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Gijith
Daisy Chain Eater

Registered: 12/04/03
Posts: 2,400
Loc: New York
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Re: Political Conversions [Re: silversoul7]
#3277804 - 10/26/04 12:11 AM (19 years, 3 months ago) |
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I have a question for people who have converted from some form of 'socialism' to libertarianism.
How fast was the transition?
In the last year and a half, I've been carving myself a spot between the two idealologies. And I have no intention of moving. So far, I haven't seen a strong argument as to why I should.
-------------------- what's with neocons and the word 'ilk'?
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Krishna
कृष्ण,LOL


Registered: 05/08/03
Posts: 23,285
Loc: oakland
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Re: Political Conversions [Re: RandalFlagg]
#3280605 - 10/26/04 05:16 PM (19 years, 3 months ago) |
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Quote:
RandalFlagg said:
I've realized how a system of Social Democracy/Social Welfare can greatly benefit the whole of the population.
I'd rather eat dirt and live in my own filth than to subjugate myself economically to the state.
I don't like the thought of trading economic freedom for economic comfort.
Well, i understand your sentiment here - because, as we have been shown time and time again, big gov't (especially the McGovernment we've got going for us today in the US) isn't really to be trusted with our money. However, I believe that treating the medical field as a consumer-product is, point blank, wrong. And yes, I know that "well adding privitisation and free-market standards adds competition, which will generate more investment, which will go to curing more problems." But, the basic fact remains - the overwhelming majority of R&D done by pharmacutical companies is for luxury-type problems (hair-loss and impotence, for example). This is because they go to where the market is - because medicine is, essentially, up for bids.
I believe that the medical field should be taken entirely off the market, should be regulated at the international level by non-state entities, that a internationalised system of health care (both providing for patients as well as providing reasonable livings for doctors, and funding for new research) is a necessity of the 21st century, and indeed a right that all of humanity possesses. People say that health-care needs to be privatised so people have the consumer choice - so they can get the health-care that they choose - but what if that health-care costs too much? then, are we just to say, tough shit - if you can't eat organically raised beef, well, here's some McDonalds? My personal belief is that this is a very selfish way to run ones life. There are more than enough resources in the world today to provide every person with a decent standard of health care - but as long as we keep spending exorbinant sums on weapons and the military, and as long as health care is left into the profit-seeking hands of corporate interest, no adequate system can emerge.
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silversoul7
Chill the FuckOut!


Registered: 10/10/02
Posts: 27,301
Loc: mndfreeze's puppet army
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Re: Political Conversions [Re: Gijith]
#3280682 - 10/26/04 05:41 PM (19 years, 3 months ago) |
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Quote:
Gijith said: I have a question for people who have converted from some form of 'socialism' to libertarianism. How fast was the transition?
Well, to give you some idea, here's the thread where I publicly converted to libertarianism: clicky. This was in March of this year. As you can see, I was stuck in the "lesser of two evils strategy at the time, and my conversion was still not entirely complete(I still considered welfare to be a "necessary evil"). Even before that conversion experience I gradually adopted more and more libertarian stances on certain issues. For example, I came to oppose gun control and affirmative action while still considering myself liberal. What really caused a change of heart for me was when I was arguing with pinky, mushmaster, and Evolving, I found myself arguing against rights and for government power, and that made me sick to my stomach to think that I was advocating statism. Along the way, I learned about several market solutions to common problems, and I gradually came to see capitalism as a good thing.
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  "It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong."--Voltaire
Edited by silversoul7 (10/26/04 11:58 PM)
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RandalFlagg
Stranger
Registered: 06/15/02
Posts: 15,608
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Re: Political Conversions [Re: Krishna]
#3281201 - 10/26/04 07:36 PM (19 years, 3 months ago) |
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The whole health-care thing is definately a complicated situation....especially in America. In America we have a weird hodgepodge system. For the most part it is a free-market oriented "creature", but there is definite government meddling and subsidizing(Medicare for old people, Medicaid for poor people, etc..). The complexity of the whole thing is mind-boggling.
There are more than enough resources in the world today to provide every person with a decent standard of health care
I disagree. There are too many people in this world to provide good health care to all of them in my opinion.
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Krishna
कृष्ण,LOL


Registered: 05/08/03
Posts: 23,285
Loc: oakland
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Re: Political Conversions [Re: RandalFlagg]
#3282041 - 10/26/04 10:22 PM (19 years, 3 months ago) |
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Well the World Game Institute estimates a total cost of $21 Billion to provide "Primary Health Care/Community Health Providers, Health Care for Children, and Special Health Problems" for the entire world (980-1000 million people lack health care worldwide).
Here for their explanations: http://www.unesco.org/education/tlsf/theme_a/mod02/www.worldgame.org/wwwproject/what02.shtml
and here for references: http://www.unesco.org/education/tlsf/theme_a/mod02/www.worldgame.org/wwwproject/what-d.shtml
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RandalFlagg
Stranger
Registered: 06/15/02
Posts: 15,608
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Re: Political Conversions [Re: Krishna]
#3282416 - 10/26/04 11:57 PM (19 years, 3 months ago) |
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Hm. I'll have to check those links out when I get time.
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