Support Kevin @TechShowDown

[gameboy3800]

If you have any spare change, please donate it to Kevin's gofundme page that the HardwareUnboxed guys set up. TechShowDown is in a medically induced coma and every little bit will go a great distance.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-kevin-techshowdown

 

the hardware unboxed video to get caught up:

 

 

[Roswell]

Hot take: Why is it when anyone has something terrible happen with their health, the first thing everyone seems to do is throw up a gofundme? Why is it an automatic response to expect strangers to start throwing money at you because you're sick? Would this YouTuber throw money at his subscribers when they get sick? 

 

Taiwan has universal healthcare, even for foreigners. He's completely covered and isn't going to face any significant medical expenses. 

 

That said, what the guy is going through is awful. It just frustrates me that we live in a time where it's an immediate reflex to put your hand out for sympathy money as soon as you land yourself in a hospital, even when it's not required.

[MadmanRB]

 

Yipes, this is not good, I have been watching this guy for ages now, great youtuber hope he will be okay

 

We helped other smaller channels before so why stop now!

[Roswell]

10 hours ago, VegetableStu said:

it's already mentioned in the video that it's not enough

I'll admit that I didn't listen to the entire video, but I did hear the vague "facing mounting bills". That's my question though, WHAT mounting bills? If he's in Taiwan legally, he's receiving free medical treatment. I feel like they're saying "facing mounting bills" because they think that's the right thing to say, assuming that since someone is in the hospital, they MUST be going bankrupt.

 

I could be wrong, maybe this guy had absolutely no savings and is defaulting on credit cards and stuff, but really, if the "mounting bills" are from poor financial planning, is it other people's responsibility to bail them out?

 

EDIT: So here's a rundown of healthcare for expats, tourists, etc. If he was living there for 6 months (it seems he has been), he's definitely covered (co payment for a hospital stay is silly low, like 100 bucks, 1k max out of pocket per calendar year): https://www.expatriatehealthcare.com/expats-guide-to-taiwan-health-care/

 

And here's a quote directly from the gofundme:

Quote

The family is dealing with growing hospital bills, so if you'd like to pitch in and help alleviate the financial strain so they can focus on supporting Kevin, it would be greatly appreciated.

 

So... it just seems off to me. Hopefully I'm missing something.

[ryanregowhite]

GoFundMe https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-kevin-techshowdown

[Fnige]

oof, i have nothing else to say

 

also i feel sorry for him

[TrigrH]

His chances look pretty slim  

[NumLock21]

I hope he gets out of the coma and makes a full recovery.

[harryk]

4 hours ago, Vitamanic said:

I feel like they're saying "facing mounting bills" because they think that's the right thing to say, assuming that since someone is in the hospital, they MUST be going bankrupt.

I don't know what the family is facing in terms of medial costs and it's possible they don't either if they're not already familiar with Taiwanese healthcare. I doubt the guy who setup the gofundme really knows either.

 

Speaking more generally though, there are many other costs associated with a serious illness beyond hospital bills. There's travel costs for family and friends, which includes short-notice airfare and hotel. Then there's lost income for both the afflicted and those who have traveled to support them. Then there's recovery which will likely take months during which time there's more lost income. Family will likely need to continue to support during recovery adding more living expenses and lost income. Depending on condition, there might need home modifications or lifestyle changes which incur more expenses. 

 

If your parent/sibling/child/best friend was facing a deadly illness and you had to drop everything and travel to the other side of the world tonight with no expectation of when you would return, could you afford it? Many people can't.

[LogicalDrm]

2 hours ago, ryanregowhite said:

GoFundMe https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-kevin-techshowdown

Merged to previously posted thread.

 

Please use search before posting. And for Tech News section your post would need to qualify special rules too. So read those as well.

[SpaceGhostC2C]

16 hours ago, Vitamanic said:

Why is it an automatic response to expect

It's not like anyone expects you to do anything. It's just a possibility. Non-sick youtubers have patreon accounts, superchats, and other donation mechanisms, it doesn't mean that you are "expected" to anything.

 

16 hours ago, Vitamanic said:

 It just frustrates me that we live in a time where it's an immediate reflex to put your hand out for sympathy money as soon as you land yourself in a hospital

Being in a coma, we can safely say he hasn't "put his hand out" in any literal nor metaphorical sense, so you are ranting about a fiction.

Someone else decided to give money and to open a channel for others to do the same, if they wish so. That's all there is to it.

 

5 hours ago, Vitamanic said:

I'll admit that I didn't listen to the entire video,

Yet you will rant anyway.

It just frustrates me that we live in a time where it's an immediate reflex to go on a rant against other people as soon as you read or hear two words you don't like.

 

5 hours ago, Vitamanic said:

Hopefully I'm missing something.

Yes: decency.

[Roswell]

15 minutes ago, SpaceGhostC2C said:

It's not like anyone expects you to do anything. It's just a possibility. Non-sick youtubers have patreon accounts, superchats, and other donation mechanisms, it doesn't mean that you are "expected" to anything.

 

Being in a coma, we can safely say he hasn't "put his hand out" in any literal nor metaphorical sense, so you are ranting about a fiction.

Someone else decided to give money and to open a channel for others to do the same, if they wish so. That's all there is to it.

 

Yet you will rant anyway.

It just frustrates me that we live in a time where it's an immediate reflex to go on a rant against other people as soon as you read or hear two words you don't like.

 

Yes: decency.

I disagree, there's a large difference between offering avenues to support content creators and starting a donation drive to subsidize someone's medical condition. One plays on positive emotion, another plays on sympathy,

 

While you think I lack decency, I think I lack clarification from the people asking for money:

 

• WHY do they need 25k? Why is there no explanation as to what the money is going towards? As I linked earlier, the guy should be fully covered by Taiwanese universal healthcare. His hospital visit should only cost 100 Euros.
• If he's covered by Taiwanese universal healthcare, why does the gofundme claim that he has "mounting medical costs"? How in the world would he even be billed 25k yet if he just got in the hospital?! That's not how it works and it seems deceptive to frame the donation goal that way.
• If there is a legitimate reason as to why 25k is needed, why is there no justification presented? If you ask the world for 25k in free money, there should be a reason stated. Like, come out and say that the person doesn't have savings, his family doesn't have savings, etc. People should be entitled to that information if they're being asked to take financial responsibility for a stranger's care. A reason for this dire need of money needs to be made clear.

 

Lastly, you can think I'm cold or whatever you want, but the truth is I'm skeptical, just as everyone should be. There have been seemingly endless examples of people scheming and conning their way through gofundme campaigns. There have also been just as many taking the opportunity when family gets sick to get an easy payday, only to be exposed for having significant amounts of money laying around. You could google and read these stories for days on end.

 

In closing, as I said before, I simply don't like people taking advantage of themselves or others being sick to justify asking for obscene amounts of money online. It should be the last resort, not the first reaction a day after the guy is in the hospital. 

[Abydos]

1 minute ago, Vitamanic said:

I disagree, there's a large difference between offering avenues to support content creators and starting a donation drive to subsidize someone's medical condition. One plays on positive emotion, another plays on sympathy,

 

While you think I lack decency, I think I lack clarification from the people asking for money:

 

• WHY do they need 25k? Why is there no explanation as to what the money is going towards? As I linked earlier, the guy should be fully covered by Taiwanese universal healthcare. His hospital visit should only cost 100 Euros.
• If he's covered by Taiwanese universal healthcare, why does the gofundme claim that he has "mounting medical costs"? How in the world would he even be billed 25k yet if he just got in the hospital?! That's not how it works and it seems deceptive to frame the donation goal that way.
• If there is a legitimate reason as to why 25k is needed, why is there no justification presented? If you ask the world for 25k in free money, there should be a reason stated. Like, come out and say that the person doesn't have savings, his family doesn't have savings, etc. People should be entitled to that information if they're being asked to take financial responsibility for a stranger's care. A reason for this dire need of money needs to be made clear.

 

Lastly, you can think I'm cold or whatever you want, but the truth is I'm skeptical, just as everyone should be. There have been seemingly endless examples of people scheming and conning their way through gofundme campaigns. There have also been just as many taking the opportunity when family gets sick to get an easy payday, only to be exposed for having significant amounts of money laying around. You could google and read these stories for days on end.

 

In closing, as I said before, I simply don't like people taking advantage of themselves or others being sick to justify asking for obscene amounts of money online. It should be the last resort, not the first reaction a day after the guy is in the hospital. 

I couldn't agree more to many of these points, but I do have some thoughts on this as I have visited various Taiwanese hospitals on a few occasions due to the nature of my previous job. 

 

1. Your earlier link in another post clearly states that "These are significantly discounted rates, calculated on a sliding scale as a percentage of the overall care costs. Visitors can expect to pay roughly 10-20% of the costs for care themselves, with the remainder being made up by the government." The 2 British pounds or 94 British pounds or 1,000 British pounds in that website are just averages and rough estimates, NOT indicative of actual cost on a case by case basis, e.g. cost of a Brain surgery versus a common diarrhea is nowhere nearly the same.

2. In most emergency cases for professional expats in Taiwan, the main choice for A&Es will be at a private hospital. This is because Taiwan's public hospitals are notorious for their wait times, even at the A&Es. There are news articles on Taiwan's Emergency Room crisis, and how some serious cases had to wait over 24 hours to get a room/bed.

 

3. I cannot assume that Kevin visited a public or private hospital, but having been placed under a chemically induced coma would have suggested that his case was on the serious side. I would be an idiot of an employer or friend (whoever accompanied Kevin to the hospital) to have went to a public hospital (but who knows, maybe that person was an idiot). 

 

4. Need to consider the language barrier at most (if not all) Taiwanese public hospitals vs certain private ones.
 

Costing considerations.

 

a. A&E vehicle cost, point to point. 

b. ER cost, by blocks of x hours.

c. Pharmaceutical cost, all related drugs and IVs etc. 

d. Doctor's cost, non-specialist or specialist (what field?Cost varies sometimes), associate professor or professor, etc. 

 

Just my 2 cents and not forcing any opinion on anyone. 
 

 

 

 

[Master Disaster]

Welp, his condition sounds very serious, Wish him all the best.

 

If its really a Virus then theres no real treatment options, they can only treat the symptoms and hope his body kills the virus on its own. The only good thing about a Viral infection (from the medical point of view) is it should be relatively easy to identify exactly what it is.

[yolosnail]

I know this is probably going to sound bad, but why should we be paying for his medical bills? 

 

Surely if you move to a country where you may have to pay for medical bills, you would take out insurance to cover it. And if you don't, it's your own fault when you can't afford it

And if to that you say "well maybe he couldn't afford it", well maybe he shouldn't have moved from a country with free/cheap health-care

 

That would be like me moving to the US, not taking out medical insurance then complaining because I have to pay $50k to see a doctor!

[SalemNet IT]

On 10/27/2019 at 7:04 AM, Vitamanic said:

Hot take: Why is it when anyone has something terrible happen with their health, the first thing everyone seems to do is throw up a gofundme? Why is it an automatic response to expect strangers to start throwing money at you because you're sick? Would this YouTuber throw money at his subscribers when they get sick? 

 

Taiwan has universal healthcare, even for foreigners. He's completely covered and isn't going to face any significant medical expenses. 

 

That said, what the guy is going through is awful. It just frustrates me that we live in a time where it's an immediate reflex to put your hand out for sympathy money as soon as you land yourself in a hospital, even when it's not required.

Maybe because he can’t work . He’s in a coma and not making money . Rent doesn’t stop , bills don’t stop , business expenses don’t stop . If you don’t feel the need to donate , then don’t. Hopefully nothing bad ever happens to you and you don’t find your self unable to make the money needed to support your self . 

[Roswell]

4 hours ago, SalemNet IT said:

Maybe because he can’t work . He’s in a coma and not making money . Rent doesn’t stop , bills don’t stop , business expenses don’t stop . If you don’t feel the need to donate , then don’t. Hopefully nothing bad ever happens to you and you don’t find your self unable to make the money needed to support your self . 

His gofundme specifically states that they are facing "mounting medical bills", which at the time it was posted was impossible, since he had only just been admitted. The hospital doesn't slap you with a 25k bill the moment you walk in the door. How did they come up with this number?

 

You can read my explanation as to why I feel this way halfway through the responses.

[NumLock21]

Out of the $25,000 they're asking. Total amount people have donated at the time this post was made, is at $21,404

[Malvun]

On 10/27/2019 at 4:34 PM, Vitamanic said:

Hot take: Why is it when anyone has something terrible happen with their health, the first thing everyone seems to do is throw up a gofundme? Why is it an automatic response to expect strangers to start throwing money at you because you're sick? Would this YouTuber throw money at his subscribers when they get sick? 

 

Taiwan has universal healthcare, even for foreigners. He's completely covered and isn't going to face any significant medical expenses. 

 

That said, what the guy is going through is awful. It just frustrates me that we live in a time where it's an immediate reflex to put your hand out for sympathy money as soon as you land yourself in a hospital, even when it's not required.

Sorry, I can't agree with your post. I have been reading linustechtips for a couple of months, but never made an account as I didn't have anything to share, but after seeing this absurd post, I thought to make an account to share my opinion with the community. First of all, I don't think Kevin made the account, as it appears as it's made after he was placed in a coma, but here you seem like mad at the guy for opening a gofundme account.

 

Money is important for everyone, especially in a capitalist country, even if there is an universal health care system. He has to be given foods, cloths, psychological support, certain medicine whose expenses are probably not covered by the hospital, his family has to visit him, which includes their travelling, accommodation, food cost, then after he is recovered, they have to take care of him until he sorts things out, which probably takes at least a couple of months to years depending on his condition. Besides, nobody is DEMANDED to pay him. Whoever made the page probably expects someone would donate him to cover their potential expenses. If you don't want to donate, just don't donate. People throw away millions of money in casinos, nightclubs, brothels, which are not much useful to anyone but for themselves.  If he goes around demanding people to pay, or attacking his subscribers for not giving money, then it's wrong, but is simply asking money wrong? If this is wrong, then what do you say about all the charity programs? I don't think people have a problem of throwing away money, because I have read how plenty of people had donated money for both kylie jenner for turning her into the youngest female billionaire, and Elon Musk for getting him a freaking Couch.! If people have money, and time for spending on such things, then I don't see what is wrong with collecting money when someone is in dire need of help. 

 

And about he throws money at his subscribers. I am quite sure, he won't throw money at us. in fact he won't probably care too, but it's okay, because it's not his responsibility to throw money at us. It might be his duty to help fellow humans, but it's certainly not his responsibility. Likewise, helping him is not a responsibility, but merely a duty, in addition, complaining when someone helps another, is not a very nice thing to do. 

 

[TheNamelessOne]

Rest In Peace Kevin.

[Ezzy-525]

This is so sad. I only just found out about this through the LTT tweet.

 

To all those doing their amateur private detective schtick about whether he needed our money because he was in a country with free healthcare. Shame on you. When someone is in hospital it's not only healthcare that costs.

 

R.I.P Kevin.

[MadmanRB]

Yeah sad news indeed, I have followed his channel for a while now.

 

I will miss him

[Malvun]

Anyone knows what bacteria caused the complication, and how he got it? the page says it's an unidentified bacteria. 

[Deli]

R.I.P.

 

We'll miss you.

[Gegger]

We'll dearly miss you, Kevin.