At the present time, we are having a serious debate in this country about Change. The debate is about many things that some think should be changed, while others think should not be changed, and still others who think some different methods should be taken to bring about the changes. The most prominent subject in these proposals for change is our Health Care System. After a year of debates, name calling, half-truths, lies, and fights, it appears that this country is about evenly divided on the issue.
This is not a political statement: it is the thoughts and recollections of a 77 year old man who lives in Pennsylvania.
The most often question that I am asked is what is my political stance. I have been called a right wing conservative, a left wing liberal, an independent, a facist, a communist, a socialist, a do gooder, and a son of a bitch. To me, that sounds like a fair estimate.
The following illustrations and stories are about people I know, some I have met in the doctor's waiting room, hospital, jail, and others that I have observed in other places.
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I will begin with the elderly sick man in line ahead of me, who had just walked a mile to buy the cup of coffee and one banana for his breakfast. He is frantically searching for another nickel he needs to pay for it.
And there are the neighbors who lost or was about to loose their homes because of their early medical bills. There was no end in sight for their medical expenses.
And the 25 year old single man with childhood diabetes who suffered frequent convulsions, and weekly dialysis, who died from liver failure because he didn't have the money for surgery.
The homeless man who urinated on the front tire on the police cruiser, so that he would be sent to jail where he would be warm and get treatment for bronchial pneumonia, and the young man who threw a rock through a store window in order to get treatment for his multiple physical problems.
And there are the numerous elderly and poor people who only take half of their medications because they cost as much or more as their food and heating expenses combined.
I could write many other examples, but I will finish with the grandmother who had a stroke in her kitchen and lay on a makeshift bed made from a kitchen door that was removed and placed on two kitchen chairs. She spent the last week of her life there, because there was no money for medical help.
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Now, what I have just described above is not what happened in some third world country, but, it is what happens every day, here in the United States of America, the richest nation on earth, We brag that we have the best health care in the world! I ask you, for whom? It is not for our poor, our elderly, or our veterans. It is for those who have the money and resources to pay for it.
Now, I ask the question again: What is wrong with us? Why can't we see what is in front of our faces every day. Why do we ridiculously fight amongst ourselves over something so obvious?
There are many doctors and hospitals who try to help by accepting partial costs for those in need, as well as numerous organizations and religious groups who offer help. Many individuals offer their services as well. I applaud each and everyone that does so. Every citizen should be thankful.
Do not be mistaken - the numbers that they can help is only a very small portion of those who need medical assistance.
Have we built too many expressways and superhighways that bypass where they live, and that it is much easier to pretend they don't exist. Do not be fooled, those who are in need of medical help, could very well be living next door. And it is very possible that one day, it might be you. Are we wearing blinders that prevents us from seeing the need?
Most Americans know the story of the Good Samaritan from the Bible. On a public highway, a man was beaten and robbed and left at the side of the road. Many people passed by, without offering any help at all. Even wealthy men and religious leaders were among them. A Samaritan man passed by and stopped to help him. He bandaged his wounds and took the injured man to where he could rest and recover. He also paid for the costs. Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, instructed His followers to act in the same way as the Samaritan man had acted. What most people do not know is that the Samaritans were the outcast people of their society. They were of a different religion and a different race as well.
We are Americans. We live in a country that was founded by outcasts of many nations and grew quickly due to many other immigrants and by its citizens helping each other. We have a history of doing the seemingly impossible, because we wanted to. If we can find a way to go to the moon and back, we can find a way to take care of our our needy sick. Time after time, we have proven that we can do anything we set our minds to accomplish. Let us stop our bickering and start acting like Americans again.
CLYDE
