Letter: There is no free ride on education funding

Thursday, Sept. 28, 2006 | 7:28 a.m.

Here we go again with another senior citizen whining about having to pay taxes that help fund public education (Marcia Romano's Sept. 27 letter in the Las Vegas Sun).

Why is it that so many senior citizens think that all of us who are still of working age and paying taxes owe them a free ride? May I ask who paid for their education? And please don't tell me your parents were the sole funding for your schooling. They hardly paid for a fraction of it. That's right, the working class paid their taxes for them to go to school, too.

This is the system that was working long before we were born and will still be used long after we are gone. Each generation owes it to the younger generation to fund public education. Ms. Romano makes the silly statement that "seniors of today were raised in a time when there was some responsibility in raising children and the costs involved." What exactly does that mean?

My son just entered a major university and my daughter is in the Clark County Community College High School Program, which is reserved for exceptional students. There is responsibility in my household. My daughter will be out of high school next year and after that I will still be paying taxes that help fund public education. This is my obligation and seniors, too.

No matter what age you are, I have a solution for seniors who think as Ms. Romano does. They can stop paying taxes that fund education and keep their money. In return, the rest of us will no longer fund Medicare, Medicaid or any other local or federal agencies that many seniors receive assistance from so that my tax dollars are not being used by them. Seniors can then pay for their own doctor visits, medications, medical devices, etc. Sound fair?

Jim Newton, Boulder City