LETTERS: NCT, Dec. 4, 2008

By Readers of the North County Times | Thursday, December 4, 2008 12:13 AM PST ∞

How to make a mean, crocheted meatball

I had a Mississippi uncle who had a certain frilly and playful nature, which I, as a child recognized as warmly simpatico.

One of his girlfriends, asked why she stopped dating him, replied he was too much like a "crocheted meatball." I did not fully understand at the time what she meant, except for the meatball part:ˇHe was a little plump. The family laughed over this. The crocheted part I did not understand, but it seemed to fit.

My uncle married, reared a couple of problem children and seemed quite miserable. But he hunkered down and did the best he knew how. He became a right-wing fundamentalist and a homophobe.

It took me years to understand what had made his life so miserable. His culture had shoved him into a tiny closet and locked the door, and he could not get out.

Some years later, while taking a morning constitutional, I saw an inscription on the wall of a men's room: "My mother made me a homosexual."ˇDirectly below it was an inquiry: "If I give your mother the yarn, would she make one for me?" Then I went "click."

Well, I assure you that mothers cannot make a homosexual out of yarn. Only God, in his great love, can create such an anomalous wonder. I thank him for that.

Do not shove such a wonderful gift into the closet.

J. Howard Crews

Fallbrook

Henry Paulson should resign

After watching Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson on several occasions being questioned by congressional members, it's obvious to me that his resignation would be good for us and good for him.

His twitching, fidgeting, starting and stopping sentences without completing them and general look of terror are very disturbing to watch, especially from a person in such a highly responsible position. It is far removed from the image and clear thinking needed to restore confidence and advance the recovery of our economy.

As one critic observed, an important factor in stabilizing the stock market may beˇfor Paulson to simply keep his mouth closed. He has also been accused of piloting the $700 billion recovery package "by the seat of his pants," with the perception being (perhaps valid) that he does not have an actual plan.

Frank Dati

Oceanside

When 'yes' means 'no'

Proposition 8 was very cleverly written and presented to the public in such a way that, to the unwary casual reader who, supporting same-sex marriage, if the proposition mentions same-sex marriage at all, he or she might say to themselves, "Hey, I'm for it, so I'm voting yes!" Now, I'm sure many of those folks are shocked at the mistake they made.

The news these days is that some voters for Prop. 8 have had a change of heart. Maybe so, but I'll bet that a number of those are the ones who voted "yes" by mistake and now don't want to admit their carelessness.

Let's hope the California State Supreme Court sees fit to reconsider the matter.

Howard Langhans

Oceanside

Lost a friend in Mumbai

I just learned yesterday that a longtime business colleague and friend was murdered last week in Mumbai. Sam Jeswani was from India, but grew up in Chicago and went to work a few years ago for a very successful medical company started by friends of mine in Madison, Wis.

The firm is extremely successful worldwide, and Sam was meeting with customers in the Oberoi Hotel when gunmen burst in. It is not clear what happened, but he was shot to death. He was a tall, gregarious guy with a ready smile and a big laugh. Every time I saw him, he made me feel like it was a good day for him because he and I were meeting. He was 43 years old and is survived by his wife.

I lost a high school friend in the bombing of the Pan Am flight by Libyan terrorists over Lockerbie, but I had lost track of him and did not know he was on that flight for many years.

This is different. I will miss Sam; he was one of the good guys in this world.

Steve Goetsch

Solana Beach

Faith trumps education every time

After reading the letter by Joseph Kraatz (Nov. 28) titled "Highly educated are not religious," I got to thinking. Perhaps there is some truth to his assumption. He says, "it confirms what I have believed all along." However, his belief is really just an assumption.

In my case, I was educated 12 years in parochial schools in the Midwest and Southern California, attended a junior college a couple of years and completed five more years at the University of Arizona with a degree in pharmacy, which I have practiced successfully for 42 years.

Could this mean "highly educated" to Joseph Kraatz? Having stated the afore, it is my belief that religion (largely an invention of mankind) has very little to do with one's spiritual faith. I place my spiritual faith far above anything else this world has to offer.

My "yes" vote on Proposition 8 had nothing to do with bigotry or hatred, as suggested. My decision was based on wisdom gleaned through prayer and meditation on God's word, not on education. Wisdom and faith trump education and knowledge every time.

Because one is highly educated does not guarantee that one makes wise voting decisions. Just thought Mr. Kraatz should know.

Thomas Wachter

Carlsbad

Oceanside needs more council seats

Long ago, when Oceanside had 20,000-25,000 residents, we had five city council people. Half a century later, we have three or four times that many citizens. How come we don't have two or three more city council people?

I want to be one of them to counter the stupid ideas and proposals of Queen Esther. Hang in there, folks, the Chargers are on the way. There are thousands of vacant and/or foreclosed houses throughout the city, and she wants to bulldoze the hillside off Oceana to plant more losses.

Also, I will not, that is not, put up a single "Elect Me" sign that all these so-called civic leaders scattered all over town. It looked like a sleazy T.J. swap meet. Who the heck pays any mind to them anyhow?

I will not have any neighborhood coffee and cookie time-wasters either. I don't want your money, just your [vote] and if there are the six people that I am sure will vote for me, that is six votes that one of those implanted suckers for the backroom pay-offs won't get.

G. Charles Evans

Oceanside

Save the library

Our City Council has a responsibility for roads, taxes, licensing, police, fire, etc. They also have a different non-materialistic responsibility –– the citizens.

People also need art, music and information to nourish their imagination, fantasies and dreams. Our media today is often biased and neglects much information because wealthy special interests control our media. Libraries that have magazines, books and newspapers are essential for accurate information.

Check history: Dictators and despots control all information in order to control people. Any restriction of information is detrimental to an informed public.

This is a crucial time for our unemployed, and the library is an essential place for people striving to improve their job skills. A library, particularly the Valley Parkway facility with a gym, is often a family affair, creating fun and inexpensive entertainment. This is important to our family life and for these and many other reasons, our library services should not be curtailed.

L. Neal Hook

Escondido

Mexican violence will spill into U.S.

I have been saddened and angered over the terrorism being wrought so close to our borders. When I hear about mass beheadings within five miles of our border with Mexico, I cannot understand why more is not being done to stop it.

When Daniel Pearl was beheaded in Pakistan, there was international outrage. This is too close to home. These people are our neighbors and friends. Where is the international outcry? Where are the international peacekeepers?

We went halfway around the world to fight terrorism in the Middle East, but seem to be doing little or nothing to help our closest neighbors. The majority of these crimes are happening in towns along the U.S. border. We must ask ourselves, why here, why now?

It is only a matter of time before it spills over into our neighborhoods.

Linda Rufkahr

Fallbrook

Make seas safe; stop pirates

Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991. Who do units have to notify prior to pursuing pirates into Somali waters, then? We need another Ronald Reagan who would send a carrier task force to the Gulf of Aden and carry out fighter/bomber strikes in order to wipe out these people.

I call on the president to make the Gulf of Aden safe for all sea traffic. With our capabilities, it would only take a couple of weeks to clear up this mess. Their first priority should be the Port of Berbera!

Forget the aid to Somalia, which goes to the warlords and their troops anyhow. It is time to stop the pathetic hand-wringing and go into action to stop this once and for all.

The United Nations is notorious for doing nothing! The only time the U.N. has accomplished anything has been when the United States took the initiative and did what had to be done.

James Johnson

Oceanside

Bah, humbug, city of Carlsbad

I know that many folks feel that Black Friday brings out crazy shoppers, but in a time of economic crisis, this is what we need. We need people out shopping. It is crazy, but we expect lines, and we expect parking to be a nightmare.

The Carlsbad Outlet Mall was rocking at 1 a.m. Cars were parked past Toyota, but people were in a festive mood and knew they would have to walk. The police were out in force, and I was glad they were protecting the shoppers as they made the walk to the outlets.

We parked and even said "Happy Thanksgiving" to two officers as we got out of our car. When we returned to our car, we found a $50 parking ticket. That is one way to lose your Christmas spirit and zest to continue shopping.

The officers weren't out to protect the citizens –– they were drooling over how many tickets they could give. Would it have killed them to say "you are illegally parked" –– or better yet, to work a deal with the outlets for this special event?

You want people to go out and spend when our economy is in need of a spark?ˇDon't discourage people.

Cheers to Del Mar for offering free parking during the holidays. This is the spirit we look for.

It's sad such a fun evening was marred by this unfortunate ticket. Bah, humbug, city of Carlsbad.

Jolan Schmidt

Oceanside

Utility should do its homework before building

I drove out to Anza Borrego to speak at the California Public Utilities Commission's public forum on the Sunrise Powerline, and I want to repeat it now: I assess and retrofit existing homes for energy efficiency and what I'm finding in every home (which accounts for a third of our electrical usage) is huge waste. This helps no one –– especially the homeowner.

So I'd ask, should SDG&E build more infrastructure or do its homework? Each home can save about 20 percent just by fixing its ducts. Why not invest in home upgrades (and good jobs –– I know it's a conflict for me, but that's my line of work) and give our citizens some much-needed jobs?

Lastly, seems to me the utility makes money by building higher capacity rather than selling power, much less conservation. So they have no incentive to do this.

Please look at the system here: Utilities are mandated to supply cheap power, but we, the citizens, are asked to bear the costs of externalized costs: pollution, climate change, etc. Let's help them retool for conservation and renewables.

Like GM, they need help now rather than when they ask for bailouts. By 2050, we need to reduce our emissions by 80 percent. So why are we allowing a utility to build more capacity with no guarantee of delivering clean electrons?

Dadla Ponizil

Encinitas

Escondido council misses the point

As reported in the North County Times, the Escondido City Council seems to be divided on the issue of accepting its next round of pay raises ("Budget crisis prompts City Council to reconsider its pay raises," Nov. 27).

Rationalization for accepting the raises seems to be that higher salaries would broaden who can run for City Council beyond the wealthy and retired. At this time, a decision about the raises should not be made based on the money or broadening out the expertise of future candidates.

This is not even about making a "symbolic gesture," as mentioned in the article. This is about leadership.

At a time when city employees may lose their jobs and many will receive pay cuts, and services will be curtailed to citizens, this council needs to lead by example. Council members need to show city employees and citizens that they are making sacrifices as well, albeit small sacrifices.

I urge the Escondido City Council to do the right thing and show leadership.

Larry Steneck

Escondido

It's not the economy, stupid

Yes, it took a mega-financial crisis to shift our political direction. Even so, voter turnout was not more than in 2004! Actually, a close call. Reversing a steady 60-year slide toward fascism since FDR's death.

Our constitutional law-trained Barack Obama's priority is to call on our attorney general Eric Holder to nullify the enormous number of executive orders, presidential directives and presidential signings which trashed our constitutional safeguards.

Please don't misunderstand me. But our monstrous financial meltdown ultimately stems from dictatorial dominative arrogance. Once more, democracy rides again.

Obama is the leader embodying everything required to save us from the fascist-lite swamp we are mired in. Thanks to him, his skills, intelligence, charisma, trained application of technology and, of course, those multitudes of perceptive supporters, we are being saved "from a fate worse than death." Corporatocracy, or to use an older term, fascism.

The problem with Republicans is they leave out half of our glorious title, "Democratic Republic," which Obama and supporters are reuniting. Republic –– the public thing, public government. Democracy –– public government by the people.

The winner? Not just Obama, but all of us. Citizens now, not subjects, in a Democratic Republic. Return to separation of powers, not entirely "invisible."

L. Bertrand

Halsema

Oceanside

Questions about our legal system

Re: our prison system:

1. Why don't we use the death penalty? (Hooray for Texas.)

2. How long have we been feeding and housing criminals like Charles Manson, et al.?

3. Get a reciprocal U.S.A. agreement with Mexico and other countries and send them to prison there.

4. Some prisoners get more medical treatment than our working Californians, who can't even afford medical insurance.

5. If prisons are overcrowded, what's the message? Quit committing crimes. Duh.

6. Humane treatment? Did they consider humane treatment when they violated other people?

7. And why do criminals like Randy "Duke" Cunningham of the "elite crimes" look forward to a retirement check or think it's OK because he was a fighter pilot? What B.S.

For criminals, it's "buyer beware," and we're too easy. Let's go back to English law –– you get one appeal; and what's the absurdity of 150 years concurring terms?

Carol Winter

Oceanside