Have an opinion? Contact us at opinions @theotherpress.ca @ Opinions go for her walks. But the government says, ‘No, you have to wait.’ They handed an 18-month sentence to a woman who may have only 18 months, or less, to live.” Those opposed to a two-tier healthcare system argue that access to medical treatment should depend on need and not bank account. Although supporters of the two-tier system suggest that a change would unburden the public system, opponents state that removing the wealthy from our healthcare system would be incredibly detrimental. In many ways, I think Dr. Day is right. There are dangers associated with allowing doctors to charge patients, but no one wants to wait months for surgery if it’s possible to receive aid sooner. Nonetheless, I’m concerned that allowing doctors to charge their patients for services means that the rich will get better health service while the poor will continue to receive the care—or lack thereof— available through our current healthcare system. The logistics of a two-tier healthcare system are questionable, as well. Decisions need to be made with regards to whether people who Honka honka burning hate Why you need to lay off then just don’t do it the horn By Natalie Serafini, Opinions Editor onking has become many people’s idea of a useful tool for communicating interest, frustration, and greeting. While honking probably doesn’t cause as many crashes as talking on the phone or texting do, it’s still annoying and, as a form of communication, accomplishes very little. Humour me if you will, whilst I wax apoplectic over the many honk- happy happenings that need to stop. Do you honk when you see an attractive person walking down the street? Don’t. I understand, there are plenty of hotties walkin’ around, and apparently your instinctual reaction is to honk at them. Nevertheless, it accomplishes nothing in terms of getting a phone number and mostly makes you look like a fool. If your reason for honking is as simple as “Hey hot girl! HONK!” 16 I have this thing where I don’t run for things, even if I’m crossing the street and a car honks at me to move faster. If I have the right-of-way, I walk across the street; there’s no sprinting on my part. To start, you don’t have the right to be impatient since, in all likelihood, you will be arriving at your destination before Ido and with much less energy than I will have to expend. I’m doing something good for the environment by not driving, and you're going to get irritated because I can’t walk at 50 miles / hour? In fact, when someone honks at me to walk faster, I purposely slow my pace. Allow me to explain: you know when you're walking somewhere and there’s a large group of people coming your way? They don’t go single file, essentially forcing you onto the grass. Rather than just move over to avoid shoulder bumping awkwardness, you remain stubbornly on the sidewalk. You might even stretch your muscles imperceptibly to ensure some sort of bump, just to show them that you won't be forced to the side. It’s kind of crazy, right? Pretty passive ageressive and such. Nonetheless, it’s what I do. So truly, honking to get me to cross the street faster is ridiculous because I can neither move as quickly as you'd like me to, nor am | willing to speed up just for your contentment. Don’t bother honking. Don’t honk a greeting as you drive past. If you recognize me, it’s not too surprising. I live in New West, go to school in New West, work in New West, and exercise in New West. Most likely, you know me in one of those contexts, which makes your spotting me in New West quite unsurprising. So really, why are you astonished enough to honk hello? I truly wouldn’t mind if you didn’t acknowledge my presence, particularly since being blocked by a metal and glass cocoon makes recognizing you nearly impossible. The only way I could figure out who you are is if I have your license plate or car type memorized, opt for this pricey private practice would be exempt from contributing to the healthcare system, or if they would have to pay for their own care and contribute again for everyone else’s. More than anything, this issue addresses a problem with our healthcare system. If there wasn’t a serious problem with waiting lists and lack of care due to overburdened doctors, nurses, and hospitals, it would be easy to simply dismiss the debate as academic. Perhaps BC’s regulations are outdated or too broad. Maybe Dr. Day is wrong, but it’s possible that his audit and the subsequent injunctions and lawsuits are necessary to prompt a re-evaluation of BC’s healthcare system. If your reason for honking is as simple as Hey hot girl! HONK! then just dont do it. and you flatter me if you think I’d be capable of that. My vision is certainly not good enough to discern a quickly receding “E” from a “B,” and my familiarity with cars begins and ends with “Tt’s green.” Especially if you're doing a honk and run whilst driving down a busy street, how do you expect me to know who you are? It’s the roadrunner on steroids: “meep meep”-ing and zooming off into the distance. Please just don’t do it. The thing about honking is that it’s abrasive and annoying enough when it’s actually serving its purpose. The fact that this mode of communication has dissolved into some sort of catch-all means that cacophony of beeps is all the louder and more frequent. There’s a time and a place for honking. Brood before you beep.