Keeping the government out of medicare.

There is a really silly phrase going around now among opponents of ObamaCare to incite fear of the--in my opinion-disastrous health care proposal: "keep the government out of medicare." By its nature the saying is paradoxical and illogical; Medicare is a government program; therefore, it is impossible to keep the government out. But this quote does bring up an interesting idea and one that people should fear. When government provides a service, it is the job of the politicians to decide how much or how little of a service to provide. Whether you are okay with this or not--I'm not--it is undeniably rationing. The problem is that when government is faced with the inevitable rising costs inherent in a ponzi-scheme like medicare, government has three options: raise taxes on the relatively young and poor to give to the relatively older and wealthier, increase the size of the debt, or limit services provided. All three of these options are unappealing, but what is really terrifying is the fact that millions of elderly Americans rely on the government--and hence, on other taxpayers--to support them. I argue that through Medicare we overspend on health care for the elderly, but it is terrifying that politicians in Washington are in charge of deciding the right amount of benefits elderly Americans should receive. What is even more terrifying is that this type of system might be expanded to include every American. I don't want Barney Frank and Chris Dodd in all of their brilliance to be in charge of how much health care and what type of health care will be provided to people in my age, socioeconomic, or politically-affiliated category.