re: OT: GSB Primary/Political Stuff (Vote in bold)

Socialist concepts and free market concepts can't coexist and work together. Why people don't get this is baffling.

For instance, Bernie wants free healthcare for all. He says under a single payer system with no competition, he can control the costs of healthcare services. Like forcing all doctors and hospitals to be in one "network" with one set of pre-determined procedural costs. But that isn't possible and let me explain why.

This country spent $3 trillion on healthcare in 2015. Bernie says he can cut that in half and get that down to only $1.5 trillion per year. Hence why he says his tax plan will only raise $15 trillion to pay for everyone's free healthcare over the next decade. So the idea is, if you go to a doctor and get an x-ray now, if they charge you $300, he will change this and mandate they can only charge you $150.

But here's the problem........

The doctor and hospital and x-ray service will each make 100% less than before because they are under "controlled" mandated cost limits, but all the overhead that is based on free market supply and demand concepts are still the same. Like the power bill to keep the electricity on at the doctors office or hospital. The food services. The linen needs for beds and gowns. The manufacturing parts for the x-ray machine. All the millions of necessary medical tools, equipment, and utensils. The gas in ambulances. And so on and so on.

All those things are priced based on the free market. But Bernie wants to mandate what doctors and hospitals can charge to control costs. Well what happens when overhead to run the business is more than what he will allow them to charge? He will HAVE to allow them to charge more or they go out of business.

This is why cutting healthcare from $3 trillion to $1.5 trillion by mandating what businesses can charge who are still subject to free market overhead costs isn't possible. This is why socialism and free market capitalism can't coexist. This is why countries that try this are failing miserably to provide quality services and are deficit spending themselves into debt oblivion.

This is also why we are under-funded by over $100 trillion in our entitlement liabilities. Medicare, social security, welfare, etc. AND... just look at the corruption involved when the government is the single payer mandate. Look at the current VA and Medicare for perfect examples of corruption and shite quality when the government has exclusivity of control.

"Democratic Socialism" is a farce as a result. Which is why Bernie is a joke. His tax plan is shite and nowhere close to plausible. He literally believes "Trickle UP Economics" is a viable concept for helping this country too. Which is beyond absurd. Never in history has a country prospered and risen to success on the back of welfare, redistribution of wealth, and government run business.

Yes, we have a huge problem with wealth pooling and an increasing income earnings gap. But the solution is creating laws that end donor class influence on policy while keeping a completely free market system. Reducing federal power and getting back to state's rights. If the donors can't influence policy and control the flow of competition and money, the free market will fix itself. End corruption and wealth pooling will come to a stop.