Editor:

A serious thought for your readers:

There's a short poem about a barefoot boy with cheeks of tan, and the narrative says this boy is the one bet to absorb the national debt. The poem talks about future pain and ends with a barefoot man.

This poem was found in a file of pertinent comments that I have saved for years. It tells, poetically, of the serious state of our nation's economy. Many of these comments by knowledgeable people have warned of the inevitable result of a government that assumes too much of its people's personal responsibilities.

It is a fault of our political system that as our two principal Parties have competed for the honor of managing our finances they have succeeded in conditioning us (the gullible public), to expect government aid and protection in every aspect of our lives, with money it does not have.

But, now, after several generations of this addiction, withdrawal may seem too painful to be accomplished voluntarily. However, the option of failing to try, can lead to conditions unimagined.

No administration can survive, nor can our government continue to operate, if a national decline of employment occurs. Thus, we can expect it to use all its powers to maintain a satisfactory workforce.

One of its efforts to create jobs is by making credit available that will encourage people to buy or contract for things they do not need or cannot afford. Witness the current distress in the banking and housing industries. How this will be resolved we have yet to learn but a crisis is inevitable if we, or our government, continue to disregard fiscal responsibility.

Aspiring politicians avoid this subject, except to assure us that if elected they will correct all the problems of the past. Of course, this is not possible until the people are ready to accept the changes that will be imposed upon them.

HAROLD GOODELL, Dubois