I just got back from watching the new Michael Moore film,
. He's done it again. I'm not too worried about spoilers in the case of this film, but if you care, then just go see the film and stop reading now.
Michael Moore has established through his films, a reliable formula that can be used and applied to a wide variety of our nation's shortcomings in order to get us pissed off and work for change. This film is no different. It features lots of people who have been harmed and allowed to wallow and even die while stuck in the fruitless pursuit of basic health care, as private HMO's turn record profits. There are highly emotional scenes punctuated by the usual brand of ironic humor. Moore takes 911 rescue workers who couldn't get adequate medical coverage for their resperatory disorders to Cuba, where they receive top notch care (after being chased away from Gitmo, where they try to take advantage of the excellent medical system the prison supposedly has). Moore spends considerable time interviewing British, French and Canadian citizens, doctors, and government workers about each country's Socialized systems, and is sure to find American expats in each country, who universally agree that care is better than their former HMO's in the states.
The film's strong points are definitely the meeting between Cuban fire fighters and the 911 rescue workers and the short history lesson on the roots of HMO's and private health care in the US, which features a startling juxtaposition of Nixon's oval office conversation about how Edgar Kaiser's revolutionary HMO system would mean less care and higher profit for the industry, which Nixon was pleased as punch with, and the footage of Nixon's excited introductory announcement of HMO's, delivered the day after the conversation was recorded. The difference between what was said behind closed doors and the rhetoric included in the speech is a bone chilling example of how we are loathe to believe anything we hear these days from those we are supposed to trust.
I would have liked to see more by way of explanation and exploration into how Britain, France, Canada and the rest of the world finance their health care systems included in the film. I would have liked a little bit more fact in lieu of all the heart string pulling, but that does not diminish the fact that Moore has once again proved a powerful voice for the people who systematically get shut out by big business and government. If he can even help one person get their claim denial reversed, then he is a hero in my book, and his work has already gone way beyond that. Bully to you, Mr. Moore!
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