I'm not interested in another flame war with you -- but how do you make this idea work in the context of high levels of illegal immigration into the US? Would they be treated for free as well? If not, how do you reconcile it? If so, how do you prevent the collapse of the system that further encourages illegal immigration? Or do you believe that it won't have consequences?
Just looking for some real ideological consistency. I agree, in principle, that the distribution of wealth in the US is problematic. However, I am also aware of the fact that relatively unmoderated illegal immigration is partially responsible for it.
One thing you can generally rely on in calling for things like socialized healthcare is that the middle class will bear the brunt of the actual burden. Introducing a steady stream of more people into the system that tend to stay around the economic bottom end may well just cause the middle class to collapse. We already seem to be trending that way. Socialized healthcare might stay it or might exacerbate it. If illegal immigration continues at similar rates, the latter seems more likely. Be mindful of the fact that even if the illegal immigrants cannot use the services, citizen children will be able to with few if any contributions being made on their behalf.
Do you refute this logic?