That Facebook meme

[rhu]

[Adapted from a comment on hahathor's journal.]

Today, many of my friends devoted their Facebook status updates to a call for health care reform. Unfortunately, I think the particular wording of the "meme" was counterproductive. What I find frustrating about it is that by positing an unachievable absolute it makes those who support health care reform look like idiots.

The first part of the "meme" says: "No one should die because they cannot afford health care." Sure, in an ideal world, but there will always be some people who cannot afford the particular treatment that they need, even with private insurance and government single-payer purchasing power. Our cumulative needs exceed our cumulative resources.

The second part says: "No one should go broke because they get sick." Well, once you accept that there will have to be limits on the degree to which private and/or public insurance can pay for one's care, then there will always be some people who will have to choose between paying for the additional care themselves until they're broke, or dying. [What I assume this clause is actually trying to talk about is that with any sort of needs-based entitlement program you'll have people who have to spend down to eligibility.]

So once one admits that these ideals are unrealistic, to have lots of people stating them as absolute fact --- and encouraging others to do so --- makes it look like the people supporting health care reform are being unrealistic. Which makes it easy for others to dismiss health care reform itself as unrealistic.

We can do better. We must do better. But we cannot achieve perfection, and this "meme" makes the best the enemy of the good. And that's why I dislike it.

Comments

[cnoocy]

Would you object to a meme that said "No one should die because they get mugged on the street."? I don't see "x should not happen" as a belief that it's always possible to stop x from happening.

I think the second part is a reference to the often-quoted statistic that the U.S. has 700,000 medical bankruptcies a year, while other developed nations have 0.

[530nm330hz.livejournal.com]

My objection to the meme is not with the sentiment behind it; I just think it's very bad tactics at this point.

If we were in a national debate about how to end the epidemic of mugging-related murders, and one party was trying to push through a national concealed-carry law, and used "No one should die because they got mugged on the street" as their rallying cry, I would certainly criticize that effort as misguided, for the same reasons I give here, even if I supported their goal (which I wouldn't).

I certainly wish we lived in a world where no one would die because they couldn't afford health care. Or food, shelter, and clothing, for that matter. I certainly agree with the premise as it is stated: no one should die of anything but old age.

But in the current political climate, I believe that the wording of this particular statement will alienate the undecideds. We're trying to convince people to pay, to change, and this "meme" is too easily read as a "too good to be true" promise of what we'll get. This will cost the reform movement credibility at a time when we can't afford that.

[sethg]

I think Mark Kleiman's one-sentence health insurance reform is a particularly devious (and I mean that as a compliment) proposal. It's also concise enough to be translated into a meme.

[rymrytr.livejournal.com]

Speaking of "politics", Alan Keyes is at it again.

He wants money (http://rymrytr.livejournal.com/) from my old Mother!