I would like to respond to Mike Lee’s recent letter that appeared in the Tribune, “Health care should be a right in America.”  

He makes a broad assumption that anyone who does not believe in government-run health care “denies that our health care system is broken.” This is absurd. I have been immersed in this debate and have yet to visit with anyone who does not believe that our current system is badly in need of reform. 

However, the majority of American citizens across the spectrum don’t have any confidence that giving one-sixth of our economy (the health care industry) over to the federal government is going to work. First of all, how are we going to pay for it? This $1.6 trillion plan has been called “deficit neutral” by the president. Does anyone believe that? He wanted it signed and sealed by the end of July. My question is, where is the fire Mr. President? This will affect everyone’s lives. Slow down! 

Mr. Lee states that “conservatives fight for the rights of the unborn yet refuse to provide the right of health care for that same child after its birth.” I would like to see a list of conservatives who actually believe that. Broad assumptions seem to be the trademark of Mr. Lee. 

If the issue here is about health care and ultimately saving lives, supporters of Obamacare need to realize that it will broadly increase access to taxpayer funded abortions and has no conscience clause for health care workers who are opposed to doing them. Liberals seem to care very much about people’s rights to health care, education, jobs, housing, etc., yet they don’t stop to wonder when any of those rights begin. Let me remind them: Human rights begin when human life begins — at conception. Those rights remain until natural death and no government has the right to change that.  

Back in the year 1971, no less than Sen. Edward Kennedy penned this phrase:  “I believe that human life, even at its earliest stages, has certain rights that must be recognized — the right to be born, the right to love, and the right to grow old.” God bless him, he got it right that time.               

 
Scott Bute

Alden