Letters to the Editor, January 4

Published January 4, 2006 at midnight

Text size

More Letters to the Editor

A rat smelled at Xcel

I have followed all instructions from Xcel Energy. I have installed tight-fitting screens and tightly fitted them with plastic. All windows are covered, and I have had an Amana furnace installed. New thermal drapes, new carpet in living room with an insulated pad. If my house were any more airtight it would be unhealthy. Sometimes I wonder if my furnace is even going to come on. Yet my Xcel Energy bill was $104 in November and jumped more than 100 percent to $217 in December.

How could this be? I smell a rat.

Harold Higens

Denver

Conception begins life

Although the supreme "universal definition of life" is clear in the Scriptures, it is unlikely to be agreed on in a world of ever-changing tides of morality that idolizes "choice" ("When does life begin? Each of us must decide," letter, Dec. 20).

Terms such as "pro-life" and "pro-choice" were carefully chosen to woo the undecided, but as for the creator of life - Jehovah God - as well as those who cherish his laws, there is no question at all: Life is precious, a gift to be nurtured and cherished from its very beginning, at conception.

Veronica Jackson

Centennial

Lakewood's largess

Lakewood citizens should be aware of the generous city they fund. The Friday before Christmas was a legal holiday for the city of Lakewood. It's not a legal holiday for a bank, most metro-area cities, the county, the state, the federal government or the Postal Service, but for Lakewood employees it is a paid holiday, along with the Monday following Christmas. The personnel expenses for Lakewood's extra day off will cost taxpayers a conservative $135,000. This figure excludes overtime for the police.

It's nice to know that Lakewood residents will face another budget crisis and sales tax increase in about seven years based on now-obvious mismanagement.

Sharon Moody

Lakewood

Sad that U.S. can't have united front on war

It seems the Democrats in the House and Senate are more concerned with bringing down the president than they are in achieving success in Iraq and pursuing victory against terrorism. They act as if 9/11 never happened and that we should just forget about securing this nation against the greatest threat this country has faced since World War II.

They are full of criticism but offer nothing better than setting timetables for withdrawal or to just cut and run. What a tragedy it would be to leave Iraq before the Iraqis are able to govern themselves and provide security to their citizens.

The irony of it all is that when Bill Clinton was president, the Democrats accepted his dire predictions of what would happen if Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction went unchallenged. The Democratic Senate and House leadership joined in their assessment of the dangers the world faced if Hussein were to remain in power. Now they have amnesia, disavowing their own words and condemning the president.

Their hatred for President Bush is so deep that they are willing to jeopardize the security of this country to see him fail. How sad this country cannot present a united front in this fight for the future of this nation.

Whether you want to admit it or not this war is for the very survival of our way of life. And it will not end with victory in Iraq. Terrorist fanatics are being groomed and trained every day to give up their miserable lives to murder as many "infidels" as possible. Which scenario are you willing to accept - intercepting the terrorists before they can act or more 9/11s?

Ron Perkins

Littleton

Other drivers' lack of attention is infuriating

I would like to thank Mory Katz from the Response Insurance Group for pointing out that road rage exists ("Drivers need to take a deep breath, cool off," Dec. 21). I am sure someone needed to waste time on a study to figure that out. So, 37 percent of the population experiences road rage on occasion. What I would like to point out is they say nothing of the cause.

People talk of road rage as if there is no reason for it other than someone was angry because they got cut off one time. I have road rage, and I know what causes it: other people not paying attention. I barely miss two or three accidents a week. Sometimes two or three in a day depending on how much I drive.

People cut me off, they don't signal, they turn into the outside lane from the left side of a double turn lane. They simply aren't paying attention.

Some of them are just stupid, though. I had a lady slam on her brakes for a railroad crossing when the lights had just started flashing. If I had a bigger car I would have hit her. Luckily, I drive a Honda Civic that can stop rather quickly. Would you have road rage if this happened to you?

I used to say that if everyone would drive as I do, we wouldn't have this problem. It's a little misguided, but it is true. Since that will never happen, I have two requests: Follow the traffic laws and please pay attention! If you are not doing this, you are just being lazy.

Christopher Pierce

Lakewood

Buying American is the patriotic thing to do

Displayed on the rear window of my Jeep Grand Cherokee is the message, "Proud to own a USA automobile." (Please note, it does not say, "Made in America.")

My reason for feeling this way should be credited to my Slovenian-born stepfather, Tony, who came to this country in the early 1900s, and although uneducated, became a successful businessman. As a teenager in the early 1940s, I often witnessed discussions between Tony and some of his coal miner friends about various world governments. In every discussion, which often grew very heated, Tony stood up for this country, this government. I knew him as a 100 percent patriot.

Then, in the late 1950s, the Volks-wagen Beetle became popular and I told Tony I was considering the purchase of one. Boy, was I lectured about buying American-made products and how my purchase of a foreign-made car would negatively affect American workers. To this day I have never considered owning a vehicle with a foreign label, although I admire the style and quality of many.

Join me in a campaign to educate others concerning this issue. Readers can make their own messages along these lines by using self-adhesive letters available at stores selling office products. If you are driving a U.S. automobile, perhaps you can swing a few good Americans to becoming 100 percent patriots.

Dick Prosence

Meeker

Don't change signs

The idea of changing the signs at state border crossings - "Welcome to Colorful Colorado" - is the dumbest thing I have heard of ("Sign of times: State has eye on brand-new look," Business, Dec. 22). The suggested sign is much like a giant plastic credit card saying, "Come into our state and spend your tourist money." It is ugly.

The present sign is rustic. Colorado is one of the few remaining states that have a bit of the "Old West" flavor. Why does everything have to be changed to "modern art?" Please don't change the present signs. They are the first good view of what lies in store for the traveler. I have a feeling that native Coloradans will not appreciate the change.

Charles Avery

Byers

Too many willing to cede liberty for safety

I find it interesting that people who live in the boondocks and have nothing to fear from terrorists are so willing to give up their liberties in order to feel safe. The Dec. 23 "Tongue-in-cheek letter on deadly serious topic" by Don McComber of Centennial, pretending to be a terrorist, illustrates this perfectly.

People who really have something to fear from terrorism, such as those who live in large urban centers like New York and Los Angeles, voted overwhelmingly against George Bush in 2004 because they recognized that lashing out like a frightened, tough-talking, 8-year-old and giving up your civil liberties (what are we fighting for again?) only makes us less safe.

The hysteria and panic expressed in McComber's letter illustrates well the kind of faintheartedness displayed by many citizens in the wake of 9/11. The proper reaction to the terrorist attacks and the rogue executive branch that is blatantly trampling our civil rights is very simple: "Give me liberty or give me death!"

I hope that future elections show the door to the cowards in Congress who would so easily give up our liberties for an illusion of safety and short-term political gain. It's time to put some adults in charge who aren't going to react to intimidation by cowering inside a shell of false patriotism and lashing out at imagined enemies.

Charles Buchanan

Denver

If only Bush enjoyed FDR's wartime powers

I don't believe President Bush should be impeached any more than President Roosevelt should have been impeached, and FDR was a great deal more intrusive. The Bill of Rights took a vacation during World War II.

Roosevelt minimized attacks on the continental United States through martial law. Censorship, internment and wiretaps were used in a concerted effort to keep the homeland intact. Roosevelt understood the costs of losing a city or a harbor to a conventional attack. A nuclear strike today on Denver would be far more costly than Hurricane Katrina at $100 billion and climbing.

We're at war with Muslim extremists, not an identifiable island nation whose soldiers wear uniforms and dog tags. Our enemy is here getting an education in pyrotechnics and aviation from a top university at our expense. He wears no uniform and is shielded by our legal industry at the expense of the taxpayer.

Further erosion of the executive branch's powers to protect this nation would be a breathtaking betrayal of our families and of our economy. The contrasts between World War II and today's effort to protect our nation are stunning and worth some reflection. We had enough sanity then to fear and hate the enemy, not our government.

If the president possessed Roosevelt's identical war footing - power for power - today, this war would be a distant memory instead of an expensive, prolonged, daily reminder of our national impotence.

Ron Rizzo

Littleton

Shame on Fort Collins

What a shock to read on the morning of the fourth day of Hanukkah that the city of Fort Collins deemed it too late to display a menorah. Even more shocking is the fact that it took an Australian rabbi to make the request ("No permanent public spot for menorah in Fort Collins - for now," Dec. 28).

Shame on the citizens of Fort Collins for not appealing the city's policy sooner. I've been a resident of Highlands Ranch for nearly 10 years and have always enjoyed the menorah display. As a member of a smaller Jewish population here, I applaud Highlands Ranch for observing our holiday along with its Christmas lights and decorations.

Liz Holzemer

Highlands Ranch

Subscribe to the Rocky Mountain News