There have been some news articles and letters to the editor in the Butler Eagle recently that I feel need a reply.

A young lady told U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter that she wants her right to freedom returned under the Constitution. What did she mean? A few days later she was interviewed on television; she was very vague as to what she really wanted.

Members of the T.E.A. (Taxed Enough Already) Party have made a political football out of health reform. They say President Barack Obama lies about the reform bill, and they carry signs that say, "Congress lies, Grandma dies."

That is an outright lie.

They also carry signs saying the health reform bill is socialism. That's another lie.

Our insurance companies are practicing socialized medicine as it is. They can discriminate against insuring someone because of a preexisting illness, and they can raise their premiums and co-pays while decreasing a person's benefits, because they are for-profit organizations.

Meanwhile, they're paying their CEOs huge salaries and bonuses at their clients' expense.

People say that health programs in other countries have long waiting lines. Let me provide a couple of experiences my family has had over the past few months:

My wife has been told she will need hip-replacement surgery. She has to wait three months to get an appointment for that surgery.

I called to have my annual eye checkup. I have to wait six weeks for an appointment.

Don't talk to me about our "wonderful" health care system.

People should judge for themselves. Does our health system need reform?

Yes, our health care system is broken and is in need of reform. Our health care is poor and expensive, when compared with what is available in other industrialized nations.

When I talk with protesters, most of them agree that our health care is in need of reform, but none of them have a concrete plan to reform it. It is easy to tear down a process, but difficult to build it up.

A member of the T.E.A. Party said she got vague answers from U.S. Rep. Kathy Dahlkemper at her rally. In case that person missed it, the following are some of the ways House Bill 3200, health care reform legislation, would supply benefits in just the 3rd Congressional District, which Dahlkemper represents:

• Up to 13,200 small businesses could receive tax credits to provide health coverage to their employees.

• 12,900 seniors would avoid the "doughnut hole" in Medicare Part D.

• 940 families could escape bankruptcy each year due to unaffordable health care costs.

• 51,000 uninsured individuals would gain access to high-quality, affordable health care.

I am surprised that the T.E.A. Party members ethically and morally support their philosophy.

Obama is trying to correct a bad health care program and help all his constituents.