Letter: Government spending is too high
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I am continually amazed that there are people who think we don't pay enough taxes ["What we have in common with the Greeks," Opinion, Feb. 27]. What we have in common with the Greeks is the growth of the nanny state, and it is endangering our country. Half of wage earners in this country do not pay any federal income taxes. Let's address that with all of the pundits who think the rest of us aren't paying enough. After all, that 50 percent benefits from the taxes we pay, sometimes more than we do.
Long Islanders know the heavy price we pay to live here, and I am unwilling to continue to pay it much longer. After we pay our federal, state, county, town and school taxes, some of us are left with half or less of what we earned.
We "enjoy" some of the highest sales and gas taxes here, not to mention all the toll charges we pay just to get to New Jersey or Pennsylvania.
I wholeheartedly disagree with columnist Daniel Akst when he states that our problem in common with the Greeks is that we have accumulated debts because of our failure to pay taxes. One accumulates debt by spending what he or she doesn't have. We have accumulated debt because of our government spending.
Pete Stavrakoglou, Manorville
