Dear Editor:

Thomas Jefferson said, "A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improve, and shall not take from the mouth of the labor the bread it has earned – this is the sum of a good government."

When have we as a people decided that we have a right to take what others have earned? When has it become our right to have a job when we do not want to work or prepare ourselves. . . to have food that we don't plant or harvest or to have anything when we don't struggle to earn it? As a child, health insurance was not in existence, or we couldn't afford it. If we got sick and went to the doctor, our parents paid the doctor bill. What happened to that concept, that one pays for what he receives? The government doesn't pay the bills because it doesn’t earn money, and it can't spend on Social Security because there is no clause in the Constitution that allows for it to take from one to give to another.

I, as an individual, have a right and an obligation to help the poor, but the government does not have the right to distribute the wealth.

Someone once said (paraphrased), "The beginning of the end of democracy is when the people begin to vote into office those that promise the people an increase."

This much I can predict without reservation: If the government passes the health-care bill, this nation will soon be transformed to a complete socialist government and we can all line up at the trough for our handouts as the government sees fit to bestow them. These handouts will not be based on our own pursuits or industry but on the government's good will. Your check is in the mail, and the government is here to help you!

We as a people still have the power, but it is slipping quickly. Our United States representative's name is Ann Kirkpatrick. To my knowledge, she has never had an open forum (town hall) in Safford. I only hope that she does. She voted for the stimulus bill. This bill has added close to a trillion dollars to the national debt and has had no tangible benefit to the economy. This country is at 10-percent unemployment. That argument for the stimulus bill was to prevent the nation from going over 8-percent unemployment!

If we don't want to lose this republic to the crooks in Washington (both Republican and Democrat), we must let them know where we stand. We must call Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick and let her know where we stand on the health-care issue. If enough of us call or fax her, she will know our opinion; otherwise she won't because she never comes to visit her constituents.

Health-care needs to be reformed but not with any of the trillion-dollar bills that are now before Congress.

Her phone, fax number and mailing address are:

Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick

1123 Longworth

Washington, D.C. 20515

Phone: 202-225-2315

Fax: 202-226-9739

Thank you,

Ted McRae

Safford