Posted on 10/29/2013 2:30:34 PM PDT by Kaslin
Now that the “if you like your plan, you can keep your plan” lie has been thoroughly exposed, ObamaCare defenders have taken to arguing that what replaces the millions of cancelled plans will be much better for people than what they chose before. Essentially, this argument presumes that a centrally-planned, one-size-fits-all insurance profile works better for Americans than their own choices for coverage in the marketplace. Charles Krauthammer deconstructs the arrogance of this argument and explains why it fails every time it’s tried (via RCP):
Krauthammer: Jay Carney Is Saying "You're Too Stupid To Understand What You Want"
It’s precisely why historically centrally-planned economies don’t work. The Soviets had a plan for this much steel and this much concrete and it had no response to what was out there in the market and they overproduced. So, they had a lot of production numbers and they had an economy that was unworkable. Here these people are deciding if you’re a single male in your 60s, you don’t need the maternal care, you don’t — you’ve never smoked dope, you don’t need the substance abuse stuff. You want a catastrophic plan which is very rational, but Jay Carney is saying, you know, ‘you’re too stupid to understand what you want.’ Once you eliminate the market response, which is a lot of people decide I know what I want better than the bureaucrat and they’re eliminating this. That’s the essence of what’s happening and that’s why it’s not going to work.
That comes straight out of F. A. Hayek and The Road to Serfdom. Markets work best at allocating resources (when properly and objectively regulated to prevent fraud and theft) because the people making use of those assets have to do so in a cooperative/competitive environment. That creates millions of decision points which require the expertise and interests of those in the market, and which a central-planning bureau cannot master, in real time or otherwise. Specific demand creates innovation in supply, so that those who need maternity care will favor the suppliers who provide it, while those who don’t will favor those suppliers who offer less expensive plans, and so on.
The core conceit of central planners is that the participants in the marketplace are too stupid to act in their own interest, as Krauthammer correctly translates the White House response. That’s more than a little ironic, too, coming from the central-planning administration that couldn’t even manage to launch a web portal correctly.
The only thing worse than stupid people making decisions for themselves is a bureaucrat making the decision for them.
Bureaucrats cannot learn from their mistakes because they are not punished by the results of their mistakes.
The only thing worse than stupid people making decisions for themselves is a bureaucrat making the decision for them.
Bureaucrats cannot learn from their mistakes because they are not punished by the results of their mistakes.
This isn’t new, remember Clinton reneging on his promise to cut taxes because the American people were to stupid to handle the money they would have saved? This is just another example of the liberals it takes a village concept, they consider themselves the village elders while the rest of us are the village idiots that they must make decisions for. You know for our own good.
When Bureaucrats sat down to figure out what 0bamaCare was going to be, they did two remarkably STUPID things that bureaucrats must do:
1) They defined only one healthcare product, the insurance that everyone must buy. No more services, no fewer services are allowed.
2) They defined only three payment methods: Gold, Sliver and Bronze. These are only three premium, deductible, co-pay combinations.
So taking 300,000,000 people, they forced us into three payment plans.
How many CELL PHONES and CELL PHONE PLAN combinations are available in America? More than 3? Cell phones are tons less complex and important than is healthcare.
But bureaucracy cannot handle complexity. Only the market can.
You will now be required to HATE your healthcare.
Government cannot serve people, because it is not a competitive market offering thousands and thousands of plans that adjust to conditions on a minute to minute basis.
Well, you could argue that they elected Obama.
That’s not exactly a sterling record.
“Now that the “if you like your plan, you can keep your plan” lie has been thoroughly exposed, ObamaCare defenders have taken to arguing that what replaces the millions of cancelled plans will be much better for people than what they chose before.”
even IF, with all the new information, they STIL want what they had which was taken from them; gov’t knows best . . .
even if they cannot afford what is now deemed “better for them” and gov’t knows best . . .
Even the previously deluded now know better and should now take a stand: they had a right to expect they could have the plan they liked; they have a right to not be now denigrated by those whom they had a right to believe [OK they still could have known better].
The formerly deluded are now denuded of any pretext to support what they formerly believed. Will they stand up? Will the opposition help and support them to stand up? against lies, deception, and theft of what was theirs by stealth?
I have to believe Obama would have had to cheat a lot more if those who already had insurance would have known their rates would go up so others could get insurance. Liberals always want to help others.....WITH SOMEONE ELSE’S MONEY!
Obama is simply a liar.
He knows and Carney knows that there are people who actually want “catastrophic coverage only.” They believe they will pay for themselves up to that point. Nor do they want to pay for coverage of sex changes, abortions, etc. They don’t plan to use such coverage, so why pay for it?
“do they want to pay for coverage of sex changes, abortions, etc. They don’t plan to use such coverage, so why pay for it?”
should be complete common sense, or?
That is exactly what they are saying and it's going to piss a lot more people off. Krauhammer also said...
"It's the oldest adage in politics, when the other guy is committing suicide, get out of room."
We’re all making a fundamental mistake about their ultimate intentions here....
Insurance companies and their investors make money. Liberals can’t stand the notion of somebody making a buck, so any activity that makes profit must be stopped. That’s their notion of “fairness.” They don’t like for-profit Hospitals much, either.
“Oooh! You Capitalist meanies! Profiting from other peoples’ misery! Whaaaa!”
This is precisely the argument that is being made over and over at various left-wing "progressive" blog sites.
"The problem is that Americans love their s**tty inadequate cheap-o health plans."Another biggie is this line of reasoning:
"MSM stories about people being kicked off their health insurance plans are misleading and dishonest. Their plans didn't come up to ACA standards, so of course they were canceled. It's the insurance companies fault for not rolling their policies over into ACA-compliant plans for the same premium."
They only think of the collective, not the individual. Wonder if that will catch on with car insurance? 3 DUIs? No problem, everyone will just pay for the same coverage to make the premiums fair.
Krauthammer is about 47% right on this one.
And yet, Bush's 5-color security threat system was said to be too confusing.
-PJ
No one is talking about making a claim with the new policies. Who do we call for reimbursement, or do we need to get an Ok from Obama or our insurance carrier before we get an appt with our doctor? do we have direct contact with our insurance carrier? If we do why do we have to go through Obama to get insurance?
I hate to say this but based on recent election results...he’s right! Uninformed, misinformed and just plain stupid equaled second term.
Like my tagline says: He needed the ignorant to reelect him, and he got them. Now we all have to pay the consequences.
Krauthammer is wrong...many Americans ARE too stupid to intelligently choose a health care plan by themselves. They're called Obama voters.
You know, Calipornia now has a law that health insurance must cover fertility treatments for couples that are , well, how can I put it,...could never, ever have biological children cause the plumbing just ain’t there.
Now maybe all us 60 year old men here in California should just march right down to our hospital and DEMAND that we receive fertility and pre-natal care, cause, well....because!
Even though I could never, ever get pregnant and give birth, I want the treatment, darn it and I want it know. I ain’t getting younger and muy child bearing years are slipping by..../sarc
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