RichInSpirit
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I don't think so. It's hard enough to attract talented people to what is an very hard and badly paid job. I do agree with the idea that we limit their numbers but not the number of years they can serve.This was a suggestion from an informal chat I had with 2 fellow Trump supporters last week in relation to Irish politics and the upcoming Irish General Election.
I was saying that some people in Ireland with the highest ideals starting out in their political life become corrupted when they get the taste of money and power.
And their ideals get left by the wayside.
One of my companions suggested a time limit for all TD's. They were suggesting 5 years but I would think 8 or 10 years maximum.
What do you think?
100%. I was fairly disparaging of Kenny at times but he was infinitely better than a Varadkar or Harris. He also had boundless energy for someone that came into his premiership at an older age having been in the Dáil for decades.Enda Kenny stands out as a person who served a very long apprenticeship and was ready to take power when he did. That said people often become set in their ways and lose energy and dynamism as they get older. I think generally people are at their peek for leadership roles that require experience and energy between the ages of 45 and 60.
He was very physically fit and always exercised. That really stood to him. I think Harris has far better political instincts than Varadkar.100%. I was fairly disparaging of Kenny at times but he was infinitely better than a Varadkar or Harris. He also had boundless energy for someone that came into his premiership at an older age having been in the Dáil for decades.
This is probably true, but Harris has even less ideaology than Leo, he's good at sniffing out which way the wind is blowing but he has no fundamental political belief system. I'd worry about his inclination to ramp up public spending to follow public opinion at at time when we should be battening down the hatches in anticipation of a rocky time geopolitically. Harris will increase spending & narrow the tax base*, so we better hope for a soft landing on the corporation tax front!I think Harris has far better political instincts than Varadkar.
I don't like ideology. It causes people make to make bad decisions. I want politicians who make decisions based on data and evidence.This is probably true, but Harris has even less ideaology than Leo, he's good at sniffing out which way the wind is blowing but he has no fundamental political belief system.
That's the point though, isn't it?I'd worry about his inclination to ramp up public spending to follow public opinion at at time when we should be battening down the hatches in anticipation of a rocky time geopolitically. Harris will increase spending & narrow the tax base*, so we better hope for a soft landing on the corporation tax front!
* Of course, all the other parties would be even worse for this, to my utter dismay.
This sort of presupposes that the data and evidence generally support a particular course of action. There might be a range of options/decisions that can be supported by the data, all of which will align to some ideology to one degree or other, and many of those will compete with one another. Since we can't predict the future I find that it is helpful to have a general framework, whether it's a Keynesian interventionism or fiscal conservatism etc etc. I would like politicians with an ideology that leans towards a smaller State with lower income taxes, but there are none of those.I don't like ideology. It causes people make to make bad decisions. I want politicians who make decisions based on data and evidence.
Kenny was underrated and underappreciated.He also had boundless energy for someone that came into his premiership at an older age having been in the Dáil for decades.
Bit of a category error here. Data and evidence can inform you how best to acheive your goals, but they are not so good at helping you to decide what goals you should adopt to begin with. For that, you need ideology or values.I don't like ideology. It causes people make to make bad decisions. I want politicians who make decisions based on data and evidence.
Fair enough. I'm talking more from a perspective of people who think that things should be nationalised or privatised, publicly provided or privately provided etc.Bit of a category error here. Data and evidence can inform you how best to acheive your goals, but they are not so good at helping you to decide what goals you should adopt to begin with. For that, you need ideology or values.
No it's not. Both of those things could deliver better health services. There are always constraints on supply. Those have usually been money but increasingly they are labour supply related so whatever provides the best outcomes overall is the best system.Couple of points:
First, obviously, "things should be nationalised" and "things should not be nationalised" are both ideological positions.
You say that you just want whatever works best — i.e. you're not committed to either of those positions; " I just want a good health service." Fair enough. (That's a different ideological commitment, obviously — it's a commitment to the priority of quality of service over other possible goods such as democratic control or fostering economic opportunities for healthcare providers.)
What data? Belgium has as excellent healthcare system which is mostly publicly funded and mostly privately delivered. The US is a really bad example of a privately delivered healthcare system so it's stupid to use their system for comparison. That said I don't think that a privately delivered healthcare system would work here given the strength of the vested interest groups (Nursing and Doctors Unions) and the weakness and incompetence of the State at regulating the private sector.But then you go on to say "From what I have seen the State is really bad at delivering services and really bad at offering value for money". But, when it comes to the provision of health services, the data and evidence suggests, on the whole, that state-run services tend to be more efficient than privately-provided services, delivering better health outcomes at a lower cost.
Again, what data led you to that conclusion? That sounds like quite an ideological position.There's much debate as to why this is so, but that it is so is not really doubted, except by those who have a vested interest in the private provision of healthcare, or who have an ideological commitment leading to a preconception that state provision is generally less efficient.
"People who study the topic" sound a lot like "people are saying". Again, that sounds like quite an ideological position.Now, I'm not saying that you're fooling yourself when you say that you don't have an ideological commitment, one way or the other, on this matter. But your position is exactly the same as the position that you would hold if you did have an unrecognised ideological commitment, and "what I have seen" about the efficiency of state provision in this field looks to be at variance with what most people who study this topic see, so there could be a little bit of confirmation bias going on here — i.e. you notice instances of inefficiency in state provision because they confirm what you expect to find.
I agree. The more often you find (and accept) that you are wrong about something the more likely it is that you are unbiased.One of the things about relying on the data and evidence is that you have to be rigorously open to all the data and evidence. This can be surprisingly hard to do.
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