IMPRIMIS: A short history of American medical insurance.

Read it all but pay particular attention to the final section - a way out. Then read Newt Gingrich's proposed Republican pledge on health care. I'm not enamored of all his prescriptions, obviously, but when it comes to price transparency, patient privacy, insurance options, and association purchasing, he's spot on.

I just wish that he would have emphasized that which should be obvious: insurance is a hedge against the catastrophic, in which you spend a few bucks every month - or year - and hope you'll never need to use it, not a prepaid service plan covering things you'll never need, want, or use.

But that's a forlorn hope, as automobile and homeowner insurance are rapidly morphing into service plans (with the appropriate increase in cost).