DH: Why Numbers Don’t Make Sense

Now it is always fashionable to jump and shout and gripe about ignorant politicians, but this time some of them have really earned the label. And continue to do so every day. We’ve all seen them yammering on and on. Recounting, like so many trained parrots, the statistics time and again. And, since we’re in the middle of this health care debate, it is happening with more frequency. We’ve all heard it before, several times, and it goes something like this: “Our health care system is just awful. Why, the United States ranks 16th in the world in infant mortality. Yet we spend way, way, way more on health care than the 15 countries that rank above us. That just proves that the current system is rotten and we have to change it. The only way to fix it is to have the government run things blah, blah, blah, etc. etc. etc.”  It’s the old canard — say something often enough and it becomes true. No matter how ridiculous it is/ Dan Hammes , St. Maries Gazette-Record. More here .

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• Focus where Otter’s task force isn’t /Marty Trillhaase, Lewiston Tribune
• Slow down, understand health care fine print /Sandra Kelly, Moscow-Pullman Daily News