Dear Editor:
Your article on government disaster assistance as it relates to development at the Shore ("Federal disaster aid creates vicious cycle for taxpayers"; Aug. 6, 2000) made an important point: even well-meaning government attempts to solve a problem compounds the problem. In this case, it spurs development resulting in more pain and a demand for yet more assistance.
The vicious cycle, moreover, is not limited to this issue. For instance, government assistance with drug costs has actually boosted the price of drugs. Pharmaceutical companies know they can charge virtually what they want because, in the final analysis, the government will step in to cover the cost. And with its power to tax, the government has unlimited resources to draw on whether it's to pay for drugs, housing assistance or salaries for teachers and other government employees.
The free market, in contrast, rewards those who make logical, rational decisions in matters such as development, and penalizes those who act otherwise. And it does so without coercion, force or raising taxes.
Pat Bontempo, Chairman
Monmouth County Libertarian Party
(PO Box 121, Tennent, NJ 07763)
732 775-7263