Why I Prefer to be Consistent. And You Should Too
I feel bad for minarchists / delusional limited government lovers / constitutionalists / whatever you want to call them. Because when you don’t apply first principles fully and to their logical conclusions, you are forced to bite many bullets — bullets that an intelligent leftist can easily exploit.
Let me give you a simple example. You’ll often hear folks in the “tea party” crowd protest the impending government takeover of health care. Among the reasons for being against socialized medicine, the inconsistent tea partier will invoke morality.
A popular line of thinking goes like this: “I should not be forced to buy politically controlled health insurance simply because I’m alive and breathing.” Another goes this way, “How come Nancy Pelosi is allowed to point a gun at me and force me to buy a product from her, but I can’t point a gun in my neighbor’s face and force him to buy a product from me?”
Truth be told, both arguments are valid. And if made from someone who was actually consistent, they’d have merit. However, coming from the mouths of limited government (a.k.a. central planning and taxation only for things they like) tea party people, it’s rubbish. If I were an intelligent leftist, I would easily point out the inconsistency in a conversation that would go like this:
Tea Partier (TP): Obama care is immoral because Nancy Pelosi and friends are forcing us to buy politically controlled health insurance just because we’re alive.
Intelligent Leftist (IL): You believe it is immoral for Congress to pass a law forcing every American to buy whatever Congress considers to be health insurance? I don’t understand.
TP: Yeah. How come the stupid liberals in Congress are allowed to stick guns in our faces and force us to buy a product from them when I can’t stick a gun in my neighbor’s face and force him to buy a product from me? Where do they get off with this type of power? It is SOOO unconstitutional!! And besides, I’m a man. I shouldn’t be forced to pay for a woman’s c-section or birth control! And she shouldn’t be forced to pay for my Extenze! It’s unfair!
IL: No, it is absolutely fair! You are better off if you buy health insurance. Why shouldn’t they be allowed to force that on you? Besides, there are plenty of things that you are forced to purchase under threat of jail that you tea partiers don’t seem to mind.
TP: No way! We don’t believe in that type of governmental power… it’s UNCONSTITUTIONAL!!!
IL: What’s the difference between you being forced to purchase health insurance for your own good and you being forced to purchase roads and road repair for your own good? You don’t seem to mind that Governor Bill Ritter has what you call a gun to your head, forcing you to buy road construction from him. You also don’t seem to mind that the local police chief forces you to buy his services. How do you explain that?
TP: Well, that’s all okay. We don’t mind paying for those vital services, we need those things.
IL: So you don’t mind being forced to buy things against your will, as long as they are services you approve of. That’s convenient. I happen to approve of forcing everyone to buy health care. Surely you wouldn’t also reject forcing everyone in a school district to buy the services of their local schools would you?
TP: Well, that’s different! Kids need to be educated!
IL: I don’t see how that’s any different than health care. Roads, police, fire, schools, health care and the like are all things that benefit everyone. We are all better off if we are forced to buy them. You can’t be a freeloader!
TP: But….. but….
IL: It’s pretty obvious that you would like to just pick and choose what you are paying for. You can’t have it both ways, it doesn’t work like that.
….This is when a consistent person steps in and says, “Yes, we all would prefer to pay only for those goods and services we found worthy of our hard earned money. And no that’s not possible with government. But I’ll give you a hint as to what institution allows for everyone to purchase only what they want, and to never be stolen from, no matter the pretense….”
MARKETS YOU FOOLS!
Originally Posted 10 Dec 2009 at Justin Longo’s Blog
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