There was a long article in The New Yorker a few months back. I can't remember the topic of the article, but at one point the author discussed Medicare. There was one hospital in the Midwest that had the lowest Medicare costs for terminal folks than any other in the nation. By a long shot.

You know why? Because that hospital REQUIRED all patients to have health care directives and end of life consultations BEFORE the crisis occurred.

Tens of thousands of dollars less spent. Better quality of life for the patients. Better peace of mind for the surviving family members. Less depression for family members after the patient died.

Republicans talk about fiscal responsibility but they would rather score political points than actually do something to help the deficit.

And the "death panels" were a Republican idea. That was embraced by Democrats because it was smart.

I can't hardly stand this.

I love how the O'Reilly goons don't actually respond to the smart lady's points but just keep on repeating their rhetoric and interrupting her, which pretty much proves her point about the republican fear tactics.

The thumbnail image for this video has been updated - thumbnail added by vaporlock.

Fuk Fox!

I hate to say that I get better news from a comedy show, but here goes:

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-august-20-2009/betsy-mccaughey-pt--1

remember when you watched the news and the reporters were unattractive but balanced individuals? They didn't yell, they presented both sides, etc. I can't blame Fox News, just the viewers who switched from watching the Simpsons. Ha Ha...(in a kids voice)

I hate this shit. It shows an Obama quote, where he explains what the opposition is saying, cut out the part where he explains what's really going on, and then pick back up where he says that what's going on isn't the simplistic death panels. So it looks like he's saying, "This stuff where we're killing grandma to cut costs ... weel, we're not going to have death panels." Leaving room for my mother to say, "See? He is for killing the elderly, just not for calling them death panels." Spreading misinformation knowingly should be outlawed.

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@2:50: Oh, shit! She's tearing apart our story! Quick, interject with a nonsense question!

I want to upvote this solely because Dr. Heldman handled this so well, but it is also so painful to watch I am finding it hard.