Potter's Field
columnist: Michael Stahl

Topic: Health Care
John Edwards' bane. The McCain health plan.

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McCain's health plan has some good points, but also the glaring flaw of tort reform.

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by Michael Stahl
(Libertarian)
Thursday, May 15, 2008

I don't care for John McCain for a whole host of reasons, most of them involving explosives and dead brown people. He might be a great guy, even a hero, but his politics don't look to empower the individual, but rather "solve" problems. This means a re-arrangement of a bureaucracy, or the creation of a new one, neither of which will restore a scintilla of lost freedom. Usually.

A few days ago, I heard his chat about health care, and was rather pleasantly surprised....it didn't seem like Hillary care with the words "Market-based" pasted at the beginning of each paragraph as I anticipated. Getting employers out of the health care business by eliminating the artificial gunk that congress critters through the ages put in place, is a great idea, Go John Go...Ra Ra ..Huh?

That's right, there had to be a huh. It's a big one, at least to me, and should be to all individualists. Honest John pulled out that trusty, rusty, old GOP saw about Tort reform. Now I realize that this might not be the hot button issue to a lot of people, but it should be. Think about what tort reform actually means, it is literally eliminating the right of an individual to seek damages from another individual(corporations are individuals in the eyes of the law) in court to be tried by peers, and replaces it with arbitrary rulings by a Judge. Or in the case of McCain's tortuous tort plan, apparently the creators of "clinical guidelines" or "safety protocols", people who already do, or will surely contrive to have themselves fall under the government's glorious claim of Sovereign Immunity.

Now, there can be no doubt that there have been abusive lawsuits, and silly awards, but are we then to give up are belief in our fellow citizens to sit in judgment, to be replaced by all knowing bureaucrats and sleazy, on the take, politicians, in effect extending the illegitimate Sovereign claim of the government to corporate interests? Do you really think that that will be better? Not me. In an age of Lobbyists do you really think that those in the government really have your best interests at heart when they limit your ability to make yourself, or your family, whole again in favor of a large corporation, or a Doctor who did you dirty? Not only that, could it also be that the fear of litigation keeps people on their toes and forestalls deliberate malfeasance No John, no dice on that one, though that cool 1.6 mill is a great start on getting money out of politics.

Perhaps I'm old fashioned, but I rather like the idea of being able to sue if I'm wronged, and the Doctors, Insurance companies, lobbyists, and dreary politicians on the take, can go take a jump in the lake. Personally, even though he's on the money list, I like this plan much better. Too bad it'll never catch on.

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2008 Michael Stahl, all rights reserved.
Published: Thursday, May 15, 2008
Last modified: Thursday, May 15, 2008

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