<html><head><style type="text/css"><!-- DIV {margin:0px;} --></style></head><body><div style="font-family:times new roman,new york,times,serif;font-size:12pt">Clarification from the Krugman blog:<br><br><span class="timestamp published" title="2010-11-14T12:40:18+00:00">
<span class="date">November 14, 2010, <em>12:40 pm</em></span></span>
<h3 class="entry-title"><a href="http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/14/death-panels-and-sales-taxes/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link to Death Panels and Sales Taxes">Death Panels and Sales Taxes</a></h3>
<div class="entry-content"><p>I said something deliberately provocative
on This Week, so I think I’d better clarify what I meant (which I did on
the show, but it can’t hurt to say it again.)</p>
<p>So, what I said is that the eventual resolution of the deficit
problem both will and should rely on “death panels and sales taxes”.
What I meant is that</p>
<p>(a) health care costs will have to be controlled, which will surely
require having Medicare and Medicaid decide what they’re willing to pay
for — not really death panels, of course, but consideration of medical
effectiveness and, at some point, how much we’re willing to spend for
extreme care</p>
<p>(b) we’ll need more revenue — several percent of GDP — which might most plausibly come from a value-added tax</p>
<p>And if we do those two things, we’re most of the way toward a sustainable budget.</p>
<p>By the way, I’ve <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/21/opinion/21krugman.html">said this before</a>. </p>
<p>Now, you may declare that this is politically impossible. But medical
costs must be controlled somehow, or nothing works. And is a modest VAT
really so much more implausible than ending the mortgage interest
deduction?</p>
<p>So that’s my plan. And I believe that some day — maybe in the first Chelsea Clinton administration — it will actually happen.</p>-----------------------------------------------------------------------<br></div>Several economists have pointed out that if our medical expenditures <span style="font-style: italic;">per capita</span> were the same as other advanced industrialized countries (all of which have better health outcomes, on the whole), we'd be running surpluses. But, wasteful health care spending is someone's income, all of whom have influential legislators and lobbyists behind them.<br><div> </div>Ron Force<br>Moscow Idaho USA<div><br></div><div style="font-family:times new roman, new york, times, serif;font-size:12pt"><br><div style="font-family:times new roman, new york, times, serif;font-size:12pt"><font face="Tahoma" size="2"><hr size="1"><b><span style="font-weight: bold;">From:</span></b> the lockshop
<lockshop@pull.twcbc.com><br><b><span style="font-weight: bold;">To:</span></b> Tom Hansen <thansen@moscow.com>; Moscow Vision 2020 <vision2020@moscow.com><br><b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Sent:</span></b> Mon, November 15, 2010 8:09:17 AM<br><b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Subject:</span></b> Re: [Vision2020] Sarah Palin's Alaska Premiere (videos)<br></font><br><meta http-equiv="x-dns-prefetch-control" content="off">
<style></style>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2">Speaking of Ms. Palin, I couldn't help but think of
her when I heard Paul Krugman remark on ABC's "This Week with Christiane
Amanpour" that the "real soution" to the countries debt crisis would include
"death panels."</font></div>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2"></font> </div>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2">I seem to have this vivid recollection of Mr.
Krugman being cited numerous times here on the V, by those who would have us
believe that they tuned in to such things, as a man of esteemed stature and
impressive intellect. In short, the fair haired boy of the American left. I also
seem to recall these same folks belittling Gov. Palin as the queen of the
short bus passangers when she warned of the potential for exactly the same
thing.</font></div>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2"></font> </div>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2">So which is it. Was Krugman suddenly struck by a
massive swarm of stupid or, did Sarah's I.Q. leap up by about forty points? Let
the rationalization begin.</font></div>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2"></font> </div>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2">g</font></div>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2">----- Original Message ----- </font>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2">From: "Tom Hansen" <</font><a rel="nofollow" ymailto="mailto:thansen@moscow.com" target="_blank" href="mailto:thansen@moscow.com"><font face="Arial" size="2">thansen@moscow.com</font></a><font face="Arial" size="2">></font></div>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2">To: "Moscow Vision 2020" <</font><a rel="nofollow" ymailto="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com" target="_blank" href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com"><font face="Arial" size="2">vision2020@moscow.com</font></a><font face="Arial" size="2">></font></div>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2">Sent: Monday, November 15, 2010 6:16
AM</font></div>
<div><font face="Arial" size="2">Subject: [Vision2020] Sarah Palin's Alaska Premiere
(videos)</font></div></div>
<div><font face="Arial"><br><font size="2"></font></font></div><font face="Arial" size="2">Nobody actually wants to sit through an hour of Sarah Palin's
reality<br>show, so here are the five most ridiculous moments from the
premiere,<br>courtesy of Gawker TV at:<br><br></font><a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://tv.gawker.com/5689869/the-five-most-ridiculous-moments-from-the-sarah-palins-alaska-premiere"><font face="Arial" size="2">http://tv.gawker.com/5689869/the-five-most-ridiculous-moments-from-the-sarah-palins-alaska-premiere</font></a><br><br><font face="Arial" size="2">---------------------------------------------------------<br><br>The Five
Most Ridiculous Moments from the Sarah Palin's Alaska
Premiere<br><br>--------------<br><br>5) Is Rock Climbin' Hard? You
Betcha!<br><br>Palin tried to go rock climbing-it didn't turn out so
well.<br><br>--------------<br><br>4) The Requisite "Mama Grizzly"
Reference<br><br>Palin watched two grizzly bears go at it-and then related it to
herself<br>and made a veiled political reference,
obviously.<br><br>--------------<br><br>3) (Border) Fence Talk<br><br>Palin
lamented the fact that a reporter moved in next door. Worse, this<br>guy is
writing a "hit piece" on her! So, Todd built a 14-foot fence to<br>keep him
away-and Palin thinks the rest of the country should do the same<br>(to keep out
illegal immigrants!).<br><br>--------------<br><br>2) Like Bristol, Like
Willow<br><br>Palin's daughter, Willow, had a boy over. Willow and the boy tried
to go<br>upstairs together, and Palin didn't like
this.<br><br>--------------<br><br>1) The Theme Song<br><br>Seriously-just
listen/watch.<br><br>--------------<br><br>Watch the videos at:<br><br></font><a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://tv.gawker.com/5689869/the-five-most-ridiculous-moments-from-the-sarah-palins-alaska-premiere"><font face="Arial" size="2">http://tv.gawker.com/5689869/the-five-most-ridiculous-moments-from-the-sarah-palins-alaska-premiere</font></a><br><br><font face="Arial" size="2">---------------------------------------------------------<br><br>Seeya
round rown, Moscow.<br><br>Tom Hansen<br>Moscow, Idaho<br><br>"The Pessimist
complains about the wind, the Optimist expects it to change<br>and the Realist
adjusts his sails."<br><br>-
Unknown<br><br><br>=======================================================<br> List
services made available by First Step Internet, <br> serving the
communities of the Palouse since 1994.
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<br> </font><a rel="nofollow" ymailto="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com" target="_blank" href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com"><font face="Arial" size="2">mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com</font></a><br><font face="Arial" size="2">=======================================================</font>
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