Great Observations

Mark Steyn (context provided, the observation is in bold):

Under Britain's National Health Service, for example, smokers in Manchester have been denied treatment for heart disease, and the obese in Suffolk are refused hip and knee replacements. Patricia Hewitt, the British Health Secretary, says that it's appropriate to decline treatment on the basis of "lifestyle choices." Smokers and the obese may look at their gay neighbor having unprotected sex with multiple partners, and wonder why his "lifestyle choices" get a pass while theirs don't. But that's the point: Tyranny is always whimsical.

The rest of the piece is a tour-de-force.

Another great phrase from the piece:

The crisis isn't the lack of money, but the lack of citizens.