Sigh. Went into mourning when I heard the news, and only now do I raise my eyes from my folded, tear-soaked sleeves, so that I may lecture you Americans on what you have done.

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First, however, a musical dedication is due. This is my tribute to Ben Nelson, Bart Stupak, and all the formerly pro-life sell out Democrats whose made this abomination possible.

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As loyal readers may remember from a post I, Atobe, wrote in the heady, hopeful days of the Scott Brown campaign--alas, we dared to dream that a once-in-a-lifetime upset might slow the universal health care juggernaut!--despite the peculiar ways of we Japanese, I have long admired America as the last holdout against European- (and Japanese-) style socialism. But when Obamacare takes effect, Americans will, for the first time if I've not forgotten anything, be forced to buy something by their government. Though I am no libertarian, the government has no business interfering with health care, and is not justified in taxing some citizens to subsidize the care of others. The woes to come from the centralized planning and regulation of such an immense industry will surely be sad and staggering, but even they are not my main concern. By the very nature of its mission, the political order should not see health care as a good it is entitled or due to provide.

As Aristotle saw it, the end of government is to pursue the highest human good, happiness, as only it can. By defining virtue as a way of life in accordance with the demands of virtue and reason, he made this vague end a little more concrete by tying the human good to natural excellence. Governments should, according to Aristotle, promote a way of life which encourages moderation, justice, and the appreciation of the goods of the soul. Again, for you Americans, this may seem rather high-minded and vague, 1. Aristotle knew the life of the mind was not for everyone, but certainly thought more would take it up in a well-ordered society than one overcome by a materialistic mania. And 2. As Christians, we attempt to live according to a piety which allows us to worship and contemplate a First Cause of the Universe (akin to Aristotle's Unmoved Mover in more ways than one) in a manner accessible to men and women in every walk of life and philosophical ability (Nietzsche called Christianity "platonism for the masses"). We know that we live against the ways of the world, but its nice to not have the government against us as well.

Even setting aside the incalculable harm done by the doctrine of the Separation of Church and State, the American government becomes more hostile to would-be livers of the good life every day. What kind of example does our regime set--and I am still not to Obamacare-as-Obamacare yet--when, under an unimaginably huge national debt, it continues to enact and accrue entitlements under every new Congress? Americans have a knack for getting into credit card debt and investing in houses they can never pay for, and their government is not setting any better example (given its support of the Federal Reserve, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac, Uncle Sam has long encouraged this vicious behavior). Is there not something disgusting in a Nation whose own regime leads the way in such shameful immoderation? Even if there were never any consequences from such behavior (I'm not an alarmist, but there will be some sooner or later), a Nation with such spending habits is sick in its very soul. Even as parents, I should hope, teach their children the value of a yen dollar and the value of an honest day's work, your regime acts as if it deserves what it cannot afford. Though the CBO claims Obamacare will save the government money, I will not fall for it for a second. [Bay Staters will recall the comically under-budgeted Big Dig, which was still poorly done. Just recently I was in my car driving through Boston, and a piece of concrete from the tunnel's ceiling nearly landed on the roof. Were it not for my dexterous chauffeur, I, Atobe, might have been done by a government boondoggle!] This massive, unaffordable entitlement, intended to provide for the health of the body, eats away at the strength of the Nation's soul.

Socialists will object that health care is a basic "right", a prerequisite for happiness which the government is uniquely able to provide. I don't deny that health care in itself is a good, but it is not necessary for human happiness. In Plato's Republic, Socrates praises the medicine taught by the followers of Asclepius, which was simple and intended for those with essentially good health. I left my Republic back in Tokyo, but I re-found this quote here:

Asclepius...taught medicine for those who were healthy in their nature...but were suffering from a specific disease; he rid them of it...then ordered them to live as usual....For those, however, whose bodies were always in a state of inner sickness he did not attempt to prescribe a regimen, or...to make their life a prolonged misery...Medicine was not intended for them and they should not be treated, even if they were richer than Midas.

Harsh, but Socrates makes, or implies, a point we moderns have wholly forgotten. Descartes notwithstanding, we are never going to conquer death. We can prolong our lives, even double their lengths, but the danger is that mere life might become the end in itself. Contrary to the common wisdom, I argue that not only health care, but education, the building of roads, and the maintenance of order and the apprehending of criminals only serve a secondary good: they allow us to live normal lives without undue fear or worry. This secondary good is not worthwhile because it allows us to accumulate wealth, live cozy lives, and watch The Prince of Tennis, no. These measures are only justified insofar as they create the conditions in which we can attain virtue, and attain the highest and the best good, intimacy with God. Anything which distracts from the realization of these goods has to go. Concerning you Americans and your brand-new, swanky government medicine, does anyone dream that the government undertaking such herculean efforts so that a few citizens may live a few years longer does not send the message that the chief, if not the only goods, are bodily? I, Atobe, need not elaborate on the evils which will come from creating an entire bureaucratic caste commissioned with regulating health care; they will speak for themselves in but a few years.

My, that was quite a rant! I dredged up all that stuff without even raising the old conservative worries about government's (in)ability to manage the health care industry, the inevitability of rationing, the utter phoniness of the executive order stopping the bill from funding abortions, and the burden on taxpayers. Others, your Atobe is aware, have already made them. But someone needed to remind his dear readers that this is merely the latest leg in their national rat race after comfort and ease. Chase after the ephemeral for a good 80 or 90 years, and then die after a life devoid of worth and virtue. That is the American Way.

Given the advances in the technology of health care, it was probably inevitable that such an industry of scale would eventually come under the control of government. Republicans are already campaigning for a repeal, but while I trust their sincerity, liberal politics doesn't allow second guesses. By the time the G.O.P. controls Congress, court historians will have already written Obamacare into the ladder of American progress, and the mere suggestion that it was a mistake will produce no more than an incredulous gape (though I do hold some hope that the Supreme Court could strike it down; we can only pray and hope). But today's loss of freedom shall remain an evil to recall painfully for generations into the future. Much can be said of the wonders of modern medicine, but ultimately, it is a luxury, and a luxury with the worst side effects. Decreased dependence on the family, the straining of social security systems, I could go on and on. Perhaps I am a hypocrite; the Atobes probably receive better medical care than President Obama himself, but a truth is a truth. We have compromised our souls for our bodies, and we will reap the consequences. Sob... Atobe shall now be crying off. But even in the moment of defeat,

Be awed at the sight of my prowess!