I'M FROM THE GOVERNMENT AND I'M HERE TO HELP

Believe it or not, there are people who actually read the above statement and think, "Great!". That's a little harder for people like me who have always been independent and see the government as more of a problem than a solution. On that, I agree with my Libertarian friends. I do however, see the government as an option for things that are just not getting taken care of by any other means. I guess the best way for me to describe it is; the government is the solution of last resort. So it is with our health care problem. The idea of kids begging for money for a bone marrow transplant or a couple losing their dream house because one of them lost their job and then got sick is too much for me to leave to "market forces".

With this in mind, I'm going to share a story that was told to me by an old man. I have no idea if it's true or not, but it makes a good point and might make some of you understand a little better the thinking of people who don't want the government over extending it's reach.

A man lived in a house with his wife and two kids. They were a proud bunch who never asked for anything or expected anything. He worked as a hobby farmer for food and repaired things for money. His wife stayed at home and made crafts for her extra money. His kids were home-schooled and well behaved. In short, despite their hardships and poverty, they were quite happy.

One day the well ran dry and the family was too poor to replace it. Without much verifiable income, the bank turned down his loan. Out of desperation, he turned to the government for help.

Before the government would put in the well, they needed to inspect the property and the proud man did something he never wanted to do-he let the government into his life. The inspector noticed the squaller of the poor family, and out of sympathy turned his case over to a Social Worker. The Social Worker went to the house and decreed it unfit to live in, what with no water, bad wiring and plumbing. They moved the man and his family, under great protest, into a temporary housing nearby. The kids were interviewed for possible abuse and it was discovered that although they knew math, English and writing beyond their years, they knew nothing of the oppressive history of Native Americans, women or African Americans. They were ordered by a court to be enrolled in the local school to complete their education. The teachers there were surprised to meet people in their own community so isolated. They were even more appalled to find that the woman of the house had very little schooling and had never held a job. They took her under their wing and got her employment working for the school cafeteria.

The man of the house had a much harder time. The IRS wanted to know how he had managed to claim so little income. He was confused as to how much he was making, since a great deal of his payment came in trade services and bartering. Other people started accusing him of abusing his wife by not allowing her to work even though they both thought she did-at home. They accused him of abusing his children by not allowing them a "proper" education, even though he thought he did. They accused him of neglecting his family by not giving them a proper house to live in, even though they all loved their little house. Soon the press caught wind of the story and ran pictures of the families run down shack that they had lived happily in for so many years. The people of the community were shocked at the loose animals, old plow and traditional farm life style. Soon outrage turned to an arrest based on trumped up charges. The simple man defended himself as best he could in a system he didn't understand. The sentence was handed down and the man found himself in prison. Soon his wife stopped coming to see him and his children were told not to contact him. They had started their new life with their new friends who had "saved" them from their past 'horrible' life.

One day the simple man got out of prison for the crimes he didn't even know he committed. He walked up the long dirt road to his empty house now posted with "condemned" signs. He sat on the poach and began to cry uncontrollably. he cursed the day he tried to do the one thing he never, ever wanted to do, ask for help. In the darkness of that moment, he remembered the irony of that day when a man came to his house and proudly said, "Hi, I'm from the government and I'm here to help."

This is the problem many of you have with our current health care debate. In your effort to "help", you are failing to understand. There are people all over the U.S. that do not think that you are "helping" by bringing the government into their lives. In fact, they think you are doing exactly what happened to the man in the story. We have millions of people who desperately need our help, but in that process, let us not forget that there are many more millions that do not want your "help". Someone once told me, "God gave us two ears and only one mouth so we would listen twice as much as we talk." If we truly want to help those that need it, we need the support of those that don't. Maybe the best way to get that support, is to listen. H.C.