Melbourne into Healthcare.

Well, I must say. I am liking this place more and more as i venture out of this bubble called the Gold Coast. I feel like I have been given a tanted view of Australia. The country is beautiful and the people are kind but still, it's inefficient as hell. I do enjoy it when it carries through with the good though.

This weekend I went to Melbourne, quite the place. My friend Ed and I embarked on a mission to explore and explore we did. Staying with a kind friend from back home, it was more than nice of her to let us stay at her place. Thats what

I love about this place, everyone is nice. It's quite refreshing but the lax attitude comes with advantages and disadvantages, i.e. public transit and American politics. <------------------------- yep.

(And yes that is a slurpee)---------------------->

The city of Melbourne has a real vintage feel to it. A lot of history and to be honest, reminds me of Chicago. I know I know, I talk about Chicago a lot but I love that city. But Melbourne would be my place of stay if I had to live in Australia.

They have these things called trams that are perhaps the dumbest thing ever thought to keep around just because they are reminiscent of the old school mass transit with trolleys and the like. They are slow. Cars have to wait behind them. They don't go to convenient places. They cost a lot of money. You have to go to the middle of the street to get on one. Point being, waste of time waste of money, but they look cool..... I guess?

The city is laid out quite nicely though. Rolling hills, you know... nice, unique. There is also the Eureka building which is the second tallest building in Australia. Hmm, cool.

One good thing about the city is the train layout... pretty good but it doesn't run past midnight and a ticket... 6 dollars? but you can get concession for $3.70.... sooo i guess it's not bad. But it goes quick and the seats are nice, so I enjoyed it.

One thing I am quite amused by is the mixed reviews on the new healthcare legislation passed in the eyes of Australians. Few have said:

"finally, I can't believe you didn't have it before..."

"wow, thats pretty intrusive."

"It's not that great, we still use private because well... no one would be dumb enough to get government health care."

I just don't understand it at all. It's not like an overwhelming majority of Americans feel this was a good idea or good timing for that matter. It's going to be different thats for sure. I have heard a few horror stories here about the government health care.

"Yea a few months ago this dude got hit by a car and they gave him a shot of adrenaline but forgot to write down that he already had had the shot so they gave him another one at the hospital and he died. Yea government hospitals.... are like real bad."

I also find it funny that people here say, yea we have socialized health care but none of them seem to actually use it. They pay for private or at least their parents pay for it. So I guess the poor people get the shaft and get shit quality paid for by the average tax payer who isn't even using the public option. It doesn't have to be like this because most doctors want to help people. My father once said, "Don't do something just to get rich. Do something you love and success will follow." So this is why doctors are willing to help people for free without being forced, (this isn't to say that they don't want to get paid but a good plenty of them would be willing to set aside time to put on free healthcare clinics) I propose, and yes I know this is radical, but I am radical, so bare with me....

What if we...

fixed the government's intrusion into how insurance companies operate, meaning maybe get them to stop being best buddies with one another and let the constitution dictate whats going to be said. This is how government protects it's little brothers, through lobbyism. The government hides behind the interstate commerce clause and this is why you cannot get that stellar healthcare plan that may be happening in say, Utah or whatever other state. However, with car insurance, you can get that stellar plan regardless of what state you reside in.

What if we...

Created an incentive for non-profits to exist? Meaning, cut some of the welfare out that would then cause people to come together and form their own organizations that are

private and value every penny they come into command of. Blue Cross is a "non-profit" but we all know this is possibly the greatest joke. (Just go look over at their buildings made of marble and how much their CEO makes.) Point being, if the lobbyism wasn't there, there would

be no way for the insurance company to push government and make laws in favor of the organization. This is why government exists... to negate plunder, i.e. STEALING.

another thing...

Why are some hospitals named St. Johns or St. Joseph's? O thats right, they ran their hospitals on donations and gave quality care to those that could not afford it. But for some reason this wasn't good enough so the government had to do something about it. Red Cross does a pretty bad ass job getting help to people.

One thing the world can rejoice in now is that you can just stay where they are. When the world needs the best care, they come to the US. Even Newfoundland's premier did this very thing for a heart related issue. But forget about that Mr. Williams, our quality is the same as yours so just, you know, wait in line with your fellow country men. Hell, at least we are all gonna get treated anyways. May take 4 years, but at least everyone has the same opportunity now.

Bureaucracy is a bitch.

Sorry guys, I just finished up all my assignments, so I will be on this way more. I got some killer pictures of a mountain I hiked up along with some soon to be taken Fraser Island pictures.

-Kolin