I am the 99%. In a system that works.

[LadyLeigh]

I grew up in Europe. I had health insurance all my life. First as part of my mother's plan (she had the "public option"), then when I started college at a price of 70 euro per month.

My college tuition was about 150 euro per semester. And for it, we got a public transportation ticket too, which costs more than 150 euro on the market (people have been known to enroll just for the ticket...). After I graduated in a technical field I went to grad school. There I didn't pay anything. I was actually payed to go, roughly 1200 euro a month. For that I had some minor duties such as tutoring students.

In grad school my health care costs rose to 150 euro a month (still "public option"). I spent a week in a hospital once, for a minor operation. The bill that I received was about 30 euro. Not only did I finish grad school completely debt free, I actually had a savings account of nearly 10000 euro built up by that time.

Sure, I lived with my mom until I went to grad school (so I saved the rent), but had she kicked me out or had I decided to go to another city to study, I would have gotten free housing and a small amount of cash to live from the government, as long as I stayed in college, and would not had to pay it back.

I was never rich. I grew up in a single parent household, and my mother was solidly working class. I suppose I am an example of vertical social mobility. But would it have been possible under a system such as what the US has? Hard to say. At least, it wouldn't have been such a cake-walk.

In Europe, being the 99% doesn't nearly suck as much as it does in the US. People like the "teabag movement" puzzle me. How can one be so staunchly opposed to ones own interests?

[libinnyandia]

1. American ideals

How can that be? America is a perfect nation, whose system was inspired by God. If God had wanted people to be educated and have health care, He would have told our founding fathers:o)

[Denninmi]

2. You pose an excellent question at the end.

I wish I had an answer for you. It baffles me. I guess the "teabag movement" can be attributed to a mixture of racism, xenophobia, religious fundamentalism, and brainwashing.

I certainly don't get it.

As I've said before, I hope it gives them comfort when they wake up in the homeless shelter to know they voted their values.

[ClassWarrior]

3. Read some George Lakoff, and see how we've gone from interests to values...

...in deciding how we vote. And thanks for sharing your wonderful story. Welcome to DU. :hi:

NGU.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

4. Thank you for this! You explain it so perfectly.

I wish you had a blog.

[MedicalAdmin]

5. Excellent post.

I would like to cross post this with your permission.

Welcome to DU.

[LadyLeigh]

7. Feel free to distribute.

:)

[NNN0LHI]

6. Just so you know we used to have a system that worked here too

Back in 1973 I was recruited and was working on a job making top union wages and benefits before I graduated high school. I was making more money and had better benefits than my teachers were getting at the time. And we were getting a raise and cost of living increase every year.

My employer paid for all my college courses, books and any other costs associated with my apprenticeship training. We were also paid our regular hourly wage for every hour we spent in the classroom. When we would finish a class we would receive an extra paycheck for about a weeks worth of pay after we passed each class. I really liked going to school needless to say.

Our medical care including major medical, disability, dental, vision and prescriptions were covered at 100 percent. My employer was self insured so they only relied on an insurance company to process our claims.

In 1979 my union began negotiating what was to become a 4-day, 32 hour workweek. Once we had accomplished that it would have set the pattern for everyone and soon the entire country would have had the same workweek. If we had succeeded rather than having the high unemployment we have right now there would instead be a worker shortage in this country.

But you know what happened? Lot of Americans didn't like having those kinds of jobs for themselves and their kids so we sent most of those jobs overseas and gave it all away.

Americans sure are smart aren't we?

Don

[sam11111]

8. racism is why people vote to impoverish themselves

They may also delude themselves on the poverty thing...to get the racism.

If not too personal which nation can I cite as having the fine benefits in the OP? Sounds like a rational humane place.

[kctim]

9. You don't know what is in their best interest

so how can you say they are opposed to what is in their best interest?

[hfojvt]

10. what country?

England? Where they were rioting.

Greece? Ireland?

Germany?

According to the CIA, Germany has a 15.5% poverty rate. Maybe the poor there still have health care. It also says that the bottom 10% has a mere 3.6% of the national income, and the highest 10% have 24%.

Poverty seems not much different than in America and inequality is slightly better, with the USA having 2% spent by the bottom 10% and 30% spent by the top 10%.

Switzerland, otoh, which does not use the Euro, has a mere 6.9% poverty rate, and the bottom 10% spends a whopping 7.5% of consumption and the top 10% spends a mere 19%.

[RegieRocker]

11. Yea, yea, yea. I know people who fled from Inkland because

of taxes.

[Skittles]

12. thank you for calling it the TEABAG movement, LadyLeigh

:hi: