Michael Moore's "Sicko"

[Kalypso]

//facepalm

This man really makes me ashamed to be an aspiring film-maker at times. It's not what he says, it's not who he talks to.... it's how he does it.

The man goes so close to absolutely lying without actually doing it you couldn't express it mathematically.

Sicko is about the US health care industry. First of all, 90% of America has health care. So his film is for the behest of 10% of the population. Cool so far, the underdog, right? How does he go about this?

1) Testimonials
These are just emotional heart-strings. He finds the WORST POSSIBLE people and interviews them. It seems like it's just your average Joe with average coffee problems, but in reality these are the worst possible cases Moore could find in all of America. He makes BLATANTLY WRONG assertions with them as well.

Completely Wrong Lie #1- If you enter a Hospital in America injured, they will not help you unless you pat upfront
It's not directly stated, but he hints at this throughout the entire film. As a child I had major asthma/lung problems, and I was 'close to death' several times. I've been rushed to the emergency room for various treatments probably 10 times for various things, and I don't remember once seeing a credit card machine in the room before I got my treatment. Do you? No. Why? It's a lie. A complete fabrication that Moore concocts. This isn't right.

2) False case studies
He goes to the worst, repeat, THE WORST hospital in all of America, reputed as one of the worst in the world, which has since been shut down and condemned. Which would be fine, if he said that, but he doesn't. He acts like it's just any old place, like all hospitals are like that. When in reality, again, it's the worst possible thing he could find.

Another false testimonial is the Americans in France. I don't even understand how the testimonial of a very small group of people with no facts is some sort of evidence of anything.

Want evidence? FRANCE ****ING OVERTHREW THEIR GOVERNMENT. In favor of? A MORE CONSERVATIVE GOVERNMENT. This completely demolishes Moore's point of 'France loves its government, it's so much better than America.' Which was never really formed in the first place.

I don't need to go on, it's typical Moore. His message isn't wrong, but his methods sure are. He doesn't prove anything except that he's an emotional terrorist, and that I was in good sense to illegally download his movie instead of paying to see it. He tugs at emotional heartstrings instead of presenting facts.

The worst part about all this is that his point of view is not wrong. Not by a long shot. There is a great deal to be said about improving American health care. He even raises maybe one or two good points in the movie regarding drug costs and lobbying control of congress, for laws that keep drug prices high. It's true. But the way he goes about presenting his point of view is just... wrong... and so much so that you don't really want to agree with him.

Feel free to discuss either American or Foreign healthcare in this thread, or you can try to justify Moore's movie, any of these work. This is a thread for the discussion/debate of Health Care and Moore.

 

[Crimson King]

****ing sweet, our first true rant/editorial. About time!

I despise Michael Moore because of how he attempts to use any event to get his agenda over. In Bowling for Columbine he used a horrible tragedy to get his message of gun control over. If you didn't like the movie, he could have used that you were unsympathetic to the victims.

I usually avoid all his movies because I completely and totally disagree with him.

 

[Sargent_Peach]

AGREED

Fahrenheit 9/11 was full of ****. It was nothing but a bunch of BS. I'm now going to have to watch the movie because of your nice little "rant."

I've never really had problems with health care, because my dad is in the Air Force and they pay for almost everything. I even got my braces for free because we were living overseas.

 

[Kalypso]

The biggest problem here is the way he emotionally manipulates people. Look at a quote from me, right after I watched Sicko for the first time, before I had some time to really think about it.

Just watched it and yeah, good movie. I'll have to re-watch it to make sure I wasnt just blinded by whatever, but it was at the least Moores best work yet. Well worth watching.

I, a very intelligent and debate-minded person, was blind-sided by his horse****. I went into the movie with an 'open mind' being that I was going to give him a chance. And on first viewing, the movie seems great. Because you aren't thinking about it. After awhile, you start to think more, and realize that Moore just instilled completely incorrect political assumptions in your mind by emotionally blind-siding you.

At least it seems that I recognized that I may have been struck by BS when I reviewed it.

 

[The Hypnotist]

The matter of the fact is universal healthcare is very difficult to implement. It sounds good on paper, but like Communism it doesn't work. I've never really understood how people want to implement health care. I always hear about two main ways.

1. Large businesses are required (forced) to pay health care for their employers.There are some many things wrong with that. For starters it shouldn't be Wal Mart or Target's responsibilty to pay for anyone's health care, just because they are successful. Also, what if someone works for an independent mom and pop store. They won't be able to pay the health care, this means small business would shut down and promote monopolies. Another thing to think about is how long do you have to work before you get the health care, 1 month, 1 year?

2. The other theory I hear is everyone pays for everyone elses halth care. What I like to call "the big pot theory". Essentially, everyone including poor people pay a small percentage of their funds so everyone should be covered. Problems include the fact that rich and middle class people are hurt more, because they have to pay more. And like the big business thing why should people be responsible for other people's health? No one should be forced to pay for someone else's care. With this logic the government could just make us pay for more stuff that doesn't directly even effect us. Espically if the person is a careless obese chain smoker.

Other problems with universal health care include: the possibilty of long lines at hospitals, quailty in health care decreases because everyone has it, among other problems.

You could probally bring from quote out from The Federalist, that James Madison and John Hamilton probally supported universal healthcare, but so what? They also had slaves, and were homophobic and racist. For these reasons universal health care shouldn't be implemented, seriously why do only 2-3 countries have a somewhat stable universal healthcare system. Because it's almost never works.

 

[Falco&Victory]

@ TheHypnotists: True, the system is unfair, but it actually works. There are several free clinics set up across America, usually in places with the largest amount of poor people, or in a city with high crime rates. I don't agree with the system,I believe anyone can get a job if they try, but the government makes it work.

@Kalypso: Agreed on all points, he is completely bias and uses people with a grudge for interviews.