"Not like Canada" becomes the rallying cry of the American right

Those that are on the against side of the debate over federal health care funding in the USA, are finding Canada as a useful bashing instrument in which to make their points.

To hear the likes of Mitch McConnell (he of the I know a friend who has a friend style of research)



as well as the yammering yokels at Fox,



we must be piling up the dead in the streets like firewood, thanks to the evils of universal health care.

Now while we do have our problems with some of the ways our health care is handled, and those come mainly due to the direction the system is given by the provinces and federal government, the actual prospect of Canadians ever wanting a USA user pay system seems rather remote.

For the most part, Canadians would more than likely rather have our system, troubles and all, compared to the insane system in place in the USA, one which seems to find that your level of care is directly attributable to your ability to pay.

The doctor shortages, wait times and other much documented troubles of our system are worrisome for Canadians no doubt, but the concept of having your financial statements at the ready as you head into an emergency room isn't something that is likely to find much sympathy in this land of "socialized medicine".

The disinformation campaign is playing out on the American cable news channels every day, countless television commercials some ostensibly featuring Canadians, begging Americans not to follow the path we've taken.



And while you have to feel some compassion for someone who has suffered a medical emergency and felt that the only answer was a trip to the USA, you do have to wonder as to the motives of those behind the commercials. Left unsaid was the nature of the medical emergency, what actual course of action had taken place in Canada prior to the trip south and of course, what the costs were to the patient, both up front and those that come along later.

We for the most part feel that when the life and death situations arise, the line quickly parts and those with the most need get the priority in treatment, without concern for cost or whether it is covered. All in all, not a bad trade off, in the long run.

Not since South Park put Canada into song, has everything that would be wrong for America been attributed to north of the border... We can hear the chorus warming up now as they get closer to what horrors that the "Canadian socialized system may bring"