bistiza - i DO agree everyone is created equal, and by no means should you vary from that viewpoint. i agree completely. like i said, just because you may be smarter or richer than someone, it doesnt mean you are a BETTER person. but you CAN be more valuable. don't try to mix up those two concepts, that is a massive mistake on your part, IMO. now, your ACTIONS absolutely can make you better or worse than another person, just like your ACTIONS can make you more or less valuable. i am a pretty smart guy, and a major contributor at work. but the president is more important than me. still, i might be a better person. but not knowing which is which, if i had to take the "veil of ignorance (you dont know who you are)" approach, and decide who lived and who died, between me and the president - id save the president. hes more important. that in NO WAY is in direct conflict with all men being created equal. just like i'd chose a 5 month old baby to live over a 95 year old man with stage 3 cancer. you can't just say "all men are created equal" and then use it as some line to hide behind, in terms of the value of one's life. its really simple - the guy who is about to die just isnt going to contribute to society as much as the baby is, or the president is (well, lets assume for argument sake we talking about a president who is doing some good, not harm to the nation, i realize viewpoints on that differ today but thats not really the point).
second, you are right, i was a little extreme calling you communist. socialist to the extreme, yes. socialism in the extreme form just simply does NOT provide economic growth like the free market system, nobody has the incentive to work their *** off and create a billion dollar company and 10 thousand jobs when they get no personal material gain. sure, some small fraction (like the small fraction of your basketball players who are totally selfless and who getting benched repeatedly only makes them work harder), they might work hard. but history has proven, you don't get the economic growth. and thus from a society standpoint, extreme socialism just simply does not make sense. disagree? ill be satisfied with on good example. you can study it all you want but its pretty damn hard to refute that statement. and in a free market, you have inequality, but MUCH, MUCH more to go around - and thus a better situation for society in general. more innovation, higher standards of living, better education, this all comes out of a free market, and you know, pretty much the entirety of the successful developed world has recognized this. even "communist" china is MUCH MUCH closer to a free market model than the extreme socialism you suggest.
and you say, to my point, the 100M guy can afford to pay the 90M proceedure - "
The short answer: Because your wealth doesn't make you better than anyone, despite what you may think.". heres what you need to realize. THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH IT! I AGREE COMPLETELY ABOUT THE WEALTH NOT MAKING YOU BETTER BUT IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. heres the reality. NOBODY is entitled to use 90 million dollars of money that isnt theirs to save their life. its not fair, its incredibly selfish, and once again, you put your face next to the definition of "hypocrite" in the next edition of webster, when you combine this sentiment with your tirade against entitlement. what about a trillion dollars? at some point, NOBODY is entitled to that support from the rest of the nation, the burden is too big. now, ill grant you this - the guy will 100M who spents 99M saving his life, if he is a really good and noble person, should give that 99M to charity and die, knowing its a better use of the money. but if you believe in the free market system - particularly the free part - which you clearly do not (and thus, i have no idea why we even continue this charade) - ITS YOUR CHOICE HOW YOU SPEND YOUR MONEY. so, if you want to be selfish and use 99M to save your life, its your choice. if you want to use 99M of taxpayer or insurance money (which is effectively the same thing, if you really think about it) - then too bad. its NOT your choice. you CANT do that today and no way should you be allowed to. not unless you put the life of 1 man above the suffering of thousands and thousands of americans. i don't. you are really unbelievable, railing against entitlement, and then telling me we should effectively let 10 thousand homeless people die in the cold to give a guy a hundred million dollar procedure. thats entitlement to the extreme. you don't seem to get it - money is a finite resource. you say you've studied this stuff professionally - i hope to god thats a stretch - because if you are a policy maker making policies on these beliefs, some people are really going to get screwed. i can't think of a more selfish viewpoint on the world.
10/24/2012 11:46 AM (edited)