Friday, July 26, 2024

It's The Privatization, Stupid.


TheFalconAndThe
SnowcloneVille


James Carville, the rapidly aging Ragin' Cajun who once ran strategy for Bill Clinton, has been in the news a lot recently for all the wrong reasons.

Essentially, over the past few weeks Carville had been pushing the post-Biden mini-primary concept that is pretty much dead-as-a-doornail now that the Obamas have gone all in for Kamala Harris.

Anyway.

A long time ago it was Carville who came up with the winning slogan 'It's the economy, stupid', for  Clinton's first successful presidential campaign in 1992.

Which brings us to the 'snowclone'  of a header sitting atop today's post...

It seems that our finest of the fine provincial political pundits are all a twitter about whether or not the Dipperian claim that the Cons will cut four billion out of the healthcare budget is legit.

But the real story is one that even the Dean of Legislative Press Gallery, the good Mr. Palmer, was able to recognize, albeit in a partially buried lede:

...(BC Conservative) Party leader John Rustad would only say that the goal of reducing waiting lists would probably mean an initial “spike” in spending before levelling off a few years on.

That’s quite likely, given the Conservative plan to speed up delivery of surgery and other medical procedures by allowing patients to access non-governmental (read: “private”) clinics...

Hmmmm...

Mr. Rustad's euphemistic 'patients first' edge of that big fat wedge sure is nice and thin, eh?


____
Of course, Mr. Carville didn't always win...His losses include the presidential campaigns of John Kerry in 2004, Hillary Clinton in 2008 and Michael Bennett (who?) in 2020.
I did my best to come up with a sub-header that coupled Kevin Falcon and Ross Perot but I just couldn't quite get there today...Maybe next time...Although, the way things are going it's not clear that Falcon will even come close to garnering Perot's 18.9% on Election Day...
Off topic, but....Beer's post is good today.


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9 comments:

GarFish said...

Privatization is Theft (now in convenient bumper sticker size) Please don't say anything about the world wide shortage of Doctors and Nurses! https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/16/health/health-care-worker-shortage/index.html

Evil Eye said...

Question: The Canada Line P-3, a privatization of public transports, now costs the public purse, how much?

Answer: From Phil LeGood, former CoV activist - the annual cost to the taxpayers is around $150 million, with the monies paid to the SNC Lavalin lead consortium which operates the Canada Line P-3.

Anyone who thinks privatized healthcare will save money, is lost in la la land.

Graham said...

I laughed soooo hard at Beers post you directed us to. Whooo hooo! I needed a good laugh like that.

e.a.f. said...

Beer's description of the watery camping trip really made me laugh. Parental units being from Europe liked to vacation in August adn it was usually sunny.
Tents are great to camp in, until they leak. Warmest way, van conversation. The dogs loved the vans. They'd cry to get into them as soon as it was dark, they didn't like the bugs. Don' laugh, one was a 145 lb sheppard cross

Now as to any plans for our medical system Rustand is making, as always with Cons, they say it all has to be done to reduce the deficeit. When they leave office its bigger than when they came in. The current problems we are facing all of North america and Great Britain and others are facing. It was simply a lack of planning and being cheap.
It maybe time to check out the two other countries I could obtain citizen ship in.
The problems we are facing today started a long time before Eby became Premier or Horgan. the problems began in the 1980s, i.e. mini wacs restraint plans. then we had el gordo's "fine plans" and the Christy's reign of error.
No one seemed to think this province would grow. Oh, well if people vote for the right wing again, lack of doctors will be the least of their problems

Anonymous said...

There are a limited number of doctors. If there are 100 doctors providing public health care, and some P3 scammer diverts 20 to provide private services, then public supply drops 20%. This is a zero sum game.

Graham said...

My wife is a lead nurse, in emergency, downtown Vancouver and she calls BS on rustad’s “plan”.
Why does the right always start these plans, for anything, with some bunk about cutting red tape and administrators?
The average nurse on the floor does not do admin work, they are working with patients, many patients. The only admin work they do is charting. This work cannot be cut or reduced, in fact it is very important that it be done and done correctly.
There are nurses and some admin staff who look after the department and all that comes in and goes out as well as trouble shooting the things that come up in a shift and as pointed out by the nurses and doctors working with the patients.
Yes, they need more nurses and doctors. As it is they don’t know where the increase in staff will come from for the new hospital when it opens in 2027 sometime. Yes, there are always improvements to be made. My wife’s department has at least a couple meetings a month to discuss those things and how to go about it. More staff and not burning out the staff they have is always top of the list. They are often trying new ideas or making changes, if it works it stays if it doesn’t it’s out. They aren’t afraid to try though.
I remember when campbell was closing all sorts of regional hospitals and healthcare care centres back in the day. His government said it was to make things more efficient. This efficiency made people have to drive for an hour or more to get to a hospital or emergency care. I remember thinking this is really, really stupid.
If anything we should be undoing the dumb decisions of the past and putting in legislation that makes it very difficult for a rustad or similar to just change things to suit their bias or agenda.

Lew Edwardson said...

Never mind coupling Falcon and Perot. Can you imagine a camping trip far into the wilds where Rustad and Beer share a tent and late night campfire conversation?

e.a.f. said...

Lew it would be a great fund raiser. Then they could sell the streaming rights, etc. I'd pay good money to see that "show"

Anonymous said...

Save 16B site c and use burrard thermal for free
Imagine how much bc rail is worth today ?but we get back after 1000 year lease.?