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TinLizziedl

In article ,
says...

"Richard the Dreaded Libertarian" wrote in message
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On Tue, 27 Oct 2009 20:09:20 -0400, Ed Huntress wrote:

Medicare has been starved for enforcement money for a long time.

That's precisely the problem with socialism - enFORCEment.

The Free market AUTOMATICALLY controls prices - if a given service costs
too much, you'll find another provider, because it's in your
self-interest.

Right. Just like it did for the derivatives market. There's a perfect
example of how an unregulated marketplace works, right?

Have you tried to find another insurance provider lately, on an individual
basis? Do you pay for your own insurance, or is it paid by your employer?

Socialism destroys that option and therefore is the enemy of Freedom and,
as such, is the enemy of The Constitution of the United States, and MUST
be stopped.

Rich, I wouldn't disagree with your basic point but you make it in such a
over-simplified way that I have to shake my head.

Regulation is not "socialism." Government OWNERSHIP of business and industry
is socialism. And as Alan Greenspan and the whole country learned last year,
to our dismay, markets don't automatically "clear." Competition doesn't
automatically appear when the cost of entry is high.

The problems we face now in finance and healthcare are NOT the result of the
free market system being hampered or distorted. They're problems and
limitations inherent in the system itself. Not every market has the
conditions necessary for competition to work. Many markets naturally tend
toward oligopoly or monopoly. Oligopoly, whether it was the car makers in
unspoken collusion with unions in the '60s, or health care insurance
depending upon scale to operate profitably today, is as natural as
free-market competition, if the conditions push the market in that
direction. And they push health care in that direction.

I agree. Too many people get confused about regulation and socialism,
and it's easy for the Republicans in Congress to confuse the issue
further by claiming we are heading for a socialist solution. Even if
the government offered a "Public Option" plan, we still have the option
of not enrolling in it! "Socialism" my furry rumpus.

--
Tin Lizzie
"Elephant: A mouse built to government specifications."-Lazarus Long