I READ “The Economic Consequences of Mr. Bush” with some interest. I was left wondering what the qualifications are in this day and age to obtain a Nobel Prize. Joseph E. Stiglitz asserts that F.D.R. and his various social reallocation programs were the cause of great prosperity and that somehow President Bush has done more damage to the economy than Herbert Hoover. Both assertions are false.
The implementation of Social Security has been the greatest Ponzi scheme ever foisted on the people of the Western world. Such a scheme is illegal if put in place by private business, yet the government created a “system” that depends on ever increasing populations of working citizens to sustain it. This, of course, is impossible—the carrying capacity of the planet is finite and will eventually be reached. It is for this reason that private systems such as Mr. Ponzi’s are illegal.
MAUREEN ORTH WAS DEAD ON in her depiction of the dreary state of affairs that is the Washington social scene [“When Washington Was Fun,” December]. Previous administrations conveyed a level of class and taste that seems lost on more recent residents of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. There was a trickle-down effect from those glamorous events that gave a sense of vibrancy and joie de vivre to Washington. For a regular, non-connected resident of the city such as myself, there seemed to be an energy in the air that has since gone missing. The Clintons were much more gregarious, often being spotted around town having dinner. There was a sense of connection between them and the rest of us. The current regime treats Washington like a leper colony, venturing forth only to attend politically friendly events before retreating back to the White House. Their disdain for socializing has cast a pall over this city like a wet blanket. We can only hope that the next administration does something to lift it. —WALTER FORD, Washington, D.C.