HCR Passes

[Morrigoon]

Originally Posted by sleepyjeff

huh?

I honestly don't know what the heck you are talking about...

I was making fun of the attitude that some people take towards other people's financial needs/choices

[Alex]

So on balance, if it were a simple either/or choice. Would you prefer a universal mandate to purchase private insurance or a government-run single payer system?

[Morrigoon]

Originally Posted by Alex

Only the bolded part really happened. Everything else was hypothetical:

But it was still LESS hypothetical than my previous example. Which, being entirely hypothetical, may have been "too" hypothetical for the reader.

[Alex]

I think you're missing my point, but I'm going to admit it is a not particularly important point, apologize for bringing it up, and leave it be.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Originally Posted by sleepyjeff

Good answer but the "dollar" is not just a dollar....it represents my labor....replace the word "dollar" with labor and then read your paragraph again.

Doesn't change my stance, seeing as I disagree with the premise. A dollar can be exchanged for labor. It is not however labor. It doesn't represent labor. A dollar is an arbitrary thing. It's a immensely useful arbitrary thing, but it is fundamentally nothing. It exists only because we say it exists, it has value only because we say it has value.

But that's getting more philosophical than necessary. More concrete and to the point, I do not find it unreasonable to say, "As long as you are part of this society, you are required to share the responsibility of things that ensure the continued viability of this society." What that share is can be argued ad-nauseum, but as Alex said, unless you are truly arguing for absolute libertarian rule (hope you know a good asphalt contractor, or a mechanic who specializes in rebuilding suspensions), simply crying, "You're taking my liberty!" is an empty argument. It's already been agreed by our society that we're okay with "infringing" on that kind of liberty to some degree. We may draw the line at different places, but declaring "It's anti-freedom, and therefore wrong!" is a flawed place to be arguing from unless you're prepared to argue that ALL services that require monetary collection from citizens are equally wrong.

[bewitched]

Originally Posted by sleepyjeff

Are we wrong? Did we or did we not lose liberties today? Were our rights to our property expanded or contracted today? At what point would you say government has gone too far?

If you are defining "property" as "money" then I would have to say that since I will now apparently qualify for a rebate on my (ex-husband's) employer contracted, exorbitantly (yet very comprehensive) priced insurance, then my personal rights (liberty) were expanded today.

[bewitched]

Originally Posted by €uroMeinke

Can someone explain to me why socialism is bad? I suspect it's all in how one defines socialism but I don't get the assumed evil behind that term.

Because the damn liberal Commies are socialists.

[Betty]

Originally Posted by Morrigoon

Oh a side note, it occurred to me to wonder about this: For those folks who have gotten a "prescription" for certain "herbal" remedies... would the prescription coverage now be required to cover people's access to pot? How odd would THAT be!

You dont' get a prescription - you get a recommedation.

[sleepyjeff]

Originally Posted by Morrigoon

I was making fun of the attitude that some people take towards other people's financial needs/choices

Ok, I see

Originally Posted by Alex

So on balance, if it were a simple either/or choice. Would you prefer a universal mandate to purchase private insurance or a government-run single payer system?

Fascist or Socialist?....um, I guess Socialist but only because it would make it easier to target who to blame.

[Ghoulish Delight]

Fascist? Really? Fascist?