Borrowing problem must be solved first

Some people seem to think that President Barack Obama has somehow moved to the “center” because he makes statements suggesting he's ready to “consider” reductions and claims a “willingness” to make “hard choices.” Then he flies off in Air Force One at a cost of $170,000 an hour to don some safety glasses or a hard hat to announce of his next “investment” in solar shingles or high-speed trains. Reducing spending in one place in order to spend it someplace else is not reducing spending! Don't tell me he “gets it!”

According to The Gazette, Congress spent $860,000 of our taxes for bottled water last year. Each bill-signing souvenir ballpoint pen the president hands costs us about $120 - more than some people, right here in Linn County, have to buy groceries for a week.

Yet, the president proposes another $1.1 trillion deficit on top of our current national debt of $14 trillion. Think about that. It is said the average person's heart beats 2.5 billion times during a lifetime. At the rate of one heartbeat a second, a person would need to live 34,856 years (for a trillion)!

Currently, 43 cents of every dollar the government spends has to be borrowed. And repaid with interest. Who will repay that money and how long will it take? Shouldn't we tackle the borrowing problem first, by reducing spending, before we “invest” another dime? If we don't, the bad dream will soon become a nightmare.

Jay Kacena

Marion