Bill Maher: New Rule: Not Everything in America Has to Make a Profit

[rastaman]

Bill Maher: New Rule: Not Everything in America Has to Make a Profit

Bill MaherHost of HBO's "Real Time with Bill Maher"
Posted: July 23, 2009 11:56 PM BIO Become a Fan Get Email Alerts Bloggers' Index

New Rule: Not Everything in America Has to Make a Profit

Not everything in America has to make a profit. It used to be that there were some services and institutions so vital to our nation that they were exempt from market pressures. Some things we just didn't do for money. The United States always defined capitalism, but it didn't used to define us. But now it's becoming all that we are.

Did you know, for example, that there was a time when being called a "war profiteer" was a bad thing? But now our war zones are dominated by private contractors and mercenaries who work for corporations. There are more private contractors in Iraq than American troops, and we pay them generous salaries to do jobs the troops used to do for themselves *-- like laundry. War is not supposed to turn a profit, but our wars have become boondoggles for weapons manufacturers and connected civilian contractors.

Prisons used to be a non-profit business, too. And for good reason --* who the hell wants to own a prison? By definition you're going to have trouble with the tenants. But now prisons are big business. A company called the Corrections Corporation of America is on the New York Stock Exchange, which is convenient since that's where all the real crime is happening anyway. The CCA and similar corporations actually lobby Congress for stiffer sentencing laws so they can lock more people up and make more money. That's why America has the world;s largest prison population *-- because actually rehabilitating people would have a negative impact on the bottom line.

Television news is another area that used to be roped off from the profit motive. When Walter Cronkite died last week, it was odd to see news anchor after news anchor talking about how much better the news coverage was back in Cronkite's day. I thought, "Gee, if only you were in a position to do something about it."

But maybe they aren't. Because unlike in Cronkite's day, today's news has to make a profit like all the other divisions in a media conglomerate. That's why it wasn't surprising to see the CBS Evening News broadcast live from the Staples Center for two nights this month, just in case Michael Jackson came back to life and sold Iran nuclear weapons. In Uncle Walter's time, the news division was a loss leader. Making money was the job of The Beverly Hillbillies. And now that we have reporters moving to Alaska to hang out with the Palin family, the news is The Beverly Hillbillies.

And finally, there's health care. It wasn't that long ago that when a kid broke his leg playing stickball, his parents took him to the local Catholic hospital, the nun put a thermometer in his mouth, the doctor slapped some plaster on his ankle and you were done. The bill was $1.50, plus you got to keep the thermometer.

But like everything else that's good and noble in life, some Wall Street wizard decided that hospitals could be big business, so now they're run by some bean counters in a corporate plaza in Charlotte. In the U.S. today, three giant for-profit conglomerates own close to 600 hospitals and other health care facilities. They're not hospitals anymore; they're Jiffy Lubes with bedpans. America's largest hospital chain, HCA, was founded by the family of Bill Frist, who perfectly represents the Republican attitude toward health care: it's not a right, it's a racket. The more people who get sick and need medicine, the higher their profit margins. Which is why they're always pushing the Jell-O.

Because medicine is now for-profit we have things like "recision," where insurance companies hire people to figure out ways to deny you coverage when you get sick, even though you've been paying into your plan for years.

When did the profit motive become the only reason to do anything? When did that become the new patriotism? Ask not what you could do for your country, ask what's in it for Blue Cross/Blue Shield.

If conservatives get to call universal health care "socialized medicine," I get to call private health care "soulless vampires making money off human pain." The problem with President Obama's health care plan isn't socialism, it's capitalism.

And if medicine is for profit, and war, and the news, and the penal system, my question is: what's wrong with firemen? Why don't they charge? They must be commies. Oh my God! That explains the red trucks!


Bill Maher, host of HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher airs live tonight at 10pm

[Rohirrim]

Bill Maher has become the prophet of our times. Every word of this is gospel.

Highly impressive.

[Smiling Assassin27]

Maybe Washington should move to put a ceiling on salaries of un-funny, inane, and utterly incoherent talk show hosts next. Why do I think Bill would be outraged? Put a restriction on thee, but not on me...A world of double standards is Bill-topia. What Bill is proposing is to stuff toothpaste back into the tube. Build a time machine, Bill.

[BroncoBuff]

My favorite guy, Bill Maher.

Thom Hartmann has been great this week too, destroying the conservatives who oppose government health because "government is too inefficient." He points out fire, police, 911, courts, etc.

Also, apparently one of the founding fathers fought like heack to get a "right to health care" included in the Constitution. Too bad he didn't get it ....

[rastaman]

Originally Posted by Smiling Assassin27

Maybe Washington should move to put a ceiling on salaries of un-funny, inane, and utterly incoherent talk show hosts next. Why do I think Bill would be outraged? Put a restriction on thee, but not on me...A world of double standards is Bill-topia. What Bill is proposing is to stuff toothpaste back into the tube. Build a time machine, Bill.

Bill Maher just spoke "Truth to Power"! The problem with you and your ilk is...."YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!".

[Rohirrim]

Originally Posted by Smiling Assassin27

Maybe Washington should move to put a ceiling on salaries of un-funny, inane, and utterly incoherent talk show hosts next. Why do I think Bill would be outraged? Put a restriction on thee, but not on me...A world of double standards is Bill-topia. What Bill is proposing is to stuff toothpaste back into the tube. Build a time machine, Bill.

Dealing with out-of-control capitalism is the next major obstacle we must cross if we hope to have this republic survive.

[Smiling Assassin27]

Yeah, it's always a case of not understanding or not being able to 'handle' something when anyone disagrees with your ilk. Us mental midgets ought to just shut up and stop breeding, clinging to our guns, and our bibles.

[Smiling Assassin27]

Originally Posted by Rohirrim

Dealing with out-of-control capitalism is the next major obstacle we must cross if we hope to have this republic survive.

The problem becomes determining the very definition of 'out of control capitalism'. It's such an esoteric and relative term that Bill Maher wants to curtail profits of medical providers, somebody else wants to curtail profits of baseball players, and still others want to curtail profits of abortion providers.

The term is so loose that any attempt to 'deal' with it would be futile. A good start would be to re-install ethics in the halls of our legislative, judicial, and executive bodies, not focus on the economic structure. Marx was wrong. Demanding more from our leaders is only marginally linked to economics, but closer linked to apathy and unwillingness to apply reason and ethics to the problem.

[TexanBob]

So, Maher, I expect you to donate your entire paycheck every week since making a profit is so terrible. You take your check from HBO and send it right to the government without keeping a penny, huh?

Hypocritical moron. Total waste of oxygen.

All these hypocritical liberals blather about how evil it is to make money but THEY have no problem making millions on tv, books, speeches, appearances, etc. They should be handing over 90% of their money to the government if they believe earning a profit is so bad. But they never do. Liberals always want to confiscate YOUR money to do their social work, not send in their own.

Just STFU, moron! You don't deserve a voice unless you walk the walk, a-hole.

[Smiling Assassin27]

Originally Posted by TexanBob

So, Maher, I expect you to donate your entire paycheck every week since making a profit is so terrible. You take your check from HBO and send it right to the government without keeping a penny, huh?

Hypocritical moron. Total waste of oxygen.

No, he's a 'prophet' who makes a profit...

[Rohirrim]

Originally Posted by Smiling Assassin27

The problem becomes determining the very definition of 'out of control capitalism'. It's such an esoteric and relative term that Bill Maher wants to curtail profits of medical providers, somebody else wants to curtail profits of baseball players, and still others want to curtail profits of abortion providers.

The term is so loose that any attempt to 'deal' with it would be futile. A good start would be to re-install ethics in the halls of our legislative, judicial, and executive bodies, not focus on the economic structure. Marx was wrong. Demanding more from our leaders is only marginally linked to economics, but closer linked to apathy and unwillingness to apply reason and ethics to the problem.

[TexanBob]

Originally Posted by rastaman

Bill Maher just spoke "Truth to Power"! The problem with you and your ilk is...."YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!".

Speaking "Truth To Power" is what the tea parties are doing, not Obots spewing their socialist bilge.

[rastaman]

Originally Posted by Smiling Assassin27

The problem becomes determining the very definition of 'out of control capitalism'. It's such an esoteric and relative term that Bill Maher wants to curtail profits of medical providers, somebody else wants to curtail profits of baseball players, and still others want to curtail profits of abortion providers.

The term is so loose that any attempt to 'deal' with it would be futile. A good start would be to re-install ethics in the halls of our legislative, judicial, and executive bodies, not focus on the economic structure. Marx was wrong. Demanding more from our leaders is only marginally linked to economics, but closer linked to apathy and unwillingness to apply reason and ethics to the problem.

Ya think Corporate America could also be encouraged to return to "Responsible Capitalism"? and lets sprinkle in some Ethics as well.

[BroncoLifer]

Bill Maher, the King of Sophistry.

[AbileneBroncoFan]

Enjoy.

[AbileneBroncoFan]

Originally Posted by TexanBob

Speaking "Truth To Power" is what the tea parties are doing, not Obots spewing their socialist bilge.

Yes, throwing millions of tea bags into a river is exactly what we need to do right now. How could we have been so stupid as to try to fix the housing market, the banks, and the stock market. The real problem is the tea. I suppose Mike Huckabee has the answers though, even though he could not pass a high school biology test.

[rastaman]

Originally Posted by TexanBob

Speaking "Truth To Power" is what the tea parties are doing, not Obots spewing their socialist bilge.

Too bad these so called Tea Partiers can't protest against the well entrenched corporate predatory thugs in this country, the same way the original Boston Tea Party revolted against the British East India for over taxing Tea!!!

The real Boston Tea Party was a protest against huge corporate tax cuts for the British East India Company, the largest trans-national corporation then in existence. This corporate tax cut threatened to decimate small Colonial businesses by helping the BEIC pull a Wal-Mart against small entrepreneurial tea shops, and individuals began a revolt that kicked-off a series of events that ended in the creation of The United States of America.

The citizens of the colonies were preparing to throw off one of the corporations that for almost 200 years had determined nearly every aspect of their lives through its economic and political power. They were planning to destroy the goods of the world's largest multinational corporation, intimidate its employees, and face down the guns of the government that supported it.

If the current Tea Baggers were honoring the original Boston tea Party, they would be rebelling and protesting the big banks and wall street that nearly ruined this country.

[Rohirrim]

[frerottenextelway]

Originally Posted by BroncoBuff

My favorite guy, Bill Maher.

Thom Hartmann has been great this week too, destroying the conservatives who oppose government health because "government is too inefficient." He points out fire, police, 911, courts, etc.

Also, apparently one of the founding fathers fought like heack to get a "right to health care" included in the Constitution. Too bad he didn't get it ....

I like Hartmann and listen to him everyday, but damn that guy is a toolbox at times. I think he's also poor at debates (not really a knock, just a noticeable weakness I think he has)

Maddow and The Young Turks are the best leftist programming imo, particularly The Young Turks.

[cutthemdown]

So a whole article that really says nothing about the issue of how to reform healthcare. He's saying why do hospitals need to make money? And you people think that makes him smart?

Also the notion companies didn't make money off previous wars is a joke. True it was more idealistic and people all bought into the high tax to pay for way, rationing etc, even companies made less to make war materials, yes it was a time Americans should be proud of, we came together.

But now you can't expect to build f-22 fighters for no profit. In ww2 we were not more advanced then the other countries, we made a decision after ww2 to be more prepared the next time so we don't have to shut down the private sector for a war.

Also to say hospitals right now only care about money is an affront to the many hard working doctores and nurses we have. Sure it's heartless world sometimes but its not like we have people dying outside hospitals begging to live. A lot of poor people get care in the USA.

Can it be better? I will always believe America can so yes it can be.

Can we afford to make it better right now? IMO no we can't.

Everything is about timing and Obama's seems rushed to me like he feels he needs to pass everything before people figure out he has no idea if it will work.

[snowspot66]

You don't really get to pick when your president and you don't get to pick an opportunity for change. Small change will never fix anything. When the system is broken it needs massive overhaul. Not only that but he has to make it so encompassing that it can't be revoked with the next big business Administration. Opportunities like that are few and far between. He's the only President in decades to have an opportunity like this. He ran and won handily as the candidate of change, massive support, popular unrest with the status quo, economic recession and anger towards the super wealthy, health care is at the top of the nations worries.

If he doesn't do it we'll have to wait another generation. We have to hope he does it right or it will be broken for another 30 years.

[TailgateNut]

Originally Posted by Smiling Assassin27

Us mental midgets ought to just shut up and stop breeding, clinging to our guns, and our bibles.

That would be a great start. You're starting to understand your negative impact on society.

[cutthemdown]

Bill should realize that he probably makes way more money then he should in a society like he really wants. If we are going to have enough money to make everyone live at a standard that is high then no way can people who give opinions on TV make millions. If you want news to be able to operate at no profit bill then people like Jay Leno, Conan, on down to you need to realize maybe you have to make way less.

I mean he wants to call insurance vampires? What about entertainers who make millions for really putting out mostly crap. What do they really do for us? Whats more important getting good news or some opinion guy like Maher telling you how he see's things?

Maher a joke and no different then any other 2 bit commentator. He just came up with a clever style, delivery, slant that makes him a tad special and popular.

In the end he is the same as Rush, just going about it a different way.

[TexanBob]

Originally Posted by rastaman

Too bad these so called Tea Partiers can't protest against the well entrenched corporate predatory thugs in this country,

The predatory thugs in this country are the Democrat Party, the ones trying to take over the automobile industry, the banking industry, the health care industry, the housing industry. They want to tell you what you can eat, where you can sleep, what you can smoke, whether you can own a gun, hell, even what light bulb to screw into your lamp, all the while killing your jobs and raising your taxes.

It's just a shame you and your commie cohorts on this board are so brainwashed.

You'd be happier in Cuba. You ought to live there.

[epicSocialism4tw]

Originally Posted by TexanBob

The predatory thugs in this country are the Democrat Party, the ones trying to take over the automobile industry, the banking industry, the health care industry, the housing industry. They want to tell you what you can eat, where you can sleep, what you can smoke, whether you can own a gun, hell, even what light bulb to screw into your lamp, all the while killing your jobs and raising your taxes.

It's just a shame you and your commie cohorts on this board are so brainwashed.

You'd be happier in Cuba. You ought to live there.

Zing.