Does our salvation lie in California’s collapse?

To the editor:

Nevadans, it seems all we have to do is hold out for a little longer.

In case you haven't noticed, California just fixed a $42 billion budget hole. After imposing more taxes on its citizens than any other state in the union, Californians' idea of nirvana (free health care, free school lunches, free immunizations, 90 percent pension plans for state employees after 20 years of service, etc.) finally imploded.

The liberals who run California raised taxes even higher. What do you think the people who will be required to pay those taxes will do?

As far as I can see, they have two options. Either they won't pay their taxes, like Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Tom Daschle, or they'll move out of California as quickly as possible. I suppose a few of them will stay because President Obama still has some openings in his Cabinet, but I bet more will leave.

Robert Gardner

HENDERSON

We're all suckers

To the editor:

The 2009 American success story: buy more house than you can afford, don't make payments, the federal government bails you out.

The 2009 American sap: buy a house you can afford, make payments, pay taxes to help the irresponsible.

Tony Righellis

LAS VEGAS

Thanks for nothing

To the editor:

I seldom feel the urge to respond to letters to the editor, but David O. Schueler's uninformed praisefest of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid as the great deliverer of federal funding to Nevada made me laugh (Thursday Review-Journal).

Please go to the Web site http://www.census.gov/prod/www/abs/fas.html, where you will see the annual reports of Federal Aid to States for fiscal years 1998 to 2007. Therein lies a testament to Sen. Reid's great ability to bring home the bacon for his Nevada constituency.

In 2007, Nevada was ranked 50th per capita in Federal Aid to State and Local Governments; 44th in 2006, 49th in 2005, 49th in 2004, 49th in 2003, 50th in 2002, 50th in 2001, 50th in 2000 and 49th in 1999. If a chief executive officer performed this dismally for his shareholders, he'd be out the door in a second. Mr. Schueler is ignorant. Review-Journal Publisher Sherman Frederick was right in his Feb. 15 column. Sen. Reid needs the boot.

A. Martel Anderson

LAS VEGAS