Letter: Some just too smug to imagine hard times

Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2002 | 8:56 a.m.

In a perfect world, nobody would ever be unemployed, become ill or disabled, never have automobile accidents or lose the head of the family, or our children would never be sick, college educations would be free and available to everyone, our world would be a paradise.

But this is not to be. Franklin Delano Roosevelt, very likely our greatest and most brilliant president to date, foresaw the possible disasters looming for many as he viewed the world from the confines of his wheelchair, realizing the fragility of life.

This great compassionate president rescued Americans after the Republican Herbert Hoover's Great Depression, opening food banks for the many starving people, creating jobs, and also established the Social Security system, not perfect or meant to be a main source of income, but still a lifesaver for millions of retirees or disabled -- often the only difference between dignity and destitution.

Republicians have attempted to trash Social Security since its inception. They would have only the most naive believe that gambling on the stock market is a better idea. As for the middle-class, non-millionaire working people who are still voting Republican, perhaps too smug and arrogant to ever imagine themselves trying to ignore their aches and pains as they pump gas or fry potatoes all day at the age of 70, may the Good Lord help them all -- the Republicans certainly will not!

RUTH DI MAGGIO