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February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
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Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
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Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
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Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
April 22, 2009
28 Nissan 5769
Words versus realities
By
Thomas Sowell
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Much as I hate to be the bearer of bad news, I must report the shocking
facts: Medical care is medical care. Nothing more and nothing less.
This may not seem like a breakthrough on the frontiers of knowledge. But
it completely contradicts what is being said by many of those who are
urging "universal health care" because so many Americans lack health
insurance.
Insurance is not medical care. Indeed, health care is not the same as
medical care. Countries with universal health care do not have more or
better medical care.
The bottom line is medical care. But the rhetoric and the talking points
are about insurance. Many people who could afford health insurance do
not choose to have it because they know that medical care will be
available at the nearest emergency room, whether they have insurance or
not.
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This is especially true for young people, who do not anticipate
long-term medical problems and who can always get a broken leg or an
allergy attack taken care of at an emergency room and spend their
money on a more upscale lifestyle.
This may not be a wise decision but it is their decision, and there is
no reason why other people should lose the right to make decisions for
themselves because some people make questionable decisions.
If you don't think government bureaucrats can make questionable
decisions, then you haven't dealt with many government bureaucrats.
It is one thing to deal with bureaucrats when you are at the Department
of Motor Vehicles and in good health. It is something else when you have
to deal with bureaucrats when you are lying on a gurney and bleeding or
are doubled over in pain on a hospital bed.
People who believe in "universal health care" show remarkably little
interest usually none in finding out what that phrase turns out to
mean in practice, in those countries where it already exists, such as
Britain, Sweden or Canada.
For one thing, "universal health care" in these countries means months
of waiting for surgery that American get in a matter of weeks or even
days.
In these and other countries, it means having only a fraction as many
MRIs and other high-tech medical devices available per person as in the
United States.
In Sweden, it means not only having bureaucrats deciding what medicines
the government will and will not pay for, but even preventing you from
buying the more expensive medicine for yourself with your own money.
That would violate the "equality" that is the magic mantra.
Those who think in terms of talking points, instead of trying to
understand realities, make much of the fact that some countries with
government-controlled medical care have longer life expectancies than
that in the United States.
That is where the difference between health care and medical care comes
in. Medical care is what doctors can do for you. Health care includes
what you do for yourself such as diet, exercise and lifestyle.
If a doctor arrives on the scene to find you wiped out by a drug
overdose or shot through the heart by some of your rougher companions,
there may not be much that he can do except sign the death certificate.
Even for things that take longer to do you in obesity, alcohol,
cholesterol, tobacco doctors can tell you what to do or not do, but
whether you follow their advice or not is what determines the outcome.
Americans tend to be more obese, consume more drugs and have more
homicides. None of that is going to change with "universal health care"
because it isn't health care. It is medical care.
When it comes to things where medical care itself makes the biggest
difference cancer survival rates, for example Americans do much
better than people in most other countries.
No one who compares medical care in this country with medical care in
other countries is likely to want to switch. But those who cannot be
bothered with the facts may help destroy the best medical care in the
world by falling for political rhetoric.
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