I’m not an athlete but I do know that the best way to slow down during a race is to turn your head and look at your competitor.  I hear many say that, in the end, it is a race against yourself so push hard and focus on the finish line.  I wish someone would give that advice to our current government.  From our Supreme Court Justices referencing international laws to our current administration looking to Europe for healthcare reform, I see so much time being spent looking at those behind us.

Did I offend anyone?  Sorry, but for those readers outside the US, I hate to be the one to tell you that your nation’s progress toward individual freedom lags the US (there may be argument from Singapore, Australia, NZ, and a few others, but I feel comfortable in defending my statement).  I can’t take credit for it, it’s just a fact that the US fought for independence from tyranny in the late 1700′s and has led the movement against oppression since.  This is the part of the world where those desiring freedom of expression, freedom to succeed or fail, freedom to think as an individual, freedom to pursue unlimited success, etc have come for centuries.  The US has grown to be the largest economy very quickly due to the relatively low barriers placed in our way by the whimsical acts of authoritarians.

So, why is our current administration looking to those that lag for ideas on how to advance our society?  Does Tiger Woods look to the golfer in 30th place and try to copy his swing?  Does Bill Gates try to copy the strategy of the executives of Kodak, Digital Equipment, NCR, or Unisys (for those that aren’t into technology history, those are all failed tech companies)?  No, they are the laggards, the losers.

Whomever was the one to propose the single-payer healthcare plan (aka the government-option, aka co-op plan, aka socialized medicine) should have been laughed out of the room immediately for suggesting something that those that are losing talent (brain drain of UK in the 80′s), that grow much slower than us (Europe GDP has been anemic compared to ours), and that offer little in advancement of personal freedom (class segmentation in UK, France, India) have adopted.  The response should have been “Are you nuts?  Why do we want to go backwards?  We (the nation) have fought long and hard to obtain and maintain our individual rights and you want to suggest we take a step back?  Oppression is oppression no matter what name you give it.  Get Out!”

So, my recommendation to our government, look forward, not backward.  Advance freedom, don’t rescind it.  Leverage the skill and knowledge base that collectively makes up our healthcare society rather than alienating it and risk losing it.