Talk about science fiction, Shane Sheetz should have a comfortable career in the genre with his raving against “right wing fanatics.” (“Much disinformation cited in debate about health care bill,” Aug. 14 Times-News)

I am sure that Mr. Sheetz has little idea what “right wing” even means, far less possess any knowledge concerning collectivism. I base this on his comments.

There is an old adage that if you cannot answer a man’s arguments all is not lost, you can still call him vile names. Mr. Sheetz provides little information based on experience or involvement in the health care field, but rather depends on a group of newspaper editors for his information—www.politifact.com.

I have been in the medical field for over 30 years counting my internship and residency. During that time I have spent inordinate hours fighting the bureaucracies of the government and the insurance companies (who regularly imitate federal regulations and controls), not for my benefit, but for my patients.

I have first-hand experience concerning how government regulations and rationing can cost a patient their lives. Others have also documented the large number of deaths caused by government rationing and regimentation.

For example, the British Healthcare Commission found between 400 and 1,200 people had died as a result of what they characterized as “appalling care” at the hospitals in Staffordshire. And this is just one city.

Then there is the case of actress Natasha Richardson, who suffered a head injury while skiing in Quebec. Even though she was conscious shortly after the accident, she was not rushed to the nearest hospital by helicopter, but rather endured a 2 1/2-half hour ambulance ride to the trauma center in Montreal.

Why was there no helicopter available? Daniel LeFrancois, “director of Quebec’s prehospital care told the Montreal Gazette that helicopters were expensive, and they weren’t used because medical resources were allocated according to the ‘biggest gain for the biggest need’.” With traumatic brain hemorrhages time is critical — but then she was just an individual.

Every socialized health care system in the world uses progressive rationing to control cost and the ones that are most often the victims are the elderly, the seriously ill and those with chronic disease.

Because of neglect by the system, these people end up just as dead as if the government put a gun to their head.

I have worked in one of the largest government run hospitals in the United States and I can tell you first hand, people died on a regular basis from neglect and abuse because of government policy.

Only a fool would ignore the experience of those of us who have seen government medicine first hand.

Russell L. Blaylock, M.D.

Jackson, Miss.