Economics

Overgrazing the Canadian Commons

This entry was posted in Anarchism Economics Health Care Libertarianism on by

In Canada, and needing surgery? You might be better off to be a dog:

Accepting money from patients for operations they would otherwise receive free of charge in a public hospital is technically prohibited in this country, even in cases where patients would wait months or even years before receiving treatment.
But no one is about to arrest Dr. Brian Day, who is president and medical director of the center, or any of the 120 doctors who work there. Public hospitals are sending him growing numbers of patients they are too busy to treat, and his center is advertising that patients do not have to wait to replace their aching knees.
The country’s publicly financed health insurance system — frequently described as the third rail of its political system and a core value of its national identity — is gradually breaking down. Private clinics are opening around the country by an estimated one a week, and private insurance companies are about to find a gold mine.
Dr. Day, for instance, is planning to open more private hospitals, first in Toronto and Ottawa, then in Montreal, Calgary and Edmonton. Ontario provincial officials are already threatening stiff fines. Dr. Day says he is eager to see them in court.
“We’ve taken the position that the law is illegal,” Dr. Day, 59, says. “This is a country in which dogs can get a hip replacement in under a week and in which humans can wait two to three years.”

This is not an unexpected result when the commons is overgrazed and free riders multiply. Heck, this is the expected result of any government program.
Via Hit & Run.

You Are What You Eat

This entry was posted in China Economics Environment Vegan on by

We are not quite as restrained at Modulator as they are at Marginal Revolution. Here are a few quotes from this article cited by Tyler in his ongoing Markets for Everything series

:….there is no polite way of describing Guo-li-zhuang.
Situated in an elegantly restored house beside Beijing’s West Lake, it is China’s first speciality penis restaurant.

They aren’t kidding. You will want to examine closely the photograph depicting:

A dish combining the male organs of an ox and a snake

Is there more to this than just being very exotic?

“This is my third visit,” said one customer, Liu Qiang. “Of course, there are other restaurants that serve the bian of individual animals. But this is the first that brings them all together.”
….
In China, you are what you eat, and The Daily Telegraph’s nutritionist, Zhu Yan, said the clients were mainly men eager to improve their yang, or virility.

Yep, kill enough animals, eat the right parts and you can really be a dick.

Don’t Give Up Your Fingerprints Lightly

This entry was posted in Anarchism Economics Education Privacy on by

Would you trust your school with your fingerprints?

The Iowa Senate passed a bill Wednesday that would allow the use of fingerprint scanners in school lunch lines.
Sen. Frank Wood, D-Eldridge, led the support for the bill, arguing that it gives schools useful options for managing their lunch programs. The measure passed 40-9.
Parents would have to approve their children using the scanners, which would replace tickets or cards for participants. The fingerprint record would be required to be erased once a student no longer attends the school.

This is one to which all parents should just say no.
Apparently more traditional methods of payment will be available so just use’m.. There is no justification for the use of what should be very private biometrics to buy a school lunch. these programs have been easily managed with cash, tickets and cards for years.
On the other hand, why the heck does it take legislative approval to approve business practices within a school system. One of the huge problems today is legislative micromanagement in all aspects of our society.

Both are reasons to keep your kids out of public schools or, for that matter, any other schools based on the same herd the cattle model.

Catallarchy Writer Supports government Expansion….

This entry was posted in Anarchism bush Economics Libertarianism Socialism US Foreign Policy on by

…the nation and blog readers die of shock.
A writer at the noted libertarian oriented site Catallarchy posts this headline and statement:

Bush Supports Free Trade; Nation Dies of Shock

Regardless of any backroom deals and ulterior motives that may have led to it, Bush’s support of Dubai’s bid for P&O is good news.

Perhaps Sean has posted this somewhat tongue in cheek but the post doesn’t read that way.
So, please explain how the expansion of a government owned business in any way qualifies as free trade.

Update: Sean was good enough to reply in comments. Below the fold is his reply and my responses. We still disagree on some aspects of this.

(more…)

Just Imagine

This entry was posted in Anarchism Economics Government Libertarianism on by

Brad DeLong once again reprints what he calls the best weblog post ever, by Belle Waring in which Belle notes:

Now, everyone close your eyes and try to imagine a private, profit-making rights-enforcement organization which does not resemble the mafia, a street gang, those pesky fire-fighters/arsonists/looters who used to provide such “services” in old New York and Tokyo, medieval tax-farmers, or a Lendu militia.

Yep, just like your federal, state and local governments.
NB: DeLong also points out the dangers of Linkrot.