Here come the health police government telling people what they can and can't do under Obamacare

originally posted by: schuyler

originally posted by: crazyewok

originally posted by: wantsome
a reply to: SlapMonkey

The government has been sucking from my teat for years. I've paid roughly $70,000 in cigarette taxes. I was hoping to get some of it back when I get sick.

Maybe if you hadnt wasted $70,000 on cigarettes you could of brought your own healthcare rather than got the rax payer to foot the bill?

That's just the taxes. I don't know the percentage of taxes on a pack of cigs, but my guess is he paid triple that for the cigarettes themselves and $70,000 of the cost was for taxes.

Yup exactly.

Im all for a basic saftey net but that should not include funding drug habits.

It's a basic human right imo, top quality Medicare regardless of your position in society or how you choose to live your life.

It's a shame that people moaning about people accessing Medicare due to their lifestyle choices, don't seem to have the same thoughts on our Leaders wanting to play exceedingly expensive war games.

It's not their money they are spending, it's our collective effort as a civilised society. I would like to think as a civilised nation we would support people's health and wellbeing, over and above war.

originally posted by: Cobaltic1978
It's a basic human right imo, top quality Medicare regardless of your position in society or how you choose to live your life.

It's a shame that people moaning about people accessing Medicare due to their lifestyle choices, don't seem to have the same thoughts on our Leaders wanting to play exceedingly expensive war games.

It's not their money they are spending, it's our collective effort as a civilised society. I would like to think as a civilised nation we would support people's health and wellbeing, over and above war.

. You know full well Im about as critical of war and western foreign policy as anyone on ATS.

But I still don’t want my tax money to fund drug habits.

a reply to: Cobaltic1978
Bingo! If they weren't making war on several fronts we could pay for all the health care needed for the entire nation. Of course, the military-industrial-petrochemical-transnational-corporate elitists would be required to contribute rather than just always taking.
My dear friend's Mom is 94 years old and really, really ticked off that the assisted living facility where she's paying big bucks to live has gone "smoke-free" and she must walk off the "campus" to have her 3 daily ciggies.

originally posted by: wantsome
a reply to: SlapMonkey

The government has been sucking from my teat for years. I've paid roughly $70,000 in cigarette taxes. I was hoping to get some of it back when I get sick.

Smoking is voluntary. Me paying income tax that goes to these programs is not, regardless of what "tax protestors" believe.

There's a major difference between the two.

a reply to: crazyewok

EXCEPT YOU ALL MISUNDERSTOOD

He said he PAID $70,000 in EXTRA taxes because he smokes

And he makes a very good point. To date, only SMOKERS pay more than they use in healthcare

Is it time the rest of you slackers actually paid for your lifestyle health care costs???? Or is it time to stop this and stop singling out smokers.

Tired of Control Freaks

a reply to: crazyewok

Then the answer is very simple

Let my people go!!!

No taxes on cigarettes. Smokers get no medicare and must seek private care. Every smoker to receive a refund for our portions of medicare that we paid and have not yet used.

You cannot have it both ways.

Tired of Control Freaks

a reply to: wantsome

Your bloodwork will give you away.

Welcome to the future where everything about you is digitized, stored in databases and analyzed. Rules:

- driving a car is forbidden because they are self driven which means less casualties in traffic, hence lower medical costs. Airplanes and boats will follow but you can still drive your bicycle. At no more than 10 mph though otherwise it might be too dangerous.
- many sports are forbidden because of the high risk of injury
- alcohol and certain foods are rationed, you may only buy/eat/drink so much a week, tobacco is an illegal substance
- exercises are mandatory (even at work but in an employees' own time)
- many ideas (such as religion) are banned because they lead to confusion/mental illness
- no more long prison sentences because of forced mind altering pharmaceuticals, criminals will be viewed/treated as mentally insane
- in the longer run, everyone will be screened for healthy and unhealthy genes and those that can't be fixed are not allowed to procreate. Although that is happening already, which has brought down the births of the mentally disabled but right now it is a choice.

You can still have it all if you have money to pay the fines and insurance.

Personally it sounds like a good idea and if I had children I would want them to grow up in such a society. Might not be perfect but it could have been worse and as long as you stick to the rules you could have joy in life.

This all sounds familiar. Some people not wanting their tax dollars going towards someone else's self-inflicted medical condition. Hmm, let me think.

Oh, I remember. Abortions.

I guess you could also consider pregnancy a self-inflicted medical condition. Maybe the next step is to have pre-natal care and delivery costs excluded as well.

a reply to: TiredofControlFreaks



Fine.

The government should not be subsidising drug habits.

The government should not encourage - dare I say it - FREEDOM!

a reply to: crazyewok

LOL HAHAHAHA

My friend - those who would have security before liberty will end up with nothing.

You will get caught up in the net somehow.

So you a vegetarian, exercise daily (but not to strenuously as that causes injuries), eat as you are told as evidenced by having your grocery purchases in a database, don't smoke, don't drink ad infinitum

But - gene analysis shows you have the genes for alzeimers.

Now why should anyone pay to have you pass on those lousy genes to your children?????

So no children for you and you have to pay extra premiums for your care in your old age in case you get alzeimer's

Wow - what a world you live in. You are one paying and you have created your masters and must pay them as well.

Have fun!

You may live longer (or not) but it sure will seem longer.

Tired of Control Freaks

a reply to: TiredofControlFreaks

Not sure what your point is?

Im all for getting rid of taxes. In exchange you fund your own drug habits.

Simple enough.

Not trying to control anything. You should be free to do what you want, drink drain cleaner if you like, just your responsible for the consequences.

So your quote about "sacrificing liberty for security " makes no sense.

Its you it seems that wants big nanny government to bail you out when your smoking catches up with you.

a reply to: johnnyjoe1979

My take on the whole situation:

People thought it was a great idea to pick on smokers. you could drink yourself into liver issues. Take illegal drugs and end up with brain damage, drive a motorcycle until you were a paraplegic but the only ones who had to pay for their own health care (many times over) was smokers!

But now the precedent is set.

In the end, people will vote to dismantle universal health care to escape slavery.

Tired of Control Freaks

a reply to: crazyewok

You are quite mistaken

I can afford private health care. I am one of those who has to pay an extra premium just to provide for others. I am more than willing to vote universal health care out!

You don't think you should pay for drug habits>

I don't think I should pay for joint transplants for joggers, I don't think I should be multiple doctor's visits and check-ups for the worried well. I don't want to provide vitamins for vegetarians, I don't think I should pay for people who get sick following all the "right" diets out there. I don't want to pay for all the drugs to treat the mental illness of people who try to live a "healthy" life without joy, camraderie etc.

Live with a big old stick up your butt if you want to but I shouldn't have to pay for the consequences.

Tired of Control Freaks

a reply to: TiredofControlFreaks

Another big medical cost - children

Why should you have as many children as you like and expect me to pay for their health care?

Everyone is now limted to only 2 children.

You don't like supporting drugs? I don't like supporting those who are careless with birth control.

I also no longer wish to pay for those people who know they carry the gene for diseases (sickle cell comes to mind, huntington's chorea) and still are so self centered that they wish to take the chance. Let them gamble with their money and not mine.

Tired of Control Freaks

originally posted by: NthOther
Good. We warned you when they came after the smokers.

Your turn, fatties.

I agree, but at the same time, why should my taxes pay to insure someone's health who is intentionally putting it at risk? That's not fair.

If you want me to pay for the upkeep on your body, you WILL take care of it. Makes perfect sense.

a reply to: Urantia1111

Well you aren't the only one who has the special priviledge of demanding that they get to decide who is worthy of health care and who isn't, now are you?

I guess us smokers, fatties, drinkers, couch potatoes, sugar addicts, salt likers, bacon slobs etc will all to vote too.

And it seems to me that there are enough of us to vote YOU off!

Tired of Control Freaks

originally posted by: crazyewok
a reply to: wantsome

If you don’t want the government snooping then get private healthcare then?

Why should the tax payer foot the bill for druggies, Smokers and fatties?

One thing I get pissed off in the UK is tax money funding self-inflicted health problems

I've watched a couple of docu's about this very subject, and one thing they all found was that low income families cannot afford healthy food! so they get fat!
I'm on low income, and I know its extremely difficult to eat healthily on the money I have, its so difficult I have to judge whether I can afford to cook the food I buy because fuel costs are so high. People will quite rightly say that the poor can buy cheap veggies etc from tesco's or wherever, but they forget to add in the cost of cooking! When you're on a low income cooking IS EXPENSIVE!!!

And the smokers you mention.
I was told by Doctors Dentists and even THE GOVERNMENT that smoking was good for me. From childhood to my late teens they were telling me how good it was for me. After they got me addicted they now tell me that its my own fault and people like you sit on your high horse and agree with them!
People like you need to get down from your lofty perch, because this CONTROL of our lives will not stop with food and what we eat, its going to go all the way to telling us when to wake up, when to go to sleep, when we can go out and when we cant.
Already in the area where I live they turn of the street lights at midnight, and they are claiming its been so successful they are now considering turning them of even earlier.
Now I'm sure you believe this is being done to save money?
Well its not, this is the start of controlling when we can be out on the street.
When they introduced this LIGHTS OFF idea I worked out the figures. If they were to remove the High Pressure sodium bulbs and replaced them with LED lights, they could leave the lights switched on for 24 hours per day and the fuel cost would still be FIFTEEN TIMES CHEAPER than it is with their present plan! There would also be a massive saving on maintenance because LED's last much longer, and don't require the copper filled ballast coils or the electronic starters that are required for the sodium bulbs.

None of this is about health or cost, its all about control!