Kevin Huffman's Halloween piece, not Kevin Kaughman

I liked it. It's comparable to Kevin Kaughman's, with less gimick. Nice.

This is a top ten entry out of 4800. I don't think so. So this remote community has a hard time getting medical care. Duh. I don;t think the public option is going to help. I'm missing what this has to do with the relevance to the overall debate over healthcare.

Well, perhaps you could have tied it more into the national debate on healthcare, but I liked your column, mainly because I could relate--I have been to Silverton, got sick there, and had to go to a clinic in Ridgeway, CO (I think) to see a doc and get a prescription. I agree that you should stay in Silverton and report from there. Definitely a great place and a refreshing view!

We all understand that the world today is a lot different from 1918; and there is very little chance of a town being wiped off the map by swine flu. I'm wondering whether Mr. Esper would have anything to write about if the junior Senator did not visit Silverton. Well, we will see in the next round!

This post has been split into 5 segments and is directed at all the finalists. If you want to find the other 4, check the other comment streams. They are all written by me, MsJS, and will all have approximately the same date/time stamp. This is segment #5.

The third way to win is with efficient writing. In getting to your initial 400-word column, a number of you took a 200- or 300-word idea and wrote a 400-word piece. If you consistently ramble, folks will soon tire of you. If you don’t know how to tighten up your writing, find someone who does and heed their advice.

My fourth and final idea about how to win is always think about how to make WaPo a winner. You were creative enough to get this far. Hopefully you now have a better understanding of what this contest is all about and you can now leverage that creativity along with your unique assets to help WaPo achieve its goals.

Again, congratulations to all of you and good luck. I’ve had my say. Now it’s your turn.

OK, here is your argument.

1. Treating pandemic flu is health care
2. People died from the pandemic flu
---------------------------------------
Conclusion: Opposing universal health care means you support genocide via untreated flu, and you are some kind of monster.

Consider if you will the following. The present adminstration knew this fall was going to be a bad deal with H1N1 months and months ago, yet there is not enough vaccine to go around. Where are all the Katrina bemoaning types now to lambaste the government for failure to produce sufficient vaccine to innoculate the populace? Do single payer states such as the UK have enough H1N1 vaccine? Have you reasearched that? No, I think not.

There are some who view doing nothing as worse than trying anything. Ironically you will find those in the medical world holding to the very opposite, as their motto is 'first do no harm'. Health care practicioners recognize that the actions of the inexperienced can actually worsen the problem.

So how would you feel, if, in your small town, you saw your cost of living and taxes go up to support a universal health care bill, and when word of a pandemic flu epidemic came, you got no vaccine from the government, and had nothing to show for all your taxes and increased cost of living? Would you not say that in that case, being charged for a service never delivered, would be worse than actually never paying nor expecting the government to solve your health care problems?

The government might be an answer to your health care problems where you live. A better answer may be a co-op for your community. Assuming the government is the only answer, then compounding that bad assumption with implying those who oppose it as flu death mongers is worse than ignorant.

You did do a good job giving a personal impact feel to the piece, but all of that was diminished by your flawed reasoning driving this opinion piece.

As someone who lives in "flyover country" and happens to like it, I think I might vote for this guy if he promises to stay right where he is and never move to Washington.
So often when I read this newspaper, I feel people like me, who live in these outer areas are "invisible" to the beltway types. Anytime elections roll around you can tell by the news media conversations that they haven't the slightest idea how we live and think "out here." They always seem to assume we are ignorant rubes and rednecks. A rural prism and perspective is therefore most welcome to me. I also like the fact that from his photo, this gentleman appears to be, er, closer to my age demographic. I really think a pundit should have some gravitas, which only a certain amount of miles on the odometer can provide. Good luck.

Another valid contender! Very good points and a point-of-view that most of us (certainly not Park Bench) don't have. The truth in this peice is that not everyone has a choice about where they can afford to live. In rural North Carolina it can be hard to find medical care, too. This despite the fact the state has some of the best, world-class medical facilities, and technicians in residence. Perhaps the issue is as much one of economics as it is what physicians are willing to earn. Operating a clinic in rural anywhere doesn't pay much. Maybe what Americorps needs is a physician component? Or, there should be a licensing requirement of 24 months of service in a rural community or the military before a newly minted doctor qualifies. Now, there's a novel idea. What if all those medical students at Duke, Wake Forest and Chapel Hill knew they'd be working in Appalachia instead of Raleigh, Charlotte or Charleston post-graduation? Sounds like an equitable solution to me.

I lived in rural Nebraska and Missouri where health facilities are non existent so this author could provide the rural perspective where stimulus funds could be used to pave dirt roads, build 2 way bridges to replace 1 way bridges, build some health facilities and rural libraries. Life is tough in rural America which government ignores.

Total non sequitur.
A solid gold insurance policy - unlikely to resemble anything like a "public option" - would still be useless if one choses to live in an isolated community 50 miles from a health care facility via a road that is often unpassable in winter.
A hospital or clinic is not economically viable, a reason why rural state Members of Congress are opposing the plans before Congress that include cuts that will force many rural facilities to close.
The general store in Silverton must sell a lot of Kool-Aid.

congrats on being top 10. Although this author brought a refreshing new perspective, it did not resonate with me. I did not find the style of writing to my taste for a WaPost editorial. A bit too casual.

"We wanted to give him a tour of our town's health-care facilities, but he was behind schedule and thus didn't have time to visit Hillside Cemetery."

Does anyone else find this a howler?

This, THIS is a WaPo candidate for a Great Pundit? It is parochial beyond belief. Sorry, mister, you're not quite ready for prime time.

Although the piece was not very well written, it was a thoughtful and provocative piece.

One thumb up; one thumb down.

Sorry sjr0691, this is writing contest. You may have had more content but maybe your writing sucked. In one short comment you sounded like sour grapes and very petulant. Maybe some of your whining came across in your opinion piece.

Nicely written, as far as it goes. However, the issue of health care is important to lots of folks at a very basic level. Out of those millions, I'm not especially moved by the plea of a journalist who has made a conscious choice to live in such an isolated locale. There's nothing being discussed on Capitol Hill that's going to cause a hospital, or even a doctor's office, to suddenly appear out of nowhere in downtown Silverton, so what exactly was the author's point regarding the senator's visit?

"He gets chosen as a finalist? Ridiculous. What is Mr. Rocky Mountain High going to tell us next, that the sun rises in the East?"

Amen brother. What an insult that these are winning essays.

Wonderful story by a fellow EMU (and perhaps Eastern Echo?) alum. Congratulations on making the cut.

I'd be interested in knowing how insurance can be made more available and affordable in a community which doesn't attract physicians and is unable to sustain a hospital. Are those of us who pay taxes to be held accountable for those who choose to live in isolation? Is that the solution you propose?

Good. I like it. How refreshing to hear about something outside of the beltway.

This guy writes an essay on health care that basically sums up to "Its an important issue." I write one prescribing three ideas that should be included in the debate - Rewarding healthy lifestyles: Eliminating the inability of small businesses to group together for bargaining purposes; and Tort Reform. He gets chosen as a finalist? Ridiculous. What is Mr. Rocky Mountain High going to tell us next, that the sun rises in the East?

You just provided the strong reason for not having the public option. I am not willing to pay higher taxes for supporting your life style.

It's isn't just the folks in Silverton who support a public option. 73% of America's DOCTORS do too (either the public option or - in the case of 10% of them - going further to single payer).

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112818960

I wish Congress would listen to our medical caregivers instead of pandering to the insurance companies who pay for their reelection campaigns. How did our political system get this messed up?

Well cheer up, at least you have a job. The sad part is that it's in journalism. My last paper had healthcare along with the $9.50 an hour, but the deductible was $2000. That negates having a plan for me. Expect more of this type of thing with insurance companies involved.

I'd be interested in knowing how insurance can be made more available and affordable in a community which doesn't attract physicians and is unable to sustain a hospital. Are those of us who pay taxes to be held accountable for those who choose to live in isolation? Is there another solution you are proposing?