Paul Coffey's letter ("U.S. has become a nation of takers," Jan. 10) characterizing states that are predominantly Democratic as those that "thrive on spending other people's money and taking others' time and resources while giving little of their own" flies in the face of the well-documented fact that nine of the top 10 states receiving more in services and benefits from the federal government than they are contributing in tax dollars are Republican. The sole "blue state" in this group is New Mexico, largely because of that state's Native American population.
It is time for the right-wing calumniators to stop denigrating those who are paying more than our fair share and to acknowledge who the real "takers" are.
JONATHAN COOPER
Altamont
