We have a country that wants to believe it is the best in

“We have a country that wants to believe it is the best in everything, but until all of us embrace the idea that health care should be a right, not a privilege, our system cannot be glibly described as, quote, ‘the best in the world.’” Thus spoke Tim Johnson, a servant of the people and a voice of conscience in an age of comfort and contradiction. His words are both a lament and a call — a lament for a nation that prides itself on greatness yet forgets the measure of true greatness, and a call for compassion, for unity, for justice that extends not only to the powerful but to the humble, the sick, and the unseen. For he reminds us that a nation cannot be called great while its people suffer in silence, denied the care that should belong to all.

Johnson’s words pierce the illusion of pride that blinds many civilizations. He speaks not in scorn but in truth — that no country can claim the title of “the best” until it protects the weakest among its citizens. To call something a right is to declare it sacred — not a reward, not a favor, but a covenant between the people and their leaders. Health, he says, is not a luxury for the fortunate, but the very foundation upon which liberty and equality stand. For what is freedom to one who is too ill to use it? What is opportunity to one whose body has been broken by neglect?

In ages past, the wise have spoken likewise. The ancient Greeks taught that a city’s strength was found not in its wealth, but in its care for the common good. In the city of Athens, physicians were honored as public servants, their art seen as a duty to humanity, not a trade for profit. And in the Eastern kingdoms, the emperors who built hospitals for the poor were remembered as fathers of nations, while those who hoarded power and gold were forgotten by time. From these histories rises a single truth: the health of the people is the heartbeat of civilization. Without it, even empires fall into dust.

Consider the story of Dr. Jonas Salk, who gave the world the polio vaccine. He could have claimed wealth beyond measure, for his discovery was worth more than gold. But when asked who owned the patent, he replied, “The people. Could you patent the sun?” In that moment, Salk embodied the very spirit Johnson describes — the belief that health care is a right, a shared treasure meant to uplift all, not a privilege to be sold to the highest bidder. His selflessness saved millions of lives and proved that true greatness is not found in pride, but in service.

When Johnson speaks of “a country that wants to believe it is the best in everything,” he calls us to look inward. Pride without compassion is an empty vessel. We build monuments, send machines into the stars, and boast of innovation, yet how hollow such triumphs ring if a child lies sick and uncared for, or an elder dies alone for want of medicine. The best nation is not the one that shouts its might, but the one that tends its wounded. The greatest power is not military, but moral — the power to heal.

His message is not merely for rulers, but for all who share in the life of the nation. Each of us must choose whether to live as isolated beings, guarding our own comforts, or as members of one body, responsible for one another. The health of one affects the health of all — as a body cannot thrive if one limb festers, so a nation cannot flourish if its citizens suffer. When we see illness, poverty, and despair, we are called not to turn away, but to act — for indifference is the poison that kills civilizations from within.

So, my children of the future, hear this teaching well: greatness is not declared; it is proven through mercy. Let your hearts be moved by the pain of others. Support those who heal. Demand a society that values every life, not as an asset, but as a sacred trust. When every man, woman, and child can see a doctor, can rest without fear of ruin, can live with dignity — then, and only then, may we call ourselves “the best in the world.”

And let this be your guiding light: a nation’s true glory lies not in what it possesses, but in what it provides. The highest honor is not victory over others, but compassion for one’s own. Build such a nation — one where health is not a privilege, but a promise — and future generations will call you not merely powerful, but good. For in the end, the heart that heals is the heart that endures, and the nation that cares is the nation that truly lives.