Posted on 06/21/2009 5:13:45 AM PDT by rellimpank
Today, the socialists have taught most Americans to expect lots of things -- government schools, government fire and police protection -- are and should be "free."
They're not. Everything has to be paid for.
Is free health care "a right"? You can't have a right that imposes an obligation on anyone else. (Jury service is slightly problematical, though because jury service can be -- ought to be -- voluntary, that needn't be a problem.)
If I have a right to medical care, do I have a right to put a gun to the head of a doctor and threaten to shoot him if he won't treat me? Is it more moral for some third party do this for me?
Because no one should starve -- any more than they should die of lack of treatment for an illness or injury -- doesn't it follow that food is also "a right"? If so, then as long as I can claim hunger, shouldn't I have the right to break into my neighbor's house, hold a gun to her head and make her give me half the food in her refrigerator? Or hire some third party in a government uniform to do this for me?
Why not? What's the difference?
The socialists duck the question, insisting, "That would never happen. We'll just send the rich neighbor a tax bill, and use the proceeds of their 'voluntary' tax payments to provide food stamps for the hungry poor."
And if he refuses to pay his taxes?
"Well, everyone has to pay their taxes. The non-compliant person who owes taxes will be sent many notices; they have many chances to have it explained to them why they must pay."
(Excerpt) Read more at lvrj.com ...
It's even worse than that.
Why would anyone voluntarily do all the work necessary to become a doctor merely to become a public asset? At some point with medicine socialized, the government will almost certainly find the need to compel bright young people to pursue medical studies. And don't you just look forward to having a doctor who is being forced to see you; and might rather have been a chemist?
ML/NJ
Nothing is free, and even socialists have to pay for what they get. The difference between capitalism and socialism in that regard is that with socialism the government acts as the middle man. You pay the government through your taxes, then the government pays for the ‘free’ goods and services you receive.
Of course the government has lots and lots of employees that have nothing to do with what you are trying to purchase, and lots of people with their hand in the till, so only a small proportion of the money you pay in taxes ever goes to purchase what you are supposedly receiving ‘for free’. Then there are those who don’t pay taxes at all. The money you pay in taxes pays for their ‘free stuff’ as well as your own ‘free stuff’. So, by the time what you pay in taxes comes back to you in the form of goods and services, it has been dramatically diluted.
To compensate for this the government, as middle man, extorts those who provide the final goods and services, by fixing prices and wages. This markedly reduces the incentive to work hard and provide the best goods and services. So the ‘free stuff’ you eventually receive is of significantly lower quality than you could have purchased for yourself. In addition, because it’s ‘free’, more and more people get in line to receive their ‘free stuff’. A proportion of these people don’t pay taxes. Those who do will be asked to pay higher taxes to provide for the additional people in line. Those who provide the services will be asked to provide them for less compensation. It’s a vicious cycle that puts a government official directly in the path between your efforts and your returns. Socialism is theft.
“Progressive” taxation is nothing more than a legalized mugging.
Great commentary! Thanks for posting it.
Bingo. And this is not just hypothetical, either. I worked in China the winter of ‘76 - ‘77. My interpreter was a magnificent concert violinist whose passion was music. The State, however, decided he would be an interpreter. Case closed.
That was my introduction to tyranny up close and personal at age 25. I came home knowing that every American had to spend a year in communist countries to fully understand the enormity of tyranny and what freedom really means.
A rich person can refuse to pay more taxes by lowering the amount of income he/she produces.
They didn’t get where they are by being so obsessive that they will literally work themselves to death.
By lowering their output, we all lose.
I never had a ‘poor man’ write me a paycheck.
A rich man will cease writing alot of paychecks before he will be blackmailed like this.
A rich person can refuse to pay more taxes by lowering the amount of income he/she produces.
They didn’t get where they are by being so obsessive that they will literally work themselves to death.
By lowering their output, we all lose.
I never had a ‘poor man’ write me a paycheck.
A rich man will cease writing alot of paychecks before he will be blackmailed like this.
Cheers!
Socialism is NOT an economic system - it is a rationale for the possession of absolute power by the political leadership.
There is only one real purpose to such power - the limitless infliction of misery and death upon others.
Socialism, in any form, finally resolves itself into a death cult. Given the extensive literary witness of survivors of the 20th Century’s more monstrous regimes, no one can say they weren’t warned.
If I have a right to medical care, do I have a right to put a gun to the head of a doctor and threaten to shoot him if he won't treat me?
Or conversely ... do I have a right to put a gun to the head of my doctor and threaten to shoot him if he KEEPS on treating me?
So if Barry wants to 'fix' healthcare, all he has to do is just follow Shakespeare's advice in Henry VI:My doc orders so many $#@&*ing tests, that my schedule revolves around HIS schedule! I know it's not his fault, its required by his $#@&*ing Malpractice Insurance Co. And that's due to all the frivolous LAWSUITS filed by bottom feeding lawyers, annnnnd the nitwit juries awarding $27,000,000 for an infected fingernail.
Previously I had to see him about every six/seven months for a Blood Pressure follow-up. NOW its THREE MONTHS. I asked him why, he said "I have to, Malpractice Insurance". This is freaking insane! (and costly tp ME) Plus, a few weeks back when I saw him my BP was 117/82, that's great! And me having to go back in Sept is plain STOO-PID™.
"The first thing we must do is kill all the lawyers"That'll 'fix it' pdq!
I was at a party last night when the subject of school calendars came up. Several of the nice well-meaning people were pushing for a longer school year for the kids. I think most were really taken aback when I opposed it. They were coming from the position that it was too expensive and difficult to find things for the kids to do in the summers. While I'm sympathetic that these things are expensive, I don't see that this gives anyone the right to stick the rest of the taxpayers with the bill for it. I think they were really shocked at my thinking. I found one kindred soul, but the others, I suspect, found me an extremist. Our district recently implemented full-day Kindergarten. I was quite surprised at how quickly they did it, and with little attempt at academic justification of the decision. It was done primarily for the convenience and benefit of parents with small children who didn't want the expense of caring for their children during the remaining half day. This kind of social engineering just frosts me.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.