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It's quite viable in my country, The Netherlands. Sure we pay high taxes, but we aren't left on the street like dogs when life fucks us over. There are other di
by BasDirks 15y ago
It's quite viable in my country, The Netherlands. Sure we pay high taxes, but we aren't left on the street like dogs when life fucks us over. There are other disadvantages to our system of course, like the parasitic behavior you described.
- eru 15y agoThe problem is that the parasitic behaviour the grandparent post described, occurs even without universal health care. By the way, I guess for ethical reasons basic universal health care is inevitable. (Even the US has rules that require giving emergency care.)
- hugh3 15y agoPersonally I think that universal health care is undesirable for ethical reasons. How are we supposed to evolve if we don't let our species' least capable members get weeded out by natural selection? There's nothing "ethical" about allowing folks who can't pay for their own health care to get it at someone else's expense.
- BasDirks 15y agoPersonally I think that universal health care is undesirable for ethical reasons. How are we supposed to evolve if we don't let our species' least capable members get weeded out by natural selection? I'm a big Nietzsche fan, but that my friend, is fucking disgusting.
- r0s 15y agoI happen to believe half-formed theories about evolution justify expulsion from social benefits like healthcare. This intellectual weakness desperately needs to be purged, to allow the superior ideology of compassion to thrive.
- ry0ohki 15y agoSo presumably you don't take antibiotics, insulin, an inhaler, use any reproductive aids etc... for the same logic?
- burgerbrain 15y agoNot that I necessarily agree with this but...: If an individual has otherwise flourished in a society to the point where they can afford to have other members of a society provide them those services, then they are (despite medical appearances) apparently fairly well adapted. The issues arise when they are not using their money to give themselves these advantages. (Perhaps it is inherited money, or perhaps it is provided by the society itself).
- tdfx 15y agoYou're equating the value of a person with their ability to game our society's system of making money. By your logic, we should be rushing to ensure that lottery winners in trailer parks are provided the best medical care while starving PhD students are left to die. Natural selection is has done great things for life on our planet but it doesn't apply here.
- eru 15y agoTo clarify: I didn't mean to say that I have a strong ethical preference for universal health care. [0] What I wanted to say, is that for some things, e.g. emergency care, most societies will have rules to require universality. And if we go from there, paying for prevention often comes cheaper than waiting for the emergencies. [0] I might have one, but it's doesn't matter for the argument. I'm also in favour of independent `death panels', that apply cost-benefit analysis to decide where to spend finite resources of society-provided universal health care.
- choko 15y agoThe Netherlands also didn't have the HUGE healthcare cartel to contend with when their system was implemented. In the US, insurance has allowed healthcare providers to charge enormous fees because they knew it would be covered. US healthcare is among the most expensive in the world, and it's not because of superior quality. Now that many people would like to change this, it's almost too late.