Wow, thats a pretty startling bit of revisionism. In fact this thread was civil and polite until somebody came along and typed this: "Your ignorance is overwhelming. I suggest you do a little googling in the future so as not to reveal yourself as an ignoramous.. Trying to pretend the moral high ground now is a little bit absurd, wouldn't you say?




So, just because you personally participate in fraud does not mean the system is broken. In fact, if you are wondering why governments have problems with efficiency, perhaps we should be cracking down on those immoral companies that charge the government 3-4 times the standard rate for the goods they sell. Maybe that would help.



So you mkeep asserting and asserting. But the entire thread to date shows that in some instances, you are plainly wrong. Many countries, in fact most of the First western world, has socialised medicine which is both cheaper and more effective than the privatised system run by the government. That means it is extremely possible.




Do you know why the FDA exists? because 100 years ago snake-oil salesmen used to sell whisky mixed with murcury nas a cure-all town to town. 'Free men' would buy it, drink it and die horribly, confident that they were free and that the government allowed them to die horribly without state interference.

Do you know why else the FDA exists? because long-term testing of drugs is time consuming and expensive. No fully unrestricted company would EVER engage in long term drug trials as huge cost and huge market delay; who cares of the New drug causes birth defects in 20 years, or causes cancer in 30? It Cures erictile disfunctions NOW, and the company can make a cool billion in a year. Besides, its hard to prove that all that cancer came from this drug decades from now anyways, so its probably no risk for the company...

Do you know why government legisslation exists to force drug trials, to curb industrial pollution, to compel worker safety tests? Because unrestricted capitalism will ALWAYS sacrifice the long term for the short term. Thats why every company in the world dumped pollution into rivers in the 1950s and 1960s: because it was cheaper than being sensible.




So you personally are fine with the formula of poverty = death? Deng, most people consider the last 100 years of western civilisation to be 'Progress'. Do you? based on these points It seems your ideal environment is the Dickensian nighmare of the mid-Victorian age, where the rich industrialist could and did happily exploit the poor, the young, the vulnerable, unto death frequently, all in the name of unrestrained capitalism. All without the pescky interference of 'child labour laws', or 'unions', or 'worker safety', or anything of the sort.


Your arguments aren't Libertarian, they anarchistic.

The answer to problems in quality, efficiency and safety is civil lawsuits. The improving conditions in the western world are the result of capitalist innovations, not government bureaucracies. Tens of thousands of Americans died in the 70's due to heart drugs blocked by the FDA that were available in Europe. In the 80's the good ole FDA blocked AIDS drugs when there was no alternative to death except new, even if unproven, drugs. The number of deaths due to drugs never being invented due to government imposed costs on the drug manufacturers can never be known. The FDA has killed far more people than it has saved and we pay taxes to support the reduced life spans and higher costs created by this government agency.

There is nothing wrong with the government requiring healthcare professionals to disclose their credentials and then let the buyer choose his provider. There is no legitimate reason for requiring licenses for healthcare professionals besides to protect the terminally stupid. The AMA, along with the ABA, are the most successful trade unions on the planet. The AMA, through government, has acquired a monopoly on most of the medical service industry.

More info on the FDA http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/DrugLag.html

Perhaps some uncivil people should not accuse others of crimes, such as fraud, without reason. That is a bit uncivil. This is how the free market works; a willing seller and willing buyer agree on a price. When government is involved they don't usually care as much for the taxpayer as the company rep cares for the shareholder. That is just one reason limited government is best.

As Mao, Hitler, Stalin and Pot proved, the formula for poverty and death is government control of resources.