Letter displays flawed logic
In Steven Holman's recent letter, "On the privilege to drive," July 7, he suggests that simply because "we, the people" grant driver's licenses, the state has no right to take them away. Never before have I seen more flawed logic. The state has every right to take your license away to give you the privilege of keeping you safe. Should ordinary citizens, with no special training whatsoever, be able to determine whether a license be revoked based on drunkenness of the driver? No. Obviously, someone doesn't understand that drunkenness can impair logic.
Also, he claims the government "monopolizes" road maintenance and construction, which "robs us of our rights to travel freely." Such a heavy-footed conclusion, indeed. Perhaps it's the fact that the state operates the public roads, or the idea that privately operated road maintenance would be insanely expensive, but Holman fails to realize that such a "monopoly" of the road lets us travel quite freely indeed â"â" free of constant congestion and free of dilapidated roads, that is!
Kevin Hsu
Carmel Valley
Palin and the future under ObamaCare
While it may be months before we all find out what is the real agenda behind Sarah Palin choosing to resign her position as governor of Alaska, the reaction from the left has been amusing and telling. Even Marie Cocco, writing for the liberal propaganda newsletter known as the Washington Post, couldn't help throw an insult into nearly every paragraph of her token piece on the sexism that runsˇrampant in the left's attack of Ms. Palin ("When did savage sexism become acceptable?" July 8).
I think I know where some of the left's blind hatred of Ms. Palin may originate. It took a few viewings of her press conference announcing her resignation for it to become apparent. Ms. Palin, in front of news cameras and with a guaranteed world audience, spoke honestly, from the heart and without a Teleprompter. Since the Messiah is incapable of doing the same, this heretic from Alaska shall be scorned.
Also, a quick word to Gene Doiron (Letters, July 8), concerned about "expendable lives" under Obama's health care plan. It is called "eugenics," and it's part of the Progressive/Socialist dream. Embrace it, for it will be the future under ObamaCare.
Robert Gladden
Oceanside
Way too much Michael Jackson
Jean Dausset and Michael Jackson died in June 2009.
Few knew of Mr. Dausset. Few did not know of Mr. Jackson.
Michael Jackson's contributions to the entertainment world were huge. His questionable behavior was, hopefully, disturbing to his many fans.
In 1980, Jean Dausset shared the Nobel Prize in medicine with two others for their work on genetically determined structures on cell surfaces that regulate immunological reactions. Dausset's discovery in 1958 of the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) tissue system allowed doctors to verify compatibility between donor and receiver for an organ transplant.
The homage paid to Michael Jackson far outweighed his contributions to the human race.
Sadly, the opposite is true for Jean Dausset.
Dick Nash
Escondido
What to do during a noise complaint
I've been following the continuing story of the Francine Busby fundraiser and must preface my comments with the fact that I am a liberal, pro-gay, pro-choice registered Democrat. Here is what I have learned in my 57 years about what to do if I am having an event at my home with someone using a megaphone to address 30 people and the police arrive in response to a noise complaint:
1. When the officer asks me who I am and what my birth date is, I don't give him a lot of lip and turn and try to walk away.
2. Instead, I respectfully give the officer the information he requests so that he can establish what is going on. Period. With apologies to Shakespeare: "Me doeth think Francine and friends doeth protesteth too much."
Terry Hunefeld
Encinitas
Let voters ratify public employee contracts
Re: Financial problems in the state of California and political subdivisions thereof in county, city, district, etc.: A common problem re-elected office holders have has been "people-pleasing" constituents with the aim to help/aid the elected officer get re-elected (understandable). But when it has come to pay, benefits and retirement plans, etc., regarding employee and public employee unions â"â" ouch!
To counter this influence, amend the state constitution to require that all public employee contracts regarding pay, benefits of any kind, at any level â"â" state, county, city, district, etc. â"â" shall be submitted for ratification to the voters of that political jurisdiction, with the specifics of all aspects financial â"â" present and future pay and all benefits â"â" be spelled out. Had such an amendment been already in place (years ago), we would not be having the budget problems we now have.
Bryan Shultz
Oceanside
Saving water requires creative thinking
Are we really serious about water conservation? I would like to think so. But when we unnecessarily flush more than 200 million gallons of water down the drain daily in California (and more than 2 billion gallons daily in the United States of America), one has to ask the obvious question: "Where's the leadership and creative thinking?" (These figures are not precise, but considering population numbers, current toilet water consumption, etc., it's a reasonable estimate).
Yesterday, while talking with a Vallecitos Water District representative, I was told there is now available on the market a toilet flushing valve that can be operated in either an "up" or "down" motion. "Up" is used for liquid only and operates on about one gallon. "Down" is for solid waste and uses the standard three gallons. A simple device like this could account for the savings above. I presume it could be retrofitted into existing toilets. The payback would be a matter of months, not years.
Now, who has the clout and savvy to make this happen?
William Bing
San Marcos
Some uninsured choose to be so
I have read so many letters stating how wonderful government-sponsored health insurance would be for us Americans that I have to write another letter. Yes, it would be nice if Medicaid could cover all the people who were too poor and too sick to provide it for themselves. But we cannot provide health care for those who are not citizens, and we cannot provide health care for those who can provide health insurance for themselves and choose not to do so!
A good number of those who are "uninsured" choose not to have health insurance because they are young and believe nothing terrible will ever happen to them. Then there are those who do not wish to spend the money (even on a high-deductible major medical plan), but would rather spend it on a large-screen television, etc.
Do you like statistics? Eighty-nine percent of middle-aged American women have had a mammogram, compared with less than 72 percent of Canadians.
More than 54 percent of American men have had a PSA test , compared with less than 1 in 6 Canadians (16 percent).
One-third of Americans (30 percent) have had a colonoscopy, compared with 5 percent of Canadians.
The system needs help, but not rationing.
Deanna Kaskin
Escondido
Michael Jackson story over the top
The front page story ("Remembering the times," July 8) on the Michael Jackson funeral was bad enough without the writer interjecting this nugget: "How could someone who … reached musical heights no person has ever touched be as human as the rest of us?" What?
Would such musical heights be the repetitive, banal chord structures of "Billie Jean"? The one-riff drone of "Beat It"? The adolescent self-indulgence of "Bad"? Each of these songs â"â" indeed, Jackson's entire success in the 1980s â"â" was due to the MTV phenomenon, by which a lot of mediocre music was saved from well-deserved obscurity with clever video production that was often much more creative and sophisticated than the music itself. Jackson's work was no exception.
I'm certain that in Western musical history, you can find quite a few composers who have reached heights of musical inspiration that go well beyond the trifles of Mr. Jackson's work, which, when measured against that of any of the great composers, or of other artists, such as the Beatles, is thin, indeed.
Journalists should give him his due as an entertainer and self-promoting freak show, but should cease with the beatification.
John Musser
Vista
Bully pulpit will be needed
The pharmaceutical industry's latest promise to cooperate with health care reform is the same made and broken for over 60 years.
This one is to give discount savings up to $80 billion over several years, plus $50 million for the infirm.
Meanwhile, behind the scenes, these industries are spending, this year so far, $66.5 million for lobbyists to bribe Congress to pass their plan that would in essence free them to continue bilking "uninformed" taxpayers.
What these industries, along with Republicans, fear most is a "Medicare"-type plan because it would force competition and make it nearly impossible for them to continue their old shell game.
Sixty votes are needed to pass a bill, but with big money going to members of the finance committee, and with Republicans voting "no" on any bill not for war, a Medicare-type plan appears unlikely, unless President Obama, realizing there will be no bipartisanship, uses his bully pulpit to insist Congress pass a plan close to the "single payer" plan they have.
If it's good enough for Congress, surely it's good enough for the people who pay for theirs.
Delores Feicht
Fallbrook
U.S. health care system is broken
Our health care system is broken, and American families and businesses urgently need a solution.
America ranks lower than some Third World countries. Why is this? Forty-six million Americans are uninsured. When they can't pay, who does? Premiums are growing four times faster than wages.
Half of all personal bankruptcies stem from medical expenses. It is cheaper to have preventive health care than catastrophic care.
Who covers the poor people?
President Obama has challenged Congress to pass real health care reform in 2009 that upholds three basic principles: It reduces costs by improving efficiency and investing in preventive care, cuts out the fat cats insurance providers and ensures quality, affordable care for every American.
Congress must pass real health care reform in 2009. I lost a job, and along with it went health coverage. If it wasn't for the free clinic, I'd be dead. This is the best care I ever had.
Barry Revell
Oceanside
Chargers stadium in Oceanside â"â" again
The first time the Chargers talked about moving to Oceanside was to push San Diego and Chula Vista to commit to a location, and the majority vote of the Oceanside City Council got hooked into this sucker play by the Chargers owners.
Now that Chula Vista has had to drop out and Los Angeles is very interested in having the Chargers back, the ownership of the Chargers is going to use the old sucker play again on the Oceanside Council by saying they are "thinking" about Oceanside as a location.
Of course there isn't enough space and parking needed for a stadium at the old drive-in movie, the airport is directly to the west, and FAA will not allow an over-two-story structure to be built at that end of the airport. … The stadium would be surrounded by three old residential communities, would have only Highway 76 and all its stoplights for access, and absolutely no train connection at all.
Not many problems to overcome? Come on, Chargers owners, please use another city as a tool to sweeten the L.A. pot. As the old saying goes: "Fool me me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me!"
Gary Myers
Oceanside
Israel alone in evil neighborhood
Re: Sorab Ghandhi, Letters, May 2: Israel's detractors discredit Israel by focusing on death tolls of retaliatory strikes, forgetting Israel dropped warning pamphlets before striking. Hamas prevented evacuations, using civilians as human shields to gain world sympathy.
Ignorance is not security. Along with Israeli casualties were 257 wounded. Considering Arabs outnumber Israelis 60 to 1, Israeli losses are equally as devastating. If Hamas obtains missiles capable of reaching further into Israel, they'll use them. When Hamas is capable of striking at Israel's nuclear arsenal, they will without concern for the resulting nuclear holocaust. Israel is alone in a gigantic "neighborhood of evil" and Iran vowed to "wipe them off the face of the earth."
"The freest Arabs, Christians, Jews and Muslims in Mideast are Israelis" (http://www.middle-east-info.org/gateway/arabsinisrael/index.htm). Arabs in Israel worship freely, have equal rights under the law, vote for whoever they want, are entitled to the same education and are members of the Israeli parliament and ministers of government.
Ghandhi's letter of June 28 was incorrect. Netanyahu accepts a disarmed and internationally supervised state, and Palestinians must recognize the Jewish state.
If Arabs put down their weapons today, violence would cease to exist. If Jews put down their weapons today, Israel would cease to exist.
Dolores Wiener
Oceanside
