Delaney Kerr's Blog

              I had never been on a plane before this past August. It had always been too expensive, and I never had anywhere to be except at school, work, or home. But, my best friend had moved away to Las Vegas, so I decided to save some of my money and take a cheap flight to see her. I was so excited - Las Vegas seemed so exciting and new. I learned rather quickly, however, that Vegas is not all of the glitz and glamor it is often portrayed to be. Underneath the dazzling lights, parties, and energetic music, there is an air of deep despair. There is an underlying yet entirely palpable feeling of isolation and helplessness, as thousands of people spend hours a day, often in front of their children, wasting their money away gambling.                My trip to Las Vegas is just one of many examples of the failing United States economy. Capitalism, fundamentally, sets the vast majority of American citize...

           Japan, Germany, Canada, and Switzerland; t hese nations are some of the fittest countries in regards to health and weight in the world. Although they may not be winning any violent wars, they are winning the battle against the obesity epidemic in a way that the United States has not yet developed. What's their secret? They all utilize and practice socialized or universal medicine.          Socialized medicine allows a nation's government to organize citizen's tax dollars in a way that allows for all citizens to be granted free or reduced-price access to medical care. Additionally, it allows the government to control and regulate the freedoms of advertisements, nutritional education, and healthcare. In doing this, the government focuses on the health of the nation, centering around the overall "public health" (Balko 2004, p. 396). Allowing the government the ability to evenly distribute wealth amongst all people is th...