Dear Mona Charen, Excellent article! Taxpayers 'Pledge to Fight Socialized Medicine!'
From 1998 until 2004, I asked the NRCC why Taxpayers couldn't get honest
answers from politicians of all affiliations. The form letters they sent
in return, hand stamped, written by a staffer, made me wonder where the
greedy politicians stayed all the time. It further told me that
politicians had no interest in anything except their very deep pockets.
Economy never fully recovered from the 70's! Due to lack of American
businesses, higher taxes, plastic cars and other overpriced consumer
products, these greedy politicians should have been concentrating on
America's future. Politicians should have started cutting their salaries,
retirements, taxing and spending and going over the high-dollar budgets,
line by line, until everything was cut back fifty (50%) percent.

The enormous debt brought about by incompetent politicians, high
salaries, retirements, social, welfare programs, and frivolous
overspending should have stopped. Instead, it's now boiled over like a
run-a-way train. The only thing the greedy politicians can say is 'I
inherited this debt!' Instead of cutting and changing what should have
been done, they're way of thinking is still 'we'll stimulate the economy
with more bailouts and handouts' and once the great recession ends, we'll
reduce the deficit!' A little late, wouldn't you say? All Economists and
Taxpayers, know the politicians will never get control of the imbalances;
therefore, it's time to hand out pink slips.

I pointed out that all manufacturing jobs had to be brought back to
America. We couldn't be a 'service country'. The only thing America is
servicing is unemployment, social and welfare programs. It's now late
October 2009, and the trillions of dollars, borrowed without Taxpayers
consent, is growing to the point it's making Taxpayers think "Who's going
to own America when the interest isn't paid?"

I further pointed out that Social Security belonged only to Taxpayers
that had worked and should be their retirement! Folks, through corrupt
and greedy politicians, social security has been borrowed against for
illegitimates and people not wanting to work leaving nothing for the
people that paid money in. Democrat and Republican Taxpayers, of all
races, should be outraged by the radical and socialist proposed
Healthcare. Anyone, with common sense, should have guessed that 1012
pages (unread by politicians as usual) wasn't about Healthcare but about
hidden agendas and building a bridge over the sand in the Arizona desert.

What's really going to happen to Social Security since there's no one
working to pay into the system for future generations? Do you think the
politicians are going to continue to hand you a check that you're not
entitled to?

Politicians say 'you must volunteer and give back to your community!' By
the way, why don't you get off your duffs and volunteer at homeless
shelters and without the secret service, since this costs Taxpayers.
While I'm on a roll, you could also donate eleven (11) months of your
salaries and retirement benefits to Taxpayers that's having to work two
(2) jobs just to survive due to your incompetency!

By the way, Taxpayers 'Pledge to Fight Socialized Medicine!'

Mona, I know exactly where you are coming from. I have been a Type-1 diabetic for 71 years and take four, sometimes 5, insulin shots every day of my life. I figure I'm too old to begin using a pump. Good luck to you and especially to David. Arthur (Bud) Strong

On Wed, Nov 4th, Columnist Mona Charen expressed the fear that if medical device manufacturers are heavily taxed as part of health care reform, innovations such as an artificial pancreas for her diabetic son would less likely be developed. She is right in that if one takes the profit out of developing such devices, companies will not invest in the research to develop them.
What she did not discuss is the current cost of such devices and who has access to them. I have two diabetic children. They both wear an insulin pump, which cost 5000 dollars each. An infusion set, which must be changed every three or fewer days costs 10 dollars. A glucose testing strip (we typically use 6 to 10 per day per child) costs 75 cents. I could go on. I personally pay $2,459.00 per month with $2500 dollar per person per year deductibles, as well as copays. Therefore, my children have access to this technology. How many uninsured American families could manage this? Why shouldn't every diabetic child (or adult) in this country have access to such technology. Why should one child (or adult) be deserving and not another? And, should an artifical pancreas be developed (as Charen discussed), shouldn't every insulin dependent diabetic have access? What parent should have to look at their child and know that they carry an increased risk of blindness, neuropathy, heart disease, kidney failure and stroke because Mom and Dad couldn't afford these devices or the insurance to cover them? The current system is great.... unless you have a job that doesn't provide insurance, you are too sick to work, or you have a pre-existing condition (as my children do) that results in insurance rates that are simply unaffordable. For shame!