Higher Taxes, Better Life
Just a very random thought on death and taxes. LH and I were just watching parts of Michael Moore's Sicko (parts of, because it is really to one's own peril to hang onto Moore's every word).
The parts on French and British healthcare, and how medical care and laws extensively protects its own people was a version of modern day Eutopia! Medical facilities are up to standards, and if you get seriously ill, you don't have to get too bothered about the costs, and the government makes sure you get your wages. Benefits extend on to women (and as Hilary Clinton so beautifully put it: to value women's unique abilities to bear children) and education. I don't know if it is true, but I certainly hope it is true!
Benefits are afforded through higher taxes. In Asia, we deplore the idea of taxes, and at best, the government can have some CPF/EPF, as long as we get it back in the old age. But imagine this -- We save, mostly because we want to afford education and healthcare if something goes terribly wrong. If the government takes good care of education and healthcare, our concerns are only to pay for homes, cars, and vacations. You have to admit it... almost everyone has a tendency to spend most of what they own, and then borrow some more! Unlike so many Singaporeans/young couples we see today, there is no need to be bound to loan after loan. My university loan, for one, seems to take forever to pay off!
Sounds good, doesn't it?
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