March 6, 2007

• WARNING!!! This might be a very boring post. Or, it just might be a spark of a debate.

  Recently here in Illinois, our gov has proposed a controversial plan to help get people health insurance. His plan involves taxing businesses instead of citizens. I don't like the plan for several reasons. First, won't the businesses just past the cost onto the consumer, hence its ours to pay anyways. Plus, the tax is not fair on the businesses, after all they are not the ones that are going with out insurance. Being uninsured is a big problem and it needs everybody's support. Fortunately, I've got an idea that doesn't stand a chance in hell of ever getting passed, although it would probably go a long way to ensuring that everybody has health insurance.

  Here is my pipe dream, never gonna happen plan: legalize it. What is it, you say? Well, it is pot. And prostitution. Once made legal, it becomes overtaxed just like any other vice. And people will pay for it, generating a lot of tax dollars that need to be spent. As you know, I'm about as liberal as they come, I firmly believe that anything that doesn't affect others, should be legal. We are supposed to live in a free country. Paying somebody for sex is consensual sex between 2 adults and nobody else's business. Of course, the hookers would need to be licensed and protection must be used AT ALL TIMES. The license is just another source of tax revenue. They also would be required to get tested for STDs once a month. Look, people are paying for sex already anyways, its just not legal. Same with pot, what percentage of people have smoked or do smoke pot in America? Its got to be close to 70% that have at least done it. Its everywhere. And we spend lots of time and tax dollars to help catch people who violate prostitution and cannabis  laws. After they are caught, they have a trial which costs money. Also, any type of jail time, again costs money. So does the appeals process. It also takes time away from the police to catch other, harmful criminals. With cops redirected from the prostitution and cannabis beat, imagine how many more crimes they can solve.  Also, pot has been proven to have medicinal purpose, among other uses. It also is not nearly as bad for somebody as alcohol or tobacco and yet those are legal.

  Now,  I know there are moral issues with legalizing pot and prostitution. People say that prostitution would contribute to the divorce rate, which may or may not be true. But let's face it people, 50% of all marriages end in divorce. That's a lot. How much worse can it get? People are going to cheat, having easier access to a hooker is not going to make them more likely to cheat. Legalized prostitution just ensures that the cheating will be safe, without as much of a risk of STDs. Of course, the Christian right would very against this plan (which is a big reason why it would never pass) because it is a sinful and unmoral behavior. But, let me ask you this, which is more immoral, pot and prostitution or a child being without health insurance? How many children don't get the health care they need because they don't have coverage? The same can be said of adults. And sure, there are laws that say emergency rooms have to treat people in a life or death situation. But, when its all over, who foots the bill? Its still the consumer, the hospital passes the cost of the unpaid bills onto the health insurance companies who then pass it onto the consumers. Also, if the patient doesn't have coverage and needs health care, they then have medical bills that are stacked so high, you can see them from space. These people are poor and struggling financially as it is, more bills are only going to make things worse. They can try to pay the bills and then they are left with the choice of paying the debt or eating, which is how we get stuck with the bill. Also, their credit is then ruined because of the unpaid bills. A lengthy hospital stay can ruin a person's life. Can you honestly say that is moral? It begs the question, which is more unmoral, hookers and pot or a family without health insurance, and therefore without healthcare in a time of need. Our society won't crumble if prostitution and pot are made legal, just look at other places that have legalized it. Yet, having this many people without health insurance is not good for anybody. Its not good for the government or the economy, not good for the health care and health insurance industries and most of all, it is not good for the people. Any person who dies because they did not have access to healthcare should be a moral outrage. These are things that happen in third world countries, not the most powerful country in the world.

  A problem this complex calls for creative ideas and outside the box thinking. We would save  a lot of money not having to enforce these 2 laws. We would make a lot more money when we start taxing these vices. Now I don't have the dollar amounts or even any guesses as to how much could be generated from these new taxes. But, just look at all the money that is made from gambling taxes, enough to contribute lots of money to the school system. In terms of revenue generated, think along those lines and you have a general idea as to how much we can make and how far we can go with this.

  • 9:19 pm
  • 1 Comment