Christopher Reeve

* On the opening night of the Democratic National Convention (Aug. 26), Christopher Reeve cited Franklin Delano Roosevelt, saying, “America does not let its needy citizens fend for themselves.” Indeed it should not. However, with all due respect to Reeve and the trial he has endured, there is a faulty assumption here that consistently goes unnoticed by liberal Democrats. Aside from the fact that FDR never dreamed of a bureaucracy as large as ours, there is the mistaken notion that government is the best conduit for such assistance. Asking a debt-ridden federal government to meet these needs is like asking a homeless man if he can spare $20,000.

Charities and churches do a much better job of caring for the needy, and a smaller government would enable citizens to give to these institutions more freely. As it is, government has supplanted these more accountable and appropriate avenues of compassion. Democrats, in a desperate attempt not to be the “meaner” of the two parties, have mortgaged the financial future of generations to come.

TOM HOUG

South Pasadena

* Christopher Reeve: This guy is Superman!

SUSAN HANGER

Topanga Canyon

* I find it pathetic that Reeve should be paraded around as a poster person for the disabled. I would much prefer to see a father of two as a “paraplegic spokesperson” whose injury was the result of a drunk driver hitting his car while he was on the way to work.

Let’s be realistic. Superman is only a fantasy figure. Let’s show real people who really need our help.

SUSAN M. LA PITTUS

Van Nuys