Dear editor: Complex issues are just that:  complex and not usually resolved by simple solutions.
Neither today’s Democratic “liberals” or Republican “conservatives” seem to understand that. Real solutions require long-term vision to understand the potential impacts of today’s decisions down the road and sensitivity to the impact that economic policies will have on those among us at the lower end of the economic spectrum.
An article I read last weekend said that while today’s debt service (interest on the national debt) is around $200 billion, the cost to service the national debt 10 years from now will balloon to more than $900 billion. This increase will drastically reduce our ability to pay for any other federal expenses without horrendous rises in income tax rates. Where are our policy makers on this issue?
I blame both parties equally for saddling this country with mountains of unsustainable debt, going back decades – most of which could be avoided if rational budgeting procedures were followed.
Instead, each side races to see who can give away the most “goodies” to their particular voting constituencies without regard for the long-term harm they are doing to the nation as a whole. We should throw them all out!
It would be wonderful to be able to give everybody every conceivable program they would like to have at no cost, but we only can afford so much. And right now, we can’t afford anything – we’re too tied up paying for prior excesses. The truth of the matter is, it will take us at least 50 years of belt-tightening to get our federal budget back on a sustainable level. 
I have not seen any credible national leader adequately or responsibly address this issue. Until they do, we will have a long, hard road ahead.

Raphael B. Semmes
Midway