| To the Editor: Government created problems it's trying to solve |
| Written by Brad Waltz |
| Wednesday, 26 December 2012 09:01 |
|
When our country faces a national tragedy, we turn to government sadly because it's all we know. We are born into their approved hospitals, our first learning is in their approved facilities, taken there by their approved buses on their approved roads. As we grow older and become productive we relinquish our earnings to their approved retirement system and yet "they" squander it. Our healthcare system is broken, we turn over our health, our very lives because only government can help. Home prices collapse, banks teeter, so DC hands down an 848 page directive, our saviors... Men in planes die for retribution, killing nearly 3000 Americans. Our leader interrupts national programming to announce, "they hate us for our freedoms, stand behind me and we will take the fight to them". We never question the premise. Facts: FDR and his wage and price controls led to insurer based healthcare, government regulation since exacerbated its failings. Government with the Fair Housing act of 1994 along with cheap money caused the housing bust. 9/11 was the direct result of American foreign policy. Government makes gun free zones that turn out not to be. Government is force, the only thing it can do to institute its policies is to use force, and once it steps in, it's bad company that can only use ever more force. Government says who may buy a gun, what kind of gun, what kind of ammo and where you may take the gun. But when its policies go bad, when because it intervened it interfered with force between people in society, an arena where force is discouraged, an artificial situation occurred. A situation where a 20 year old kid on government approved psychotic drugs can pick his shooting gallery. And again our leader interrupts national programming and says, "I can make policy to end this", and we say, "thanks dear leader, help us". Our societal shortcomings are the result, not of free people choosing what is best for each, but the result of force from government. With every failure from society that befalls us, predictably we turn to government to help us. Government created this, it will not solve it, in fact it will make it worse, it has a track record of this. I weep. Brad Waltz Bowling Green |
Front Page Stories
| Plant to shut down (5-24-13) 05/24/2013 | Sentinel-Tribune PERRYSBURG - The Diamond Crystal Brands plant in Perrysburg Township will be closing this summer, af [ ... ] |
Owens may hike tuition (5-24-13) 05/24/2013 | MARIE THOMAS BAIRD, Sentinel Education Editor  There likely will be a tuition increase for Owens Community College students thi [ ... ] | Other Front Page Articles | ||
Comments
Can you reference where you have refuted his findings and thoughts? I know of you leaving comments, but I don't believe you have ever put forth original thought, nor a letter of your own.
Discussion is only fruitful when there is real back and forth, and not quick one line comments.
excellent post. why do we continue to look to government to solve our problems, when they have repeatedly shown that they aren't capable of solving the problems,, only make them worst.....
DO something... I ran for county commissioner, in that campaign I gave an interview with this paper, I spoke at the League of Women Voters sponsored event.
I read and attempt to educate everyone I meet about this message. I am a founding member and office holder in the certified Wood County Libertarian party.
If you can help me with more ideas, I would appreciate your help.
BTW, I submitted this letter the Tuesday after the shootings, I got bumped on the 12/19 opinion page.
"Do something"
"Don't do something"
What are we, those that do not agree with policies (which a majority of people will NOT agree with EVERY policy) to do?
Actually, for as little money Brad's campaign had compared to the other nominees, Brad broke records for Third Party candidates for County Commissioner.
It is no surprise, as people do in fact agree with him. However, little resources limits the ability of people to here the message. As more do, more agree.
Having said that, I still think unfettered, private, for profit medicine would be better. As Hayek points out, everything is scare, this scarcity forces us to make decisions, to price...
Lastly, this philosophy, if you aren't familiar is well explained here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8TI-pm0m2o
The opposite of this free exchange of goods is North Korea, where despite availability of food, malnourished children either suffer brain damage or die.
No, profit is good. And Brian, remember my original premise, medicine today is not the free market.
My availability of food comment comes from Melanie Kirkpatrick and her latest book on North Korea, and maybe adequate would have been a better word. In 1990 a famine began that led to the death of 2.5 million people. As she points out, there was adequate food but the leadership withheld it.
Regardless, enough food poorly delivered, not enough, in North Korea this is the result of a planned economy and not the free market. If you don't see the correlation to a free market in medicine...
Yes, the evil profits of medicine argument stands, and you have not refuted it with an inaccurate comparison to N. Korea.
No wonder your party can't get any support. You support exploitation, as your above post clearly reveals.
Are you familiar with this quote from Adam Smith? It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest.
Lastly, are you familiar with "I pencil"?
With asparagus and salmon, ultimate delivery is NOT the end goal. The end goal is to maintain a sustainable source of those things. Capitalism has failed for both and more.
As far as I Pencil: poems about a mythological "Invisible Hand" are neither informative or irrelevant.
It is a tragedy when self-interest overrides resource sustainability.
This has been accepted for far too long.
imagine this same ban on asparagus. Imagine the price and quality of asparagus in Ohio in December. Imagine the cost of any and all goods if all federal law made it illegal to sell across state lines.
No, profits are good, greed absent force and favor from government is good. It's why we get out of bed and go to work every day.
Lastly, the closest thing to the free market in medicine today is elective cosmetic surgery, and look at it. They advertise on the radio even. Try calling the hospital and finding our the cost of a kidney transplant...
Medical Doctor Ron Paul has discussed at great length how medicine was delivered prior to government intervention.
Also, Ron Paul is NOT someone to be respected.
On what grounds?
The Cult of Ron Paul is viewed as total quackery in many many circles outside of your party.
The history of latent racism is a good place to start. Why have the Libertarians never distanced themselves from StormFront, yet?
We all know that you party was the favorite of the white supremacists in the lase election. WHY do you suppose that is?
"Greed is good." How disgusting. Brad. Disgusting.
Maybe someday you will learn that people are motivated by other things too.
You just dismantled your entire set of arguments yourself. Pity.
Milton Friedman on Greed. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWsx1X8PV_A
John Stossel on greed. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0VHiONkot8
I'm not sure you are even CAPABLE of emotion.
It must have been killed by greed.
Go see what greed has done to Zimbabwe or Jamaica and you will see the failure of Capitalism (and probably blame something else so you feel better...)
Capitalism is the only method to lift people out of poverty. Do you think if we put our entire regulatory apparatus into Bangladesh, Somalia, Jamaica, into the year 1100 it would help anyone, produce anything?
No, production, producing items of value, only the market can do that, but it does need the rule of law. Which is absent in Jamaica...
I meant TO Jamaica, not the isolated resorts for privileged white people.
The rule of law in Jamaica is to obey the (western capitalist) WTO and it is not working.
Who we are
There are a number of ways of looking at the World Trade Organization. It is an organization for trade opening. It is a forum for governments to negotiate trade agreements. It is a place for them to settle trade disputes. It operates a system of trade rules. Essentially, the WTO is a place where member governments try to sort out the trade problems they face with each other.
That is not capitalism Brian, that is government use of force.
You have no idea where I stay or what I do in Jamaica. You know Brian, your assumptions and rigidity to them are not serving you well. Respectfully.
You have given me ZERO reasons to abandon my assumptions. I would he happy if you did, though.
In capitalism, true capitalism, transactions are between a willing buyer and willing seller (of goods, services, etc), at an agreed upon price which is mutually beneficial for all parties.
How is that force?
You continue to lump in corruption and fraud into a false understanding of true capitalism. Capitalism IS NOT to be controlled by government, but government CAN be a 3rd party to adjudicate disagreements and to right a wrong or fraud perpetrated by parties in a transaction.
Even and especially in employment, the willingness of 2 parties to participate is NEVER equal.
Prices are enforced by the implied threat of state-sanctioned violence.
Capitalism fall apart when it is not enforced by threats of violence.
I would stop paying my overpriced mortgage if the sheriff wouldn't show up with guns and a posse.
Do you give away all your money towards taxes and others? Or do you have something left over in your paycheck for yourself?
This is "profit" from your labor.
Profits are not bad. Don't lump cronyism or extreme corrupt greed in with the simple notion that profit, or benefit, is a positive.
A doctor spending a lifetime becoming specialized, should be able to reap some benefit both from his work in helping others but as well something of value to be able to survive and build wealth for his family.
The notion that profits are evil is a tired argument.
Cronyism, corruption, fraud...these are indeed bad things, and libertarians fight against them. Profit is not inherently corrupt or fraud.
There IS such a thing as excessive profit, and the working classes rarely see any of it unless it is on display by the wealthy.
Profit at the cost of other's suffering is simply not ethical regardless of how one feebly attempts to justify it.
Stop watching Alex Jones videos.
Brad's Libertarian crap is unethical and driven by greed. Greed is no way to manage a healthcare system.
For-profit medicine is disgusting. There is no justification at all for that.
For profit medicine strongly pushes toward fee-for service financing, which makes access to medical care a matter of social class.
I view both Libertarianism and Communism both as crap. There are many many far better critiques of capitalism, but yes, they do offer valuable critiques. Still crap, though, IMO.
RSS feed for comments to this post.