To the editor:
In Mr. Hill's letter, "Economy falls with government's rising role," (Letters, Times, March 21), he decries the evils of having a government that wastes money on the undeserving as well as those who benefit from the labor of others.
I suspect Mr. Hill has a computer, a phone of some sort, perhaps a TV, and even a CD player. If not, he likely has heard of them and they are all fruits of the labor of others.
Thanks to our spendthrift government and the ridiculous moon exploration misadventure in the 1960s, we are forced to "enjoy" the miniaturization in computers, and other trivial electronic devices, such as pacemakers, MRIs, DNA trace analysis equipment and so forth that were either direct or indirect spinoffs from NASA's work by the unheralded government workers.
Commercial adventures have built upon what was started by our government. We, well most of us, have fresh, relatively uncontaminated water to drink and air to breathe. I can't seem to find the name of the company that oversees those utilities — an oversight on my part, no doubt.
One reason, raised years ago, against using the death penalty was that our ignorance of knowing how to rehabilitate someone should not be used to justify killing that person. In a similar train of thought, our ignorance and churlish indifference to the plights of others should not be used to keep people mired in abject poverty.
I would love to see the complainers try to survive on $60 a month, have no education, no property, and never expect to see a doctor or nurse except in an emergency that happens outside a hospital or clinic.
Arthur Thomas
Seaview Road, Gloucester
