Letter to the Editor – July 21, 2011

More peas

A few days back, President Obama conducted a news conference in which he stated that in order for the country to once again enjoy the robust economy of yesteryear, we would all have to be part of “shared sacrifice!”

I wonder how many remember the meeting he had with Senators and Congresspersons in which he later stated that he had made an agreement that the lower tax rates for all but the rich would have to be discontinued. This was when I immediately noticed that the IRS was now taking $30 more a month from my pension check!

I will be the first one to admit that “only a fool would think that this government could sustain itself without everyone paying their fair share of taxes” But as we have all discovered, the “shared sacrifice” only pertains to the poor, the unemployed, and the working class of the citizenry. The “circus” that we call “our government” has for several months now bombarded us with nothing but scare tactics, arguments, and goofy schemes that they promise us will “once again restore us to greatness!”

The above photograph may clarify what the president has in store for us when he stated “We must start to eat our peas!”

I grew up during this era when we didn’t know we were poor because with the exception of a few “robber barons of industry and commerce” we were all poor! And how did our parents get us through this? Simple! They instilled in us the precepts that we lived in the greatest country on earth, that we had a responsibility and duty to do what we could for our country and our fellow man, and not to complain because there were a lot of people that were far worse off than we were!

So, forget the lentils, the wheat, and the garbanzo beans, and let’s hope we see more peas grown here.

Jerry Harnois,

Oakesdale

Harnois’ letter included a copy of a Spokesman Review Looking Back photo of men shucking peas in 1936 at Broadacres, the 240-acre “poor farm” at Spangle which later became Upper Columbia Academy.