European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - January 4, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse The stars and stripes Page 11 Arm Landers dear Ann Landers i am sure you won t think this letter is important enough to print but i need to unburden my self so Here goes seven years ago i became a National statistic. Actually it happened the Day i was born into a Low income family. I gave birth to a son when i was 18. The baby s father walked out on me and i Haven t seen him since. & i had to go to a Public assist & Ance Agency for help. I hate the fact that i m still on welfare but that s the Way it is and i will probably be on welfare forever the Way this Lousy system works. I have tried my darn est to make a better life for my son and myself but it s hopeless. I was a Good student and wanted to go to College but was told that i could attend Only one particular College in my county and take Only certain courses such As food service and Home health Aid. I said no determined to find a Way to pay for my education and get a degree in something that would Lead to a Good paying Job i began to look through College catalogues. I decided to aim for a career in human services and help other pregnant and disadvantaged teens. I applied for financial Aid and a loan. Welfare Cut me off and stopped giving me benefits because they considered a student loan a form of in come. They said i was making too much Money to be on Public assistance. So i gave Back the loan and did to to school. Then i got a part time Job $30 a week to try to save Money for tuition. Again welfare slashed my benefits. I had been receiving $100 a month in food Stamps and $8 in Cash. They Cut me Down to $50 a month in food Stamps and $3.50 in Cash. I did t have enough Money to feed my son let alone the two of us. Since then i have had other problems with the Wel fare office but i do As i m told now and try not to make anybody mad at me or they might Cut me of altogether. How Are people like me supposed to better ourselves if we get kicked in the Teeth every time we take one step Forward now i know Why so Many Young girls on Public assistance keep having More children. The More kids you have the better the Chance of surviving the welfare roller coaster. This system perpetuates freeloading Ann. People who want to get off welfare Are penalized and those who want to stay on Are rewarded. To put it bluntly the system stinks. On the Dole in Albany dear Albany i would not disagree with a word you have written. The system does indeed kill initiative and Reward Lazi Ness. Anyone in government want to respond dear Ann Landers i work in a male dominated office. Unfortunately the men and i must share one bathroom. The men Are constantly leaving the toilet seat up. One Day i decided to write a note and leave it on the Back of the toilet. It read Guys would you please remember to leave the toilet seat Down when you refinished they replied with a note that read. Sure and would you please remember to leave the seat up when you Are Ann Tell us which is proper to leave the seat up or Down i will Post your reply on the office Bullet inboard. . In Santa Cruz Santa the toilet seat when not in use should be in its nor Mal position. Down. A Well bred gentlemen knows this and need not be reminded. Tetters the european edition col Jeffrey m. Cook. Usa commander editor in chief it col Suzanne l. Phillips Usan Deputy commander editor in chief Marie Kominicki Mert Proctor Deane b. Mcdermott production manager managing editor circulation manager this newspaper is an authorized unofficial publication for members of the military services overseas. Contents of the stars and stripes Are not necessarily the official views of or endorsed by the . Government the department of defense or the . European command. The appearance of advertising in this publication including inserts or supplements does not constitute endorsement by the department of de sense. Or the stars and stripes of the products or services advertised. Everything advertised in this publication shall be made available for Purchase use or patronage without regard to race color religion sex. � writer disputes Points made in letter the letter you recently printed under the headline ". Should search soul in Holiday season struck a very sour note with me. Let s look at some of the Points made 1. We live in the greatest nation in the i agree 100 percent. 2. Even though we Are the greatest debtor nation in the world we can still find the resources it takes to defend our Way of i am certainly glad that we Are Able to defend our Way of life. Would this writer be willing to give up the american Way of life to pay the National debt i doubt it. 3. It does t matter that we cannot afford to vide our citizens the Standard of living evident in Many countries of the world since when Are we supposed to provide anyone with a certain Stan Dard of living i thought that each individual was responsible for providing his or her own Standard of living. 4. An education system that is steadily going Down Hill the problem with education in the .a. Does t lie completely within the system. As a Parent i know for a fact that children do not always put Forth 100 percent Effort in their school work. You can Lead Johnny to the textbook but you can t make him learn. 5. The countless millions of homeless people in America countless millions agreed there Are a lot of homeless people in America but countless millions 6. Farmers of America. Going under in re Cord numbers farming is a business. You know Supply and demand profit and loss income and outgo. Why should i subsidize a tobacco Farmer who raises a product which kills in this writer s words countless millions of americans 7. Automobile workers. Incapable of producing anything the rest of the world wishes to buy " automobile workers have brought their prob lems upon themselves with the help of their labor unions. Why should an unskilled Assembly line worker draw in excess of $20 an hour in pay and benefits if the rest of the world refuses to buy american cars it s because they can buy better for less elsewhere. Don t get me wrong. I agree that the United states faces major problems. However it is much easier to stand Back and criticize than to help solve the prob lems. I saw no solutions in this letter Only criticism. Would he have socialism in the United states in t that what they Call it when the government provides for All the needs of its citizens sgt. 1st class Shelton s. Beach Darmstadt West Germany readers disagree with focus on shoplifting in recent weeks we have noticed an increased focus by the Media an to and radio schools Parent bulletins Community papers on the problem of stealing especially shoplifting. We also noticed that these sources do not focus on the real Issue of the problem. Shoplifting is a problem not Only to the stores affected but also to the Community and society As a whole. However we can t agree with the tactics used Roget the message across. The Media prefers to emphasize that the consequences of stealing far outweigh the benefits. This seems to suggest that stealing is wrong because of the possible consequences and not because of moral Ethi Cal religious or pragmatic principles. We realize that using the threat of punishment for unlawful acts can in most cases be a very effective Way of enforcing the Law but it should t be taken to the Point where the moral Issue is either completely ignored or taken for granted. Unfortunately our society s value system has deteriorated so much that moral and ethical problems Are of no great concern and Are certainly not something discussed openly in the Media. We suggest to you that the Home and the family Are the place where morals should be instilled first but that other parts of society especially the schools and the Media play an equally important role. Our society experiences great changes with every new generation. We have to teach our children the importance of moral values now. Maybe this Way they will carry Forward the right attitudes necessary to make a change for the better in the future. It is up to us. Who else would teach them right fro wrong Pam Dorsey Kim Lilly Gale Ramey Petra Roulias Wiesbaden West Germany German says thank you to americans before this year is Over i just have to write a thank you letter to the american people living in Nieder Roden. Otherwise it will be left in the drawer with All the other Good intentions and it will be forgot ten forever. In the Early morning hours of sept. 26 there was a terrible explosion and fire in a High Rise building on Frankfurter Strasse in Nieder Roden. My brother and his family were living in that build ing. Fortunately they had left the House a few minutes before the explosion and escaped physical injury. As my sister in Law told me the americans living in the building next to them were the first ones to be there and to help. They used their garments for providing shelter. They gave out Tea and sandwiches. They made phone Calls to notify family members they comforted the homeless and the injured. They did countless Little things that nobody else thought of and that nobody in the chaos recognized i am sure. My brother and his wife Are so full of Praise and thanks. They keep saying it was the americans they were the ones to help if it had t been for the americans we Don t know if their help has been recognized atall. So on behalf of my brother and his wife and Daugh Ter i would like to say thank you to the wonderful american people living in the Block next to Frankfurt Ter Strasse 92 in Nieder Roden for their immediate response and for proving that love thy neighbor Means not Only during christmastime but any time. Marianne Keller Neu Isenburg West Germany All letters to the editor must contain the full printed name and address of the writer and must be signed. We do not read unsigned letters but we will withhold your name on request and protect your privacy. A letters Are subject to editing. National origin age. Marital status physical Handicap political affiliation or any other non Merit Factor of the purchaser user or Patron. Military address the stars and stripes Apo 09211. International mail the stars and stripes Postrach 11 14 37. 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