Reducing some of the confusion

Let me see if I can clarify some things for Dan Dawson since he is so confused ("More confused about things," Aug. 12).

Medicare is not a socialist program. Citizens who have paid into it and earned enough credits to qualify for it earn Medicare. You do not automatically get it when you retire.

Medicaid is not a socialist program either. In China, the government wants you to limit your family to one child and most citizens there work backbreaking jobs. In America, you can be on Medicaid because you don't work and feel free to multiply as many times as you want. Did you know Medicaid pays for Viagra? A socialist program would not let their citizens have the choice of not wanting to work and staying home testing how long Viagra holds up

Also, Dawson's got it backwards on who feels they deserve socialized medicine and who does not. Congress has exempted themselves from this new health care program they are trying to intimidate everyone into. Good for the goose, not good for the gander? That's something to be confused about.

If the start of our financial meltdown did begin on the Republican's watch, since when did it become OK to make it worse on the Democrats' watch? A true leader would be saying, "What can I do to make things better in this country under the U.S. Constitution with the least amount of cost to mainstream America?" Perhaps reading the Constitution would help this self-serving "Democrat" guide the country since it is obvious he has not. Now that's something to be confused about.

I do hope when Dawson is 80 years old that he is not in the "more economical to put you down than waste money on your health" category. That's socialist medicine. Is that the direction Dawson wants to go? That's something to be confused about.

If you really want to be confused about something, how about Rep. Raul Grijalva helping secure a grant for over $10,000 for the Cocopah Head Start program. I was so confused because I thought they had a casino. What do they do with their money? Now that's something to be confused about.

Here's an initial solution to some of our country's problems. Reduce the taxes of homeowners so they are not paying for education. Those who have school-age children should pay for our public schools. Take the money out of their checks just like taxes are taken – before they receive the check.

If one wants to sneak into this country so their children can have a better education, well, you are going to have to pay for it (they are coming here anyway) and have documentation that supports you have paid. If you can't afford it, don't have them. If you are on welfare and having children without the capacity to support them, then I think a government-ordered sterilization is in order since you don't get it. Now I would support that socialized medicine.

Hope this clarifies some things for Dawson. It should be easier since I said it in less than 1,000 pages.

GAIL SMITH

Yuma