Subject: A Budget Debacle: Bush's national debt-boosting budget signifies that America is broke. Further, it is another omen that America's bid for a dominating world empire led by Pentagon military supremacy is on the way to being broken. Americans will finally grasp that the Iraq debacle was a product of the effort to achieve a crucial link in the burgeoning American empire -- namely, control over Mideast oil reserves -- and had little to do with the deceptive claims of weapons of mass destruction, connections to 9/11 and Al Qaeda or the promotion of democracy. They will come to see another connection: Unending increases in military expenditures sink empires. As a World War II veteran who served overseas, I am concerned about national security in this troubled world. However, this must rest not on imperial dominance but on intelligent cooperation with fellow nations and a reasonable level of military assets. Are we addressing our fiscal problems while ignoring ominous future ones: Social Security and Medicare obligations. In 2024, Medicare is expected to grow larger than Social Security, currently the largest portion of federal outlays. Around that time, those entitlements will be running massive yearly deficits. To make a bad situation worse, the 2003 Medicare Modernization Act added a prescription drug benefit. According to generally accepted accounting principles, the U.S. government is bankrupt. Future fiscal obligations, without significant changes in policy, are insurmountably large. Although the current deficits and debt are worrying, they are paltry in comparison to the entitlement time-bomb. Two questions come to mind: How can such incredible sums of money be made available to be spent at the request of a president? How can such incredible sums of money ever be repaid? It must be clear that such use of huge amounts must result sooner or later in a huge financial disaster. W

RESPONSE: Indeed, as we fall deeper into the recession with ever escalating oil and grocery store prices soaring...the Republi CON should be more evident to more and more people. The notion that the unregulated market solves all problems and more tax cuts for the rich as is being promised by McCain is the answer...when those are the policies that have the middle class in today's mess...but the really rich are laughing all the way to the bank.