Words of 1994 still ring true

Dear Editor:

I was going through some papers and came across a short article about our nation which I had written in 1994. What is amazing is that those items of concern are still relevant - and even more so today - as we head into our presidential election.

Feb. 14, 1994 - Our system is decaying and there is no renewal. We have failed to nurture what we had. We now feel sorry for the perpetrator and forget the victim. We adjust our thinking to conjure an excuse for the defendant.

Religions have sprung up for tax advantages and have left society and family life behind. Lawsuits prevail at the expense of common sense. We no longer care if it is right or wrong, but head for the easy out with the least cost or effort.

In a government founded around God and prayer we have managed to drive them from our schools and way of life.

We now demand houses for those lacking ambition. We reward laziness and violence. The word family, a necessary element of society, has been abandoned as we finance illegitimacy and in doing so incubate the germ which will destroy our democracy and life as we knew it.

There are no free lunches or houses. They are obtained by honest, hard work and a sense of pride. You can't legislate your way into society, you have to earn it by respect. The Golden Rule (Whatever you wish that men would do to you, do so to them - Matthew 7:12) would be a good start, if we can find anyone who remembers it.

Robert Reichard, Andreas