Do people actually have the option to not have firefighting services? Mine are all included in my taxes...firefighting, health care, police services, etc.
It depends where you live. Some rural communities have opt-in opt-out.
For example:
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/39516346/ns/us_news-life/t/no-pay-no-spray-firefighters-let-home-burn/
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I could be wrong here, but I think part of why it became mandatory in most areas is because the fire allowed to burn freely can cause significant damage to surrounding properties in a very short amount of time. Also may have something to do with most firefighters not actually wanting to sit and watch a child or a cat burn to death because they didn't get their money that month
I think it was more a comparison- that in places where healthcare isn’t guaranteed, many oppose it because they don’t feel they should have to “pay for other people’s needs.” Or that it is “socialism,” but they neglect that in most developed countries without tax funded healthcare (like America,) many services are already provided for the public benefit by other people’s money.
I'm happy to help pay for somebody's car accident. I'm not happy to pay the medical bills for the idiot that got wasted at 3 AM and fell into a cactus patch while naked.
the question you have to ask yourself, could you sleep at night knowing that, because you choose to prevent wasting money on idiots, someone died of a cancer they couldnt allow themselves to put their family in debt to treat?
Maybe not- but we as a species rely on on another for survival and convenience all the time. We have since the beginning of civilization. And the fact is we don't have a fair and balanced economy and we never have. And probably never will. However providing basic care to everyone can help even things out and allow people to have better lives across the board regardless of socioeconomic status.
Cool, then stop using the roads, never call the police, and Opt out of protection from foreign powers seeing as the governments only obligation is maintaining order and everything is paid for by tax dollars
Roads weren't built for free.
Cops ain't gotta do anything to protect me anyways.
And that ain't how the US government is structured. Besides, I can't opt out of protection because I am the protection.
That's how every government is structured. Governments fundamentally exist to keep order. That's what they were invented for and that's their primary obligation. Anything and everything else is secondary and everything is paid for by taxes. Everything is a service and people are entitled to roads, fire response, police response, and medical response in equal measure.
The US government exists to keep itself and the rest of the world out of our fucking way.
We are unique like that. Our founders didn't raise themselves as kings or emperors, just people that got tired of being beholden to affairs an ocean away. Thankfully, after over a hundred years of bullshit, we have an opportunity to go back to our roots.
The US government is no more unique than any other government. It is not special, it's not exempt from how governments work, and in many aspects it's less efficient and less effective than other forms.
The purpose of the US government is to make laws and enforce laws. Nothing more nothing less. Everything else that it does is, as I said before, secondary
just off the top of my head, frace is a government formed of a revolution, England is a government formed of a revolution, russia is a government formed of a revolution all of which have changed an equivalent amount as america from how they worked when said revolutions happened. The only difference is the fact its a union of states which of itself is also not unique at all.
Then how about the only union that hasn't been usurpated by crazy authoritarians and the biggest country with a mostly functioning democratic system? USSR was totalitarian, EU is going down the same path, and UK has forfeited how many of its citizen freedoms? US is unique, in that it's one of the most stable countries ever created, and the fundamental rights of its citizens are enshrined incredibly well into the system, which is something that UK and Russia both either lack or ingore.
Yeah, sorry, what was that about police visiting people for posting shit on twitter about trans people? What was that about police covering up an absolute fuckload of crimes committed by immigrants because they were scared of being called racist? Or maybe you want to dispute the fact that the entire UK political sphere needs to be wiped clean, because despite the majority of people voting to leave the EU, they have been delaying the process for as long as possible, trying to push through a second referendum, or a deal that is as good as surrender terms for losing a war, or just recently trying to ban the option of leaving the EU with no deal? The UK is absolutely fucked right now.
the american political spehere is almost entirely bought and paid for by the "wants to be a corporatocracy and basically already is at this point" companies
I know I'm late to the conversation but here's my two cents: the US is unique for two very specific reasons. First, our transition of power is peaceful, legal, and codified. Second, our military does not swear an oath to a leader, but to protect the constitution, which is the same oath all civil service workers take as well. I had to take it when I joined Americorps. Both of these get to the broader point that we are a nation of systems and laws; we may have trail blazed, but I do think others have passed us by in some areas.
If it was just your house in danger this might be fairly reasonable comparison. Your house catching fire is highly likely to endanger more than just your house, though. Fire is silly like that. Requiring medical attention after attempting the latest "Internet Challenge" and setting your house on fire attempting the same thing are two drastically different situations.
Sure. But illnesses and infections are contagious. So not getting proper medical treatment does actually endanger others. Maybe not as immediately as a fire does, but still.
For example:
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/39516346/ns/us_news-life/t/no-pay-no-spray-firefighters-let-home-burn/
'
I could be wrong here, but I think part of why it became mandatory in most areas is because the fire allowed to burn freely can cause significant damage to surrounding properties in a very short amount of time. Also may have something to do with most firefighters not actually wanting to sit and watch a child or a cat burn to death because they didn't get their money that month
Cops ain't gotta do anything to protect me anyways.
And that ain't how the US government is structured. Besides, I can't opt out of protection because I am the protection.
We are unique like that. Our founders didn't raise themselves as kings or emperors, just people that got tired of being beholden to affairs an ocean away. Thankfully, after over a hundred years of bullshit, we have an opportunity to go back to our roots.
The purpose of the US government is to make laws and enforce laws. Nothing more nothing less. Everything else that it does is, as I said before, secondary