On health, and care thereof; children, and care thereof.

Healthcare. What a word! More like a battle cry for all sides of the political spectrum. I doubt the prohibition fiasco of the ‘20s even came close to this brouhaha.

So now we have it, something, no one seems exactly sure what we have, but we have a “Healthcare Bill”. And it only cost us $940,000,000,000 - that’s nine hundred and forty BILLION dollars. Over ten years, so it averages out to $94 BILLION per year. To put things in perspective, the Pentagon (Department of Defense) is to spend $708 BILLION for 2011, in just one year according to this DoD press release. Unfortunately, we are going to spend seven and a half times LESS on caring for our own health, than on demolishing someone else’s health overseas.

Now let us examine the application of healthcare. As the word suggests, it is to care for health. One’s own health of course, as well as that of dependents, to wit, children. As parents, the better half and myself try to maintain the health of our offspring. When one is unwell, one should attempt to “care” for one’s health; staying home for example, until illness has passed, before venturing outdoors amidst masses of other humans. When a child is unwell, said child is retained for “health care” within the domicile until such sickness has been overcome. One does not want to (a) exacerbate the illness; and (b) spread said illness through contact with other inhabitants of one’s community.

Every classroom has that one child that is the class clown. Every classroom also seems to have that one family of selfish and uncaring parents that insist on sending their contagiously sick children to school. Fevers, coughing, sneezing, festering sores - it does not matter for these parents. If the child can walk, it is shipped off the school. Whereupon the sick child sneezes and gags and coughs and barfs, spreading ill-cheer and pestilence upon all around it.

We are currently suffering the gift of germ provided by the class resident “strep-throat carrier”. This child is perpetually sick with throat infections, but never misses a day of school unless forcibly removed by the school nurse and sent home. That family should be studied by the CDC, every few months the infection spreads in a ring around the patient zero child; first infecting the closest seated victims, then spreading out to the next level, and the next, and so on; it even knocked out the class teacher in a past year. Class seating is rotated every semester, and other parents hold their breath in agonized anticipation, like a macabre game of germ Russian roulette praying that the “loaded chamber” child is not placed next to their own bundle of joy. We lost out on this term, unfortunately.

A nursery rhyme to celebrate:

Ring around the strep throat,
A pocket full of antibiotics,
Ashes! Ashes!
We all fall sick.

Parents, if your child is sick, keep it at home! See a doctor, visit a pharmacy. Keep the child home until it is well again. You wouldn’t drive a broken car, would you? Why make all the kids in the vicinity suffer? You have a “Healthcare Bill” now, don’t make excuses!