I am writing this letter in response to Diane Bowser, Ph. D. in the Aug.7 ,2009 addition.

I am appalled at the misinformation contained in this response. First, as a Christian we do believe in helping our fellow man. In this great country we have millions of people who give tremendous amounts of money to needy projects all over this great country and around the world. There is no greater country on earth when it comes to benevolence the the USA. However, it is not benevolence when it is mandated by a government that is out of control. There are so many government programs that are on the verge of bankrupcy and it is not because we citizens don't pay enough taxes. It is because this government has been misappropriating funds for years in order to buy the votes of those who have the "government will take care of me" syndrome. I'm amiddle class American and I give a significant portion of my income annually to charitable causes and I don't need the government to mandate any more giving.

Second, your numbers regarding the cost of health insurance are way overinflated. For about $850 per month one can buy into a group policy at the chamber of commerse. This, as I understand includes dental and vision coverage as well as general hospitalization. If you can't afford that you can get coverage that covers only catastrofic events for less then half that.

Thirdly, if a family of four earning $60K annually only takes home $3K per month, perhaps the problem is high taxes not the cost of healthcare.

Fouth, the cost of healthcare in the UK can not be calculated in dollars only, but also in the cost of lives lost while they wait to get the limited care available. The death rate from prostate cancer there is about 600% higher then here in the USA. Check out the statistics and you will find that the same is true for most diseases.

The answer to the high cost of healthcare can be found in making the system more like the rest of the US economy. If we as consumers were free to shop for our healthcare as we shop for everything else, the market would begin to stabilize. In addition, if trial lawyers were limited on the size of the punitive damages that they could win for their clients, the cost of malpractice insurance would fall and the cost of an office visit would drop dramatically.

The government intervening in the healthcare industry is far to great already. President Obama has already stated in his campaign that he favors a single payer system and that he feels that it will take 15-20 years to reach his goal. What he is trying to do is what is called "creeping incrementalism" which kills the private sector more slowly. Everyone of us in this country who loves liberty needs to oppose what is taking place in Washington D.C. with every ounce of energy that you have. Remember that a government who can't fix Social Security should NEVER be given your heathcare!!!!