For your own good...

[Carol]

So the maples formed a union
And demanded equal rights
'The oaks are just too greedy
We will make them give us light'
Now there's no more oak oppression
For they passed a noble law
And the trees are all kept equal
By hatchet...axe...and saw....

 

[Cryozombie]

For my good, not yours. chronic illnesses brought about by your fat ***.

But you can still have your salt... it's cheap and plentiful and droves of it in just about every processed piece of junk food you microwave.

Can't this be said about anything and everything? "I have to pay a portion of the medical bills incurred by you to treat the injuies you sustained in BJJ class, so you shouldn't be allowed to do any contact" "I have to pay a portion of the medical bills incurred by you to treat the long term effects of sports related injuries so you shouldn't be allowed to play sports" "I have to pay a portion of the bills incurred by you to treat the symptoms of your gambling addiction, so we should close all casinos, dog tracks, horsetracks and sports books?"

It's a never ending list... and probably, in most cases, overstated to say the least.

BUT... correct me if I am wrong... all this bill does is alocate funds to educate people on healthy choices... it doesn't force anyone to do anything, does it?

 

[Bill Mattocks]

BUT... correct me if I am wrong... all this bill does is alocate funds to educate people on healthy choices... it doesn't force anyone to do anything, does it?

Gun registration isn't confiscation, either. Until it is.

I worked for a company once that had an 'employee wellness program'. They started out by asking employees to voluntarily fill out a health questionnaire, and if they did that and also volunteered for a wellness 'assessment' by a local clinic, you got a discount on your health insurance by some token amount. If you joined the program and made commitments to do whatever the wellness people thought you needed (lose weight, lower blood pressure, quit smoking) then you got a small bonus at the end of the year. Yay!

The following year, the program was still voluntary, but if you didn't join, you had to pay a small annual fee in addition to your insurance premiums. The bonuses and discounts were lowered, but still existed.

The third year, the bonuses and discounts were eliminated, and all employees were required to join the wellness program and, if asked to participate in some form of wellness activity (lose weight, stop smoking, etc) and you refused to do it or tried and failed, you had to pay a $100 co-pay for every doctor's visit in addition to the usual insurance costs.

First they try education. Then they try a carrot. Finally they get out the stick. At least I had the option of not working there anymore.

Wait until it's state-provided and state-mandated and you can't quit.

If the 'individual mandate' being considered by the Supreme Court is found to be Constitutional, there is no longer any limit on what the federal government can force you do to, with or without your permission, for the 'common good'.

It won't happen overnight. But it sure does seem to happen. And it's always a series of 'reasonable' and 'necessary' steps that get us there.

 

[billc]

the same happened with seat belt laws. First they said they would only warn you if you were stopped for some other infraction. Then, if they stopped you for another infraction they would ticket you. Now, they set up safety check points to check for drunk drivers...and seat belts, and if a cop sees you without a seat belt on they can pull you over for that.

We had I-355 going up a while back. Everyone wanted to make sure that a local forest preserve would be spared from the new high way. The do gooders put together a referendum to protect "open spaces," forest preserves and parks and such from new high way construction. Everyone rejoiced, what a great law, a great way to preserve nature. The do gooders and the people who wanted "open spaces" saved all voted for the new referendum and everyone rejoiced that night that it was passed....Then the letters went out. The letters went out to anyone who lived next to the forest preserve that started the need for the "open spaces," referendum. The letter stated that now that the "open spaces," referendum had passed, they needed to stop developing their property since their property bordered a protected "open space." This meant no new additions, no new tool sheds, no new pools and that the county might just use the "eminent domain," clause to take over their property. The people started to panic and letters were written and calls were made to important people. The next week in the local papers there was reassurance. No homes would be confiscated. However, from that point forward, if the people bordering the protected "open spaces," wanted to sell their homes, they would have to sell them to the county. The fourth big lie was proven true again. They were from the government and they were there to help...for their own good...and to protect "open spaces."

I have to say that when all of that happened with the open spaces, I almost laughed. Not at the poor people who owned those homes, but at the silly people who jammed up their neighbors. That was one of the important lessons I learned about government back then. I wish more people would learn that lesson...before it is too late...

 

[Makalakumu]

The reversal on state run health care was a big deal for me. I was firmly with the left on this point years ago and argued it for many years. Many of my old posts on MT reflect this. After some time, I began to recognize the contradiction in my thinking. If I didn't think the government was good enough to manage my life and other peoples lives in all kinds of other situations, why did I think it could do the job with health care? That's what eventually broke the spell. All of the rational arguments couldn't do the trick, but when I was ready for a little self knowledge, I could finally universalize my principles.

Sent from my SCH-I405 using Tapatalk

 

[seasoned]

Me too.....

View attachment 16265

Now this could be bad for your health, might even give you a heart attact.................................