Marriage was strengthened, not defeated

The headline in the North County Times on Thursday, Nov. 5, "Gay activists jarred by California marriage defeat," is a bit misleading. "Marriage" was not defeated. The true meaning of the word "marriage" was strengthened.

Marriage always was and always will be the union of one man and one woman in wedlock. Humankind was created male and female to complement each other and to bear children for the continuation of the human race.

Frances Ehrhart

Escondido

A great principal at a great school

The principal I am talking about is Linda Sanchez, the school is San Luis Rey Elementary; we call it the diamond in the rough. This principal is young and really has what it takes to communicate with the children. Everything she does is for the kids. She is on the playground when she can be, and the faces on the children are something to see; they have huge smiles, and everyone wants to come and talk to her.

I am a mom of a son who goes there, and I see what she does. Miss Sanchez is very easy to talk to about issues; however, she is professional, too. We are happy to have her at San Luis Rey. She is all about the children and their learning, and respect also.

Theresa Galvan

Oceanside

Our country is in trouble

I've heard Barack Obama say that Americans must come to the aid of our country â€"â€" that not he, nor anyone, can do it alone. I'm willing to help. Friends have already said they want to organize meetings to plan what we can do to help our country. So the tide appears to be moving toward a more united country.

This letter is to ask you to consider helping us move toward a more united country by choosing to run columns on your Opinion pages that inspire or motivate or unite our population. Haven't we had enough of the conservative-versus-liberal bashing and fear-mongering?

Dick Morris' column of Nov. 6 is the same old stuff ("President Obama: A trustee in bankruptcy"). Isn't it time to "be the change you want to see"?

I really enjoy the North County Times, but I would be thrilled to see you take the high road, be the change, inspire, show us the way out of the hole we're in instead of continuing to beat the same old drum of fear and divisiveness. Regardless of how you all feel about President-elect Obama, surely you can agree that things need to change. Lead! Inspire your readers! America first!

Susan Zesky

Cardiff

Obama will make the right decisions

During his acceptance speech Tuesday night, Barack Obama said: "To those who would tear the world down, we will defeat you." He said it, not in a threatening way, but in a confident tone. I have doubts that he would sit in stunned silence for five minutes after learning we were attacked. He would (and will, if need be) react swiftly and with a steady hand.

Whether or not he was ready to lead the nation was a topic throughout the campaign. Well, he probably isn't, nor was John McCain. Until you actually do the job, you're not ready. Sometimes, even after eight years on the job, some aren't ready. Barack Obama has had the ground-up experience that trained him to make decisions to lead. If the phone rings at 3 a.m., sleep tight; he will make the right decision.

Thomas Cowan Jr.

Escondido

President Obama will learn

President Barack Obama will learn why government leaders don't start negotiations directly with each other. The Department of State, along with the Secretary of State, has staff and teams negotiate at lower levels first. If the leaders negotiate directly and it fails, it's over. The lower-level Department of State negotiations start the process in privacy so that neither nation is embarrassed before there is a chance for agreements. It works its way up the ladder until agreement is reached, and then the leaders go public and come to the final agreement without embarrassment to either leader or nation. This is how it has been done for decades, and I am sure it will continue that way.

Obama will learn this from his advisers and his Secretary of State. The scary thing is that I know this with only a two-year college degree, and he doesn't with his Harvard degree.

Richard Baker

Carlsbad

Humbled by show of confidence

I would like to thank all of the residents of Oceanside for their participation in the recent election. I am humbled by the expression of confidence they showed me by their votes. Everywhere I went in the city during the campaign, I met great people who care about Oceanside and were very informed about the issues. I learned a lot from them, and I hope our interaction will help me to do a better job as the mayor.

Please stay in touch with me and continue to share your thoughts, your hopes and your ideas with me.

I look forward to visiting your neighborhoods, not as a candidate but as your mayor, so that we can work together to improve your quality of life. The honor you have given by re-electing me is one I will always remember. I look forward to working with you. Thank you again.

Jim Wood

mayor

Oceanside

Schwarzenegger is a shape-shifter

The governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, played the shape-shifter role in the movie the "Terminator." Well, he did it again. He turned into Gray Davis. Darrell Issa, where are you with the recall money? Oh, right; they are both Republicans.

Tim Taylor

Oceanside

Civil rights denied

I am proud to be a Californian, and yet I am also ashamed. I am proud that this state overwhelmingly voted for Barack Obama, our first black president. I am proud that we stood up for the civil rights of a people so long denied basic equalities in our country.

And I am ashamed that on the very same day, this state voted to deny the civil rights of a population based only on their sexual orientation. How can this be? How can we celebrate the election of our first black president and also celebrate an amendment to our constitution that denies a basic right to a segment of our population? The constitution, whether of the United States or California, was designed to protect the rights of citizens, not take them away.

I believe Obama will do a great job as president, and I believe that Proposition 8 will be overturned as the bigoted proposition that it is.

Susan Mathur

Carlsbad

Strong border candidates elected

Americans and San Diegans have again voted for stronger border security, safer communities and American sovereignty. Locally, Brian Bilbray, Darrell Issa, Martin Garrick, Joel Anderson, Kevin Jeffries, Sam Abed, Jack Feller and other strong enforcement leaders were re-elected to office. Newcomers Duncan D. Hunter, Nathan Fletcher and Diane Harkey were also elected to their new posts, running on strong anti-illegal immigration platforms. …

Nationally, Arizona voters re-elected Sheriff Joe Arpaio (America's toughest sheriff) to a fifth term! They also defeated Proposition 202, which would have gutted the tough new employer enforcement laws in Arizona that have turned off the magnet for illegal workers this year. Also, Missouri voters strongly passed a proposition making English the official language in that state.

Once again, neither candidate for president took a tough stand on securing our borders from the tons of drugs and approximately 1 million illegal aliens who enter each year from Mexico. We'll keep the pressure on Barack Obama and the new Congress to continue building the border fence and enforce our laws through our good elected leaders and groups like www.NumbersUSA.com. Join us!

Jeff Schwilk

founder,

San Diego Minutemen

Vista

The term 'illegal alien' is accurate

An Arizona judge has agreed to ban the use of the terms "illegal" and "alien" from courtrooms after the Hispanic Bar Association demanded they be stopped because they "create the perception of judicial bias." So, in addition to squelching First Amendment rights, the Hispanic Bar Association has launched a crusade to redefine immigration law and terminology altogether.

If they want to succeed they better start by rewriting the dictionary, which first defines the word "alien" as "a resident born in or belonging to another country who has not acquired citizenship by naturalization" and secondly as "a foreigner." Now we all know that illegal means against the law, so how in the world can an undocumented immigrant who is breaking federal immigration law not be an illegal alien?

What if I called a person who burglarized your house an "unauthorized physical property adjuster" instead of a thief, would your possessions be any less stolen? Or if I called a person who carjacked you an "unverified valet"? Or how about a drug dealer an "unlicensed pharmacist"? A peeping tom a "secret admirer"? A trespasser an "uninvited guest"? You get the point.

Brian Berg

Rancho Bernardo

Next generation will take care of things

First there was the Briggs Initiative, Proposition 6 in 1978. That was the one that would have banned gay people from teaching in California public schools. Anita Bryant was against gays and, well, we all hated gay people back then anyway, didn't we? That initiative lost though, thanks to Gov. Ronald Reagan, who actually probably knew a few gay people, being a Hollywood movie star and all.

Then there was Prop. 22 in 2000, which defined marriage as a "man and a woman." That won by 61.4 percent to 38 percent. Very sad.

So now the Mormons, the Roman Catholics and the evangelicals … have passed Prop. 8, 52.4 percent to 47.3 percent. I do like how the percentages have changed in the last eight years, though.

All of you who think sex is icky anyway, much less gay sex, are going to be in for a surprise. Gay people will not stand for second-class citizenship anymore. No way. So if your religious beliefs are hurt by gay people getting married â€"â€" tough. Life and freedom will prevail. … The next generation will take care of things.

Eric Parish

Vista