To the Editor:

Dear public employees, welcome to the recession. Experiencing drastic financial cuts myself, I am sympathetic to you and your family but must admit I’ve been a little resentful about your attitude the past five years. I have felt enslaved in that my quality of life could be sacrificed so yours would be secure. Every time I start to move forward, I get hit with a higher tax rate or new user fee.

We all have received empty promises and feel cheated by the system. I started my business 26 years ago working hard to make it successful, and it was until the recession. In 2007, I made $75,000. In 2012, I made $15,500. At one time I had nine employees, but now it’s just me working 65 hours a week, sometimes just to pay overhead. Blue Cross told me that one is not a group and canceled my group health insurance. I have not had vacation in more than five years.