News-Record.com

When the media report on nursing homes, more likely than not the stories will be negative, focusing on patient abuse and poor living conditions. That is not an accurate representation of the majority of nursing homes, which provide the elderly with excellent medical care and a quality of life that can no longer be given at home.

Over the past two years, nursing homes nationwide have been working to improve accountability through the Advancing Excellence in America's Nursing Homes campaign. This is the first national effort to measure quality by setting clinical and organizational goals.

Participating nursing homes pledge to focus on eight goals that include improved pain management, assessing patient and family satisfaction and consistent assignment of staff to patients to ensure continuity of care. If you have a loved one who is either currently in a nursing home, or may be in the future, you should research nursing homes you are considering and ask if they participate in the Advancing Excellence in America's Nursing Homes campaign. To learn more, go to www.nhqualitycampaign.org.

Kelly Foley
Greensboro

That was a heart-warming story in Sunday's paper by Cheryl Wittenauer about what's happened to pit bulls seized from Michael Vick's dogfighting property. I thought those dogs would have been euthanized because nobody would want them. I'm so glad I was wrong.

A number of compassionate dog lovers rescued most of the pitiful animals and took them to safe places to await foster families. I don't care for pit bulls but I'm glad some people believe they can be rehabilitated and are proving they can be. Also glad that Vick has agreed to pay for the dogs' care as part of his plea deal. His name could have gone down in the halls of NFL fame, but instead he will be remembered for infamy.

This is a story made to order for a movie with one of the dogs (maybe Uba) as the hero and a former NFL player as the villain, on the order of "101 Dalmatians" — only better because it is a true life story of good triumphing over evil.

Vivian Robinson
Jamestown

In Elizabeth Jones' letter (Jan. 26), she says that President Bush is doing a wonderful and moral job.

I believe to deceive is a sin. No president has deceived the American people more.
She also condemns liberals for withholding the needs of our troops. If the president did not deceive the American people about WMDs, we would not have troops in Iraq to support.

Paul Moscato
Siler City

I am a social work student at UNCG. Currently, I work in the mental health field, and last year I did a research project on the quality of care individuals in the mental health system are receiving. Thus I feel uniquely qualified, as well as obligated, to comment on the mental health crisis in North Carolina.

A major concern is the difficulty many find obtaining and retaining services. Many insurance providers place a cap on the number of visits to a therapist or substance abuse treatment provider. This is disservice to those who have mental health issues.

Would we accept it if insurance providers told someone dying of cancer they could only receive chemotherapy six times before they would have to pay out of pocket? I think not!

It is the stigma that society places on mental illness as well as the lack of seriousness we attribute to it that keeps many from receiving proper care. As a society, we must do more to erase the stigma placed on mental illness and inform others about the failing system.

Johnette Walser
Winston-Salem

Adult working students are not given a fair chance at an education. The majority of adult students attending college work full time and many have children and family obligations. As a working student, I have only been offered financial aid in the form of student loans, which require repayment. Ten percent of UNCG's student enrollment is adult students.

Throughout my college career, I have come in contact with students privileged enough to not need to work while attending school. Most, however, do not and will not have that opportunity.
I have also noticed that certain minorities often get offered financial aid that doesn't require repayment. This seems unfair to non-minorities.

If the government would offer more funding to students, there would be more adults attending college. It appears that those of us who do not fall into one of the previously mentioned categories are forced to work full time while incurring debt in order to support ourselves through college
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Our legislators should take a hard look at students who put themselves through school and how much debt they incur while doing so.

Stacie Hazelwood
Greensboro

The following is a Counterpoint.

By Charles J. Jones

There are two primary reasons the availability of water supply in this area will remain marginal: Excessive bureaucracy and inter-basin transfer rules.

For example, the Piedmont Triad Regional Water Authority inherited the Randleman Reservoir from the Corps of Engineers. The reservoir and dam had received final approval for construction as a flood control and water supply reservoir. But Congress chose not to fund the project, so it was dropped by the Corps of Engineers, which gave all the preliminary engineering and other information to the Water Authority.

The reservoir then was designated as a water supply lake, the size was reduced, and Water Authority proceeded to seek approval for construction. Hoops were jumped through and state and federal bureaucratic impediments navigated for 10 years before approval for construction was received.

Millions were spent during this decade. The cost of merely getting a reservoir approved is formidable.

The inter-basin transfer rules, as they are currently interpreted, further complicate the problems of constructing a reservoir. Water from a new supply lake must be used and discharged in the same sub-basin. Often the supply water is in one sub-basin and the potential users in another. In most cases users exist in more than one sub-basin and an inter-basin transfer permit is not automatic.

Gov. Mike Easley, meanwhile, has implored North Carolina citizens to conserve water. Conservation is important but is not the ultimate answer to the supply problem.

Remove the unnecessary impediments and inter-basin transfer rules, and municipalities and governing entities will construct needed water-supply facilities on their own, as they have done in the past.

The writer lives in Jamestown.

Some of you have complained about crude comments on this blog and have provided some examples in particular from the poster, The Liberal Conservative.

I'm not sure I would classify all of his recent comments as objectionable, but many clearly are.

He is not alone. I continue to be amazed at how the Web seems to prick some of our baser instincts.

And, try as we might, we continue to have trouble convincing some people that adults who behave like children do little to enrich civil discussion on the blogs.

In one case, we traced a series of offensive comments to a teenager who had assumed his parents' sign-on during summer vacation from school.

In another a poster threatened to blow up the civil rights museum and made himself the object of an SBI iinvestigaton. (He publicly apologized on my blog.)

In still other cases, it appears that grown-ups seem somehow emboldened by the Internet to throw mud and insults.

We try to keep an eye on all of the comments but it's hard to do around the clock on several threads per day, seven days a week.

Please behave. Please remember that name-calling does not substitute for a logical argument, nor is it witty or entertaining.
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Please remember that you don't flatter yourself -- that such comments are the blogger's equivalent of saying something about somebody's mama because he's at a loss for anything substantive to say.

And please report objectionable comments and we'll delete them as soon as possible.

In the case of repeat offenders, we will ban them from commenting altogether.

PS. No, I am not The Liberal Conservative.

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The following is a Counterpoint:

By David P. Haxton

It is that time of life -- looking back; reflecting on fascinating situations lived, interesting personalities met, exciting places seen; reading obituaries. Three interesting people died last month:

• I met Ed Hillary in New Zealand in 1956 at the World Congress of Junior Chamber International; the great hero of Mount Everest was a speaker. As secretary general of JCI, I sat next to him. In the early 1980s in New Delhi, he was high commissioner (ambassador) for New Zealand and I was regional director for UNICEF.

We met often at diplomatic functions, but more importantly we met in unofficial gatherings at his residence or ours. A few years before, he lost his wife and daughter in an air crash in Nepal. His neighbors at home, the Mulgrews, helped him through his grief. Peter Mulgrew was his long-time companion in adventures and replaced him a few years later on a flight over Antarctica that crashed and killed all on board. Ed then reached out to that family. He was a straightforward type, easy to talk with, unpretentious, with a great sense of humor.

• P.K. (Pramod Karan) Sethi was famous as the joint inventor of the "Jaipur foot." He created the prosthetic device using local flexible materials at his center in Rajasthan, India. The main beneficiaries were those suffering from leprosy, who often lose toes, fingers and limbs as the disease reduces sense of feeling. Later, those wounded by land mines in Afghanistan during the Soviet invasion increased demand.

His center created other devices to help, for instance, injured women to feed their children, attend their families, and for men to manipulate hand tools. We worked with his center to help improve market outreach and obtained some recognition for it and him from Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

• Suharto was the former authoritarian president of Indonesia. Like many Javanese, he used only one name. He was a leading general in the resistance to Japan during World War II. I met him a number of times. While realizing his political approach, my task was to help to improve services for children. He was supportive through an innovative method of financing controlled by his office, bypassing troublesome parliaments and bureaucrats with grants directly to villages.

The passing of these men is normal. They were all in their 80s. It is something I shall need to get used to.

The writer lives in Greensboro.

In today's society, an increasing number of grandparents are raising their grandchildren. I support this as long as it is in the child's best interest.

I am in my early 50s, a wife, mother and an undergraduate student at UNCG. This situation is relevant to me because a couple of months ago my whole life changed when my grandchildren came to live with me. Thus, I can relate to the struggles of other grandparents in my situation.

There are so many things that all parents or guardians have to be aware of, such as computers, cell phones and text messaging, transportation, helping with homework (if you can), and attending extracurricular activities. Raising grandchildren at an older age demands much more mental, physical and emotional energy.

Resources are available to grandparents and guardians, and I would like to share some: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Medicaid, food banks, Agency on Aging, universities and colleges, churches, United Way, support groups, and Social Services. These and other agencies can be a tremendous support as we struggle to do our best for these wonderful children.

Pamela Id-Deen
Greensboro

As a citizen of the United States of America and a member of "We the People," I would like to apologize to the world community for the shameful and disgraceful behavior of President George W. Bush and the U.S. Congress -- without whose disregard for the "rule of law" none of this behavior would have been possible.

Michael E. Badgett
Mount Airy

Courtesy of Mary Lynn Needham
Students from Ms. Needham’s class raised the most money at Eastern Middle to help restore the Nativity at Greensboro College.

The Nativity scene at Greensboro College was vandalized beyond repair last year, and the students at Eastern Guilford Middle School showed great commitment to raise money for a replacement.

On Dec. 17, collection containers provided by a parent were placed in every classroom. Students and staff were encouraged to place change or other donations in the containers. The class that collected the most money during the two-week period was Ms. Needham's class.

The total amount raised by Eastern Middle students was $500. Needham's class traveled to Greensboro College on Jan. 24 and presented the check to Craven Williams, president of Greensboro College, during the Founder's Day Ceremony.

The students were later treated to lunch provided by the Stoney Creek McDonald's restaurant.

We are all very proud of the dedication demonstrated by our students, staff, parents and community.

Mary Lynn Needham
Gibsonville

I urge the Guilford County school board to encourage the growth of programs such as Campus Life. My son joined this club at his school. It functions as a Bible study group, coupled with activities. Because our religious faith is important to our family, I was pleased he was given this opportunity.

Campus Life sponsors "Friday Night Out." This awesome event could be used throughout our community as a model for other youth groups. The young people were in a positive setting that allowed them to learn about the Bible and to connect the lessons to teamwork, leadership, positive communication, respect and accountability.

When I asked why programs like this aren't in other schools, I was given a variety of reasons, but one stands out: "Schools aren't supposed to combine religion with education." I have a hard time with this because our country was founded on religious freedom — both the freedom to practice religion and the freedom to not have it forced on us. If religious clubs or programs are going to make a positive difference in children's lives, then our schools should consider making changes that will allow, but not force, them to meet just as other clubs are allowed.

Tabitha McGeachy
Greensboro

Is Max Borders really telling us that it is not necessary to recycle? (op-ed column, Jan, 13).
He writes that we should not worry about recycling because we have plenty of space. New York City exports all of its 22,500 tons of daily trash to places like Virginia and Pennsylvania because there is no more space. While I am sure that Ted Turner's ranch, as Borders argues, could hold our garbage, I doubt that Turner, nor any of us, would want that. It's a phenomenon called NIMBY — not in my backyard — and it represents our distaste for nasty things in our midst.

Contrary to what Borders would have us believe, garbage is nasty, poses health risks and should be reduced. Rather than suggesting that we simply need more landfills, we should be thinking about how we can change our habits and eliminate waste before it is generated.

Furthermore, any recycling vs. landfilling cost-analysis should include the cost of environmental damage from the initial mining, transport and manufacture of those now ready-for-disposal resources that Borders thinks erroneously are in endless supply.

Sallie Lacy
Frankfort, Germany

The writer is a Greensboro native.

Just the other day I decided to pay a visit to a nursing home in which I used to work. As I walked down the hall, one of the nurses looked at me with an extremely annoyed expression and asked, "What are you smiling about?" It was then that I realized that having a smile on my face in a nursing home placed me in the minority.

So many of the employees seem to hate their jobs and that affects how they treat residents. Not all residents are easy to get along with, but employees have a responsibility to be both professional and cordial despite the attitudes of their consumers. Some residents have a difficult time making the transition to a nursing home setting. A friendly staff makes the transition more pleasant for everyone.

I happen to think a nursing home is one of the most appropriate places to wear a smile. Long-term care staff should be aware that it is not enough to be knowledgeable about their jobs. It's just as important to build rapport and be friendly, even on the most demanding workday.

Porscha Martin
Mayodan

At a gathering of neighbors, I asked everyone how often they took time for silence. The responses were revealing. Several said they "don't have time for silence." A couple said silence was "scary." When I asked why, they said it made them anxious or nervous, not knowing what to think or feel. Another said silence was an attribute of oppressed people, since they live in fear of the taking of their lives or property if they speak out.

Isn't the world noisy! In our home, car, outside in the fresh air, at work, in shopping centers — noise is invading our need for quiet time. Seeking some quiet time, if only a few minutes daily, can recharge our inner batteries, make us pause before acting, rest our mind, restore our souls. When someone says, "I don't have time for that type of foolishness," that strikes me as a danger signal. People who have no time for silence are usually the ones who feel powerless (trying to solve problems they don't own) and have let their lives spin out of control.

We all need quiet time to examine our lives, to shut the world out. Poet Christina Rossetti wrote: "Silence is more musical than any song."

Richard Morgan
High Point

With no prior notice of its closing, Lowes Food Store has moved on to "the big time," vacating its Gibsonville store on Tuesday.

This leaves residents with no easily accessible neighborhood store. Now, it's back to the same old "Gas and Go to the Mall" scenario (no provisions ever made for bikers or walkers).

While shopping at Lowes recently, several people stopped to comment on how angered and disappointed they were to be left high and dry. One lady asked me if I could keep the store open so people could shop there. Although kidding, she was at the same time quite serious.

Are there any local farmers reading this? Come to the meeting and vote for a co-op here. I am certain that residents would welcome fresh produce weekly and enthusiastically support their own store here.

Gibsonville has been working toward revitalizing its downtown area, and to lose its major food store after so many years is a low blow.

Shouldn't a community of 6,000 (plus many more drive-throughs) have the right to a quality store?

If you want a store, come to the meeting at 7 p.m. today, Gibsonville Town Hall, Main Street. Bring your friends!

Catherine Dinges
Gibsonville

Given the recent rise in crime in our beloved city and the recent Martin Luther King holiday, I feel it is important to stir up within us all a call to action. I am speaking to all of our city's residents since no one is exempt and no neighborhood is safe.

I dare you to think about the young man who died on the side of a highway for pieces of stolen jewelry last month. Who or what failed him? How did his ambitions, no matter how fallible, manage to go unchecked?

This recent surge of bloodletting must stop. Was it gangs, drugs, blacks, Hispanics? Where in town? I hear people ask. Martin Luther King said, "I am sure that none of you would want to rest content with the superficial kind of social analysis that merely deals with the effects and does not grapple with the underlying causes."

Traces of our collective, apathetic conscience have unavoidably begun to show.

If we all don't start to lend our talents, abilities, capabilities and credibility to bring about substantial empathetic growth through strong, persistent and determined action, then we have no right to complain when it's our home, our child or our own sense of well-being that is violated.

Glenn Robinson
Greensboro

On Tuesday, the Greensboro City Council will hold a second reading on a rezoning case where facts seem to be ignored. Concern for wetlands is one of three definitive issues concerned citizens have raised.

A parcel of the property under consideration contains a 1-1/2-acre spring-fed pond that remains full at times when our city lakes are at frighteningly low points. The headwater for a creek that feeds Greensboro's water supply is slightly south and west of this property, but the stream runs through it. This creek has never dried up.

Are these wetlands? In 2002, a proposal to rezone land adjacent to the parcel with pond and creek was withdrawn on the basis of wetlands. The Corps of Engineers cannot come on the property unless invited by the landowner.

Did I mention that former Sen. Bob Shaw and wife Commissioner Linda Shaw are the landowners? I was at the zoning commission meeting in 2002, seated next to Sen. Shaw. Oh, by the way, the proposed developer of this property is County Commissioner Mike Winstead.

How fair is our local government?

Colin Kelly
Greensboro

It is hard to believe that less than nine months ago the Zoning Board and the City Council realized how much the residents of Garden Lakes Estates wanted the entrance to our subdivision to remain as it is now and voted to keep it so. We were delighted.

We were stunned recently to find we will be going before the City Council again. Why is it the developers cannot understand the simple little two-letter word "no"?

When my husband and I moved into this subdivision in 1960, it was just starting to grow. My husband built several houses here in the '60s, and more than 60 percent of the people who bought the houses still live in them. We are a nice, settled community and we want it to stay that way. Across New Garden Road, there is a growing mall with everything anyone could want. A Walgreens and a bank at the entrance on Garden Lakes Drive would be a drastic change and very much unneeded and unwanted.

Hopefully, the developers will understand the word "no" this time and leave us alone to enjoy our subdivision.

Shirlee Rothrock
Greensboro

We hear so much of what is wrong with our schools and what's wrong with this person in the school system.

I would like to tell everyone about a teacher from Ferndale Middle School who went above and beyond for a student. Kate Finch, my son's sixth-grade teacher, got my son excited about reading, and he had read all of the Harry Potter books except the last one. Ms. Finch was also reading the same book and promised Bradley he could borrow hers when she finished.
Instead of making him wait until she finished, she went, on her own time, to the public library and borrowed the book with her own library card for my son.

That is what is good about Guilford County Schools -- teachers who care. Please pay these teachers who inspire our children.

Andy Turner
High Point

Recently, I heard Todd Oakley, an associate pastor of Gate City Vineyard, speak at Family Harvest Outreach on West Market Street. I believe he and his wife, Christina, are about to make a difference in the lives of Greensboro youth.

In pointing out the misconceptions we carry concerning how adolescents are influenced, he named media and peers as fifth; significant other older adults, such as aunts, uncles and grandparents, as second; and parents, leading by example, as No. 1. Teachers, band directors, coaches and other youth leaders are more influential in the lives of adolescents than media or peers.

It takes an entire community of people, caring and loving, to raise our children. This couldn't be more crucial in today's world. I believe this is how the gangs in our area will be left without new recruits.

I commend Todd and Christina for the light and love they are shining.

Rose Daniels
High Point

The number of young adults who vote in this country is troubling. The percentages of people who vote have changed every election except among young adults; the percentage of 18- to 24-year-old voters always has been low.

The U.S. Census Bureau reported that in the 2004 election, only 46.7 percent of people in this age group voted.

I cannot predict the future, but I know that whichever way the election goes, it will have a profound effect on my life and my future. I plan to go out and vote as a result. If it is going to affect me, I want a say in it. My hope is that more young adults will feel the same and vote.

So, don't sit at home and say how much you hate who was elected. Get up, go out and vote.

You hear it all the time that one vote makes a difference, but if more of us actually vote, it's not just one more, and that makes all the difference.

Jennifer Proctor
Greensboro

My health insurer recently expanded its coverage to include total payment of Medicare as well as the usual covered items.

Their new PFFS (private fee for service), USA Care, means the physician does not contact Medicare at all.

less paperwork for the doctor, right?

So, why can't I find a doctor to accept USA Care? Did progress skip Greensboro doctors?

Dorothea C. lamson
Greensboro

I know a man who gets only $600 a month to live on. His heating bill was $212 one month when he had his thermostat sitting on 68 degrees.

Two hundred dollars goes to buy groceries each month. That leaves $200 for water, lights and a few other necessities, like gas. We live in a free country -- the best in the world -- but it is getting harder and harder for people to live in so-called comfort.

God bless all those who live in cold houses and cannot turn up the heat because they still need to pay the other bills.

Iris Newby
Eden

The following is a Counterpoint:

By Guy Pierce

As an assisted-living facility owner-operator, I am saddened by the recent news that a local home was forced to close.

My sadness is not that a troubled home was shut down, but that the vast majority of honest, hardworking and, indeed, caring caregivers such as myself and my staff are facing guilt by association -- and the fact we could all be facing these same issues.

The problem is funding, a topic no one wishes to tie to good care. For those of us who choose to provide care and compassion to the aged who cannot afford private, high-end facilities, we are between the proverbial rock and hard place.

The General Assembly sets the rules and laws we must follow. They also set the rates we can charge. Unfortunately, payment levels have never equaled service rendered; annual cost reports required by law from assisted-living facilities to justify our funding needs are ignored. For example, my costs over the past three years have increased by 17 percent, yet payments for those services have increased by only 8 percent. It doesn't take a nuclear scientist to figure out that our industry is in dire straits.

Add to this the unfunded mandates of government in general (minimum-wage increases, which my staff deserves!) and it is easy to see how problems like those mentioned with Friendship Care get started.

We can pat our regulators on the back and say well done in getting another bad facility closed, but that does not address the problem of a system that wants a service but is not willing to pay for it. There is no way care can be enhanced without paying for it. The allowed rate of $2.40 per hour (or $57.60 per day) can go only so far.

I hope those in our communities who are committed to helping assisted-living residents continue to receive the care they deserve will contact your local legislators and ask them to provide the appropriate funding. I do not want poorly operated homes to remain in business, but the only way the problem will get better is by providing the funding necessary to do the job.

Do we as a society have the willpower to do the right thing?

The writer lives in Summerfield.

I like to ride my bike at the Zone in Country Park. I have some suggestions to make it more fun for everybody who rides bikes this way.

What would help is to make the jumps more flowing and smooth and to remove lots of the sticks and rocks. On some of the jumps, there are fairly large ruts from running water, which makes the ramps bumpy and potentially dangerous. Work on the berms would also make clearing the jumps less challenging because the speed you need to carry is hard to maintain on the tiny banked turns.

Greensboro Parks and Recreation has money to spend on parks, and the small amount needed for this change would make a big difference to those who like to ride the Zone. I went there recently and there is a large mound of dirt just sitting, waiting to be moved and shaped. If this area is repaired, riders of all skill levels could challenge themselves at the Zone and have fun in the process.

Clay Millsaps
Greensboro

President George W. Bush continues to lie and not uphold the Constitution and something must be done now. Some say that since Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have less than a year left, why bother as they will be gone soon. The point is that Bush and Cheney have engaged in illegal acts and must be held accountable.

The people are tired of our out-of-control government, and impeachment hearings are needed. I, along with many others, demand impeachment proceedings be started at once!

Skeeter Durham
Greensboro

The columns "Clintons crank up the sleaze" (Thomas Sowell, Jan. 30), "Longing for a leader, not a politician" (Leonard Pitts, Jan. 31), "Voters are seeing the real Clintons" (George Will, Jan. 31) should be required reading by all potential voters for they show just how quickly we forget.

Google the following topics and one will find more required reading that also points up our forgetfulness:

1. Clinton's pardons
2. FBI files in the White House
3. Saudi investment in the Clintons
4. Clinton scandals
5. Selling the Lincoln Bedroom

These are just a few reminders of our memory lapses. We can expect more of the same if the Clintons are given the White House again. What has been sown will certainly be reaped again.

John W. Taylor
Greensboro

The House of Representatives, in an unusually bipartisan manner, voted 385-35 to pass the economic stimulus bill hammered out by President Bush and House Republican and Democratic leaders. The bill grants tax rebates to the working men and women of this country, and increases allowances for business depreciation. It is intended to increase consumer and business spending in an effort to lessen the impact of the impending recession.

Our congressman, Republican Howard Coble, voted no. His Web site quotes the congressman as calling the bill "deficit spending at its worst." This is from the same congressman who voted to create the massive federal deficits in the first place by cutting taxes for the wealthy and for the oil industry; who has voted consistently to increase the deficit year after year to fund the war in Iraq; who voted in favor of higher government spending by refusing to allow Medicare administrators to negotiate lower drug prices; and who would let Congress continue its unbridled spending by voting against limits on Congressional earmarks.

You keep writing editorials praising him for great constituent service. I think most of his constituents would rather have the rebate.

Pete Salassi
Greensboro

The following is a Counterpoint.

By Donna Newton

Your recent article about Martin Luther King Drive (Jan. 20) failed to reflect the decades of hard work and accomplishments of the neighborhoods along and surrounding it. These residents have worked to improve the area after it was devastated by white flight and the ensuing loss of services that continued in that area into the 1970s.

In the 1980s the neighborhoods gained rezoning to stop the rooming houses that had come about after white flight. Absentee investors had bought many houses in the community and had broken them up into rooms for rent. Many of these landlords showed no interest in who rented the rooms or in how the houses brought down the value of existing homes.

The neighborhoods were also instrumental in obtaining a number of HUD grants. Thanks to these efforts, builder and developer John Kavanaugh and Habitat for Humanity began to build in the community and another builder, Sandra Anderson, built 65 houses. The community went on to dedicate the Nettie Coad Apartments in 1990 and open the Community Resource Office in 1999.

Moreover, Ole Asheboro and the greater Southside community worked for passage of the $5 million bond referendum that was used to begin the Southside redevelopment. Self-Help is building several homes in the area and a number of diverse people are moving into the community and remodeling existing homes.

Another investor is working closely with Ole Asheboro in remodeling a beautiful old structure on MLK. To top it off, as your article did mention, New Zion Missionary Baptist Church is staying in Ole Asheboro and is going to expand. This is a vibrant community.

Finally, Ole Asheboro along MLK has an active association. It brings neighbors together in social and issue-based gatherings, and they are building a strong sense of community. They work with the police by reporting criminal activity and supporting enforcement. They also reach out to the broader Greensboro community. The association is an active member of the Greensboro Neighborhood Congress; it is providing input on the downtown greenway and it participates with the Greensboro Housing Coalition Annual Bus Tour. Ole Asheboro and Asheboro Square are participating as well in the Greensboro Bicentennial.
The long-time residents around MLK have overcome the oppression of a bygone era, and through a dedicated effort only few of us could endure, their neighborhoods are emerging as beautiful places to live.

Please give them the credit they deserve.

The writer lives in Greensboro and is advisor to the Greensboro Neighborhood Congress.

Enough of the CEO superintendency, please. Enough of only data-driven performance outcomes!

Let principals and teachers be leaders and educators, not only managers and test prep bureaucrats. Of course, that means giving them responsibility.

Enough of the love-in with business. Enough with patronizing community and parents.

More of building connection with community and parents. More of a school board acting democratically on behalf of the governed. More of a school system recognizing democracy ain't the problem but the solution. More of local media that keep the district's feet to the fire.

More of a world where schools are a public service on behalf of the children and not data-driven enterprises in search of corporate support.

Steve Flynn
Greensboro

I would like to think that the newsworthy Great Pyrenees was treated no better or worse than other animals at the county animal shelter (Carla Hughes, letter, Jan. 30).

In seeing to the welfare of homeless animals, the shelter probably hasn't the resources to bathe them (except to rid them of parasites) or to concern itself with the sensibilities of the larger public.

Kathleen Koestler
Greensboro

God help us. We have encountered a "perfect storm," an economic slowdown during a presidential campaign, with Curly, Larry and Moe (Bush, Reid, Pelosi) in charge of "fixing" things. Only Stephen King could have imagined such a scary scenario. Additionally, all of the candidates, even the ones who should know better, bolted into pander overdrive. So now we have the clowns most responsible for the problems claiming that they'll "fix" the problems.

Next came a mad dash to the microphones to promise us gifts. They've decided to "stimulate" our $13 trillion economy by infusing $150 billion (in May or June). That would be akin to loading 50 gallons of fuel to your DC 10 for a cross-country trip. Mrs. Clinton hated this idea in '02, but she seems to have "grown."

As usual, the Democrats want the tax rebates to go to people who don't pay income taxes, but not to the "rich" folks making $75,000! They also wanted an increase in food stamp spending as an "economic stimulus." When criticized for not fighting for the food stamp increase, Speaker Moe replied that the increase would amount to 10 cents per day!

These are the leaders of our country.

Tony Moschetti
High Point

I usually can find a lot to criticize regarding Guilford County Schools. On Jan. 22, during inclement weather, I can honestly say I have only praise. In years past, they have been condemned when forecasters were calling for large amounts of snow or ice and the schools were closed only to have nothing ever appear on the ground.

This time I traveled to work at 7:15 a.m. on clear roads. Thirty minutes later, only a short distance from work, I encountered slick roads. I realize any decision regarding delay or closing must be made very early since buses are already en route by 6 a.m. I believe the county did the very best it could with a difficult and unusual circumstance. School officials also kept parents as informed as possible. I have two children in the school system and received no fewer than four messages giving me up-to-date information.

Thank you to everyone doing their best to keep my children safe.

Susan Smoot
McLeansville

Most people in Guilford County and the rest of the country are patiently waiting to see who will win the presidential nomination for the Republican and Democratic parties. Most voters (not all) believe that in order to make their lives better, it is more important to concentrate on who the next president is going to be.

Unfortunately, this is only a small part of the equation. Electing a president is very important. However, our daily lives are impacted more by our elected officials here in Guilford County and in Raleigh.

It is time for local citizens to research the candidates and ask what these candidates have done since they have been in office. How many times have they raised your property taxes? How much in taxes do they make you pay every day on your food purchases, gas, cable, electric, home phone, cell phone, car and Direct TV?

It is time to pay more attention to our own backyard and educate ourselves about our elected officials, so we can put candidates in office who have an effect on our everyday lives in North Carolina.

Education is a great thing. You can change our country, state and county by being informed.

Don Wendelken
Summerfield

The following is a Counterpoint:

By Randy Yardley

I agree with Jeri Rowe ("Wanted: Guilford's next superintendent," Jan. 29), and I disagree with Erik Huey ("New board should choose superintendent," Jan. 29). Rowe says to hire a new superintendent for Guilford County Schools who is creative, is involved with the community, and knows that kids are not corporations. Rowe knows what he is talking about.

Huey wants the board to wait until he can step in and help make the decision as a new board member. Why wait?

The current board needs to show the leadership that it was elected to provide to the citizens of Guilford County. An interim superintendent may be needed until the next superintendent is hired, but nothing should stop the board from beginning the hiring process.

Certainly not an election for a new school board.

Terry Grier will be out of here by July 1 at the latest, and while he may devote his full efforts to the Guilford County Schools before that time, the current board members should not simply await his departure or their replacements.

The current board can start the process in whatever way it seems fit, but it should include citizen input in its attempts to identify the best candidates for this demanding job. The board should also recognize that it has interested and innovative leaders within the school system from a range of disciplines who should be consulted for input on the type of leader who can best do the job.

The process to find a new superintendent should begin today. Our students, our teachers and our staff don't need to wait.

The writer lives in Greensboro.

I have no wish to protest any reasonable effort to avoid a possible (probable?) recession. Nor do I wish to deprive the people, including me, of a windfall tax rebate. In retirement, my income is much less than the quoted eligibility amounts, so I think I would not return it.

I do strongly decry our continuing flagrant disregard of sound economic principles by deficit financing.

We, or rather our descendants, will face the consequences. How can we be so unfeeling of the situation in which or children, grandchildren, etc., will find themselves?

Historically in our economic cycles, we are due a recession or depression periodically. The solution, therefore, is not to keep borrowing our way out of them, thus piling up a much worse reckoning later.

We need to avoid stupid foreign entanglements and take our lesser lumps as they appear.

By nature I am no Jeremiah, but by profession I am trained to look at numbers realistically, and our present numbers -- individually and commercially and governmentally -- are really bad. We cannot continue to live on the future nor, in all decency, should we try to.

We are apparently determined to follow Louis XIV's (slightly paraphrased) pronouncement, "Apres nous, the deluge."

Dan W. Maddox
Greensboro

I read with interest and sadness the article Jim Schlosser wrote about Richard Love (Feb. 4). As with most people, everyone probably knew a different Richard Love.

Here is the builder my family knew. In the late 1960s, my mother found a house that Mr. Love was building that she wanted. My father said as long as the builder would take the responsibility of selling the house we were in at the time, we could buy the new one. On a handshake, my father and Richard agreed on the allowance he would give us based on the sale of our house. At the end of the day, Richard got more than expected for our house and, much to my father's surprise, he gave my dad a check for the difference. What an honorable man.

Joyce Robinson Shuman
Greensboro

The news desk seems to have missed this release: "On Friday (Feb. 1), SEANC (State Employees Association of North Carolina) continued its mission to protect state employees' retirement security by filing a lawsuit against state Treasurer Richard Moore for his failure to complete a public records request after 11 months.

"A Forbes magazine article, 'Pensions, Pols and Payola,' raised questions for SEANC members who were concerned about Moore's practice of hiring money managers who invest state pension money and are also campaign contributors. 'SEANC's mission is to protect state employees and that's what we're doing with this lawsuit,' said SEANC District 42 member Shirley Bell in The Charlotte Observer.

" 'This lawsuit isn't about politics, it's about following the law,' SEANC Executive Director Dana Cope said in an Associated Press article. 'After 11 months, the records we're requesting should be readily available.' "

Moore may call this lawsuit politically motivated. He will be correct. For several years he has been using his position to publicize himself and to collect money to promote his political ambitions.

Tom Kirby-Smith
Greensboro

You toss around that 90 percent of the people already have city water and sewer, but what about the 10 percent who don't? The only service that I will get for my $1,200-a-year in taxes will be garbage pickup that now cost $192 a year. No water or sewer lines go to my property, and to my knowledge there are no plans to install any.

Planning for Randleman Dam has been so pathetic that by the time water comes from Randleman Lake, capacity will be obsolete.

If my well or septic tank fail, what hoops will I have to jump through and what will it cost?
My taxes won't drop any to compensate me, will they?

Please remember when you toss around your 90 percent number that there are some county residents who will get hosed but not with water.

Rusty Holt
Greensboro

The following is a Counterpoint:

By Stuart Solomon

Oklahomans will long remember 2007 as the year in which our state faced the worst natural disaster in its history.

On Dec. 9 and 10, a devastating ice storm hit Oklahoma, downing power lines, several damaging countless trees and presenting enormous challenges for our company's electric customers and dozens of the communities we serve.

At the storm's peak, Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) had more than 250,000 customers without power in northeastern Oklahoma -- more than half of all our customers.

Almost 80 percent of the Tulsa metro area was without power in the aftermath of the storm.

Fortunately, help was soon on the way. More than 5,000 utility workers from across the country -- including the fine workers from Duke Energy -- traveled to Oklahoma and worked side-by-side with our crews to get the lights back on.

The Duke employees worked long, hard hours for several days, helping us to restore electric service to virtually everyone by Christmas.

Every Duke employee has our profound gratitude for their assistance during this crisis. We simply couldn't have restored service without their help and the help of so many other dedicated, committed utility professionals.

The fact that they spent so many days away from home, just before the holidays, makes us appreciate their assistance even more.

All of us at PSO thank the workers from Duke Energy for coming to our aid during this difficult time. Each of you has our heartfelt thanks and very best wishes for a safe and happy 2008.

The writer is president and COO of Public Service Company of Oklahoma.

I ask community leaders, faith-based organizations and caring adult men to partner with Big Brothers Big Sisters to advocate for the minds and hearts of boys in our community.

More than 100 boys are waiting for Big Brothers. Each young life is at a fork in the road. Our mentoring program is part of the solution to combating gang involvement and delinquent behaviors. A positive male role model who provides one-on-one attention, encouragement and positive experiences goes a long way in determining the choices a youth will make in his life.

Each time I read or see where a teen or young adult has victimized a member of our community, I wonder if he might have made a different choice if someone had cared enough to teach and demonstrate traits like respect, caring and self-worth.

Every man and organization with male members that reads this can be a part of the solution by volunteering to spend time with a boy or boys. We have a proven program. We have boys in need.

Now, if we can get the final critical piece, men, we will begin to solve this problem.

Robin Williams
Greensboro

The writer is program director, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Greensboro.

Public schools could be more useful to the public than we think and could be even more helpful to the students as well.

I believe that providing public library services after school hours, on weekends and holidays at some public high schools is a beneficial idea to Guilford County. While students should be the No. 1 priority, if the county could limit the hours to after school, weekends and holidays only, then it could work.

Not only will it provide more educational resources for the students, it will save the county money and residents precious time and gas. Who could disagree with this proposal?

Lauren Priestley
Greensboro

Regarding Sarah Jones' column, "Gun buyers should prove qualifications" (Feb. 6):

Her column does not address the real problem. As with most anti-gun articles, she states the "facts" based on those who disregard the laws of our country and use guns for illegal purposes.

Then she attacks law-abiding citizens and states that they are the problem. Once again, it is not the law-abiding citizen who goes through the proper channels to purchase a weapon who is the issue here. It is, and always has been, the people who fail to follow the law.

Anyone who wants to purchase a handgun in North Carolina has to go to his or her local sheriff's office and apply for a permit to purchase. They must also go through a background check, then they must actually meet "face to face" with the sheriff when they pick up the approved permit to purchase.

This permit must be presented to the dealer when the purchase is made. The people who take the time to get the permits, research the weapons and make a purchase already take the time to know how to effectively use the weapon.

If Jones wants to help stop the problem, stop letting criminals out of jail and enforce the current laws.

Richard Grimes
Troy

Recently I heard Daniel Ellsberg speak of Vietnam and of his exposing the "Pentagon Papers" containing the lies that led up to the Vietnam war. He drew comparisons between the Vietnam war and the Iraq war resulting from Bush administration lies, mimicking the kingly stance of President Nixon who said, "If the president does it, it's legal."

Our Founding Fathers did not want the U.S. president to have kingly powers. They created our Constitution, which forbids such an unaccountable royal figure. Our government officials, including the president, must take an oath to uphold our Constitution. But Nixon did not uphold his oath. Now Bush and Cheney have followed in Nixon's footsteps by wiretapping and spying on U.S. citizens illegally, defying the Constitution.

Ellsberg spoke of East Germany, where people lived, worked, had children, etc. They just didn't have democracy. Is that what Americans want? No! We want enlightened, truthful government without warmongers spreading fear and profiting from it.

Ruthless leaders holding our country in submission to the slavery of war, with its many tragic consequences, cannot prevail as long as there is just one Ellsberg alive to expose them. Just one brave man can turn the tide.

K.K. Mersereau
Greensboro

Americans were in for a real treat with the recent State of the Union address by President Bush. For those millions of Americans losing their houses in 2008, this must be a comfort. The thunderous applause from the liberal "untax and spend" Congress suggests they thought so, too.

Bush reaffirmed his conviction of the taxpayer keeping his money in order to invest in things like subprime loans. (Bush knows that we are smarter with our own money.) Without government oversight, there must be many other Ponzi schemes in store for us. More thunderous applause.

I'm also pleased he opposes congressional "earmarks," like Alaska's "bridge to nowhere" and "faith-based virtual realities." And then there's the granddaddy of all "earmarks," the Iraq "war," the centerpiece of American foreign policy.

The best part is that our president is staying the course: no new ideas, just more torture, more corruption, more debt and more Republican applause.

I don't know about you, but my $600 tax rebate sounds puny next to the $152 billion price tag. Instead of the $600 rebate, give me the same benefits that Congress enjoys. I think I could applaud as loudly as Congress for that deal.

Kurt Lauenstein
Greensboro

I am writing to express my partial disagreement with Andy Brod's column about globalization, "Thomas Friedman overstates extent of globalization" (Ideas, Jan. 27).

This column failed to acknowledge that the perception of globalization is as important as reality. When American workers feel that we are in a tough fight, we show up earlier, hustle harder and stay later.

Brod's discussion failed to note that globalization penetrates where employers and managers fail to justify their keep. One example is in technical support, essentially the same job as customer service, which pays $8 to $12 per hour. Tech support people, however, pull down twice as much per hour. When tech support people failed to justify their pay, their jobs moved overseas.

Another example is computer programmers. Technology made programming easier and required less training. Programmers, however, demanded big money for small jobs. Outsourcing has forced programmers to earn their keep.

America needs to extend the threat of globalization to protected industries. One area is investment banking, where American firms charge twice as much as European counterparts. These fees cut investments in jobs. Another area of complacency is sugar cane, where Florida barons rack easy profits by gouging food processors. This puts millions of good jobs at risk.

Joel Goldstein
Greensboro

Some time ago I wrote Jim Schlosser a letter telling him how much I enjoy and admire his writing skills. As usual, he did not accept my praise.

I propose that we declare him the new O. Henry of Greensboro and place a statue next to the statue of O. Henry in downtown Greensboro.

He is so modest he will probably never speak to me again if he finds out that I am making this proposal.

Jack Elam
Greensboro