/17 · 21:20

Wow, I happened to flip on the Rachel Maddow show for the first time tonight, and I'm disappointed. There is no pretense at all of evenhandedness. Rachel gives her commentary, then interviews a Democratic politician about the problems with John McCain, then interviews progressive columnist Thomas Frank. This is all presented in a "news" like format, with the line between reporting and editorializing completely blurred.

Don't get me wrong. I like Rachel Maddow. I enjoy her commentary. I probably agree with 90% of her political views. I agree with almost everything her guests have had so far. But I think the way her show is structured to avoid opposing views reflects a sad state of affairs in our country.

Yes I know all about Fox News. When I first innocently encountered it in September 2001, I reacted with horror and disgust that there was such a rancid mix of subtle and not-so-subtle right-wing editorial content mixed right in amongst the "news" coverage. I was outraged and angered. But the answer I hoped to find some 7 years later was not a competing "anti-Fox" network. I'm afraid that's what MSNBC has become.

steveGA

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Saturday September 06, 2008 · 11:20 AM PDT

2008/09/06 · 11:20

I think even beyond her inexperience, the real risk of of the Palin pick is that she is an unknown to the American people. Perhaps the same could have been said at one point of Obama, but he has been under the microscope of the national media for almost 2 full years. He has been validated by over 18 million voters. He has participated in over 20 debates, given many press conferences, and been interviewed by almost every major news outlet in the world.

Meanwhile the clock as ticking as we await Palin's first press conference.

So, with apologies to Paul Simon...

steveGA

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Sunday June 08, 2008 · 7:50 PM PDT

2008/06/08 · 19:50

As Harry Shearer likes to say on LeShow - "from the Buried Lede department..."

I know the front page diarists here are prolific writers, and everyone likes a good essay, and it's fun to try to find some point or theory that nobody else has mentioned...but sometimes the truth is pretty darn simple.

HRC lost because she made a political calculation to vote for Iraqi war, instead of doing her constitutional duty as a US Senator. It backfired. I can't think of a more important lesson for other politicians to learn, but here at Kos it seems to be getting buried under an avalanche of campaign minutia.

steveGA

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Saturday May 03, 2008 · 6:05 AM PDT

2008/05/03 · 06:05

In recent years the Republican party has achieved great political success by appealing to the fears of voters. It was certainly not a new tactic, but it was shameless and effective. In fact it was so effective that a famous Democratic presidential candidate is now mimicking that tactic.

Ironically, in this same election cycle, another candidate has come along who doesn't appeal to our fears, but instead appeals to our best instincts. In fact supporting him actually requires us to put aside some old fears.

The choice could not be more clear. Are you tired of being afraid?

steveGA

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Wednesday January 02, 2008 · 9:50 AM PST

2008/01/02 · 09:50

The Iraq War was by far the most important issue to me in 2004, and that has not changed this time around. While Edwards' domestic rhetoric has appeal to me, his record on the war means I cannot ever vote for him in good conscience.

There were two clearly pivotal moments when it was possible to stop the war:

Before the congressional vote to authorize the war.

During the 2004 election cycle.

Edwards was on the wrong side of the war both times.

steveGA

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Sunday January 22, 2006 · 1:28 AM PST

2006/01/22 · 01:28

This week's McLaughlin Group is a must see. Lots of coverage of the increasing talk of impeaching Bush. But more significant to me was the discussion of Gore.

The first pundit (Steve something, sorry I missed his last name - not one of the regulars) said he was confident Gore is not running, because he's talked to "Gore people" who say Gore is not making the needed calls to line up big money.

Eleanor Clift then jumped in to say that Gore should probably be prefacing his speaches with a clarification that he is not a candidate for president, but that he can't bring himself to do it, because in his heart of hearts, he's hoping for a popular groundswell of support that will draft him to run.

steveGA

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Tuesday October 25, 2005 · 9:38 PM PDT

2005/10/25 · 21:38

Cenk Uygur rightly blasts Senator Schumer for his incredible statement about voting for the war on this week's Meet the Press:

TIM RUSSERT: Based on what you now know today, do you regret having voted for the war?

SEN. SCHUMER: Well, no, Tim, because my vote was seen and I still see it as a need to say we must fight a strong and active war on terror.

Uygur's response is spot on:

"Are you kidding me? Tying in the original invasion of Iraq with the fight against terrorism and al-Qaeda? Does this guy work for the Bush administration? It’s impossible to be more wrong and more spineless."

My only question is - how can we make Schumer pay for this idiocy?!?
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