BBC Panorama: Poor America - now on iPlayer

BBC wrote:

With one and a half million American children now homeless, reporter Hilary Andersson meets the school pupils who go hungry in the richest country on Earth. From those living in the storm drains under Las Vegas to the tent cities now springing up around the United States, Panorama finds out how the poor are surviving in America and asks whatever happened to Barack Obama's vision for the country.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0 ... r_America/
3 minute clip here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/panorama/hi/front ... 695217.stm

A half hour programme that's really worth watching. If nothing else I think it'll make you appreciate our country just that little bit more. Shocking, perhaps not, but at times a surprisingly poignant watch nonetheless.

How certain quarters of America, including our insidious, repulsive Daniel Hannan (just YouTube "Glen Beck with Daniel Hannan") can defend the US health system, yet alone have the audacity to slag off ours, is unbelievable. The NHS may be partially broken, at times I'm sure you could even call it a complete mismanaged shambles, but we should still be extremely proud that we have it.

I watched this. I knew Detroit was in a bad way, but I had no idea it was literally a crumbling ruin...

And that man with the hernia, that decade old hernia, refusing to get any treatment because of the $20,000 bill it would've incurred, when he only earns $5,000 a year...

Poignant indeed.

If i was Canadian i would be worried that Yanks would soon be pouring over the border. In fact i'm surprised it already isn't happening

That 3 minute clip, that little withdrawn girl at the end

Clip used tonight:

It is eye opening when you see just how different the culture of many Americans is against what we'd consider normal in Europe. I've been on a US politics forum for a while now and people honestly seem more worried that the rich may pay slightly more tax than they are that the poor will continue to suffer rather badly.
The rich in the US have done something rather clever in that they are now called "Job creators" as if as soon as they are rich they suddenly go out and hire a bunch of people rather than spending most of it on themselves.

http://www.uspoliticsonline.com/indexf.php

Just have a gander and I think you may be a little shocked at how differently Americans see things.

Peter Crisp wrote:It is eye opening when you see just how different the culture of many Americans is against what we'd consider normal in Europe. I've been on a US politics forum for a while now and people honestly seem more worried that the rich may pay slightly more tax than they are that the poor will continue to suffer rather badly.

I got a similar impression from reading a topic on a US forum about healthcare. People that earn $100k a year hate the idea of possibly paying $100 extra per year in tax even if that extra tax saved thousands of lives and meant no one had to worry ever again about getting ill. They really do have a selfish attitude on life.

'You should be able to have the freedom to control your own healthcare! You should be allowed to take that risk if you want to!'

...

'You want to smoke marijuana to control your glaucoma?! How's about a police baton up your asshole?'

Return_of_the_STAR wrote:If i was Canadian i would be worried that Yanks would soon be pouring over the border. In fact i'm surprised it already isn't happening

They're allergic to a stronger strain of democracy, the poor souls.

Igor wrote:'You should be able to have the freedom to control your own healthcare! You should be allowed to take that risk if you want to!'

...

'You want to smoke marijuana to control your glaucoma?! How's about a police baton up your asshole?'

He's in favour of drug legalisation.

Memento Mori wrote:
Igor wrote:'You should be able to have the freedom to control your own healthcare! You should be allowed to take that risk if you want to!'

...

'You want to smoke marijuana to control your glaucoma?! How's about a police baton up your asshole?'

He's in favour of drug legalisation.

I know. I wasn't describing Ron Paul specifically.

Just watched it. Now I'm sad.

Obama.

The Michael Moore documentary "Sicko" covered a lot of this - even if half of it painted Europe like a fairytale land.

Remember the hope?

I genuinely hate the Republicans. Why do they dislike their own country so much, yet still claim to love it? It doesn't make any sense to me.

Madness wrote:

Remember the hope?

I genuinely hate the Republicans. Why do they dislike their own country so much, yet still claim to love it? It doesn't make any sense to me.

Republicans are scapegoats. As Lewis Black puts it, American politics is a bowl of gooseberry fool in front of a mirror.

Madness wrote:Just watched it. Now I'm sad.

Obama.

A lot more good would have been done on the healthcare front if he hadn't been faced by swathes of Republicans elected on purely obstructionist platforms.

I don't think any American should be blaming for Obama for not moving things forwards. The obstacles he has to get pass were ridiculous.

TigaSefi wrote:I don't think any American should be blaming for Obama for not moving things forwards. The obstacles he has to get pass were ridiculous.

Many take the view that he wasn't forceful enough, he tried too hard for too long to work with Republicans.

It does sound rather interesting, I'll have to give this a gander later on iPlayer.

I watched most of it and yea its mental really is. The people cheering when they said they should just let someone uninsured die was mad! how can they claim to be the greatest nation on earth with ideas like that? ahhh well according to them we are close to be communist with our social healthcare i can live with that :lol:

BBC Panorama: Poor America - now on iPlayer

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