Sam and Jack Shipper Lounge

[AmberLM]

And now if you don't get Obamacare, you get fined! How that passed constitutional muster, I'll never know!

The idea behind Obamacare is a great one, no one in a developed country should die through lack of affordable medical care and your private doctors should be ashamed of making such grand sums when people die or lose everything they own because they can't afford their medical bills.

That said, fining people for still not being able to afford it is nuts!

[fems]

I love the hypocrisy of the US, always pointing their little finger and tut-tut-ting at other countries while they're no better themselves. The Winter Olympics for example: Obama nor any representatives of the government go there because of the anti-gay propaganda law, while gay marriage has barely been legalized in the US and many states are still fighting against it!

Crazy people.

[fems]

The idea behind Obamacare is a great one, no one in a developed country should die through lack of affordable medical care and your private doctors should be ashamed of making such grand sums when people die or lose everything they own because they can't afford their medical bills.

That said, fining people for still not being able to afford it is nuts!

Healthcare is mandatory in my country too and I think you can get fined if you don't have any... but I'm not entirely sure on that, because people just have it. If your income isn't high enough you can apply for a financial compensation from the government, which will cover a part of the bill.

[hedwig]

And now if you don't get Obamacare, you get fined! How that passed constitutional muster, I'll never know!

That has been pushed back for awhile to give more people the opportunity to get insurnance.

[Sparky She-Demon]

Yeah, I'm aware of the hypocrisy of the US.

[Amara D'Angeli]

There's still a fine for not picking up ACA compliant health insurance in 2014. It's 1% of your income or $95 per person in a family (whichever is higher). In 2015 the fine goes up to 1.5%, then in 2016 up to 2% where it (for now) maxes out (if my memory serves, the max might be higher, but I'm pretty high on cold meds right now).

Edit: FWIW, It's my job to understand all of this - one of the hats I wear at the company I work for is HR/Benefits Administration. So this information is semi-reliable.

As far as our marriage/co-habitation rules… there are few to no benefits for couple who choose to co-habitate vs. get married. Most states don't even have common-law marriage anymore. (Even still, common-law marriages didn't serve same sex couples.) If you want any partner protections in the US you have to marry or, I kid you not, form an LLC or LLP in which all your personal holdings are held by the corporate entity. And still that second method doesn't make sure you can be with the person you love at the end of their life - only a marriage certificate does that (even health-care proxies or medical powers of attorney have been rejected in times of crisis; it's abhorrent).

[AmberLM]

Yeah, I'm aware of the hypocrisy of the US.

Aye, it's not just the US with the hypocrisy.

As an atheist if I were to discriminate against a supporter of gay marriage (for the sake of argument, I'm actually a supporter of the right to choose to get married even if I don't want to) I would be breaking the law. Yet it's ok for the Church to do it because that's religious freedom. So, it's ok to discriminate in the name of religion but it's illegal to discriminate against a person on the grounds of religion? Riiiight... Clear as mud!

[fems]

Really I've never heard of anyone describing the Netherlands in that way!

I read some online UK newspapers (although some should be classed as tabloids qua contents, like the DM; it's a guilty pleasure of mine) and it never fails to amuse me how they sometimes describe my country and/or its policies. For example, about two years ago we introduced mobile teams of doctors and nurses for those who wish to perform euthanasia at home (either personal preference or because they can't get up anymore) but instead of it being considered something positive and kind/caring/generous for those who would use it, the UK papers referred to them as "mobile death squads" that were designed to kill off old people who cost too much.

[AmberLM]

I read some online UK newspapers (although some should be classed as tabloids qua contents, like the DM; it's a guilty pleasure of mine) and it never fails to amuse me how they sometimes describe my country and/or its policies. For example, about two years ago we introduced mobile teams of doctors and nurses for those who wish to perform euthanasia at home (either personal preference or because they can't get up anymore) but instead of it being considered something positive and kind/caring/generous for those who would use it, the UK papers referred to them as "mobile death squads" that were designed to kill off old people who cost too much.

Haha, sorry, not laughing at the topic but if you're talking about the Daily Mail... That's not a newspaper, it's a national joke. Someone published a list online a few years ago of the things that the Daily Mail has said either causes or cures cancer over the last few years... Turns out the lists are oddly similar!

P.s. The only reason we don't have the same euthanasia laws now is because of the serial killer Dr Harold Shipman - he illegally euthanised and murdered hundreds of people over decades for financial gain before he was discovered.

[fems]

Haha, sorry, not laughing at the topic but if you're talking about the Daily Mail... That's not a newspaper, it's a national joke. Someone published a list online a few years ago of the things that the Daily Mail has said either causes or cures cancer over the last few years... Turns out the lists are oddly similar!

Indeed, I've noticed. I mostly read it for the comments, because they're far more fun than the actual (badly written) articles!

[roque872002]

Have you read the Daily Star? Hahahaha what a waste of a tree! Poor trees....

[AmberLM]

Have you read the Daily Star? Hahahaha what a waste of a tree! Poor trees....

I think all newspapers starting with Daily are probably trash!

[IamDKScully]

Tolerance is a two-way street not a one-way forced march. I believe that goes for a lot of issues.

[Sparky She-Demon]

Tolerance is a two-way street not a one-way forced march. I believe that goes for a lot of issues.

True. Very true.

[AmberLM]

Tolerance is a two-way street not a one-way forced march. I believe that goes for a lot of issues.

Indeed. I just wish people could live and let live, you know?