Sunday, July 19, 2009

Once you start to socialise some markets why bother stopping ?

Socialism always expands to create and conquer 'values'.

by StFerdIII

One of the great truths about socialising any market, is that the logic applied to socialise one activity can be applied to every activity in every area of life. Once you start communalising activities in one area, there is very little rationale in opposing the imposition of government power in any other sector. Once the idea is accepted that the individual is not responsible for his or her actions, but that the greater society and community is; than the road to serfdom is well defined and can be built brick by brick, foot by foot, until after some period of time the land of total enslavement is reached.

If you reject the individual and the cut, thrust, messiness and difficulty of the 'market', there is no reason why each activity in life should not be assumed by the state.

For instance if health care is too important to be left to the 'rapacious vagaries' of the market, and needs to be socialised, than what about water, food, energy and housing – all more basic 'needs' than medical aid ? These sectors are of course already distorted by government activity but they are not yet fully socialised. Many would like to see price caps on food; guaranteed and 'free' water supply; home-grown food products; 'national' timber champions; further price controls on oil and natural gas; and lower cost 'affordable' housing – all built, guaranteed, and in some ways paid for by the communal named the state.

The same illogic set out to socialise the health care market can be imposed on any other market activity. Health care socialisation results in a series of messes and inevitably more deaths than is necessary. The system suffers from supply and resource shortages and shorned of a profit motive, a socialised health system negates invention, research, access points, clinic and clinical competiton, consumer responsibility and supplier transparency. In essence health care is a massive transfer of funds from the young and healthy, to the old and not so healthy and poor.

There are many ways to provide health care to those with little income or those aging seniors who need it more often; but socialising a system is not the best nor the most moral means available.

So once you socialise health care why not socialise and enforce government compliance with the foods you eat; the exercise you take or don't take; your sleeping patterns; your intake of 'toxins' ranging from alcohol to chips; and the environment you live in ? Why shouldn't government have a right to micro-manage your 'health' if you are going to use the 'free communal' system ? If you are obese why shouldn't you pay a fat tax ? Where is the logic against having government inspectors pour over your shopping lists and audit your life-style choices ? Why not just have a government agent write out for you, your daily non-work routines and 'approved' foods which you can buy and eat ?



The worst effect of communalising a market and destroying individual responsibility is cultural. Socialising what should be an individually defined market, is always sold as a 'value'. If you oppose socialised health care which kills people due to resource shortages, incompetence and wait times and wipes out what could be a very profitable and job creating part of the economy which is some 15-20% of GDP; than you are not a real 'insert nationality' here. Never mind the fact that a profit oriented truly market driven health system would generate jobs; taxes; access points; better services and newer technologies – all of which would benefit the emotive 'groups' represented by the poor and the old.

The fact that socialised welfare including medicine, is derived from the cynical policy employed by Bismarck to buy buy off and secure the middle class vote, is understood by only a handful in any nation state today. Imported German cynicism is not a national virtue or value.

But once health care, the housing, the banking system, food production; or the timber industry becomes state dominated and distorted and survive only thanks to the good auspices of the communalised state, why bother with the trivialities of other markets ? Aren't cars, computers, shoes, and hair cuts too complicated, important or class offensive to be private matters ?

As with Bismarckian Germany the support for national-socialism is strong in every 'democratic' state. Government propaganda ensures this. Lobbies, single issue fanatics, the eco-lunatics, the protectionists; the femi-nazis and Marx-droids; all these and more relentlessly advocate the Bismarckian solution across various market segments - much to the glee of professional politicians and bureaucrats. This program of socialism always leads to misery of course. But too few care and too few know.