Breaking Bad could have been 1 episode (health care is to blame)
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Source: christopherkeelty.com
Breaking Bad has gone viral. So has a cartoon it inspired. All because of health care.
Christopher Keelty, a writer who drew a single cartoon (this one!), posited that the premise of Breaking Bad was made possible by a "uniquely American" situation.
One thing that really interests me about the show is how it juxtaposes two of America’s most catastrophic policy failures: The for-profit health care industry and the failed War on Drugs, which has created a black market that makes the manufacture and sale of illegal drugs incredibly profitable.
I got to thinking how uniquely American the show is, and that led to this comic strip.
Keelty struck a nerve. His cartoon was tweeted and posted by thousands, including Michael Moore. He became a lightning rod for a discussion of these issues.
In a video explaining the phenomenon, Keelty said:
A cartoon is really just a visual joke. It is not meant to be a damning case against American health care. But a surprising number of people have wanted to engage me with the same old tired arguments about health care that we have been hearing for, jeez, I don't know, 10, 20 years at this point.
Sometimes it takes a new perspective to help us see where our policies are failing us. Keelty's cartoon provided that. Hopefully the ensuing discussion will be about creating solutions, not placing blame.
