Letter: Reduction of government more important than reducing other things

I agree in part with Dale Brimley about reducing entitlements, but I feel it is more important to reduce the size of government ("Shared sacrifice would go a long way to balancing federal budget," Readers' Forum, June 8). One percent reduction in the size of all federal agencies every six months until the budget is balanced would help this country far more than reducing Social Security and other benefits.

For the past 33 years, I have operated an antique restoration business and have worked 50 to 60 hours every week. Just this month, a friend of mine left his government job because it was a waste of his abilities. It was a good paying job with great benefits, but he would spend 30 to 45 minutes a day to complete his responsibilities and then sit around for the rest of the day doing nothing. He couldn't stand it.

Since I was a young boy, I have heard hundreds of similar stories about government jobs. I have also had personal dealings with state and federal government agencies and seen first hand how needless many of their activities and regulations are. A yearly 1 or 2 percent reduction of government, in particular federal agencies, would not be a difficult transition.

Jay Atwater

Fruit Heights