So begins the "race to the bottom"

Bad policies produce bad results.  It cannot be otherwise.

Socialism is a ghastly system.  It always produces crap outcomes.  It cannot be otherwise, because it requires that workers subsidize those who either don't work at all, or do as little work as possible.


Thus when politicians seek to "offer" health insurance to the people, and at least half the population correctly sees the new program as expensive bureaucratic crap and considers declining this wunnerful "offer," the pols are "forced" to make the program mandatory.

Cuz, like, their program was based on every citizen signing up and paying in, so....

But wait!  The poor--who either couldn't afford or chose not to buy health insurance before--can't afford the more expensive insurance of Obamacare either.  And we can't let 'em go uninsured because that was the whole whiny excuse for this monstrosity in the first place!

Ooooh, what to do?  So the pols put a provision in the law that the government will give them "subsidies" for their insurance.  But of course, there has to be an upper income limit past which you can't get a subsidy.

Surely every one of you--even my ideologically blinded liberal acquaintences--sees the inevitable consequence of this wonderful, flawless notion, right?

Yep, when people discover that simply by working less, making less money, they'll qualify for a thousand bucks a month in "subsidies" for their health insurance, they...work less.

Wow, who could possibly have seen that one coming?

And just in case any newcomers to the U.S. hadn't figured that one out yet, major newspapers like the San Francisco Chronicle are actually running stories suggesting that people work less, specifically to qualify for the subsidies that Democrat politicians specifically built in to Obamacare.

I know you simply can't believe something that outrageous, that crazy, so click on the link and see for yourself.

And so the "race to the bottom" begins.  When a system is built on the philosophy "From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs," people become very good at needing things.

At the same time people tend to hide their abilities, since those more able are taxed more.  It's merely an unfortunate side-effect that this prevents them from enjoying the fruits of their more productive work.

But as we all know, comrade, one can't make an omelette without breaking eggs, eh?  And we need to "spread the wealth around," eh comrade?