Do people 'deserve' universal health care?

[MMI]

Economic meltdown or no, it's still shameful that the world's richest nation has a third rate public heath care system.

Furthermore, there is nothing wrong with socialism. American fear of the concept is depriving its underprivileged citizens of a decent living while its wealthy capitalist czars gorge like parasites off them and their labours. Competition and free enterprise are mere shibboleths propounded by those who stand to benefit from them. They have no intrinsic value themselves. A state that co-operates with its citizens to provide the basic essentials of life is a much better ideal, even if that means the very rich have to pay more. What does it matter? Most of them got it by cheating or from inheritance anyway. Even in USA, there are very few who have "made it" without resorting to underhand methods at some time.

As for all welfare programmes being doomed to failure, name me one that has failed. And before you say "Britain's NHS" I would remind you that the NHS started on 5th July, 1948 and is still going strong. It is now the world's 3rd biggest employer - so not only does it provide a valuable health resource, but it has a fantastic economic contribution to make, too. It has its faults, but so does the US private care system, whose worst fault is declining to treat those who cannot afford it, while its medical insurers refuse to cover treatment of any condition they have had to pay out on before, or to price that cover out of anyone's reach.

I would mention that other welfare programmes were introduced in Britain at about the same time: unemployment benefit, old age pensions, industrial injuries benefits, and family allowances, to name a few. They are all valuable and they are all still in effect.

State services - even inefficient ones - win over individual wealth, private insurance or meagre charity almost every time. Dystopian dream? I think not: give that honour to extreme capitalism.



---- WOW!!! I've just noticed I can type the word "socialism" withpout getting edited out> Thanks to the people who made that happen! ----