Sowell: Random Thoughts

Creators Syndicate ^ | May 27, 2014 | Thomas Sowell

[jazusamo]

Random thoughts on the passing scene:

Will the Veterans Administration scandal wake up those people who have been blithely saying that what we need is a "single payer" system for medical care? Delays in getting to see a doctor have been a common denominator in government-run medical systems in England, Canada and Australia, among other places.

Class warfare rhetoric would have us resenting "the top ten percent" in income. But that would be a farce, because most of us would be resenting ourselves, since more than half of all Americans — 54 percent — are in the top ten percent at some stage of their lives.

Some people act as if the answer to every problem is to put more money and power in the hands of politicians.

Freedom means nothing if it does not mean the freedom to do what other people don't like. Everyone was free to be a Communist under the Stalin dictatorship, and everyone is free to be a Muslim in Saudi Arabia. Yet whole generations are coming out of our colleges where only those who are politically correct are free to speak their minds. What kind of America will they create?

In Thomas Piketty's highly-praised new book, "Capital in the Twenty-First Century" he asserts that the top tax rate under President Herbert Hoover was 25 percent. But Internal Revenue Service records show that it was 63 percent in 1932. If Piketty can't even get his facts straight, why should his grandiose plans for confiscatory global taxation be taken seriously?

Sometimes I think that this is an era when sanity has become controversial.

[jazusamo]

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[fhayek]

Government policies to "bring down the cost of medical care" almost never bring down those costs, and often increase the costs. These policies simply refuse to pay the full costs of medical care. Any one of us can do that, but we know there will be consequences. There will also be consequences when the government refuses to pay the costs, but these consequences will be concealed and/or denied.

This is a very important point.

[Vinylly]

There is no free lunch. People were infatuated with O’bummer because they thought they were going to get a free lunch.

[jazusamo]

Absolutely, many are finding that out with 0care now.

[Attention Surplus Disorder]

“...The VA offers precisely what Obamacare offers: not a guarantee of treatment in time of need, but a guarantee of a place in line for treatment at a time of the bureaucracy’s choosing. For some, that time will never come."

[fhayek]

Exactly. Replace 'health care' with any other commodity. Let us say a government passed a law that said everyone was entitled to a free Cadillac. So, people would line up for their free Cadillac. Three hundred million people. General Motors would say that they need what? - $45,000 for the car. The government says, no, that's too much, we will only pay you $25,000 per vehicle. GM say, okay, but I hope you aren't in any hurry. We will build your Cadillac when we have some freed up capacity, after we are done producing profitable cars.

[oldbrowser]

Politics is the art of making the impossible seem possible, and even plausible and desirable. That is how ObamaCare got passed.

I don't think the dependent class is deceived. In spite of all, they just want to believe that if "they wish upon a star", they will be provided for and told what to do.

Now the independent class just wants to be left alone to make their own decisions.

[narses]

In Thomas Piketty’s highly-praised new book, “Capital in the Twenty-First Century” he asserts that the top tax rate under President Herbert Hoover was 25 percent. But Internal Revenue Service records show that it was 63 percent in 1932. If Piketty can’t even get his facts straight, why should his grandiose plans for confiscatory global taxation be taken seriously?

[buridan]

Another fine column. Thanks for posting.

[boycott]

Class warfare rhetoric would have us resenting “the top ten percent” in income.

---

I wonder how many democrats in congress are in “top ten percent?” My guess is all of them.

[jazusamo]

My guess is that you’re right, at least those with more than one term.

[jazusamo]

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[Kaslin]

Thanks for the ping

I had do do this

[jazusamo]

Excellent, Kas. I’ve already stolen it, Thanks. :-)

[Kaslin]

Good :) and you’re welcome

[CincyRichieRich]

Eloquence and genius are a great combination; Sowell is gifted in both areas. This is one of the best editorials he’s written; I’d bet, too, it only took him about 10 minutes to jot the stuff down...that’s because he had already written the piece in his head. I wish I could have taken a class with either he or Williams teaching at college.

[jazusamo]

Agreed, Dr. Sowell is one of the great thinkers of our time and Dr. Williams is no slouch.

[NicknamedBob]

"... Dr. Sowell is one of the great thinkers of our time and Dr. Williams is no slouch."

The genius of both men is the ability to explain what we think is complicated in simple terms that cannot be misunderstood.

[Tax-chick]

I’ve seen Thomas Sowell in Real Life!