Published on March 23rd, 2010.

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This week, "the government" passed Obama's health care bill that, in short, will make it so I have to pay for health insurance. I am not a fan of any insurance other than life insurance because I believe that the money I spend overall on the insurance will cost more than when I actually need to use the insurance for. For example, dropping $2,000 a year for health insurance, after 10 years of not using it comes out to $20,000. Then I need some medication for... high blood pressure. My insurance covers 80% of the cost. Whatever horrible ailment I'm going to get is not going to cost me $20,000. I am healthy, I have literally never been overweight and have no plans of ever being overweight, even when I'm old and wrinkley. I don't drink soda and fast food's gotten to the point where such awful food actually makes my body a little sick. Thus you can see to a guy like me, that health insurance is not a big concern at this time. As I get older and my overall health degrades, I will look into health insurance.

I am for smaller, limited governments. I do not have a single political mold I fit into; I am not "left or right" winged. More often than not, I will choose the most freedom-allowing choice of the options to vote for. For example, I support abortion, because of the woman's right to do so. I support the descheduling of all hallucinogenic substances because sensible people are not going to use the bad ones. This all being said, it's obvious I don't particularly like the government. We just grow up accepting life as this way, and it's kind of sad to me. It seems so alien to me that there's "a law" that stops me from smoking an herb, like who the shit are you to tell me what I can't put in my body? But I still want the government. We need a government to look over people, and we need taxes. Our police force cannot be replaced with vigilantes and our fire fighters shouldn't be replaced with really advanced sprinkler systems. However, a lot of people don't think like me. So I will persuade you to. Let's begin.

It only takes for me to say I prefer limited government and hate this bill for people to set up a strawman for Ayn Rand's philosophy. I saw Jon Stewart make fun of Beck for privatized services: they had no police, no waste control, chemicals in the water etc. It was incredibly unfair because that isn't what Beck was going for, he merely (like me) wants less government, not a complete lack of it. Though I love anarchism, it simply doesn't work, and anyone sensible knows this. Yet a strawman will be set up against me anyway, assuming I want to abolish all government and homeschool my children. If you have any notions of this, disregard them. I do admire Ayn Rand's ideology, and though it's a bit impractical, at its core it offers some great criticism and suggestions: you can be anything, you are human. No excuses. You need to rely on universal health care in order to have health care? Learn to save your money. Planning to have a child? You save money in case they have a major health issue. Even in that case, you can buy your health insurance, because you've now got a family you want to get covered. My only gripe is that I, someone who does not want a family, stays in tip-top shape, and genuinely hates other people, now have to contribute to some awful community chest so everyone can have health care. Well I'm sorry that I don't give a damn about anyone else, when they don't give a damn about me. Which brings me to my next point.

I wouldn't mind paying for people if I knew they were good people, or even if just a majority of people were good. But they aren't. I'm paying for health care from people who are surprised they have breast cancer when they've been taking contraceptives for 30 years of their lives. From people who burned their bodies out with harmful substances, alcohol included. Now, from the perspective of others, they're paying for my health care too - the health care of someone who dresses in all black, spends "too much" time on "the computer", and doesn't act on sexual urges. "Makes VIDEO GAMES for a living?!" A person's worth is too subjective for me to be paying money out of my pocket for. Some people think you're instantly worthless if you're gay. So let's universalize healthcare for them! Who are you that you deserve such health care after destroying your body so much? Who am I that I deserve health care even though I dress in black and practically live in cyberspace? That's why I don't want to pay for anyone. Chances are, they're lower than me, to me. Chances are, they're higher than me, to them.

So of course, now I look selfish. Before I continue, remember that everyone is selfish. People love to point out when I'm being selfish. I like to bring up the relevance of the word. I'm selfish because I want everyone to decide whether they need insurance or not. If you believe that, fine: I'm selfish. So? So what now, I don't like to help others because of how often they've disappointed me. Right. So what?

If I'm selfish, the idea of universal healthcare is ourselfish. Repair the weakest link because they have, for so long, been a part of the chain. Our wonderful global chain of smiley glad-hands, and when you mess up, well at least you have us to save you. I don't see how a strong person could support such a thing. You see the elderly sometimes talking about how poor they are, and how much they need pensions. You've got 45 years to work in your life and you can't save up enough money to support yourself when you aren't working? I even encourage small amounts of help to the elderly, like our failing social security system. (even though it's the same principle as insurance) I just can't stress enough why universal health care is not necessary.

A final word before I endlessly repeat myself is this bullshit sense of one-ness. Ourselfish people - specifically those in other countries, with systems like this already in place - speak of a one-ness. Now suddenly, you love me. You love everyone. The 'social' part of 'socialism'. What's good for the goose is good for the gander... if you're a goose. We, however, are human, and we all have different thoughts, ideas, and personalities. I do not feel your one-ness and I think it's just another excuse to verify your existence and make you feel 'whole'. This is why I suggest the universal health system be optional, but it's just not that easy. I, being human and different, would like to not participate in this system, and if my country really were "free" (note: no country is free) then they would have offered me the option of not participating in this new system, and if they could not, they would not have proposed such a system.

Globalization will stomp out every mom and pop who tried to say no to its biggie fries and milkshakes, and in their place will sprout up grey, metallic effigies of industrial society. Universal healthcare is a product of the future, and as much as I hate it, this is how it has to be. Society must be built now to help the weaker people; not even natural selection can take place anymore.

This is necessary. When 9/11 happened, and we got security cameras everywhere, that had to happen. Police officers in schools had to happen. Not happy about that? Get over it. I just wish it didn't taste so badly.

Proud supporter of Nobody,
Vael Victus