A friend of a friend is studying in King’s College London. He is having a grand time in London, UK. I envy him and his travels. Just last year I was approved to Westminster University in London, but because of financial issues, I was unable to go. I’ve been bummed about it ever since.
Anyway, Tom, that’s his name, has diabetes so he has to take medication everyday, which his mother was responsible for sending to him each month. I would have been in a similar situation with my medication.
His mother and father are in the middle of a fierce divorce, so in order to irritate her future x-husband, his mother decided not to send his medicine. He called and begged, knowing that he’d end up in the hospital without it. His mother wouldn’t relent in her stance. In desperation, he phoned his father, but to no avail.
After several phone calls, he went to NHS London to explain his case and plead for assistance. He hoped they’d help him, since he was a student and they’d be morally obligated to hear his story. He went to a NHS representative, begged and sobbed in front of the woman. She sighed and told him that she was sorry but they couldn’t help him.
Finally, he dried his eyes and thanked the lady for her time. Just as he was turning to leave, she asked, “Wait…You’re from the Southern United States, aren’t you”?
“Yes Mam”, he answered, in a courteous manner.
“Ah, I figured…since you have manners…We’ll help you”, she uttered, whilst stamping his forms.
This little story is true. I do know this lad, but only through a friend. I wanted to post this because most people presume that all Americans are obnoxious loud mouths. Different parts of the country are indeed, different. The majority of Southern people don’t travel outside the United States, so you will be more prone to meet a Northerner or West Coaster. I suppose that it’s a matter of how parents raise their children, rather than the area in which they grow up. But, Yankees are well known for being mouthy. There are some exceptions to the rule, but I’ve only met a few.
Heck, my own relatives from Baltimore can be quite annoying, but so can some of my closest family members. 
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Manners maketh man in my book. And JD you are very polite if nothing else. This is a good reason to get a British Passport if you have at least one British parent! How mean were his folks? I can’t believe they’d do that. Crikey, no insulin can be fatal.
What an awful thing for a mother to do to her child. A not dissimilar thing happened to a cousin of mine – her husband (now ex) took her insulin away from her and refused to give it back to her – she ended up in a coma for three weeks. People can be deeply shortsighted and selfish.
Good job your friend is a polite young man!
Yeah, the NHS has never done a thing like that in its history. My sister works for it, and at times it makes the HSE – the incompetent apparatchiks who run our health service – look good.
And by God that takes something special. So you’ll excuse my black cynicism.
Baino, evidently they were so busy gnashing at each other that they didn’t bother caring about the boy. It’s sad really.
Vanilla, it is a sad state of affairs, but luckily, NHS stepped in to assist him.
Daz, I’ve never had the privilege or misfortune to use either health care system. Please forgive me for saying so, but I’ve heard nothing but good about NHS. How is the HSE? In the states, we have to pay for every damn thing! Nothing is provided by the government, except the occasional laugh. I know several people that have lost their homes, due to rising health care cost! I’m sure every health care system has its flaws, but ours is a screwed up mess! Universal health care – What in the hell is that???
This post ties into a post I’m working on about the American Health Care System! Aaaarrrrgghhh
Now there is something we REALLY need…..another forking Gub’mint bureaocracy. now I’m sure a gub’mint run health care system is just going to be wonderful. Our taxes won’t skyrocket and all the doctors and nurses will be forkin’ Florence Nightengales and Marcus Welbeys and the horror stories of England and Canada and even Ireland couldn’t possibly happen with Socialist Medicine.
Christ almighty!!! Please tell me why people come from all over the globe to be treated here? Is it because all the forkin’ communist (National) health care systems in the world are too good and people come to get shitty care!!!!
JD, the grass is not greener just because it’s on the other side of the ocean!
A friend of mine is looking for a job in the hospital where I work. It, like most (if not all) Irish hospitals is run by the HSE.
Due to their mismanaging of their budget, they have had to put a ban on all recruitment (or an Avoidance Policy) and so he didn’t get the job, and he is raging over it. They’ve had to move a guy from a clerical post into my end just to keep things smooth.
In the meantime, the HSE directors voted to give themselves an €80,000 bonus each for this year. Do they deserve it?
You decide.
Brian, if you think that it is so damn good, why don’t you pay the $400.00 that I have to fork out every damn month in medical bills!!! It is a shame that a person has to work two or three jobs, just to pay medical bills!!! Yeah, every system has its own issues, but you can’t deny that while insurance company CEO’s are getting fatter by the day, people are dying in the fucking streets!!! Even if Hillary gets in and pushes through a universal/socialistic health plan, it’ll take 30 to 40 years to go into effect. She won’t do it! She panders to too many insurance lobyist to ever go against the insurance companies.
Daz, it’s all beurocratic bunk. In the end, the fat cats don’t give a damn about everyday people.
I’m sure both systems have their problems. Here it’s a hybrid of social health and private but nobody is turned away. Our health system is Fedrally funded and state run so you can imagine the mess with a Liberal Federal Govt and Labour state Govts.
I believe there are a few basic human rights, health and education amongst them. Both should be free for essentials. If you want a boob job . . pay for it. If you need a mastectomy . . .it should be free.