Snips from two great letters today in the Wall Street Journal:

...as a small businessman I would like to ask all pundits, academics and politicians to please shut up and visit a small business and see firsthand what the problems are. Taxes are oppressive and strangling the U.S. economy. Tax credits and other tax gimmicks can't have the dynamic impact of an across-the-board tax reduction. Irrational government spending goes hand in hand with the need for more and more taxation. Government regulation is at the point of insanity.

There is a complete misunderstanding of just how small business actually functions. No small business "creates" jobs simply because it can get a loan at a low rate. Small businesses simply fill positions as needed if it contributes to the development and greater profit of the enterprise...If the government really wants a turnaround in the economy, it will find no better solution than lowering taxes and getting off the backs of all businessmen. (Paul C. Ryan - Norwood, Mass. )

The fact is that this economy remains paralyzed in the face of a government that is passing laws with economic ramifications it can't even begin to comprehend. That the whim of the government and not the workings of the free market should be the hinge on which the economy turns should frighten every American. (James E. Naso - Parma Heights, Ohio)