Richard Titmus wrote in his concept of social policy about what he called the 'stranger'. He said the ultimate in social policy is to give to the stranger because you recognise that she or he is the same as you. You don't give to the stranger because they are hungry or because they are tired but because you recognise the problems of hunger and tiredness. In other words you see them as part of yourself and part of what you are responsible for. If you see them as 'the Other, you don't get that sense of responsibility.
John Rawls, who talks about justice, also uses a similar sort of model by saying that if you punish other people you always have to work on the basis that it might happen to you, which is another formulation in a slightly different format.
It is a fact in the USA that 64 million people do not have health insurance, which means there is a third world country within a country that boasts to the world that it is apparently the best.
Ahhh, come on begalli, grow yourself a sense of humor. Can you say facetious? That post was meant for Larry, there is no need for you to use the pain of others as an excuse to attack those with different views from yourself. We all have the same goals and dreams here. Think happy thoughts.
She said she can't afford to eat better. And it's true. Junk is cheaper than the good stuff.
Of course we are responsible for our own health.
You're picking the wrong things to argue.
Actually, junk is more expensive than healthy food. A bag of Doritos could buy 4 pounds of apples.
A box of Old Fashioned Quaker Oats is less expensive than that big box of Sugar Smacks.
Water is free from your faucet or inexpensive if you buy it from a bottled water company (Mine is $14 a month for floridated water) vs. $4.00 a six pack for Pepsi.
You can get a large bag of rice or a sack of potatoes or a bag of noodles for a fraction of what a package of Hamburger Helper costs and one box of HH won't even feed one of my boys.
Processed, pre-packaged foods (aka junk food) are waaay more expensive.
Then perhaps nutritional counseling is in order. Again, focus should be on primary care and preventative medicine.
I was poor, and right, we couldn't always afford FRESH fruits and vegetables, however, there are ways to stretch your dollar and not eat McDonald's at the same time.
Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.
If you want to eat well and keep in a decent budget, every one ought know, you need to shop the PERIMETER of your grocery store and beware the middle aisles, as well as the ends. the middle aisles and the end displays are where most expensive, non-necessary needless junk food items are found.
Also be sure you look HIGH and LOW in your aisles (not eye level)--- for the best deals. The most expen$ive garbage is at eye level in any given aisle, for a reason! To make them MONEY! If you follow this rule, you are sure to get food that is both better for your body and wallet!!!! It's true, junk food DOES cost MUCH more than healthier food does, in the long run..... :)
Yep. It absolutely makes you feel lousy. What's wrong with the world when nutritious food or at least naturally occuring food costs so much more than processed junk? I can already tell that by making a food sacrifice I'm a lot more tired. I think that the problem is access as well. Perhaps contrary to my angrier posts, I'm not sure what side of the debate I fall into, especially since it hits so close to home. I really do wish that there was more preventative care available to rural communities like mine at a low-income rate. Right now, if I wanted to go see a doctor for, say, an upper respiratory infection, just walking in the door hits me with $60. Or, I could drive to the nearest city (80,000 people, not exactly urban!) and go to the Med-Assist. Or just wait until I get way, way sicker and go to the ER. I'm definitely lucky to have the choice to drive to the "city", as there are a lot of elderly who don't drive in my town, and the van to take them to the doctor's office in the "city" only comes every other week (if the weather holds, and the van driver isn't on vacation). No one has a perfect system, but it does no good to make generalizations about those without insurance, or those who can't afford preventative care. This is a problem that will eventually be addressed, after some sort of crisis hits. My ideal situation? That preventative care would be affordable. That nutritious food would be cost-effective, even to a poor family of four (compare, say, a piece of fish and a salad to a box of mac and cheese and a can of tuna--I KNOW the fish and salad is better for me, and even tastes better, but $10 compared to about $1.50, well I've saved about $8, and I can buy enough gas to get to work on that). That mental health would be taken seriously, no stigma attached. That prescriptions would be affordable enough that people would no longer have to choose between medication and food. Pretty idealistic, huh? Well, one can dream!
I still disagree that junk food is less expensive than healthy food.
You can buy a head of lettuce (about a buck) and put the tuna on top for a healthy salad (tuna is good for you and not junk food). The one vegetable right now that is costly is tomatoes. But there are others just as healthy and less expensive.
When you purchase pre-packaged mac and cheese not only is it not very healthy but ounce for ounce way more expensive than buying a couple of bags of pasta on sale at Safeway (buy one/get one free) and getting a jar of spaghetti sauce on sale for about $2.00.
Get a big bag of potatoes and a dozen eggs and make a potato salad that lasts for a couple of days.
Eggs are cheap - you can make all kinds of healthy meals with eggs.
Bananas are cheap too and great for kids. You can cut them up and freeze them with a dollop of Hershey's syrup ($1.20 a can) for a treat for the kids that is healthy.
Lots of ways to eat healthy without buying junk food and breaking the bank.
Okay, I'll bite. Perhaps, I just need to change stores. My local market is extremely expensive for fruits and veggies, but perhaps because we're very rural (oddly, since the produce grows right outside the town limits!) I'm taking everyone's advice and going to the store in the city tonight after work. I'm gonna take a calculator and do some smart shopping. If it works, God bless you all, and my pocket book thanks you for the saved trips to the doctor! :)
Sure wish the government and the public would look at the Constitution once and awhile, instead of when it serves their purposes and goals. Just where does it "specifically" say that the government can provide healthcare to everyone? Does anyone know about the 10th amendment? And please don't give us the old worn out "to promote the general welfare" clause. Anyone who has studied the Constitution knows what it truly means. Now, if the States wish to have healthcare for their citizens, I can find no objection to give. We have, unfortunately, become a society of "instant gratification" and "government dependent" to fix all our problems. To insist that the Supreme Law of the Land be obeyed or changed, by amendment, these days, is to be laughed out of office. Best to ignore it, except when taking the oath of office, if one wants to get along in these times. "Government is a necessary evil, at its best. At it worst, it's tyranny." T. Paine
Kraft Mac and Cheese has 7.25 ounces of macaroni which *might* feed one of my sons. The price is $1.98 a box.
A bag of whatever kind of pasta you want has 48 ounces. The price at Safeway right now is two for the price of one and one bag is $1.48.
You can buy 96 ounces of pasta for less than you can buy one box of Kraft mac and cheese.
Jar spaghetti sauce is two for one right now also. Or you can buy some canned tomatoes on sale and make your own sauce.
White albacore tuna costs $1.58 a can.
There are all kinds of soup on sale right now.
Celery is cheap. My kids love it with peanut butter or cream cheese. The store brand of cream cheese tastes pretty good and is cheaper. Sliced apples with cheddar cheese or peanut butter make a good snack.
Don't buy chips, sodas, koolaid, candy, ice cream, beer, etc.
Shop with the precautions that Deb gave . .. don't impulse buy. Don't go to the store hungry.
I've never bought the story that poor people eat dog food because they can't afford real food . .. cans of dog food are very expensive compared to the store brand of soup or even Top Ramen . . you can get Top Ramen sometimes 20 bags for $2.00 (although it isn't healthy - it isn't dog food).
At least in the UK our service includes everyone and is social. It may have its ups and downs but it is inclusive. It also doesn't discriminate, which brings it round to my original comment about poor America - America the greatest nation in the world - the market leader and the very big paradox about health care.
Despite the very weak state of the dollar at the moment - all the world watch Hollywood and consider that you are the richest, most affluent nation.....so why doesn't your nation invest in basic care for your people?
Larry, it is the great paradox of this nation. Of course, over and over again, we've told you we care for our poor. So need to go there.
But you're right it is very inequitable. The answer to your last question is we are a capitalistic country, rooted deeply in the puritan work ethic, you work for what you get. Those captilistic industries have grown into a trillion dollar economy with a very tight fist on those dollars. I'm not defending it, just stating it.
I think it's the middle class that is squeezed as bad, if not worse that the poor. I need to get a physical for school and get some tests to check on my bad liver. I haven't been to a doctor in ten years. I'm already thinking "how much am I going to have to pay." My last illness was tonsillitis. I had to see an MD and go on antibiodics. I missed five days of work and lost night shift pay by using sick pay, I co-payed $100.00. I never went to the followup because I was better and didn't want to pay the co-pay. My insurance rates have went up sky high year after year after year without stop.
Had I been poor, I would have went to any ER, got a script and got seen and taken care of for free.
Have a little compassion for the working guy in the middle. :rotfl:
begalli
1,277 Posts
Q - did you read the post I'm referring to?
She said she can't afford to eat better. And it's true. Junk is cheaper than the good stuff.
Of course we are responsible for our own health.
You're picking the wrong things to argue.