To defeat government-controlled medicine, repudiate morality of need

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

Opponents of the Democrats' health care "reform" proposals have said the new legislation would lead to higher costs, lower quality, and less access.   But with the passing of HR 3692 (House) and HR 3950 (Senate) looks like the Democrats will have their way. Why?  In the Investor's Business Daily, Yaron ...

Health care bill, arbitrary power & dictatorship

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009

From Duke Visiting Professor John David Lewis in Pajamas Media: The essence of a dictator’s method is not to write harsh laws and enforce them rigidly. The world’s most destructive thugs have wanted something different. They have wanted to impose their wills on a compliant populace using arbitrary power — power ...

Take the moral high ground in health care debate

Monday, October 19th, 2009

Yaron Brook of the Ayn Rand Institute makes the case to "capturing the moral high ground" in the health care debate: Why Only Private Health Care is Moral.  He gave this talk at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. on September 19, 2009. Part 1: My notes on part 1: ...

Colorado HB 1273: “Our responsibility” that Coloradans get medical care?

Wednesday, April 8th, 2009

Defending the proposal for a politically-controlled monopolistic government insurance plan in Colorado, Rep. Daniel Kagan (D-Cherry Hills Village) said: "I think it is our responsibility that every single Coloradan, regardless of their wealth or position in society, get the health care they need ... It is our obligation." Let's say this is ...

Be your “brother’s keeper,” or else!

Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008

It's that fundamental belief — I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper — that makes this country work. -- Barack Obama, 2004 Democratic National Convention ...the future of America rests on how well we recognize that we are in this together . . . that we are writing a shared ...

Nanny-state health care

Wednesday, June 18th, 2008

In a previous post I challenged the notion that medical care is like services we receive from the fire department — a flawed analogy to justify politician-controlled single-payer health care.  In it I claim that a more accurate analogy is that medical insurance is like homeowners or renters insurance. Colorado single-payer advocate ...

Moral argument for free-market health care

Thursday, May 15th, 2008

In 1946, Ayn Rand wrote a letter to Leonard Read concerning his proposal to establish the Foundation for Economic Education .1 In the letter she explained the importance of making the moral argument for free markets, rather than using arguments from economics and leaving the moral high ground to the ...

Health care is not a right

Monday, May 12th, 2008

Last Saturday I attended a Front Range Objectivism event featuring Yaron Brook , Executive Director of the Ayn Rand Institute . His talk reminded me that I have yet to address a fundamental issue on this blog: that health care is not a right. As Brook wrote in an ...

HB 1389: Curtailing profits at gunpoint

Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008

Follow up to: Colorado House Bill 1389: Having cake & eating it, too. In the above post I noted how existing government controls drive up insurance premium costs and price controls are likely to exacerbate the problem by discouraging insurance companies from offering products. Over at Colorado Health Insurance Insider , ...