Herr Rückl chided the

U.S. to grow up and approve "Patients' Bill of Rights" and join

other enlightened countries, like the U.S.S.R. and East Germany, that

had as part of their constitutions the right to food, the right to housing,

the right to healthy environment, the right to health care, etc.

If the U.S. is to emulate the

mature U.S.S.R., let's compare the two (Source: World Health Organization

via WorldAlmanac 2000.): Life expectancy in U.S.S.R. for men is 61 and

for women is 73. Life expectancy in U.S.A. for men is 74 and for women

is 79. Why would Herr Rückl wish the U.S. to emulate the U.S.S.R.?

Closer to home, tens of thousands

of Canadian citizens come to the U.S. each year to receive life-saving

procedures that are unavailable in Canada's socialized health care system

where "health care is a right." Each year hundreds of thousands

of illegal Mexican immigrants cross our border to receive health care

unavailable in their own country. If illegal aliens can receive health

care, why can't legal citizens obtain health care? Do you suppose the

government and the mainstream media are lying to U.S. citizens?

Why does Herr Rückl wish

the U.S. to emulate Canada or Mexico?

Dear readers, there are some

very scary laws being contemplated by our legislators and it behooves

you to write, e-mail, or call your representatives and ask them the medical

choice litmus question: "If you, as my elected representative, had

the taxpayer money to enroll me in a medically inferior medical program

like Russia's health care system for $4,000 per year per person, or, enroll

me in a medically superior medical program like Kaiser Permanente HMO

for $3,000 per year per person, which medical program would you select

for me?"

Georgia senators Max Cleland

and Zell Miller have made it quite clear by their recent vote that they

would select the inferior Russian health care plan for their U.S. constituents,

but for themselves they will select a superior health care plan similar

to Kaiser.

While the so-called "Patients'

Bill of Rights" as it is now written is an advertising masterstoke,

it is toxic medicine for the U.S. Wake up, America!

Bill Bryan

Peachtree City