September 14, 2011--Cheering for Death
During Monday night's Tea-Party-sponsored Republican debate, moderator Wolf Blitzer asked Ron Paul a "theoretical" question.
The context was the individual mandate part of President Obama's health care plan that requires everyone not curently covered to buy health insurance. Especially young and healthy people whose participation is needed to help pay for the care of older, less-well people.
As the only candidate who is a physician, Blitzer asked Dr. Paul how he feels about the following situation--
There is a 30-year-old in good health who decides not to buy insurance, assuming he won't need it until he's older and more at risk. But as luck would have it, he's in an accident and winds up in a coma for many months. Who, then, should pay for this uninsured person's treatment?
"Not the government," Ron Paul shot back.
"Well who then?" Blitzer followed up.
"He should," Paul said, "He should have to take personal responsibility for his actions."
"But he needs care," Wolf pressed.
"Then his family should pay for him or a chirch group or a private charity."
None of this is new territory for anti-government, Ayn Rand-inspired Dr. Paul (whose senator-son's first name is Rand). But what was new territory was the audience's response.
At last week's GOP debate at the Ronald Reagan Library where the assembled Republican worthies gathered to witness how Rick Paul would handle himself, the audience cheered when it was pointed out that during Rick Perry's 11 years as Texas governor he presided over the execution of 234 prisoners. And then on Monday night the clear implication of Ron Paul's assertion that if people don't take care of themselves we shouldn't, as a society, feel any responsibility even it means leaving them to die, this pean to death once again had the audience applauding.
At the heart of this enthusiasm for the execution of criminals and contempt for those who do not have the means or motivation to care for themselves is a form of biological Darwinism that sees life as a struggle for existence in which only the fittest survive. Paul and Republicans who share his views in effect are saying that if you do not take responsibility for yourself, if you lose out in the game of unfettered capitalism (or weren't lucky enough to be born to wealthy parents), do not look for much help from others who are doing better or the government because this is nature's way of sorting winners and losers.
Literally, in the case of health care, with their lives. As in the forests and oceans.
Ironically, or hypocritically, they may not want Darwin to be taught in public schools, but when it comes to how they actually view life they see it to be an on-going evolutionary struggle with a eugenic twist.
The implication is clear--those who do survive will vote Republican, the party that claims to represent the winners. The party of the most-evolved Rick Perry; Michele Bachmann; Rick Santorum; Ron Paul; and lest we forget, Sarah Palin.
The context was the individual mandate part of President Obama's health care plan that requires everyone not curently covered to buy health insurance. Especially young and healthy people whose participation is needed to help pay for the care of older, less-well people.
As the only candidate who is a physician, Blitzer asked Dr. Paul how he feels about the following situation--
There is a 30-year-old in good health who decides not to buy insurance, assuming he won't need it until he's older and more at risk. But as luck would have it, he's in an accident and winds up in a coma for many months. Who, then, should pay for this uninsured person's treatment?
"Not the government," Ron Paul shot back.
"Well who then?" Blitzer followed up.
"He should," Paul said, "He should have to take personal responsibility for his actions."
"But he needs care," Wolf pressed.
"Then his family should pay for him or a chirch group or a private charity."
None of this is new territory for anti-government, Ayn Rand-inspired Dr. Paul (whose senator-son's first name is Rand). But what was new territory was the audience's response.
At last week's GOP debate at the Ronald Reagan Library where the assembled Republican worthies gathered to witness how Rick Paul would handle himself, the audience cheered when it was pointed out that during Rick Perry's 11 years as Texas governor he presided over the execution of 234 prisoners. And then on Monday night the clear implication of Ron Paul's assertion that if people don't take care of themselves we shouldn't, as a society, feel any responsibility even it means leaving them to die, this pean to death once again had the audience applauding.
At the heart of this enthusiasm for the execution of criminals and contempt for those who do not have the means or motivation to care for themselves is a form of biological Darwinism that sees life as a struggle for existence in which only the fittest survive. Paul and Republicans who share his views in effect are saying that if you do not take responsibility for yourself, if you lose out in the game of unfettered capitalism (or weren't lucky enough to be born to wealthy parents), do not look for much help from others who are doing better or the government because this is nature's way of sorting winners and losers.
Literally, in the case of health care, with their lives. As in the forests and oceans.
Ironically, or hypocritically, they may not want Darwin to be taught in public schools, but when it comes to how they actually view life they see it to be an on-going evolutionary struggle with a eugenic twist.
The implication is clear--those who do survive will vote Republican, the party that claims to represent the winners. The party of the most-evolved Rick Perry; Michele Bachmann; Rick Santorum; Ron Paul; and lest we forget, Sarah Palin.
posted by Steven Zwerling at
5:28 AM
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