by R.S. Land

Created on: November 08, 2009

Debate on the Topic of Nationalized Health Insurance: Lefty Liberal V. Righty Wing-Nut

Where is Mr. Pragmatist in this debate?

Mr. Lefty Liberal

Conservatives, such as my friend Righty Wing-Nut, think health insurance should be employment based or purchased individually. Never mind that one in ten Americans who are actively seeking employment can't find any. This leaves many Americans with three possibilities for receiving care. They could marry someone who has health benefits through an employer. They could receive medical care only against their own wishes, for example when whisked away by ambulance from the scene of a horrific six car pile up. They could visit an emergency room and then explain later to the representative of a collection agency the difficulties involved in drawing blood from a turnip. Many employers today pay minimum wage or slightly above and hire people based on a thirty hour flexible work week to avoid responsibility for employee benefits.These people are lucky to make thirteen to fifteen thousand dollars a year. They are not going to spend it on health care. They are not going to stay home or see a doctor if they suspect they are coming down with H1N1 or anything else. You might keep thin in mind, my friend, the next time you are asked, "Would you like fries with that?"

Mr. Righty Wing-Nut

We already have one nationalized health insurance plan, Mr. Lefty Liberal. It's called Medicare and it is on course to bankrupt our great nation. Everyone has known for some time that Medicare is a much bigger looming problem than even the social security mess. So what steps has our national government taken toward a solution to the crisis of Medicare underfunding? The U.S. Congress under Republican President George W. Bush added a subsidized drug benefit so complicated that actuaries had to study it long and hard in order to be able to advise their grandmothers on which plans to choose. We already have a Medicare part A, B, C, and D. Nationalized health care would just expand this alphabet soup until we all drown in it. We take care of the truly indigent with Medicaid. I am not against a basic social safety net. It should be simple. If you want to be independent and/or build wealth for yourself and/or your posterity then you will be creative and intelligent enough to prepare for your future and fund your present needs. The choices are yours. Your poor choices should only become a burden for the rest of us when you become indigent.Then the government has a duty to step in and make some choices for you until you find your way to freedom once again. You have good intentions, Lefty. Just don't go paving any roads with them.

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