Jerry J. Fortin

I can certainly understand your point. Our system was designed for us, not you folks. Yes Ms. Holmes was cherry picked, but she was picked for you, not us.

Who is the contact guy for "Yellowhead" in Alberta?

I must agree. I would prefer to see a far more muscled attempt made though. F18's simply won't due, we don't have enough of them anyway. Besides we need a presence on the ground all year round. We also need naval assets as well as air assets to do the job properly. Army Guy, am I out to lunch suggesting carrier battle groups? We need coastal protection too and with a few more land bases in the Arctic we could provide year round coverage. I know this isn't going to be cheap, but I see real value in the effort.

I think you missed the train dude. The Bloc, the NDP and the Liberals already made a deal. Wait for it to be revisited with a bone in its teeth. Harper is done like dinner, he just hasn't been able to understand the writing on the wall.

By our current definitions, yes. I for one don't like the system as it stands but there it is anyway.

Look folks, BC does have some valid points. Some woman did whine and complain and head south for treatment, that is a fact. The Americans will play this up, we all know that. The reality is that she is a statistical anomaly, most folks don't run into trouble at all. Yes there are wait times and yes there are instances of a mis-diagnosis that results in tragedy because of it. These are medical problems folks, they differ from one person to another all the time. No system is perfect, and we have our share of problems with our own system. Even so, America spends twice what we do per capita and not everyone is insured. In Canada you don't go bankrupt paying medical expenses, in America you will without their private insurance schemes that are very restrictive and complicated to operate. Even BC admits their administrative expenses are much higher than ours. The reality is that each nation has its own plan, some are better than others. In America they have excellent doctors,incredible hospitals and treatments, but they are expensive as hell. Here we already cover every citizen, so we don;t have the expense of finding a way to do that. We can afford the modern technologies that assist in diagnosis and we have a viable education system to train the professionals to work within the system. Our only real problems are administrative and delivery. Those can be overcome with a little effort to tidy up the mess we perceive to have with wait times. Overall the system works and covers all citizens.

By the way BC, almost anyone in Canada can and usually does have extra insurance. Nearly everyone that works has a benefit plan that offers extra services above and beyond the provincial plans. I pay a 50$ deductible per year for perscription drugs, then get reimbursed for 80% of the cost of the drugs, this is family coverage.

But wait! This cannot be! A non communistic system of health care in Canada! BC, you know diddle- squat about our system, that is clear. Our doctors all have private practices, just like yours. We have all kinds of private clinics, more and more each month. They all send their bills to the insurance providers, which are different in every province because each province administers its own system. The feds only set standards and minimum levels of coverage, the provinces do everything else. You ignorance is only exceeded by your arrogance BC. If you cannot get treatment in one city because of wait times, you can go to another city or another province for treatment, nobody has to go to the US, they are either too lazy or too stupid to seek treatment closer to home at no additional expense. Fools, actually.

I am entertained, just the thought of Canada having something that the US doesn't is really funny. Does our system work better, maybe not, but everyone gets care and treatment. IT is your citizens wanting the change BC, not ours. In fact our citizens would likely revolt if we tried to change our system from what it is now to something else in an arbitrary manner. So far today, CNN has spent the last 5 hours that I am aware of on this very subject. Both sides of the House want changes to your system, how and what is the big debate. The point is that your system is determined to be in dire need of reforms, not ours. We have our problems, but nothing like yours.

Yeah, I already read similar stories. Most folks on here seem to have issues with defending the north, in my opinion that should be our focus. I see it as an expensive undertaking that is well worth the effort. A military presence can pave the way for scientific efforts and in time economic development. This is an opportunity that many simply do not see. They also do not see the threat.

Give me a break, AS IF we are forcing our system on you. Canadians do in fact go to the US for treatments that they believe they need,want, or desire in a more timely basis than they believe they can get here. That itself is a fact. It is spun up very nicely too! Just how many Canadians do that, or even want to do that BC, let me tell you a little secret. It isn't very damned many. I think that even you will agree there are far more Americans seeking treatment and perscriptions from Canada by a long shot. You Americans can choose what you want for a system, nobody will dispute that. Yes France has an excellent system, I think the system in Germany is better, maybe Austria, I am not really sure, but the point is cost. Cost to the citizen and cost to business, you need to look at that little factor. The stats produced only show the cost per capita expended by governments! To get a complete picture you need to look at the cost to the end user. Insurance over there is paid by the employer, the employee AND by the government.

The simple truth is that it is Harper that is under the gun, nobody else. He is the one with the most to lose, and he knows it. Right now Iggy can ask and receive anything he wants from Harper, so the logical move is not to put out a platform that Harper can piggyback on, but to offer their own current policies as a way out for Harper to retain power. If Harper doesn't agree then Iggy can pull the plug, saying that even with the opposition cooperating the minority government does not reciprocate, and if he does agree than Iggy can say that it is he that is really running the show. Either way it leaves Harper holding the smelly end of the political stick. Of course the knife cuts both ways, and rest assured Harper will go to school on whatever works.

Harper still tries to govern as if he had a majority.

Of course, thats why so many of your citizens point to our system which covers ALL citizens in our nation as an alternative to your own system. How many people have no coverage in your nation? No citizens are without coverage in Canada. How many citizens go bankrupt due to medical expenses in your nation? No citizens go bankrupt due to medical expenses in Canada. Since your system is so good and cost effective compared to ours, just exactly why do you folks seek reforms to your already perfect and cheaper system?

For starters we no longer have the right to own property, that was a result of both the NDP and the Progressive Conservatives, hard to believe but true. Another issue is the right of Territories to become provinces, since 1982 an act of Parliament no longer can be used to do this. It now takes 7 provinces and 50% of the population as well as both the Commons and the Senate to make the change. There are other things but these are the two things dearest to my heart. The new constitution limits rather than enhances our freedoms.

Tell that to the Wildrose Alliance Party in Alberta please. They seem to think they can mess with the system to make it better.

Directed taxation, like EI is a good thing. In fact if we must keep income taxes, splitting them up to provide the transparency we desire seems to me like a logical move.

It is in the manner of objection that viable solutions are found. Participation in the political process is a requirement in order to effect change.

The single payer system represents the lowest cost option available. It presents a large base from which premiums are collected to fund the expenses incurred. In order to reduce costs we must focus on; administrative expenses, methods of delivery, wellness and prevention, research and development, increased diagnostic abilities. Along with this is of course the wait times situation which adds expense due to the lack of timely effective treatments that avoid the cost of advanced illness. In addition we need to concern ourselves with the people working within the system, we need more doctors and nurses.

A one language PM would likely be perceived to be divisive. That little tidbit is very telling in a supposed multicultural framework is it not? It certainly doesn't speak toward the vaunted tolerance we advertise now does it? The west has a leader in power now, one that has sold his soul for eastern support.

I think Iggy is not really forming a cabinet but instead recruiting viable candidates for what will obviously mean a fall election.

Tell me Army Guy, should we spend some money and exercise some sovereignty to protect the North?

Then you preserve the perceived right of the politicians to have the exclusive say in the land instead of the free rights of citizens to enter and speak in the political arena.

Nobody, the English, the French, the Metis, the First Nations, no group deserves a dime of tax dollars to preserve any language or culture. Any group, the Chinese, the Greeks, the Italians, the Poles, etc who desire to protect such things can do so at their own expense. One group or another group are still citizens of Canada and all should be treated equally, so in order to spend on one the government should be spending on all, and in my opinion the government should not spend on any.