Paul Krugman's column in today's N.Y. Times directly confronts government intervention critics. Countering the variety of claims, many of which are unsubstantiated and vague, that a government-sponsored insurance plan would spell dire consequences for the health care system, Krugman asserts that a lack of government regulation is to blame for many of the issues making current headlines. Because of these failures, Krugman asserts that the government-is-bad, Reagonomic philosophy should have already died. Instead, it lives on a "zombie doctrine" and remains a powerful, even if just rhetorical, argument in the debate over health care reform.
Krugman's column also reminds me of the need to cut through the emotionally-charged language and political lingo to examine the real nature of possible solutions along with their probable benefits and consequences. Perception without insight can be deceptive, and many of our public figures capitalize on that idea. (See "A Soapbox Moment.") Therefore, we as the public must be conscious of what we hear, resist the urge to take it at face value, and examine the ins and outs of these important issues on our own.
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