In response to the lady that tried to defend AARP’s position on health care reform, I think she is confused and has some of her facts wrong.

She emntioned with some emphasis her dentist has to pay $90,000 annually for liability insurance, and seems to think that is tied in with health insurance. Those are two separate items, and health care reform has no impact on liability insurance. That is why most people are against this particular health care reform the Democrats are trying to ram down our throats. That is because it does not address the real problems that must be reformed.

If this reform measure were so good, why did it take so much bribery, payoffs and other special deals to get the Democratic Congress to pass it? News this week is that several Democratic senators don’t even have the courage of their convictions. They are going to ram health care reform that we don’t want down our throats, and then cut and run. They aren’t even brave enough to stick around to take the heat for their actions.

True, something needs to be done about excluding existing conditions and losing health care coverage upon loss of employment or contraction of an expensive illness. But you don’t have to completely destroy and rebuild one-sixth of the U.S. economy to accomplish that. A simple 100-page bill could do that. All Congress has to do is tell the insurance companues, "You cannot do that anymore." As someone pointed out a couple of months ago in these pages, "If you have a flat tire, you don’t throw the entire car away. You just purchase a new tire."

Now we hear the Mayo Clinic in Glendale will no longer accept Medicare patients. If that trend continues nationwide, AARP will have truly tossed all its members under the bus. With less services available to seniors, rationing will become a reality.

I, for one, do not think that it is necessary for the United States to emulate Canada or other European nations. Just because they do it does not mean we should. When Europ figuratively jumped off a cliff in 1939 and 1940, the United States did not join them. If we had, there would have been no one to pull them back up.

Maybe those that think we should be just like them should consider moving there instead of pulling the United States down to that level. You would like Canada. It is a very friendly place and uses currency similar to ours. But you will have to give allegiance to the Queen. Canada has an open immigration policy and would more than welcome Americans. Don’t forget to take your wallet when you go. They would love to have your money.

Provincial (that is the equivelent of a state in the U.S.) taxes are higher than the U.S. federal income tax. And then there is the Canadian federal tax on top of that.

I’ve lived in Canada for four years as a representative of a U.S. company and know what it is like. When the Republicans state this health care reform will result in an increase in taxes or insurance premiums, I believe them. I’ve seen socialized medicine in action.

Peoria