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The Broken Engine
An engine makes something go. When the engine breaks, the powered vehicle stumbles and slows, eventually chugging to a stop if not promptly repaired. We are told by the current administration that several of our national engines are broken and need to be fixed by the master mechanic in that great repair shop on the hill. These broken engines include our economy, health care and foreign policy. Let's take a look at these poor, broken engines of society, and perhaps one other not yet identified.
Our economic engine for many decades has been the free enterprise capitalist system. The United States has become the most powerful and successful economic force in the world, perhaps in history. Government did not do this. It was done through the blood, sweat and tears of generations of entrepreneurs, investors, workers and businessmen/women who were largely motivated by personal benefit or profit. Yes, we were blessed with resources, but no more than many other areas in the world and frequently significantly less. Africa is perhaps the richest continent on Earth and today it comprises much of the so-called third world, an economic cripple.
How did this happen? Was it the will of God? I rather doubt it, although I don't think He minded. I believe it was because of our ethnic and racial diversity. (Really!) The immigrants that populated this land were expatriates from their native lands who had the guts and determination to seek a better place of opportunity far away from home. They constituted a rare breed, born of desperation but fueled with a fire within to better their lot and willing to risk everything to achieve it. They even fought a bitter and costly Revolution to gain the freedom to pursue their fortunes as they saw fit.
There were mistakes; slavery was one. But even there this great nation shut it down--at great cost--and has made a herculean effort to assimilate its victims, admittedly with mixed success. Yet even with this inauspicious start, minorities have made some great contributions to this marvelously tuned economic and societal engine we call the United States of America.
The wonder of capitalism is its inherent limitless opportunity for personal benefit based on the profit motive. Today, we are told this engine is broken and not only must undergo major repairs but must be replaced with a better one, one that has been tried in other parts of the world and is being abandoned as inherently underpowered and defective. The justification is a series of economic bumps in the road, some rather nasty but none caused by the engine itself. In fact, those bumps were laid down largely by government in the mistaken idea that the engine was powerful enough to surmount anything. Most of them are now behind us and, so long as the engine is allowed to run at full power, the road will smooth out. However, tear it out and replace it with a worn-out substitute and the economic vehicle it drives will fail to negotiate the obstacles and grind to a halt.
The engine of the free-market capitalist system is strong enough to climb out of the recessionary ditch in which we find ourselves. The crippled wreck of statist economic control (Socialism, if you will) has not the power to reach level ground, as has been amply demonstrated historically and presently overseas.
The second "broken" engine is health care. We are told that it is "irrevocably broken" and the statistic of 45 million uninsured is quoted to support this allegation. The rapid rise in cost, two to three times the inflation rate, is cited as another symptom of breakdown. Finally, the higher rate of birth and infant mortality compared to some other countries is cited as proving that the quality of care is lacking.
Of course, the 45 million statistic is never broken down. How many of these uninsured are so by choice, preferring to spend the insurance premiums on personal goodies or retirement savings? My father was one of these, much to his later dismay, and he was not alone. How many are uninsured through simple neglect, particularly with respect to children? How many disadvantaged single-parent households simply prefer to use the Emergency Room instead of paying nominal Medicaid premiums. How many are illiterate and don't know how to even apply for the health care safety nets that already exist? These "deficiencies" are not the fault of the health care system; they are a societal problem.
The statistic of natal mortality is also misleading. We must face the fact that we have a significant population of minorities that frequently find the complexities of our society too daunting to handle and fail to avail themselves of freely available pre- and post-natal care. Also, there is a segment of the white population living in isolated locales that is out of touch with the system. Other countries do not have our diversity of population. Some have deliberately excluded non-native ethnic and racial groups in the interest of national "purity". This leads to a comparison that is at least partially "apples and oranges."
The simple fact is that when a medical problem is severe and challenging, patients inevitably come here for treatment. We have the highest level of medical expertise and technology in the world. Of course, it is expensive, too expensive. There is needless duplication of costly equipment like MRI and PET scanners, and drug costs are outrageous. An antibiotic priced at over $13 a pill is simply indefensible (Avelox). Ridiculous hospital wars as we see locally between Aurora and ProHealth also contribute to increased cost at no benefit to patients.
Some degree of government regulation of duplicative facilities and elimination of costly drug competition and advertising seems justified and would go a long way toward reducing costs. We don't need a half-dozen statin drugs that all control cholesterol in essentially the same way. We also don't need four different pills to treat ED. (I don't think we need any.) Tort limits to reduce excessive malpractice judgements that run up insurance costs would also help. Much of the mechanism for these controls is already in place through the FDA and FCC.
I'm going to limit commentary on foreign policy, since this contentious subject has been discussed and screamed about ad nauseum. It is my opinion, admittedly controversial, that the foreign policy of the last 16 years (including Clinton) has been reasonably effective although not without setbacks. Terrorist attacks, while still numerous, are much less sophisticated and deadly. Iraq is nearly pacified and going about the business of self-government and getting us out of their hair.
I believe that where we have had success is in the confrontation of evil with force. This was true in the Cold War and also to some extent in the Middle East. The present thrust of conciliation and extending the hand of friendship will simply result in that hand being bitten. Like it or not, geopolitics is largely driven by power. Negotiated settlements are simply pieces of paper easily thrown aside when they become inconvenient. Neville Chamberlain found that out to his dismay, and it remains true to this day. North Korea is back to building nukes and ICBM's, despite Jimmy Carter's much-ballyhooed and rewarded negotiated agreements. Iran is another problem area where UN sanctions and jawboning have proven totally ineffectual.
I don't believe the foreign policy engine of the past decade plus is broken and in need of major overhaul. We have been successful where we have applied our economic and military power. The present administration has severely cut the defense budget of the Air Force, the one military element that establishes our pre-eminence. Pakistan has more soldiers than we do; the difference is air power. That's one engine we degrade at our peril. This is not a friendly world and there is nothing we can do to make it so. All we can do is maintain the deterrent of superior power.
Finally, the engine that really is broken. Our political system bears little resemblence to that envisioned by our Founders. Washington is populated by professional politicians obsessed with longevity in office. Legislation greatly affecting the public is configured in secret and passed in the middle of the night through parliamentary tricks, intimidation and subterfuge. Votes are purchased via earmarks with little regard for the main issues involved. All our politicians seem to care about is being able to come home and campaign on the goodies he or she obtained for "you voters." Politicians are most dangerous when they operate in silence, for then they are doing something that won't stand the light of day.
Inspectors General are fired or let go when they step on the toes of the executive. Threats and intimidation are tools of the trade. The public good is rarely if at all the driving force behind legislation that panders to campaign contributors and support groups. It's ALL about getting elected or re-elected. Political campaigns are orgies of mendacity filled with promises intended to fool the electorate into voting for the candidate, that will subsequently be ignored. We have indeed achieved the end of truth when it comes to politics.
Yes, this is the real broken engine. This is the engine that needs a major overhaul. Term limits are a start. Real campaign finance reform is another needed repair. The science of subterfuge practiced in the halls of government threatens to subvert the democratic process in favor of the meanest of power politics. Unless we fix this runaway machine, we are headed for a disastrous crash. Time for a stop-strip to blow the tires on this juggernaught.
The strength of country for many years was a well regulated market. The world envied us. The system worked on fairness and efficiency. People successfully worked this system in cooperation with our government, which assured that the system was sustainable.
The problem in recent years is that the machinery that assures that our system is sustainable has been dismantled. The forces of unconstrained business do not inherently maintain the values that Americans deem are necessary for a civilized society. The recent collapse of the real-estate market as well as the Libby asbestos disaster in Montana are just two examples of where our government is stepping in at enormous costs to the taxpayers. In these cases, a capitalistic system was still the best system, however, the balance of capitalism that government regulation could have provided would have dwarfed the expenditures that we now experience.
The government must fill another void in the present-day capitalist system. The profits of capitalism would never have brought us into the technology age without leadership from government. The costs of the Apollo missions, envisioned by one of the greatest Democrats, John F Kennedy, would not have reaped enough short term profits to have generated the technologies that we enjoy today. It was a vision from government leadership, along with the ingenuity of free market companies like McDonnel Douglas, Boing, Grumman, and others that succeeded in this endeavor.
Leaders with long-term vision are what we now need to solve the endless spiral of costs that are occurring in our health care system. Private groups, working for short-term profits do not have this type of vision. We need a leader that is capable of looking beyond the horizon of the short-term profit. Luckily, we now have leadership in place that is willing and capable of providing that vision.
Al...a good piece of history and a good lesson. we just need our democrats in Washington and our liberals to understand all this. Taking away our capitalism and putting it in the hands of any government has never worked and will not work in the freest country in the world, the USA. Yes, all societies have their share of problems. But to take any part of our free capitalism away and hand it to others will not make our country better. Only worse. But you will never get through to those that want the handouts. That’s how so many liberal democrats get elected: demagoguery.
Terrific piece, Al. You're 100% right--LCP is clearly on drugs--his final line is proof-positive.
Liberals "broke" the system with self-victimization, laziness, corruption, idolatry, weak morals, drugs, perversion, and general stupidity.
You said it much better, of course, but that's the facts!!!
Jim: Thanks. There is the private sector, still mostly free-market capitalist, and the government sector, sometimes mislabeled the "public sector." So long as they are relatively separate, the system can work. When government takes over private business, then it all goes to pot. Even the Chinese learned that lesson. The ability of the left to ignore obvious lessons of history and the present and charge blindly into the Valley of Death just amazes me. Maybe appalls is a better word.
ajohnson911: Thanks for the comment. The lure of controlling power is difficult to resist, especially for the left. Lord Acton wrote in 1887, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." I think what we are seeing in Washington today fully validates the statement.
I'm sorry you think McDonnel Douglas, Boing, Grumman were looking for habdouts. Intelligent people know they weren't. Too bad you're wrong again.
Talk about corruption:
Talk about creating debt:
Why did it cost $1,000,000,000,000 for Bush to fight some guys in a cave? And why wasn't that enough to finish the job?
That's 1,000,000 millionaires.
At 4 people per family, we could have given 1 in every 30 families $400,000. Instead, Bush wanted to spend 8 years going after some guys living in caves and still couldn't get it done.
The right-wing fanatics think he was so smart with that plan, they'd like to keep going.
My post is CLEAR. There is no suggestion that the government run any private business. Your insistence that it says something else is a reflection on your VIEW, not on reality.
"Lord Acton wrote in 1887, "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." I think what we are seeing in Washington today fully validates the statement."
I think that's why the republicans, who had control of SCOTUS, the White House, and congress has been reduced to a minor role. Their corruption was exposed to the people when they broke their promises. For instance, when they had complete control of all three branches of government, they could have completely rid the country of abortion just as they promised they would. However, they did almost nothing in that respect.
Al: Using your engine analogy, and not sounding very liberal like, I wonder why we continue to re-power with bigger and bigger engines. Won't a 4 cylinder Jeep with the proper gearing get you the same place as a 8 cylinder Hummer?
Ref: I'm the wrong one to ask, having driven a 1970 Buick with the marvelous 455 cu. in. (8.3L) V8 engine for over 170,000 miles. This same engine was used in the starting cart for the SR-71 Blackbird, the highest performance aircraft ever built. I sold the rusted-out Buick in 1999 to some kid who wanted it for the engine, which still ran perfectly and would easily lay rubber with an automatic. I also once owned a factory hot-rod 1956 Chevy Bel Air with the small-block V8 that routinely ate up Plymouth Furys at stoplights. Great fun! Anyway, today's Jeep comes with a 3.8L V6 engine.
I guess the real answer is some folks like a car that performs well, just like we would like government to perform. I recently drove a guy's 1977 Porsche 930. There's no feeling like being pressed back into the seat with your head snapping back when you punch it.
lake country progressive...you data is wrong again. The democrats have full control and have since the 2006 elections. And look what has happened to America. We are losing our freedom, changing to a socialistic state, gas went to over $4.00 per gallon, the economy has tanked, we almost lost our financial system, we have unemployment not seen in decades, our dollar collapsed, corruption is at an all-time high, we lost two of our auto manufactures, and the worst dictators who have no respect for woman or anyone who doesn’t follow their ideology (sound like liberalism?) now have nukes. Need more LCP?
"you data is wrong again. The democrats have full control and have since the 2006 elections."
Wrong.
"We are losing our freedom"
I am. Having to correct you so often.
"gas went to over $4.00 per gallon we have unemployment not seen in decades, our dollar collapsed, corruption is at an all-time high, we lost two of our auto manufactures, and the worst dictators who have no respect for woman or anyone who doesn’t follow their ideology"
while Bush was persuing his criminal activities.
"sound like liberalism?"
Since you've asked, no, it sounds like we've been Bushed.
Please tell me you didn't think Bush was a Democrat. 2006? Please!
“self-victimization, laziness, corruption, idolatry, weak morals, drugs, perversion, and general stupidity.”
Neocons on Self-victimization: The media is so biased against us.
Neocons on laziness: Wall street requests bailouts.
Neocons on corruption: Spend $1,000,000,000,000 on fighting some guys in caves.
Neocons on idolatry: The mighty dollar and profits over humanity.
Neocons on weak morals: Kill all muslims. Also, the mighty dollar and profits over humanity.
Neocons on drugs: Rush Limbaugh.
Neocons on perversion: Bill-O
Neocons on general stupidity: Spend $1,000,000,000,000 on fighting some guys in caves.
Ref: Despair not, I fully understood your comment and just decided to have some fun with it. Hope you don't mind. I agree wholeheartedly that the government Hummer--more like an Edsel--is hopelessly "over-engined" at both the federal and state levels.
"In a democracy, the people get the government they deserve." (Attributed to Alexis de Toqueville but maybe actually a paraphrase from Joseph de Maistre.) Actually, only about 53% of the people deserve what we presently have in Washington. I'm waiting for the wheels to come off.
Jim: Don't waste your time.
Lake country progressive...now a lesson in politics (I'm really getting worried about you and your knowledge).
Democrats ran our government since 2006. Where have you been? The Senate makes the rules (did you not hear what Obama and Pelosi said after Obama won or did you just plain old forgot?). They said since Obama won, "we write make the rules."
That's what you party has done since and this country is now in shambles.
You would make an outstanding ACORN employee.
You really think Bush was a Democrat and the Democrats had complete control in 2006?
I guess it doesn't surprise me.
Or maybe it's because Bush never had anything under control? Hmmm.... Nah... It's not that. It's because you just can't help from being wrong.
Jim: In all fairness, while Democrats controlled Congress from 2006 on, President Bush very adroitly wielded his veto pen to sink the nuttiest of the left-wingnut claptrap emanating from the halls of Congress. It is true the Republicans were unable to accomplish anything pro-active in terms of legislation.
Hollywood, MoveOn, ACORN and of course the media all came together in 2006 to hoodwink the electorate into blindly voting against anything Republican. They now have complete control of the federal government with, thanks to Bush, the exception of the Supreme Court which is probably safe for the duration.
With any luck, this finger in the dike will hold until the public regains idealogical perspective
Al: Didn't despair, waited patiently. Got me thinking about some of the cars I used to own. Younger days - '49 Ford with a '51 Merc flat-head in it. A '64 Lark Daytona R3 4speed convertible (had to put a few miles on that one on Saturday night going to bigger towns to pick up a few bucks from the goat and pony boys). Then came family and station wagons and mini-vans. Realized that, in some small way, I have contributed to the demise in Detroit. No not by purchasing foreign cars, but by not purchasing at all. The last new car I bought was a 1997 Chrysler T&C. Still driving it daily with 256,733 miles on it. Averaging 27-28 mpg highway and 20-21 in town. I'll drive it till it drops.
Ref: How about that. My first car was a '49 Ford (factory flat-head). Traded it in on the '56 Chevy, which had the 270 V8 with factory power pack: high compression heads (8.6:1), 4-barrel Carter W2, dual exhaust, Borg-Warner overdrive tranny with a 4.11:1 rear axle. I put a Mallory dual-point conversion in her (everything else stock) and she flat-out screamed. 0-60 in 6.9, 0-100 in 19 sec. flat, 84 mph in the quarter mile. I loved that car. Got 23 mpg on the highway.
Bought a '74 Vega which I drove for 10 years until it lost a cylinder. Replaced it with an '85 Toyota Corolla which I drove for 232,000 trouble-free miles and sold for $500, everything working but lots of rust. Guy who bought it depended on his girlfriend for transportation and hated it. I was asking 600 but took pity on him as that was all he could afford--his whole paycheck. I am now a total Toyota fan, with a '99 Camry and a '98 Tacoma 4WD. Love them both. Sorry, Detroit.
Ref: There's a moral to all this nostalgic car stuff. There was a time when Detroit built cars that people fell in love with. They weren't perfect. You always had to go back and get things fixed under the warranty, which typicaly was 3 months. They usually wore out in less than 100,000 miles and burned oil much sooner than that. Yet we loved them because they looked cool--fins, chrome and all--and those big V8's really exhilarated us. Government left the auto industry alone and the Big Three ruled the automotive world.
Then government began to intervene with emission requirements, fuel economy mandates and safety requirements. We got smaller cars, higher prices and bland performance, and America gradually fell out of love. The Japanese out-flanked Detroit who unwisely fought the government mandates and struggled to convert to a whole different automotive paradigm. Detroit struggled, making some bad decisions along the way. And the death-knell began to sound.
This is what big, all-powerful government does all too often. In the name of the public benefit, it destroys what it tries to fix. I have no confidence that the results will be any different today.
Tags: Politics
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