On Thu, 2008-04-17 at 11:03 -0600, Bryan Sant wrote: > On Thu, Apr 17, 2008 at 8:48 AM, Stuart Jansen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Yeah, the American healthcare system is so much better than Canada and > > western Europe. > > Probably not the best example to trot out in defense of governmental > competence.
You're high paying Java position has blinded you to the situation. Sure, America's system works for the upper middle-class and above. Maybe even works better than other countries. But it's horribly inefficient. The simple fact is, our current system subsidies other nation's health care. How can can other countries get away with price controls on drugs? We fund the research with our purchases, while they reap the benefits. It's simple parasitism, perhaps even economic warfare. Our health care system puts a significant and growing strain on small business. It increases employee lock-in. It abuses the poor and financially vulnerable. It engenders an attitude of entitlement in those that can afford insurance. It does little to value preventative care. Of course, not all blame can be heaped on the health care system directly. A significant part of the blame should also go to our legal system. Something is wrong when doctors stop practicing because liability insurance is too expensive. Something is wrong when lawyers force insurance companies to provide millions of dollars on extraordinary care for a single patient at the expense of every other person paying into the system. It may strike you as inhuman to calculate the value of an eye compared to a limb, but its an economic reality. I'd argue its more inhuman to deny health care to the most defenseless in our population while lining the pockets of CEOs with the money of those who can afford health care. Of course, I've strayed pretty far from the original topic, so let me reiterate the thrust of my original response in a single sentence: Privatization is not always better. /* PLUG: http://plug.org, #utah on irc.freenode.net Unsubscribe: http://plug.org/mailman/options/plug Don't fear the penguin. */
