To the editor:

Re: Letter from Mr. Heistand. I have government-run healthcare (Medicare) and I love it. The rest of the world has universal healthcare and they love it. They love it because the costs are half and the outcomes are better.

Healthcare is a moral issue. We need to see that our neighbor is properly taken care of and is not rendered homeless or bankrupt on account of medical calamities.

I agree that our children should not be saddled with crushing debt. A positive step would be a 95 percent tax on incomes over $500,000 and a 100 percent tax on those estate values over $3 million.

Our country has undertaken very foolish and expensive enterprises trying to be the world’s policeman. Fighting unnecessary and costly wars is a poor method of conflict resolution and we should try different approaches.

Adoption of a universal healthcare system will help keep the country from bankrupting itself.

Baird Bardarson, MD

Freeland