Medicare Surtax

Your editorial on the “Health-Care Catastrophe” (Oct. 11) and your earlier news coverage failed to highlight the worst aspect of the controversial, hopefully about to be repealed Medicare financing mechanism.

All sectors of the general public, young and old, rich and poor, healthy or ailing, must guard against an income tax surcharge for any purpose. Congress carelessly set the most dangerous precedent in the nation’s history--and it had to be stopped before the concept could be expanded to cover all manner of additional programs.

Let Rep. Pete Stark (D-Oakland) condemn the “greedy affluent seniors” all he likes. Their protests constituted a service to the country for which the politicians and the media will never allow due credit. That doesn’t matter.

ALAN K. KINDLE

Carlsbad