What were the town hall meetings and tea parties all about? Healthcare reform? Sure. But the anger exhibited by our fellow citizens was clearly grounded in a much broader frustration over the continuing growth of government. The current debate over healthcare reform was a lightening rod -- and the results have been explosive.
And that's not surprising when you consider that healthcare reform, as positioned by the President and many senior members of Congress, would represent the biggest increase in the size and expense of government in our lifetime.
Many who favor such programs point to Great Britain and their National Health Service (the NHS) as a desirable model of single-payer delivery. But small government it ain't. Consider this: the NHS is the single largest employer in Great Britain. In fact, it's the world's fourth largest employer -- only the Chinese People's Liberation Army, Wal-Mart, and the Indian Railways directly employ more people.
Americans believe that the healthcare reform packages being considered by Congress would result in ever bigger government. They're right. Whether or not that's the right thing to do is another matter.
And that's not surprising when you consider that healthcare reform, as positioned by the President and many senior members of Congress, would represent the biggest increase in the size and expense of government in our lifetime.
Many who favor such programs point to Great Britain and their National Health Service (the NHS) as a desirable model of single-payer delivery. But small government it ain't. Consider this: the NHS is the single largest employer in Great Britain. In fact, it's the world's fourth largest employer -- only the Chinese People's Liberation Army, Wal-Mart, and the Indian Railways directly employ more people.
Americans believe that the healthcare reform packages being considered by Congress would result in ever bigger government. They're right. Whether or not that's the right thing to do is another matter.
