I have been following the so-called "debate" over health care "reform" and am amazed that neither side is talking about what, to me, is the bedrock issue here:
Coercion.
I am no defender of the for-profit health care system and its shysterism. That said, my stance on the question of reform - first and foremost - is that no one has any right to force me to purchase health care/insurance or to fund health care/insurance for anyone else (other than any children I may bring into the world, which would of course be my responsibility and no one else's).
Obama and the Dumocrats want to force everyone to buy insurance; in other words, compel them, at gunpoint, to buy a policy from some shyster "provider" - who of course will do everything it can to keep from covering anything. Obama and the Dumocrats also believe that health care is a "right" - but there cannot be a right to violate a right. By which I mean, in order for, say, Pedro the Illegal Alien (or Shaniqua the crack ho' and her brood) to have a "right" to health care, the government must threaten me (and others) with prosecution and imprisonment (and yes, a gun pointed at us, at bottom line) if we refuse to hand over the money we worked to earn in order to provide for Pedro's (and Shaniqua's) health care.
That is not a "right" - it is thinly disguised theft. Period.
The loathsome Repuglicans, meanwhile, do not defend the principle that no one has any more "right" to health care at gunpoint than they have to housing or any other material benefit that must be provided by the use of force against innocent people who are shaken down to provide it. They do not say, "not one dime for illegals. Not one dime for irresponsible people who produce kids they cannot afford." They do not defend our real rights.
Instead, they defend the corporatist ass-raping HMOs - outfits that give all sorts of "free" care to illegals, criminals and other social parasites - and then transfer those costs onto the premiums paid by you and me.
This question - like the question of "gun control" - is another point of departure for me. I will not submit. I will not be forced to "participate" in either a government-run or corporatist-run health care system - just as I will never give up my right to own weapons for personal defense.
On these questions, the time for talk is over. I will stand my ground, if it comes to that.
Me too. Even my girlfriend, a prior Obama supporter said that she does not support him anymore.
The Republicans are doing a brilliant job of defending ass raping insurers who screw doctors and patients alike.
I would rather die in a ditch than be treated by the medical care system.
The part about forcing everyone to buy insurance is the real outrage here. Leaving aside the question of its moral repugnance, on a purely economic level it is enraging - because it will mean we're forced to fork over thousands of dollars every year for "coverage" that will end up "covering" next to nothing.Originally Posted by swamprat
Most healthy people would be better off saving money every year for unforeseen expenses and paying for routine care out of pocket.
I was thinking about all this the other day. During my 20s I went "uninsured" - by choice - because I reasoned that it was smarter to save the money my employer at the time would have deducted from my paycheck for "insurance" I would more than likely never need. Had I been forced to buy the insurance, I would probably not have had the down payment for the house I was able to buy a few years later. And that would have meant I would not own the house I own now.
In other words, I would be vastly worse off, financially - had the government deprived me of my right to make my own choices about my "health care" ....
I fully understand the rage that is in evidence about what these sons of bitches are up to....
That is the purpose of Health Savings Accounts. You save it, if you don't spend it you keep it and the account earns interest and is not taxable. To me, that sounds like a good idea. Lets YOU control your health care money.
And it is a part of Republican health care reform, along with making low-cost catastrophic coverage legal and available for the rare case your young healthy guy has a heart attack.
Anything that doesn't involve forcing me (or you or anyone else!) to do "x" or "y" - and leaves the choice entirely up to me - is ok by me.
The fact that so many people think it's fine to use force against their neighbors (via government, so they don't personally have to do the wet work) is a barometer of the depravity of our society.
That is the way most health savings accounts work. Strictly voluntary, you just get incentivized by the tax deductible nature of the account. Same thing with the low-cost, high-deductible catastrophic insurance. I know a guy who has a policy like that, with a $10,000 deductible. He pays out of pocket for doctor visits, meds, tests, et al and if he needs surgery or something the policy kicks in. He figured his annual costs and is way ahead of the usual covers-it-all-with-copays policy. And he offers the same thing, free, to his employees and they love it. His docs give him a good cash discount and it saves them the hassle of filing insurance claims for every little hangnail and cough. He gets generic drugs at Walgreens for $3-10 a month.
And it is all voluntary. No coercion, no gun to anyone's head. Of course, it will all go away if Obama and Pelosi get their way.
Last edited by Mase; 09-02-2009 at 01:40 PM.
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