Reply #160: Done. My letter.

[Parker CA]

Dear Mr. President Barack,

I'm writing to you in the hope that you will do everything in your power to put the pressure on congress and INSIST that a public option is a key portion of the health reform bill that is currently being crafted and debated.

You have a very influential position in more ways than one, and at the same time you face constant opposition and distortion campaigns from large contingents who will do anything they can to disrupt and block health reform.

The one thing that you have that your opposition does not have, Mr. President, is that you won the recent election with an overwhelming majority and with the support of millions of people who will continue to INSIST on a public option being a crucial element of this reform effort.

If you cannot guarantee that a public option is included and if you cannot INSIST on it being an non-negotiable element, I'm not sure my generation (I'm 30 years old) will ever have the chance to see this kind of reform ever again.

I have been dealing with extended health issues for the past two and a half years. I was forced onto disability and to leave a job where I was making $125k/year, I was forced to sell my home, and I was forced to move back with my parents where I have been since. I understand the personal difficulties and failures with the current health care system.

I went undiagnosed for more than one and a half years while seeing specialists at Stanford University and other hospitals. I was finally diagnosed by an infectious disease specialist with late-Lyme disease complex which includes a host of viral and bacterial infections. Lyme is a very politicized disease, and it's really a conversation in its own, but my experience has proven to me that our system is in need of serious help and reform in many more ways than one.

At only 30, and having become sick at 27, this is something I never imagined I would deal with at this phase of my life, but as is life, things happen, and rather than letting them dictate how you live, I prefer to learn from the experiences and understand new perspectives from them. One of the unique opportunities that this experience presented me with was to be able to, on a daily basis, follow your campaign for presidency, your triumph in the election, and your progress as president.

I donated to your campaign, made phone calls from home since I couldn't be out knocking on doors, and I believed and supported your message of HOPE and that YES WE CAN achieve what many consider the unachievable.

Right now I am asking you to remember the fire and passion your supporters showed during those months leading up to the election. The persistent pressure we applied to the opposition and the energy we all put into electing you so that our world and our lives could have a chance to improve in ways we never thought possible resonated loudly for millions of us.

My father considers JFK an idol, he constantly compared you to JFK during the primaries and election, and in the end, he, like millions of others believed he saw in you a candidate who stood for what is right and who put it all on the line for the greater good rather than for the money machines out there fighting for control through persuasion.

Mr. President, YES YOU CAN make this happen. YES YOU CAN INSIST on a public option. YES YOU CAN change millions of lives for the better. I believe you know what is right, and I understand that you face a formidable opposition, but YES YOU CAN achieve reform with a public option, and YES YOU CAN be remembered as one of the greatest presidents our country has been graced with.

You have my continued support, Mr. President, but as with anyone I admire and consider capable of achieving great feats, my expectations are extremely high. YES YOU CAN live up to them. YES YOU CAN INSIST on a public option. It's worth it. You know it's worth it.

Best of my luck and wishes for good health to your and your beautiful family!