Debt a concern for speakers at Public Square

Midlothian resident Elizabeth Bale is deeply worried about how trillions of dollars in government spending, and the resulting public debt load, will affect her children's quality of life.

"Their future is going to be much bleaker than ours," Bale said last night at a Public Square hosted by the Richmond Times-Dispatch. "It is shameful that as grown-ups, we allow this to happen. We are voting for this to happen. We are voting for people to give us benefits, to bail people out, to bail us out, at the expense of our children.

"No other generation . . . has passed this kind of debt on to the next generation, and I am frightened," she said. "I ask people to stand up. It is not OK."

Most speakers agreed with Bale on the answer to the question "Is government doing too much or not enough?"

Seventy people attended the forum -- the 25th hosted by The Times-Dispatch on various issues. Of the more than 25 people who shared their views, many said the government is doing too much, and running up too much debt in the process.

Drew Williams, 15, of Richmond said the country needs to support small businesses and encourage more industry. "We got ourselves into this situation, and it's not the federal government's job, in my opinion, to bail out the big corporations."

Richmond resident Bill Grogan and other speakers said the federal government has gone far beyond the powers given to it by the U.S. Constitution.

"Right now, the federal government is involved in every aspect of our lives," he said. "In my opinion, Congress is the most pernicious entity in this country and is destroying it. How do they do that? They do it through the tax system."

Ron Melancon of Henrico County agreed. "Our motto was 'life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,'" he said "But today, we have life, liberty and the pursuit of government control in our lives.

"They are telling us what kind of car to drive in the future," he said. "They are telling us when to smoke, what kind of sugar in soda, what kind of salt in french fries. When does it end? I want a politician to say 'no new government programs until the budget is balanced.'"

But not everyone said they think government is doing too much.

"We look at government as being intrusive," said Eugene Harris of Midlothian. "We look at it as the enemy, but we need a jump-start in this economy to get people back to work. We need jobs."

John Schuiteman from Ashland said the size of the government reflects the tremendous demands that citizens and various interest groups have placed upon it. Taxpayer-financed bailouts for troubled industries are appropriate "because of the mess we got ourselves in," he said.

The problem is not so much government spending but government bureaucracy, he said.

"It is the culture of bureaucracy that is making government a problem," he said. "I have no problem with the government raising my taxes to pay for good programs that are accountable and not wasting money."

Many in the crowd urged others to be active in government, informed about their communities and discerning about politicians who get their votes. "Vote for someone who actually echoes your own beliefs," said Robert Lynch of Richmond. "If you want change, real change, sometimes you have to step outside the system."

Midlothian resident Donna Holt asked people, "When is the last time you checked out the voting record of the person you're voting for?"

Holt said people need to take care of their family and friends, watch out for their communities and be more self-sufficient. "Stop asking government to take care of everything we do," she said.

Contact John Reid Blackwell at (804) 775-8123 or .

Contact Emily C. Dooley at (804) 649-6016 or .