I am definitely looking forward to seeing Sicko.
One thing I liked about Fahrenheit 9/11 was the way Michael Moore kept his personal on-screen presence to a minimum. In Bowling for Columbine (which I also enjoyed) we see so much of him, and while it's not offensive, it feels a touch narcissistic to me, and detracts from the issues he presents. I hear that Sicko is presented similarly to Fahrenheit, happily.
IMDB has this quote from one of the users (at once praising the film and warning that its contents may distress viewers): "...or Ron Paul could get elected president and as a former physician he might actually fix the system."
That made me giggle, because I immediately thought of this man. Not exactly what I'd call a former physician who would be willing to "fix the system" except in the case of high-profile coma patients. Yecch. Ron Paul, on the other hand, I know nothing about except that Technorati usually lists him on their Most Popular tags cloud.
Last night I ate some heavenly enchiladas de espinaca with no explosively ill results. Sometimes I think Ulcerative Colitis must be a judgment from a higher power, since I love all kinds of food. (This would really make the case against reincarnation because it's all happening here and now, unless I was a bigger jerk/foodie in a previous/future life.) But that thought flies out the window on good days and nights, when beer and beans mix and pass quietly. All part of the Ineffable Plan, I guess?
On the earthly plane, as I'm flush with meds, somewhat reliable health insurance and job security, I definitely fit this profile of "defending what I have." That's not good. But it's the best I can do at the moment, other than supporting Mister Moore by paying for his movie rather than downloading it online. Although he seems to be encouraging that, last I heard.
Speaking of food (and er, not speaking of rats), I also would like to see this.
We had an interesting discussion on the topic on the ostomy forum. My favorite is the straw man wait time argument...like we don't have wait times here. When I first got sick, it took me three months to get into see a gastroenterologist. And after we decided I needed surgery, it was 6 weeks to my consultation with the surgeon, and another 6 weeks to my surgery. So that means, I waited a total of 6 months during my illness.
ReplyDeleteI think Michael Moore has a tendency to be a bit of a blow hard. But at least he's raising the issue, and making people think about it. For that, I admire him.
I like you. Your blog is awesome. I just found it and I have been reading archives. Prednisone really does seem like a great drug right now...but I have gotten a lot angrier...a lot angrier. Eep!
ReplyDeleteFrom a chick with Crohn's.
TBOHAP:
ReplyDeleteI agree. The only time you're not going to see some wait time is if you're bleeding all over the place (and maybe not even then!), and then you'll pay for it if your insurance doesn't completely cover ER visits.
As for Mr. Moore, yeah, he can be irritating, and he can gloss over facts or present them in flattering (or devastating) contexts, but I definitely agree that he's bringing health care discussion into people's heads. Sheesh, he's brought the documentary feature as a film genre back into major popularity in a big way, I think that's pretty great, too!
Julianne,
ReplyDeleteThanks! I'm glad you like my blog. It's tricky, that Prednisone, like dating someone and then finding out that all along you've also been dating his evil twin brother (can you tell I recently watched Dead Ringers?)...but sometimes it can be so helpful, too.
Good luck with your Crohn's!