What would be your "stump speech?" Here's mine.

[robocop (actually)]

OK, so if I were running for presient today here's what my stump speech would be, detailed out of course:


"I am an Internationalist. I think we all should embrace helping each other. No one wants to die either. I think we should shoot for welfare. However, if we just do that, we won’t be safe from those who want to be aggressive and go after us. What I recommend then is that we get as many people off welfare as we need to solve the problem of taking care of everyone else and keeping us safe until we unite with all other countries. People will want to be scientists, engineers, and entertainers. We get everyone else as needed.

Robots/nanobots/computers can properly take over our lives with this system. I would be more than happy to program all I could and I know many others would want to help."

What would your be?

 

[Revoltingest]

Greetings, citizens!
I promise to......
- Use our military only for defense against clear, imminent, identifiable, & appropriate threats.
- Lower the tax rates for all. How will I pay for it? Eliminate all personal deductions.
- Simplify the tax code, reducing it from 100,000+ pages to a pamphlet.
- Dump Obamacare for a single payer system, but leaving private health care intact for those who can pay for better service.
- Make Wednesdays Hawaiian Shirt Day.
- Create a loser-pay tort system.
- End the War On Drugs.
- Change our national anthem to "America, **** Yeah!".
- Do only staycations to save the taxpayers money.
- Appoint constitutional originalists to the USSC.
- Expand NASA funding in the most productive areas. This means no manned Mars mission.

 

[Erebus]

I propose that none of us are allowed to do anything until we've all sat on the naughty step and thought about what we've done.

 

[TurkeyOnRye]

Greetings, citizens!
I promise to......
- Use our military only for defense against clear, imminent, identifiable, & appropriate threats.
- Lower the tax rates for all. How will I pay for it? Eliminate all personal deductions.
- Simplify the tax code, reducing it from 100,000+ pages to a pamphlet.
- Dump Obamacare for a single payer system, but leaving private health care intact for those who can pay for better service.
- Make Wednesdays Hawaiian Shirt Day.
- Create a loser-pay tort system.
- End the War On Drugs.
- Change our national anthem to "America, **** Yeah!".
- Do only staycations to save the taxpayers money.
- Appoint constitutional originalists to the USSC.
- Expand NASA funding in the most productive areas. This means no manned Mars mission.

As far as healthcare is concerned, I'd transition the system to single-payer and just let the private healthcare sector fight and cooperate to maximize competition. Seems like this two-tier nonsense would inject too much bureaucratic regulatory waste. Just send the bill to the government and allow them to negotiate prices. The only things I wouldn't want public dollars to pay for are cosmetic procedures (plastic surgery, botox et al).

 

[robocop (actually)]

Greetings, citizens!
I promise to......

- End the War On Drugs.

It seems, after watching Sicario, that the war on drugs is like quick sand. If you end it you sink; if you fight it you sink; if you keep the same rules you sink; if you change them you sink.

 

[Revoltingest]

As far as healthcare is concerned, I'd transition the system to single-payer and just let the private healthcare sector fight and cooperate to maximize competition. Seems like this two-tier nonsense would inject too much bureaucratic regulatory waste. Just send the bill to the government and allow them to negotiate prices. The only things I wouldn't want public dollars to pay for are cosmetic procedures (plastic surgery, botox et al).

A separate 2-tier system wouldn't be any more complex.
I'd expect private health care to be the very simple concierge style.
Of course, gov provided care would be a nightmare.....but less so than Obamacare.

 

[Revoltingest]

It seems, after watching Sicario, that the war on drugs is like quick sand. If you end it you sink; if you fight it you sink; if you keep the same rules you sink; if you change them you sink.

I'm prepared to sink.
I just prefer my own brand of sinking.

 

[TurkeyOnRye]

A separate 2-tier system wouldn't be any more complex.
I'd expect private health care to be the very simple concierge style.
Of course, gov provided care would be a nightmare.....but less so than Obamacare.

In a sense, any system is going to be two-tier since there are always going to be procedures and practices that a program won't pay for, and as always, the private sector will be there to fill in the gaps. I suppose the question is how far should the coverage reach? As a side note, Obamacare doesn't provide care. It pays for it.

 

[Revoltingest]

In a sense, any system is going to be two-tier since there are always going to be procedures and practices that a program won't pay for, and as always, the private sector will be there to fill in the gaps. I suppose the question is how far should the coverage reach? As a side note, Obamacare doesn't provide care. It pays for it.

This isn't necessarily the case. Under the old Hillarycare proposal, service given/received outside the government system would've been a crime.

 

[TurkeyOnRye]

This isn't necessarily the case. Under the old Hillarycare proposal, service given/received outside the government system would've been a crime.

What government system? My understanding is that Hillarycare would've forced employers to provide private insurance for their employees. That's kind of before my time, but as far as I know, there wasn't even a public option.

 

[Revoltingest]

What government system? My understanding is that Hillarycare would've forced employers to provide private insurance for their employees. That's kind of before my time, but as far as I know, there wasn't even a public option.

As I recall, her proposal made alternatives illegal.
The Canuckistanian system was once more in this direction than it currently is, as I recall from spending time there back in the 70s.
But I presume we agree that there should be a private option.

 

[Twilight Hue]

I promise to raise taxes.

Protract war.

Outsource jobs everywhere.

Embrace all special interest buddies who line my pockets with funding up the yin yang.

Allow anyone into the country without any. type security or health checks whatsoever and allow any foreigners to vote for a nominal fee.

Maintain my secret Swiss bank account as secret as possible.

All future Goverment meetings and legislative sessions will be closed doors and public denied under threat of arrest.

Speech free zones will be restricted to twelve miles away from any point of contention.

Increase taxes on middle class and poor and redistribute almost all of it to the elite rich who clearly are more responsible in fund management and can make better decisions in spending it to the appropriate people and institutions.

Free no pay back welfare and totally free healthcare as it will be the only thing that will be affordable by the little people, and insuring my reelection for decades to come lest you lose those compassionate and valuable perks by electing someone else.

Propose therefore to be the most honest and sincere in fulfilling the above, leaving almost no hidden surprises as time and conditions dictate as such although there may be one or two as a result of unforseen developments.

 

[TurkeyOnRye]

But I presume we agree that there should be a private option.

If you're talking about healthcare, I completely agree. In fact, I see no reason for public healthcare facilities if you have a smart single-payer system. On the other hand, I see no reason for any private healthcare insurance. The private sector sucks at minimizing administrative costs.

 

[lewisnotmiller]

"Greetings future subjugated lower classes of American-type people...

I, your benevolent Overlord, have decided to..."

And that's it. I never bothered writing the rest, since it seemed unlikely I'd get a chance to say it.

 

[Revoltingest]

If you're talking about healthcare, I completely agree. In fact, I see no reason for public healthcare facilities if you have a smart single-payer system. On the other hand, I see no reason for any private healthcare insurance. The private sector sucks at minimizing administrative costs.

I'm skeptical that gov could better manage costs, except by rationing care.
But with a single payer system for everyone eligible, whatever private system arises
would necessarily be cost effective. (This is because customers would abandon it
for gov care otherwise.) There'd be the added efficiency that paying customers
wouldn't have to subsidize non-payers (who'd be in the gov system)..

 

[TurkeyOnRye]

I'm skeptical that gov could better manage costs, except by rationing care.

Medicare's administrative costs are a fraction of private insurance. Much of the cost of private insurance is associated with marketing, advertising, and profit margins. It's the price of operating in a competitive environment. This is pretty clear when you look at other developed countries with a single-payer system. Americans pay more per capita than any of them. I don't think we need to ration services if we do it in a smart way.

But with a single payer system for everyone eligible, whatever private system arises would necessarily be cost effective. (This is because customers would abandon it for gov care otherwise.)

Nope. Not necessarily. A central feature of marketing is creating uninformed consumers who make irrational choices. You don't have to be cost-effective or even offer a valuable product or service to make a buck.

There'd be the added efficiency that paying customers
wouldn't have to subsidize non-payers (who'd be in the gov system)..

The most likely single-payer scenario that emerges in the United States would likely be an expansion of Medicare to everyone. Medicare, as you know, is payed into by everyone working. So, unless that changes, those consumers would still be subsidizing the public system, even if they opt for private insurance. What I see happening would simply be a variation of what we have now. Everyone would be in the Medicare system, but those who want additional coverage may purchase add-on private insurance, al la Advantage plans.

 

[Revoltingest]

Medicare's administrative costs are a fraction of private insurance. Much of the cost of private insurance is associated with marketing, advertising, and profit margins. It's the price of operating in a competitive environment. This is pretty clear when you look at other developed countries with a single-payer system. Americans pay more per capita than any of them. I don't think we need to ration services if we do it in a smart way.

The low Medicare payments are a reason that more docs are refusing to treat such patients....it doesn't cover the costs.
If this became the universal approach, we'd be dissatisfied with the quality of care.

Nope. Not necessarily. A central feature of marketing is creating uninformed consumers who make irrational choices. You don't have to be cost-effective or even offer a valuable product or service to make a buck.

I'm not addressing the market in general, which is highly distorted for a number of reasons we'll avoid for the moment.
I speak of the special case of people who eschew the 'free' care of a single payer gov run system.
This would be a consumer who would shop more wisely (typically before they're in desperate need) in the totally private insurance or concierge markets.
They'd be satisfied with what they buy simply because if they weren't, they'd be back in the government system.

The most likely single-payer scenario that emerges in the United States would likely be an expansion of Medicare to everyone. Medicare, as you know, is payed into by everyone working. So, unless that changes, those consumers would still be subsidizing the public system, even if they opt for private insurance. What I see happening would simply be a variation of what we have now. Everyone would be in the Medicare system, but those who want additional coverage may purchase add-on private insurance, al la Advantage plans.

That's one way to go.

A personal example of how messed up our system is.
Mrs Revolt had a 1 hour visit for a procedure on a shoulder.
The bill was for $1500.
The insurance company paid the discounted rate of $200.
(This was at a government run hospital.)

 

[ShivaFan]

Give me the power over your life, and in return I will give each of you a free brand new Chevrolet car, and not only will no one be without a home, not one citizen or non-citizen will be homeless nor will one be boatless - everyone will get a home and a boat even if you don't want to live in a home or have a boat, it is all free. Water, electricity, petrol, food, clothes, prescriptions, all free.

Honest. Just give me complete control over you. Free is more important than freedom, once I have all power, then I will give you shelter, food, water, transportation, medical help, everything, on my plantation. No charge. For anyone. No pay, either.

Elect me, and then thank me. Six times a day.

 

[Deidre]

Everyone has Mondays off if I'm elected President.

*end of thread!*

 

[lewisnotmiller]

Everyone has Mondays off if I'm elected President.

*end of thread!*

Phhht. That only counts if you don't take away Saturdays and Sundays. I'm awake to your tricks.