“I know you think that you took it away, but it’s still there…I still feel empty.” “Founder’s Day.” Vampire Diaries. Kevin Williamson, Steven R. McQueen. CW. 13 May. 2010.
Hidden from cameras above and under the water is a pain within that vibrates through the Gulf States. Due to the oil spill wrecking their businesses, many families are left with no jobs and no money, left to fight for themselves. They are solely left with the burden of not knowing the immediate present. This situation is not new to us, for it is felt by approximately more than 44 million other people. The people without health insurance and those who are under covered. One of the major consequences of the BP Gulf spill is the permanent mark on people's minds. The impact of seeing from televisions, radios, and newspapers of their lives falling apart again and again shouldn't be taken lightly. However, this is not a noticeable or obvious result that we get from the spill, and the truth is the status of the lives of the +44 million people without proper coverage isn't obvious either. T.R.Reid mentions in the book that part of the reason why nothing drastic has occurred to change our health care is due to ignorance on the other part of the covered population. As Bush puts it nicely, 'After all, you just go to the emergency room', (Reid 218). Therefore this invisibility feature contributes to the fact that help is slower and rare. The Health bills that we manage passing are so watered down that essentially nothing changes for the people. For those in the Gulf States, the necessary psychiatrists are few and proper mental-health resources are scarce and slow to come. This poses a danger to our society in general because what is kept out of the public eye will be overlooked.
Another aspect that the health system as well as the spill challenges is the idea of community. In the Gulf, our method of solving the loss of jobs reflects a similar attitude in our health care system. In countries like Japan and the UK, they provide universal health care because they find selection of certain people defies the meaning of a community. However, the same selective character seems to be evident within the Louisianan society. For the people who have lost their jobs, their only option is to work within BP as part of the clean up process, but most cannot even get that job because there are some captains who get all the work while others get nothing, of course which is at the selection of BP. For our health care, it questions what we define as a community and challenges our set up of our system, as well as questioning our moral rights. For the spill, it raises shocked responses, " We’re a community," says Acy Cooper, Vice president of Louisiana Shrimp Association. That would be echoed by +44 million others.
It's interesting to see how consistent we are with the way we approach things, whether to solve a problem or to set it up. In a way, as much despair these choices may cause, there is room for hope. If we are using the same mind-set then all we need to do is change that mind-set and things will work out. Therefore, there is reason to be optimistic, as long as we get the ball rolling.
First of all, I love the Vampire Diaries quote at the beginning of this entry (it pulled me right into what you had to say). Next, I really liked the way you tied in A Healing of America with the BP Gulf Oil Spill. Reid's book opens us up to different views about the American health care system. He also gives us pretty good ideas of what the health care systems are like in other countries. With the oil spill in the Gulf, many people had lost their jobs or had them temporarily put on hold. BP claims that they paid those citizens for the time the spill was affecting their careers but what about healthcare? Chances are that without those jobs people do not have access to the healthcare they need. Healthcare has been a topic heavily addressed in America but many will argue that nothing significant has been done to improve the system. You have a point, people are all part of a community. So how can one person be treated for their illness while the other is left to die on the streets. It's not fair.
ReplyDeleteAnd I can't say I fully agree with former President Bush. You CAN go to the emergency room however no one said that your insurance will cover your bill. And often times it may be too later to treat the person. It is only reasonable for people to be upset about the oil spill. Not only is it hurting the environment, but also the people themselves.
Great work Elizabeth, I really found the connection between the oil spill and our failing healthcare system--two ailments our society faces, both due to corporate greed--very insightful.
ReplyDeleteI also agreed with your conclusion that Americans are focused on furthering themselves and few select individuals rather than on the welfare of the community. Although it's sad to admit, every political attempt to bring about social reform seems to be shot down my meaningless name calling and personal attacks.
I also appreciate that you obviously put a great deal of time into research and thought for this entry. The fact that you include actual statistics adds to the overall rationality of this blog, which is something that our general media could use a healthy dose of. Rational thought is so refreshing!
Forget it, Stephanie will always beat me to it.
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