Privatization of things like gas and electric in the UK was hailed as such, but I doubt you'll find anyone raving about the price of it all right now. I'm not just a whinging socialist though, I know there are some things that would be better off privatized. I'm with you on postal service. We should have Amazon run the entire world postal service, hahaha.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Also, this isn't entirely true of healthcare either. The private health sector is certainly more efficient and it IS of a high quality. But it's incredibly expensive for people, and inaccessible to many, as well as there being significant risk of treatments rejected for financial reasons. The public health sector may not always be as efficient, but it's more available, more ethical and CAN be run to be financially sound providing good people are in charge of it...IE a combination of expertise comprising medicine and finance (in that order)

by Anonymous 11 years ago

And also, despite what many would have us believe, the public sector is not of a low standard. Throw any of your isolated examples back in my face, I'll never believe it's an inferior system.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

I agree that the US government is a huge bureaucracy that does many thing inefficiently. However, have you thought about things like providing infrastructure? Or public libraries? Or what if there is an outbreak of a terrible virus (aside from HIV)? Would you want the free market to determine the price you would have to pay for the vaccine? Also, have you considered the regulations that protect us from things like lead in paint? The US government is a huge money blackhole, but there are things it does better than the private sector.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Infrastructure is run much better by the private sector. I live in Kansas where the only road not unbearable to drive on is the Kansas turnpike. While technically run by the state, it's run like a private road. You pay a buck fifty every time you drive on it and its totally worth it. Especially when you realize that that's less tax money you're paying

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Dude your paying the same money for taxes just sifted around. Weather you pay when you pass on it or when its on you bill at the end of the year you still pay it

by Anonymous 11 years ago

I realize that. The difference is you pay for what YOU use and not everyone else. Also the taxes don't go through the bureaucracy of government

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Yeah but I find the concept of the United states pretty selfish. I pay for what i need and I dont care about others. At least in Canada and other countries you get an all around service when ever you need it and no matter if you can afford it or not and also it doesnt depend on you condition and such.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

In general governmentally run businesses are designed to best help society, private businesses are for profit. While a governmentally operated electricity supplier might be more inefficient a privately owned company raises the prices. As was the case where I live when the price for electricity tripled once it became privately owned.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

That's where competition comes in. In the most well-functioning capitalistic society there would be enough competition among suppliers to keep prices low and services high, therefore eliminating the problem

by Anonymous 11 years ago

And in an ideal society too, the socialized healthcare system would be completely without issue. Just look at the way overly capitalistic society is going now - there are several large companies steadily taking over everything, and before long, most of the private sector will actually be controlled by a very small number of corporate interests. The private sector is NOT all good news, and its ideas on free enterprise and competition can be just as fanciful and dream-like as the hardcore socialist's! A capitalist society NEEDS government regulation, and some things SHOULD be nationalized. It's wrong to polarize the issue and say everything has to be one way or the other.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Then, why is: > NPR better than most other news outlets? > Almost every public college better than University of Phoenix and DeVry? > PBS better than most of the shit that television pushes out?

by Anonymous 11 years ago

In addition to what Bonsly guy said, you're just wrong...and way to pick the worst private colleges out there. I don't believe public schools are better than Harvard or Yale

by Anonymous 11 years ago

DeVry and the Big PP have more students. NPR is infinity better than the shit pushed by Fox News and MSNBC because it doesn't have an agenda.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Dude, you pick all the extremities. DeVry and Pheonix are essentially online classes. Of course there are going to be lots of people. That in no way makes them better or worse. Just name one public university who's academic standards are up with the Ivy League (which are all private) And fox and msnbc are the most biased and widely discredited news sources out there. You can't draw a comparison between two unlike things

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Somebody's a republican. All a matter of opinion, though. I suppose that's what makes Amirite great: the argumentative nature. Personally, I think people have so little faith in our government, that it breeds distrust in the younger generations without the ability to formulate their own opinion, but that's just me. Half and half.

by Anonymous 11 years ago

False maybe in the US but not in Canada. Health- free in the past and free in the future. Primary and Secondary high school- Free free. Books- getting expensive, Makeup- getting expensive, ect

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Right on! But please note that you shouldn't feed the anti-socialized-medicine nutcases by saying things like healthcare is free. Our healthccare systems (Canada, UK, France etc) are NOT free, because we pay for them via taxation. What brainwashed anti-socializing people don't understand, is that we actually pay the same as they would (if not less) to a private insurance company, the only difference being that we aren't under risk of being rejected for cancer treatment or surgery to keep the insurer's shareholders in the black. They're constantly told about our nonsensical "free" system that can't work - but it's not free. We pay for it, and we're guaranteed it. That's what makes us better off!

by Anonymous 11 years ago

I know what you mean its just that I have been paying taxes since the day it was born. For me the taxes are just included in the price of the product I wish to purchase. I know its not free but its free in the way that anyone can go and they wont have to choose between a limb and their house. I have 14% taxes here. Its pretty high but I don't notice it anymore. I rather pay these taxes than have to pay for doctors appointment, emergencies, treatment and all the other benefits taxes give us

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Absolutely. The advantages of paying a little more far outweigh the cons. I mean, look what happens when an insurance company stiffs you. At least in our system you know you will be treated no matter what

by Anonymous 11 years ago

Sure, things run by the government may get more expensive, but they don't//always// get worse. You also named things that got less expensive in the private sector and ignored things in the private sector that get more expensive (groceries, clothing, etc). Also, there are things in the government's control that could potentially get cheaper for the individual. For example, healthcare (which is very expensive in the private sector). Also, technology is always going to get cheaper the longer it's out, no matter if its made by the government or the private sector.

by Anonymous 11 years ago