I am naive but I hope I am not too late! Over the years I have seen a great change in the attitude of the people toward the federal government. It used to be that people wanted Washingtono, D.C. to stay out of their lives. The smaller the government, the better -- take care of foreign affairs -- interstate commerce -- and let the states do the rest. Now many (maybe most) people expect the federal government to take care of their every need from cradle to grave. They go to the government with their hands out and expect money to be placed in the them! They have gorgotten JFK's famous statement: "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." Where has personal responsibility gone? You make a risky investment in a home -- it fails -- and you and the lending institution both expect the government to "bail you out." At one time families took care of their elderly members -- now many expect -- no demand -- that the government take care of them -- house them, feed them, and take care of their medical needs.

Do we no longer have any individual pride?

In Washington, there is an attitude of spend, spend, spend. They do not worry that we do not have the money to spend. Our grandchildren will pay for it!! What a sad attitude to have -- and Democrats and Republicans alike are guilty of this. After all, how can they buy our votes if they do not spend the money?

Am I too late? Can we really have a balanced budget?