Don't create a new tax to coddle public employees

Biting the bullet isn't easy is it? Mark Kiesling said public officials are "mandated to protect the public," but they are not mandated to continually give raises to the police, the firefighters, the teachers, and to vote themselves a raise.

I've been biting the bullet for 30 years, thanks to Ronald Reagan and deregulation. Union and non-union truckers are hauling steel out of local mills at 20-year-old rates.

Why should Lake County taxpayers approve a county income tax just to coddle the public employees?

Before the casinos, homes and real estate taxes were the golden eggs. The county killed that by giving a tax break to industry, and raising homeowners' taxes to confiscatory levels. 

Now, The Times and Kiesling want us to bite on the idea of a county income tax. Can you handle it?

- Malcolm P. Hunt, Hammond