There’s an overwhelming reason for health care reform that never seems to get any coverage in the mainstream media, and that has to do with the rising health concerns of the children and youth of the United States. It is so important that the decline in health poses a threat to our future national security. The fact is that, without significant changes in the way our health care is delivered, that we may not be able to defend the United States from its enemies.

With the instatement of voluntary military service and the discontinuance of the draft, most of our soldiers today come from the lower social classes — the very people who have the poorest health care, the poorest nutrition, the least exercise, the greatest chance for drug addiction, and countless other health problems, including diabetes. Obese soldiers, diabetic soldiers who have lost a leg from untreated diabetes, and soldiers with other severe medical problems, are unable to perform the tasks required to adequately fight wars. There is no getting around this fact.

In addition, these are the very same people likely to be exposed to large amounts of toxins from industrial pollution, and to have the least access to organic foods and thus have significant concentrations of animal growth hormones, pesticides, and other health-altering substances in their bodies. Unless we change direction in the United States, right now, we may find that we are completely without enough people to have the manpower necessary for the military tasks we will face in the future!