
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, January 16, 1994                   TAG: 9401160150
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: A-12   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

EXCERPTS FROM ALLEN'S INAUGURAL SPEECH

"No one can come to this moment without a deep reverence for Virginia, its history, and its people. And as I assume my duties, I do so with a fighting spirit, with humility and a deep sense of duty. I am truly grateful to those who have entrusted me with the responsibility to serve as governor for all Virginians.

" . . . I have and will steadfastly adhere to Jefferson's vision of `a wise and frugal government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, which shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned.'

"As we celebrate our heritage and traditions as Virginians, we must recognize that our Commonwealth has begun to stray from many of these cherished principles. `Wise and frugal' was replaced by massive government spending increases in the 1980s.

"The primary duty of government to `restrain men from injuring one another' has been neglected as our Commonwealth has experienced an epidemic of violent crime, much of it the result of offenses committed by career criminals out on early parole.

"The increased regulatory and tax burdens of the 1980s have left entrepreneurs and working Virginians less than ideally `free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement' and to retain and enjoy the fruits of their labor."

" . . . There is also an unease and even an alarm among the people about the character of contemporary society and the role of government in it. Increasingly, it appears that we have lost sight of the traditional values and core beliefs that once sustained us as a community of free and peaceable people.

"The institutions that have traditionally taught the basic understanding of right vs. wrong - families, schools, churches and neighborhoods - are under assault."

" . . . Virginians know that government policies have been diminishing opportunity and stifling initiative under the heavy, grimy boot of excessive taxation and spending and regulation.

"Virginians recognize that the cost of big government in Richmond, as in Washington, is measured not in material terms alone, but in the toll it takes on the human spirit - the loss of independence and self-esteem, the loss of promise and potential, the loss of hope."

" . . . The problem in Virginia today is not that the people have lost touch with reality; it is that our government has lost touch with the people.

"In recent times, the will of the people has been frustrated by an unholy alliance of manipulative well-heeled interests, entrenched bureaucrats, and political opportunists. It is time for this to end. For this great house that Jefferson designed was meant to be the people's capitol, not the citadel of special interests."

" . . . My fondest hope - my foremost goal - as governor is to empower you, the people of Virginia, and to challenge you to take control of your destiny - so that you may build a better future for yourself for your children, and make a lasting contribution to your community and your Commonwealth."

by CNB