This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010 at 12:00 pm and is filed under Hits & Misses. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Bon appétit: “While most of the 76 million reported foodborne illnesses a year are mild, 325,000 hospitalizations and 5,000 deaths are related to tainted food each year.”
Earning their keep: “As Congress worked on health care legislation that would dramatically reshape their industry…donations by the top 15 health care political action committees rose to $11.7 million in 2009.”
64% of hospital patients steal: They take numerous items from hospital rooms, costing hospitals nationwide at least $52 million annually.
February 23rd, 2010 at 12:29 pm
Political donations naturally flow to Congress, so the fact that health interests donated $11+ million to politicians should be no surprise … especially in a year when Congress is debating health reform.
Wherever private property exists, special interest groups arise to protect their interests. This naturally leads to accusations of unfair influence and control. Liberals only know two ways to address this problem: (1) eliminate or control the liberty to protect private property (e.g., campaign finance limitations), or (2) allow everyone an equal amount of property (e.g., redistribution of wealth).
In a free political marketplace, special interests should be liberated to defend their private property. In fact, James Madison said “the more special interests, the better.” I am paraphrasing, of course. Here’s what he really said: “Extend the sphere and you take in a greater variety of parties and interests; you make it less probable that a majority of the whole will have a common motive to invade the rights of other citizens; or if such a common motive exists, it will be more difficult for all who feel it to discover their own strength, and to act in unison with each other.” In other words, the more special interests that exist, the more they will check and cancel each other out.
February 23rd, 2010 at 1:41 pm
I don’t know why anyone in their right mind would steal a telephone from a hospital room. Yuck.
February 23rd, 2010 at 2:14 pm
Nearly two-thirds of hospital patients steal? Wow!
In 1990 I lost a Sony Walkman from my office at Baylor, where I was an accounting manager. Our patients were very sick, so I always assumed it was taken from my office by a patient’s family member while I was out (they left a half-used cup of coffee sitting by my door).
That’s when I realized what the lock on my office door was used for.
February 23rd, 2010 at 2:34 pm
Interesting to see tha Congress is getting theirs while the rest of us watch this ridiculous side show.