I've heard this hoary biblical phrase from Obama a lot lately. I respect the moral sentiment behind it. But two points. There is a difference between choosing to be one's brother's keeper and being required to do so by the government. The one is an individual moral choice; the other is a collective mandate that binds both us and future generations to massive debt.
And the phrase is a misnomer in this particular case, especially with respect to Medicare and social security. The choice is: should the current working generation be required to be our parents' keeper in the privileged position they have long gotten used to, regardless of their private means? And to keep doing that in the full knowledge that we will have no such option in our old age?
The Dish 