| >It's not always about efficiency, and that slippery slope you are calling for, historically, ended bad. I disagree. In a world with finite resources the optimum outcome is one that best applies those resources to serve the greatest possible good. Berkeley is a publicly funded institution, anything that increases their costs either A: increases the tuition they are required to charge, thus lessening the availability of education. or B: Increases the tax burden, lowering the total net income of the populous. Now many argue that we can raise taxes in order to pay for these types of things. They say that the costs of this individual mandate is minimal, thus it is common sense to implement it. What they miss is that each percentage raise in tax will render a certain number of businesses non-viable. This will in turn increase unemployment, and lower overall tax revenue. At the same time the demand for public assistance grows. Thus necessitating further increases in taxation. It doesn't stop there. As this common sense regulation is implemented, more follow, and more still. There is an endless stream of things under the heading of "wouldn't be nice if", where do you draw the line? The impact of these regulations are hard to measure. How many business owners who now find themselves bankrupt will commit suicide this year? How many teenagers will be unable to find summer jobs, and thus be unable to save for college? How many families will fall apart due to constant frustrations regarding money? You can never say, but all of the data I have looked out shows that poverty cuts wide and deep having negative effects on the lives of children exposed to it well into old age. So lets take your example of elderly healthcare. Is it worth extending the life of someone in their 80's a few years if it means that a non-zero number of young families will be pushed below the poverty line? I never see this aspect considered. When I search for data I am offered an appeal to emotion. I think regulation needs to be more thought out than that. |