[ExI] Non-commie Aussies

[Rafal Smigrodzki]

On Sat, Jun 27, 2009 at 8:03 PM, Stathis Papaioannou<stathisp at gmail.com> wrote:
> 2009/6/28 Max More <max at maxmore.com>:
>> Stathis Papaioannou wrote:
>>>
>>> Indeed: and that ranking is consistent with an extensive public health and
>>> social security system, and financial regulations which since the GFC have
>>> resulted in half of the remaining eight AA rated banks in the world being
>>> Australian.
>>
>> If you really want to know what's consistent with the ranking and what's
>> not, take a look at the factors described in the methodology:
>>
>> http://www.heritage.org/Index/pdf/Index09_Methodology.pdf
>
> I see that government regulation of financial institutions is a
> negative. High government expenditure is also a negative, although
> they make the following point:
>
> "Some level of government expenditures represents true public goods,
> implying an ideal level
> greater than zero. However, identifying that ideal level seems too
> arbitrary, static, and difficult
> to apply universally. For these reasons, the methodology treats zero
> government spending as the
> benchmark. Moreover, governments that have no public goods will be
> penalized by lower scores
> in the other factors (such as property rights and financial freedom)."
>
### It makes sense. As much as I hate the idea of government as a
payer of healthcare, and government "social services", they are more
of a nuisance, a destructive and stupid waste of resources but not a
stab to the heart of freedom. However, taxation and government
regulation of commerce, banking and trade is the true evil, where they
(politicians, parasites, voters) make a direct grab at the life of
workers like me, and thoughtlessly and maliciously twist and blemish
it. If you can work, trade and save, you can always buy your way out
of the miasma of a VA (veteran's affairs) hospital but once they hold
you by the wallet, you are toast. So I can imagine Australia being
more free than the US, even despite the national health service
bullshit.

Rafal.