LETTERS: NCT, Dec. 17, 2008

By Readers of the North County Times | Wednesday, December 17, 2008 12:11 AM PST ∞

Our fruitcake version of Illinois politics

The Downtown Business Association and the Business Improvement District are trying to run one of their own out of town. Without Steve Waldron, there would never have been a "Cruisin' Grand." He volunteered his time and efforts for eight years and never expected to get paid for the professional artwork he gave to the city.

Steve lives and breathes all things automotive and his Top End Tees is in the BID. Steve understands the people for whom collector cars are the same as life blood.

The DBA knows more about what is good for "Cruisin' Grand" than anyone else and froze Steve Waldron out as if he doesn't exist. They won't talk to him, and his company pays its share of the fees for the benefit of all of the BID businesses.

Now when the city is laying off workers, the DBA is going to pay someone else to design the artwork for 2009. Word is they intend to go outside the community to get the T-shirts for the events too. Stupid!

The DBA should be fired! They are incompetent, abusive and hurting one of those they are supposed to help. The mean-spirited petty politics stink. Escondido deserves better.

Jerry Heiss

Valley Center

The ultimate insult by George, Laura Bush

The fact that the Bushes refuse to allow the Obama family to move into the guest house is the most insulting behavior yet! I did not think the Bushes could outdo many actions that have insulted the American people, but this takes the grand prize. There is no reason for this behavior.

For the Bushes to refuse this small token of welcome smacks of racism. To prevent those precious little girls from beginning school in January is cruel and mean-spirited. This means a double move and adjustment for the Obama family.

Stupid Laura has been a teacher and knows the challenges of beginning a new school. She is adding a very thoughtless and cruel burden for the Obama family. This action causes us to feel even more anger and eagerness to move the Bushes out of the White House as soon as possible.

We all know that George is the worst president America has ever had to endure, and he just keeps on acting like some privileged jerk. It is long past time for the Bushes to leave and it can't happen soon enough. No wonder shoes were tossed at him in Iraq; he is truly the village idiot of all time.

Maralyn Johnson

Rancho Bernardo

Our state pockets are empty

I got a laugh out of the article "Officials want I-15 route for bullet train," Dec. 13. I suppose it is our educational system. Has anyone looked in their state pockets? They are empty.

The governor has been trying to sell $5 billion of general obligation bonds for months with no takers. Transportation bonds would be a step down in rating from GO's. Can you imagine anyone in their right mind buying $54 billion of rail bonds from any place in California, let alone San Diego?

Scotty will beam you all to work before we get a high-speed rail system. Is there anyone thinking at all?

Art Rowsell

Encinitas

Many have wanted to throw things at Bush

Re: "Bush: Iraq war not over, more work ahead," Dec. 15: Let's be honest. Since the invasion of Iraq six years ago and its devastating aftermath, how many of us have thought about throwing something at Bush out of frustration with his reckless mismanagement of the war?

Instead of defending the war during his recent visit to Iraq, an apology for the loss of tens of thousands of lives would have been more appropriate.

Bunny Landis

Oceanside

Checkpoints make roads safer

Recently, there were two successful driver's license checkpoints in Oceanside and Vista. What a glorious sight to behold! Not only did they each stop a drunk driver, Oceanside stopped an out-of-state parolee and both removed a myriad of illegal cars and drivers from our roadways.

I understand that there are to be more of these checkpoints in the future and for that I thank the Oceanside Police Department and Vista sheriff's office.

I understand there are those who will complain that these checkpoints target certain ethnicities. To those I say, hogwash; they only target law-breakers. Thanks for making the roadways safer.

Mari Hayden

Oceanside

Rebuttal resulted in laughter

When I read George Carter's Nov. 28 letter in response to my Nov. 19 letter, I laughed out loud. It's evident he didn't bother researching before accusing me of lying.

There's indisputable documentary evidence on the Internet concerning the dangers of our airport. The details, compiled and published from official FAA files, include dates, causes of crashes/deaths, names of pilots, license/wing number, etc.

Documented details are available on hundreds of pilot-caused accidents at or near our airport. "Official records" documented on the internet? You bet your boots! There are too many details for even a genius to invent.

Now, George, try real hard to be honest. Check it out yourself. I won't expect an apology, because pilots don't have the guts to admit they're wrong.

Or go ahead and live in your little dream world, hoping you won't be the next crash victim. Now, wouldn't that be embarrassing! ...

June Kristapovich

Oceanside

Bailout and Iraq reconstruction

Maybe the worthless, incompetent and corrupt politicians and federal bureaucrats in our government should use the Iraq reconstruction fiasco and debacle as their blueprint for the economic bailout.

It is obvious that our elected knuckleheads are basically clueless when it comes to managing taxpayers' money. 90 percent of any funding is going to be for fraud, waste and abuse and the other 10 percent will be used for its intended purpose. "Keep repeating the same stupid mistakes over and over and maybe things will turn out differently" seems to be Washington's grand scheme.

As long as the criminal element in our government doesn't have to suffer, why should hard-working citizens have anything to complain about? This should be the motto of American taxpayers: "We gave as much as we could and got as little as people could make up their minds to give us."

If they were giving out merit badges for incompetence and betrayal of the public trust, Congress would have a chest full of them. Members of Congress should be ashamed to show their faces in public unless it's at the local landfill. They should be standing downwind.

Thompson Kliner

Oceanside

Board member's acceptance remarks

On Dec. 5, before a standing-room-only crowd of community members, physicians and staff, Judge James F. Stiven delivered the oath of office to the new and re-elected board members of Tri-City Healthcare District. The ceremony was beautiful, filled with sunshine.

Following Judge Stiven's address and oath of office, each director gave acceptance remarks. I would like to share mine with the public:

"We must utilize our energies to adapt to changing, challenging circumstances, rebuilding trust, transparency and avoid becoming intoxicated with our own individual campaign rhetoric. Pragmatism and compromise are essential elements of effective leadership, not finger-pointing and assessing blame. We must direct our energies toward challenging and complex situations.

"May God grant us the courage to accept challenges we cannot change and wisdom to make the best decisions for the good of the hospital, staff and community,and not be punitive in the process. Further, to be ever cognizant of our fiduciary responsibilities, i.e., duty of care, duty of loyalty and duty of financial responsibilities."

Again, thank you kindly, Judge Stiven and the Tri-City community.

Rosemarie Reno

board member, Tri-City Healthcare District

Vista

No-cost gifts for Christmas or any time

Smile, rather than frown, whenever possible. Promote love, not hate, and avoid judging, criticism and gossip. Don't worry, be happy, and pass it on. Be courteous to all –– courtesy is contagious.

Visit and pray for someone in need of smiles and encouragement. Be a good example to everyone, children in particular. If you are able, donate blood, the gift of life, which is sacred from the moment of conception to natural death.

Keep Christ in Christmas and in your heart. Give glory and praise to our awesome God and thank him for all his blessings, especially the gift of his son, Jesus Christ, our savior, on the first Christmas. Happy birthday, Jesus. We say merry Christmas.

Roger and Pat Burkhardt

Vista

Letter writer a 'denier' on global warming

Twelve books and a few Web sites have made Irvin Forbing (Letters, Dec. 13) an expert on global warming. Thanks for the information, but I will continue to side with the real experts: the vast majority of the world's climatologists.

As he has done with his evolution debate in Faith and Values, Forbing picks a few deniers and isolated "facts" to quote and desperately hangs on to his stubborn ideological views despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

His statements about the polar ice cap and polar bears are prime examples of his phony "observational facts." Since 1993, summer Arctic sea ice has lost the equivalent of Alaska, California and Texas ("Obama left with little time to curb global warming," Dec. 15). The polar bear is being considered for the Endangered Species List because the ice breakup has reduced their feeding grounds. In fact, Russia and Canada are planning to drill for oil in the areas opened up by ice shrinkage.

I have read a lot about this subject, but the basic premises of climate change and its effect on our weather came into sharper focus when I saw "An Inconvenient Truth." I challenge all deniers, especially Mr. Forbing, to pick up the DVD and expose yourself to some real science.

Michael McNulty

Escondido

Thanks for Christmas traffic fiasco

I want to personally thank the Rincon Band of Indians for giving the money for the Escondido Christmas parade. Once again, the city of Escondido decided to completely mess up the traffic for miles in every direction due to this parade.

The parade runs from Escondido High School to Grape Day Park on Broadway. So the police decided to block off traffic all the way east to Ash, more than a mile away. This made getting around this part of Escondido wonderful; I sat in traffic on Ash trying to get north to North Broadway for over an hour. The traffic on Ash was backed up from Valley Parkway all the way to Rincon, bumper to bumper, because it was basically the only route north from the east end of Escondido, and vice versa.

So thanks, Rincon Indians, for allowing the city of Escondido to ruin another Saturday.

Joseph Cristarella

Escondido

No pardon to torture criminals

Friday, a bipartisan Senate report named ex-Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and other top officials directly responsible for sanctioning torture ("Report on Detainee Abuse Blames Top Bush Officials," The Washington Post, Dec. 12). Rumors in D.C. are that Bush will pardon Rumsfeld and others for these abuses.

In a democracy, it is imperative to bring to justice those responsible for human rights abuses so that it will not happen again. The American public has a right to know what abusive and illegal actions were taken in their name.

Just as South Africa established the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to deal with abuses during apartheid, the American people deserve to have an independent inquiry commission investigate and clear up this tragic and sad chapter in U.S. history.

Those responsible for such crimes must be brought to justice and not summarily pardoned a priori by a so-called war president who in turn deserves the title of Head War Criminal.

Albert Good

Encinitas

President Bush can't pardon war on terror abuses

As the nation looks forward to the Obama administration's promise of Guantanamo's closure, it is important not to underestimate the damage a lame-duck president can still inflict on the nation's human rights record.

President Bush retains the power to pardon any number of people potentially responsible for the egregious acts committed in the war on terror. That means those who might have participated in torture, indefinite detention without charge or trial and the CIA's secret detention program could go unpunished.

Just as important as accountability is the truth about human rights abuses. The American people have a right to know what abusive, unjust actions were taken in their name. An independent commission of inquiry should be established to tell this sad chapter of U.S. history, and then close it for good.

President Bush still has a chance to do the right thing. Nine human rights groups organizations, including Amnesty International, have called on the president to reject impunity for crimes committed in the war on terror. I urge him to heed their calls, and set the stage for the U.S. government to counter terror with justice, not abuse.

Shilo Chang

Escondido

Mexico needs to control its northern border

In my April 1, 2007 letter, I addressed Mexico's Felipe Calderon's move against illegal crossers at the southern border of Mexico and the planned extension of Mexico's seasonal farm-worker program, which annually issues at least 40,000 temporary visas, mostly to Guatemalans, to work on coffee plantations, construction and service industries. I believed then and continue to believe that all of those jobs could be taken by Mexican citizens who want to come to the United States looking for work.

An Oct. 20 brief in the North County Times ("Cuba says Mexico to return migrants") revealed that Mexico is finally returning Cuban immigrants to Cuba who, for years, have come to Mexico as an easy way to enter the United States. That, to me, is welcome news as previously Mexico issued transit permits to allow all Cuban migrants to come to the U.S. The brief further stated that over 90 percent of Cuban migrants in Mexico reached the U.S.

Now, if only the Mexican government could control their northern border and stop the continual and illegal flow of their citizens into the United States. That would really be welcome news.

Leon Smith

Oceanside