To the editor:

In response to Kent Hartwig’s letter to the editor responding to Ben Godar’s Jan. 28th column, I must first ask: What did he accomplish with his communism-bashing letter rebutting a column stating that Christ’s teachings seem to be more in line with the concept of socialism than with anything else?

Mr. Godar never went as far as to say that Christ was a communist. He even said, “I’m not about to say that Jesus would lineup as a democrat, but I certainly feel that several platforms of the Republican party seem to run contrary to his teachings.”

So, the practice of communism today (or ever for that matter) is never mentioned in relation to the teachings of Jesus Christ.

Turning the page to a different issue, Mr. Hartwig also mentions that Godar makes the claim that Republicans can’t align themselves with Christ because they don’t believe in throwing money at the poor.

Three words: fourteen million children. That’s the number without health insurance.

That includes orphanages, youth shelters, foster homes, single mothers who can’t afford it, troubled families and selfish, rich single child households who could give a shit less.

Some people have no choice in the matter.

The welfare system in America IS in shambles.

However, Mr. Hartwig seems to think that ONLY Republicans advocate bettering it with a welfare to work program.

This is a program that is supported across the board.

Certainly there have been revisions and opposition to some aspects of it, but I think it’s a general consensus that if a family is given a horrible break in life and falls, the governing body which is responsible for our every daily activity in some way or another should help get them on their feet.

The point that Mr. Godar emphasizes is that issues such as the inheritance tax or even our freaking defense budget (that one is my two cents) are seeming far more important lately than issues such as helping the unfortunate youth of our nation while there’s still a chance to help them.

What national threat is so great at this point in time that we need to INCREASE our defense budget!?

NONE! ZERO! Then why?

I don’t think that going as far as pulling all troops out of Europe, the Middle East and South Korea is a good idea at this time, but a decrease in defense to make an increase in budgets to be put toward health care or education available is a more reasonable option to me, and I don’t think I’m alone.

I don’t want to take a Republican or Democratic side here, but there are certain issues that voters and all citizens of this nation need to put parties aside, throw out the traditional platform and beliefs of the right or left and realize what we’ve have, what we don’t have and what we need.

We don’t need to eliminate the inheritance tax, and we don’t need a $250 billion dollar defense budget.

Do we need the children of this nation to go without health care and without an OPPORTUNITY at a decent education?

Do we need families driven down to poverty with no chance to escape because the current welfare program is being abused?

Those are the things that need attention.

Think how fortunate we are being able to come to a computer lab to discuss issues like this at a university where the estimated cost of attendance for a school year is now over $10,000.

How many of the millions in any of the above-mentioned categories will ever get a chance to do such a thing or experience the four years that we’re all experiencing?

If the present Republican candidates really declare Jesus Christ to be the most important philosopher in their lives, then maybe they should start appealing to that crowd. The crowd that’s willing to make the sacrifices.

Forget tax cuts.

Let’s increase taxes and help each other out; let’s cut defense all together because there’s no room at all for killing and let’s eliminate the death penalty.

They probably wouldn’t rack in the numbers their bringing in now, and they’d have the terrible loss of not following the good ol’ GOP tradition, eh?

Can’t have that now can we, after all that’s how mommy and daddy brought us up, right?

Sean Kehoe

Senior

Performing arts and political science