Liz, you & others interested in national healthcare might be interested in this Frontline report called Sick Around the World, about what the U.S. can learn from other countries about providing universal healthcare: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/sickarou ndtheworld/

What I was trying to say is this - at what point am I taxed too much? It sounds like you believe never - because that money goes to good use. I submit that there are other ways of helping people - other than thru the government. If I get taxed to the point where I can't afford the necessities, I become one of the needy - don't i?

While I agree that everyone deserves affordable, quality healthcare, I submit to you that there is no such thing as free. The doctors and nurses are paid for their services. The suppliers are paid for their products. When people want the government to pay for products and services for the population, they are really saying that they want the citizens to pay for it. Think about it. The government does not EARN it's money. It taxes the working public for it. Whether it's a for-profit organization, a business owner, an employee, or a consumer - those are the entities who are paying for the Entitlements being proposed. How much can someone be taxed before they determine that it makes more sense to stop being an earner? If high wage earners are using tax loopholes to not pay their 'fair share' then fix the tax code. If pharmaceutical companies are charging too much for drugs, then regulate them more stringently. Have them stop advertising to people who can't buy their product without an intermediary. I don't understand why I should be punished for working hard and trying to succeed in my chosen field. It seems to me that if people had more of their own money, they'd donate more of it to the needy.