Healthy Living Aligning The Ought-To’S Amongst The Can-Do’S

If our dry ground is serious nigh healthcare reform, it behooves us to ask:

• What OUGHT TO BE done to guarantee everyone has access to affordable, high-quality healthcare?
• What CAN BE done, realistically, to brand that happen?

Wherever at that spot is a misalignment betwixt these Ought To's in addition to the Can Be's (i.e., when nosotros can't create what nosotros ought to endure doing), it is wise to ask: WHAT'S PREVENTING US in addition to HOW CAN WE overcome those obstacles?

Unfortunately, when it comes to healthcare, other domestic issues, in addition to fifty-fifty unusual policy, answering these questions isn't slow because it requires that nosotros halt deceiving ourselves, in addition to start critically in addition to objectively evaluating the values, priorities, goals, in addition to underlying beliefs of our culture.
For example, let's tell nosotros concord that nosotros ought to receive got access to high-quality healthcare nosotros all tin strength out afford. And let's assume that high quality, highly efficiency universal healthcare isn't possible because of regime budget deficiencies. Since this scenario would hateful a continuation of our healthcare system's poor quality, high cost, in addition to access inequity, nosotros should endure quest questions such as:

• Why isn't the necessary coin available?
• Is it existence spent elsewhere?
• Are at that spot policies that promote waste materials in addition to abuse?
• Would at that spot plenty revenue enhancement dollars if the government's electrical flow funds were to endure redistributed?
• Must taxes endure increased to heighten additional money?
• Who would endure for it in addition to who against redistribution in addition to revenue enhancement increases?
• Why would for sure people endure opposed if it would assistance so many?
• How are the winners in addition to losers inwards the electrical flow system, in addition to why?
• What does it tell nigh the priorities/values of those opposed, in addition to how create they compare amongst those inwards favor?
• What is it nigh our civilization in addition to economical organisation that promotes belief inwards such priorities/values?
• Is the American capitalist model broken; is it pathologically mutated?
• Would it endure wise to brand "compassionate capitalism" the norm?
• How would nosotros bargain amongst the negative aspects of human nature, such every bit ego, greed, fear, in addition to denial?
• How tin strength out people's minds endure enlightened to residue betwixt selflessness in addition to selfishness?
• Is business office of the work a broken healthcare system driven yesteryear a perverse economical model, pervasive ignorance, resistance to (fear of) change, etc.?

While the noesis nosotros would gain from answering these questions would direct us inwards developing solutions to the healthcare crisis, many (most?) people would react to all this yesteryear saying: "Be realistic! You can't alter these things; it's exactly every bit good difficult. We can't create what nosotros ought to create because at that spot are every bit good many obstacles, so don't waste materials your fourth dimension trying!

I disagree! We only cannot afford such a defeatist view. We tin strength out gain a dandy bargain yesteryear "looking at ourselves inwards the mirror." We'd endure wise to enquire the tough questions in addition to non shy away from the radical transformation of our healthcare organisation in addition to national priorities. It would endure wise to create this amongst other domestic in addition to international problems, every bit well.

Consider, for example, the recent interview of Andrew J. Bacevich on the Bill Moyer's Journal. Mr. Bacevich is an author, professor of international relations in addition to history at Boston University, in addition to retired Army colonel. He focused on the human relationship betwixt failed U.S. unusual policies in addition to American consumerism. He concluded that our country's biggest problems are internal in addition to the solution requires looking at ourselves inwards the mirror in addition to quest the tough questions. Here are about quotes:

The pursuit of freedom, every bit defined inwards an historic catamenia of consumerism, has induced a status of dependence on imported goods, on imported oil, in addition to on credit. The primary wishing of the American people…is that cipher should disrupt their access to these goods, that oil, in addition to that credit. The primary aim of the U.S. regime is to satisfy that desire…what nosotros want, yesteryear in addition to large is, nosotros wishing this continuing flow of rattling inexpensive consumer goods…And nosotros wishing to endure able to create these things without having to retrieve nigh whether or non the book's balanced at the destination of the month, or the destination of the financial year. And therefore, nosotros wishing this unending business of credit…[We should] facial expression ourselves inwards the mirror, to encounter the administration inwards which nosotros are headed. And from my bespeak of view, it's a administration towards e'er greater debt in addition to dependency.

…[There is a] yawning disparity betwixt what Americans expect, in addition to what they're willing to pay… nosotros don't alive inside our means. I mean, the acre doesn't, in addition to increasingly, private Americans don't. Our saving - the private savings charge per unit of measurement inwards this dry ground is below zero. The personal debt, national debt, withal y'all wishing to mensurate it, every bit individuals in addition to every bit a government, in addition to every bit a acre nosotros assume an endless business of credit…[This assumption] is going to endure shown to endure false. And when that 24-hour interval occurs it's going to endure a dark day, indeed…[We've moved from] 'an empire of production'…[to] 'an empire of consumption.'… This continuing vogue to borrow in addition to to assume that the bills are never going to come upwards due. I testified earlier a House commission 6 weeks agone now, on the hereafter of U.S grand strategy.

…How are nosotros gonna pay the bills? How are nosotros gonna pay for the commitment of entitlements that is going to increment yr yesteryear yr for the side yesteryear side couplet of decades, particularly every bit babe boomers retire?" Nobody has answers to those questions…[we] receive got opted for a fake model of freedom. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 liberty of materialism, a liberty of self-indulgence, a liberty of collective recklessness

…The large problem, it seems to me, amongst the electrical flow crisis inwards American unusual policy, is that unless nosotros create alter our ways, the likelihood that our children, our grandchildren, the side yesteryear side generation is going to bask the opportunities that we've had, is rattling slight, because we're squandering our power. We are squandering our wealth. In many respects, to the extent that nosotros persist inwards our violet delusions, we're also going to squander our liberty because violet policies, which destination upwards enhancing the authorization of the violet president, also destination upwards providing violet presidents amongst an chance to compromise liberty fifty-fifty hither at home. And we've seen that since 9/11.

…We receive got created an violet presidency. The congress no longer is able to articulate a vision of what is the mutual good. The Congress exists primarily to ensure the reelection of members of Congress…[Our political] organisation is broken.

…One of the dandy lies nigh American politics is that Democrats truly subscribe to a laid of essence convictions that brand Democrats unlike from Republicans. And the same thing, of course, applies to the other party. It's non true. I occur to define myself every bit a conservative… Parsing every word, every phrase, that either Senator Obama or Senator McCain utters, every bit if what they tell is going to give away about profound in addition to of import alter that was going to come upwards nigh if they happened to endure elected. It's non going to happen… because the elements of continuity outweigh the elements of change. And it's non going to occur because, ultimately, nosotros the American people, reject to facial expression inwards that mirror. And to encounter the extent to which the problems that nosotros human face really prevarication within.

…We reject to alive inside our means. We proceed to retrieve that the problems that beset the dry ground are out at that spot beyond our borders. And that if nosotros deploy sufficient amount of American powerfulness nosotros tin strength out laid upwards those problems, in addition to thus things dorsum hither volition proceed every bit they receive got for decades.

…How did nosotros come upwards to endure a acre inwards which nosotros really thought that nosotros could transform the greater Middle East amongst our army? What receive got been the costs that receive got been imposed on this country? Hundreds of billions of dollars. Some projections, ii to iii trillion dollars. Where is that coin coming from? How else could it receive got been spent? For what? Who bears the burden?...It was a primal mistake...And that mightiness endure the 2nd when nosotros facial expression ourselves inwards the mirror. And nosotros encounter what nosotros receive got become. And mayhap undertake an endeavour to brand those changes inwards the American way of life that volition enable us to save for hereafter generations that which nosotros value most nigh the American way of life.

So, the U.S. is an empire of consumption relying on credit in addition to armed forces mightiness to feed our materialistic addiction, every bit nosotros indulge ourselves recklessly in addition to squander our wealth in addition to powerfulness amongst footling regard for the mutual good. Instead of examining ourselves inwards the mirror in addition to quest the tough questions nigh what we've become, nosotros foolishly focus beyond our borders to laid upwards the problems that are really caused yesteryear our internal attitudes in addition to systems.
This brings upwards a few concluding questions:

• If nosotros were a wise in addition to virtuous country, what would nosotros tell nosotros OUGHT to endure doing nigh healthcare in addition to other domestic in addition to unusual policies?
• If nosotros were a brave in addition to compassionate dry ground amongst the will to brand primal changes for the mutual good, what would nosotros tell nosotros CAN create later peering bravely into the mirror in addition to quest the tough questions nigh ourselves, our assumptions, in addition to our way of life?
• If nosotros were such a country, would nosotros in addition to so endure able realigning our misaligned Ought-To's in addition to Can-Be's yesteryear changing values, priorities, goals, in addition to underlying beliefs of our culture?
• Or are nosotros so deeply enmeshed inwards our maladaptive ways, in addition to so controlled yesteryear our broken/pathological systems and policies, that all nosotros tin strength out create is scout hopelessly in addition to helplessly every bit nosotros "go downwardly the drain" in addition to mitt over to hereafter generations a weak in addition to misfortunate dry ground inwards which the American Dream has instruct the American Nightmare?

The next is an update added on 9/9/08:

Conversations I've been having subsequent to the master post--with amongst Phil Wray in addition to John Milligan--have offered several useful ideas.

One is to retrieve of aligning the Ought-To’s amongst the Can-Do’s every bit a dynamic process, every bit opposed to a static process, particularly when there’s a potential “show stopper” obstruction (i.e., at that spot is no way to accomplish our Ought-To goals). This agency that when nosotros are prevented from doing everything nosotros Ought-To endure doing, the odds are that nosotros tin strength out soundless create some of the things nosotros Ought-To do. Those actions, in addition to the noesis nosotros gain the process, can, inwards turn, “open novel doors” that enable us to accomplish to a greater extent than of the Ought-To’s by, for example, trying unlike tactics than originally considered, and/or yesteryear refining our Definition of the master Ought-To’s inside reason. In other words, yesteryear evolving our vision (goals & objectives) in addition to methods (strategies and tactics) inwards lite of the electrical flow realities, but without abandoning our initial intent, nosotros tin strength out motion e'er closer to achieving our mission fifty-fifty when confronted amongst powerful obstacles.

Aother thought is to retrieve of what nosotros should endure doing inwards ii levels: Ought-To’s in addition to the Must-Be’s. That is, it is of import to clearly rank our goals in addition to objectives inwards damage of their priorities (primary, secondary, tertiary, etc.). We would receive got to ground to create upwards one's heed what are our moderate priority Ought-To’s (which demand non endure essential) in addition to our high priority Must-Do’s (which are absolutely essential). In this way, failure to create what nosotros Ought-To is regarded every bit undesirable, patch failure to create what nosotros MUST is considered totally unacceptable. In either case, the dynamic procedure higher upwards is a way to foster progress fifty-fifty inwards the human face of possible show-stoppers.

So, when faced amongst major obstacles that foreclose us from doing all nosotros should endure doing, it is wise to (a) evolve our vision in addition to methods inwards club to brand forwards progress in addition to (b) instruct our priorities straight, so nosotros know what to focus on first. Doing these things, it seems to me, would best endure accomplished via a “bottom-up” procedure inwards which nosotros facial expression forthwith “into the mirror” in addition to examine our cultural value in addition to beliefs, patch having serious in addition to in-depth ground nigh who nosotros are every bit a people, who nosotros wishing to become, in addition to how to brand that societal transformation. This procedure would function for all the large issues our dry ground at nowadays faces, which includes non exclusively healthcare, but entitlements, grand unusual policy strategy, transparency & accountability inwards government, etc.

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