[NOISE] Re: Edited Edupage, 9 May 1996

[mccoy@communities.com (Jim McCoy)]

Hmmm... this is getting fun.  Now I have something to take out my
frustration at 3Com shipping me a broken 100baseTX hub...

Perry writes:
> Food is of paramount importance to society. Why do we have no
> government run feeding stations to replace these evil supermarkets,
> then?

I guess that farm subsidies, school lunches and the infamous "government
cheese" are all figments of our imagination...

> Heat is of paramount importance to society -- in New England you can't
> survive the winter without it. Why, then, do we not have government
> operated and financed oil companies to replace the evil private ones.

Are you aware of the fact that it is next to impossible to disconnect
gas/electricity for poor customers during the winter in these areas?
Have you ever wondered why the services rep asks you questions regarding
your income when you sign up for phone or electrical/gas services?

> Communications are of primary importance to society. Would you swap
> our phone system for the phone system in Greece, or even the one in
> France, which are publically subsidized and run by the government?

Gee, I seem to remember when the only phone system of any consequence
in the US was the Bell System.  A heavily regulated monopoly with the
government overseeing almost all aspects of the services offered.

> Do you prefer using the U.S. Postal Service, or Federal Express when
> you absolutely positively have to get the package there?

Can FedEx send a 1 oz. letter to anywhere in the world for 32 cents?  A
classic example of cherry-picking among private companies.

> If you had a choice, would you go to a V.A."hospital" or see a private
> physician?

A private physician who must adhere to governement standards and who could
not practice medicine without the permission of the government?  [okay, you
sort of have a point on this one but you were really shooting blanks on
the other issues.]

> Actually, I believe most people on this list argue for no government
> or so little that its decisions hardly matter.

Yes, but you should give better examples.  This is not an issue which is
easily argued using the "sound bites" you are trying to give us.

jim