One Down...

[theclaud]

If there's a thread about this, I've missed it. The CEO of United Healthcare is shot dead in a targeted assassination. You can find the video online if you care to look.

A few things to note:

Most people are glad he's dead. He made squillions out of refusing to pay the claims of people who have no other source of healthcare. The assassin has not yet been identified, but it's understandably giving rise to some heroic mythologies.

Big-name Democrats went out of their way to mourn or commiserate. They don't appear to connect stuff like Being Besties with Evil Bastards that Everyone Hates with stuff like being wiped out in presidential elections.

Whilst the liberal commentariat was berating the proles for their heartlessness, the financial press published stuff like this. LOL.

 

[C R]

Apparently health insurance companies in the US are modifying their websites to hide references to the identities of their head blood suckers leadership team. Sympathy for the deceased seems to be in fairly short supply.

 

[multitool]

That's the US for you. Polarised wealth, polarised happiness.

But your linking of this event to the Democrat party is wayward for several reasons. Firstly, the Democrats are still the party of government and so one would expect statements on what is, after all, a murder.

Secondly, in general, it is the Republican party that is more closely associated with private health care. After all, when Obamacare was mooted the Republican response was to call it "communism". Trump's first term was characterised by attempts to weaken the Affordable Heathcare Act.

Here is an article on how the Health Insurance industry is reacting to Trump's impending presidency:

https://www.healthcaredive.com/news...l-election-healthcare-industry-reacts/732105/

There is little there that will give succour to citizens, and every reason to think the healthcare industry stands to gain.

Thirdly, United Healthcare itself is entirely pragmatic in its support to US political parties. It puts more money into influencing those who hold the levers of power than those who don't.
This can be vividly illustrated by comparing the ratio of donations to both main parties year by year, and comparing it with who was in office at the time:

https://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/un...ecipscycle=2024&id=D000000348&candscycle=2024

You'd also have to ask whether there is any substantive difference in support for United Healthcare from both main parties.

Then we come to actual polling evidence. Opinion polls suggest that healthcare was a very minor driver in voters' priorities at the election, with only one in ten citing it.

Source: https://www.kff.org/health-care-in-...p-votecast-health-care-costs-and-other-issues

But, most strikingly, if your claim that Democrat support for powerful corporations is part of why they lost the recent election, you'd have to ask why it didn't lose them previous elections.

You could argue that the Trumpian propaganda machine was succesful at portraying the Democrats at being the party of corporations, and not the working class. But that doesn't mean that it is true. It just means Trump's deal with Musk was worth it.

 

[C R]

A US doctor on reddit, with a warning for the UK on what US style reforms will bring

 

[theclaud]

But your linking of this event to the Democrat party is wayward for several reasons.

Oh, I don't know - it seems to have landed where I intended it to.

 

[multitool]

Oh, I don't know - it seems to have landed where I intended it to.

"Landed" is doing some lifting there. It didn't get to touch down, I'm afraid.

 

[matticus]

I'm seeing a lot of stuff like this in the US:
https://www.reddit.com/r/TikTokCringe/s/3zPsEnxmzy

 

[multitool]

It's a shame, then, that the Yanks have just voted in Trump because it will get worse not better.

 

[Ian H]

It's a shame, then, that the Yanks have just voted in Trump because it will get worse not better.

I don't think folks had much confidence that the Democrats would improve things.

 

[multitool]

I don't think folks had much confidence that the Democrats would improve things.

So why vote for worse?

But, as I said upthread, the voters polling suggests healthcare only just made it into the top ten issues about which they were concerned.

 

[dutchguylivingintheuk]

So why vote for worse?

But, as I said upthread, the voters polling suggests healthcare only just made it into the top ten issues about which they were concerned.

Healthcare is indeed not a very important issue for Americans, partly because they don't understand. Secondly and i have seen that first hand because i was in the US just for the elections, Trump's campaign was just so much better then Harris. If you switch candidates that late you should come out guns blazing taking every opportunity, interview etc. instead Harris was quite the opposite and Trump jumped on that every opportunity. A bit the same as Hillary Clinton at the time, i think that is more likely why he won then his plans, vision, or anything else.

 

[dutchguylivingintheuk]

On-topic, i understand the ''hero'' status of the shooter, it has however changed very little to the sick practice off ''we know you are entitled to our healthcare, we just keep refusing in de hope you die before we need to pay out''.
They just elect a other CEO and like said above their in all levels of politics, so it won't change overnight.

 

[the snail]

Healthcare is indeed not a very important issue for Americans, partly because they don't understand. Secondly and i have seen that first hand because i was in the US just for the elections, Trump's campaign was just so much better then Harris. If you switch candidates that late you should come out guns blazing taking every opportunity, interview etc. instead Harris was quite the opposite and Trump jumped on that every opportunity. A bit the same as Hillary Clinton at the time, i think that is more likely why he won then his plans, vision, or anything else.

Healthcare is a big issue for anyone who isn't rich, but the democrats didn't offer anything on healthcare. If you look at the outpouring of non-grief for Thompson, it's not just those on the left who are unhappy with the current system. It'll be interesting to see if trump dares to trash the ACA, when he failed last time round.

 

[Ian H]

Healthcare is a big issue for anyone who isn't rich, but the democrats didn't offer anything on healthcare. If you look at the outpouring of non-grief for Thompson, it's not just those on the left who are unhappy with the current system. It'll be interesting to see if trump dares to trash the ACA, when he failed last time round.

Does Trump have any wealthy suckers-up who favour a more equitable health system?

 

[matticus]

Healthcare is a big issue for anyone who isn't rich, but the democrats didn't offer anything on healthcare. If you look at the outpouring of non-grief for Thompson, it's not just those on the left who are unhappy with the current system. It'll be interesting to see if trump dares to trash the ACA, when he failed last time round.

I get the impression anyone on a low wage does/should hate the USA system. I would imagine that includes low-paid Republican voters (of which there are 10s of millions I think!); is that who you meant by "not just those on the left who are unhappy with the current system" ?