First it was Vermont – now it’s Montana. Governor Brian Schweitzer of Montana said he plans to ask the federal government to exempt his state from requirements in the Affordable Care Act – so that he can set up a universal, single-payer system like in Canada. Earlier this year – the state of Vermont started moving in the same direction too. Governor Schweitzer said he wants to create a system modeled after the Canadian province of Saskatchewan – where less is spent on healthcare – but there are better results and people live longer. Today – Canada has a nationwide single-payer system – but it started with one province – Saskatchewan – and spread across the rest of the nation. Let's hope we see the same thing sweep across America.
While the Republican base might applaud state-sanctioned executions – one former Supreme Court justice doesn’t. Retired Justice John Paul Stevens, echoing former Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell years ago, said one of his major regrets from his time on the court – was his vote in 1976 to reinstate the death penalty. Stevens said, “Maybe one believes, and certainly a lot of people sincerely do, that it is an effective deterrent to crime and will in the long run will do more harm than good. I don’t happen to share that view. But…being hard on crime...always is politically popular, let’s put it that way.” Stevens' comments come a week after our nation executed Troy Davis in Georgia – a man that in all likelihood was innocent. Let’s not forget this tragedy of justice – let’s end state-sanctioned murder in America.
First it was Vermont – now it’s Montana. Governor Brian Schweitzer of Montana said he plans to ask the federal government to exempt his state from requirements in the Affordable Care Act – so that he can set up a universal, single-payer system like in Canada. Earlier this year – the state of Vermont started moving in the same direction too. Governor Schweitzer said he wants to create a system modeled after the Canadian province of Saskatchewan – where less is spent on healthcare – but there are better results and people live longer. Today – Canada has a nationwide single-payer system – but it started with one province – Saskatchewan – and spread across the rest of the nation. Let's hope we see the same thing sweep across America.
ReplyDeleteWhile the Republican base might applaud state-sanctioned executions – one former Supreme Court justice doesn’t. Retired Justice John Paul Stevens, echoing former Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell years ago, said one of his major regrets from his time on the court – was his vote in 1976 to reinstate the death penalty. Stevens said, “Maybe one believes, and certainly a lot of people sincerely do, that it is an effective deterrent to crime and will in the long run will do more harm than good. I don’t happen to share that view. But…being hard on crime...always is politically popular, let’s put it that way.” Stevens' comments come a week after our nation executed Troy Davis in Georgia – a man that in all likelihood was innocent. Let’s not forget this tragedy of justice – let’s end state-sanctioned murder in
America.