It saddens me to read your editorials and so many letters on health-care reform, in which the writers are comfortable in denying access to health care for the less fortunate among us. Even the legislation in Congress will significantly miss that target.

We are a mix of the well-off, the poor and all those in-between. Those of us with good minds, a good education and good jobs usually think we earned and deserve all we have.

Yet the fact is that the most successful adults were born with good brains and into families that provided them with a good education. If anything, the credit should go not to us but to our parents, who of course we did not choose. The majority of us who are well-off are simply lucky.

The word "community" implies that we are all in this together -- the lucky along with the unlucky. Many nations have that, and provide health care for everyone. We seem to have lost that sense of community.

On the public option, many say that our government can't be trusted to run health care. All other wealthy countries have found their governments can do it, and are doing a far better job than our private insurers do, and at far less cost. It obviously is not that difficult.

It may come as a surprise to some that Medicare is run, and run well, by our "inept" government. I think most who are approaching age 65 are pleased about finally getting on Medicare.