The trouble is, these few crazies aren't alone.

Well of course not. There's over 6 billion of us :-) They are like electricity. It goes nowhere without a conduit. In this case you gotta blow up and replace the generator. Merely cutting the wire won't work. I understand the ER workers plight, but with no other place to go because we have no system in place, they're just going to have to put up with it. You did see that famous video of the "crazy" lady who died in the ER? The number of incidences of this might not be all that great, but then, I don't play that game. It's the attitude that allows it to happen that's the problem, and you can bet there are plenty other cases of abuse and neglect that don't make the papers.

Unfortunately you have chosen to learn nothing. You peddle petty politics as if that's all there is to human behavior, and you stick to it like glue. You wish to conserve "tradition" for its own sake. Looking to get close to the king, are we?. Let me know when you get around to reading this(pdf).

Inarticulate I am. A troll not. The distinction is a bit larger than you think. But attacking the messenger is definitely the path of least resistance. There's a word for that. Let's see if anybody wants to post it here.

"None are so hopelessly enslaved as those who falsely believe they are free..."

Well, that certainly can be applied both ways. I guess it's a matter of if you wish to believe the "banksters" and snake oil salesmen who have been attacking perfectly functional systems since the early 70s. Considering all the Reagan worship going around, it appears that's the direction you went. Not much I can do about that. But there's no denying the disaster they have wrought upon us...again They completely removed all the checks and balances, and everybody went along with the subsequent get rich quick schemes...again. It's unfortunate that the backlash you create will only make matters worse. Creating "universal" health care by forcing us to pay into corrupt companies that can still deny service on a whim? Screw that. Wouldn't be prudent...Nagada. You all really need to have it hammered into to your heads apparently, that public health is just as important as your law and order bullshit and should come out of the same till. Talking about letting the good times roll...you want to bring back the roaring 20s, doncha? Let the next generation worry about the next up and coming depression, caused by the very same people you want to keep in power. Absolutely nothing was learned from the debacle of the last thirty years. And machine politicians are still in charge.

The point is, under the current system...

Yes I understand that, but let's stay focused on the root of the problem, not it's results. It is the system that makes this happen. And you're diverting attention away from that. That's exactly the way the crooks who run it want you react. It keeps the cameras and microphones away from them. It's like smacking a guy on the head with a hammer so he forgets about the heart attack he's having. To put it another way, you don't like when people accuse you of "making up" a syndrome to justify how you act. So I see the same thing here. They are ill. It doesn't matter if it's all in their heads. The symptoms are visible, but they are being misdiagnosed. Chances are that the cause is external. Even if not, it is physical. "The mind is what the brain does", says Nat Geo. Find and cure what makes them sick instead of hopping on the media bandwagon and simply parroting their words. If there is no insurance available to you, it's not because of the "shoplifters". It's because the store owner is a greedy bastard. Besides, like in many cases, it's employee(including, if not especially, the bosses) theft that drives the prices up and creates the scarcity. Believe me, you're going after the wrong guy, and you are being trolled by mass media. Don't let these people make excuses to deny service.

...than have no head at all

Then anecdotal it is :-) In which case I personally have that on my side also...three close friends saved by proper and humane health care.

Why do we elect these bozos as our leaders?

IOW, who's the real idiot?

Heh, you should see what they say about the dumb suckers that vote for them.

I would suggest that anybody with a serious case of OCD stay away from that page.

And conservatives believe we must uphold tradition. Nuff said?

When Exxon's flag flies high over Baghdad, and there's an iPod in every pocket, we can truly say "Mission Accomplished".

Actually, hypochondria, like any other psychological ailment, or addiction, does need treatment. I don't blame them any more than anybody else for the failures* of the health care system. Doing so is scapegoating. They didn't create this environment, they're merely capitalizing on it.

*only to some, not those who created it.

They will be back eventually. With all the DRM they can pack.

Oh, please do! All the old DRM has been cracked. It will be like buying a puzzle. Fuck them. Somebody else will always come along to provide new distractions. Pirates created the world you live in. This economy is their design.

Whats next? Some sort of physical DRM for printed copies?

Yeah. Like in Mission Impossible, they self destruct after purchase, but before you have a chance to read any of it.