Oh, I know just what you meant. And you seemed to miss the subtle point of my reply.
Your statement speaks to the stupid claim that the only way a society can take care of its needs is through government...when, in fact, government has shown (and only Chris seems to stupid to realize this) that government can't do much very well.
Why would I want them running my health care system ?
Your second paragraph belies your first because I don't mean that. I believe you need a mixture of both - govt and free enterprise.
It never ceases to amaze me that uber conservatives and libertarians don't see any good in government, when clearly there are some very good aspects to the institution. Sure, there are some pretty ordinary aspects to it, too.
I come from a country where there is little private health care and mainly run by the government, and while it has its moments as far as making mistakes etc, there is definitely not the amount of whining and whinging that goes on on these boards by Americans about their health system.
At the end of the day, your health system suffers from the same thing that seems endemic in your society: anything that 'appears' to infringe on your 'personal freedoms' is bad - even if it's good for you.