Stimulus money has side-effects

To the editor:

Treatments for a patient who is terminally ill is a quality-of-life issue. Some treatments to extend their lives by months or years can result in significant and uncomfortable side effects. Some choose quality of life, for however much longer that may be, over the treatments.

Many governors, such as Gov. Sarah Palin, are looking at some of the president’s stimulus package funds for states in the same light. When the funds, which are temporary, run out, the states will need to increase taxes or take away funds from another source in order to keep the same level of artificial payments/services that the president’s stimulus package mandated.

The other two options are to let the levels of federally mandated payments/services fall back to the pre-stimulus level or to not accept those stimulus dollars that would require this artificial increase in payments/services. It is a quality-of-life issue for the people of Alaska and other states that choose not to accept all the stimulus package funds. The after-effects in the post-stimulus era could be even more uncomfortable and cause side effects that could negatively impact the taxpayer.

Having served as a Washington State Legislator, I can understand and appreciate these tough political decisions.

John C. Wynne

Juneau