Your house has caught fire. You and your family are able to escape intact, but you hadn't been able to afford fire insurance (or, perhaps, even just the deductible for the fire truck's arrival), so all you can do now is stand outside and watch the place--everything you own, everything you've built for yourself--burn to the ground. No one is coming to help you salvage what remains.
But you will be turned into an example, a selling point for all those like you who are currently uninsured or too poor to pay the extra when their times of need actually come.
Your neighbor's home was just broken into, the woman you've known for years brutally murdered. The motive is suspiciously unclear. Her police insurance--also your police insurance--carrier's rival company sends a representative to your door, letting you know how unsuccessful your current provider was in keeping this woman safe, making promises that only end up coming across as threats--will you be next? You know at this point that the break-in was staged by none other than the rival insurance company. Business has been slow, and they're looking to scare a few people into switching over to their company.
Outbreaks of deadly, antibiotic-resistance diseases have been reported in all of the less expensive elementary schools--which are ridiculously pricey in their own right. Your son will be attending kindergarten this year, and you can't afford any of the higher-priced schools. Do you take a chance on the only school you can afford, knowing you might be putting your child in mortal danger?
What choice do you have? All of these services have become fully privatized, and there are no programs to help offset the costs. Either you have the money or you don't.
And if you go into criminal debt over any of these costs, you will suffer the consequences: a debtors prison sentence to work off what you owe. You'll probably lose your job while you're away, which means you'll probably also lose your home. It's against the law to be homeless, though--against the law to be a non-contributing member of society. Against the law to be in need. So, of course, back to prison you'll probably go.
There's been a lot of buzz lately about privatization versus socialism. Both have their merits and flaws, but rhetoric has trumped the realities behind both. Privatization means increased corporate power. If you have a decent amount of capital to your name, this absolutely works in your favor. Social democracy means higher taxes but more money put into social services (such as those I described above). If you belong to the middle or lower classes, your survival depends on many of these services remaining in the public sector.
With the upcoming election drawing ever nearer, these are issues we need to have some serious dialogues about. We cannot ignore their importance. So let's bring up these issues to friends, family, and peers. Let's argue the pros and cons. Let's think about what's important to us as a nation and take a stance. Let's do it without resorting to low blows, name calling, or rhetorical memes. Let's discuss these important issues like adults, and if need be, let's talk about what changes need to be made to our system.
Then, let's work together to fight for those changes.
I wrote The Private Sector as my way of contributing to the dialogue. It's the perfect conversation starter. Read it. Share it with your friends and family. Talk about the issues and how they relate to the current state of the nation. It is our responsibility as Americans to be involved in the directions our country takes. Let's be involved together.
Let's think. Let's talk. Let's bring the American dream back within the reach of all its citizens. We can make a difference. You can make a difference.
But you will be turned into an example, a selling point for all those like you who are currently uninsured or too poor to pay the extra when their times of need actually come.
Your neighbor's home was just broken into, the woman you've known for years brutally murdered. The motive is suspiciously unclear. Her police insurance--also your police insurance--carrier's rival company sends a representative to your door, letting you know how unsuccessful your current provider was in keeping this woman safe, making promises that only end up coming across as threats--will you be next? You know at this point that the break-in was staged by none other than the rival insurance company. Business has been slow, and they're looking to scare a few people into switching over to their company.
Outbreaks of deadly, antibiotic-resistance diseases have been reported in all of the less expensive elementary schools--which are ridiculously pricey in their own right. Your son will be attending kindergarten this year, and you can't afford any of the higher-priced schools. Do you take a chance on the only school you can afford, knowing you might be putting your child in mortal danger?
What choice do you have? All of these services have become fully privatized, and there are no programs to help offset the costs. Either you have the money or you don't.
And if you go into criminal debt over any of these costs, you will suffer the consequences: a debtors prison sentence to work off what you owe. You'll probably lose your job while you're away, which means you'll probably also lose your home. It's against the law to be homeless, though--against the law to be a non-contributing member of society. Against the law to be in need. So, of course, back to prison you'll probably go.
There's been a lot of buzz lately about privatization versus socialism. Both have their merits and flaws, but rhetoric has trumped the realities behind both. Privatization means increased corporate power. If you have a decent amount of capital to your name, this absolutely works in your favor. Social democracy means higher taxes but more money put into social services (such as those I described above). If you belong to the middle or lower classes, your survival depends on many of these services remaining in the public sector.
With the upcoming election drawing ever nearer, these are issues we need to have some serious dialogues about. We cannot ignore their importance. So let's bring up these issues to friends, family, and peers. Let's argue the pros and cons. Let's think about what's important to us as a nation and take a stance. Let's do it without resorting to low blows, name calling, or rhetorical memes. Let's discuss these important issues like adults, and if need be, let's talk about what changes need to be made to our system.
Then, let's work together to fight for those changes.
I wrote The Private Sector as my way of contributing to the dialogue. It's the perfect conversation starter. Read it. Share it with your friends and family. Talk about the issues and how they relate to the current state of the nation. It is our responsibility as Americans to be involved in the directions our country takes. Let's be involved together.
Let's think. Let's talk. Let's bring the American dream back within the reach of all its citizens. We can make a difference. You can make a difference.
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