Remember when “death panels” were considered a right-wing crackpot conspiracy theory?
Well, via Adam Bitely, I learned that it turns out that not only were the death panels there all along, but they’re a good thing!
A cost saver, don’t you know.
So explains Paul Krugman (who as a left-wing economist ought to know about such things):
Below the Beltway has the transcript:
PAUL KRUGMAN, NEW YORK TIMES: Think about people on the right. They’re simultaneously screaming, they’re going to send all of the old people to death panels and it’s not going to save any money. That’s a contradictory point of view.
TAPPER: Death panels would save money, theoretically.
KRUGMAN: The advisory path has the ability to make more or less binding judgments on saying this particular expensive treatment actually doesn’t do any good medically and so we’re not going to pay for it. That is actually going to save quite a lot of money. We don’t know how much yet. The CBO gives it very little credit. But most of the health care economists I talk to think it’s going to be a really major cost saving. I have to say, I’m wearing an FDR tie in honor of the fact that we have gone from the New Deal to the Big Biden Deal, I guess we’re allowed to say.
TAPPER: Big bleeping deal?
KRUGMAN: Yes.
Anyone remember how Sarah Palin was ridiculed for warning about what Krugman has now confirmed? (Yeah, and I was ridiculed too, FWIW.)
The moral lesson here is there are some truths that aren’t true until they are spoken by leading leftists.
Comments
5 responses to “A Palin lie becomes a Krugman truth”
No, no, when Krugman says government rationing will be necessary and good, he’s talking about a totally different gov’t rationing than the one he says Sarah Palin is scaring people with.
His has bigger words, or something. Hey, where’s YOUR Nobel? Huh?
Oh, I get it! He means life rationing (which sounds positive) — as opposed to death panels (which sound negative).
Eric
“life rationing”
I think the phrase you’re looking for is The Complete Lives System, wherein the government decides how fulfilling and complete your life has been and thus when it should end.
You’ve got it Eric!
These aren’t death panels, they’re life panels! Not the same thing at all.
And, of course, who gets to determine if any particular procedure is effectve or not? Why, the “life” panel, of course.