What the letter writer assumes is that government is or should be the economic, social and political solver for every problem in society.

Every day there are more examples of how the concept of personal responsibility is eroding. Someone else is to blame for anything that goes wrong, and we are all victims.

One of the results of this is that many people are less apt to take the initiative in a situation - they wait and expect someone else (preferably from the government) to take action.

We have a growing segment of people who aren't taking care of their own families, helping their neighbors, or participating in their own communities. The letter writer thinks this is where government steps in.

However, with freedom comes responsibility. Every time we give up responsibilities, the government compensates by assuming more power, which results in us giving up another piece of our liberty.

Take the time to bring your kids to church, take the time to communicate with them, expose them to your values, not the government's values, and instill in them personal responsibility.

I argue that if everyone took care of themselves a little bit more, our government budget and entitlement programs wouldn't be in the mess that they're in. We wouldn't have people relying on the government to take care of issues that are the job of families and individuals.

But somewhere, we have lost track. It has to change. We just can't afford it anymore.

This is not just a pro-life issue, it is an issue of liberty and freedom. Government control, or liberty and freedom? I choose the latter.

David Anderson,

Lonsdale