Steve Driehaus townhall meeting Aug. 26

The town hall meeting with Steve Driehaus sponsored by the Green Township Democratic Club, held at the Nathaniel Green Lodge, was a ticketed event designed to invite a more friendly crowd. Tickets were given primarily to Democratic Club members. The parking lot was full of people carrying signs trying to get their message out, myself included.
The meeting started with Mr. Driehaus taking questions from people (five at a time) and then answering them after everyone had returned to their seats. Admittedly a good way to avoid confrontation and to keep the event more productive. I don't think he could have handled one-on-one questions.
I was surprised to see a number of admitted democrats in strong disagreement with the health care bill. Some of them were Steve Driehaus good family friends. People in favor of government run health care keep harping on the same old song "because it's a right". No it's not. Read the Constitution! Is it a moral obligation? Why certainly. There isn't a health care facility in this country that already receives taxpayer dollars that will shut their door to the poor.
What about my rights as a citizen of this country?
Doesn't anyone remember the AT&T monopoly? Ma Bell as they were so often referred to had a strangle hold on the communications industry. It wasn't until the federal government broke it up that we had real competition to drive down prices and spur new technologies. Long distance charges for just minutes used to be outrageous. Before the break up of AT&T Asian and European markets had cell phones and thriving industries involving communications and the associated equipment. We had none of this.
Let alone the fact that government run health care is unconstitutional, a government monopoly of the health care industry will eliminate competition in the insurance market. Stifle new treatments and technologies as well as pharmaceutical products since they will all be funded by our tax dollars, which are in short supply. Can you say rationing care?
Speaking of tax dollars. Did you know that we are currently sending $26 billion a month overseas just to pay the interest alone on the money we have already borrowed from countries like China. So where will this money come from to pay for our health, America? Big businesses are laying people off by the thousands to protect their profit margins. Yes I said profit.
Although profit is a bad word these days, they need those profits so that you and I can retire on that money thats tied up in our retirement plans on Wall Street. Or did you think the banks just kept it all in a lock box like the federal government?
Steve Driehaus kept saying that the costs of health care just keep going up and up. Why doesn't someone address what drives the cost rather than just find another way to pay for it?
How about tort reform and letting insurers carry policies out of state? One of the duties of Congress is to promote interstate trade which is stated in the Constitution. Currently health care providers cannot work across state lines.
The health care issue is complex one to say the least. It will not be solved by one person, one point of view, or one political party, but it must be solved by one country.