elwin9 wrote: "The uninsured might have to wait in an ER for a few hours or apply for Medicaid or actually spend some bucks for insurance if well-off enough.

There are uninsured, but none without health care."

I am reminded of when the very wealthy (& presumably insured) Glenn Beck went on the Today Show to whine about his experience at a hospital ER where he had to wait 20 minutes to be seen. Poor guy. He'd had outpatient hemorrhoid surgery a day or two before and he was in pain. I don't know why he didn't call his doctor, whom he praised left & right while on the Today show, but he chose to go to the ER. I feel for anyone in pain but his comments on the show were pretty funny. Sure people without insurance go to the ER and so do people with insurance. So people have to wait, but when it's someone with a microphone it becomes a serious problem, from his standpoint. But doesn't human compassion tell us that the wait can also be a problem for someone without insurance.

Another thing to remember about ERs and the uninsured. The ER doesn't do annual check-ups, cancer screenings, vaccines, or help a patient manage a chronic illness such as diabetes or asthma (just to name two). Nor does the ER provide cancer treatment such as chemotherapy or radiation therapy, the don't provide physical rehab following surgery or stroke, etc. There are lots of things the ER doesn't provide. It is not a substitute for having a health care provider.

This man has an unfortunate name, in my opinion. Everytime I read or hear "Joe Wilson" I think of Ambassador Joe Wilson, husband of Valerie Plame, both of whom I have good thoughts for. The only solace is that Congressman Joe is the guy's nickname. I can't recall his official first name at the moment.

Where has Cary's column been for the past three days? Did I miss an annoucement? In the past Salon would put a notice on the front page when a daily columnist would be absent for a period of time, but they didn't do that this time. It's very frustrating when a column just disappears with no information as to why.

Crooks & Liars posted about this yesterday and one of the commenters provided a list of the colleges (though I don't know that person's source for the information). Here is a link to that list: http://tinyurl.com/yey9ozt

Here is a link to the 50 page introduction by Ray Comfort for anyone who wants to read it.

http://assets.livingwaters.com/pdf/OriginofSpecies.pdf

I enjoyed the You Tube rebut though I'll refrain from refering to her in the demeaning was others have. She is an obviously intelligent person. Wish we had more like her speaking out.

Now the regulars can get back to arguing about religion and science.

In my experience the people who are most likely to "do something" about any form of cancer are those who are touched by it personally. People who have had loved ones or friends affected by it (or, of course, themselves). Men who've watched their mothers, sisters, wives, cousins, aunts, gransmothers, girlfriends, friends, etc experience breast cancer are the ones who will pay most attention. It's the way the human mind works. It's not up close real until it affects us directly.

I haven't seen the ad but it sounds appalling.

If we had a decent health care reform with a robust public option there would be fewer foreclosures.

Excluding abortion as part of health care is one of the issues that ridiculous moderates will support and say "any health care reform is better than none." I don't believe than any health care reform is better than none. Bad health care reform is worthless to citizens; it will only be good for the insurance corporations.

Joan, I'm sorry this is off topic but I don't know where else to post. I just read the story about the health care disaster as portrayed on a gas station wall and wanted to comment but I couldn't as I wasn't an Open Salon member. I am, obviously, a registered Salon member. Why do I have to be both?

If you are planning to cross these two entities and you want people to comment, then you must make it easier to do so. I have no desire to write essays at Open Salon, so I see no reason to register. But if you're going to post Open Salon stories as top of the front page items on regular Salon then you have to be willing to make it easier to comment.

thanks for listening. Back to Clinton.

Michelle has her cadillac health care plan through the government option and now that she also has (as do all of Congress) her own special medical clinic on site with 24/7 care at a moments notice (see this from ABC news http://tinyurl.com/ye83zpr

So basically, she has what she needs (paid for by taxpayers) and she doesn't want to share.

New York state is also "At will" in hiring & firing practices.