Letters to the editor - Monday (2-13-2012)

President’s policies repeat past failures

I thought President Obama’s State of the Union address last month was really lame, and here are a few reasons why I say that.

Addressing the housing crash, he said “that mortgages had been sold to people who couldn’t afford or understand them.” He should have mentioned that banks had been forced into these loans by politicians, who then enforced these policies with hand-picked regulators. President Obama also said that he’s enacting “smart regulations to prevent irresponsible behavior” and creating a “Financial Crimes Unit” to keep this from happening again. Unfortunately, these proposed policies are simply repeats of the policies that got us into this mess. He’s just starting the cycle all over again.

Referring to his payroll tax-cuts, he said, “People cannot afford losing $40 out of each paycheck this year.” Payroll taxes fund Social Security and Medicare, so why don’t these tax-cuts come from income taxes instead? Now we have to “reimburse” these programs from other funds. Remember last year? He warned that Social Security payments might be interrupted if the Republicans didn’t stop trying to curb his spending spree. Aren’t we now creating a possible future crisis?

Not surprisingly, we were introduced to Warren Buffett’s secretary. President Obama discussed his proposed “Buffett Rule,” so named because Buffet has publicly complained that rich people like him allegedly pay lower tax rates than their secretaries. He wants to pay more. Here’s what wasn’t mentioned, though. Buffett, as founder and CEO of Berkshire-Hathaway, structures his personal income to avoid paying regular taxes. Also not mentioned was that Berkshire-Hathaway is apparently trying to negotiate down the $1 billion that the government says is owed them, dating back to 2002. Buffett has no intention of paying more. He and the president are engaging in crony capitalism (scratching each other’s back), and nothing more.

— Steve Pender

Rockwell

An honorable man

I read in Friday’s paper a letter from Bill Ward, and he used up a lot of space to put people down. I don’t know Mr. Ward, but I too live in Rowan County, and I do know General Emerson!

Your comment about him running the National Guard did not sit well with me. I had the pleasure of serving with General Emerson and know of his time dedicated to the Mecklenburg County schools. He ran the Engineer Brigade and provided military personnel for school projects all across our great state. There are many football and baseball fields that were built using National Guard engineers that General Emerson provided. So next time, you need to research before you speak.

Jim Emerson is a honorable man and does the right things for all the people. If you cannot be part of the solution, why do you want to be part of the problem?

— Roy Beam

Salisbury