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Comment Re:Politics of health care (Score 1) 1064

OK - a couple of quick points.

A) We are not operating in a free market at the moment. At least not economically. In a free market AIG, Citi, and the other stupid companies are allowed to die and serve as examples of what *not* to do. That didn't happen here. (And, before anyone claims that the failure of Citi/AIG/whoever would have made the economy worse, I must point out the speculative nature of your argument.)

B) There is a very credible case to be made that, if the US embraces socialized medicine, our standing as the premier place for medical treatment will disappear. Ask yourself this - why do the premier specialists from all over the world settle in America? Why do so many doctors voluntarily leave India, China, Europe, Canada, etc. only to be halfway around the world from their families? It's because the financial rewards of practicing in the U.S. are so much greater than other countries.

Feed Group Of Banks Sues TJX Over Data Breach (techdirt.com)

One of the reasons that big data breaches, such as the one at TJX, keep occurring, is that there aren't sufficient incentives in place for companies to take this issue seriously. The key then is to develop ways for companies to see value in data security, and to be properly punished for their carelessness. At this point, the government doesn't seem to be doing much on this account, and even if it tried to do something, there's no guarantee that it would be effective, since many government regulations fail to achieve their desired goals. Now, a group of New England banks have filed a lawsuit against TJX, in hopes of receiving compensation for their own expenses from dealing with the situation. Their complaint seems legitimate since it's known that the breach has contributed directly to fraud, which is something that the banks themselves have to combat. As one representative from the group put it, "Right now we've had major breaches from major retailers, and there's very little recourse and little incentive for them to change." While the tort system is often abused, it can be used by legitimately injured parties to get compensation. If the banks are successful in winning damages, it's likely to open up a new (and hopefully effective) avenue in punishing companies that mishandle their data.

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