My Newspaper Article...

I just wrote this and sent it in to my school's paper for review. Hopefully they'll print it! Anyway, thought this crowd might enjoy a gander at it.

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The past few months spent in Greece have opened my eyes to more than just new ideas about ancient Greek history or new cultural norms and mores. It’s opened my eyes to new ways of being. Spending hours in the cafes with the Greek friends that I’ve made and becoming more familiar with their language has given me an insight into just how different our cultural backgrounds are, the struggles they encounter as a people, and the lens which they see the world through. It’s been an amazing overload of information and experiences which has given me a new tools with which to reevaluate my own past experiences and beliefs.
One major question I’ve had to ask myself since moving to Greece has to deal with comparing socialism with capitalism, one of the last things I was expecting to learn about when I left for Volos. When I left the states, I favored socialism over capitalism a thousand times over. I’d never been in any country but the USA before, so all I had been doing was comparing the two philosophies as abstract entities. Being in Greece, a country with socialized healthcare, has really opened me up to what socialism looks like in practice.
You see, everyone studying at the Drury center in Volos had to go to the hospital to get approved for a residential visa. As we were being poked, prodded, and x-rayed, I got a great opportunity to experience a socialized hospital firsthand. Everywhere we went the waiting rooms were packed. They were filled with people, young and old, with minor infirmities. Occasionally a person with a serious affliction would nonchalantly be wheeled through as everyone in the waiting rooms lifts their expressionless faces to see the spectacle. What a sobering experience.
Talking with my local friends, I discover that while healthcare is free (in most circumstances), it’s almost impossible to get care for something that isn’t urgent. Many people live their lives in a constant state of discomfort because they can’t afford to spend days at a time in the hospital waiting room with no guarantee of getting treated.
The Greek system doesn’t sound like the best possible solution to healthcare, but I find myself wondering whether things are much better in the states. Because healthcare is privatized in the US many people, a number that is rising daily, can’t afford to get any care at all. So yes, we have exemplary healthcare, but there is a growing number of people—hard working people who have jobs and are doing everything in their power to take care of themselves and their families—who simply can’t pay.
So the question arises: Is it better for everyone to get free healthcare and experiences these often painful adversities (the Greek system), or is it better for healthcare to be expedient and effective but only for those who can afford it (the US system). As we continue to face the healthcare crisis—which is now exacerbated by the global economic crisis—I think it’s important to be asking ourselves these types of questions. Should we lower the standards so everyone can be cared for or should we keep the bar high and exclude those who can’t pay? Or is there a middle path? Just some food for thought.