Subsidy

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Subsidising the Rich, the Poor and the Preposterous

Pros and Cons of Various Types of Subsidy
Opera	wealthy Opera lovers.	General public via tax art grants to live theatre.	Attending Opera, a very expensive type of music theatre	Opera is a very expensive form of entertainment. Without the subsidies $100.00 USD tickets would cost twice as much and a beautiful art form would die out.	Opera is a luxury. The poor should not be subsidising the luxuries of the wealthy. Opera goers are quite capable of paying their own way. Why should people who never get to see the performances or benefit in any way from them pay toward them?
Roads	car owners	General public via taxes	Driving	The gasoline tax is a very visible tax and hence one of the most unpopular. It is easier to fund the roads, bridge construction, high way patrol, snow removal etc. out of general revenue.	The road system is subsidised to the tune of about $3.00 USD a gallon. Other countries make the gas taxes fund the roads. Why should people who don’t use the roads, or who use the roads sparingly with vehicles that don’t tear up the roads, subsidise the yahoos who waste gasoline, increase dependency on foreign oil and contribute to global warming. The subsidy discourages natural conservation and efficiency. It encourages waste. The subsidy discourages the use of rail freight which is much more energy efficient.
Basic Health Care	the poor and the sick	General public via insurance fees	using medical care	Countries that have a universal medical care system are much healthier than those that don’t. Untreated disease spreads to everyone, rich and poor. Countries with a universal health care system have much healthier workers, and hence more productive workers. Ill health is partly caused by carelessness and is partly just bad luck. It is simply impossible for the unlucky individual saddled with a crippling illness to handle the burden of both earning a living while ill and paying for the medical care.	It is good thing continually winnow off the bottom tail of the bell shaped curve. The race will never become supermen without deliberately killing off the weak. The sick got that way by not taking care of themselves.
Basic Income	the poor	General public via taxes	Unemployment	A modern economy no longer has work for all. Automation, computers and outsourcing are making jobs obsolete more rapidly that the new ones created. The new jobs require ever higher intelligence, skill and education. It works best when about 5% stay the hell out the way. It is unfair to let those least wanted starve to death. They deserve at least enough food and shelter to stay alive.	It is good thing continually winnow off the bottom tail of the bell shaped curve. The race will never become supermen without deliberately killing off the weak. The bottom are not only incompenent, they are lazy and immoral and deserve to die of starvation same as in Dickens’ time.

Pros and Cons of Various Types of Subsidy

Subsidy

Who Is Subsidized?

Who Pays?

Behaviour Encouraged

Justification

Argument to Discontinue

Opera

wealthy Opera lovers.

General public via tax art grants to live theatre.

Attending Opera, a very expensive type of music theatre

Opera is a very expensive form of entertainment. Without the subsidies $100.00 USD tickets would cost twice as much and a beautiful art form would die out.

Opera is a luxury. The poor should not be subsidising the luxuries of the wealthy. Opera goers are quite capable of paying their own way. Why should people who never get to see the performances or benefit in any way from them pay toward them?

Roads

car owners

General public via taxes

Driving

The gasoline tax is a very visible tax and hence one of the most unpopular. It is easier to fund the roads, bridge construction, high way patrol, snow removal etc. out of general revenue.

The road system is subsidised to the tune of about $3.00 USD a gallon. Other countries make the gas taxes fund the roads. Why should people who don’t use the roads, or who use the roads sparingly with vehicles that don’t tear up the roads, subsidise the yahoos who waste gasoline, increase dependency on foreign oil and contribute to global warming. The subsidy discourages natural conservation and efficiency. It encourages waste. The subsidy discourages the use of rail freight which is much more energy efficient.

Basic Health Care

the poor and the sick

General public via insurance fees

using medical care

Countries that have a universal medical care system are much healthier than those that don’t. Untreated disease spreads to everyone, rich and poor. Countries with a universal health care system have much healthier workers, and hence more productive workers. Ill health is partly caused by carelessness and is partly just bad luck. It is simply impossible for the unlucky individual saddled with a crippling illness to handle the burden of both earning a living while ill and paying for the medical care.

It is good thing continually winnow off the bottom tail of the bell shaped curve. The race will never become supermen without deliberately killing off the weak. The sick got that way by not taking care of themselves.

Basic Income

the poor

General public via taxes

Unemployment

A modern economy no longer has work for all. Automation, computers and outsourcing are making jobs obsolete more rapidly that the new ones created. The new jobs require ever higher intelligence, skill and education. It works best when about 5% stay the hell out the way. It is unfair to let those least wanted starve to death. They deserve at least enough food and shelter to stay alive.

It is good thing continually winnow off the bottom tail of the bell shaped curve. The race will never become supermen without deliberately killing off the weak. The bottom are not only incompenent, they are lazy and immoral and deserve to die of starvation same as in Dickens’ time.

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