Tag: Universal Health Care

Why Do We Pay So Much in Taxes?

Canada is vilified in the US as a country with high taxes. Sure they have universal health insurance, but look how much they pay in taxes!! Not like here in the good ol’ US of A.!

Right?

Actually, maybe not. According to a recent study from the World Bank and PricewaterhouseCoopers, Paying Taxes 2008: A global picture, Canada ranks 99th out of 178 for total tax rate. (Top-ranked are low-tax havens like Vanatu, the Maldives and the United Arab Emirates; bottom-ranked are a number of sub-Saharan countries where taxes actually exceed 100% of commercial profits – ouch.)

Canada at 99th beats out the US at 102nd.

Manadated Coverage May Solve Nothing

There are three factions in the war over health care in our country.  In one corner are the advocates of universal single-payer care, which is my favorite team and what all other developed countries provide their citizens.  It is simple, less-expensive, and more effective in delivering health care.  Any American who is proud that the quality of care in our country is on par with Cuba should have their head examined for termites.  Somehow, one of the poorest countries of the world, long hampered economically by a boycott from the United States, is able to provide care as good as we get in this country at a tiny fraction of the cost. Hip hip … um… hooray?  We have 47 million people without health insurance and medical care costs are more than double the costs in other developed countries. 

Universal health care has been branded as socialized medicine by the evolutionarily inept.  To appease those with small brains, even smaller hearts, and no functioning conscience, politicians have looked for bandaids to put on gunshot wounds.  Mandated coverage is the new trojan horse.  Make insurance companies cover people and make people buy their terrible products as the way to increase coverage and presumably give us better health outcomes.  Never mind that forcing people to buy insurance does not guarantee that insurance companies will pay the claims. 

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