To the Editor:
Mr. [Frederic ] Boisseau’s thoughts noted in his Letter to the Editor in the July 21, 2010, issue are right on target and are in line with an overwhelming majority of Americans (though many will not openly admit this for fear of being labeled with a derogatory title such as “conservative,” or even “racist”).

His interpretation and accentuation of Dr. [Robert] Owens’ comments/column are exactly correct. Unfortunately, I’m afraid that his correctness in describing the meaning of being a free American and human will fall on deaf ears.  Owens’ comment: “Our overly centralized nationalist government ... becoming that which it was never meant to be ... standing with its steel boot upon the throat of freedom …” sums up our current state of affairs and our current administration.  Boisseau’s comment, “The freedom to fail is necessary so that we have the freedom to succeed,” is also a truism, albeit a simply described one.

My favorite placard/poster I saw while watching the national news coverage recently of the Tea Party folks and others concerned with the concept of “redistributing wealth” read: “Redistribute my work ethic.”  Now, that is a statement that even the most hardened believers in free lunches can understand.  I commend Boisseau, too, for mentioning a little known fact regarding the American of African descent (S.B.Fuller) who became a millionaire during the depression and whose only assets were a sixth grade education and 25 bucks ... needless to say and without having to mention, he obviously had the most important tool, if you will: A work ethic! During the depression there was not much wealth to distribute, compared to today, and people took jobs that they did not like, but they did so to persevere, and as a result we came through the depression and the descendants of that great generation (all of us) are now having to watch an administration redistribute the spoils of working Americans to non-working Americans.  Yes.  The economy is not as good as we’d like it to be and the unemployment rate (statistics) do not, but should, include the numbers of job openings that are not being filled.  Read the employment ads in this paper alone and you will see that there are jobs available. Until we change the requirements to gain and maintain welfare to the able bodied, we will never regain the work ethic displayed by the great Americans like Fuller and our other ancestors.  Only this will fix this rampant culture and attitude of entitlement. I wrote this on my lunch break (I brought leftovers from home; I didn’t have another working American pay for my lunch.) and now I’m getting back to work. Thank you, Owens and Boisseau, your words are inspiring and will hopefully teach and remind folks what it means to be an American.  
 
Chris Pierce