Letter: Suggesting cuts is the easy way out

Thursday, June 26, 2003 | 9:05 a.m.

I agree our government cannot bear a duty to be "everything to everyone," but demands for budget cuts ignore reality.

Anyone espousing such cuts should be required to spend a day at one of our schools or alongside one of our state employees working in welfare services, which is where my spouse works.

They'll discover schools that are still overcrowded, teachers who still use their own funds to buy classroom supplies, students who are stacked one on top of the other. They'll learn about welfare workers who are carrying crippling caseloads and facilities where there is no room to keep up with client demands, no matter how one construes the numbers.

No, the state can't be everything for everyone, but until those who can help will, the state will continue to bear that burden. Unfortunately, it's always been easier to throw stones rather than build, hasn't it?

SAM KITTERMAN JR.

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