Activist judges have changed America -- not for the better

Activist judges have changed America -- not for the better
EDITOR:
As a young man growing up in America I never dreamed that our wonderful country would some day take the course of action that it is pursuing today. I volunteered to join the armed forces during World War II to preserve the many things that I loved about America. At that time life was simpler and decency prevailed. Today we have become a hedonistic society that would have appalled our Founding Fathers. America was based on Judeo-Christian values and our nation thrived under the teachings espoused by those traditions.
President George Washington (dubbed "the Father of our Country") was a very pious man who traveled miles through the snow on horseback to attend church services on Sunday. He was known to ask the pastor if he served communion at his services. When he was assured that communion would be served, he would take a seat. He was reported to read from the scriptures to the congregation during the services. The American system of juris prudence was based upon the Judeo-Christian principals, which were based on the teachings of the Ten Commandments. President Washington would be in agony if he knew the course that this country has been following today!
The problems began in the "swinging Sixties," which ushered in the sexual revolution. This resulted in an epidemic of marital infidelity, illegitimacy, abortion and sexually transmitted diseases. Pandora's Box was largely the result of the unelected judicial activists who misinterpreted the Constitution and changed the mores of our country. They have struck down marital laws, condoned homosexual marriages, taken away parental control of the family and disrupted society in general. I would like to see the judicial system made to conform to ethical principals of behavior.
BEN PAULSEY
Warren
Flawed system helps jam hospital emergency rooms
EDITOR:
Anyone in America can get medical treatment for free. All you have to do is wait until you are sick enough to go to an emergency room. Every town in the country has at least one hospital that will provide necessary treatment to anyone who comes through their emergency room doors.
And believe me, most poor people are aware of this. Emergency rooms routinely provide basic medical services for people who should be visiting a doctor's office but can't afford it, and these services are provided at ER rates, which are many times higher than an office visit. Everyone in America ends up paying for them.
But the real flaw in this system is that most people wait until their illness becomes catastrophic before seeking attention. In my case, I had to wait until my kidneys completely failed before I could receive treatment. I then was fully covered for 21/2 years of dialysis treatments and the cost of a transplant at taxpayers' expense.
I am currently in the predicament where I am unable to work because the wages I would earn are less than the cost of the anti-rejection drugs I take daily. The government says I should take a job as a short order cook, even though they are fully aware that this would cause me to loose my kidney, end up back on dialysis and in line for another transplant.
I already know of at least one person in this area who lost her kidney and is back on dialysis because the government stopped paying for her medications.
The point is that anyone who believes that John Kerry's health proposals are too costly does not understand the reality of health care today. Paying for routine doctors visits and preventative treatments before a person's condition becomes catastrophic is far less expensive than waiting until they show up in an emergency room. It would actually save billions in the long run.
MICHAEL BORSH
Boardman