Comments on: It’s okay to dislike the NHS: some Frequently Asked Questions

By: simonkaye

simonkaye — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 21:17:07 +0000

Sure thing, Churchill saw which way the wind was blowing and he deployed much the same rhetoric, absolutely. When I say “cornerstone of the Socialist Republic” etc., I’m quoting from Attlee’s election manifesto.

I think that everyone broadly agrees on the ends, these days. Means and extents are the issues, really.

By: Richard Balmer

Richard Balmer — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 19:01:51 +0000

The NHS wasn’t just the cornerstone of some kind of socialist Britain, it was a bipartisan creation of the National Unity government during the war. It couldn’t have existed without Winston Churchill, and could have failed without a consensus from both parties in the 1950s. (One of the reasons for the Attlee victory was that voters didn’t trust a Conservative government to push it through) I don’t know what that says about the prospects of a US universal healthcare system…

“The discoveries of healing science must be the inheritance of all. That is clear. Disease must be attacked, whether it occurs in the poorest or the richest man or woman simply on the ground that it is the enemy; and it must be attacked just in the same way as the fire brigade will give its full assistance to the humblest cottage as readily as to the most important mansion. Our policy is to create a national health service in order to ensure that everybody in the country, irrespective of means, age, sex, or occupation, shall have equal opportunities to benefit from the best and most up-to-date medical and allied services available.” – Churchill, ’44.

On the general subject of futuristic healthcare issues, second half of this interview is pretty amazing.

http://bldgblog.blogspot.com/2006/05/interview-with-mike-davis-part-2.html

By: Debating the NHS: A Rejoinder « Simon T. Kaye

Debating the NHS: A Rejoinder « Simon T. Kaye — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 13:37:59 +0000

[...] health, labour, News, nhs, Politics trackback I’ve had some interesting replies to my last post on this, so I thought I’d put down a bit more here. Just from the outset, though: I wrote the [...]

By: Mr. Shiro Ota

Mr. Shiro Ota — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 17:18:50 +0000

You wouldn’t institute an NHS today if Britain currently relied on a private system like that of the US?

Perhaps the NHS does constitute some semi lack of freedom (to be as detrimental to your own health as you like, although most people who live in such a way don’t seem to worry too much about their moral responsibility not to strain the system); but surely that’s more than offset (by a long way) by the benefits of aiding those who are genuinely, unavoidably, unhealthy; and those who are upstanding; hard-working citizens who could, nevertheless, not afford equivalent private care.

Randian objectivism is an understandable system that would oppose an NHS. But without subscribing to that (which I don’t), I can’t see a case for opposing its institution. In post-war Britain; or at present.

Very nice article nonetheless, Mr. Kaye. Where’s your response re. our meeting by the way?

By: Health care -- how do we move forward

Health care -- how do we move forward — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 09:25:13 +0000

Thank you for that well thought out and well written post. Your comments about its impacts on the top and bottom of society as well as your comments about responsibility are excellent perspectives.

If you would like to learn more about the US system go go http://www.ilovebenefits.wordpress.com