Bernie Sanders is running on a Quasi-Socialist platform. He wants to provide all people with Medicare and free education. This may sound like a scary idea to some people. A lot of people say we can’t afford it and it would ruin our country. I disagree that these things would hurt us. I actually believe that our country desperately needs reform in these areas.
Our country would look a lot like our military. As a daughter-in-law of a career serviceman, I have first hand experience of the freedom the military provides. Both my mother-in-law and father-in-law have Tri-Care for life. They can get free treatment on a military base, (both the doctor visit and medication). If they need to be seen at a private hospital their co-pay is only $25 flat no matter the extent of the treatment. My father-in-law can also go to school for free until the day he dies under the GI Bill. He served 20 years and is a Gulf War veteran.
The military provides free healthcare for life by being pretty much self sufficient. They use aptitude testing to train service people in a trade. Depending on how someone scores when they join they could be a doctor, mechanic, pilot, medic, etc. If America followed the principals of the military we could educate and provide medical care for everyone. As it is right now Medicare is paid for by a tax on our income (Social Security). People only pay this tax on the first $100,000 they earn. Bernie isn’t proposing class warfare; Robin Hood style, take from the rich to give to the poor. He’s simply trying to level the playing field. Just so you know, the poverty line of New York City is $90,000. By having people pay Social Security Tax on all of their income, we could pay for single payer Medicare for all. The only problem is that drug companies, hospitals, and doctor networks will have to be converted to non-profits. Fo- profit medicine is disgusting anyway. People shouldn’t have to file bankruptcy to pay for chemo.
Education will also have to be reformed. As it stands right now, for-profit schools are out of control. GCU pays a staff to cold call leads to raise enrollment numbers. They have, at one time not so long ago, lost both their Christian accreditation, as well as their academic accreditation. If this happens again, GCU students who largely rely on loans, will be in the same position as the Corinthian College students were just last year. I believe, in order to level the playing field and give every student the ability to earn a living wage, for profit institutions will have to go; this includes big time national offenders like University of Phoenix. We must also include aptitude testing for competitive programs (not just ability to pay).
Employers must stop asking for 4 year degrees in Liberal Arts as a requirement to review an application. A lot of certifications will need to be handled at the community college level and students should either live at home or be offered a work studies program to pay for cost of living associated with out of state schools (not rely on loans). Degree programs should be restructured to provide career readiness and degrees should be extensive enough to gain entry to employment. There is no reason people can’t work in the psychology field unless they pursue a masters. Also, I believe that degree programs should be directly transferable to the career you want. Programs in History and English should be provided out of a teaching program. Social Science programs should be divided into teaching tracks or research tracks and programs should actually prepare people for the jobs that they want. Nursing, therapy (psych), physical therapy, medical doctor, dental, and surgical programs should all be taught out of a medical school. All of these degree programs should come with both a theoretical curriculum as well as a work studies portion to prepare students for career readiness. If someone wants to go to a religious institution they should be studying theology and that should be paid for by an organization that wants them to pursue a degree in that denomination with an agreement of employment. A lot of pastors quit ministry in the first five years because they don’t know what they are getting themselves into. College and medical coverage for all is not only a big idea, it’s a feasible one too.
Addiction hurts families. It doesn’t matter if you are a user or bystander, drug addiction hurts everyone. I know it can be hard to bridge the gap. Users and the ones that love them have trouble understanding each other’s feelings and struggles. Someone without drug experience can’t fathom the appeal. While, someone trying to get clean can’t explain the overpowering feelings of withdraw. Drugs change people. Heavy drug use changes your brain chemistry. Many people will have lasting effects to their cognitive, emotional, and psychological processes. Drug induced psychosis is just one of many dangers like heart attack and stroke.
