Even if someone gets off his ass and works, it doesn’t guarantee that he will get a health insurance from his employer. I am sure you know that too. There is a ‘trend’ now a days from employers to hire people as contractors through temporary agencies. These temporary agencies provide no insurance to these contractors. But I guess then you will argue that these people are too lazy to find ‘regular’ jobs and thus this argument will never end.
Paying high insurance premiums from your salary is not the solution for high healthcare cost but it is part of a big mess that is called US healthcare system. I believe that everyone in US should have heath insurance and like UTD wrote it’s a shame that in a country like America we are facing such a healthcare crisis. As long as we have people with a rightwing ‘compassionate’ conservative capitalistic **“I make more money than you, so I deserve better healthcare. If you are too poor to see a doctor then go and fcuk yourself and die” **mentality, don’t expect too see any improvement.
Facts on GM and UAW
“30 and out” is a union policy instituted 40 years ago, whereby someone who has put in 30 years can retire and be eligible for pensions and healthcare benefits.
So, GM spent 5.2 billion in 2004 for cover these costs (over 1.1 million americans) . Now here is a GM’s financial snapshot for 2004:
Cash: 56 billion
Debt: 300 billion with 1.6 billion in interest expense
These fkers have been making a net loss of $170~ per car, whereas Toyota makes a net profit of $1186 per car iat the bottom line.
Face it, GM makes substandard cars, so they face stiff competition from japanese auto makers; and secondly, Japanese auto makers can make cheaper cars, because the healthcare benefits of their employees are gov’t subsidized.
If anything the push towards making SUVs and pick-ups at a time when gas prices are high could be attributed to Bush.
AS, contract workers can still afford insurance, believe me I have been there...yes its expensive but you can still get it...it all comes down to what your priorities are? Dont eat lunch out, take a bus instead of driving the car to work..etc etc...America is all about choices, make your choices wisely and dont look to the govt. to bail you out. AS, if you want to give your money for this cause, no one is stoping you, by all means do that...dont you dare ask me to contribute to this scheme of crutch which creates people who are jealous of any one who is successful and blame everything on the rich.
Dopey, GM asked the fkers as you put it to help the company out by reducing their demands but with a huge danda up their behind from dems and libs the union refused. Now they face joblesness and blame the president. If GM were to close these plants, these same dems and libs will be crying...greedy corporation is fleecing the poor americans....
There was a report published recently that showed that overhead per car in health benefits is $1500. So GM is behind the 8 ball or $1500 ball right from the factory floor, you cannot compete with the limeys this way.
How the hell do you attribute SUV production to Bush? Bush did not force all the SUV owners to buy those cars, neither did he ask the manufacturers to make them. Its the market..they are popular and people want them.
Bush might not be directly involved in increasing the numbers of SUVs on the road but his buddies in oil companies are. The price of gas was 89 cents/gallon in 2001 first year of Bush’s Presidency. It was brought down enormously on purpose to make consumers believe that since gas is getting cheaper therefore now it is OK to buy these gas guzzling monsters. Before that, driving SUVs was a status symbol and only rich people could afford to buy them. After the drop of gas price every Tom, Dick and Harry started buying SUV and these SUVs became bigger and bigger and less fuel efficient.
Now these oil companies has created an artificial scarcity of refined oil by limiting the production of refineries for price gouging and these SUV drivers are scratching their heads. Nothing is more amusing then the looks on the faces of these SUV drivers at the pump when they are paying $100 to fill up a tank.
AS, please do not make me lose all respect for you by putting forth these crazy theories of oil price fix and such.... Bhaijaan, US is a capitalist society...basics of economy is utilization of scarce resources... Oil being one of them.... demand increases so does the price. Plus SUV's have been around since the mid nineties ...please dont think too much, you will hurt yourself.
^^ That is the problem, Kaleem. These oil companies make you think that oil is a ‘scare resource’. It is a fact that demand of oil has increased but so does the supply of oil. OPEC is pumping more oil then the actual demand is. According to them there is no scarcity of oil. The real problem is the lack of refined oil. I can post and show you the internal memo of these oil companies who are cutting down on the production of refineries to create and artificial scarcity.
My mother is dying of Lung Cancer. My dad had his bladder removed due to a tumor the size of a baseball. One grandmother died of throat cancer, the other of heart disease. All smokers.
Earlier this year I had heart surgery. I had a cardiac stent installed at age 47. Never smoked in my life. But it sure made me want to see my daughter married. You have three. Your chances of seeing them all married are greatly enhanced if you stop smoking tomorrow.
Face facts. Despite your rationalizations you are an addict. Your chances of seeing all of your daughters married are much better if you stop smoking tomorrow. When I was laying on an operating table I was thinking about all my friends, I made a mental note to give the smokers an extra ration of crap for being stubborn idiots. This is yours.
OG, thank you for the kind words. I really do appreciate your concern, I have actually cut down considerably in the last couple of months.....I will stop soon...no set dates, but it will be soon.
Again, this was avery touching post... your parents are in my thought and prayers.
My dad had to have triple bypass two summers ago. It was the scariest moment of my life.
I miss him so much right now He’s chilling in Lahore, playing with his chickens, while me and ammi r stuck shoveling snow and cleaning leaves here
Please stop smoking. It’s bad for you. Just think of how your daughters and wife r gonna feel when you’re on that operating table.. I didnt visit my dad once in the hospital coz I couldn’t see him like that, hooked up to tubes and sick..
with 1.6 billion in interest expense
He’s chilling in Lahore, playing with his chickens, while me and ammi r stuck shoveling snow and cleaning leaves here 
