The Debate about Healthcare had Nothing to do with Healthcare

May 22nd 2010 will go down in infamy as the day the Statist forever sunk his claws into the American people. President Obama, though strong arm tactics managed to overcome an already weakened Republican party to pass the most far reaching piece of social engineering in American history. It is true, Social Security began the wave of entitlements that then extended to Medicare and Medicaid, but none of the previous attempts ever accomplished what this bill has done.

Social Security was passed at a time when the American people were beaten and tired. The great depression created a situation that made the American people amenable to this programmatic redistribution of wealth. The government relished in the idea that a new tax on its citizens would result in a never ending pot of money that wouldn’t be paid out in full. This line of thinking came when the average lifespan of an American was 62 years. Now the average life expectancy of an American is over 70. While this may seem like a small difference, consider the economic ramifications of this trend on a system that was designed to provide a modest income for the most unfortunate for only 3-4 years.

Today, Social Security has become the primary source of retirement income for the vast majority of the American populace and Medicare the primary source of medical care for that same demographic. Now that the people are living longer and drawing more benefits over that period, the system is under immense pressure. This increase in life expectancy was made possible through dramatic advances in medical technology and the Statist understands this, which is why the Statist seeks to destroy the very system that made it possible.

The average monthly Social Security check is $1085. Now multiply that same amount by the number of beneficiaries and the government is paying out an astounding $56 billion dollars each month. Even a single year’s reduction in life expectancy is a huge economic boom for the general treasury and the Statist desires access to that additional money.

The American medical system pre May 22nd was based upon free market capitalism which fostered and rewarded innovation. While this innovation resulted in dramatic increases in technology and life saving drugs, it also came at a cost in the form of increased insurance premiums. In effect, the American consumer traded increased life expectancy for increased insurance premiums. For some, that trade-off finally reached a breaking point, and this allowed the Statist the opportunity they needed to demonize the medical system vis a vis the insurance companies that made it possible. By reducing the ability of insurance companies to subsidize the development of new technologies, the level of care and life expectancy of your Average American will drop.

The Goal of the Statist is to addict the American people to government handouts as a means to control them. They proclaim health care a right, they proclaim home ownership a right and they act to institute policies that accomplish their goals. Once the American people believe that these things are in fact right, there is no way to take them away. Calls for Social Security or Medicare reform will be met with protests and political campaigns designed to defeat the proposer. It is an effective tactic that both sides of the political spectrum use to their benefit.

Now some of you may be saying, “universal health care is a noble endeavor, one all rich countries should be striving to meet”, and on the surface, that sounds great. America is the richest most prosperous nation in the world, surely if Cuba, or the UK or Canada can offer its citizens universal health care, we can too. But America is only the richest most prosperous nation in the world because it has allowed its people to live with relative economic freedom. Once that freedom is removed, the riches and the prosperity will fall, not only here in America but all around the world.

Now people constantly point to the socialist states of Europe as an example of success for the Statist ideology, but I would offer that their success, which was and is subsidized through U.S. military power, is only viable as long as America is free. Once the protection of the American military is retracted and the market for European goods dries up here in the U.S., Europe will begin to feel the true costs of their socialist dealings. America may be the last domino to be placed in the series, but the first that will cause the series to fall.