Stories of a short, fat bastard.

Well, as has also been mentioned above, America is still afraid of the word, "socialist." When it's spoken of in terms of Medicine, we see mental images of incompetent Canadian (and some European) doctors, and fear the worst. Governmental programs in our country tend to be the worst examples of an industry. Likewise, the word, 'socialist' itself carries with it a lot of fear. Remember, all but the very youngest Americans have been raised in a state of constant fear of our enemy, the USSR, for the last eighty years. Add to that frequent Red Scares, the worst example being that led by Senator McCarthy, and you can begin to get the picture that it just won't fly here, no matter how good it can be.

-=TK