Lacking: Sense of Humor And Other Things

The last post (Wanna See a Bigger Crisis...) stirred some unexpected responses from readers. They seemed to take seriously the suggestion to keep healthcare costs and prices high in order to avoid a bigger economic slump.  I wonder what exactly they thought… “Hm… the logic is straight forward but… something seems a bit off… “ This tells me that I am lacking as a humorist.  Although it also makes me wonder why would anyone think that the suggestion was serious? Was it the reliable data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics? 

Clearly, to keep healthcare costs and prices up makes no sense overall despite the fact that some in the healthcare industry benefit from the current structure. But it makes just as little sense to advocate artificially propping up housing prices when they have come down. If it is the policy of the United States to promote home ownership then why do some advocate having the government increase housing prices? Maybe it will make homeownership more affordable for the poor?  It makes little sense to complain about prices going down in one industry and up in another.

Perhaps there is something wrong with both industries, and the direction in which prices have moved is merely an indication of problems. Mandating higher prices in the housing sector and lower prices in the healthcare sector doesn’t solve the problems of these industries. It would be like trying to cure your child’s fever by sticking the thermometer in the freezer for a minute to lower its reading. The indicated temperature will come down but your child is still sick. By focusing on the prices as the problem and hurrying with solutions to the price issue we not only ignore the underlying causes of the problems but we may make things worse both in housing and in healthcare.