Regarding the Aug. 25 article "Poor men too lowly to wed: Aso": Prime Minister Taro Aso's comments that people with little money would be better off not getting married and that it is difficult for him to understand how someone without pay can be seen as worthy of a partner's respect are, to say the least, stunningly offensive and tactless.

When asked whether young people were marrying late due to money worries, all he had to do was answer the question with some sympathetic-sounding spin — for example, that he recognized people's concerns and wanted to alleviate them through measures to create more jobs. But no, Aso somehow thought it more fitting to give us his opinion about how young people should be leading their lives.

Never mind that he leads a party that has allowed Japan's national deficit to swell to at least 170 percent of gross domestic product and that now intends to embark on even more reckless public spending for which we taxpayers will have to pick up the tab. Aso is hardly in a position to lecture anyone else about financial responsibility.

I think the real problem was the way Aso basically dismissed Japan's entire unemployed population as not being worthy of respect, obviously forgetting completely that, while they might not have any pay, they certainly do have votes. Aso might be notorious for his verbal gaffes, but I think this one, coming just a week before a general election, has to be his masterpiece.

simon foston