Following the defeat of Measure A, I had the opportunity to watch the video of the Tri-City Volunteer Campaign Center. I said this at the board meeting and I will say it again: I took no personal joy in the sorrow of those people.

At Stop Taxing Us, we have always held to the basic tenet that Tri-City should have a great medical center. We simply do not believe this tax was necessary or justified, and the public agreed.

So where do we go from here?

First, I would like to call for an end to the divisive talk and Web logs. It serves no constructive purpose and only deepens the divide. I understand that many people have had negative experiences at Tri-City, but many others have been equally touched in a positive manner.

The doctors, nurses, and other care providers are not the enemy. They are our friends, our neighbors, and our families. They have dedicated their lives to caring for our community. I personally know several of the care providers at this facility, and I am proud to be their friend.

The true enemies of our hospital are those elected representatives who do nothing to fix Medicare aside from expanding its benefits as the number of people paying into the system continues to decline. The true enemies of our hospital are those who hire illegal immigrants and promote the mass influx of an impoverished people. The true enemies of our hospital are the state officials who want to mandate changes, but do not want to provide any method of funding to address these changes.

This said, within hours of the defeat of Proposition A, everyday people, board members and administrators started to discuss potential solutions to the hospital's problems. This exemplifies what we at Stop Taxing Us have been saying all along. A tax is not necessary to address the financial woes of this institution.

Nonetheless, three failed bonds demonstrate a lack of vision and mandates changes in the hospital administration and the board of directors.

The trust between the hospital and the community has been breached.

As such, we are requesting that Art Gonzalez step aside so that we may commence the search for a new CEO. With regard to the board, the voters have the power.

Four of our current board members are up for re-election. Take the time to evaluate their opposition.

If this hospital is going to survive, we believe this change is mandatory.

With new leadership comes new ideas, and it is important to consider all alternatives to a tax, including hospital privatization. We are not saying this is the best answer; we are merely implying that it is a possible solution and it should be discussed.

The reality is that the circumstances that lead to the formation of this hospital district simply do not exist today.

Many in the district would like to see all or part of the hospital sold and those monies applied elsewhere. Finally, this hospital can no longer tolerate writing off $1 million dollars a month on indigent health care.

Health care is not a right. It is an expensive luxury. It should not bring people to the brink of financial collapse, but it should certainly be worth more than that grande mocha and a pack of cigarettes.

In closing, we would like to propose that the failure to pass this bond is not the end, but the beginning of a dialogue. At Stop Taxing Us, we are willing to participate in this discussion, but we will not endorse a tax.

We represent the fiscal conservatives and we are American to our very core. We would like to invite you to join our organization, and together we can take back our country, starting with the success of this one hospital.

Carlsbad resident Gary Gonsalves is co-founder of Stop Taxing Us.