What a poorly written commentary (“See that 500-pound gorilla?” Nov. 18)! When the writer starts out by denigrating a particular section of the public, he loses his credibility. He starts out by calling them “teabaggers,” which shows his complete lack of respect and cloudy judgment. I am not a “tea partier,” but like it or not, they have affected the political discussion in this country. He calls himself a “progressive,” yet he could have called himself a “looney liberal,” using his previous dislike of some.
To his article, though. Funny how now that the Democrats—and, to be more specific, the left wing agenda—have been repudiated by a majority of the country, he wants to cut the military. I have heard others suggest this, yet heard nothing of the sort the last two years. Odd? You bet! As an Air Force retired veteran, I understand there is waste within the Department of Defense. But there is no more or less waste there than in the Department of Labor, the Department of Education, etc., so let’s not just focus on the military.
Remember, we are the ones who let this man write his garbage when he wishes. There are plenty of areas to cut funding; welfare being one for those “generational” families who have no desire to look for work. We could follow the example of the United Kingdom, which is in the midst of a large overhaul of its benefits programs.
Last, he finishes with “we probably don’t know what we are talking about and probably don’t know all the facts.” Well, at least he ends his article well.
This article appears in Dec 2-9, 2010.