We Want the Term "Liberal" Back
[This is first in a series of comments I would like to post at Mother Jones, but I have been banned]
Liberal Kevin Drum is crowing that the ACA is "doing exactly what it was designed to do" in "successfully browbeating" and "threatening" young people to buy health insurance, a product that in most cases they don't want and can ill afford -- particularly since the rules of Obamacare risk-rating jack up the prices to young healthy people in order to subsidize the premiums of older, wealthier, more politically powerful people. Wow, the term "liberal" has sure come a long way, hasn't it? Those of us who still respect the dignity and autonomy of individuals, and by the way are horrified at the idea of having younger lower income people forced to subsidize older higher income people, would like our term "liberal" back.
I will say, though, that it is nice to see Progressives being more up-front about their authoritarianism.
irandom419:
I wish they'd disclose the subsidy on stuff like that. Hell the CEO's of companies have to blame everything in their filings with the SEC, why can't we get reasons listed on stuff we buy. Imagine the backlash if they broke out the taxes at gas stations or FICA really said what it was.
December 30, 2015, 1:35 amHenryBowman419:
“Inside Every Liberal Is A Totalitarian Screaming To Get Out.”
December 30, 2015, 7:38 ammarque2:
I don't know, California gas.is $1 more than the rest of the country because of excessive taxes, and we all know it, and yet most of the locals seem to have self brainwashed themselves that it is a plot by the greedy oil companies, who shouldn't need to raise prices, since they could just take it out of their excessive profits. Yes somehow they have it in for just one state in the whole country.
December 30, 2015, 8:08 amCraig Loehle:
A 24 year old may be barely able to pay rent and make his car payment. He has a small chance of any major medical issues. But we will not allow him to buy catastrophic only insurance and will make him buy coverage for pregnancy and accupuncture. Sounds ok!!!
December 30, 2015, 9:35 amBobSykes:
I have twice this month run across people getting flu shots who do not have health insurance. How is that possible under ACA. One guy was in his late 30s early 40s.
December 30, 2015, 10:40 amsean2829:
I wonder if young adults might begin to think of themselves as the first generation indentured to their government. The price of insurance is just a drop in the bucket if you consider all the other insults they've had to endure. They paid exorbitant prices for their education because Medicaid and other transfer payments at up so much of the state budgets that tuition costs increased at 3x the rate of inflation even at public universities. Nearly everyone now has to borrow heavily just to complete a 4 year degree. Their student loans make it nearly impossible to qualify for a mortgage so they have to rent until Sallie Mae is paid off. The large number of renters seeking a limited number of apartments pushes up prices. If they want to get married, better check their significant other's credit score first. Liabilities may make living together the only option. How long until young adults realize that much of the "wealth" being spread by governments is theirs?
December 30, 2015, 11:17 amEric Hammer:
Prof Dan Klein at GMU wrote an article asking folks to stop calling leftists/Progressives "liberals", and then did a presentation of the idea a little while back. The link to the presentation is here: https://youtu.be/hOyRlTR8LRs Just a half hour long, and the history of it is pretty interesting, if you are into that sort of thing.
December 30, 2015, 11:21 amNot Sure:
Love the headline of the article:
Here's How to Get Young People to Sign Up for Obamacare: Threaten Them
Pretty much an admission that your program sucks if you have to force people to participate, I'd think.
December 30, 2015, 12:32 pmColoComment:
Generally in agreement. However, on the higher ed tuition statement, I would turn that around. I suspect that the ready availability of federally-subsidized student loans, and the general expectation that almost every student will [have to] borrow to finance his education, has RESULTED in the increase of tuition at a rate far greater than that of inflation, as the universities capture that "free"* money. As opposed to the rise in tuition CAUSING the increase in student loan borrowing. I could easily be wrong though, I admit.
* by free money, I mean that the student doesn't feel the payment burden until he's already fully incurred the obligation. And then it hits.....
December 30, 2015, 12:57 pmsean2829:
I agree that the more (loan) money the Feds throw at education, the higher the costs will rise. I think someone even found for every dollar the Feds increase in funding the schools increase costs by $0.72. But if you look at the historic trends in Medicaid as it affects state budgets as in this chart, http://www.thepoliticalinsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/HealthCare-Spending.png and compare that to the portion of of tuition that the state pays at public universities, http://budgetandpolicy.org/images/Tuitionvsstatefunds4yrsline_Oct2011_final_nonumber.png I suspect that budget pressure from healthcare is being relieved by reducing contributions to state universities. So while a recent grad may be out between $700 and $3000 for insurance or penalties they don't want, they may be carrying an extra $15,000 in student loans to make up for Medicaid costs to help insure others.
December 30, 2015, 2:33 pmSamWah:
As well they should!
December 30, 2015, 4:07 pmDavid in Michigan:
"....... our term "liberal" back." Wow. All this time I thought/understood you were a "libertarian". But then, well ..... reading Mother Jones, I should have known.
Anyway, it's too late. "Liberal" is forever associated with the mental illness of the extreme left just as "Conservative" is now associated with Nazis and the KKK. Such is the Newspeak of today. I too think this to be double ungood.
December 31, 2015, 6:36 amMercury:
No, there isn't much liberty left in American Liberalism anymore.
December 31, 2015, 7:50 amIn other news there isn't much left for American Conservatives to conserve either.
Craig Loehle:
A flu shot is $30.
December 31, 2015, 7:54 amBobSykes:
The people said outloud they did not have insurance.
December 31, 2015, 1:00 pmHenryBowman419:
They may pay the fine, as it may be cheaper than purchasing insurance.
December 31, 2015, 1:27 pmTruthisaPeskyThing:
The original political meaning of liberal is quite opposite of what we mean today. The 18th century European liberal believed in individual liberty and responsibility. This belief stood in opposition to the monarchists who believed that the central government needed to make decisions for everybody under the aristocrat's protection. So what was 18th century liberal is now what we consider to be modern day conservative.
December 31, 2015, 6:12 pmNoumenon72:
I am a guy in his late 30s who got a flu shot with no health insurance, because my Obamacare insurer never received my first check and canceled my policy. I was not allowed to purchase more health insurance because open enrollment was over.
January 1, 2016, 3:35 amJerry_In_Detroit:
Call these big government lovers for what they are; Nazis.
January 3, 2016, 6:23 amFelineCannonball:
Just stop reading him.
January 5, 2016, 1:31 ammarkm:
My one complaint about Jonah Goldberg's book "Liberal Fascism": it should have been titled "Progressive Fascism". From the 1890's through Herbert Hoover, "progressive" and "liberal" meant quite different things. E.g, Taft was somewhat liberal; Wilson was progressive, and quite fascist. But FDR realized that "progressive" was worn out, so he hijacked "liberal".
January 10, 2016, 6:44 am