Loaded terms

In his letter of Feb. 24, "Shovel-ready jobs in jeopardy?" Roy Betts repeats words often used by those who favor a government-controlled health care system, namely, " ... 45,000 Americans who normally die every year because they don't have health insurance ..."

These words are fraught with emotion but devoid of meaning. No one has yet produced death certificates that list cause of death as "uninsured."

We die from many causes. The truth is we die from heart disease, cancer, stroke, etc., whether we have health insurance or not. Having health insurance does not guarantee continuing life and nor does not having it lead to death.

Otherwise, in Canada, where health insurance is universal, no one would die. However, they do die, and from the same causes that fell Americans.

If we're going to have intelligent discussions on the topic of health care reform we have to avoid loaded terms and bogus "statistics."

John S.V. Weiss

Spring Hill