Some have questioned the Christian ethic of supporting health care reform. One has to wonder what version of the Bible they have been reading. Jesus parable of the Good Samaritan focused on our neighbor being someone who is not like us. The Samaritan did first aid and paid for the care of a man who would not have spoken to him under normal circumstances. This equates to all Americans caring for those of us who are not so well off.

It goes along with the many times Jesus taught that the first shall be last and the last shall be first and blessed are the poor in spirit.

However, today, many churches have turned to a gospel of prosperity and capitalism. They teach ideas found in The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, books by Ayn Rand, a vocal atheist who had turned against her family’s Jewish roots. Rand began the popular movement called Libertarianism, which is attracting many people who have not read or learned what this movement is really all about.

Libertarianism is based in self-interest, social status and materialism. It implies that it is for liberty for all, but quickly any one who studies this movement finds that it really is for the liberty of the elite to take advantage of the common people.

Health care reform is necessary for the common citizens of our country to have good health care at less cost than we now have to pay. It is based in the Christian idea that together we should provide for the welfare and health of all (read Acts 4:22 to 5:16). Americans pay one and one half to two times as much as any other industrialized country for health care, while our average health statistics are worse than 25-30 other countries. Something must be done.

My fellow veterans who have received health care from the government do not find fault with it. My other retired friends and I who are on Medicare certainly cannot complain about the care we get. So why do some claim that a government option will be bad. Probably they say it because they are paid a lot of money by insurance companies, medical corporations and privately owned hospitals and clinics. These are the ones who will suffer if health care reform is passed.

Roger A. Meyer, PhD

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I must respectfully disagree with Dr. Meyer. The parable of the Good Samaritan deals specifically with one individual aiding another in distress. It exemplifies the purest form of love: charity. The Samaritan was the third person to encounter the wounded man on the side of the road, the first two were a priest and a Levite, respectively.

The Samaritan takes it upon himself to help the man in distress- he uses his own personal finances. He did not take money from another traveler to pay for the injured man's stay at the inn. This is in contrast to the Marxist doctrine of "From each according to his ability, to each according to his need," which is essentially the approach currently being adopted by some of our legislators. Karl Marx was quite the atheist, and labeled religion as "The opiate of the people." He enthusiastically supported the abolition of all religion.

Libertarianism in practice does not prohibit or discourage charity and caring for one another. With the decrease of government involvement (and taxation) in the people's lives as prescribed by Libertarianism, individuals would have more funds available to contribute to the well-being of their less fortunate neighbors.

Indeed, Libertarianism would allow us all to be more effective Good Samaritans. We would have more money to contribute to organizations like United Way of Chattanooga, which is endowed and takes no cut from contributions to support its operational expenses. I would rather contribute through one of these organizations than through taxation. The government is not a model of efficiency by any stretch of the imagination, and is certainly not an efficient means of monetary redistribution.

I can appreciate the desire to help people who truly need it. Health care is very expensive. However, 'Evil Corporations' are less of a cause than the unwillingness of the people who can afford insurance, who simply do not purchase it and have the cost of their medical needs absorbed by hospitals, who then pass off the expense to health insurance providers and other ancillary services by increasing the cost of medical procedures to compensate.

Personal responsibility is the only remedy for this crisis- any other approach is just a band-aid over a bullet wound.

In short, be a Christian and help those who need it. Volunteer. Stop talking and help someone. Don't be like the Priest or Levite in the parable, and don't expect the U.S. government to be the super Samaritan on your behalf.

Ashley Wilson

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Why start with health care? Let’s start with food. Food should only
cost as much as was spent to grow, harvest, can and deliver to the
store. No profit, that would not be Christian.

Next, is housing, no profit there either. Electricity, water should
also be “at cost” only.

Now, transportation, this is needed for everyone to get to work, so,
no profit for any aspect of transportation. This includes: price of
car/bike, gasoline, maintenance or spare parts.

The current “takeover” of health care is not about “caring;” it is
about power and control.

Roy L Ellis

* * *

Roger, I’m afraid you have a ludicrous vision of Libertarianism. I
have studied this over the past two or three years, and I have never
had an ounce of the influence that you come away with. Self-interest?
I’d say that every single Libertarian that I’ve met, cared about the
people as a whole and our country as a whole. Fighting for the U.S.
Constitution, eliminating federal taxes and big/global government has
been the main focus that I’ve seen.

Please research further than
Wikipedia. I have and will continue to work against the elite and
have no secret desire to join them or to take away private property
from citizens. The corruption needs to end, and you’re helping to
perpetuate needless stereotypes, in my opinion. You’re not helping
matters, only spinning wheels with criticism. Health care is a
problem, but this country has enough governmental control and
“oversight” that has proven to be a joke. Also comical that you are
proud of your Medicare coverage, the bottom of the barrel as far a
healthcare is concerned in our country. I’ve worked directly with
many insurance companies in the last 15 years, and the government
option is not the answer. You will be limited further than the
restrictions involved in Medicare guidelines, and I for one am not
grateful for that. For you, me or anyone else.

We can help our neighbors and be good Samaritans without compromising our country’s independence. We do not need to be more dependent on our government. We are not sheep to be herded. They have us in enough dire straits as it is, don’t be snowed and blindly follow because it’s not for our own good. It’s for theirs.

Carrie Hopkins

* * *

Contrary to what Dr. Roger A. Meyer wrote in “Questioning the
Christian Ethic of Health Care Reform” (Dec. 2), Ayn Rand started a
philosophy called Objectivism, not a political movement called
Libertarianism, which she completely condemned.

Objectivism upholds a morality of rational self-interest, and opposed
the altruism that Dr. Meyer espouses, one that teaches “first shall be
last and the last shall be first.” Individuals who work hard and
succeed in life to any degree should not be expected to sacrifice for
others, whether rich or poor. And to force them to do this in the
political realm, at the point of government guns in the form of
“health care reform,” is a complete injustice.

America was founded on the concept of liberty and each man’s right to
the pursuit of his own happiness. This means he must be left free to
produce and to voluntarily trade his materials and services, such as
medical knowledge, with other producers. Using government, which has a monopoly on the use of legalized force, to force some to give to others is a grave injustice.

Joseph Kellard
East Meadow, NY