Japan: "Go be fat somewhere else"

[Bill Mattocks]

With that platitude you can argue anything. It's the ultimate cop-out for when you have run out of arguments.

I agree, I have run out of arguments. Mainly because my assertion that we will eventually end up being forced by law to maintain a level of health and wellness is an opinion, and all I can do is voice it, I can't prove it. It hasn't happened yet. It may not ever. But I think it is reasonable to extrapolate it from the direction we are heading. Again, just opinion.

Is it really that hard to admit that a government run program can run better and more efficiently than when it is run by insurance companies?

As I have gotten older, I have come to realize and accept that there are some things best done by a government, as large corporations have neither the money nor the inclination to do them. This was a large change in my previous pure libertarian thinking. So I'll accept the concept that there are things a government can do better than private industry.

However, as to efficiency, I grant you nothing. I cannot think of an industry that competes with the federal government that does not do it far more efficiently than the federal government. The government loves bloat, bureaucracy, and inefficiency. They are the not concerned with a profit and as such, they suck as much money from the public trough as they can, without regard to running things well or running them cheaply. There simply is no built-in control mechanism, other than the teat at which they suck come budget time in Congress.

My 'oppressive' government seems to do a better job at protecting my rights than yours, because my employer cannot get my medical data or badger me into giving it up. He cannot get my credit history either, and he is legally obliged to let me review an information he has on file on me, as is everyone who has a file on me, including the government.

I am glad to hear it. Is there (wherever you are) here? If you're not in the US, you might take note that our two nations are different. Perhaps surprising, but there you go.