An interesting piece by Michael Barry-
In the view of the left, capitalist enterprise is just one big smokin' pack of Camels. The insurance industry ("they want you to die"), big pharma ("profiting off of people's sickness), the banks (overpaid rascals), auto ("making cars that are killing the planet"). There is really no industry out there that is both successful and "OK." The OK-industries -- green, solar-driven windmills -- are all as wildly unsuccessful as Shen Te's tobacco shop, when she ran on "good" principles.
Under the new socialism, we need those bad industries to generate wealth, so that we can pay for the good ones. So, the simple strategy is: Do whatever you have to do to keep capitalism alive, and then bleed it for everything you can.
link
I see some merit to the argument but certainly not in relation to health care- the left simply wants health insurance companies to die as they are an obstacle to public dependency. Europe is the primary example of how a horrible government run healthcare system keeps the left in power. Voters, not wanting to see their benefits cut and wholly dissatisfied with the care they receive (or lack thereof) continue to elect leaders that promise to improve their failed experiment by either investing more or making the system "efficient"- both pipe dreams. There is no real conservative option in Europe despite the fact that those folks continue to experience poorer outcomes and higher costs than their American counterparts.... they simply cannot get over their addiction to cradle to grave government.
There is no financial or clinical benefit to government run health care, in fact Americans receive the best care in the world and pay less than most for it. The only real benefit is political.
Print | posted on Monday, October 26, 2009 9:45 PM
