Charles Shultz, in his letter to the editor, correctly criticizes State Representative Daryl Metcalfe's recent statements regarding religion and then humorously closes by writing that Metcalfe can "continue to ride his dinosaur to church," a reference to the Dark Ages mentality that Metcalfe's statements harken to. Mr. Schultz may be giving Metcalfe too much credit as I am not sure that he actually believes in the dinosaur fossil record, given his positions on other similar issues.

Tommy from Butler asks how I would fund the government under a system that was not reliant on taxation. The government I envision would have only 3 functions: a police force, a military force and a court system (which is not anarchy). The amount of money needed to support such a government would be negligible compared to our current federal budget. Funding to support that government could come from many sources including voluntary fees placed on purchases (similar to a sales tax), lotteries, and the sale of public lands.

I thank Matt from Butler on his compliments towards me and am glad he, Tom from North Carolina, and I all agree on the travesty that is our social welfare system. But, I do disagree with Matt on his interpretation regarding the debate over the Christian origins of our nation. While I agree that many early legislators tried to put Christianity explicitly into our founding documents and state constitutions, more influential founders (e.g. former President Jefferson) excluded any religious test for elective office. What they achieved, in the face of those that sought to inject theocratic principles into our government, can not be overstated.