OK, then I won't either; your need is not a peremptory claim on someone else's time or money.Date: Thu, 22 May 2003 09:20:08 -0700 (PDT) From: Zenswhen <bushchoked@yahoo.com> I am not going to mince words; need is what you have to have to survive.
And I'm against them, FWIW. Private charitable organizations do a demonstrably better job of helping people become self-sufficient and have the moral advantage of doing it with their own money, not money that was extorted from "contributors".Food is a better example, and we do have government-run programs for that.
I do have a problem with people profiteering on needed items, yes. People sell ice here after a hurricane for $20 a bag, for instance.We've been through this before, and it's still the case that $20/bag ice is the strongest possible incentive for entrepreneurs to start shipping massive quantities of ice to the afflicted area, increasing the supply and driving down the price to normal levels in the shortest possible time. I don't see how you can prefer massive government programs over this simple system, just because someone with the oomph to get up off the couch and drive to the next county or state might wind up making a few extra hundred or thousand dollars in a week in exchange for their effort -- but it's clear that you do. Moreover, arresting and punishing people who raise prices in shortages just creates a "screw it, let the government handle it" mentality, which also prolongs the hardships for the afflicted.
The only thing I can imagine you're talking about is the Hippocratic Oath, which says no such thing. Although it does prohibit doctors from giving abortions or performing surgery! If you had something else in mind, lemme know.A medical diploma is not a shipping label into slavery. No, but they do take an oath which obligates them to help anyone.
That becomes a very personal decision within the family. But a doctor's son once told me that 50% of a person's lifetime medical expenses can easily be spent in the last 6 months...and that given the amounts involved, he chose to spend more during his lifetime and forgo that last 6 months.trading all my money, going into debt, and losing a life-threatening condition, in exchange for health, doesn't sound like a bad deal. Luckily, that actual situation is pretty rare.)I don't know if that's true...having an elderly parent-in-law it gets to the point where almost ANYTHING can be life-threatening...yet there's only so much money to use, you know?