Politics and Culture

Roy Masters has said some of the most profoundly insightful things I've ever heard. Sometimes, he's just plain wrong like when he predicted disaster in the year 2000. He said something interesting last night- that America's enemies won't attack America while Obama's president because Obama will destroy America for them. Now, go get your grain of salt.

Question, if Obama's plan will reduce health care costs, why will it "cost" 634 billion dollars? We also know the uninsured figure is a lie.

Article.

Obama is also proposing a $634 billion health care "reserve fund" aimed at reforming the system. In order to fund it, Obama will ask wealthy Americans to accept a tax increase and wealthy seniors to pay higher Medicare premiums.

The reserve fund will be used only for reforming the system by cutting costs and trying to deal with the 46 million Americans without health insurance.

My friends brought the story below to my attention. It's an example of how government, the legal system especially, makes people worse. McDonald's doesn't want to pay for Nigel Haskett's medical bills because they're being selfish. The positive publicity itself would justify the cost.

The only reason that McDonald's hesitates is to avoid liability: they're afraid of the lawsuits that would arise from not sufficiently discouraging heroic behavior. In other words, the legal system forces McDonald's to implement rules that promote docility in the face of evil.

If McDonald's were to accept responsibility for Nigel Haskett (God bless him), they may have to pay more money in the long run because employees would feel empowered to act bravely and thus possibly incur more injuries. Or, McDonald's would open themselves up to more litigation as attorney's would find fault with McDonald's for not having as clear an intervention policy.

The McDonald's policy should be to have a list of good practices while rewarding good decisions when they're made. Such a policy would only be possible if McDonald's weren't completely responsible for all of the damage that may ensue.

In the Haskett case, specifically, McDonald's should not set a precedent by accepting responsibility while finding the money, through donations, to pay for Mr. Haskett's injuries. I know that I'd be willing to give a few bucks.

In a sane world, good deeds like paying your mortgage on time, being brave, and making cars that people like, would be rewarded. We, however, live in a Bizarro world. Our legal system sometimes benefits the bad and greedy. It makes people worse.

Final point: Most of the commentary from the left has been a variation of "McDonald's is rich, etc." Once we accept the premise that whoever has the most money, should pay, we cease to be a justice-based system and become a relativistic and, by definition, unjust one.
Story below:

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Here.

The two were arrested last week after a five-month investigation, Phoenix police told reporters. Authorities believe Tye and Finley recruited at least five girls, ranging in age from 14 to 17, on the campuses of their high schools, police spokesman Sgt. Andy Hill said in a Monday news briefing posted on the Web site of CNN affiliate KTVK.

"We have a situation of two girls, 16 years old, who are, in essence, pimps," Hill said. "And they ran their own brothel."

Police believe the girls had rented an apartment used solely for acts of prostitution, he said.

Prosecutors, citing a police probable cause statement, said the teenagers recruited girls by telling them of "all the money they would be making. Additionally, they were told that it was better working for them as opposed to male pimps because they would not get beat up."

I don't know what everybody's complaining about. He did fine. I like him. The Katrina boat story was right on point.

This will be short since I don't want to repeat the excellent commentary on the Corner and American Spectator.

1. A country isn't great because its government spends a lot of money. The Soviet Union spent money. Hugo Chavez spends money. A country is great because its people can take of themselves and their neighbors without spending money.

2. If Obama were a rock band, he'd be Slayer because his speeches probably contain hidden messages when played backwards. "Join us. Come to Socialism."

Hell Awaits

The hell that awaits are a bloated, bankrupt, inefficient government.

3. However, if you take everything Obama says and say the opposite, then you'd arrive at the truth. For example: It was too much government that caused the banking crisis. The way to achieve energy independence is to find more energy like oil while waiting for the market to find efficient alternatives not wasting money on boondoggles. Spending trillions of dollars extra will actually increase the deficit and raising taxes to pay for it will probably be a drag, not a boon to the economy (duh!). The only way government can decrease health care costs is to not provide quality health care (rationing) if quality means what people need when they need it. Allowing schools to compete- like Washington D.C. schools did before Democrats cut funding for the voucher program- and not spending billions of dollars on bureaucracy and fulfilling union demands will make students more competitive. Bailing out the irresponsible is actually rewarding irresponsibility (duh #2!).

4. I'll give him the benefit of ignorance or just having a different priority set on the above stuff, but, "not because I believe in bigger government - I don't" is just a lie.

Well-intentioned, mostly. I'll use the car companies as an example:

1. Problem: Desire for higher wages and "equality," things that supposedly need regulating (some things do). Solution: Side with labor, regulation, taxes. Force compliance.

2. Problem: Car companies are uncompetitive, failing. Solution: Subsidize with tax-payer money. Force compliance.

3. Problem: Taxpayers want something in return for their investment. Solution: Require companies to have minimum and maximum (executive salary caps) wages. Require from the car company products that meet some sort of arbitrary or calculated public interest (fuel efficient cars, etc.) that probably wouldn't sell otherwise (or else they'd be made anyways, right?). Force compliance.

Voila! Liberal fascism!

Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg