Don’t Wait for Sicko to Hit the Rental Shelf. See it Now
~ by Craig Houghton - July 19, 2007 ~
I saw Michael Moore’s Sicko this evening. It lived up to all the 5-star hype. I only made it a third of the way through the movie before making good use of the Kleenex my girlfriend stuffed in my shirt pocket. It’s not a pity-fest. You cycle repeatedly through the emotional spectrum, but when Moore hits you over the head with the injustice of it all, it hurts. It may seem odd, but I first broke down when Moore played a white-house tape of aide Ehrlichman explaining to Nixon why this new HMO “thing” would work. With several jarring personal accounts of the insured fresh in my mind, I couldn’t handle the unmistakably damning taped evidence.
Ehrlichman: We have now narrowed down the vice president’s problems on this thing to one issue, and that is whether we should include these Health Maintenance Organizations like Edgar Kaiser’s Permanente thing.
Nixon: Now let me ask you… You know I’m not to keen on any of these damn medical programs.
Ehrlichman: This is a private enterprise one.
Nixon: Well, that appeals to me.
Ehrlichman: Edgar Kaiser is running his Permanente deal for profit. And the reason that he can do it… I had Edgar Kaiser come in, talk to me about this. And I went into it in some depth. All the incentives are toward less medical care, because the less care they give them, the more money they make.
Nixon: Fine.
Ehrlichman: … and the incentives run the right way.
Nixon: Not bad.
The next day, Nixon announced publicly: “I want America to have the finest health care in the world. And I want every American to have that care when he needs it.”
Oh, and Nancy Johnson smiles through her entire cameo.
Even if it’s not at all like you to visit the theater to watch a documentary, watch this one. There’s no way you won’t be engaged. Sicko is currently playing locally at Showcase Cinemas Southington, Mallview Cinema 10 Waterbury, Holiday Stadium 10 Cinemas Wallingford, and elsewhere.