Colin Powell: Damn, I Love Single-Payer So So Much

Yeah whatever.

They will continue to call this guy a "Republican" forever, because that increases his cachet. Even though he's obviously a progressive Democrat.

Former Secretary of State and longtime Republican Colin Powell...

There ya go. Right from the jump.

... is calling for a universal health care solution in the U.S.

“We are a wealthy enough country with the capacity to make sure that every one of our fellow citizens has access to quality health care,” he said Thursday at a Seattle fundraiser for prostate cancer. “(Let’s show) the rest of the world what our democratic system is all about and how we take care of all of our citizens."

Powell took the opportunity to share some of his own experiences and to publicly call for a health care solution similar to those in Canada, Japan and other countries that have a universal, single-payer system.

...

“I am not an expert in health care, or Obamacare, or the Affordable Care Act, or however you choose to describe it, but I do know this: I have benefited from that kind of universal health care in my 55 years of public life,” Powell said. “And I don’t see why we can’t do what Europe is doing, what Canada is doing, what Korea is doing, what all these other places are doing.”

I really don't think that progressives and socialists like Colin Powell understand an important fact: The military doesn't provide troops with health care. Powell didn't use that word, but it gets thrown around a lot, and he's certainly talking about providing.

The military pays troops, partly with money, partly with health insurance.

No one the left seems to understand this crucial point. People aren't being "provided" something, gratis. It is payment in lieu of wages.

The Government Is A Good Provider: The word "provide," it occurs to me, is most often used in relation to a father providing for his children, or a husband providing for his life. Or even God providing for his believers.

It's a very paternalistic word, suggestive of a Benevolent Protector giving people stuff.

It doesn't belong in this debate. Employers don't provide workers with paychecks; they pay them money to work.

posted by Ace at 07:08 PM

| Access Comments