So the H1N1 flu vaccine was released today. The way the whole swine flu has been treated, you would think that we would all be dead now and our children weeping over our dead bodies. Fortunately, it appears that this whole flu strain is nothing more than any other flu strain. In fact, it may be much less.
But this gives us a golden opportunity to wonder why the government would spend millions, if not billions, of taxpayer dollars to produce the vaccine. They paid the vaccine companies money to produce this supposed prevention measure and no is even sure that it will work. You know how I know this? Because they passed a law that protects those companies from any liable suit related to the vaccine!!!
This is a perfect example of corporatism. Now, you are probably wondering why someone like me, a free market individualist, would use a term that is derogatory toward private companies. Unless you already know where I am going with this or you have a clue as to what corporatism really is. Corporatism is essentially the government and private companies working together to run a particular industry. The end result is usually a big screw you to the taxpayer because whenever this happens, inefficiencies abound.
When governments and private companies get together to regulate or produce certain products at taxpayer’s expense, the result is essentially a monopoly. In the free market, you can have a monopoly, however, any company that manages to completely control an industry without government intervention will have to still beholden to the laws of competition. This is because that the moment they start raising their prices, real competitors will show up with lowered prices. In a government monopoly, the rules are much different.
Government, you see, has the monopoly on force. They are permitted to use force against foreign invaders and against criminals domestically because we need some kind of institution to protect our lives, our liberty, and our property. However, when government starts using that same force in other areas of our lives, we end up with tyranny and often times a strange marriage between large private sector companies and sleazy politicians.
Back in 2007, when the Democrats got control of Congress, they immediately enacted legislation to raise the minimum wage. This, in effect, regulated the labor market and stifled competition from small businesses. After all, the small businesses need to hire people for less so they can expand and later pay their workers more money. A hard concept to understand for those pea brains inside that vortex of insanity. But did you know that the Wal-Mart CEO came out in support of the measure? Now why would he do that, after all the Democrat attacks on Wal-Mart for not being union friendly?
The answer is simple: he, like most other people, did not like competition. By allowing the minimum wage to increase, he could effectively prevent the next big department store chain from existing. Think of Sears and Macy’s and how nobody really shops there on a regular basis. Nobody I know anyway. And do not get me started about how lousy K-Mart is.
This vaccination deal is just the latest in a long line of government intervention in our nation’s economic transactions. It secures many of the vaccine companies into a monopoly and they will be making money regardless of how many shots are actually handed out. In fact, the government is now requiring health care workers to take the vaccination or face some sort of punishment (either a heavy fine or employment termination, I am not sure which). If that is not a government monopoly, then I am in the wrong universe.
So please I urge you all this flu season to not get a flu shot, unless your doctor says that you will die if you get the flu. Even then, I would recommend against it since a vaccine is essentially a version of the flu that is not suppose to harm you. Protest the government’s unconstitutional ties to big corporations and demand that whoever is responsible for this resign from office.
The best way to eliminate corporatism is to not participate in the transaction. Once they see there is no profit in what they are doing, they will leave the politicians in the dust.