There is no "solution," no magic bullet, no utopia [to health care]. There are moral arguments and practical arguments. In my mind the moral is always superior - the ends don't justify the means. The goods news is that there is a natural order to the world. There is vastly more good than evil; otherwise, no one would ride the subway or travel on a plane. Evil means leads to scarcity and chaos; moral means leads to harmony and abundance.
Look at all the failed socialist experiments from the Soviet economy to the U.S. public education system - all based on coercion and all miserable failures. Now look at the freest parts of the economy: technology, consumer electronics, retail, entertainment, etc. We get constantly improving quality at lower prices. Look at the cost of cell phones over the past 10 years, or the cost of a cashmere sweater.
Health care is a classic example of how government intervention is gumming up the works. Despite that, there have been incredible medical advances. Can you imagine how much further this relatively immature industry would be without all the impediments to innovation?
I remember what it was like to go to the doctor's office as a kid - I hated it. It wasn't because of needles, plastic gloves, or worse; it was because of long waits. Yet when my mom took me to get an ice cream cone the lines were short and the service friendly. Of course the doctor visits have only gotten worse (and more expensive) precisely because the government has been involved. A complete takeover can only create worse service, more scarcity (as people leave this sector in droves), and soaring costs in an economy struggling under the weight of heavy-handed government. The solution, of course, will be rationing. How will you like your life to be in the hands of a $20,000 a year bureaucrat with a sociology degree? Welcome to Ted Kennedy's vision for Amerika.
~ Kevin Duffy, Facebook post, March 23, 2010
Look at all the failed socialist experiments from the Soviet economy to the U.S. public education system - all based on coercion and all miserable failures. Now look at the freest parts of the economy: technology, consumer electronics, retail, entertainment, etc. We get constantly improving quality at lower prices. Look at the cost of cell phones over the past 10 years, or the cost of a cashmere sweater.
Health care is a classic example of how government intervention is gumming up the works. Despite that, there have been incredible medical advances. Can you imagine how much further this relatively immature industry would be without all the impediments to innovation?
I remember what it was like to go to the doctor's office as a kid - I hated it. It wasn't because of needles, plastic gloves, or worse; it was because of long waits. Yet when my mom took me to get an ice cream cone the lines were short and the service friendly. Of course the doctor visits have only gotten worse (and more expensive) precisely because the government has been involved. A complete takeover can only create worse service, more scarcity (as people leave this sector in droves), and soaring costs in an economy struggling under the weight of heavy-handed government. The solution, of course, will be rationing. How will you like your life to be in the hands of a $20,000 a year bureaucrat with a sociology degree? Welcome to Ted Kennedy's vision for Amerika.
~ Kevin Duffy, Facebook post, March 23, 2010
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