Obama to Nation: Save to Pay for Government Spending
It is time to begin the process of analyzing President Obama’s February 24, 2009 speech to a joint session of Congress. As stated in an earlier post this could take a while. The first item that raised a question here was Mr Obama’s use of the following:
‘We have known for decades that our survival depends on finding new sources of energy. Yet we import more oil today than ever before.’
Is this a little melodramatic? Okay, that is going to happen in a speech. After all, if you don’t want your audience falling asleep in the first ten minutes you have to get and keep their attention. That did it. Are you sure our survival depends on new sources of energy? How about we consider utilizing the ones we have before introducing fear of survival to the debate. We import more oil now? No wonder. Have you considered the fact that the nation gets larger every year? That might account for importing more oil. Have you considered it may be better to import than drain all our own resources? Have you considered that much opposition has been raised over using our own resources? Take for instance the recent opposition to offshore drilling. Even drilling within the country is not something that is necessarily profitable or without opposition.
In other words Mr President, it is not as simple as you would have us believe. And for a little added argument consider this. One report on per capita petroleum use for the years 1972 through 1997 shows a noticeable decline. At the time of writing this post a more complete view had not been found and may be later. The point being this represents a 25 year period in which per capita use declined. Could it be we import more oil today than ever before due to an ever increasing population? Could it be that obstacles to domestic production make importing more profitable? So if your intention, Mr President, was to push for alternative fuels or spending more money on your pet projects just say so. After all, you’re the guy who lately touts transparency and accountability in government.
The remainder of this part of the speech summarized the crazy cost of healthcare and that nothing has been done about it. The failure of education in the US to prepare students for the marketplace. And last but not least a comment that we spend too much and incur too much debt. Obviously the President is hinting that universal health care is on his mind as well as equally scary spending on education. Pointing to spending and debt in the public and private sector is another hint that things will get worse. He is saying you cannot spend and take on debt for that will be the province of government from now on. And to pay for it will require a massive tax increase which is why you will no longer be able to spend or take on debt for yourself.
Below is the full excerpt from the transcript on which this first post is focused. And that should be enough to digest for now.
‘The fact is, our economy did not fall into decline overnight. Nor did all of our problems begin when the housing market collapsed or the stock market sank. We have known for decades that our survival depends on finding new sources of energy. Yet we import more oil today than ever before. The cost of health care eats up more and more of our savings each year, yet we keep delaying reform. Our children will compete for jobs in a global economy that too many of our schools do not prepare them for. And though all these challenges went unsolved, we still managed to spend more money and pile up more debt, both as individuals and through our government, than ever before.’
Stanford Matthews
MoreWhat.com
February 25th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
The cost of our health care is largely borne by insurance companies, and ultimately largely borne by those that pay the premiums for them. If the cost of health care goes up, so has the quality. If we transfer those costs to government, they will continue to go up, and in fact will go up faster as our population rises, but quality will decrease because government will ration what care may be provided.
After my recent hospitalization, paid for by my insurance plan, one of the many that I have paid into for my entire working life because I understand the need for it, I was shocked to learn that one of my coworkers with the same great coverage available to him opts out of coverage to save a little money. I would have faced financial ruin without the coverage I had, and still face some bills that my insurance provider wouldn’t cover completely. It amazes me that people, especially young people elect to opt out of coverage.
Whats worse about this is that if they find themselves in similar circumstances, their financial life WILL be ruined. To foist the bill off onto the taxpayer because of their personal negligence is shameful, but that’s exactly what universal health care proposes to do. It takes away the ability of the individual to decide for themselves what level of health care coverage is right, imposes a burden on the taxpayer to cover everyone, and simultaneously rations what care may be provided, resulting in lower quality care for all, especially the elderly and the very young.
Still worse yet, when the government (actually the taxpayer, through government extortion) pays for all health care, costs will continue to rise as the population rises, but the government will use this coverage as justification for regulating and further reducing the choices that individuals have available to them. In New York City, it’s illegal for restaurants to use trans fats. The government puts “smoking” bans into personal vehicles with children in them. Soon, there will be forced labor camps for the overweight.
It’s tyranny. When government gets its hands into the system it reduces the quality of service, quality of life, and liberty of the people. It’s an evil that isn’t really necessary, especially when the system we have now works so well for those that elect to participate in it.
February 25th, 2009 at 10:28 pm
Whether or not we have the best healthcare available in the world I do not know. I do know some remarkable solutions exist here. But I did a post on this blog a long time ago on this very subject. Without referencing it, if memory serves, a couple of things first come to mind.
A cottage industry evolved whereby third party vendors handle much of the admin of healthcare. That and the general administration of healthcare accounts for as much as one third of the trillions we spend each year. That’s wrong. Just plain wrong.
A good example of what you say about government meddling in these affairs is borne out by the fact of things like damn ED meds being paid for by medicare. That’s right, get your woodie courtesy of the American taxpayer. That’s wrong. The list of such things is very long. Those late nite ads for what are essentially motorized wheel chairs for any fat ass who can’t walk cuz they are obese, etc., are paid for courtesy of Mr Taxpayer. That’s wrong.
In addition most hospital admins cannot tell you what things cost. How they set their prices is a mystery. But what they do know is that while the free market can control prices that is less at play when people are faced with paying for items that are not viewed as discretionary and when they are under duress due to the nature of seeking medical treatment.
Universal healthcare or socialized medicine as it is typically referred to is not the answer. But there is much wrong with the way we deliver healthcare in this country. And yes, the public shares in the responsibility by not taking good enough care of themselves and adopting lifestyles that are hazardous to one’s health.
I think it was Frontline who has a great documentary on healthcare around the world and much of it is government run. You can view it online at their website. I recommend it.
Also, a recent edition of Reader’s Digest has a piece on how to reform healthcare in this country. They offer 18 suggestions or more. It is also worth reading.
My point is healthcare is not like other commodities or products and services we buy. The decision process is entirely different and the gotta have it mentality or complete indifference to making choices that lower risk of need for such things exacerbates the problem.
In summary, you are absolutely right about government run health being a bad idea. But the alternative needs some serious rework also.
February 25th, 2009 at 11:18 pm
My father in law is getting one of those motorized wheel chairs. He’s most definitely not obese, but he’s very close to being unable to walk at all. The thing is, his insurance would cover the cost completely for him, whether Medicare did or not. That’s good in my opinion.
Our alternative may need some rework, but the type of rework that is almost always proposed will spell the decline of care quality. It’s better to pay for insurance and occasionally have to do battle with the bean counters at the insurance company than to be taxed for other peoples health care and have to do battle with the bean counters in a federal bureaucracy that could care less about quality of care.
February 26th, 2009 at 5:21 am
Your father-in-law and one member of my clan who doesn’t get around so well anymore would be in my guess the few who have a legitimate need. I also doubt that with the amount of promotion they are only appealing to those who have an honest need.
And again you are right. Corrections need to be made but the noise about ‘reform’ almost always indicates government meddling which rarely if ever solves the problems.