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What if I presented you with the following data on health care costs in the US (these are roughly 2009 dollars)?

1972: $54 billion

1980: $116 billion (doubling in less than a decade!)

1990: $200 billion

2000: apx $320 billion

You’d likely point to the 6-fold real increase in “costs” and say, “yep, that’s a major problem.” I don’t want to get into whether or not that is a problem right now, or whether it is correct to call these expenditures “costs” I want to raise quite a different issue. What issue?

Well, the data from above represents (roughly) the total spending on pollution control (public and private) in the United States since 1972. Direct pollution control spending now takes up about 2% of GDP, far larger than at any point in our history. And the increasing cost of pollution control is making it harder and harder for ordinary Americans, whose wages have stagnated since 1980 while the richest Americans have seen their incomes explode, to secure the pollution control that they want. For some families, they are having to face the hard choice to consume more pollution control, or other basic necessities. Therefore, it is imperative that Congress steps in and does something before the nation is bankrupted, and 50 cents on every dollar is “taken up” by pollution control.

Of course, all I did was replace “health care” with pollution control from the way the health care issue is typically presented. Yes, health care does “take up” a far larger share of our expenditures now, so perhaps that is a justification as to why that is different? If we want to take up that route, then as compared to 1900, “non-necessities, where I include health care in necessities” have increased from being only 27% of our spending to over 47% of our spending.

Ironically, one thing I agree with from the health reform perspective is that it is very likely that health spending can be reduced considerably and we would not expect to see much of a decline (if any) in measured health outcomes (see here for an example). But then how come these very same “reformers” refuse to make the same observation when it comes to public education, public environmental spending, regulatory expenditures, and the like? They may dance around and conjure up some explanation, but it does not rescue them from the utter inconsistency of these views. So what is it going to be? I’ll jump in bed with ya on health reform if we reform all of the other “costly” spending items too.

8 Responses to “Is Spending Bad or Good?”

  1. Rod says:

    I don’t know if you know about the Marcellus Shale gas deposits in Pennsylvania, New York and Ohio, but there is a gold rush going on up there, and it just might make a lot of people rich and prosperous. The fly in the ointment is the chorus of environmental activists who worry that groundwater will become contaminated by the gas wells themselves or by the chemicals used to aid the “fracking” process that releases the gas from the shale.

    Most of these environmental concerns arise from superstition, not science. One of my friends is a fisherman who enjoys fly fishing in the Wellsboro area, and he does not want the evil oil companies to pollute “his” stream. Well, there’s zero chance of that. The Marcellus shale is a whole mile or more underground, while the aquifers are only a thousand feet down at the most. Fracking the rock 4,000 feet below the aquifer will not do anything to pollute the water. At any rate, that’s not enough for the environmental crowd, especially those environmentalists who are also commies.

    The Marcellus shale threatens the whole renewable energy business. There may be 80 years’ of worldwide gas supplies down there, and all that cheap gas will compete with the more-expensive windmills and solar panels. Why, we may be able to heat our homes for cheap again! Hooray!

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  5. The complete elevating and decreasing motions come
    from hinging at your waist. Both the Romanian deadlift and
    barbell hip thrust led to much larger gluteus maximus activation than a again squat, whose sample is more just like that of the traditional deadlift (10).
    Single-leg deadlifts don’t permit as much weight to be lifted, and they’re
    usually used as rehabilitation protocols or warmups. Some analysis suggests that warming up with single-leg deadlifts may cut back markers of muscle
    injury following the end of a training session (9).
    In Distinction To other workout routines that require particular gear or entry to an influence rack, deadlifts are a very minimalist exercise for the intensive advantages they provide.
    For instance, deadlifts allow you to carry large amounts of weight without positioning the load on prime of you.
    In the event of a failed repetition, you’ll have the ability to normally safely drop
    the burden without risking main injury.
    To be more precise, we’ll be wanting at the many various benefits of deadlifts
    for you to actually sink your enamel into.

    Right Now, we’re going to look at some of the popular workout routines in existence – the deadlift.
    Deadlifts excel in delivering sensible benefits by enhancing practical energy for every day actions.
    Keep reading to uncover the proven strategies for enhancing your
    deadlift approach and maximizing muscle growth whereas
    lowering fat.
    The kinetic chain of movements (ankle, knee, hip extension) during the hex bar deadlift is similar to many sporting actions like jumping and sprinting.
    This is as a end result of the mechanics are
    just like the muscles being used (1). One of
    the most effective advantages of deadlifts, is the total physique strength they’ll produce.
    Deadlifts are a compound movement, which means
    they use a number of muscle teams, joints and stabilizing muscle tissue,
    in unison, supplying you with more bang in your buck in relation to building more energy.

    As Quickly As you’ll be able to carry out the single-leg deadlift with no help, it is time to
    begin putting some weight on your muscle tissue. As talked about, the only leg
    deadlift will increase muscular energy and build muscle mass.

    Lifting more weight is a form of progressive overload, together with doing more reps, bettering your form, and growing quantity (sets).
    Useful strength aids with lifting, bending, and standing, enhancing
    the standard of everyday life. Constructing a robust posterior chain contributes to
    better steadiness and stability, helping scale back the risk of falls and
    accidents over time.
    Deadlifts interact your entire posterior chain, which can lead to quicker acceleration, larger vertical jumps, and across-the-board improvements in physical efficiency.
    Admittedly, a 1″ thick, completely symmetrical barbell isn’t one thing you’re more doubtless to encounter wherever apart from the burden room. However deadlifts are nonetheless the proper method to develop brute strength that carries over to actual life. Deadlifts are protected for most individuals to carry out offered you keep proper method and don’t improve the load past your present capabilities. Usually, making an attempt to lift extra weight than you’re prepared for leads to a compromised spinal place.
    It also improves stability and flexibility and trains your legs with a special approach. Form and keeping the again as straight as attainable have to be a priority and it might help to have someone watch you through the train to make certain you are performing them correctly and safely. If you’ve never done a deficit deadlift earlier than, you want to start simple with solely a one or two-inch elevation from the bottom.
    Simply put, superior lifters ought to use deadlifts to build energy and use different workouts to build muscle mass. One of essentially the most interesting deadlifts benefits is that they will exponentially decrease your damage risk, so long as you are using correct type and programming it accurately. The deadlift is right if you’re brief on time because it trains so many massive muscle teams concurrently.
    Plates are added to standard-style sleeves that protrude from the facet of the hexagon. The final subjective advantage of deadlifts is the relative simplicity of the equipment. All you want is a barbell and a few plates, or a weighted object with a deal with, similar to a kettlebell, to carry out the movement. Some advantages of performing deadlifts embody strengthening and gaining extra definition in your higher and decrease again, glutes, and hamstrings.
    If you’re new to performing deadlifts, you might need to apply a few modifications to make the exercise easier. Landmine deadlifts and their variations are extremely secure when performed correctly. However, errors can occur when you do not have the right landmine deadlift kind. Lastly, the dumbbell deadlift is going to help goal your hamstrings, traps, and lats a bit higher which will help to improve your traditional deadlift.
    Leaping is a key skill for quite a lot of athletic and leisure actions, and your leaping capacity typically reflects the general improvement of your lower body power. They also work a extensive range of muscle teams all through the physique and provide an excellent stimulus for any athlete. The squat is a motion the place you decrease your thighs to the floor until they’re parallel whereas preserving your chest upright. With a operating clock, as quick as potential perform the prescribed work in the order written. For the Dumbbell Deadlifts, simply the front edge of every dumbbell head needs to the touch the surface of the athlete’s ft, each heads DO NOT have to touch. Score is the time on the clock when the last spherical of Dumbbell Swings is completed. One man maker consists of a dumbbell push-up, two renegade rows (one per arm), and a squat clear thruster.
    That also means it may possibly additionally shortly cause damage if accomplished incorrectly. You may not expect this to be an necessary muscle for performing a deadlift, but they actually assist stabilize the shoulders as you move, Khan says. They’re one of the main movers in a deadlift since they’re “responsible for the extension—that’s what is going on to actually drive that powerful pull
    inside the carry,” Khan says. Since you’re working with so many muscular tissues in live performance to tug off a great rep, you’ll find a way to pull some fairly critically weight, too. With this deadlift sort, your legs remain in the usual position but you spread your arms out much wider when gripping. The change in place means you’ll be using your back more than with the usual deadlift. Shoulder pain and injury are incredibly common with individuals doing resistance training.

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