There is one simple reason for the passion behind the opposition to the proposed health care reform. The President and Democrats in Congress are lying to the american people and we don't like it. It's like when your child misbehaves and then lies about it--there is one punishment for the misbehavior and an additional punishment for lying. Americans don't like liars and we don'rt like to be lied to. Ask a used car salesman. Lying begets anger and passion in return.The very anger and passion we see at the Town Hall meetings about health care.

The President and Congress realize that their legislation wouldn't have a snowballs cance in you know where is they were honest with the american people. Instead they are trying the Wizard of Oz approach--pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. If Obama and the Democrats said, as the President and Barney frank have in the past, that they want a single payer government run health care system they realize that their legislation would go down in flames. As a result they are attempting to lie right to our faces and demonize those of us who see through the lies. They compound their lies and further raise our ire by pretending to want an "honest debate" about health care at the Town Hall meetings. Anger and frustration is a perfectly sane response to anyone who lies right to your face. We wouldn't accept such behavior from our children, spouses or friends so should we accept it as part of the political process? We shouldn't!! Enough is enough.

Unfortunately we are all to blame for getting us into a position where Obama might actually succeed in his desire to take over our health care system. For far too long Republicans have played the game of politics on our side of the 50 yard line. We have constantly allowed ourselves to be put on the defensive and have completely ignored our offense. Anyone who follows football knows that eventually your defense wears down and the opponent runs righrt over you. Democrats are great at creating false issues taht need government solutions like health care. Instead of flatly rejecting these false issues and the arguments that allegedly support them the Republicans seem to always try to come up with a watered down government solution to the "problem" For example a care ful study of our health care system reveals that it is the best system in the world and certainly not in crisis. There are not 50 million uninsured nor the miriad of other problems attached to the system by Democrats. Rather ours is the finest health care system in the world. The Republicans should have said so and then gone about to increase competition to lower costs and provide potability of coverage and coverage for pre-existing conditions. Problems solved! Issue off the table!

Sadly not standing up for our free market principles and individual libery at the start of the debate has brought us to the brink of disaster. If we had gone on offense in the beginning we wouldn't be defending our goal line today.Michael Steel's job is simplier tan it appears. The Republicans need to reassert  their long held principles our smaller government, individual liberty, states rights etc... and demonstrate how these beliefs are as relevant today as they were 200 years ago. They need to further demonstrate how such principles apply to everyone and stop changing or watering down our beliefs in an attempt to widen our tent. Such phoneyness only turns off  the American electorate. Voters are looking for heros. We want to be led by people who say what they mean and mean what they say. Eventually people take notice of such leadership and want to climb aboard.

My final word of advice for anyone aggrieved by our big government system is to turn to the courts. Most of the legislation coming out of Washington these days violates the 10th Amendment. We need to challenge it while the courts are still in our favor. We need to return rights to the states and the individual that were explicitly protected for them in the constitution.

One final personal note. My beloved dog, Gage, died yesterday. He was a beautiful 15 and one half year old English Pointer. I loved him and will miss him terribly.