Now that universal health care in the United States is just about a done deal, it’s time for Barack Obama and the Democratic Congress to turn their attention to more pressing issues. No, it’s not the economy, stupid. Now that the move is underway to limit the pay of private sector company executives, capitalism is just about finished in the United States of America.
If capitalism is no longer going to exist it’s a waste of time to put time into such things as unemployment or business. It’s only a matter of time before everyone who works will be working for the state and those that aren’t working will be taken care of by the state.
And there’s no sense for the administration to devote a lot of time to the war in Afghanistan. It’s too hard a problem to solve and there’s little chance that no matter what is done will result in a successful outcome. No, in the spirit that the once mighty United States is nothing more than just another of the world’s countries, it’s time for Barry and the lawmakers (sounds like a 1960s rock group) to pay more attention to societies that they don’t criticize as much as their own and follow Taiwan and Singapore. The United States needs mandatory dog insurance.
The city of Taipei is considering making insurance mandatory for dogs (or a universal coverage scheme if you prefer). Dog owners will be required to insure their pets for damages that the dogs may do to third parties, other animals or property. The plan will be run by the city’s government and with an estimated 130,000 registered dogs in Taipei it will be quite the little cash grab.
The plan is that each dog will be insured for NT$1.5 million ($46,300US) and if dogs that are registered in the city will become insured, the annual premiums are expected to be in the range of $3-$6US. Of course, as Americans can appreciate, you can’t have a mandatory insurance scheme without penalties for those that don’t want it. The city of Taipei is considering fines of up to $60-$300US for owners who simply refuse or never get around to insuring their best friends. There are also a lot of wild dogs in the city; illegals if you will. These animals of course won’t be required to be insured. But the city is justifying that by saying that it is the legal and registered dogs that are the problem, not the wild ones that shouldn’t be there in the first place. According to an official, domesticated dogs are territorial and attack when other animals invade their turf (these dogs sound a lot like those evil right wing Republicans). Wild dogs tend to shy away from people and only attack when provoked; after all, they are probably just in Taipei for a better life.
Needless to say there are a lot of unhappy pooch owners who are not too pleased that they will have to take their hard earned money and purchase this mandatory insurance. Well, it’s really no different than mandatory automobile insurance and besides, it is needed for the greater good.
Tapei is following the lead of Singapore that not only requires mandatory dog insurance but requires dog owners to deposit the sum of $S5,000 ($3,581US) in a bank that can be used if their pets escape or if they are found in public unleashed or without a muzzle.
So come on President Obama; universal health care coverage is getting boring already. Go get yourself a Doggie Czar and “get ‘er done!
Now that universal health care in the United States is just about a done deal, it’s time for Barack Obama and the Democratic Congress to turn their attention to more pressing issues. No, it’s not the economy, stupid. Now that the move is underway to limit the pay of private sector company executives, capitalism is just about finished in the United States of America.
If capitalism is no longer going to exist it’s a waste of time to put time into such things as unemployment or business. It’s only a matter of time before everyone who works will be working for the state and those that aren’t working will be taken care of by the state. 