Mitt Romney has come forward as a very controversial character toward the front of the next Presidential race. Certainly, many of his opinions have come into question not the least of which is his religion. Yet, religion does not indicate whether or not someone is staunchly on the side of freedom. Additionally, his seemingly circumstantial views on abortion have been pushed to the forefront but again an opinion on abortion does not make a person inclined to respect the Constitution.
Recently, in an interview conducted by Sean Hannity, Mitt Romney made two statements one after the other that really do not add up. His statement opening up the issue was that he wants to make sure that every American has health care. Following that statement up a sentence or two later he said that he wants to make the market work.
If you are not slapping your forehead, let me educate you on a few things. Primarily, the market works less when government gets involved. The only thing the government can do is to regulate, restrict or create a program. All of these are restrictions of freedom and historically, both in America and every other nation, government restricting freedom is not a good thing for economic markets or people.
The fundamental problem with modern society is that no one understands freedom. Sure, people will tell you how much they love being free but jump at the first chance they get to take money away from Wal-Mart via taxes. The common opinion in America seems to have shifted from the real definition of freedom to the idea that freedom applies until jealousy kicks in. Likewise, those who have the financial benefits of freedom, freedoms of which others are jealous, believe that freedom applies until guilt makes them ashamed of accomplishment.
The free market does not work because the government makes it to. The government intruding will only say that a certain class of people who “cannot afford” health insurance must be given health insurance at the cost of everyone else. Ultimately, mandating a social health care system will end competition in the market, grind medical research progress to a complete halt, limit the personal right to determine the best method for caring for oneself and create a system where the government can determine what citizens live and die, passively or otherwise.
Most frighteningly, however, a social health care system will set a precedent for ending freedoms solely based upon the inabilities of a small number of Americans to properly handle their own affairs with those freedoms. Properly handle being in the eyes of the common politician. How many freedoms have been attacked as of late solely because of the perceived inability of Americans to make “the right choice”? Trans-fat, firearms, free speech during elections, property rights and environmentalism are merely a few that make the headlines every day.
Returning, why would someone reject health insurance they do not have to pay for? Theft can be shrouded in taxation perpetuated by an emotional belief that millions of people are dying because they cannot afford health insurance and by this method we all can lose freedoms voluntarily.
The problem with Mitt’s idea to “make the market work” is that the government is fundamentally incapable of “making” the market do anything. People and business make the market work and it will always work as long as it is not invaded by governmental regulation.
Mitt Romney should scare those of us who believe in the harsh reality of freedom encapsulated by Walter Williams’ quote; “the true test of one's commitment to liberty and private property rights doesn't come when we permit people to be free to do those voluntary things with which we agree. The true test comes when we permit people to be free to do those voluntary things with which we disagree.”
Frankly, I’m not going to get into an argument about how many people may or may not have any access to health care. My intention is to state that it is wrong to restrict American freedoms and less so based upon an emotional statistic. If there is a problem it can only be magnified by bringing in the government. Furthermore, it can only increase the miseducation of the American people to believe that the government is responsible for taking care of the citizen even those we may see as unable to take care of themselves.
If Mitt Romney does not believe that the only role for government is to ensure rights and not to provide a pacifier, then he cannot be trusted to beat back the invasion of socialism into the laws and opinions of the beltway yet if his ideals on health insurance are supported then America truly has slipped into the maw of Marxism.
