Trouble Seeing the Forest for the Trees

Why is it that the same people who are supposed to be the smartest people in any given room (if you don’t believe me just ask them) are the most inept when it comes to human behavior? Yeah I know, they went to Harvard, Yale, MIT or Wharton, but does that necessarily confer genius status on them? Come to think of it, few, if any, of the actual geniuses I know can tie their own shoelaces properly. Maybe that explains all of the Birkenstocks, loafers, and (Lord help us) Velcro-enclosed sneakers amongst the self-proclaimed “best and brightest”.

These people have been extensively (and expensively) educated in the Law, Medicine, the Sciences, Public Policy, Education, Business, etc. They have had access to the most celebrated professors in their respective fields of study. They have interned with Supreme Court Justices, Senators and Captains of Industry. They have been Fulbright and Rhodes scholars. They want us to believe all their “fancy book learnin’” has given them a greater understanding of our needs and of how to best fulfill them.

Yes, they have been taught how to operate a system. When one gets down to the basics of any education, it’s about operating systems. The practice of Medicine is about operating within the system of the human body. The practice of the Law is about operating within our system of jurisprudence. Within those systems they have learned to produce predictable results using techniques which have been achieved through much trial and error.

They have learned to take for granted the predictability of results from a proposed change in some variable with which they have decided to tinker. This attitude is completely understandable when dealing with an individual patient, client, subject, student, etc. The problems arise when they try to extrapolate their specific understanding upon the greater world outside of their area of study. In this case they have leaned the exact wrong lessons from their studies and experiences.

However, these “learned ones” have not benefited from a true “liberal arts” education. The purpose of the “liberal arts” was to free one’s mind. Instead they have been taught to specify. The classics of “liberal” thought of have been replaced with “statist” gender and minority studies. This emphasis on specificity has failed to teach them a vital lesson when dealing with fellow human beings: The one can not be treated as many, just as the many cannot be treated as one.

This failure of understanding has resulted in two contradictory but dangerous phenomena: policy by anecdote and one-size-fits-all policy.

When these “brainiacs” decide it’s time to correct some perceived “wrong” they immediately begin a predetermined multi-step process, one which they have been using for quite some years now. They begin by presenting statistics indicating how a “sizable” (if questionable number) minority of the population is being slighted by government inaction (most often) or action (much less so). They begin lining up individuals within this subgroup who are “victims” of the “problem”. The sob stories begin. These tales of woe are repeated endlessly and magnified to the point where it is forgotten that these are anecdotes. Those opposed to the proposed “correction” are then asked to justify not helping this person (don’t forget “you cruel, heartless SOB’s”). So, public policy is altered not to aid the vast majority of the people (i.e. as in “the general welfare”), but instead to aid specific individuals at the expense of the majority.

Inevitably, the tears dry, the dust settles and the new policy prescriptions are passed (few wanting to seem like a heartless SOB). Only then does someone actually read the new regulations (or laws). Lo and Behold! Not only are some of those “victims” no better off, some actually fare worse. In the process, many (if not most) who had no desire to be included have been ensnared within the new policy. The new policy being “fair”, little quarter is given for individuals’ situations. All must be treated equally, and as most often with government “equally” doesn’t mean “well”. How do you enjoy being treated “equally” by the IRS, DMV or the Post Office? Good times… good times…

Whether it’s “entitlement” reform, “health-care” reform, “immigration” reform, “environmental” regulation, the pattern is the same. Public policy sold through anecdotes. Heck, they even pulled the same trick while passing “finance” reform, except they made everyone think marble bathrooms and trips to Las Vegas were the order of the day for most financial institutions (those greedy SOB’s). Actual, useful statistics need not be presented when a “victim” (or “villain”) is readily available. Why let pesky facts get in the way?

As expected (by the SOB’s), every government program sold as helping the “down-trodden” has cost multiples of the original estimates, failed to properly address the real issues, or most likely both. Want examples? That’s easy. The ’86 Immigration Reform Law (yes, signed by Reagan) was never fully implemented, except for the amnesty part. Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security have taken over the government like a cancer. The recently passed “health-care” reform law has already doubled in cost, even before actual implementation. CAFÉ standards cause more US deaths each year than the entire Vietnam War.

Maybe the “experts” need to be sent back to their original areas of pursuit. Most are probably good practitioners in their original careers. The only downside I see? Some may end up as professors at their alma maters. Can’t see how that would be helpful. I guess it’s a risk we may have to take…

A Reply to David Frum’s “Waterloo”

A couple of weeks ago, David Frum declared Obama’s “victory” in the passage of “health care” to be the GOP’s absolute defeat. In his blog post, Waterloo (http://www.frumforum.com/waterloo), Frum blames passage of the final form of the legislation on Conservatives in the Republican Party. Frum argues that “sensible” Republicans were kept from participating in the crafting of the law by the anger of the GOP’s right-wing, with marching orders from those in the Conservative media. Further, Frum predicts federal government control of the health care industry to be irrevocable because even if the GOP gains control of Congress, it will never have enough votes or wherewithal to repeal an entitlement program, once instituted.

At the time, I was more interested in the actual passing of the “health care” bill than in what David Frum had to say about it. Yeah, I had heard he had written something that had upset some people, but what else is new, right? Like most Americans, I was too busy being upset that a temporary majority in Congress had once again taken it upon themselves to violate our Constitution and done whatever the hell they wanted to do, all in the name of, of course, the “people.” Don’t you wish these guys would stop doing things in our name, especially when they can’t get at least a bare majority to agree with them? When most of us disagree with something, it’s not “for”, it’s “to.”

Two weeks later, I’ve completed a personal post-mortem on the whole unsavory affair which included reading Frum’s Waterloo. The points he made, stated at top, are clear, concise, and well thought out, but, unfortunately, wrong. Typical for Frum, he sees things slightly out of kilter for a self-professed “conservative.” His worldview is easily explained, if you just accept that he isn’t a Conservative, at least not in the American understanding of the word.

Essentially, Frum is a Tory, a “conservative” of the English tradition. He sees conservatism as a means of balancing the unchecked expansionism of the Left. He seems to consider himself a disciple of Edmund Burke, who believed change should come through innovation, not invention. “Modernity” must come slowly, but it must come. The Tory must properly manage the ship of state and steer it out of troubled waters. The job of the Tory is to prevent the revolution. Frum doesn’t seem to understand that American Conservatism is a somewhat different philosophy.

American Conservatism is a catchall I’m using for the entire right-of-center political movement. It includes the mushy free-enterprise types, religious conservatives, libertarians, et al. The common thread through all strands of American Conservatism is the Constitution. We are all really Constutionalists. We are “conservative” because we want to conserve this document and the system of government it was supposed to codify. Yes, there are aspects of the American movement amenable to Burke, but foreign to us is that sense of statism’s inevitability.

Frum’s main point is that the Republicans’ refusal to negotiate with Obama resulted in a slightly worse law. Once again, his Tory nature led him to believe that we should slow the unstoppable. The American Conservative, the Constitutionalist, cannot accept a deal which attempts to moderate the “intolerable.” There is no “somewhat intolerable.” If we can agree to the federal government mandating a person purchase a product against their wishes, we would, in effect, say that federal power has no limit. Where would we be then?

Frum would probably consider that unrealistic, given the extra-Constitutional power already exercised by the federal government. Using that logic, any laws not enforced properly by officials would be effectively nullified. Malfeasance by officials does not change the law. Regardless of how political power is properly, or improperly, used, the U.S. federal government is limited in its scope by our Constitution. All that is necessary for the correct redistribution of power is for the people and states to reclaim it.

Once again, Frum reveals his Tory heritage. He comes from a political tradition in which all power rests with the state. There are no federal principles. There exists no written British constitution. It is just a collection of laws and precedents. All that is necessary for the complete reorganization of its structures is a simple act of Parliament. All power resides in the Sovereign, and in Britain, where once the Monarch was Sovereign, the power is in Parliament. You must remember that the British are “subjects” not “citizens.”

Frum points to examples of “conservative” backed state government health care plans to argue that it was short-sighted of Republicans to refuse to negotiate. Let me take this in two quick bites. First, in our federal system, states hold power beyond that given to the federal government. I philosophically disagree with all socialism, but unless forbidden in a state’s constitution, it’s up its citizens to make that decision. The states are the hothouses of democracy, and they are becoming choked with the overgrowth of socialism. Second, who, besides he and his backers, really considers Mitt Romney a “conservative”? Mitt’s a nice guy with some conservative positions, but do we need another Bush?

Finally, Frum predicts that the new health care laws will not be repealed. He may be right in the short-term. I cannot foresee the Republicans gaining sufficient votes to overturn a presidential veto, but we shouldn’t be deterred. As we say in the South, “there’s more than one way to skin a cat.” A Republican majority in the House or Senate can starve the numerous, newly created administrative agencies of the funds to enforce the new law. Agencies without funds are like weeds without sunlight or water, unsightly but dead.

Not that I think the Republicans shouldn’t face these laws head on. At every opportunity and in a myriad of forms, the Republicans should seek the direct repeal of this “intolerable.” We should be smart and not do just the easy parts, like repealing the taxes and the mandates, the entire enabling apparatus must be removed. Repealing legislation should be entered into every taxation and appropriations bill which comes before the President in the remaining two years of his term. The President should spend his remaining time in office expending what remains of his political capital on trying to “save” his signature piece of legislation.

So, Mr. Frum, I’m sorry, but your arguments, though well made, are ultimately unconvincing. We will not sell out our history, traditions, and government just to prevent a near-term loss. We will fight for our Constitution until the end, if necessary. If we cannot win this ideological battle, then all is really lost anyway.

Shameless Hypocrisy

I’ve had a thought percolating for quite a while now. However, it wasn’t until the passing of Ted Kennedy that it finally gelled into a thesis. Here it goes: “Shameless hypocrisy is a hallmark of the Left.” I don’t know if it’s ever been said straight out like this (If it has, please let me know. I want to give attribution.). I’m not saying I’m the first to point out the Left’s hypocrisy. The evidence is everywhere, and each of us can name countless examples.

I’m not the first to say how completely shameless their phoniness has been. Like a mountain on the landscape, it’s a permanent presence. You can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a hypocritical politician, activist, theoretician or philosophy on the Left. First and foremost, what kind of political theory believes giving “power to the people” means taking away the individual’s economic, medical, educational, philosophic decision-making powers? It is the height of hypocrisy, and brazenly so.

Hell, the life of Ted Kennedy was a parade of shameless hypocrisy. A man, who “championed the poor,” born to and living amongst privilege. A man whose vast financial holdings were in tax sheltered investments, yet who railed against the rich and called for increased taxes. A man who cared for “the people,” yet allowed a woman to die, unaided in his own car. A man, who preached about our responsibility to our fellow-man, yet took no responsibility for how his actions affected others. The leading proponent of “health care reform” was the creator of the hated HMO. Well, you get the point.

I’m not saying hypocrisy is unique to the Left. Hypocrites exist on both sides of the political spectrum. However, on the Right they are savaged when discovered. Ended careers litter the political highway as a testament to our impatience for them. Only on the Left are hypocrites honored and promoted.

Who are the Left’s heroes? Bill Clinton — the man was somehow a serial philanderer and a promoter “women’s rights.” Hilary Clinton — the model “woman of the Left” who rode her husband’s coattails to power while allowing him to disrespect and dishonor her. President Obama — a “racial healer” who attended a racist’s church for 20 years. Al Gore — the “environmental savior” who personally consumes more energy than a small town. How many of the Left’s leaders have gone to elite universities, avoided taxes, become rich while in office or as a result of connections made while in office, sent their kids to private schools, shook down corporations for sweetheart deals or campaign contributions, used the “unfair” US healthcare system to extend their lives, and left a carbon footprint the size of the Jolly Green Giant?

Yet, who are the Left’s “bogeymen” on the Right? Ronald Reagan — attacked as an “amiable dunce,” “just acting,” or “asleep at the wheel,” but somehow freed hundreds of millions of people and brought the world back from the brink of Armageddon. George W. Bush — an “inarticulate idiot” who freed tens of millions of people, including the half of these populations who were basically treated as chattel, women. Sarah Palin — another “brainless twit,” a woman who rose from obscurity to become the governor of her state through her own actions and under her own terms, and a true “feminist.”

However, it’s not just that the Left allows their politicians to remain in office once the hypocrisy is discovered. No, the Left uses hypocrisy as a political tool, and does so shamelessly. It can be seen as simple expediency: Do whatever is necessary to advance your side’s pursuit of power. However, what does that say about your ideology if all principles can be pushed aside in the accumulation of power? “What have you gained if you’ve lost your soul?” Their arguments reflect no guiding principles save the pursuit of power for its own sake.

Try having a consistent constitutional argument with a leftist. They claim unenumerated rights are discernible within the document, but deny those rights clearly enumerated. They favor federalizing constitutional rights, or demand states’ rights, whichever is convenient and necessary at the moment to expand government power. They purport that the Commerce Clause allows the federal government to regulate almost all activity within the states, but that the federal government can’t regulate medical marijuana within a state. They will argue that the only way to assure non-discrimination is to mandate discrimination. They claim the “right to bear arms” and the “takings clause” to be only in regard to the federal government, while their favored rights are enforced down to the local level (i.e. the freedom of religion equals a ban on public religious ceremonies).

The only continuing threads in leftist thought are the accumulation of government power (federal preferred, but state/local will suffice) and the undermining of the civil society (the public arena outside government purview). Unfortunately, one ultimately precedes the other. Historically, the reduction of a community’s religiosity and family centeredness leads to an expansion in government to fill the vacuum left in those areas of society. Chicken or egg?

Leftist politicians could not get in political office in America without the aid of shameless hypocrisy. The Left couldn’t gain power if its true creed were known. “Give us ever more power over your life. You don’t know, and can never know, how to properly take care of yourself. Let us make those decisions for you. Some things are too important for you to decide.” It’s not exactly a winning slogan. Without unapologetic lies and obfuscation, what do they really have? All that remains is a never-ending drive for further government control.

Thought We Couldn’t Legislate Personal Morality?

I was having a discussion with a physician who’s on call at an Emergency Room, as a surgeon. We went back and forth over the different proposals, and I got him to admit that the Democrat’s plan was not ideal. However, he insisted that something has to be done to improve the current situation because of the hardship it causes doctors. He explained to me that Emergency Room physicians have to contend with the following situation:

1.  If a hospital receives federal Medicaid/ Medicare dollars, they must admit all patients, regardless of ability to pay.

2. Physicians must treat all patients.

3.  Physicians bill these patients separately from the hospital itself.

4.  If patient has no third-party payer (insurance, Medicaid or Medicare), then the doctor must attempt to recover fees on his own.

5.  Recovery rates are very low.

I was thinking to myself, “Man, is this a screwed up system of payment for the physician or what? He has no control over his client. No proof of ability to pay. Must take all comers. No compensation by the hospital. Must seek reimbursement himself. This is terrible.”

I couldn’t imagine an automotive shop operating under that model. The mechanic would have to do the work not knowing if the client was going to pay or not. If they didn’t, he was screwed. He ‘d then have to go after the client himself trying to get his money.

I began to commiserate with him. I was telling him what a terrible compensation model it was. My goodness, the law requires him to possibly work for free. Suddenly, he acted as if I had offended him in some way. He asked, “Do you think I treat these patients because the law requires it? I’m a DOCTOR! I took an oath to heal the sick. I’d see to these patients no matter what the law says.”

Suddenly a light bulb went off. He’s acting according to his conscience. He’s following his own moral code when he treats these possibly indigent patients. His personal reward is of no consequence in this situation.

SCREW HIM!

What do you know? He turns out to be a another self-righteous prig. Don’t you dare tell me how selfless and moral you are. You want to take money from others by force of law to compensate you for the cost of practicing your morality. If it’s really that important to you, then just be happy for the deed you perform, no matter the price you pay.  Then, I’ll thank you for your avocation. Otherwise, quit whining.