NYT: To the Editor

[Rose Siding]

Give me a government of these people:

To the editor, from a clergyman in MN:
David Brooks seems to take some comfort from the suggestion that "only 19 percent of males and 27 percent of females are poor or working poor."

What an odd and troubling world, when the fact that nearly one in four of our fellow citizens is struggling with basic needs constitutes good news! That this many people must worry about food, shelter and health care should be a rallying cry, not a benediction.

It would be hard to argue with the notion that values matter most, but our most important values are found in how we treat the poor and the vulnerable, not in feeling relieved that their numbers fall comfortably below an electoral majority.
.....
From a professor in OK:
David Brooks calls an average annual family income of $63,000, for people between 26 and 59, "impressive." He also says that "liberals have adopted an overly negative view of reality."

Let's say you have the "impressive" household income of $63,000. See how fast that disappears with education, housing, medical insurance and energy costs. Now, go study the impact of such expenses on less "impressive" household incomes.
.....
another, from a woman in NY:
David Brooks argues that middle-class Americans feel social anxiety more acutely than economic anxiety. He just might be right: a culture that leaves 45 million of its citizens without health insurance is a great source of anxiety.

there are more-

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/29/opinion/l29brooks.html?n=Top%2fOpinion%2fEditorials%20and%20Op%2dEd%2fLetters

No one noted the difference between "average" income and median income, but reading this collection of voices is inspiring.