Where I am, the violence has not spread to, but it does raise some concern for my family and myself that the more aggrassive protesting has increased geographically; where it was solely in Bangkok (the violence, not the protesting), there has been threats of violence as well in Phuket, a popular tourist location. That being said, There is still major concerned posed by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, because the violence will hinder the influx of traveler's visiting. Based on this article's information, about 10% of the economy in Thailand is from tourism, kind of a major ouch there.
Onto other news, let's talk a little more about politics, yeah? How about that of the United States. The big thing that is going on now is: "Obamacare," also know as the Affordable Care Act. As far as I have been hearing, it is being challenged fairly vociferously by governmental representatives of numerous states. I believe that there indeed should be concern as well. While I understand that healthcare may be expensive, and health insurance difficult to come by, we have to think a little. To which demographic of the United States population does this actually appeal to? Obviously, we know it is not for the rich. So, let's look at the lower income groups. It is stated that "Low-income individuals and families whose incomes are between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level will receive federal subsidies on a sliding scale if they purchase insurance via an exchange.[37] Those from 133% to 150% of the poverty level will be subsidized such that their premium costs will be 3% to 4% of income.[38] In 2013, the subsidy would apply for incomes up to $45,960 for an individual or $94,200 for a family of four; consumers can choose to receive their tax credits in advance, and the exchange will send the money directly to the insurer every month" (Wikipedia, y'all). Wait, so what about Medicaid?
"Medicaid is the United States health program for families and individuals with low income and resources. The Health Insurance Association of America describes Medicaid as a "government insurance program for persons of all ages whose income and resources are insufficient to pay for health care."So, then what is the real difference between Obamacare and Medicaid? They both are systems that assist lower-income groups of people to pay for their medical bills. If there is already one system, why add another? Plus, in terms of history, something may look fantastic on paper, but would never work out when actually trying it out. Some of these historical pieces include the journey towards creating the "perfect" Aryan race, Communism, Socialism in Cuba, etc. The reason why is that other factors besides numbers must be put into order. such as the people, the current economic status of the country, the current systems going on, etc. In addition to that, there needs to be a balance, with every push there needs to be a pull, with every gain, there needs to be a loss of some sort, so what would be the loss that accompanies this so-called gain? That would losses for the health insurance companies as well as the healthcare systems. If the healthcare system is spread out too quickly, the quality of many of the services would decline, in my opinion. The healthcare professionals in the United States tend to pay a hefty malpractice insurance fee as a form of protection, and if their income is decreased, whether it be due to influx of customers, or the governmental decree that the cost of all services be lowered, that gives them less to support themselves, Yes, there are some doctors who throw their money around, but that is not the case for everyone.Anyways, I feel that much of the quality of healthcare would diminish if it was made readily available and extremely inexpensive.
That being said, I could go on and on about the welfare system, but I need to make sure my research holds up so that I can make a good rant about the ineffectiveness of it.
On other news, I am informed that I am to begin working next week, and shall remain in contact with the HR head, so that this ball will really get rolling. Time to release a big "FINALLY!" with that. The jacket is well on its way to turning into something. Right now, I mostly just have one sleeve almost finished, and that took only a couple of weeks of hand sewing. I think I am developing a blister on my thumb! That being said, I am really quite excited to see the final product, and I am just about halfway done with the most difficult part. And I understand that I will need a small camera now so that I can easily and readily take pictures anywhere I go so that everyone can see what is really going on. Unfortunately a tablet isn't small enough to bring everywhere, though it is convenient in quickly posting pictures.
Alrighty, off to do some life experiences and eat papaya!
Until next time,
K
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