[ExI] Why Cities Keep Growing, Corporations and People Always Die, and Life Gets Faster

[Damien Sullivan]

On Mon, Jun 13, 2011 at 01:18:51AM -0600, Kelly Anderson wrote:

> socialist (or at least social engineering) to me...  Even if you don't
> label it as socialist, a couple of courts have labelled it as
> "unconstitutional" which is accurate enough IMHO.

And a bunch of other courts didn't.

> ever widening cracks. 30% of businesses polled recently indicated that
> they would no longer be providing private insurance once the
> government option was available. I suspect that number will

That alleged poll is at odds with other studies (e.g. by the CBO), 
the expert consensus, and with observed employer behavior under
Romneycare, and the polling firm has refused to release details of the
survey in question.  Insiders allegedly say the poll was not conducted
properly.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/06/multiple-sources-throw-controversial-mckinsey-health-care-study-under-the-bus.php

But hey, tell a lie people want to believe, and it'll race across the
world.

> asymptotically approach 100% until the politicians just say "screw it"
> we're just going to single payer.
> 
> BTW, isn't welfare itself a socialist concept?

It's compatible with socialism.  But keeping your people from dying or
rioting in hunger is a lot older and widespread than socialism as such.
Public granaries for famines go back to the dawn of civilization.
Jewish law has a lot of things making life a bit nicer for the poor.
Chinese emperors occasionally tried egalitarian land reform, which is a
lot closer to being distinctively socialist.

And 'modern' socialism went well beyond welfare as such.

-xx- Damien X-)