Universal Health Cares of Which I'm Unawares

I'm driving around with my son and his friend yesterday when the subject of a paper they must write for their English Composition class came up. The subject was universal health care in other countries, namely from our border mates from the frozen north, Canada, and of course those wily Brits. It would seem that ever since the debate over health care in the U.S. began they, along with Cuba, are the most mentioned of all the world's health care systems, whether you're for or against the idea of universal health care. My son picked the Canadian system and his friend England's. So began our discussion.

The conversation kind of went like this; I'd ask a question and they would answer with some fact from their research, I'd ask another question and they'd hit me with some statistic from some study, and that went on for quite a while. I eventually spewed some libertarian rant about freedom of choice and personal responsibility that I felt would be the definitive and final pronouncement on the subject, but I couldn't help but realize that I didn't know much about the specifics surrounding the debate over universal health care. The really sad part is the boys probably came away with that same feeling!

So I've endeavored to do some research so that I can be better informed for the next opportunity that I discuss the dreaded universal health care subject. Well, now my head hurts. It is a significantly huge topic full of facts and fictions, numbers and statistics and barbed animosity flying from both sides of the debate. My more conservative core values did prejudice my reading of some of the material, but I can't help but to think that both sides have pretty firm ground to stand on. I think it's because both sides make a good case for their positions that so many people think something needs to be done. They don't know what that something is, but something needs to be done! As I read through several web pages for and against health care reform I couldn't help to think to myself, "well, I guess something needs to be done". Hm...both feet firmly planted on the fence railing.

OK, sure I lean a certain way, but I have to admit that after talking to my son and our friend it made me mull over my personal convictions concerning health care in the U.S. After further research (and we know just how reliable information on the internet is!) I can't help but to conclude, for the time being, that I don't really know a lot about health care. In fact, outside of knowing who my health insurance company is I'm pretty ignorant on the subject. Well, slightly more enlightened now, but still needing more information in order to fully understand what direction the U.S. should go concerning health care. Since I vote for the slugs that represent me in Washington that's a pretty important responsibility. I dare to say that most people are similarly ignorant. Outside of how the health care system personally impacts them, most folks just don't know much about the state of health care in the U.S. With that said, I shall work to become more informed so that I don't slip on that fence in the future, straddling it to my own embarrassment.