your employer buys insurance, insurance charges more because people are fat and dying, employer pays more for insurance and less for you. yeah.
Originally posted by: Shad0hawK
Originally posted by: LadyJessica
it is funny watching people thinking the government should do something because of the lack of discipline and responsibility on the part of some.
actually it is not funny, but sad.
Guess who picks up the bill for the health complications? Yup, the government (ie, all of us). So why shouldn't the government try to do something about it?
because self disicpline and responsibility cannot be legislated, you may be comfortable with a government so intrusive as to place dietary restrictions on you, but i would not.
in what ways exactly does the government foot the bill for all the obese people? we do not have socialized medicine. (thank God!)
Originally posted by: alphatarget1
Originally posted by: Shad0hawK
Originally posted by: LadyJessica
it is funny watching people thinking the government should do something because of the lack of discipline and responsibility on the part of some.
actually it is not funny, but sad.
Guess who picks up the bill for the health complications? Yup, the government (ie, all of us). So why shouldn't the government try to do something about it?
because self disicpline and responsibility cannot be legislated, you may be comfortable with a government so intrusive as to place dietary restrictions on you, but i would not.
in what ways exactly does the government foot the bill for all the obese people? we do not have socialized medicine. (thank God!)
your employer buys insurance, insurance charges more because people are fat and dying, employer pays more for insurance and less for you. yeah.
Originally posted by: Shad0hawK
in what ways exactly does the government foot the bill for all the obese people? we do not have socialized medicine. (thank God!)
Originally posted by: Shad0hawK
one of these days people will figure out the govt is not the answer for everything.
Yup, I eat approximately 3500 calories a day and haven't gained weight since high schoolOriginally posted by: Red Dawn
Yeah if you sit on your ass 7/24.Originally posted by: ReiAyanami
avg american consumes 3000 Cal/day
FDA recommends 2000 Cal/day. some say they just arbitrarily picked this because its a nice round number but actually its based on how much a pregnant nursing mother should consume to support herself and a baby.
the actual healthy amount between 1500-1800Cal/day
so, are you eating like a pregnant nursing mother?
<=Huge fan of personal responsibilityOriginally posted by: CADkindaGUY
Yup.Originally posted by: Shad0hawK
maybe if personal responsibility came back in style people would say to themselves "gee I eat to much, maybe I should eat less and get some excercise..."
CkG
Originally posted by: Mursilis
Originally posted by: Shad0hawK
in what ways exactly does the government foot the bill for all the obese people? we do not have socialized medicine. (thank God!)
I read a William Buckley column a few years back in which he stated that we essentially do have socialized medicine, in that over half of $$ paid for medical expenses come from the gov't (Medicare, Medicaid, various state and local programs). I'll post a link to the stat if I can find it. Given the total costs of those programs, I don't find this statistic to be unrealistic.
Originally posted by: Piano Man
I weighed 315 last October. I'm now down to 234, but I have 39 more to go. Its been the hardest thing I've ever done, but after losing the first 40, I couldn't stop. Now I am definately noticing a difference in endurance, not to mention the fact that I have way more girl problems, which is a good thing I guess. It should be a war against obesity. Its just like consuming anything else, you do what is easy. But you have to learn to say no at some point.
Originally posted by: sward666
Those lardasses would lose a lot of weight if they started smoking.
Originally posted by: Mursilis
Originally posted by: Shad0hawK
in what ways exactly does the government foot the bill for all the obese people? we do not have socialized medicine. (thank God!)
I read a William Buckley column a few years back in which he stated that we essentially do have socialized medicine, in that over half of $$ paid for medical expenses come from the gov't (Medicare, Medicaid, various state and local programs). I'll post a link to the stat if I can find it. Given the total costs of those programs, I don't find this statistic to be unrealistic.
To the extent you price it out of the range of children, alcohol and tobacco taxes are a success.Yeah...like thats working for alcohol and cigarettes
And this is a reference for people that already have good access to the system.Reorganization and reform of the nation's healthcare delivery system are urgently needed to fix what is "a disjointed and inefficient system," according to a report from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) Committee on Quality of Health Care in America.
Uninsured children and adults are sicker and die more often, as cancer and other diseases are diagnosed too late. Uninsured persons injured in an automobile accident get less services in hospitals and have a 37% higher death rate than those with health coverage. Lack of health insurance causes 18,000 unnecessary deaths every year in the U.S. Currently, 43,000,000 Americans are uninsured.
* The cost of the employee's share of health insurance increased 350% (in constant dollars) from 1977 to 1998, while the median income only increased 17%.
* Four out of five uninsured Americans are members of working families. A quarter of U.S. workers are not offered health insurance at all by their employer. If they buy their own policy it usually costs much more than the same insurance purchased by a group, especially if they have a chronic health condition. If they do not have insurance and get sick, they usually have to pay much more for the same medical services, since insurance companies can negotiate discounts with doctors, hospitals, pharmacies, and others.
* Of the 7.8 million uninsured children in the U.S. today, half are actually eligible for insurance under SCHIP (State Children's Health Insurance Program) or Medicaid. Often they are kept out by complex enrollment or re-enrollment procedures.
* It would almost certainly cost less to provide insurance to everyone than to continue the current system. The cost of covering all the uninsured has been estimated as between 3% and 5.6% of total U.S. healthcare cost.
* The U.S. spends more per person on health care than any other nation -- 14% of gross its domestic product -- but is 25th in male life expectancy and 19th in female life expectancy among 29 developed countries.
because self disicpline and responsibility cannot be legislated, you may be comfortable with a government so intrusive as to place dietary restrictions on you, but i would not.
in what ways exactly does the government foot the bill for all the obese people? we do not have socialized medicine. (thank God!)
Originally posted by: TheGameIs21
2 things....
1. I thought McD's cutting the super size was going to fix this...
2. Sin tax is a bad idea all around. Governments come to rely on funds from any tax. In Oklahoma specifically, they tax cigs. The government is getting lots of $$ from that sin tax but they are also trying to tell it's citizens to stop smoking etc... Well lets say that the citizens stop smoking. There will be a void in tax funds that the government will have to make up somewhere. This will apply to any sin tax that is out there. It is a stupid plan.
2. Sin tax is a bad idea all around. Governments come to rely on funds from any tax. In Oklahoma specifically, they tax cigs. The government is getting lots of $$ from that sin tax but they are also trying to tell it's citizens to stop smoking etc... Well lets say that the citizens stop smoking. There will be a void in tax funds that the government will have to make up somewhere. This will apply to any sin tax that is out there. It is a stupid plan.
Originally posted by: happyhelper
Originally posted by: Piano Man
I weighed 315 last October. I'm now down to 234, but I have 39 more to go. Its been the hardest thing I've ever done, but after losing the first 40, I couldn't stop. Now I am definately noticing a difference in endurance, not to mention the fact that I have way more girl problems, which is a good thing I guess. It should be a war against obesity. Its just like consuming anything else, you do what is easy. But you have to learn to say no at some point.
that's really awesome and so is your sig!!
Originally posted by: sward666
Those lardasses would lose a lot of weight if they started smoking.
ahahahahah!
since everyone seems to think it's the government's job to tax the overeaters, give fatasses a tax break on tobacco and higher tax on food... give skinny smokers a tax break on fatty foods and a tax hike on tobacco... then the smokers could buy all the food and the fat asses could buy all the cigarettes and they could make friends that way... works great for everyone! Yay, I got new fat friends (or do they just love me for my tax-free food?!)
Originally posted by: Mursilis
Originally posted by: Shad0hawK
in what ways exactly does the government foot the bill for all the obese people? we do not have socialized medicine. (thank God!)
I read a William Buckley column a few years back in which he stated that we essentially do have socialized medicine, in that over half of $$ paid for medical expenses come from the gov't (Medicare, Medicaid, various state and local programs). I'll post a link to the stat if I can find it. Given the total costs of those programs, I don't find this statistic to be unrealistic.
I try to point out to people all the time that we are a socialist country, but they just sit there dumbfounded and disbelieving. When over 50% of the produced wealth is taxed and redistributed by the powers that be, that's socialism, and we've had that for a long time (since 1937). It's also ironic that what is good about America (the capitalism that is left) is what gets bashed by everyone, Americans, Europeans, just everyone, and what really sucks about America (the socialism that is ever growing) is what is touted as the "cure" for our problems. Oh well, it figures. Just another day in the socialist workers' paradise.
Originally posted by: ElFenix
Originally posted by: TheGameIs21
2 things....
1. I thought McD's cutting the super size was going to fix this...
2. Sin tax is a bad idea all around. Governments come to rely on funds from any tax. In Oklahoma specifically, they tax cigs. The government is getting lots of $$ from that sin tax but they are also trying to tell it's citizens to stop smoking etc... Well lets say that the citizens stop smoking. There will be a void in tax funds that the government will have to make up somewhere. This will apply to any sin tax that is out there. It is a stupid plan.
so accomplishing the goal of the tax is stupid? all taxes reduce consumption of what is taxed, is that stupid?
Originally posted by: BaliBabyDoc
2. Sin tax is a bad idea all around. Governments come to rely on funds from any tax. In Oklahoma specifically, they tax cigs. The government is getting lots of $$ from that sin tax but they are also trying to tell it's citizens to stop smoking etc... Well lets say that the citizens stop smoking. There will be a void in tax funds that the government will have to make up somewhere. This will apply to any sin tax that is out there. It is a stupid plan.
It's called "spend less." On a related note, as medical science gets better at keeping sick people alive the healthcare burden of smoking becomes more vicious . . . although it appears smoking is losing it's lead over obesity. Considering that Medicare and Medicaid are tremendous drains on government coffers . . . over time the healthcare savings from smoking cessation will be an order of magnitude greater than the revenue lost from taxing cigarettes. If we manage to take a bite out of obesity and smoking (while raising the retirement age/Medicare eligibility), our society would be healthier in body and economics.
"The Bush administration's response is more talk and no real help for the millions of Americans who would like to eat better and watch their weight," said Margo Wootan of the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
"The Bush administration should instead get junk food out of schools, ask Congress to require calorie labeling in fast-food and other chain restaurants, strengthen CDC's nutrition and physical activity division, and fully fund the CDC's VERB campaign, which promotes physical activity to youth."