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From: cliff@unmvax.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Re: Seat-belt laws
Message-ID: <664@unmvax.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 10-Feb-85 20:27:37 EST
Article-I.D.: unmvax.664
Posted: Sun Feb 10 20:27:37 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 13-Feb-85 02:48:00 EST
References: <321@gargoyle.UChicago.UUCP> <630@unmvax.UUCP> <241@mhuxr.UUCP>
Organization: Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque
Lines: 51

> > Now if medical
> > or insurance expenses were really the excuse, wouldn't there be an effort to
> > prohibit smoking? 
> 
> There IS an effort to prohibit smoking. It runs into opposition by:
> a) smokers, who claim that their "freedoms" would be abridged
> b) tobacco farmers, who don't want to lose those profitable subsidies.

Great.  Now time to ban sunbathing, motorcycle riding, skiing, Who concerts,
arm wrestling...

> > Want to reduce medical costs for everybody?
> > Get rid of medicare and deregulate the medical industry.
> > 					--Cliff
> 
> The medical industry is *NOT* regulated. A doctor sets fees freely.

Can you go down to the local pharmacy and say I want some tetracycline.

> Fees are regulated by "the free market", i.e. if a doctor is too expensive
> you call someone else.

You call the wrong person and the AMA finds out about it and the person you
call can get slapped in jail.

> Medicare has put ceilings on reimbursement
> in certain areas of health care, which have so far had little effect.

The same can not be said about the money that has been paid because of
medicare.  When hospitals know they can get X dollars out of the government
for a service as long as they make sure they charge the same X dollars to
people who are not using govt. funds, do you think there is much incentive
to keep X low?

> I am appalled at your casual attitude concerning medicare. Let's get rid
> of it and the hell with the millions of people who lead active, productive
> lives because of it.

Great, make the taxpayers pay for all the lung operations and cancer treatment
for all the people smoking their way to an early grave.  With the govt. picking
up the medical tab how much control should there be of people's life to make
sure they don't do unhealthy things?  Are we going to mandate people stay at
a particular weight for a particular height?

> Nice, Nice. I say let's get rid of *you*, so as
> to control the increasing nonsense in this world.

Not an uncommon proposal from collectivists.  Don't like another person's
political philosophy?  Get rid of him.  No problem...

> Marcel