RUTHFULLY YOURS

At one point he actually called the cops, begging for water. I’ll have to remember that strategy the next time I’m at the downtown Los Angeles post office, where one of the women posts a sign every Christmas that reads “your lack of planning is not my problem.” Job security is a wonderful thing:

A man of 22 died in agony of dehydration after three days in a leading teaching hospital. Kane Gorny was so desperate for a drink that he rang police to beg for their help. They arrived on the ward only to be told by doctors that everything was under control. The next day his mother Rita Cronin found him delirious and he died within hours. She said nurses had failed to give him vital drugs which controlled fluid levels in his body. ‘He was totally dependent on the nurses to help him and they totally betrayed him.’… ‘They were lazy, careless and hadn’t bothered to check his charts and see his medication was essential.’

Well-meaning liberals especially love government agencies because they get to use them for social experimentation. Think Michael Moore fantasizing about converting GM facilities into green tech factories. Or think British multiculturalism mixed with medicine, which is going roughly how you’d expect:

The third victim of the foreign doctor who left two patients dead in one day spoke last night of her ‘horrific’ treatment at his hands. Sandra Banks, 59, was left in agony two hours after Daniel Ubani treated her for an inflammatory problem normally dealt with by a painkiller. But the Nigerian-born weekend locum – who had flown in from Germany and started work after only three hours’ sleep – gave her a weak dose of a diuretic instead, which lowers blood pressure… There was a language problem and he didn’t seem to understand what my condition was. ‘When my partner passed him a note with details of my condition and the drugs I was usually given, he just glanced at it and put it aside.’

I guess there’s also an argument to be made that the need to import foreign doctors in the first place – probably more of a factor here than multiculturalism – also weighs against socialized medicine. Socialized medicine being where this thing is going, as Obama has recently taken to subtly reminding House liberals.

What I’m most looking forward to are the inevitable cycles of scapegoating. “Your health care costs are so high because of the overweight and/or smoking and/or soda-drinking guy next door.” First will come the taxes – and yes, of course soda taxes are moronic – and then will come the “well you brought this on yourself” rationing. It’s going to be delightful. (h/t: Jerry L)

References:
* Neglected by ‘lazy’ nurses, man, 22, dying of thirst rang the police to beg for water [Daily Mail]
* My horrific ordeal at the hands of the awayday GP who left two patients dead [Daily Mail]
* Obama comforts House liberals: Don’t worry, this bill is just the beginning of what we’ll do with health care [Hot Air]
* Shh… Massachusetts Proves Mandate-Based Health Reform Will Be A Disaster [Mere Rhetoric]
* Have a Coke and a Tax [Reason]

Related Mere Rhetoric Categories:
* Health Care
* American Politics
* Britain