February 9, 1998
To the Editor

With the recent events concerning the president, we risk getting sidetracked from what truly matters. No, not character; that has already been discussed. Certainly not who hired Craig Livingstone or who was given unprecedented presidential access for cash- though that may matter sooner than we think.

Look at the State of the Union address to get back on track with what is of most importance. The rapid erosion of our freedoms. If immigration, the socialization of medicine, the corruption of government and the brainwashing of our children are allowed to continue as is, this will be the first society in the history of the world to relinquish its culture without a fight.

Every day we're being lead to hand over our freedom and culture to one activist group after another. The attitude is "It doesn't affect me." That may be true temporarily, but when your children become adults, they will spend their lives reaping the consequences of that indifferent attitude in the loss of freedoms we take for granted today.

Take healthcare for example. Have you ever had to hear a president state it is time to tell insurance companies "patients should be able to pick their doctors and direct the course of action for their own health?" In 1994 the American people told the co-president and her husband "we do not want socialized medicine." Recently White House employees were indicted for the secret meetings Hillary Clinton held on the issue. She wasn't charged but as usual Clinton associates bore the brunt of the Clintons actions.

Most Americans have been mistakenly lulled asleep, believing this debate is over. Think again! The Clintons have just changed strategies. Instead of creating a single 1200 page document containing words such as "jail" and "fines", they have switched to piecemealing the earlier plans into place with new legislation.

Medicaid is abused by school systems across the country. According to the Education Reporter November 1996 issue Medicaid payouts of over 200 million dollars went to school districts to hire teachers, maintain property and purchase supplies. In 1988 Medicaid costs were 51 billion dollars. They have risen to 158 billion dollars in 1995. In Chicago 28 million dollars were expended from Medicaid funds. In New York City 60 to 70 million dollars were expended. This has become a cash cow for schools. There was a day when this money was used to help the disabled and the poor not to add additional money to educational budgets. Today Medicaid is heavily funding education.

With parents readily accepting the Medicaid fix, the Clintons created another investment, "Kiddie care." There are supposedly ten million kids without health insurance daily. Half of them live in families that make 30,000 dollars or more. As a matter of fact, every three out of four uninsured Americans are recent immigrants. The highest rates of the non-coverage individuals are in our border states, New Mexico, Arizona, California Texas and Louisiana. This is the basis for the Clintons new entitlement.

This year the president proposed forty and fifty year olds buy into Medicare. This angers me for two reasons. The first reason is another piece of the socialized medicine puzzle being put in place. Secondly, do twenty and thirty year olds have to wait until next years budget for their coverage! The real outrage is one piece at a time the debate that gave us a Republican Congress will be over. Our taxes are paying for "investments" creating "government controlled" and inadequate healthcare for all.

An equally troubling issue is the hijacking of education. As governor, Clinton moved Arkansas from 50th to 49th in state rankings. If that doesn't alarm you, when Secretary of Education Riley was governor of South Carolina it ranked 50th. Despite the near collapse of public education parents take little interest in their own childrens education. They show approval of the federal government plans to take total control of education, via national tests, outcomes based education, school to work, and other fads. Most do not know what these programs contain. What is worse these programs have doomed socialized countries across Europe financially and academically. Children are becoming global "human capital" (read the legislation!). Unemployment is high in countries where the same programs have been implemented yet some would have us follow the same path.

New York State and the federal government are pouring money into "education" claiming it is "for the children." Not enough taxpayers realize most money gets expended on bureaucracy and not the classroom. The Department of Education has funded the Community Action Tool Kit - a guide on how to write op-ed pieces, radio spots and speeches promoting the a national Goals/ School to Work plans. This is the tip of the financial iceberg of spending unrelated to the classroom.

Throwing good money after bad will never solve a problem. Going back to basics will! You need only look to California: that state, having followed these education fads for years, has dropped to 47th in national ranking. They are now dropping whole language, and "new new math" to create curriculums built on core academic knowledge. What will New York be doing ten years from now after spending billions of dollars? Bureaucrats have an agenda and education isn't one of them.

The president is using education money to push through his government initiatives for child care. A few short years ago the most dangerous time for children was midnight. That established a need for taxpayers to pay for midnight basketball through the crime bill! Now the hours between 3 until 7pm are the most dangerous for children. So, forty billion dollars over five years is proposed to pay for babysitting from 3 to 7pm.

According to the Family Research Council nearly 50 % of children are watched by relatives. Another 20-25% of children are in day care considered adequate by parents. This leads to 30 % of childcare needs being driven by an initial forty billion dollar "investment" by taxpayers. Why? Could it be another way to get a hold of your children? We have pre-school, soon to be mandated pre-k, school, after school day care and midnight basketball. (At least you can still make your kids dinner!)

Instead of making another "investment" how about tax breaks for families. I don't favor targeted tax cuts but at this point anything would be welcome! Stay at home moms need money just as well as working moms. Why should they be penalized? Maybe with some changes in personal choices more moms could elect to stay at home. Giving up the new cars and extra electronic devices would ease the financial burdens. Some people are making that sacrifice. Why should those families have to pay additional taxes for others lifestyles? Families can do what they want. The question is "Should the government be subsidizing it"?

It is time for everyone to decide what truly matters. Should you be worried about Bill Clinton's sex life? Maybe. Should you be worried about a pattern of lies over the past six years? Should you be worried that if he is not telling the truth about certain issues, is he telling the truth about other issues? Most importantly are you going to keep giving up your freedoms by thinking things "don't affect me?
Councilman Donald Castellucci Jr.