Happy Friday. This morning: Health care yen and yang, a fantastic email and lots of stuff about Canadians…
Just pass the bill already (Paul Krugman/NYT)
So what did we learn from the summit? What I took away was the arrogance that the success of things like the death-panel smear has obviously engendered in Republican politicians. At this point they obviously believe that they can blandly make utterly misleading assertions, saying things that can be easily refuted, and pay no price. And they may well be right.
But Democrats can have the last laugh. All they have to do — and they have the power to do it — is finish the job, and enact health reform.
Don’t pass that bill (Real Clear Markets)
…for every dollar spent on health care in the United States, just 12 cents comes out of the individuals’ pockets. Imagine what food costs might be if your employer paid 88% of your grocery bill or what a trip to Saks might be like if your company covered the vast majority of the costs of the shopping spree.
Far from addressing the 12 cent problem, Obamacare would exacerbate it. With its rich subsidies, expansion of government programs, insistence that all insurance cover specific services (and some with no copayments at all), Obamacare would pour fuel on the fire of health inflation.
Professor to student: Get your s*** together (Marketplace Morning Report) I missed this a couple days ago, but it’s well worth reading.
Canada’s marvelous mortgage and banking system (The America)
…while almost 200 U.S. banks have failed since the start of the global recession in early 2008, Canada remains the only industrialized country in the world that has survived the last two years of financial and economic stress without a single bank failure.
Canada remains the only industrialized country in the world that has survived the last two years of financial and economic stress without a single bank failure.
What about the Canadian banking system allowed it to survive the recent worldwide slowdown, and even the Great Depression, without a single bank failure, and what can the United States learn from Canada about sound banking?
Emergency shipment of condoms headed to Olympic athletes (National Post)
And, as if anymore proof is needed that a wild Olympic atmosphere permeates B.C.’s largest city, now there’s an apparent condom shortage.
That’s right. As you read this, an emergency shipment of condoms is desperately making its way across Canada to the West Coast city.
Health officials in Vancouver have already provided 100,000 free condoms to the roughly 7,000 ahtletes and officials at the Games. That’s about 14 condoms per person. But as of Wednesday, those supplies started running dangerously low.
More partying at the Olympics (NPR)
After winning the women’s gold last night in a 2-0 victory over Team USA, Team Canada celebrated like true hockey players — with beer, cigars and champagne.
As NPR’s Howard Berkes reports from Vancouver, the International Olympic Committee is not pleased because the celebration came while the players were still in uniform and on the ice (plus, at least one player is underage)
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