Bazinga!
Did I really just say bazinga? Yes, yes I did. I have that right (at least for now).
You’re right. Something bad just happened to me.
So if I send you a PayPal account address, would you mind sending me $1000? Come to think if it, let’s make it a cool $2000. And if you want to send more, I wouldn’t mind.
Thanks in advance.
Once I receive your money, I’ll gladly renounce my libertarian beliefs and start agreeing with you and your colleagues on every one of your political points.
Where did I get the idea that you emigrated from Russia to the U.S.?
I’m so sorry to hear that. However, you’ll be happy to learn that, assuming you live in the United States, we already have helped to provide you with the support you need. Just let us know what happened and what your needs are, and we will point you to the existing supportive resources that we have in place for you.
The nice thing is that working together, we didn’t need to have one individual fork out $2,000 to help you.
Of course, if this is a special circumstance and there isn’t any resource for your particular need, we’ll just set up a spaghetti dinner for charity in your name.
I thought we established that we must come up with reasonable compromises between the rights of the individual not to be interfered with unduly, and the rights of society to be protected from one person’s stupid decisions.
Again; It is not either/or, black/white.
Yo Terr:
Did you ever get around to asking your wife (who is a physician) what her opinion would be about letting folks get whatever antibiotics they want over the counter, without a visit to a doctor or a diagnosis? Does she think (as a doctor) that this would be a fine idea?
You are free to use our existing safety net. And you’re welcome. Thanks to the votes of people like me, people like you can have a hand up when necessary.
Purely anecdotal evidence…but…a friend of mine, flat broke, has severe cataracts, which are getting worse. On his way to being blind. He doesn’t have enough rich friends to pay for the necessary surgery, and he has no family. He just qualified for public assistance and will get the surgery, preventing him from going blind…thus retaining his ability to work, and, eventually, paying taxes. It is in the welfare agencies’ interest to spend a little money on him, now, rather than a lot of money later.
A better U.S. health care program could also save a lot of money, treating diseases early rather than at the emergency-room stage.
A measured amount of social safety-net saves money.
Or, of course, we could just let people die. (Applause from certain segments of the audience…)
Trinopus
The fact that the rights of minorities are guaranteed by resorting to a majority vote may not be strictly a “tautology”, but it is certainly absurd.
Same with an autocracy. Same with a fascist dictatorship. Same with a communist dictatorship. The only difference is who decides what is “public welfare”.
Our society, and our government(s), are moving towards further expansion of recognized individual liberties. This is all as a function of representative democracy.
Isn’t it fantastic? As a champion of individual liberties, aren’t you thrilled that we are moving in a progressive direction?
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Nope. Simply because what you call “rights” that are being protected I don’t see as “rights”. See my other posts.
LOL. Yes, all those supporters you personally have won over.
I did. Lived here for a while, moved to Israel, lived there for a while, living in US now.
Silly question. Of course she wants people to go to a doctor. She’s a doctor. What would you expect?
“Reasonable” is in the eye of the beholder. And society doesn’t have “rights”. Individuals do.
Are you Israeli, or did you just reside there for a bit? I’m just a bit confused as to what nationality you claim to be.
I have two citizenships. US and Israel.
At least you now admit there is a difference between democracy and dictatorship. Baby steps.
In either one the rights of individual are often trampled “for the good of the public”. And I can point you to some dictatorships that definitely had majority support.
Do you not support the right of the people to select their own form of government?
So, I assume you’d also like to reshape Israel’s economy and government, right?
I’d also assume you’d be okay with Muslims in Israel having the right to purchase whatever chemicals and ordinance they can afford?
Yes and yes (second yes depending on first one). And I would reshape quite a few other things.