Everyone should go back and read carefully post #37, by Bruxley. Good post!
People are getting confused between making good choices, and the terrible implications of enforcing these choices via Big Government.
We have gone pretty far down the path of socialism, see how many people in this thread already buy into the "insurance" mindset (we must be protected from all risk), and now that the costs are too high, Big Government must step in to take over. Even knowing that government will be 10x more inefficient, and the service will stink; they still clamor for it! Why?
I think so many of these folks are already attached to the Big Government teat in some way, so just adding more perks... requires no further adjustment in mindset.
Even though Big Government never knows when to stop.
Example: I just talked with my neighbor, who employs some local homeless guys on her farm, out of a spirit of charity. They live in a hobo camp by the beltline, out of choice, their addictions keep them from maintaining any kind of rental housing.
One guy got passed out drunk, and tipped over a kerosene lantern on himself last winter, and burned his leg. He consumed about $50k in free government medical care getting treated for that. Now he has a disability! Social workers come on out to the hobo camp, and have now arranged for him to have a free apartment, with utilities paid! We're all trying to help the guy by pitching in furniture, but suspect he won't be able to keep from trashing what is being given to him by Big Government.
We have numerous social workers with monthly credit lines who do nothing but cater to the homeless addicts. It's kind of a running joke in the hobo camp.
As I said, Big Government never knows when to stop.