Sunday, March 21, 2010: Is passage of the health care bill today a victory for America? The question begs a few others. Is it right, or virtuous, or compassionate, to give Paul something he lacks, even if one must rob Peter to provide it? Do the means justify the ends? Is it Paul’s “Right” to have health insurance? (Health insurance is not “health care” which is already ensured by law) Why is Paul’s “Right to insurance”, greater than Peters Right to his earned money? Why is health insurance a greater need than say, food, or a job, or any of Paul’s other “needs”? Is not “food”, more fundamental than “insurance”? The communist manifesto says “From each according to his ability, to each according to his need”, is this the wisdom we should apply, to enslave one in the service of another? How will we continue to pay for Paul’s “Right” if Peter loses his job? In fairness would we not give Peter the same “Rights” we give to Paul. Who would we then rob, both? What role, other than the exercise of power, would the robber then have? (A clue to the real purpose) Margret Thatcher said “The problem with Socialism is eventually you run out of other people’s money”. The difficulty goes right to the heart of the Constitution and the fundamental questions of the meaning of “liberty”, “Rights”, “capitalism”, and “Socialism”. I’m not talking of the old extreme Socialism where the Government owns all property and/or capital (means of production). I’m talking of the softer type we have here in America where Government is expected to supply all of societies needs which usually turn out to be party needs or special interest group needs (What Ayn Rand calls government by gang warfare).

Of course it’s not two individuals, Peter and Paul, we are talking about; it’s about groups of individuals. Paul, being the group called the “un-insured”, and Peter being the group called “society”. And of course it’s “Government”, creating the so called “Right to health care”, and then carrying out the act through coercion, backed up by the power of law, which is itself backed up by the use of force. Do “Rights” come from Government?
Capitalism, and the American Constitutional system, is based on the “Rights” of individuals, whereas “Socialism” is based on the so called “Rights” of Society or groups. Capitalism and true “Liberalism” elevates the Rights of individuals above Government, where the role of Government is to protect those Rights. Socialism puts the Rights of “society”, really meaning Government, above individuals, where the role of Government is to define
and enforce the needs of “Society”. The conflict between these two concepts is the very source of the conflict regarding the passage of the health care bill today.

Even a basic review of the founding principles of this country cuts through all this confusion and yields a clear answer. The Declaration of Independence says “… all men are created equal …”, that’s “men”, individuals, not groups, not the “un-insured”. It continues; “… endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, …”, Rights were clearly understood by our founders to come from God, not Government! And then; “… among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness …”, these are Rights to action, not Rights to goods, or insurance, or anything else that must be paid for with other people’s money taken by the force of Government. The Constitution and the bill of Rights are about individual Rights or States Rights. But more importantly it is not a limit on States or individuals but a limit on the powers of Government.

Nowhere in the Constitution was the power given to Government to provide Rights to goods for selected groups of Americans by violating the individual Rights of Americans guaranteed by the very same Constitution. Yes, this Constitutional abuse has been committed in the past, but crime is still wrong, and therefore should remain illegal independent of its history. What purpose would the Constitution serve if any abuse nullified it. The oath of members of Congress is to uphold the Constitution, not abuse it. The passing of this bill is yet another advancement in the direction of Socialism by the powerful forces inherent in “issue-at-a-time” pragmatism of governance without regard to principle. The desire to “do good”, to be compassionate, the one-upmanship in the pursuit of virtue, the misguided worship of “equality” of outcome, ensures our fate along the “Road to Serfdom”.
We are not clueless where this incremental-ism toward Socialism leads. The lessons of Germany, Russia, Cuba and countless other “experiments” are conclusive evidence of the humanity that must be sacrificed to achieve the utopian “ends”. We are also not clueless where Laissez-Faire in the French Revolution leads when the Rights of men (groups) are perused instead of the Rights of man (individuals). The blood of the guillotine is a convincing lesson that only the ignorant or foolish ignore. And within our own history, and even within our own lifetime, we have seen were Capitalism leads when the power of government becomes it’s monopolistic or economic tool of advantage, another clear violation of the Constitution. The arguments of principle are powerful yet there are those that know no bounds to their rational abilities and will insist on outcome based thinking that values pragmatism over principle as the ultimate guide. The very type of thinking that leads to Socialism. So let’s take a rational look at this bill through these eyes.

Greece is on the verge of economic collapse with the threat of taking other countries down in a domino effect. The US dept is ~12 ½ trillion dollars with unfunded mandates in the hundreds of trillions. Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and most all Social programs are soon to be bankrupt. Most all government run programs are factors of 2 to 12 times larger in cost than the estimates that were used to vote them into law (in inflation adjusted dollars). We are now borrowing 42 cents on every dollar spent. The borrowing comes from the FED (~6 trillion), China (~700 billion), Japan (~800 billion) and many other countries. The interest alone on this dept consumes much of our taxes. We are in what is called the biggest recession since the “great depression”. Unemployment is 9% to 16% depending where you live. The US is being threatened with a lowering of our credit rating which will increase the interest we must pay to borrow and finance the dept. There will be great reluctance for other countries to continue to loan us money. The value of the dollar has dropped to the point that other countries are dumping it for EUROs or Gold. Can we really afford, in this environment, another entitlement program that will cost trillions? Do you really believe the estimated cost that defies any realistic sense of History?

Bribes, Cost hiding, 6 years of service for 10 years of new taxes, many new tax burdens on small business which supplies 80% of the jobs in America. This is only a small list of what was required to get this bill passed. The first time, as a citizen that you must, by law, pay for a service (insurance) form a private company, that you may not want, or face a penalty of $2,000 or 20% of your income, or jail if you don’t, i.e a “breathing tax”. If that is not a violation of fundamental Rights, then what is? This bill lays the foundation for single payer socialized health care with all the problems that plagues it in every country it has been tried. And if that was not enough, they attached a bill that makes it illegal for any private “student loans” except one bank in one State as a bribe to get it passed. All student loans will now come from the Government. Think about the state of the other government controlled or run insurance companies (going broke). The fraud, the waste …, no end to the incompetence and mismanagement created when the incentives of profit and loss are removed.

I could go on and on but there are much better sources for the reality of this bill and I encourage you to research it. For me the answer to “victory for America” is obvious. Yes, this bill is all those wonderful things they say it is in the same way that alcohol or addictive drugs make you feel wonderful. And it’s an act of virtue and compassion in the same way that your loving family member demonstrates by enabling your addiction out of their own weakness of character and need for your love. The dependency that Socialism creates, and the changes that happen in the minds of people when endless new Rights of jobs, pensions, health care, security … are given, will make them reject capitalism and embrace Socialism. It’s positive feedback loop that will put the economy into a spiral dive into the ground. Socialism will close eyes to losses of liberty or in the extreme case, even atrocities as was so well demonstrated in Germany. Hence the name of a book “New Liberties for old” about what happened in Germany. The new Liberties of “things” will encourage the trading of the old liberties of freedom. Freedom like the ability to choose your health care, or to choose ones School, or even to choose ones profession will be easily slipped from the people by the simple act of “doing good” and either ignoring or being ignorant of the fundamental principles of this constitutional government.

So much to say on this issue, but I needed to write this as an outlet for my frustration whale watching the final debate and votes on this bill. So without edit, I may have a few things wrong but the essence should have come through. Please, if you are not aware of the capitalistic and true “Liberal”, foundations of this country or the economics at play now, do a little study and prepare yourself, or help stop what’s coming if we continue down this road. At the risk of losing the good ones many are ready to vote all the incumbents out. It could be a blood bath this November, but I’m really worried about this bill becoming the last nail in the coffin of this great country. Hopefully I’ll feel better tomorrow.

Greg Jenkins