To the editor:

The presidential election is viewed by many as a referendum on health care.

I, too, see it as a referendum, but not one on Obamacare. It is a referendum on the American people. And let’s not get caught up in the nonsensical political rhetoric currently in vogue.

It is not a referendum about who we were at our founding. It is not a referendum about who we aspire to be. It is a referendum about who we are.

Us. You and I. Right now. Today.

The choices are clear. Are we loosely connected individuals who believe that wealth is preeminent and that all else, including our collective health and happiness, should be sacrificed on the altar of material gain?

Or are we a community, granted a diverse one with differing opinions on many things but a community nonetheless, who believes that on matters as essential as health and life we have moral and practical reasons to put our collective selves ahead of individual gain?

When Mitt Romney repeatedly says that we “can’t afford” health care for all, what he’s really saying is that accumulation of wealth (mostly by the few) is of more value than the rights of all Americans to be healthy enough to pursue life, liberty and happiness.

The truth is, we can afford health care for all. The money exists; it’s a matter of prioritizing spending according to what we value most.

President Obama advocates putting that money toward our collective good. Romney wants to give more tax breaks to the wealthy few.

Recently, in his remarks to the NAACP, Romney characterized health care for all as “nonessential.” Is that how we as Americans think about our fellow citizens, that their health is nonessential?

So step up America and vote. As the politicians are so fond of saying, “Send a clear message” — a clear message to ourselves and to the rest of the world about what kind of people we are.

Are we “every person for themselves, I’ve got mine and you can’t have any of it, greed is good” people or are we “we’re all in this together, we are our brothers’ keepers, and all of us have certain inalienable rights” people?

When you make your choice America, stop and think about whether it’s one you’re proud of.

Peter Harvie

Brunswick