A system of government that is said to be democratic has a
group (called a party) that governs, and a party that opposes the government in
the areas where it sees that things can be done better for the good of the nation.
This group is called the loyal opposition because it has the duty to remain
loyal to the nation even when opposing the government. It waits in the wings,
may even form a shadow government, and hopes to be elected to office the next
time that the voters go to the polls.
There comes a time, however, in the democracies that begin
to decay when the opposition borders on disloyalty to the nation in the belief
that it is being disloyal only to the governing party. And there are signs that
will tell the observer this is happening. You can see it in the article that
was written by Michael Boskin who is now earning a living teaching at Stanford University
The article has the title: “ObamaCare's Troubles Are Only
Beginning” and the subtitle: “Be prepared for eligibility, payment and
information protection debacles – and longer waits for care.” It was published
in the Wall Street Journal on December 16, 2013. As can be seen, the article is
a litany of speculations about bad things to come which is not what loyalty
calls for.
If we begin with the observation that America – which is an
advanced industrial nation – has a system that currently delivers health
services to all those who need it whether or not they are insured, we must
conclude that America should be able to deliver the same services to the same
people whether or not the system is changed from what it is now to what it will
be under a new regime called ObamaCare. If that does not happen or if the cost
goes way up, it will be because some people are sabotaging the new system – or
taking advantage of the difficulties that normally come under such
circumstances – to enrich themselves unlawfully.
And so, we look at ObamaCare and ask: What's it about? And
the answer is that it is an attempt to bring order where there is chaos. In
fact, the opponents of ObamaCare argue that America was founded on chaos – the
very thing that made the country great because chaos represents the freedom of
the individual; his freedom to think, take risks, innovate and create new
things. The trouble, however, was that even a nation as adventurous as America could
not maintain that argument for too long because the world is changing. And it happened
that the industrial nations which saw fit to organize their healthcare system
have managed to pull ahead of America
in all matters relating to health statistics.
And this is what prompted the proponents of chaos to ratchet
up their rhetoric to the point that it now sounds like incitement aimed at
hurting not only the governing party but the nation as a whole. The expectation
is that this will help defeat the government in the next election at which time
the current opposition will be called upon to form the new government.
ObamaCare will then be repealed, and the freedom that comes with chaos will be
re-instituted. While this is what it sounds like to the proponents of that
rhetoric, it sounds more like treason to the opponents who see it as an attack
not on ObamaCare alone but on the nation as well.
Now let me say this: Rather than criticize the Boskin
article point by point, I shall relate something I witnessed personally that
will refute all of his points. The health system we have in Canada is recognized
as being one of the best in the world because it delivers more with less – able
to do so precisely because it is well organized. And yet, when the system
started 50 years ago, people were saying that the Canadian brain drain to America we used to witness then will accelerate
because our doctors and nurses will flee Canada
to go live in better pastures in America . It did not happen.
And when this brouhaha started in America about 4 years ago, I asked
the doctors I know if they would like to live under the American system. Their
answer was an emphatic NO even at double the pay. They feel very comfortable
with a system that is organized such as we have it in Canada because
that's what medicine is all about. Chaos and industry may do well together, they
said, but chaos and medicine do not mix.