Where the ‘Power Lies’

Ronald Reagan once said, “Concentrated power has always been the enemy of liberty,” but as a notable laissez-faire, classically liberal economist, he certainly wasn’t speaking of corporate greed and the ‘too big to fail’ mentality. He spoke of the philosophy embodied by an over reaching federal government that taxed every moving thing, regulated those which survived, and subsidized the problems it created. Sadly President Reagan is unable to comment on our current economic situation, but one has to wonder what his stance might be given that the power present corporations yield over taxpayers proves limitless time and time again.

Private sector corporations have been deemed too big to fail and taxpayer money has been spent rectifying their mistakes. Present day robber barons continue to pursue sociopathic realities that take advantage of their own countrymen and ignore their plight through exorbitant bonuses, lavish retreats, and office remodeling. And yet, with these examples, and others too numerous to list, some argue that the government, by proposing to  protect its citizens through increasing oversight and regulation, is becoming too powerful or ’socialist’.

Maybe I missed the revolution or misunderstand our founders’  intentions, but when did corporate fuedalism become ok?

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Effect of Free Market Capitalist Hedonistic Consumerism in Healthcare.

The rise of hedonistic consumerism in America over the last sixty years has created long term problems only now being realized by present generations. Starting with rapid technological development and the resulting post war economic boom, the politics and social memetics of egalitarianism that characterized the 1930’s through 1960’s gave way to an emphasis of segmentation differentiated by class status that has prevailed from the 1970s onward. The belief of Post-Ford America that materialistic acquisition defined one’s worth, power, and importance and therefore social status, led to the irrational expenditure on goods and services that were of questionable practical need. This sociological theme, although historically applicable to the acquisition of ‘big ticket’ items, has indirectly shaped the way consumers, who’ve known no other sociological theme, purchase other goods and services. (Migone 2007)

The negative effects and problematic complications of consumerism in healthcare are multi-faceted. Initially, the increased demand for medical services during the Post-Ford era combined with lack of regulation gave the limited supply of doctors the ability to exert a large amount of power over the prices they charged for their services. Doctors in turn exerted this power in order to garner as much income to secure their own place in the social structure. This created a disparity between those who were able to access medical services and those who were not. Eventually this segmentation led to the creation of managed care organizations which aimed to close the gap between the two segments.

However, by making health care vastly more accessible to both those who already had access, as well as those who had not, a new problem resulting from the consumerism mentality was created. The…