After the election we should see less war and better social services with the savings. A smaller police state should also help. Why does America lock up a much higher percentage of its population than any other country?
We have the wealth to fund better education; job training; healthcare; (without private insurance corporations) and social services at a world class level. Remember Johnson's War on Poverty? It was being won in Vermont, but it got lost in Vietnam.
Vermont was once a leader in the effort to break the generational cycle of poverty. Now "Corrections," etc. consumes much of the budget. And Reach Up, for example, has changed from a functional family counseling and job readiness program to a paper tiger.
We need a minimum wage which is a livable wage so our youth can work in Vermont.
Will all those Democrats in Montpelier renew efforts to lead families out of poverty?
GEOFFREY COBDEN
Weybridge
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