Friday, February 04, 2011

The False GM Analogy

So I have seen a more than a few comments that parrot the lines which the Judge in Florida used, that the United States' Congress over-reached in requiring citizens to purchase Health Insurance.  He likened it to,  "being required to purchase a GM car in order to prop up GM".
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This is a cleaver (and totally non-Judicial) comment that plays off the fear of GM's "nationalization".  Forget for a moment how many jobs this loan saved all along the supply and dealer chain of work.  And, forget that we will make our money back and GM only needed help over a hump.  It WAS a problem GM management created, but one that would have cost 100,000s of jobs because a the bad decisions of a few at the top.
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I mean fine, you want to throw 1,000s of families into unemployment and welfare (which we pay for you freakin'  dope).  But okay, it was a sop to the people that elect you.
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But the analogy here is false.  That is the problem.  You see the Feds already tell hospitals that they cannot turn away people in need at their emergency rooms.  So, on one hand you are saying the Feds can't tell "people" they have to buy a GM car.  But, at the same time, you are saying that hospitals MUST  provide a Cadillac if those same people show up at the emergency room. So, instead you are forcing (yes - through taxes and regulation) FORCING  us to buy a Cadillac for whoever shows up.
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Doesn't sound so fucking cute now, does it?