Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes letters from readers online and in print each day. To contribute, click here. Vice President Kamala Harris received some mild praise for saying in her recent CNN interview that, if elected, she is amenable to appointing one Republican to her Cabinet. Although not promising to do so, she based her willingness on her desire to encourage and absorb differing viewpoints. But why just a single one? There are 15 Cabinet positions for department heads and another 11 Cabinet-level slots, a total of 26. If she truly welcomes divergent voices, rather than just a token Republican to create an aura of bipartisanship, she certainly could find and appoint more than a solitary Republican, probably stuck in some secondary role. Many past presidents of both parties have had at least one, occasionally more, opposite-party members in their Cabinets, including high positions.

It would not be unusual for Harris to emulate that pattern and eschew a Cabinet full of think-alikes. About one-third of the electorate has allegiance to the GOP. If she truly wants her Cabinet to “look like America,” a Harris administration should include at least a couple of Republicans, maybe more. Doing so would reward Republicans who crossed over to support her, reflect bipartisanship, and lean in favor of her rival’s plea for “unity.” It also would serve as a testament to diversity, equity, and inclusion—the concept scorned by the GOP and dismantled by the Supreme Court last year. Further, how about including a MAGA adherent in the Cabinet as well? They matter too.

Returning from my Labor Day vacation, I caught up on the Star Tribune report of another Minnesota corporation doing battle with a Medicare Advantage corporation. This article solidifies my belief that our federal government continues to let us suffer in the crossfire of large corporations waging profiteering wars against each other. I’ll research the candidates for Congress on our ballots this November to determine which are most likely to intervene and remove the warring industrial giants from the healthcare playing field. My vote will go to the candidate who appears more loyal to human well-being than to party loyalty or corporate campaign contributions.

Regarding “The $3,300 surgery bill that wasn’t”: Thank you for this article, which shows the combination of incompetence and lack of responsibility from the UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plan. Unfortunately, this story is part of the dysfunction in Minnesota and American healthcare. It would be beneficial to regularly report on the problems in our healthcare system compared to other modern countries. Problems include substandard outcomes, medical debt, care avoided due to inadequate or absent insurance, wasteful expenditure of dollars better used in housing, education or retirement funds, and an inability to plan a quality healthcare system for the state.

Consider an article looking at the opportunity cost of U.S. healthcare. Compare the cost per person per year between the U.S. and the second most expensive country in the world. Calculate the cost over 65 years at a market rate of interest. The dollar amount is quite large and these are dollars that should be available for housing or retirement rather than disappearing into the wasteful U.S. healthcare situation. Let’s work towards a cost-effective healthcare system providing excellent care for every Minnesotan.

Regarding “The $3,300 surgery bill that wasn’t”: How insidious! Due to an error, the gentleman had to endure years of hassle from his knee surgery to finally get the money back that he didn’t owe in the first place. Ridiculous and all too common. I’ve never had surgery, but if I do, I’ll plan on asking the necessary questions for my financial safety. Who knows how my recently obtained Medicare Advantage plan will work? Will my plan cover my surgery? If not, how much will it cover? Is my provider in network? Is the lab in network? Is the surgical center part of the hospital system that is in network? Is the anesthesiologist in network? Are the intake staff in network? Are all of the aftercare staff and equipment in a recuperation room in network?

Is the hospital or clinic in network? Are the nurses, surgical techs and assistants in network? Who is the “payer” for the insurance company, and are they in network? If there’s a change, will I be notified? Absurd, indeed! Separate entities profit from this chaos, hence rampant surprise medical bills. At age 65 now, I dread needing expensive medical care. Enough is enough! It’s time for realistic regulations against these “entities” that absorb our money. Universal healthcare can’t be as bad as this.

People don’t kill people, bullets do. Facing destruction and the violation of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, our nation feels helpless. But we’re not limited to arguments about keeping or banning guns. There’s a spectrum of options. At a minimum, we can enact a 500% gun tax and a 500% ammo tax, particularly doable in Minnesota. The cost of liberty is steep and must be paid, or we will pay in other ways—at the hands of an angry God, and the God of the innocent. We should start seeking forgiveness sooner rather than later.

The impact of inflation hit home on a recent walk. Spotting a dime on the street, I gave it a fleeting thought and kept walking. Sixty years ago, that dime would have bought a candy bar. As I continued my walk, it occurred to me it wasn’t just the dime’s diminished value but my diminished flexibility.