Dear Editor:After reading Greta Campbell's letter to the editor, "Welfare State," I am dismayed at the blame game she presented. She wrote "cities (are) declaring bankruptcy and Republicans (are) trying to do away with public unions." She should research and educate herself as to why cities are failing. Most are caused by trying to fund these out of control union pension obligations that have very little employee contribution percentage and are nearly completely taxpayer funded. She blames Republicans for low test scores in math and science in the general population. I believe we should hold teachers and their unions accountable for this. We cannot even get rid of bad teachers because of union strongholds. This needs to change. As for patrolling the Mexican border and neglecting the Canadian, I do not believe we have 800,000 Canadians trying to sneak in to get free medical, again taking resources from people who work, pay taxes and are productive. She blames Republicans for spending money on oil drilling. I believe the American public pays for their energy requirements, which provides the monies spent on oil drilling. Oh, and the "welfare state" does not "invest" into the economy. How can taking taxes from people who work, pay taxes and contribute to a productive economy, and redistribute those monies to people who won't work and are parasitic to the overall health of this great nation, stimulate the economy? Tom Ridley Downey

Dear Editor: Greta Campbell and the Democrats are still blaming George W. Bush . This is President Obama's economy. President Obama increased the deficit by $5 trillion in 3 1/2 years, unemployment rose steadily to 8.2 percent. President Obama controlled Congress for two years and he only accomplished the unpopular Obamacare. His other accomplishments: Solyndra and giving money to foreign countries. Our country is almost broke so let's stop giving away money that we don't have. Let's not forget President Obama never had a budget since he took office. Even a simple household like ours budget. President Obama is very good in spending our tax money. Arthur Salao Downey

Dear Editor: After reading Ms. Campbell's nonsense, I can only conclude that she is a Democrat operative paid to misinform the public. And misinform she did! Why are cities declaring bankruptcy? It's no secret nor is it an evil Republican conspiracy to do away with unions. Union wages have increased faster than private industry wages and citizens do not wish to pay more in taxes to see lavish benefit packages bestowed upon the few. The biggest offenders of cost-of-living increases are Democrats who impose burdensome regulations upon businesses that are then passed onto the consumer. Apparently she doesn't see any connection President Obama's heavy handed regulation laws, higher minimum wage laws and - surprise - massive youth unemployment, the largest increase since WWII. She accuses Republicans of "taking the food out of the mouths of children in school lunch and breakfast funding." First, whose responsibility is it to feed children? The government's? Hardly! Secondly, are we truly concerned about starving kids in America when obesity is the number one health problem for kids - especially poor kids? Thirdly, has she bothered to see the copious amounts of wasted food that kids on these "free" programs throw away? Is Ms. Campbell seriously blaming Republicans for our kids' low math and science test scores? Who controls the public schools? Hint - it ain't Republicans. And the nonsense continues. Why spend more money we don't have patrolling the Canadian border when our problem is the southern border? The average Canadian family now has more wealth than the average American family, thanks to Obama, and they are hardly lining up for fewer opportunities in the USA. Shall I remind Ms. Campbell that President Obama continued the bipartisan war in Afghanistan and is the one beefing up our military presence in the Persian Gulf? But her biggest problem is with Republican desire to reform welfare. The bipartisan welfare reform bill of President Clinton did more to lift people out of poverty by forcing them off the government dole than any bill in history. And President Obama just declared that requiring people on welfare to work or look for work was no longer necessary. The number of people on welfare has already increased by 40 percent under this administration. The Democrats have been in power for six years now, and people like Ms. Campbell continue to blame Republicans because they cannot face the reality that their irresponsible policies have only made things worse. Alaina Niemann Downey

********** Published: July 26, 2012 - Volume 11 - Issue 15