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replied 1912d
yeah it is ;P lol. sales tax only would be nice. & i wonder how far donations only could go (esp for things like helping the poor but also for defense).
replied 1911d
I think defense can not have such uncertainty. I would want him still funded by taxes. Same with thigs like water and sewage. Healthcare and social security as well.
replied 1911d
The market provides many things stably. Its not always the same people but the result is the same. Grocery store is a good example. Gov isn’t need to say each store must stock bread.
replied 1911d
It happens naturally & there has always been bread at the store whenever I’ve wanted some. Not necessarily the same brand or kind but it’s there.
replied 1911d
Not to mention the market provide accountability to these activities. Many gov agencies are incompetent yet their budget keeps increasing
replied 1911d
Things that follow market sources should. Supply and demand is a great self regulating system. Not all thigs obey market forces though.
replied 1911d
everything caves to market forces sooner or later.
replied 1911d
replied 1910d
What I mean is that not all things can follow market forces, or be regulated by supply and demand.
replied 1906d
“Follow market forces” really just means people respond to price information. If price information is corrupted or obscured (as in healthcare) then yes, market forces do not work.
replied 1906d
I think it is the product that is the main problem. Life, or death, often make it an immeasurable problem. Also it is cheaper to prevent, than treat usually.
replied 1906d
& market can also spread risk around (insurance) in a way that still discourages reckless behavior (eg smoking)
replied 1906d
unlike political solutions that restrict the use of historical data that is "racist" or "sexist" or whatever by current political standards to accurately price insurance
replied 1906d
true, though this would bias survival to people who plan, & people who can afford to be reckless (though they would be draining their resources at a faster rate).
replied 1906d
The solution though is to return to accurate price information (freer market), not to further obscure price information by adding new rules, laws, and bureaucracy.
replied 1906d
That would be helpful at least. There are a lot of ways prices have been obscured over time. I think Americans often pay more for drugs to cover selling them cheaper in poor nations.
replied 1906d
& you're right prices can be inelastic (needing treatment for a life-threatening disease). But markets generally create alternatives & competition drives down prices/increases quality
replied 1906d
yeah, think that would help the situation a lot but it would be difficult. & US does pay more (is that a patent thing?)
replied 1906d
Pharmaceutical companies give away a lot of parasite drugs to third world nations for free. Some of the cheaper drugs are to compete with generic versions though. Some are offset price
replied 1905d
what is a parasite drug?
replied 1905d
oh you mean drugs to literally treat parasites?
replied 1905d
Yes. Parasite are a huge problem in some developing nations.