Oh, so now since I don't believe in libertarianism/objectivism/whatever, I'm part of the problem? Don't tell me what to think.

They can all jump into a volcano, as far as I'm concerned.

Educate me, then. And try to keep Rand out of it.

I know that libertarians talk a good game, but what they really want is to be able to make decisions for themselves regardless of the consequences to others. That social Darwinism is the key to salvation, That the invisible hand of the free market will solve all the world's ills.

They're either hopelessly naive or they've got an agenda to push, and that agenda is most likely empowering businesses to do whatever the fuck they want so long as they make money.

First, check your links. That's a 404.

Second, while libertarians froth at the mouth over individual rights, they fail to mention how the "individual right" most often defended is the one that puts CEOs in corner offices making 350 times what their workers make. The only "individual right" they really care about is the right to exploit others for personal gain.

Well, fortunately we have strong voter id laws on the books that are intended to make it harder for Democrats to vote

FTFY.

Voter fraud is a rounding error. You should try finding a more compelling bogeyman.

When private enterprise with a profit motive aren't the ones establishing safety levels at nuclear power plants, then I'll consider it viable. So long as "less safety = more profit" it's a non-starter for me.

"It's become perhaps the biggest problem for the police and the security service authorities in dealing with the threats from terrorism," he explained.

Tough shit. Nobody said it would be easy.

Shh. When you pop their little cognitive dissonance bubbles these folks can turn feral. This guy is obviously one of those folks who think anything new or innovative or intended to push greener technology is bad because the radio told them so

That doesn't make them common, just news-worthy.

Sometimes when you contract out, the dynamic is what you suggest, the contractors are incentivized to do good work lest another contractor get their business.

And by "good work", I mean "cheap". Trust me, Comcast does not give a single fuck about the quality of work these contractors perform, so long as the price is right. Even the occasional rework (due to those whiny customers who actually want what they're paying for, the greedy bastards) still leaves the overall scheme profitable.

I've met Comcast contractors who were quite good. Quick, professional, polite. I've also met Comcast contractors who were drunk on the job.

The one saving grace here, if there is such a thing, is that many contractors prevent one from becoming so entrenched in one area that Comcast has to do business with them, because there is no competition. (Karma's a bitch.) A private company runs our water service here. While the rank-and-file employees are competent and professional (at least the ones I've met, who once had to repair our water supply line on Christmas Eve), the management is rotten to the core. They ignore mandatory aspects of the contract with the town, like routine maintenance requirements and disaster plan documentation available on-demand by the board of Selectmen or its designate. (They're also supposed to have enough reserve capacity so that if one of their pumping stations breaks down, the remaining equipment can handle the load. Nope. A while ago when a pump failed, the town was notified, which is a small miracle in and of itself, the town had 3 hours of water left. There were no repercussions from this obvious incompetence and breach of contract.) We had a boil order for 11 days a few years ago, because lack of maintenance on a storage tank led to a cryptosporidium bloom. In this state the way you get a boil order lifted is by having a negative test for the infection two tests in a row (twice daily), with the test performed by a lab the state specifies. One of the managers of the company took a sample, dumped bleach in it, and submitted it for test. This was, of course, immediately detected by the lab, since 1) the chlorine level was off the scale, and 2) it changed color unexpectedly when the reagent was added to detect the infection. That manager went to jail.

Of course, the private company immediately lost the contraHAHAHAHAH couldn't keep a straight face. Of COURSE they kept the contract. They own the lines. They have a monopoly on the water service in our town. The customers have no say in how that company is run, whereas if the town ran the service like nearly everyplace else, they could at least vote incompetents out of office. They had the balls to ask for an 83% rate increase a couple years later. They got 33%. The town basically had no choice, if they wanted to continue to get water service.

When private companies have no incentive to provide the service they're being paid for beyond losing the contract, and they are the only game in town, they don't lose the contract. They can pretty much do whatever the fuck they want with impunity.

Privatization is not a cure-all. Given the choice between a private company and public administration for a vital town service, I'l take the (unionized workers from the) town every time.

Yeah, the deniers' drivel gets old after a while. But I don't think that's what you meant.

Unless they are a complete and utter psychopath

I think you might be dismissing that possibility prematurely. We shouldn't rule anything out at the moment IMHO.

On what do you base this claim? There aren't as many terrorists as is generally thought, and depression is much more common than is generally thought.

Or poor. Airline pilots get shit wages unless they've been flying for 20 years with the same airline.