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Coerced Contribution?
Yesterday, I posted in a Buddhist group my reflections on the Coronavirus crisis and how it points to the urgency of universal healthcare. A member of that group responded as follows:
“Isn’t ‘Universal Healthcare’ a very non Buddhist concept? In order to have ‘Universal Healthcare’ some will be forced to pay for the care of others. Is coerced contribution a Buddhist concept.”
This is interesting. It is almost exactly the same argument that many members of the Christian Right use to argue against the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and deny other services to the poor. Such argument reflects a profound ignorance about both healthcare and economics, not to mention its inherent incompatibility with the teaching of love and compassion in all major world religions. That the Christian Right can come up with this argument to withhold and discourage assistance to the poor takes some creativity. Due to the prevalence of this argument in conservative circles, it is worth our while to examine its validity, or the lack thereof:
First, about the legitimacy of taxes. Very few people want to pay taxes. It is just like few people want to pay a big bill for the medical services they received. Yet, it is our responsibility to pay them. Taxes represent payment of our share of the expenses needed to maintain the well-being of our society. How does our society operate to…
