Everything that needs to be said about the details of the Obama/Pelosi/Reed Healthcare law and the process that it took to become law has already been said. I’m not going to add to or subtract from the expert opinions from either side. I do though want to comment on an underlying question in this whole process… Is healthcare a fundamental right?
Think what you will of the founders of this nation; the fact of the matter is, whether you agree with them or not, you cannot change what they wrote in America’s founding documents. Take for instance the Declaration of Independence. The first two paragraphs are clear and concise, (a mere 340 words) and they perfectly describe why the founders were declaring independence from Great Britain. Here is the Holder translation of what they wrote: [click here for full text]
Sometimes it’s necessary for people who disagree to dissolve their relationship and go their separate ways. We’ve decided that we have the ability to govern ourselves and no longer wish to be governed by you… here’s why:
God gave everyone, no matter who they are, some obvious, non-negotiable and irrevocable rights. For example: The right to life, to liberty and to pursue happiness. Governments, who are given permission to govern by the people they govern, exist to ensure that these rights are not trampled on or destroyed by others. But sometimes it is the government that tramples on or erodes the God given rights of man; when they do that, the people have the right to either change its government or get rid of it completely and build a new government on a foundation that will effectively enable them secure their safety and happiness. We acknowledge that changing a government should not be something done for petty reasons. Experience has taught us that for many it is easier to suffer than to change the things they have grown accustom to; but there comes a time when the evidence of tyranny is so blatant that it becomes the people’s duty to get rid of their oppressors and provide a new governmental structure to secure their future safety. That time has come. To prove this let’s examine the facts.The writers then layout 27 complaints.
When you read this declaration in its whole you see that the basis for our founding fathers’ rift with the King of England was a belief that the King had crossed the line between protecting basic God given rights and usurping those rights. Because of this they decided to do something monumental… they decided to dissolve their relationship with the Government of England and attempt to build a new government by the people and for the people.
After our independence was earned, some of those same men defined their idea of a “right” in what is known as “The Bill of Rights.” Each of the rights listed in these ten Amendments to the Constitution was designed to give power to the individual and limit the power of the Federal Government. It is also important to note that they do not expand the three basic rights that were listed in the Declaration of Independence; they merely clarify what was meant when they wrote “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Also important to note is that these rights do not infringe upon the God given rights… instead they complement them.
Many politicians and pundits have tried to convince us that universal healthcare is a “fundamental right.” If so then how does this so called fundamental right stack up against other fundamental rights? Does it complement them or does it infringe upon them?
Life:
Excessive government regulation/control on any industry ALWAYS causes people, businesses and potential professionals in that industry to seek the path of lesser resistance into less regulated/controlled industries… the result is ALWAYS a decrease in quality of service. This is not life threatening when regulating hair dressers or florists, but when governments move into heavily controlling and regulating our healthcare system, they infringe on our right to life.
Liberty:
Those who currently can’t afford coverage may potentially benefit in the short term from this plan; but what about those who have the resources to pay out-of-pocket for their healthcare? If they are healthy, it may be less expensive for them to opt out of healthcare insurance. It may be a risk but it is a risk they are willing to take. Under Obamacare, they no longer have that liberty… it has been usurped.
The Pursuit of Happiness:
The more intrusive a government is, the less happy the governed become. This is why people from intrusive government systems flock to free countries… to pursue happiness. With Obamacare the United States slides further down the slope of an overly intrusive form of government… this inevitably leads to an infringement on our right to pursue happiness.
In my opinion, because Obamacare does more to infringe on our basic rights then it does to complement them; it cannot be considered a right. So if this monstrosity begins to be enforced with the full authority of the law, we will move closer to tyranny and further from liberty. In 1776 the founders determined that because the evidence of tyranny was so blatant, their relationship with the Government of England needed to be dissolved; are we at that point today? No, not even close… we don’t need to destroy and rebuild our government from scratch. What needs so be done is we-the-people need to regain the control of or country and condemn and demolish many of the buildings that have been foolishly built on the solid foundation of the Constitution. Then we-the-people need to firmly instruct our newly elected leaders that we’re happy with the buildings that have been built as a complement to the original foundation of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness… no more foolish building… its time for us to regulate them.
No comments:
Post a Comment