Dear Editor:

The editorial: "Government at all levels needs to spend less", certainly sounds like a good idea. The only problem is that no one says where the cuts should come from. One reality is that a large portion of the taxes the government collects are committed to programs that cannot be cut. The government must by law provide for our entitlements. This includes Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

These three items are over $1 trillion or 40 percent of the budget.

The interest on the debt we owe to other countries is $225 billion or 8.5 percent and growing.

The budget for Defense is over five hundred billion dollars or 20 percent and it is always overrun.

The remaining $850 billion must pay for the running of the government. Where should we cut back there: Education? Infrastructure? Highways and Bridges? We've already done that. Our roads, bridges and airports are in terrible shape.

At the same time, the country is spending close to $150 billion dollars each year in Iraq and Afghanistan. This is not included in the budget nor is the cost of replacing the equipment destroyed in Iraq or the cost of medical care for the wounded.

At the same time, the oil companies are making huge profits and the government is giving them billions in tax breaks.

Last year there were over 35 hedge fund managers that made over $1 billion, and only paid 15 percent tax to the IRS.

Congress has to correct the tax loopholes, get rid of incompetent military purchasing for unnecessary equipment. Medicare must be permitted to negotiate with the drug companies.

The reality is that with the increase in baby boomer's applying for Social Security, our taxes will have to go up. Another assumption is that if we stop the earmarks, we could save a bundle A good idea, but that would only save $13 billion, and a number of earmarks really are good.

It is interesting that the presidential candidates totally ignore this problem and promise to cut taxes and restore our economy, the trouble is they don't say how. Frank Greenhalgh Amityville