Near the conclusion of Congressman Chet Edwards’ rambunctious town-hall meeting on health care reform on Saturday in Waco, I asked a supporter and an opponent of health care legislation whether the meeting at the Waco Convention Center really did any good.

“It lets people let off a little steam,” said 66-year-old retiree Pete Trippodo, who earlier asked Edwards why Congress wanted to create another sprawling program when so many federal programs are financially insolvent or headed that way.

“Whether (Edwards) realizes how angry people are, that’s another question,” Trippodo told me. “But the fact that he does see how many people are unhappy with HR 3200 may change his attitude about what he votes for.”

A 76-year-old woman wearing stickers promoting health care reform said she thought the town-hall meeting went well, even though some in the crowd turned unruly at times, booing the congressman and shouting questions and hurling insults.

“I think it’s OK,” said the woman, who declined to give her name. “That’s what it’s for. A little more respect could’ve been had, but it wasn’t as bad as some.”

That’s probably as good a description of Saturday morning’s spirited affair as any. I doubt many minds were changed during the two-hour meeting, which saw the congressman keep his cool, even as some in the crowd taunted him, including one who yelled sometime in the first 10 minutes that Edwards was a liar.

It was definitely an older crowd, though I wouldn’t call it a mature one exactly. One mother tells us she escorted her son from the hall because a man behind them began tossing the F-bomb.

Probably three-quarters of the crowd, which didn’t quite fill the hall’s 1,200 seats, appeared to be against health care reform, even as studies show health care costs will continue to climb, threatening small businesses and employees.

But what this crowd seemed more concerned about was the mess Washington has made of programs it’s already running and the idea that health care reform will only produce another bloated entitlement program bound for insolvency, as with Social Security and Medicare.

They’re also tired of 1,000-page bills that they suspect — often with justification — are filled with last-minute provisions that even most lawmakers are surprised exist. June Summers, 68, a nurse for 35 years, told me: “They’re hiding all kinds of things in this bill. It has got to be thrown out. It will destroy us. It will destroy the insurance companies and then we won’t have a choice.”

Beyond the fact that many people voice doubts about the government’s ability to address incompetency and waste, the meeting revealed the great intensity of feeling on both sides of any issue these days.

At one point, a Democratic Party official challenged David McIntyre, a Republican congressional candidate, to quit introducing himself to people at the door of the convention center by saying he was running against Chet Edwards.

“Why don’t you say what you’re running for,” the Democratic official said firmly.

Then a businessman who sees some kind of health care reform as crucial if small businesses are to survive challenged McIntyre on the issue.

At one point, McIntyre smiled good-naturedly, turned to me and said: “You get lots of advice.”

While they didn’t outnumber the opposition, I was surprised to see a large number of supporters of health care reform, including one who carried a sign reading: “When you oppose health care reform, you become my death panel.”

All in all, yesterday morning’s forum wasn’t as rowdy as some town-hall meetings I’ve seen on C-Span this month. But it wasn’t any shining moment in McLennan County history, either.

Solutions won’t come from shouting insults at congressmen and asking superficial questions. Nor will they come if representatives and senators ignore the deeper concerns beneath all the torrid rhetoric.

One thing’s sure: After August recess, some well-basted lawmakers in Congress will closely scrutinize HR 3200 in ways they never thought to do before.