Comments on: Democrats Take Charge, Face Tough Road

Now That They Will Control Both Houses, Democratic Party Has The Burden Of Delivering On Promises

[radiob-2009]

jhindson1 Prices are deceptive in Canada unless you keep your money in American dollars.Here is why go to Niagra Falls and you will see two prices one for Canadian and one for American if you do the conversion you are better off paying with American dollars than Canadian dollars.Example a meal in Canadian dollars was $25 but by paying for it with American dollars it cost me $14.The trade off on currency is a double ripoff,you get shorted converting over to Canadian dollars because when you convert them back they are worth less.You may think you are getting more initially but once you convert back over now you have less in American dollars.I was there two years ago and the exchange rate was .65 for an American dollar after converting it back.Houses are cheaper?That depends on where you are buying to compare it to.Also when I was there I was paying .17 on every $1.00 purchase in taxes.So unless your tax structure has changed or Niagra is different than the rest of Canada,I can only attest to what I paid for.Do not get me wrong Canada is a beautiful country with some very fine people.I just do not beleive your system will work here.It may make a model to use for national health care but I do not beleive it is the correct model for the US.

[radiob-2009]

marcodele I agree with the sentiment the key is keeping the purse stings closed on social security and medicare instead of raiding it to pay for war and bridges to nowhere.

[marcodele]

No more big bloated government funded programs is RIGHT!

Let's not hand another trustfunder the checkbook to the United States, so he can run up a 2 trillion dollar debt.

Let's never again let our tax dollars be spent on Texas defense contracts and bonuses for Halliburton as our soldiers suffer and die.

Our president never had to pay one bill in his life. And now, thanks to the Democrats, he won't have to pay this one either.

[jhindson1]

Bellal

Thanks for your kind words. Sometimes I feel guilty that the illness cost the system probably about a quarter million, but am gratefull that I was able to continue and raise a family which would have been impossible if I had to pay it back.

[jhindson1]

radiob

Yes but..taxes are made up of two parts that add up to 13% a Federal 6% that replaced a hidden tax that used to be collected at the manufacturing stage and was always in the price of goods. And up to 7% Provincial (State) tax. In Alberta this tax is zero. There are no taxes on a house purchase. Houses cheaper than in the USA. We used to go to USA to shop but now find costs of most things are about the same after currency exchange rate taken into account.

Yes taxes are higher, but there is total Health Care protection and fully-funded Social Security. - A trade off between poverty due to no fault of the person and the abilty to survive.

I cannot help but feel how much it hurts and how parents and loved ones must feel when they realize that someone they love is ill and in addition to dealing with that illness and extreme stress and anxiety, that they also have to deal with the prospects that the illness may destroy their family financially .... and the guilt that would haunt everyone - both the ill person and their loved ones.

[radiob-2009]

Is everyone sleeping?

[edward troup]

the "who" song "we won't be fooled again"
up till tuesday the polititions thought
americans were stupid ...
have to be proud of americans - stay the coarse
just isn't gonna work anymore .
I miss you already Ed Thanks man !!!! thank you so much

[radiob-2009]

bellaL jhindson1 is still reeling from the taxation.

[radiob-2009]

bellaL it does not have to be a goverment program just one that is monitored by the people with govermental redress.

[radiob-2009]

bellaL take an individual who is just starting out and has a college degree in accounting (my daughter)who is only making $27000 a year.Now if she had to pay $14000 a year in health care(decent health care)she would only have $13000 left.She would when she filed her taxes in turn hit the ATM because her write offs are greater than 50 percent of her wages.So now she would be straddle with an larger tax bill.I know this stuff bellaL Accounting runs in the blood of this family.

[bellal-2009]

OMG, you just made me cry jhindson, I'm so terribly sorry for your loss. Yea, $110 mo. sounds good to me. I pay $1400mo. It just goes against my conservative roots to want another big bloated ineffiecient governtment entitlement program.

[radiob-2009]

jhindson did you forget the tax rate in Canada is 17% on everything you buy?I have visited Canada numerous times and I know a little bit about their taxation system.Buy a hamburger for a $1.00 now add .17 cents,buy a house for $150,000 american dollars and now add $25,550 in tax.That excludes their income tax and their social security tax.Take the time to listen to Canadians who work there and see how much they pay in taxes.

[jhindson1]

Bellal

Well actually. . . . in the Canadian system the employer has no involvement in Health care. It is like auto insurance and the employer has no access to your Doctor.
If your employer does not pay the premiums the premiums are about $110 US per month for a family of three. And you can choose your own doctor. In the past 50 years, I have never waited longer than 30 minutes to see my Doctor (usually less than 15 minutes). This includes having a catastrophic illness in the family involving a prolonged cancer illness over three years and multiple operations on my firstborn who died at age three.

It is not perfect but it works.

[bellal-2009]

I understand and I just don't buy the "majority of people can't afford it" routine. I have to afford it, I don't have a choice. Well, I could just screw it and go on welfare but I'm not quite ready to throw in the towel. But my point is, that we need reform not a another entitlement program. Before everyone in my family started falling apart (bad genes, I guess) we would have been fine on a little high deductible health plan.

[pakaal]

bellaL, you said "If it wasn't for having a top quality health insurance policy I would have gone bancrupt from health costs."

I'm unsure if that bolsters your argument against national health care - if it was nationalized, you'd pay a lot less, and wouldn't worry about bankruptcy at all.

Don't get me wrong, I've hung out with folks in Ontario who tell me their system results in lower quality care, and that they come over to the US on occasion. Same with friends from England. But when the day's done, all but one or two say they'd rather stick with their national health insurance over the US system.

[radiob-2009]

bellaL look at the exhorboraint cost of privatizing healthcare.My healthcare would cost me $14000 a year out of my own pocket instead of $1000 a yearout of my pocket.Not to mention prescriptions,hospital stays etc.Right now the majority of people cannot afford such a system and employers are not going to make it up in wages.They barely want to give you a 3.5% raise which if you factor out all the bs in inflation is less than the core rate.How many people buy airplanes,luxury boats and cars on a daily basis?Stick with the core rate of infaltion and the basic staples and inflation has outgrown wages for over 25 years.The goverment includes such nonsense in to the CPI and it looks like inflation is low.If that were the case you would not have so many two family incomes today as compared to 25 years ago.It started around Reagans era not blaming him but inflation has risen faster than wages.

[bellal-2009]

radiob, I just received a notice from the governor (i've heard other states are doing the same) offering information on long term care. We have to get educated and protect ourselves from financial disaster. If it wasn't for having a top quality health insurance policy I would have gone bancrupt from health costs.

[rharrin1]

LIKE YOU ONE__UN AMERICAN

[rharrin1]

LIKE YOU ONE__UN AMERICAN

[bellal-2009]

creeper00, do you have first hand knowledge of this or are you just regurgitating a 60minutes,48 hours tv special. Don't scold me on not knowing abaout healthcare costs. I spent over $20,000 on health related costs last year and expect about the same this year.