I can.
In fact, I can think of several.
In fact, I can think of several.
One of the first really eye-opening, paradigm-shifting moments of my adult life happened my freshman year of college during an honors medical ethics discussion class. (Did I say "honors?" Yes I did, and yes, I am tooting my own horn.) One of the subjects up for discussion was health insurance. As a privileged, upper-middle class, white, healthy, American 19 year old kid who grew up having spectacular private health insurance through my parents' jobs, I thought that health insurance existed to help everybody. My dad's insurance was billed first, my mom's picked up the balance, and I left my doctor and dental appointments without paying a cent.
I can remember the room where the class was held. I remember sitting with peers and probably a professor as we explored this topic... and my brain exploded. Insurance companies can deny covering a necessary medication that a doctor has prescribed?!? Insurance companies can deny coverage to a person based on pre-existing conditions? INSURANCE COMPANIES ARE FOR-PROFIT ENTITIES GOUGING PEOPLE FINANCIALLY AND SOMETIMES ROBBING THEM OF THEIR HEALTH? Whyyyyyyyy???!?!!?
I'm still a privileged, white, mostly healthy, American kid (ha!) with spectacular private health insurance, but I am no longer blind to the fact that insurance is designed to help those of us who are privileged and that it screws over those of us who are not.
It makes me sad* and I don't know how to fix it.
It makes me sad* and I don't know how to fix it.
Another eye-opening experience happened when I was learning how to be a teacher. There's a saying amongst educators that I have heard many times, and have repeated many times since. "Fair doesn't mean equal." Think about that for a minute. If kindergarten student #1 is an awesome reader, and kindergarten student #2 is struggling to sound out letters, should I make them both read the same exact book? No. That's ridiculous. I want their learning experience to be fair, I want to challenge each child appropriately, so I would have them read books at their appropriate, yet different, reading levels. That is fair. Equality for equality's sake is not always the best solution. Mind blown. Cramming people into identical boxes is a bad idea. Who knew?
Remember when we were kids and the grown-ups taught us to share with other children? Also, we sang a song with the lyrics "Co-op-er-ation is the answer! Cooperation! We're working together." We learned that bullies are mean because they have issues and that we should stand up to them, tell on them, and stop the abuse. We learned communication skills that included "I statements," listening, and problem solving. It was my understanding that these skills were possessed by all adults, particularly by those who ruled the world and controlled my life, and that we should all be striving to be cooperative, kind, open communicators.
Now join me in the present, if you would...
The two-party political system of the United States of America is totally crazy-pants because they apparently didn't embrace these lessons I learned as a kid! Adults from two separate sides actively work for their own agendas while poo-pooing on the other side's ideas. Really? REALLY? "Cooperation is the answer! Cooperation, we're working together!" Didn't these people ever hear this song??!?! Don't they know that the majority of their constituents will benefit when they work together. WHY THE HELL DO WE ONLY HAVE TWO POLITICAL PARTIES in this country when everyone knows there are more than two sides to a story?!?
The fact that the government can't actually work for the greater good of humanity makes me sad* and I don't know how to fix it.
So, my friend, what about you? What have you noticed as you have grown as a person? What has blown your mind and opened your eyes? Share your stories with me, please. I'd love to know.
Meanwhile, I'll be here, paying less for outrageously expensive "specialty medication" for my daughter because of my private insurance and drug-manufacturer payment assistance program (not available for non-privately insured patients), while trying to convince my employer that fair doesn't always mean equal, while I shake my fist at the members of my government who seem to have the mental development of toddlers.
Ugh.
*Observation: When crappy topics like those mentioned above pop up on my Facebook newsfeed, my reaction is almost always a sad face and almost never an angry face. I don't know why I default to sadness over anger, but I do.
Remember when we were kids and the grown-ups taught us to share with other children? Also, we sang a song with the lyrics "Co-op-er-ation is the answer! Cooperation! We're working together." We learned that bullies are mean because they have issues and that we should stand up to them, tell on them, and stop the abuse. We learned communication skills that included "I statements," listening, and problem solving. It was my understanding that these skills were possessed by all adults, particularly by those who ruled the world and controlled my life, and that we should all be striving to be cooperative, kind, open communicators.
Now join me in the present, if you would...
The two-party political system of the United States of America is totally crazy-pants because they apparently didn't embrace these lessons I learned as a kid! Adults from two separate sides actively work for their own agendas while poo-pooing on the other side's ideas. Really? REALLY? "Cooperation is the answer! Cooperation, we're working together!" Didn't these people ever hear this song??!?! Don't they know that the majority of their constituents will benefit when they work together. WHY THE HELL DO WE ONLY HAVE TWO POLITICAL PARTIES in this country when everyone knows there are more than two sides to a story?!?
The fact that the government can't actually work for the greater good of humanity makes me sad* and I don't know how to fix it.
So, my friend, what about you? What have you noticed as you have grown as a person? What has blown your mind and opened your eyes? Share your stories with me, please. I'd love to know.
Meanwhile, I'll be here, paying less for outrageously expensive "specialty medication" for my daughter because of my private insurance and drug-manufacturer payment assistance program (not available for non-privately insured patients), while trying to convince my employer that fair doesn't always mean equal, while I shake my fist at the members of my government who seem to have the mental development of toddlers.
Ugh.
*Observation: When crappy topics like those mentioned above pop up on my Facebook newsfeed, my reaction is almost always a sad face and almost never an angry face. I don't know why I default to sadness over anger, but I do.
No comments:
Post a Comment